Stereophonics
Just Enough Education To Perform

THE REVIEW

After the excellent debut "Word Gets Around" and the consecration with "Performance And Cocktails," the Stereophonics achieve international success, paving their way with "Have A Nice Day", a hyper-commercial single that launches the album "Just Enough Education To Perform". The shift in sound compared to their predecessors is quite sensational, given the new and more decided orientation towards acoustic sounds with a clear American influence: the opener "Vegas Two Times" (in my humble opinion, among the best tracks of the trio) might mislead (an intro played on the choruses, then an energetic drum roll announcing a solid guitar riff), but then "Lying In The Sun" guides the audience towards the real atmosphere of the album, with Jones's (as always) raspy voice settling on a very simple acoustic guitar loop and leading to a relaxed and laid-back chorus. The album returns to rockier latitudes with the first single "Mr. Writer", a ballad-invective against journalists, featuring a meticulously crafted arrangement based on the interplay of voice, effected guitar, and touches of piano here and there that create a lovely atmosphere, over which an inspired Jones, as usual, excels in highlighting his very distinctive vocal timbre. "Step On My Old Size Nines" is another American-oriented acoustic track, introducing us to the aforementioned "Have A Nice Day" (the pa-para/pa-pa-para-ra chorus is for an instant lawsuit) and "Nice To Be Out", yet another acoustic piece which this time varies in the use of the drums (slightly more rhythmic). "Watch Them Fly Somedays" reintroduces the electric guitar, though it continues on a ballad line (still a very enjoyable piece); the album then enters a part where things start to become monotonous until reaching "Maybe", perhaps the best track of the batch. The structure is the same as all the acoustic tracks on the album, but here, unlike "Have A Nice Day", the middle chorus takes a pleasantly catchy turn, well-suited to the song's atmosphere. The album closes in a manner similar to how it began, in an energetic and electric way ("Rooftop"). The special edition of "J.E.E.P." includes a cover of "Handbags And Gladrags", a piece by Rod Stewart.