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Can You Do Me Good?

 
Album Review: Can You Do Me Good?
 
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Can You Do Me Good?

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  • Artist: Del Amitri
  • Rating: StarStarStarHalf Star
  • Release Date: April 30, 2002
  • Type: Lyrics are included with the album
  • Genre: Rock

Review

There certainly is a randy sentiment within the title of Del Amitri's sixth album, something that suggests seduction and romance, and the band does follow through on the promise of Can You Do Me Good? -- at least to a certain extent. From the moment the opening track, "Just Before You Leave," begins, it's clear that there is a subtle smooth soul vibe here, taken partially from Al Green and Marvin Gaye. This doesn't mean that this is a soul record, but that spirit certainly informs much of this record, even though the band never really abandons the clean, sweet, melodic spirit that informs all their work. They even rock a little harder, as on "Wash Her Away," but not so much to change the spirit or attitude of the album, which remains very similar to all Del Amitri records -- apart from that sultry soul feeling that seeps through on enough of the tracks to give it a distinctive character. And that's quite welcome, actually. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track TitleComposersPerformersTime
Just Before You Leave Justin Currie, Iain Harvie Del Amitri (5:14)
Cash and Prizes Justin Currie Del Amitri (4:38)
Drunk in a Band Justin Currie Del Amitri (2:44)
One More Last Hurrah Justin Currie, Iain Harvie Del Amitri (4:52)
Buttons on My Clothes Justin Currie Del Amitri (4:05)
Baby, It's Me Justin Currie Del Amitri (3:34)
Wash Her Away Justin Currie, Iain Harvie Del Amitri (3:07)
Last Cheap Shot at the Dream Justin Currie Del Amitri (4:12)
Out Falls the Past Justin Currie Del Amitri (3:13)
She's Passing This Way Justin Currie Del Amitri (2:44)
Jesus Saves Justin Currie Del Amitri (3:39)
Just Getting By Justin Currie Del Amitri (7:35)

Credits

Del Amitri (Main Performer), Dave Bascombe (Mixing), Rudy Bird (Percussion), Chris Cameron (String Arrangements), Justin Currie (Bass), Justin Currie (Vocals), Justin Currie (Acoustic Treatments), Kris Dollimore (Guitar), Kris Dollimore (Vocals (Background)), Kris Dollimore (Acoustic Treatments), Iain Harvie (Guitar), Iain Harvie (Programming), Iain Harvie (Vocals (Background)), Iain Harvie (Acoustic Treatments), Mark Price (Drums), Mark Price (Loops), David Rose (A&R), Gavyn Wright (Orchestra Leader), Chris Komer (French Horn), Andy Alston (Organ), Andy Alston (Synthesizer), Andy Alston (Piano), Kevin Westenberg (Portraits), Commissioner Gordon (Producer), Commissioner Gordon (Mixing), Jonathan Quarmby (Producer), Stylorouge (Art Direction), Stylorouge (Design), Ben Darlow (Mixing), Chris Elliott (Trombone), Chris Elliott (Cello), Matthew Rubano (Bass), Jamie Siegel (Engineer), Kevin Bacon (Producer), Peter Smith (Mixing), Peter Smith (Producer), Joe Tomino (Drum Loop), Big Kev (Bass), Jeff Cottenden (Photography)
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Wikipedia: Can You Do Me Good?
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Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Wikipedia
Can You Do Me Good?
Can You Do Me Good? cover
Studio album by Del Amitri
Released April 8, 2002
Recorded Glasgow; Sheffield; London; Rochester[disambiguation needed]; New Jersey
Genre AC Rock
Length 49:42
Label Mercury Records
Producer Kevin Bacon & Jonathan Quarmby (tracks 5, 6 & 8); Pete Smith (3 & 10; 1 & 12 w/ additional production by Commissioner Gordon); Commissioner Gordon (all other tracks)
Professional reviews
Del Amitri chronology
Some Other Sucker's Parade
(1997)		 Can You Do Me Good?
(2002)

Can You Do Me Good? is the sixth and latest studio album by Del Amitri. Though the band's current status is uncertain, it is widely thought to be their last, since its sales seem to have contributed to their being dropped from Mercury Records in 2002.

The album showcased a radically different sound from that to which Del Amitri fans had become used. With five years having elapsed since the lo-fi Some Other Sucker's Parade (1997), Can You Do Me Good? featured a new approach: drum loops, samples and synthesisers were the band's new tools. Though the songs retained their usual melodic characteristics, the overall impression was a very different one.

Contents

Theme: last cheap shot at the dream?

Guitarist and songwriter Iain Harvie admitted in the run-up to the album's release that the band's record company considered Can You Do Me Good? to be Del Amitri's last chance. "It's a pretty straightforward equation. If we don't sell 300,000 copies of the new album, we're out. It's that simple."[1] With this in mind, many of the album's lyrics seem to convey a tone of finality; the feeling that this is a band's last stand. Song titles like "One More Last Hurrah" and "Last Cheap Shot At The Dream" contribute to this, and "Just Getting By" seems almost to lament a career spent as rock's nearly-men:

Look at me
I'm the one who got away
The one who could've shone
I tried to do my best
But I guess your best don't last for long

Look at me
Standing with my tattered pride
Of toothless little lions
We tried to make a difference
Do something no one else had tried[2]

Even for a lyricist like Justin Currie, whose songs have often dealt with missed opportunities and failure, Can You Do Me Good? is significantly more concerned with these concepts than previous albums.

Track listing

  1. "Just Before You Leave" (Justin Currie, Iain Harvie) – 5:14
  2. "Cash & Prizes" (Currie) – 4:38
  3. "Drunk In A Band" (Currie) – 2:44
  4. "One More Last Hurrah" (Currie, Harvie) – 4:52
  5. "Buttons On My Clothes"[3] (Currie) – 4:05
  6. "Baby, It's Me" (Currie) – 3:34
  7. "Wash Her Away"[4] (Currie, Harvie) – 3:07
  8. "Last Cheap Shot At The Dream" (Currie) – 4:12
  9. "Out Falls The Past" (Currie) – 3:13
  10. "She's Passing This Way" (Currie) – 2:44
  11. "Jesus Saves" (Currie) – 3:39
  12. "Just Getting By" (Currie) – 7:35
  • "Just Getting By" is followed by a hidden track: an instrumental excerpt from "The Septic Jubilee" (a song released as a B-side on the "Just Before You Leave" single) which lasts for roughly 2:20.

Credits

Singles

Just Before You Leave

Released: April 9, 2002 (in two versions), Mercury Records

B-sides:

Version One (Enhanced CD):

  • "The Septic Jubilee"
  • "Belong Belong"
  • "Just Before You Leave [Video]"

Version Two:

  • "I'm An Unbeliever"
  • "You Love Me"

Chart positions: # 37 (UK)

External links

Notes

  1. ^ Official Del Amitri website, which cites "Del Amitri: We Don't Even Like Ourselves" (April 5, 2002), The Independent.
  2. ^ * Currie, Justin (2002). In Can You Do Me Good? [CD liner notes]. London: Mercury Records.
  3. ^ The track is named once as "The Buttons On My Clothes" in the CD inlay booklet, but twice as "Buttons On My Clothes".
  4. ^ The track is named once as "Can't Wash Her Away" in the CD inlay booklet, but twice as "Wash Her Away".
  5. ^ Presumably producer Jonathan Quarmby.

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

 
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Album Review. Copyright © 2009 All Media Guide, LLC. Content provided by All Music Guide ®, a trademark of All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.  Read more
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