Squeeze "East Side Story" (1981)

East Side Story
release date: May 15, 1981
format: vinyl (AMLH 64854) / cd (2021 remaster)
[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,84]
producer: Elvis Costello & Roger Bechirian
label: A&M Records - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 1. "In Quintessence" (4 / 5) (live) - 2. "Someone Else's Heart" (video) - 3. "Tempted" (official video) - 4. "Picadilly" - 6. "Heaven" - 7. "Woman's World" (video) - 8. "Is That Love" (TV-performance) - 10. "Labelled With Love" (TV-performance) - 11. "Someone Else's Bell" - 12. "Mumbo Jumbo"

4th studio album by British quintet Squeeze produced by Elvis Costello and Roger Bechirian except track #1, which is produced by Dave Edmunds. Jools Holland left the band after the release of Argybargy (1980) and he is here replaced by Paul Carrack. Other credited band members are: Glenn Tilbrook as lead vocalist, on lead guitar and on keyboard, Chris Difford on rhythm guitar and backing vocals (lead vocals on "Someone Else's Heart" and "Heaven"), Paul Carrack on keyboards and backing vocals (lead vocal on "Tempted"), John Bentley on bass and backing vocals, and with Gilson Lavis on drums.

In the same year, Jools Holland released his solo debut Jools Holland and His Millionaires - he should return to to Squeeze in '85, but then left again in 1990 - and was later to become host on various English TV-shows, before settling as host on the BBC-show "Later.... with Jools Holland" from '92.

East Side Story pretty much continues where Argybargy ended only packed with even more truly fine compositions in tight and balanced arrangements.

The front cover shows us the new line-up from left to right: John Bentley, Gilson Lavis, Chris Difford, Glenn Tilbrook, and Paul Carrack.

This album is no less than the absolute best by Squeeze.

[ allmusic.com 5 / 5, Rolling Stone 4 / 5 stars]

Squeeze "Argybargy" (1980)

Argybargy
release date: Feb. 1980
format: cd (1997 remaster)
[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,78]
producer: John Wood & Squeeze
label: A&M Records - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 1. "Pulling Mussels (From the Shell)" (official video) (Top Of The Pops) - 2. "Another Nail in My Heart" (official video) (Top Of The Pops) - 3. "Separate Beds" - 4. "Misadventure" - 6. "Farfisa Beat" - 6. "If I Didn't Love You" - 9. "Vicky Verky"

3rd studio album by Squeeze and the follow-up to Cool for Cats (Apr. 1979) and now again with John Wood who also produced the '79 album. Since their last album, bassist Harri Kakoulli - who has been with the band since '74 - has left and is here replaced by John Bentley.

The album starts very much in the same vein as the predecessor, although with a noticeable improved production sound, and then the album starts with two of the band's best songs, after which the quality slightly drops. The power pop element has been turned down a little and instead Squeeze takes a stance as a strong singer / songwriter collective, and it also seems as if the band has made a significant decision concerning style, which may be heard more significantly on the following albums. There is no longer doubt as to whether the band just wants to be another alternative to The Jam or Madness 'cause Squeeze stands out much more distinct as a band with its very own sound and with something at heart. As in connection with the '79 album, Argybargy was followed by four singles - although, only with two official UK releases. "Another Nail in My Heart" was first single, which preceded the album and was released in Jan. '80. It peaked at No. #17 on the national chart list. Track #6 followed as a single in March - but this tmie only in the US (without any rankings), then followed "Pulling Mussels (From a Shell)", which 'only' reached a position as number #44 in the UK, although, it's later known as one of the band's absolute signature songs. The final single, "Farfisa Beat" was only released as a single in Denmark and Germany (without rankings here).

The front cover on Argybargy is the first to feature the band members. From left to right, vocalist, rhythm guitarist, and songwriter Chris Difford, keyboardist Jools Holland, drummer Gilson Lavis, vocalist, lead guitarist, and songwriter Glenn Tilbrook, and far right: new bassist John Bentley.

Argybargy is ranked as number two on my list of the band's top-3 albums, only slightly bettered by the successor East Side Story.

[ allmusic.com 5 / 5, Smash Hits, Uncut 4,5 / 5, Mojo, Record Collector, Rolling Stone Album Guide 4 / 5 stars ]

Squeeze "Cool for Cats" (1979)

Cool for Cats
release date: Apr. 9, 1979
format: cd (1997 remaster)
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,70]
producer: John Wood & Squeeze
label: A&M Records - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 1. "Slap and Tickle" - 3. "Touching Me Touching You" - 4. "It's Not Cricket" - 5. "It's so Dirty" - 7. "Hop Skip and Jump" - 8. "Up the Junction" (official video) - 10. "Slightly Drunk" - 11. "Goodbye Girl" - 12. "Cool for Cats" (official video) (Top Of The Pops)

2nd studio album by new wave quintet Squeeze - consisting of the two founders and the band's main songwriters: lead vocalist, lead guitarist, and keyboardist Glenn Tilbrook and (other) lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Chris Difford. Here, they have teamed up with bassist Harri Kakoulli, keyboardist (and lead vocalist on track #7) Jools Holland, and with drummer Gilson Lavis they constitute Squeeze.

