Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can't We? (The Complete Sessions 1991-1993)
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Average customer review:Track Listing
- I Still Do - Stephen Street, The Cranberries, Aiden McGovern, Dolores O'Riordan, Noel Hogan, Mike Hogan, Fergal Lawler
- Dreams - Stephen Street, The Cranberries, Aiden McGovern, Dolores O'Riordan, Noel Hogan, Mike Hogan, Fergal Lawler, Mike Mahoney
- Sunday - Stephen Street, The Cranberries, Aiden McGovern, Dolores O'Riordan, Noel Hogan, Mike Hogan, Fergal Lawler
- Pretty - Stephen Street, The Cranberries, Aiden McGovern, Dolores O'Riordan, Noel Hogan, Mike Hogan, Fergal Lawler
- Waltzing Back - Stephen Street, The Cranberries, Aiden McGovern, Dolores O'Riordan, Noel Hogan, Mike Hogan, Fergal Lawler
- Not Sorry - Stephen Street, The Cranberries, Dolores O'Riordan, Noel Hogan, Mike Hogan, Fergal Lawler
- Linger - Stephen Street, The Cranberries, Aiden McGovern, Dolores O'Riordan, Noel Hogan, Mike Hogan, Fergal Lawler
- Wanted - Stephen Street, The Cranberries, Aiden McGovern, Dolores O'Riordan, Noel Hogan, Mike Hogan, Fergal Lawler
- Still Can't... - Stephen Street, The Cranberries, Aiden McGovern, Dolores O'Riordan, Noel Hogan, Mike Hogan, Fergal Lawler
- I Will Always - Stephen Street, The Cranberries, Aiden McGovern, Dolores O'Riordan, Noel Hogan, Mike Hogan, Fergal Lawler
- How - Stephen Street, The Cranberries, Aiden McGovern, Dolores O'Riordan, Noel Hogan, Mike Hogan, Fergal Lawler
- Put Me Down - Stephen Street, The Cranberries, Aiden McGovern, Dolores O'Riordan, Noel Hogan, Mike Hogan, Fergal Lawler
- Reason - The Cranberries
- Them - The Cranberries
- What You Were - The Cranberries
- Liar - The Cranberries
- Pretty - The Cranberries
- How - The Cranberries
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #8483 in Music
- Released on: 2002-07-11
- Number of discs: 1
- Formats: Extra tracks, Original recording remastered
- Running time: 59 minutes
Editorial Reviews
CD Description
The Cranberries, more so than almost any contemporary groupnow coming out of Ireland, translate the lyric delicacy andmetaphorical melancholy of Gaelic folk music to a rock format. The Cranberries are a tight little band with a sound alltheir own, though at times many of their songs do suggest some sort of strange communion between U2 and Bjork.
How so? The gossamer strains of Noel Hogan's electric guitar recall The Edge's spacy chording, but Hogan's rhythmic focus tends more towards eclectic folk stylings (a la Richard Thompson) than the arena gestures of rock. Which isn't to say that his dancing interplay with bassist Mike Hogan and drummer Feargal Lawlor lacks impact. Quite the contrary. Songs such as"Dream" and "Waltzing Back" illustrate the band's special chemistry and harmonic buoyancy, as airy chording gives way to punchy riffs and gruff power chords.
But it is The Cranberries remarkable vocalist Dolores O'Riordan who defines the band's unique sound and broad appeal. O'Riordan has an eccentric, emotive style and a stunning vocabulary of guttural whoops and throttled cries (to particular effect on "Pretty"). On "I Still Do" she doubletracks her breathless voice (asshe does throughout EVERYBODY ELSE...), creating a mournfulmelodic ambience as the band rises to match her emotional peaks in a tale of a played out love that will not die.
This plaintive tone of O'Riordan resonates throughout EVERYBODY ELSE IS DOING IT, SO WHY CAN'T WE? "You mystify me, you mystify me" she intones dimly as if in a haze on "Sunday" as the band tolls away behind her, while on "Waltzing Back" her yodeling cries and muttered grace notes impart tremendous power to each phrase in this clannish dance.
Customer Reviews
Their first and best
I've loved this album ever since it came out and it's still a favourite. It's seen me through carefree student days, broken love affairs, and it's good background for late night wine fuelled conversation too. Highlights are "Pretty", "Linger" and "Dreams". "I Still Do" and "How" are atmospheric mood music.
Re-mastered edition of 1993's classic debut.
It seems almost compulsory to note that The Cranberries have developed something of a negative image over the last decade, particularly amongst semi-elitist circles led by people who want progression and noise, over melody and musicianship. True, The Cranberries did lose it slightly in the years following this fantastic album- referencing grunge, becoming more rock-like and ultimately, anonymous - but whereas later records like No Need To Argue, To the Faithful Departed and Burry The Hatchet could have come from any shallow post-Nirvana act from either side of the Atlantic, Everybody Else is Doing It... still sounds fresh, exciting, and, above all else, completely enjoyable.
