Careful listening to this song. It's a total earworm! I've often found myself walking around the house singing "could it be you really caaaare"!
I can see that lol I was all about crashing drums and distorted guitars back then, not exclusively, but pretty close, so at the time it didn't do much for me. BUT, even though I hadn't heard the song in ... 35+ years, as soon as I thought I should perhaps post it for reference, the chorus was going through my head lol
LI (WIS)'s remix has a slight edge on the original, in that there is more guitar present but of course, it's subtle. And I still don't really know how to rate Jackson because I'm largely indifferent to it. But INXS gets points for recording something so unlike anything they've recorded before or since...
INXS – The Swing & Other Stories Genre: Rock Style: Pop Rock Year: 1985 The One Thing Don't Change The Spy Of Love To Look At You Original Sin I Send A Message Love Is (What I Say) Melting In The Sun Burn For You Dancing On The Jetty All The Voices -------------------------------------- So we have been through the albums and the extended plays, but it would be a little amiss to leave out this release I think. I doubt that this was the first video album or anything, but this VHS release (which never got a dvd release) is an excellent little compile of videos from the guys. It isn't so much that the videos at this stage were competing with the Russell Mulcahy blockbusters that had taken over the video-waves of the early part of the eighties, just that the guys were confident enough to release a video album, and obviously the record company had the confidence in them to do that. I never actually owned this, I generally only get concert videos, generally, but there are a few video albums that appeal to me, but the idea here appeals to me, and I would be really interested in hearing how this was put together, and what any of you thought of it at the time. Were there links? How did the interviews and such get assembled? and how was it all put together? I am assuming we will get dvd's later that assemble these tracks, with later ones, but it sort of seems a little bit of a shame that this didn't get a dvd, or even bluray release, with a well mixed 5.1 soundtrack. Anyway, please give us the lowdown on this release, and tomorrow we'll hit the next album, which seemed in many ways to raise Inxs's star a little higher in the sky. Cheers Mark
You I Know written by the wonderful Neil Finn of course. Based on this thread I gave The Swing a run on my 2 new Apple HomePod Minis today. Brilliant album. Wonderful level of detail. So many ideas and hooks. Their peak for me. The edges seemed to get progressively sanded off their work as time went on.
Welcome to Wherever You Are was a pretty good "recapture the weirdness" record...but I get what you mean.
I haven't watched it yet, will later. My best mate had this on VHS, but my player was Betamax so I couldn't borrow it! And it was one of the first videos I remember to come housed in the cardboard sleeve rather than the plastic box.* While they probably don't have the replay potential of a straight concert film, I liked these types of releases: the video clips, live cuts, interviews. With a sympathetic director, they can be pretty cohesive. Tears for Fears' Scenes from the Big Chair springs to mind: all the clips of the hits, very well filmed live cuts, pretentious interviews. * all memories are approximate.
I have several old VHS cassettes but this isn't one of them. Back in the day, I could never find it in stores. But thanks to youtube, I've seen it. However, I've been very familiar with these particular music videos for nearly 30 years because of the Greatest Video Hits 1980-1990 VHS cassette. And as I went over earlier in this thread, whenever the back catalogue expanded editions are released, I'm sure we'll finally start getting DVD/BR versions of many of these OOP VHS cassettes...
The Swing and Other Stories is kind of a mess because it continually interrupts the music videos with interview clips and other random things. I highly doubt they'd re-release it to blu ray ever because it's very much of its time. I'm Only Looking dvd had a chance at being definitive had it included all the missing videos.
Chris Murphy dead: INXS manager dies at 66 after cancer battle (news.com.au) This really sucks. Without Chris Murphy, INXS wouldn't have made it big, or at all. From day one, he lived and breathed INXS and was probably the greatest rock n' roll manager of all time. RIP, Chris...
Sad to hear about the loss of Chris Murphy ... unfortunately it seems I am at that age where people from my youth a dropping all around....
I sort of knew them in the early days and their ambition was to make a living touring up and down the east coast of Australia. Chris saw something in them and took it to the next level.