The album peaked at number #45 in the UK (number #18 in Australia). The song "Goodbye Girl" was chosen as first single and peaked at number #63 (the track was released in a special single edition and a third edition is available on the American version of the album). The second single was the title track, which became one of the band's highest-charting singles reaching number #2 on the UK singles chart. "Up the Juction" was third single, and it also made it all the way to number #2, and the fourth and final single from this album, "Slap and Tickle" reached number #24.

I've always liked Squeeze and Cool for Cats is one of the band's best-known albums with several great songs, but I'm not entirely enthused. There are moves to lots of energetic songs incorporating funk, traditional English beat, and power pop, but it seems the band doesn't quite know whether to pull completely towards the inspiration of the Beatles, Kinks, and The Who, or to follow the contemporary currents alongside Elvis Costello, Madness, and The Jam. Should they be modern and dirty, or should they be more traditional? They seem stuck in a schism that isn't fully resolved. And with the experience concerning the debut Squeeze (1978) in fresh memory with a producer (John Cale) who most probably found a platform for his own ideas, so the indecisions are actually common sense! And Cool for Cats is definitely a much better, more contemporary, and more defining of the band's style and also a much more coherent album than the near famous debut. One thing that already shows the band's strength here are the strong compositions. With the band's 'only' second album, Difford / Tilbrook have already established themselves as a contemporary Lennon / McCartney songwriter duo with evident gifts as songwriters, a position they only strengthen on the following albums.

Cool for Cats is imho, part of the band's top-3 albums, and it lands in third place.

[ allmusic.com, Smash Hits, Uncut 4,5 / 5, Rolling Stone Album Guide 3,5 / 5 stars ]

Squeeze "Squeeze" (1978)

Squeeze [debut]
release date: Mar. 1978
format: cd (1997 remaster)
[album rate: 3 / 5] [3,22]
producer: John Cale
label: A&M Records - nationality: England, UK

Track highlights: 1. "Sex Master" - 2. "Bang Bang" - 4. "Wild Sewerage Tickles Brazil" - 5. "Out of Control" - 6. "Take Me, I'm Yours" (officiel video) (fra Top Of The Pops)

Studio album debut by London-based new wave quintet Squeeze consisting of Glen Tilbrook on lead vocals & lead guitar, Chris Difford on lead vocals and rhythm guitar, Harry Kakoulli on bass, Jools Holland on keyboards, and with Gilson Lavis on drums. In the US and Australia, the band was launched as the U.K. Squeeze. Almost all tracks were written and composed by Difford / Tilbrook (only track #4 is credited the entire band).

Stylistically, it's power pop, new wave with some ties to punk rock, and the band leans on artists such as XTC, Elvis Costello, Buzzcocks, Devo, Talking Heads etc., but it also has strong ties to early proto-punk in the form of bands like Stooges, MC5 and late Velvet Underground. The band name is also the title of the Velvet Underground's controversial '73 release, which was produced by Doug Yule, who had replaced John Cale in late '68, and who then went on to release the album Squeeze as an (official) Velvet Underground album, although neither Lou Reed, John Cale, Sterling Morrison, nor Maureen Tucker contributed - and yes, John Cale is in fact producer on this album. And this role in particular was apparently something that exerted a massive influence on the creation of the album, as Cale reportedly refused to record the songs the band brought with them and instead asked the band to write new songs on the spot, as he thought their material was too soft. Rather than recording an album similar to or following up on the Packet of Three (1977) EP (admittedly also produced by Cale), which had A&M Records sign the band in the first place, this debut is nonetheless a rather different kind of music than the band felt ready to record, but with an ego as a producer on a debut, the young people didn't see otherwise than to please the legendary Mr. Cale. When the album was about to be completed, the band, in support of A&M, managed to add a couple of songs they had initially wanted to record (tracks #2 and #6) - tracks that also ended up as the only singles from the album.

Squeeze is a strange album that most of all sounds like an art rock, pop punk mix and something that points in many directions. And if you only know a little about the music that Squeeze eventually came to release, there is not much pointing in that direction here. However, the album is interesting as a clear example of the many musical trends of the time. In this way, Squeeze is involuntarily launched as a band with hard rock, art rock, and proto-punk roots, although they might rather be part of the 'pure' new wave style.

[ allmusic.com 2,5 / 5 stars ]