At this stage in their career, the Cranberries were one of the archetypical student bands, fusing the dream-pop influence of bands like Ride and Cocteau Twins, with the lovesick and literary influences of indie-acts like The Smiths and The Wedding Present. There's also a hint of U2 style bombast, particularly on that perennial classic, Dreams, which takes the elements noted above, alongside a hint of traditional Celtic instrumentation and Dolores O'Riordan's banshee like vocal flourishes, to create a prevailing pop-classic that has even overcome the indignity of becoming the official soundtrack to all those Irish "tourist-board" commercials. Much of the success of this album rests with guitarist and co-writer Noel Hogan, who proves himself to be a completely versatile performer; able to move seamlessly from acoustic strumming, folk-like finger-picking, heavy distortion, lead and rhythm etc, in a way that seems to reference everyone from The Byrds, to The Smiths, to U2... all the while retaining a shard of individuality to make the overall sound more distinctive.
The tracks cover a lot of ground, from more abrasive tracks, to slow lingering pieces that build momentum through subtle changes of instrumentation and O'Riordan's glacial voice; as well as more melodic indie-pop moments and the more traditionally structured ballads. The most famous song on the album, apart from Dreams, is probably the ballad-like Linger, which is a fine song, if somewhat overly familiar. It's also a surprisingly sweet-sounding song, at odds with the subtle angst and melancholy interwoven into other tracks, like the slowly menacing Pretty, and the more abrasive Not Sorry.
There's no definite standout, as such, with this album really standing as a cohesive mood piece best listened to from beginning to end... which I always prefer. The later albums would suffer from too many stylistic changes and, as a result, ended up sounding like a singles compilation, which is fine, if that's what you're into, but I prefer something much more mysterious that presents a sort of journey from start to finish. Still, that doesn't mean that this album doesn't contain a fair few moments that stop you dead in your tracks... often, it's one of O'Riordan's commanding vocal flourishes, or Hogan's multi-faceted guitar playing, with both voice and guitar often being layered four or five times to creates a multitude of melodies, inter-melodies and counter-melodies. The rhythm section is more than competent, keeping up with Hogan's dense song-structures and those cascading vocals, all of which are recorded perfectly by producer Stephen Street (The Smiths, Morrissey, Blur... a good choice, really), who manages to capture the band at their most raw and unhinged (before the need for success would become more apparent).
The original twelve-track album winds down to a sombre and reflective close, with the percussion-heavy How (a real standout for drummer Fergal Lawler and bassist Mike Hogan) and the sweet-sounding Put Me Down, the latter of which has a lulled sound pitched half-way between the Cocteau Twins' Victorialand album and one of the more morose tracks from The Queen Is Dead (Never Had No One Ever or I Know It's Over spring to mind). It ties in nicely with that gorgeous opening track, I Still Do, creating a nice circular feeling before the bonus tracks kick in... The six tracks added as extras all stem from the same era (1991-1993) and continue the sound and style of the overall album perfectly.
Standouts for me would include the ballistic banshee-rock of Reason, and the more pop orientated sound of Liar, which is as fine a pop song... the kind of which you could imagine being played in Student's Union circa '92 (but don't let that put you off!!). Personally, I'm surprised to see so many lukewarm comments on this album, with most fans seemingly in awe of the more grunge-like No Need to Argue, which is fine, but lacks the ethereal Celtic edge and 4AD allusions of this little gem... the greatest thing they ever recorded, in my own personal opinion. Some critics at the time argued that the album was lyrically naive, but that's fine with me... I'll take opaque references to dreams and metaphorical allusions to wayward emotions over the cod-political sloganeering of their second and third album, any day of the week.
For me, Everybody Else Is Doing It... remains a joy from start to finish, falling into that wonderful place between the ethereal nonsense of the Cocteau Twins and The Sugarcubes, the melancholic beauty of The Smiths and Felt, and something that just can't help conjure the spirit of '93 (I was only ten at time... so I didn't actually get this album until 1997. But you know what I mean). The bonus tracks add value to an already perfect work, whilst at a budget price, this album is crying out to be experienced. It stands as a testament to a highly creative and intelligent young band, before the pressures of fame and celebrity started to take hold.
An album for any mood
This debut album is AMAZING and first got me hooked on the Cranberries. Dolores O'Riordan's voice is so beautiful and distinctive it transports your mind to another place. The album is perfect as there is a song to suit any mood you are in. Listening to "Linger" or "Dreams" on a bright and sunny day when you feel happy really lifts your spirits and makes you feel blissful. If you feel sad or down and need to wallow for a while "I still do" and "Pretty" helps you reflect and process your thoughts and feelings. I love "Sunday" - it's so enchanting and melodic it'll make you stop what you're thinking and start singing along. This album is captivating: it will touch your heart and soul.