Listen Like Thieves Studio album by INXS Released 14 October 1985 Recorded August 1985 Studio Rhinoceros Studios, Sydney Genre New wave, alternative rock Length 37:16 Label Atlantic, Mercury, WEA Producer Chris Thomas Listen Like Thieves is the fifth studio album by the Australian rock band INXS. It was released on 14 October 1985. It spent two weeks at number one on the Australian Kent Music Report Albums Chart. Considered an international breakthrough album for the band, it peaked at No. 11 on the United States Billboard 200, No. 24 on the Canadian RPM 100 Albums and top 50 in the United Kingdom. The album featured the band's first top 5 single in the U.S., "What You Need", and it also won the group the Countdown Music and Video Award for 'Best Video' with that single, a sign of the critical acclaim that INXS had achieved. Listen Like Thieves also marks the beginning of the group's off-and-on alliance with producer Chris Thomas. Michael Hutchence – vocals Tim Farriss – guitar, synthesizers Kirk Pengilly – guitar, saxophone, vocals Garry Gary Beers – bass, vocals Jon Farriss – drums, vocals Andrew Farriss – keyboards, guitar Additional personnel Ray Cooper - percussion on “Same Direction” Ann O’Dell - string arrangements Chris Thomas – producer Steve Churchyard - engineer Cover INXS - art direction Philip Mortlock - design, art, photography Andy Rosen - photography Stuart Spence - photography 1. "What You Need" 3:35 2. "Listen Like Thieves" (Garry Gary Beers, A. Farriss, Jon Farriss, Tim Farriss, Hutchence, Kirk Pengilly) 3:46 3. "Kiss the Dirt (Falling Down the Mountain)" 3:56 4. "Shine Like It Does" 3:05 5. "Good + Bad Times" (Hutchence, Pengilly) 2:46 6. "Biting Bullets" (Hutchence, Pengilly) 2:49 7. "This Time" (A. Farriss) 3:11 8. "Three Sisters (Instrumental)" (T. Farriss) 2:27 9. "Same Direction" 4:58 10. "One x One" 3:05 11. "Red Red Sun" (A. Farriss, J. Farriss) 3:32 Total length: 37:16 -------------------------------------------------------------------- Listen Like Thieves cemented Inxs as a major band in Australia, and from my limited knowledge helped continue their star to rise overseas. A big part of that was the lead single, but we'll get to that on Monday. From memory with this album the band made a conscious decision to bring the guitar back to the forefront. I believe the band, of someone in the band felt that The Swing had drifted away from the guitar somewhat, and I suppose that may well be true, but on revisiting the album over the last little bit, the guitar plays a very important role, even if it isn't dominant. On Listen Like Thieves the guitar really does pump up into the foreground on a lot of tracks. To some degree for the Australian market, bringing the guitar to the forefront was always going to get them some solid sales. Australia in the seventies and early eighties was a very pub rock place, and the bands that really seemed to get the legs in the market were the rock bands. A lot of that was to do with the fact that Aussie bands lived the concert lives at the pubs all around Australia, and, at least at that time, the pubs wanted to rock out. It actually took a little while for pop bands to share the same kind of reputation that the rock bands did. Bands like Acdc, The Angels, Rose Tattoo and such, generally got the kudos as being the great live bands around the country, and although there had certainly been pop bands, that did have successful singles and albums, they didn't seem to get the same amount of exposure or kudos. Inxs did a fantastic job of blending pop ideals with some rock feels, and I think to some degree it really helped establish that pop bands could have success in the Australian market, and over the coming years pop bands started to get more exposure, and started to become more a part of the scene. Anyway, on this album the band really drew a great balance between the pop and the rock, with some great hooks, and great songs, and just enough driving guitar power to sort of be a kind of crossover kind of album, that was appreciated across the board.... and although it is a little silly, and weird to me, that sort of crossover thing really seemed to give the band a lot of credibility as a band to be reckoned with. The was no doubting the success or popularity of the Swing, but Listen Like Thieves really solidified the bands reputation and they moved from strength to strength in commercial viability and musical credibility. In 1985 I had started doing my own writing and recording and so I didn't actually buy this album at the time, I got it a few years later... I really don't know why, that's just how it worked out. I really think it's a solid album, and the high points on this album, are among the high points of the bands career. I really like this album, and I will be interested to see what the b-sides are, because one thing that always struck me about this album, and it has only really come into focus since starting this thread, there are a couple of tracks on this album that seem to have the somewhat experimental heart of the b-sides we have looked at over the course of the thread so far. That certainly isn't a criticism, just an observation that has only come to light during the course of this thread, and revisiting this album. Anyway, please give us your input regarding Listen Like Thieves. What did you think when it came out/or when you first heard it? What do you think now? Where does it sit in your collection? Just anything that you feel drawn to share, please fill us in Cheers Mark
Listen Like Thieves (the album) This is the first LP I bought while it was still a new album. I didn’t buy it upon release though. I recall hearing “This Time” as the first single, thinking “hey - new album, cool song!” But that one didn’t fare too well on the charts. Then a month or so later I heard “What You Need”, picked my jaw off the floor, ran out and bought the album right away. I wasn’t alone. That song was badass! It made INXS hip to the masses, and set the table for the mega-success of Kick here. Just checked the dates at 45cat.com and in Australia “What You Need” was released in August ‘85 followed by “This Time” in November, but the US we got “This Time” in Sept. followed by “What You Need” in Jan. ‘86. That makes sense, as I think I first heard it during winter break from college. I really love the guitar sound on this album, along with the great combinations of rock with funk. Side One of this LP is one of my most-played of the 80’s. I can hear the added touches of one of those state of the art Fairlight CMI digital synthesizers here and there, but for the most part they ditched the synth sounds of The Swing and went back to basics for this album, emphasizing the guitar, bass and drums in a way that stood out against the rest of the pop charts. By 1985 the “80’s sound” on the charts was on full display with ridiculous artificial drum and percussion noises (some of which I like, admittedly) but INXS went against the trend here and came up with a breakthrough album that showcased their prowess as a group of talented players. The next three years in the US made INXS into a ubiquitous presence, during which Listen Like Thieves and Kick both spawned many singles and MTV videos, but also don’t forget the Pretty In Pink soundtrack, the Crocodile Dundee soundtrack and the Lost Boys soundtrack. It was a steady continuous stream of INXS and I loved it all.
That's really interesting. I assumed What You Need was the lead single everywhere. I guess they thought This Time was a more US friendly track... and I suppose for 85/86 I would have thought so too.
