Around The Bend - Randy Travis

Advantages: Easy listening
Disadvantages: Very much how you'd imagine Country Music to sound

...I stumbled across this in a new and used music shop and bought it just for the hell of it as I had heard some of this guys music before and liked what I'd heard. Before I get on to what I like about this album, let me tell you about the artist himself. Randy Travis was born 4th May 1959. In 1981 he moved to Nashville and began writing songs and getting to know the Country Music scene. In 1985 Randy Travis signed a contract with Warner Brother records and thus began his long and upstanding career; as well as being an accomplished artist he has also turned his hand at acting and appeared in the likes of Matlock, Touched By An Angel and Fire Down Below, to name but a few. The Album: The album was recorded in 1987 and contains some very catchy songs. The insert contains details of the songs that are on the CD and if you fancy... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Good songs, good band ,indie from a new angle.
Disadvantages: None much, can be predictable at times.

...Not Robert De Niro's sociopath Travis Bickel in Taxi Driver, but Harry Dean Stanton's confused protagonists in Wim Wendor’s film Paris, Texas. This band owes more to the sweet sounds of American Country than the savage sound of New York streets. Front man Fran Healey speaks with the voice of a Glasgow shipyard clerk and moans on like a wet Monday morning, but when he sings he is a flower child in the summer of love. This is a more matured Travis than their debut the rockier Good Feeling. It is a similar transition Radiohead made from “Pablo Honey” to "The Bends", but not quite. The singles, “Why Does It Always Rain On Me?” and “Driftwood” are David Gates and Bread with a little less butter, while Turn has them Turn, Turn, Turning into The Byrds. This is the soundtrack to Oasis becoming married with children. The darker shades... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful

Advantages: Side, Flowers, The Cage
Disadvantages: the album dies a death after track 8

...Sometime in 1996 I was watching Jools Holland on BBC2 and a band came on who looked a little shabby round the edges, but sounded great. The lead singer was a shy, curly haired, baby faced guy who didn’t like looking at the camera; the bass player looked as camp as a row of tents; and the drummer looked, quite simply, like Wolf from Gladiators. They played a song called ‘Good Feeling’ and they went by the name of Travis, and although I didn’t hear of them again for a while, I kept them in the back of my mind. Five years on, to say Travis have had a bit of an effect on my life is like saying Thom Yorke is a little bit pretentious. Over the past few years being a Travis fan has led directly to two trips to Scotland, some very valuable friendships, almost a dozen top nights out at gigs, a Ligger of the Week photo... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful