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Rating: Never take anything for granted, in life as in the music field.
Take Suede: a self-titled debut with a bang, then a second album, "Dog Man Star," initially considered a total and unequivocal failure, only to be elevated to a masterpiece several years later. Then, the coup de grâce: the departure of the talented Bernard Butler, one of the most acclaimed British guitarists of his generation. It's 1994, it seems like the end of the dream for Anderson and his band. But no.
Two years pass, it's 1996. Meanwhile, a group of five slackers from Manchester, Oasis, gains worldwide fame with two explosive LPs and definitively ignites "cool-britannia." Everyone seems to have forgotten about that ambiguous and androgynous lad who churned out mega-hits with a biting edge like "Animal Nitrate" or "We Are The Pigs". Everyone smiles at the idea that a great talent on the path to a probable legendary status like Bernard Butler is replaced by a semi-unknown seventeen-year-old like Richard Oakes. Everyone smiles. A few weeks later, no one is smiling anymore.
The first warning signs come with "Trash", a lead single; the sound of Suede has radically changed, it has acquired freshness and unexpected catchiness, and the track takes off, landing on the third spot of the British Singles Chart. The album is released, and it is a triumph. Out of ten tracks, five will be released as singles and all hit the top ten. Besides the unequivocal commercial success, another aspect stands out: all the songs are of the highest quality.
The initial "triple play" leaves you breathless: "Trash", "Filmstar" (which, alternating an energetic verse with an airy and glam chorus, already showcases Oakes's skill in crafting six-string riffs) and "Lazy" (a melancholic piece entirely credited to Anderson) unleash sparkling guitars, enveloping melodies, and Brett in great vocal form. About halfway through the album comes a track destined to become an indispensable classic of mid-'90s British pop rock, "Beautiful Ones". Even in the less "prominent" episodes, the band is more inspired than ever, see "She" and "Starcrazy" (the latter, together with "The Chemistry Between Us", written by Anderson along with new keyboardist Neil Codling). It closes with a super melancholic "Saturday Night", another hit from the band. Musically, the orientation is to align with a more pop and accessible discourse while maintaining the typical glam sparks of previous albums. The lyrics talk about love (the same "Saturday Night") and criticize yuppie culture ("Beautiful Ones", "She"), abandoning the decadent visions of the first two studio works.
For many, "Coming Up" is Suede's best album; it is undoubtedly their masterpiece after Butler. The British monthly Q has nonetheless placed it at the ninety-sixth spot among the hundred most beautiful British albums of all time.
Key Tracks: "Trash", "She", "Beautiful Ones", "Picnic By The Motorway"
Tracklist Lyrics Samples and Videos
02 By the Sea (04:41)
She can walk out anytime, anytime she wants to walk out, that's fine
She can walk out anytime, anytime she feels that life has passed her by
And when I start my new life I won't touch the ground
I'm gonna try hard this time not to touch the ground
He can walk out anytime, anytime he wants to walk out, that's fine
He can walk out anytime, across the sand, into the sea, into the brine
And when I start my new life I won't touch the ground
I'm gonna try hard this time not to touch the ground
So we sold the car and quit the job
and shook some hands and wiped the make-up right off
And we said our good-byes to the bank
left Seven Sisters for a room in a seaside shack
And when I start my new life I won't touch the ground
I'm gonna try hard this time not to touch the ground...
...it's by the sea we'll breed....
...into the sea we'll bleed...
03 Europe Is Our Playground (05:08)
Run with me baby, let your hair down
Through every station, through every town
Run with me baby, let's take a chance
From Heathrow to Houndslow, from the Eastern block to France
Europe is our playground, London is our town
So run with me baby now
Run with me baby, let your hair down
Through every station, through every town
Run with me baby, let's make a stand
From peepshow to disco, from Spain to Camber Sands
Europe is our playground, London is our town
So run with me baby now
04 Saturday Night (05:02)
Today she's been working, she's been talking,
she's been smoking, its gonna be alright
Cos tonight we'll go dancing, we'll go laughing, we'll get car sick
and it'll be okay like everyone says, it'll be alright and ever so nice
We're going out tonight, out and about tonight
Oh whatever makes her happy on a Saturday night
Oh whatever makes her happy, whatever makes it alright
Today she's been sat there, sat there in a black chair,
office furniture, but it'll be alright
Cos tonight we'll go drinking, we'll do silly things
and never let the winter in
And it'll be okay like everyone says, it'll be alright and ever so nice
We're going out tonight, out and about tonight.
Oh whatever makes her happy on a Saturday night
Oh whatever makes her happy, whatever makes it alright
...we'll go peepshows and freak shows,
We'll go to discos, casinos,
We'll go where people go and let go...
...oh whatever makes her happy...
06 Lazy (06:06)
Here they com with their make-up on
as lovely as the clouds, come and see them,
Boys and girls and their mums and their words
and their romances and jobs and their sons,
Barking mad kids, lonely dads
who drug it up to give it some meaning,
From the raves to the council estates
they're reminding us there's things to be done.
But you and me, all we want to be is lazy,
you and me, so lazy...
Here they come gone 7am
getting satellite and Sky getting cable,
Bills and Bens and their mums and their friends,
who just really really want to be loved
Uncle Teds and their legendary vests,
helping out around the disabled
From the flats and the maisonettes
they're reminding us there's things to be done
But you and me, all we want to be is lazy,
you and me, so lazy...
Its you and me, its you and me, you and me...
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Other reviews
By shermanoaks
The release of 'Coming Up' in 1996 surprised many, confirming that Suede could still carve out a niche amid the rising Britpop tide.
'Beautiful Ones' was an excellent attempt to combine rock conciseness with the classic glam allure of the London group.
By david81
"The masterpiece track of the album, however, is 'Beautiful Ones,' making it one of the best tracks by Suede and the entire Britpop genre."
"Beautiful, glam, dreamy, nocturnal, to be listened to in a car along the desolate roads of bygone adolescent loves."
