Grand Don't Come For Free, A [PA] - Streets (The) > Reviews > a grand costs 99p off a ebay!

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Groundbreaking
Lyrics	Thought-provoking
Quality and consistency of tracks	A couple of weak links
Value for Money	Excellent

Advantages:	ground breaking concept album
Disadvantages:	some of the tracks are a bit samey but they all need to be on album !

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

I put this CD on again last night, and forgot what a masterpiece it is, so I thought I would write a review (also there is nothing to do in the office today), and make all of you go give it a go (even if you just listen to clips off of Amazon!).

Ok The Streets is Birmingham musician Mike Skinner, who is a very English rap artist, some compare him to the likes of eminem, but don't listen, they are way off the mark. He recorded his first album Original Pirate Material in 2002, and has now become some sort of a musical legend, I supposed that part of the reason is that Original Pirate Material was created in his bedroom at his mom's Birmingham home, which is every young aspiring rap artists dream isn't it - create a master piece in your bedroom - get famous!

Mike's first album was very well received by the public and as a result was nominated for a number of awards, including a Mercury Music Award, which ranks him alongside the likes of Ms. Dynamite (tee-hee) and even David Bowie! Many have claimed that Mike has paved the way for other young British "hip-hop" (inverted commas are used as I am using this term very loosely and generally) artists, such as Dizzee Rascal. Now don't be fooled, the style of music produced by Mike is very individual, and possibly in a whole genre of it's own.

I can't comment on the first album, as I do not own it, nor have I ever listened to it, I suppose it is because this style of music never appealed to me, and I didn't get this album when it first came out, I probably acquired it late last year, for no reason at all other than it was 99p on eBay, was bored, and knew I liked one of the tracks on it.

When I first got the album, I just listened to the track I liked (10 - dry your eyes - yes sad I know!) and didn't really listen to much else of the album. Eventually I thought that I would listen to the whole album and I was very, very surprised...

Mike's style is a whole new kind of rap, it is more spoken word over some really good beats with some full blown instrumentals thrown in. The raps are not just banging on about killing other gangs, mindless street life, lots of drug taking or anything that you would normally associate rap with. The whole album is a story, that actually has a good plot line, it is like listening to a talking book.

This is such a clever concept and nothing like I have ever experienced before, the story is really just a day in the life of Mike, life in working class England. The main bits of the story are Mike has a broken TV, falls out with his mates, meets a girl, falls in love, breaks up, realises his mates aren't that bad.

Ok it sounds really corny, but it is all very well told and Mike has a gift of making it seem like he is just talking to you on the phone or in the pub. Ok onto the CD

~Track 1~ It was Supposed to be so Easy~

This track has quite a grand opening and you almost expect some sort of ground breaking statement about the world, life in general, a political message or something....but no, Mike has to return a DVD, get some money out of the cash point (just a day in the life of any one else right). Basically he gets to the DVD shop, just in time before it closes so he won't get a fine...oh no! The DVD is not in the case arrghhh! Goes to the cash point - insufficient funds doh!

Oh my god where is that grand that he left in his house?! It's gone!

Arghh now he's lost his phone...oh there it is, it is in his pocket...arse the battery is dead!

The over all feeling of this track is a bit manic, it is mainly a beat with Mike chatting over the top, you can really imagine him running around trying to get all this stuff done, but everything is going wrong & he is getting a bit frustrated but he is a bit stoned so there is still a bit of a "oh well" kind of feeling to it...you know the days

~Track 2~ Could Well Be In~

This is quite a nice relaxed track in comparison, it is about him meeting a girl at a pub that he thinks he quite fancies. You really get the feeling that they are sitting chatting over a couple of drinks mid-week, they are just chatting and chatting and getting lost in conversation. Mike thinks that she likes him back because he saw a programme on TV that means if a girl plays with her hair she likes you - apparently she is playing with her hair quite a lot!

In this track, you learn that Mike thinks that his mates have nicked his money.

This track is really gentle and sweet, it really makes you feel as if you were right there, a little bit drunk...you know really nice and relaxed, you are really getting on with the person sitting opposite you, and you have a warm fuzzy feeling inside. Mike tends to softly sing all the way through this track and it is more of an instrumental track, it's not really about the beats.

~Track 3~ Not Addicted ~

We are back to the beats here, this one is about betting, and being addicted, but trying to convince yourself that you are not addicted and everything is fine...you are so sure that you can win this time.

This track is a lot harder and there are more breaks in the beat, it kind of sums up the addiction, sort of sharp movements, looking around, suddenly deciding to put a massive bet down...do it quickly...before you change your mind. Waiting, around, you know that you are going to win...oh no, the team has messed it all up, they are never going to bring it back now. The track ends in Mike just deciding that maybe he should just jack it all in.

