The Stone Roses are a band I've always loved. Their eponymous debut album, released in 1989, is frequently mentioned as one of the classic British records of the last 25 years. Their story is one fit for a Behind The Music episode, complete with supreme highs and lows, record label squabbling, drug problems, the difficult sophomore album, founding members leaving and the inevitable breakup. They've buried the hatchet (somewhat?) and have kicked off a tour that includes some monstrous gigs in the UK and Europe this summer (sadly nothing on this side of the Atlantic, but I'm used to that).
I was too young at the time of its initial release. My first experience with The Roses came in the mid-90s during the Britpop period that spawned Oasis, Blur, Pulp, Suede and many others. Being the anglophile (especially when it comes to music) that I am, I absorbed anything and everything to do with that "scene". You have to remember that this was before a little invention known as the internet, so my primary source of information was magazines such as Vox, Select, NME, and Q. These magazines weren't cheap (and still aren't, but are well worth it on most occasions) and initially I had to travel from my parents suburban home to all corners of the city (Ottawa, in case you were wondering), to procure these periodicals. One of the bands that was continually mentioned, as an inspiration to many of the Britpop era bands I was listening to, was The Stone Roses. I had to know what they sounded like!
Today it's easy to know everything about a band (or anything for that matter), including what they sound like, within seconds of hearing about them. In the not so distant past of 1995/96 it really was a scavenger hunt to find certain records. I tried all my usual haunts (both new and used "record" stores) until I finally found The Roses debut album as an import for some exorbitant amount of money. Of course, I had been on the hunt for this record for what felt like months by that point so I probably would've given my left arm for it had I needed to.
The record itself was dazzling, combining the dance oriented grooves of late 80s house music with the chiming guitars and pop melodies of 60s groups like The Byrds. As soon as the slow building swagger of "I Wanna Be Adored" kicked off, I was hooked. As one song led into another, I had that weird "I swear I've heard these songs before even though they're brand new" connection with the music. "She Bangs The Drums", "Waterfall", "Bye Bye Badman", "Made Of Stone", and "This Is The One" are all classics.
I had my iTunes on shuffle the other day and "I Am The Resurrection" came on. Cue the instant flashback to my late teens. Sure, the first half of the song is a great slice of guitar-pop, but the genius of the song kicks in at the 3:39 mark. The bass line gets funky and the band (with the exception of singer Ian Brown) get to jam the record to its conclusion ("Fools Gold" wasn't on the original release but was added as the last track on subsequent re-releases). I still get shivers listening to this record, some 16 years after first hearing it. Pure brilliance.
Thanks for reading.
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