The Stone Roses (album)

The Stone Roses
Studio album by The Stone Roses
Released Early 1989
Recorded June 1988-February 1989 at Battery & Konk Studios/London, Rockfield Studios, Monmouth, Wales
Genre Alternative rock, Indie rock, Madchester
Length 49:02
Label Silvertone
Producer John Leckie
The Stone Roses chronology
The Stone Roses
(1989)		 Turns into Stone
(1992)
Singles from The Stone Roses
  1. "Made of Stone"
    Released: February 1989
  2. "She Bangs the Drums"
    Released: July 1989
  3. "I Wanna Be Adored"
    Released: September 1991
  4. "Waterfall"
    Released: December 1991
  5. "I Am the Resurrection"
    Released: March 1992

The Stone Roses is the debut album by English rock band The Stone Roses, released on Silvertone Records in 1989. It cemented the band's reputation among critics, and is still rated by some as one of the most important albums ever.[1] In 2006, the writers of NME declared the album the greatest British album of all time.[2]

Contents

Background

The Stone Roses formed in 1984 and released their full-length debut in 1989, having previously released a handful of singles on several different labels. The band came from Manchester, where the so-called Madchester movement was centred. Despite not considering themselves part of this scene, their eponymous debut brought them nationwide success along with such Madchester groups as the Inspiral Carpets and Happy Mondays.

The Roses recorded the album with John Leckie, a notable producer who had worked with Pink Floyd on Meddle. It was released by Silvertone, a division of Zomba Records created to work with "new rock" acts.

The band played a number of high-profile gigs supporting the album, including one at what was regarded as the centre of the "Baggy"/"Madchester" scene, Manchester's The Haçienda nightclub. Andrew Collins wrote in NME: "Bollocks to Morrissey at Wolverhampton, to The Sundays at The Falcon, to PWEI at Brixton - I'm already drafting a letter to my grandchildren telling them that I saw The Stone Roses at the Haçienda."

The Roses' 1990 Spike Island gig, organised by the band and attended by over 27,000 fans, also holds a formidable reputation.

Cover artwork

As with most Stone Roses releases, the cover displays a work by John Squire. It is a Jackson Pollock-influenced piece titled "Bye Bye Badman," which makes reference to the May 1968 riots in Paris. The cover was named by Q magazine as one of "The 100 Best Covers of All Time." In the accompanying article, Squire said: "Ian [Brown] had met this French man when he was hitching around Europe, this bloke had been in the riots, and he told Ian how lemons had been used as an antidote to tear gas. Then there was the documentary—-a great shot at the start of a guy throwing stones at the police. I really liked his attitude." This story was also the inspiration for the lyrics to the song of the same name.[3] The background of the piece is based on the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland. The band visited the causeway while playing a gig at the University of Ulster in Coleraine.[4]

Critical response

 Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Pitchfork Media (10.0/10.0) - 20th Anniversary Edition [5]
Allmusic 5/5 stars [6]
Clash (10/10) - 2009 Collectors' Edition [7]
Robert Christgau (B-) [8]
Culturedeluxe (9/10) - 20th Anniversary Edition [9]
Rolling Stone 4/5 stars - 20th Anniversary Edition [10]

In 1989, the critical response was generally positive, and today the album is widely considered to be one of the very best British albums ever released.[11] In 1997, it was named the 2nd greatest album of all time in a "Music of the Millennium" poll[12] conducted by HMV, Channel 4, The Guardian and Classic FM. In 1998, Q magazine readers placed it at number 4[13], while in 2000 the same magazine placed it at number 29 in its list of the "100 Greatest British Albums Ever."[14] In 2006, Q magazine placed the album at #5 in its list of "40 Best Albums of the '80s". [15]

In 2008, it was named the 5th "greatest British album ever" by a Q magazine/HMV poll.[16]

In 2000, it received the "greatest album ever" award at the NME Premier Awards show, and in 2006, the album topped the magazine's "100 Greatest British Albums Ever" list.[17] In summer 2009, NME released a special issue about the album's 20th anniversary, labelling it as "the greatest debut album ever."

