Product Description

THE SEEDS OF LOVE completes a trilogy familiar to many careers: the tentative debut, the fully realised follow-up, and the grandiose third album. Four years in the making, it bears all the scars of struggle and indecision and is a fascinating account of a band torn between taking shelter in an MOR cocoon and fighting the zeitgeist that threatens to consign the band to the past.
"Badman's Song" opts for safety, reveling in a sophisticated lethargy. "Sowing the Seeds Of Love" is an unashamed Beatles pastiche that predates Oasis' "All Over the World" by almost a decade, and the solemn "Woman in Chains" features Phil Collins whilst also introducing Oleta Adams. "Year of the Knife" is perhaps the focal point of the tension. Its admirable flamboyance makes for more fun than could be expected from a half-live, three-part, seven-minute swaggering rock & roll track packed with guitar solos. Each track is a five-minute-plus mini-drama with moments of delicacy and discomfort, restraint and excess, inspiration and creative exhaustion. As the last album to feature Curt Smith, it is a fitting end to an era. The 1998 remastered edition includes four bonus tracks.

Track Listing

1. Woman In Chains - Tears For Fears, Oleta Adams
2. Bad Man's Song
3. Sowing The Seeds Of Love
4. Advice For The Young And Heart
5. Standing On The Corner Of The Third World
6. Swords And Knife
7. Year Of The Knife
8. Famous Last Words
9. Tears Roll Down
10. Always In The Past
11. Music For Tables
12. Johnny Panic And The Bible Of Dreams

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #32112 in Music
• Released on: 1999-06-28
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Extra tracks, Original recording remastered
• Running time: 65 minutes

Customer Reviews

i find it boring!
i adored "the hurting" and it still remains one of my favourite albums of all times!

with the third album i think the boys have got wrapped up in themselves..the high points are the singles

"woman in chains" is a stunning track and although not successful as a single...it launched oleta adams career...it is a peice of pure pop perfection!

"sowing the seeds of love" the launch single had a feel of the 60's and the beatles...a catchy chorus makes it memomorable but it has little depth

"advice for the young at heart"is a beautiful pop song and although not a huge success as a single is a peice of beautiful pop perfection!

nothing on the rest of the album has ever caught my attention..despite many plays..i just find my self fast forwarding the tracks as they are boring!

sorry if its not what you want to hear..but i am being honest!

Curious, Theatrical and Downright Inspiring
Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith's legacy within the 1980s is arguably incomparable - their debut, 'The Hurting', released in the early rungs of the decade, was a violently passionate scrapbook of adolescent angst and unanswered questions. By 1985 the duo had restocked their ammo, ready to fire in a different direction - 'Songs From The Big Chair' was, arguably, less angry and perhaps less conceptual than its predecessor, though no less philosophical. They had adopted a more 'user-friendly' sound, and in return received worldwide acclaim and the plaudits they rightly deserved.

By the time the now gargantuan fanbase had waited for a follow-up to 'Big Chair', Smith and Orzabal had swerved in yet another direction. Having waited four long years for the third LP, the public was finally treated to 'The Seeds of Love', an album which reputedly broke several banks in one fell swoop. The album would also be the duo's last creation together until their surprise reunion in 2003.

'The Seeds of Love' is grandiose. If it were any grander, it'd be a theatrical production. The new direction TFF chose to point in was more luxurious, more orchestral, perhaps more poignant, than previous works. This is not, however, the type of album you listen to and immediately enjoy - as my own experience has led me to believe. Each song, from the jazz-fuelled venom of 'Badman's Song', to the solemn yearning of 'Woman in Chains' and 'Famous Last Words', and to the air-guitar-inspiring 'Year of the Knife', is so deep, and so thick with layers of instrumental experimentation and words of philosophy, of vengeance, and of sadness, that immediate enjoyment is virtually impossible - this is the sort of album that will grow on you the more you give it time to work its soul.

The most commercial song by far is the successful single 'Sowing the Seeds of Love', a dynamic Beatles pastiche with what I believe to be Roland at the vocal peak of his career. Though it is hard to compare three songs by TFF, one form each of their 80s albums, next to each other ('Mad World' against 'Shout' and 'Sowing The Seeds' for example), it is perfect evidence that the band were, and still are, an outfit which grows a little with each album. It's hard to say whether this tops 'Big Chair', 'Hurting', 'Elemental', 'Everybody Loves a Happy Ending' or to a lesser extent 'Raoul and the Kings of Spain', but I'll be damned if it's not in the running.

If you've listened to and enjoyed ANY of Tears For Fears' other albums, particularly 'Happy Ending', there's no doubt in my mind that this is a very wise purchase. However, be prepared for your love for this album to grow gradually rather than be instantly immediate.

A STUNNING TURNING POINT
This is the third album from 80's duo Tears For Fears, and it has a very 'live' feel to it compared to the first two albums, 'The Hurting' and 'Songs from the Big Chair'. This album is much more 'mature' than the first two, both in composition and sound, but not necessarily superior because of that -- it's just different.

Whilst Tears For Fears was finding its footing with 'The Hurting' and discovering computer programming and drum looping with 'Songs from the Big Chair', this album is much more influenced by jazz compositions and cabaret performances, especially the tracks featuring Oleta Adams, who gives a whole new layer to the Tears For Fears sound. Oleta Adams was 'discovered' by Tears For Fears in a cabaret in New Orleans during the 'Songs from the Big Chair' tour, and her voice and attitude on stage mesmerized Curt Smith and Roland Orzabal so much so that she became a major influence on this album.

In terms of content, 'Sowing the Seeds of Love' is much more 'positive' than the first two albums, especially with the title track and 'Advice for the Young at Heart'. 'Woman in Chains' stands out in terms of simplicity and yet somewhat powerful, emotional and heart-wrenching track (sang as a duet with Oleta Adams and Roland Orzabal).

The additional tracks on this album are somewhat of a mismatch, but worth the listening, especially 'Johnny Panic and the Bibles of Dream', whose title is lifted from a Silvia Plath book of the same name. The verse of this song is taken straight from the 'Seeds of Love' and sang in 'rap' style over a typical Tears For Fears melodic riff and drumloop.

Finally the re-mastering on this album is nothing short of amazing, thanks to Chris Hughes, who was the producer of 'Songs from the Big Chair', and who has taken a lot of care into making this re-release a true gem for fans of Tears For Fears and music lovers everywhere.