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Some Great Reward

 
Album Review: Some Great Reward

  • Artist: Depeche Mode
  • Rating: StarStarStarStarHalf Star
  • Release Date: 1984
  • Total Time: 40:18
  • Type: Lyrics are included with the album
  • Genre: Rock

Review

The peak of the band's industrial-gone-mainstream fusion, and still one of the best electronic music albums yet recorded, Some Great Reward still sounds great, with the band's ever-evolving musical and production skills matching even more ambitious songwriting from Martin Gore. "People Are People" appears here, but finds itself outclassed by some of Depeche Mode's undisputed classics, most especially the moody, beautiful "Somebody," a Gore-sung piano ballad that mixes its wit and emotion skillfully; "Master and Servant," an amped-up, slamming dance track that conflates sexual and economic politics to sharp effect; and the closing "Blasphemous Rumors," a slow-building anthemic number supporting one of Gore's most cynical lyrics, addressing a suicidal teen who finds God only to die soon afterward. Even lesser-known tracks like the low-key pulse of "Lie to Me" and the weirdly dreamy "It Doesn't Matter" showcase an increasingly confident band. Alan Wilder's arrangements veer from the big to the stripped down, but always with just the right touch, such as the crowd samples bubbling beneath "Somebody" or the call/response a cappella start to "Master and Servant." With Reward, David Gahan's singing style found the métier it was going to stick with for the next ten years, and while it's never gone down well with some ears, it still has a compelling edge to it that suits the material well. ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track TitleComposersPerformersTime
Something to Do (Lyrics) Martin L. Gore Depeche Mode (3:45)
Lie to Me (Lyrics) Martin L. Gore Depeche Mode (5:04)
People Are People (Lyrics) Martin L. Gore Depeche Mode (3:52)
It Doesn't Matter (Lyrics) Martin L. Gore Depeche Mode (4:45)
Stories of Old (Lyrics) Martin L. Gore Depeche Mode (3:12)
Somebody (Lyrics) Martin L. Gore Depeche Mode (4:26)
Master and Servant (Lyrics) Martin L. Gore Depeche Mode (4:13)
If You Want (Lyrics) Alan Wilder Depeche Mode (4:40)
Blasphemous Rumours (Lyrics) Martin L. Gore Depeche Mode (6:21)

Credits

Ben Ward (Assistant Engineer), Stefi Marcus (Assistant Engineer), David Gahan (?), Brian Griffin (Photography), Daniel Miller (Producer), Ben Ward (Engineer), D.A. Jones (Design), Alan Wilder (?), Stefi Marcus (Engineer), Colin McMahon (Assistant Engineer), Andrew Fletcher (?), Depeche Mode (Producer), Martin L. Gore (?), Colin McMahon (Engineer), Marcx Town (Design), Stuart Graham (Photography), Gareth Jones (Producer)
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Wikipedia: Some Great Reward
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Some Great Reward
Studio album by Depeche Mode
Released August 27, 1984 (1984-08-27)
Recorded January - August 1984
Genre Synthpop, New wave
Length 40:18
Label Mute - STUMM 19
Sire (US/Canada)
Producer Depeche Mode, Daniel Miller, and Gareth Jones
Professional reviews
Depeche Mode chronology
Construction Time Again
(1983)
Some Great Reward
(1984)
The Singles 81→85
(1985)
Singles from Some Great Reward
  1. "People Are People"
    Released: 12 March 1984
  2. "Master and Servant"
    Released: 20 August 1984
  3. "Blasphemous Rumours / Somebody"
    Released: 29 October 1984

Some Great Reward is the fourth album by the British electronic group Depeche Mode, released in 1984. The album peaked at #5 in the UK and at #54 in the US. The title comes from the last lines of the bridge in "Lie to Me" when it repeats near the end.

Contents

Re-release

In 2006, Some Great Reward was re-released with a bonus DVD. The CD was remastered and (except in the USA) was released on a CD/SACD hybrid. The bonus DVD includes the two B-side tracks "In Your Memory" and "Set Me Free (Remotivate Me)" in addition to "Somebody (Remix)" and several live versions of some of the songs from the album. The DVD also includes a documentary on the making of the album.

The remastered album was released on "deluxe" vinyl in March 2007.