In 2005, Spin magazine ranked it 78 on its list of the "100 greatest albums of the past twenty years."[18] In the same year, when revising the "500 Greatest Albums" for book format, Rolling Stone included it as one of the eight new entries placing it at #497. In 2006, Time named it one of "The All-TIME 100 Albums."[19] In 2003, Pitchfork Media named it the 39th best album of the 1980s.[20]

In 2006, British Hit Singles & Albums and NME organised a poll of which, 40,000 people worldwide voted for the 100 best albums ever and The Stone Roses was placed at #95 on the list.[21]

Releases

The album was first released in the UK on 13 March 1989, and in the US on 25 July 1989. In 1999, on the 10th anniversary of its release, a two-disc special edition re-release of The Stone Roses reached #9 on the UK albums chart. In 2009, the remastered 20th anniversary edition was released in several formats: the standard 11-track album (with the bonus track "Fools Gold") on CD and 12" vinyl LP (the LP version includes a bonus one-sided 7" single featuring the unreleased demo track "Pearl Bastard"); a deluxe edition 2CD/1DVD set, featuring the album on disc one, a 15-track collection of unreleased demos titled The Lost Demos on disc two, and a DVD featuring a 1989 live performance titled Live in Blackpool; and a 3CD/3LP/1DVD collector's edition box set, which features:[22]

Track listing

All tracks written by Ian Brown and John Squire.

1989 UK release

  1. "I Wanna Be Adored" – 4:52
  2. "She Bangs the Drums" – 3:42
  3. "Waterfall" – 4:37
  4. "Don't Stop" – 5:17
  5. "Bye Bye Badman" – 4:00
  6. "Elizabeth My Dear" – 0:59
  7. "(Song for My) Sugar Spun Sister" – 3:25
  8. "Made of Stone" – 4:10
  9. "Shoot You Down" – 4:10
  10. "This Is the One" – 4:58
  11. "I Am the Resurrection" – 8:12

1989 US release

Released 23 July 1989 (1989-07-23).

  1. "I Wanna Be Adored" – 4:52
  2. "She Bangs the Drums" – 3:42
  3. "Elephant Stone" (UK 7" single version) – 3:04
  4. "Waterfall" – 4:37
  5. "Don't Stop" – 5:17
  6. "Bye Bye Badman" – 4:00
  7. "Elizabeth My Dear" – 0:59
  8. "(Song for My) Sugar Spun Sister" – 3:25
  9. "Made of Stone" – 4:10
  10. "Shoot You Down" – 4:10
  11. "This Is the One" – 4:58
  12. "I Am the Resurrection" – 8:12

1989 US Re-release

Released November 1989 (1989-11).

  1. "I Wanna Be Adored" – 4:52
  2. "She Bangs the Drums" – 3:42
  3. "Elephant Stone" (UK 7" single version) – 3:04
  4. "Waterfall" – 4:37
  5. "Don't Stop" – 5:17
  6. "Bye Bye Badman" – 4:00
  7. "Elizabeth My Dear" – 0:59
  8. "(Song for My) Sugar Spun Sister" – 3:25
  9. "Made of Stone" – 4:10
  10. "Shoot You Down" – 4:10
  11. "This Is the One" – 4:58
  12. "I Am the Resurrection" – 8:12
  13. "Fools Gold" (UK 12" single version) – 9:53

1991 UK Re-release

  1. "I Wanna Be Adored" – 4:52
  2. "She Bangs the Drums" – 3:42
  3. "Waterfall" – 4:37
  4. "Don't Stop" – 5:17
  5. "Bye Bye Badman" – 4:00
  6. "Elephant Stone" (UK 7" single version) – 3:04
  7. "Elizabeth My Dear" – 0:59
  8. "(Song for My) Sugar Spun Sister" – 3:25
  9. "Made of Stone" – 4:10
  10. "Shoot You Down" – 4:10
  11. "This Is the One" – 4:58
  12. "I Am the Resurrection" – 8:12
  13. "Fools Gold" (UK 12" single version) – 4:15

1999 10th anniversary release

Disc One: Same as 1989 UK release.

