Track Listing

1. Intro
2. Need One
3. Anything
4. Soul Food
5. Lullaby
6. Too Tough To Die
7. Sandpaper Kisses
8. Ragga Feat. Tricky
9. Lying
10. I Still Feel
11. Llya
12. I Wanna Be There
13. Day's Of A Gun

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #5313 in Music
• Released on: 2003-07-14
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.co.uk Review
For a debut album, Martina Topley Bird's Quixotic comes with a staggering weight of expectation. If her name is only vaguely familiar, her drunken twilight whisper is unmistakable. First heard on Tricky's genre-defining debut Maxinquaye and the subsequent albums Pre-Millennium Tension and Angels with Dirty Faces, hers is arguably the voice of trip hop. Working with Bristol's voice of doom has left a tough legacy to live up to. Amazingly, Quixotic far exceeds it. It's a phenomenally sensual album, full of the thick atmospheres, moody swaggers and dark undercurrents that she and Tricky were once synonymous with, but here they're married to equally mesmerising songs. Hence "Lullaby" and "Days of a Gun" are as memorable for their beautiful melodies as they are for their respective backing tracks of drowsy porch light blues and caressing synths.

Meanwhile, an eclectic list of collaborators line up to add a touch of malevolence to her slumber-like vocals. Queens of the Stone Age's Josh Homme provides the lumbering rock for first single "Need One", DJ/Producer David Holmes digs out some swampy blues samples and demonic slide guitars for "Too Tough to Die" and Tricky himself adds his trademark claustrophobia to twisted love song "Ragga". And as if all that wasn't enough, thanks to monumental orchestration from James Bond composer David Arnold, the smothering "Soulfood" is possibly the most powerful, glorious and humbling soul ballad ever. --Dan Gennoe

CD Description
'Quixotic' is the eagerly awaited debut solo album from Martina Topley Bird, former muse and musical partner to Tricky.An album which combines both contemporary and traditional sounds. Breakbeats and trip hop are fused with funked up jazz, vintage soul and laid-back blues. Features production workand collaborations from David Holmes, Tricky, David Arnold,Josh Homme and Mark Lanegan. Includes her debut single 'Need One'.

Customer Reviews

a fabulous debut
a great debut album. her voice and lyrics are exceptionally good. i really enjoyed this album, the work she did with tricky doesnt really prepare you for how good her lyrics and voice are. i was pleasantly surprised. this is a good album to take a chance on......

The more I listen, the more I find
"Martina Topley Who?" you might be wondering, but probably not for much longer. This fantastic and long-awaited album truly deserves its rave reviews and Mercury nomination.

Martina's cross-genre talents soon become obvious in "Quixotic", her debut solo album. The deep south blues of 'Intro' lead into the catchy first single from the album, 'Need One'. PJ Harvey would be proud of the intensity and fire emitted by 'I Wanna Be There' and yet 'Anything' is so touching. Ragga's trippy-Tricky percussional pitter-patter defies the listener to remain apart from the music's energy, and swathes of luxuriating David Arnold arranged strings complete 'Stevie's (Days of a Gun)' and the album.

Wow.

The voice that has been in my head for the last few months
I first heard Martina Topley Bird on jools holland, but then when the track(need one) refused to dislodge itself from my brain I found I'd annoyingly forgotten the name of the artist. After realising some time later, I then had to wait ages for it be released, and now the wait is over. Martina's voice sounds a lot like macy gray, only perhaps not quite so strong, and there are plenty of decent songs on the album. A lot of it doesnt seem hugely memorable, although this isn't a bad thing. It is the perfect music to read to, or to have on with friends round, easy to listen to without demanding too much attention. I think I've finally found my soundtrack to the summer...
(Also, has well deserved Mercury nomination)