Track listing

1984 release: Mute / Stumm 19 (UK)

  1. "Something to Do" – 3:47
  2. "Lie to Me" – 5:03
  3. "People Are People" – 3:52
  4. "It Doesn't Matter" – 4:44
  5. "Stories of Old" – 3:13
  6. "Somebody" – 4:27
  7. "Master and Servant" – 4:12
  8. "If You Want" – 4:41
  9. "Blasphemous Rumours" – 6:22

2006 re-release

Mute: DM CD 4 (CD/SACD + DVD) / CDX STUMM 19 (CD/SACD)

  • Disc 1 is a hybrid SACD/CD with a multi-channel SACD layer.
  • Disc 2 is a DVD which includes Some Great Reward in DTS 5.1, Dolby Digital 5.1 and PCM Stereo plus bonus material
  1. "Something to Do" – 3:47
  2. "Lie to Me" – 5:03
  3. "People Are People" – 3:52
  4. "It Doesn't Matter" – 4:44
  5. "Stories of Old" – 3:13
  6. "Somebody" – 4:27
  7. "Master and Servant" – 4:12
  8. "If You Want" – 4:41
  9. "Blasphemous Rumours" – 6:22

Bonus Tracks (in DTS 5.1, Dolby Digital 5.1, PCM Stereo):

  1. "If You Want (Live In Basel, 30 November 1984)" – 5:16
  2. "People Are People (Live In Basel, 30 November 1984)" – 4:21
  3. "Somebody (Live In Liverpool, 29 September 1984)" - 4:29
  4. "Blasphemous Rumours (Live In Basel, 30 November 1984)" – 5:30
  5. "Master and Servant (Live In Basel, 30 November 1984)" – 5:38

Bonus Tracks (in PCM Stereo):

  1. "In Your Memory" – 4:00
  2. "(Set Me Free) Remotivate Me" – 4:16
  3. "Somebody (Remix)" – 4:19

Additional Material:

  1. "Depeche Mode 84 (You Can Get Away With Anything If You Give It A Good Tune)" [31 minute documentary video]

All songs written by Martin Gore except "If You Want" and "In Your Memory" written by Alan Wilder.

Charts and certifications

Chart (1984/85) Peak
position
Certification Sales
Austrian Albums Chart[1] 19 25,000+
France 100,000+
German Albums Chart[2] 3 Gold[3] 525,000+
Italy 75,000+
Netherlands 18 25,000+
Spain 50,000+
Swedish Albums Chart[4] 7 75,000+
Swiss Albums Chart[5] 5 40,000+
UK Albums Chart[6] 5 Silver[7] 175,000+
US Billboard 200[8] 54 Platinum[9] 1,200,000+
Europe Sales 1,330,000+
Worldwide Sales 4,100,000+

Credits

Produced by Daniel Miller, Depeche Mode, and Gareth Jones
Assistant Engineers: Ben Ward, Stefi Marcus, and Colin McMahon

Recorded at Music Works, London and Hansa Mischraum, Berlin
Mixed at Hansa Mischraum, Berlin

Photography: Brian Griffin
Assisted by: Stuart Graham
Clothes Stylist: Jacqui Frye

References

  1. ^ "Discographie Depeche Mode". AustrianCharts.at. Retrieved 24 February 2009.
  2. ^ "Suchergebnis". Charts-Surfer.de. Retrieved 24 February 2009. Note: User must define 'neuer suchbegriff' search parameter as "Depeche Mode".
  3. ^ "Gold/Platin-Datenbank". MusikIndustrie.de. Retrieved 24 February 2009. Note: User must define 'Sie können nach Titel, Jahr oder Interpret suchen' search parameter as "Depeche Mode".
  4. ^ "Discography Depeche Mode". SwedishCharts.com. Retrieved 24 February 2009.
  5. ^ "Discography Depeche Mode". SwissCharts.com. Retrieved 24 February 2009.
  6. ^ "Chart Stats: Depeche Mode". ChartStats.com. Retrieved 24 February 2009.
  7. ^ "Some Great Reward UK silver certification". British Phonographic Industry. 19 October 1984. Retrieved 24 February 2009.
  8. ^ "Depeche Mode > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums". Allmusic. Retrieved 24 February 2009.
  9. ^ "Searchable Database". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 24 February 2009. Note: User must define 'Artist' search parameter as "Depeche Mode".

 
 

 

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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
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Some Great Reward" Read more