~Track 4~ Blinded by the Light ~

I actually really like this track, and hadn't realised until last night. Basically Mike goes to the bar or a club and has taken a pill (which he thinks isn't working) and is waiting for his mates & girlfriend to turn up. He has to keep popping to the door to check his phone for messages to see if they have got there yet. He goes to the toilets after taking another pill and realises he is tripping out...he comes out and thinks he can see his girlfriend Simone kissing his mate Dan, he is off his head, doesn't really care.

For some reason this track sounded amazing last night, there is quite a dancey feel to it and a woman features on this track who has a really lovely voice, that compliments perfectly Mikes, she is singing and as usual Mike is just chatting. I just find this track so interesting it is really worth a listen.

~Track 5~ I Wouldn't Have It Another Way ~

Another slower track, this is when he realises that he actually doesn't mind sitting round at his girlfriends house rolling spliffs and watching the TV, his TV is broken, and he doesn't really mind that he isn't out with his mates.

Another chilled track, but I really find the other guy who is singing over this track really annoying, it really just doesn't fit with the feel of the track, I am not sure if it is a sarcastic dig, or whether they thought it would actually work, the guy featuring on this track has turned it very R&B. I think that without the second guy doing vocals (I have tried to find out his name, but can't find it anywhere) is really unnecessary and almost spoils the track.

~Track 6~ Get Out of My House ~

Mike and Simone have a fight, Mike is great, he thoroughly understands fights like this. The girl is shouting and screaming, relationship over etc, and he knows that later, he'll still be really annoyed, but he will forgive her.

I really don't like the girl on this track, I am really sorry but she sounds so chavy, I don't know if that's how he wanted her to sound, but her voice really gets on my nerves. As usual the beat reflects the mood and really makes you feel as if it is you or as if you are there.

~Track 7~ Fit but You Know It ~

Possibly the most famous streets track, sees a girl in a burger bar that he quite fancies.

This is a great summer anthem and if this is what The Streets are remembered for that is not such a bad thing, it is really catchy, not really trying to be anything that it's not (i.e imitating American rap). Not much really to say...most of you will have heard this at some point or another!

~Track 8 ~ Such a Tw*t~

This is a quite an interesting track, Mike is on the phone to his mate...at one point his mate can't hear him because of his signal (I liked that, thought it was really interesting). Basically he has been playing away from home and he doesn't't want his girlfriend to find out, the relationship is nearly over.

Quite an interesting track, but it is getting a bit samey, it kind of blends into the other tracks, but I can see why it is here, it is quite an important bit of the story and adds to the atmosphere of how things are going with his girlfriend.

~Track 9 ~ What Is He Thinking ~

Again the quality of the beats and tracks are really similar to the others, Mike finds that he's mate is seeing his girl.

This track does need to be here to complete the story and it is not unbearable.

~Track 10 ~ Dry Your Eyes ~

Another of the tracks that was released from this album. Shows a sensitive side to Mike and is very instrumental and a bit soppy, at first this is the reason I got this album, but listening to it last night it is not as good as I first thought, this is not to say that it is not a good track.

Basically Mike and Simone are going their separate ways, it is sad, but it will be ok, it needs to be done. This is such a different track to the rest of the album, it is a bit soppy, but it needs to be done.

~Track 11 ~ Empty Cans ~

This is the final track, and I really enjoyed it, it is quite long and at first I thought that there were two tracks.

The first half of this track is quite aggressive, he is really annoyed with life and his mates & feels a bit sorry for himself. There is then a break in between and the same beat is then used again but this time, he is a lot happier, everything seems to be working out, he finds his grand, and he makes it up with his mates, oh and his TV gets fixed. Even though the same beat is used, there is a completely different feeling to the second half of the track, it is a lot calmer, which I find particularly strange and quite interesting.

Ok... I am done, sorry it was so long, I hope it was useful, it was actually a lot more difficult to review than I first thought, it is a really different album, I suppose a concept album in a way and it is very interesting to listen to, almost to get an insight into another persons mundane life...lets be honest life is pretty mundane when you aren't poor but aren't rich either...there is just not much you can do.

In a way I think that this album should be preserved and kept just to show later generations what life was like in 2004. On another level, it is also really interesting to listen to a style of music that has only come out of England is completely original, it sounds nothing like anything else that has ever been around.

All round, whether it is your style of music or not, it is definitely worth giving it a go, you might be pleasantly surprised.

This review is also on dooyoo