Disc Two

  1. "Fools Gold" – 9:53
  2. "What The World Is Waiting for" – 3:55
  3. "Elephant Stone" – 4:48
  4. "Where Angels Play" – 4:15

The second disc also included an enhanced portion with music videos, a discography, lyrics and a photo gallery.

2009 20th anniversary release

The Stone Roses album
No. Title Length
1. "I Wanna Be Adored"   4:52
2. "She Bangs the Drums"   3:42
3. "Waterfall"   4:37
4. "Don't Stop"   5:17
5. "Bye Bye Badman"   4:00
6. "Elizabeth My Dear"   0:59
7. "(Song for My) Sugar Spun Sister"   3:25
8. "Made of Stone"   4:10
9. "Shoot You Down"   4:10
10. "This Is the One"   4:58
11. "I Am the Resurrection"   8:12
12. "Fools Gold" (UK 12" single version; bonus track) 9:53
The Lost Demos
No. Title Length
1. "I Wanna Be Adored" (Demo) 3:42
2. "She Bangs the Drums" (Demo) 3:46
3. "Waterfall" (Demo) 4:45
4. "Bye Bye Badman" (Demo) 4:03
5. "(Song for My) Sugar Spun Sister" (Demo) 3:30
6. "Shoot You Down" (Demo) 4:25
7. "This Is the One" (Demo) 4:00
8. "I Am the Resurrection" (Demo) 6:38
9. "Elephant Stone" (Demo) 3:13
10. "Going Down" (Demo) 2:40
11. "Mersey Paradise" (Demo) 2:47
12. "Where Angels Play" (Demo) 3:16
13. "Something's Burning" (Demo) 3:03
14. "One Love" (Demo) 6:22
15. "Pearl Bastard" (Demo; previously unreleased track) 3:42
The B-sides
No. Title Length
1. "Elephant Stone"   4:50
2. "Full Fathom Five"   3:03
3. "The Hardest Thing"   2:41
4. "Going Down"   2:46
5. "Guernica"   4:22
6. "Mersey Paradise"   2:46
7. "Standing Here"   5:07
8. "Simone"   4:25
9. "Fools Gold"   9:53
10. "What the World Is Waiting For"   3:50
11. "One Love"   7:43
12. "Something's Burning"   7:44
13. "Where Angels Play"   4:16
Live in Blackpool DVD (recorded live at the Empress Ballroom in 1989)
No. Title Length
1. "I Wanna Be Adored" (Live) 5:14
2. "Elephant Stone" (Live) 3:35
3. "Waterfall" (Live) 3:35
4. "(Song for My) Sugar Spun Sister" (Live) 3:27
5. "Made of Stone" (Live) 4:26
6. "She Bangs the Drums" (Live) 3:41
7. "Where Angels Play" (Live) 4:10
8. "Going Down" (Live) 2:44
9. "Mersey Paradise" (Live) 2:51
10. "I Am the Resurrection" (Live) 12:32
Music videos
No. Title Length
1. "Waterfall" (Video) 3:36
2. "Fools Gold" (Video) 4:14
3. "I Wanna Be Adored" (Video) 4:33
4. "One Love" (Video) 3:47
5. "She Bangs the Drums" (Video) 3:41
6. "Standing Here" (Video) 3:15

Personnel

The band

Technical personnel

Charts

Album

Year Chart Peak
position
1990 UK Album Charts 19 [23]
1990 Billboard 200 86 [24]
1995 UK Album Charts 23 [23]
2004 UK Album Charts 9 [23]
2005 UK Album Charts 19 [23]
2009 UK Album Charts 5 [23]

Single

Year Single Chart Peak
position
1989 "She Bangs the Drums" UK Singles Chart 36 [23]
1989 "She Bangs the Drums" Billboard Modern Rock Tracks 9 [25]
1989 "I Wanna Be Adored" Billboard Modern Rock Tracks 18 [25]
1989 "What the World Is Waiting For" / "Fools Gold" UK Singles Chart 8 [23]
1990 "Elephant Stone" UK Singles Chart 8 [23]
1990 "Made of Stone" UK Singles Chart 20 [23]
1990 "She Bangs the Drums" UK Singles Chart 34 [23]
1990 "Fools Gold" Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play 27 [25]
1990 "One Love" UK Singles Chart 4 [23]
1990 "Fools Gold" Billboard Modern Rock Tracks 5 [25]
1990 "What the World Is Waiting For" / "Fools Gold" UK Singles Chart 22 [23]
1991 "I Wanna Be Adored" UK Singles Chart 20 [23]
1992 "Waterfall" UK Singles Chart 27 [23]
1992 "I Am the Resurrection" UK Singles Chart 33 [23]
1995 "Fools Gold" UK Singles Chart 25 [23]

