Product Description

Beyond British and sensationally sociological, Blur and singer/songwriter Damon Albarn weave tales of stifling middle class ennui into clever pop vignettes. THE GREAT ESCAPE is another demonstration of Blur's unique intelligence, more of Albarn's witty commentary, and substantial proof that the group may be bordering on genius.
As usual, Albarn's senses are keen on THE GREAT ESCAPE. His ear for melody and sound textures shines throughout the album's fifteen brilliant tracks. The ska horns and spy soundtrack guitar riffing on "FadeAway" exemplify Blur's knack for pop music, yet elevate thesong beyond simple genre-fication, with a dignity reserved for the orchestra pit. The snide humor behind "Mr. Robinson And His Quango" rubs shoulders with the desperation of "He Thought Of Cars", all the while dwelling on what they hope toescape. It's this nagging dread that carries the album--thesense that the people Albarn describes are as desperate to find meaning as Albarn is to capture it within the song's narrative.
THE GREAT ESCAPE may not turn into Blur's great American breakthrough album, but if you're not thrown by Albarn's overwhelmingly British aesthetic, it just might be enough to take you away from the confines of your day to day doldrums.

Track Listing

1. Stereotypes
2. Country House
3. Best Days
4. Charmless Man
5. Fade Away
6. Top Man
7. Universal
8. Mr Robinson's Quango
9. He Thought Of Cars
10. It Could Be You
11. Ernold Same
12. Globe Alone
13. Dan Abnormal
14. Entertain Me
15. Yoko And Hiro

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #5602 in Music
• Released on: 1995-09-11
• Number of discs: 1

Customer Reviews

There best album to date
This is a great cd, buy it as you'll love it.

Other suggestions are Parklife (def Britpop/indie sound, Blur (Really Rockie))and Leisure (Early Britpop).

I would'nt bother with Modern Life Is Rubbish, 13 and Think Tank.

Or why not buy The Best Of Blur and get an all round feel.

THEY MADE A GREAT ESCAPE FROM THE PARKLIFE
Following the huge success of the timeless Parklife, Blur were riding high as the hybrow kings of Britpop. They were as brilliant live as they had become in the studio and frontman Damon Albarn was the Uk's most recognised pop star (alonside the Oasis brother's).
So it's no surprise that soon after the band released the Great Escape, and it's lead single 'Country House', in 1995 that the vultures had began to circle. Blur suffered a backlash that would see them abandon Britpop entirely in favour of a far more extreme and experimental sound. In the long run this probaly saved the band from imploding and certainly got the critics back on side.
So how does The Great Escape stand up today ? Surprisingly well. The perky 'Country House' hit the number one spot but is probably one of the bands weakest singles. 'Charmless Man' and 'Stereotypes' extended Blur's run of smart, melodic and catchy pop hits whilst 'The Universal' still sounds as brittle and brilliant as it always did. There are enough hooks, clever lyrics and tight inventive arrangements (and ken Livingstone !) on The Great Escape to make the album one of the bands most accessible. It isn't anywhere near as consistent as Parklife but neither is it the fractured, over reaching dissaster that history records.
Apparently this is still a favourite of bassist Alex James who claims The Great Escape as Blur's great lost record. He may well be right.


cw

Utterly British! Totally underated
As my review title suggests, this is a truly underated album, and I was suprised to see some earlier negative reviews. Truth of the matter however, is that this is one of the best Brit Pop albums i've owned, and it takes a fabulous satirical look at modern day England.
You don't even need to listen to the album to see the theme that oozes through it. A glance through the inner booklet has funny examples of the things were used to - a competition poster on the first page for a typical modern 'Barretts' home, and a basketballer copying some sort of sports advertisement.
Of course, the music is the main focus, and sounds fantastic on a cool summers evening. Possibly one of the reasons people may have been dissapointed with the album is because it sounds quite different to other material they've produced, but at the end of the day, this is vintage blur. The song Stereotypes starts off the album with some good lyrics, reflecting the 'Vicky Pollards' we see in out and about etc etc. Country House has always been a stand out track, and that probably applies for every fan, with its fun lyrics (and video, if you've seen it!). Charmeless Man follows this route, as does Top Man, and well, many other tracks! Universal was a nice track to include, and though I can't remember too well the rivalry between Oasis and Blur during the 90's, this track demonstrates the lyrical and instrumental genious they could produce. I'm not saying Oasis were a bad band, but for, Blur have always had more purpose with their music.
As the album leads towards the end, there are admittedly a few slow tracks, but since the quality of the rest of the cd is so good, this can be let off. I myself bought the album because of its cover - silly, I know, but thats clever marketing. And to be honest, the cover does some justice - it does sound bright and fun, and 'The Great Escape' probably reflects the desire to escape from the fast lives we live.
Their are few better albums out their that will capture our modern day lives as good as this, and if your unsure, just remember that Blur are not that the type of band to release duff albums - all the songs have lots of meaning. 9/10