References

  1. ↑ "Profile of the Stone Roses". Contact Music. http://www.contactmusic.com/new/artist.nsf/ArtistNames/Stone%20Roses. Retrieved 2006-10-17. 
  2. ↑ http://www.nme.com/news/arctic-monkeys/22062
  3. ↑ "Bye Bye Badman". John Squire website. http://www.thisisthedaybreak.co.uk. 
  4. ↑ John Squire website
  5. ↑ Pitchfork Media Review
  6. ↑ Allmusic Review
  7. ↑ Clash Review
  8. ↑ Robert Christgau Review
  9. ↑ Culturedeluxe Review
  10. ↑ Rolling Stone Review
  11. ↑ "Stone Roses 'top British album'". BBC. 20 June 2004. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/music/3823983.stm. Retrieved 2006-10-30. 
  12. ↑ "Channel 4 / HMV Best music of this millennium". http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/channel4.htm. Retrieved 2009-10-05. 
  13. ↑ "Q Readers All Time Top 100 Albums". Q Magazine. 1998-02-01. 
  14. ↑ "The 100 Greatest British Albums Ever". Q Magazine (165). 2000-06-01. 
  15. ↑ Q August 2006, Issue 241
  16. ↑ "Oasis top best British album poll". BBC News. 2008-02-18. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7249473.stm. Retrieved 2010-05-25. 
  17. ↑ "NME's best British album of all time revealed". NME. http://www.nme.com/news/arctic-monkeys/22062. Retrieved 2006-10-30. 
  18. ↑ "100 Greatest Albums, 1985-2005". Spin magazine. 2005-06-20. http://www.spin.com/articles/100-greatest-albums-1985-2005. Retrieved 2009-10-05. 
  19. ↑ Time. http://www.time.com/time/2006/100albums/. Retrieved 2010-05-25. 
  20. ↑ Pitchfork Feature: Top 100 Albums of the 1980s
  21. ↑ "Oasis album voted greatest of all time". The Times. 1 Jun 2006
  22. ↑ The Stone Roses (Box + 3xCD + LP + 2x12" + DVD + M/Stick at Discogs
  23. ↑ 23.00 23.01 23.02 23.03 23.04 23.05 23.06 23.07 23.08 23.09 23.10 23.11 23.12 23.13 23.14 23.15 "UK Top 40 Hit Database". http://www.everyhit.com. Retrieved 2008-05-23. 
  24. ↑ "allmusic (((The Stone Roses > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums)))". http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:a9fyxq85ldhe~T30. Retrieved 2008-05-23. 
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 25.2 25.3 "allmusic (((The Stone Roses > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles)))". http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:a9fyxq85ldhe~T31. Retrieved 2008-05-23. 

External links

The Stone Roses
Ian Brown · John Squire · Mani · Reni
Pete Garner · Andy Couzens · Robbie Maddix · Aziz Ibrahim · Nigel Ipinson
Studio albums
The Stone Roses · Second Coming
Singles
"So Young" · "Sally Cinnamon" · "Elephant Stone" · "Made of Stone" · "She Bangs the Drums" · "Fools Gold/What the World Is Waiting For" · "One Love" · "I Wanna Be Adored" · "Waterfall" · "I Am the Resurrection" · "Love Spreads" · "Ten Storey Love Song" · "Begging You"
Compilations
Turns into Stone · The Complete Stone Roses · Garage Flower · The Remixes · The Very Best of The Stone Roses
Extended plays
Sally Cinnamon · Crimson Tonight
Related articles
Discography · Live performances · Madchester · John Leckie · The Seahorses · Freebass