Only Life

Only Life
Studio album by
The Feelies
ReleasedSeptember 13, 1988[1]
Length39:17
LabelCoyote/A&M[2]
ProducerSteve Rinkoff, Bill Million, Glenn Mercer
The Feelies chronology
The Good Earth
(1986) 		Only Life
(1988) 		Time for a Witness
(1991)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
Robert ChristgauB+[4]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[2]
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide[5]
The Philadelphia Inquirer[6]
Pitchfork7.6/10[7]
Rolling Stone[8]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[9]
Spin Alternative Record Guide7/10[10]

Only Life is the third album by the American rock band the Feelies, released in 1988.[11][12] It was made with the same line-up that appeared on the band's previous album, The Good Earth.[13] The album contains a cover of the Velvet Underground's "What Goes On".[9]

The album peaked at No. 173 on the Billboard 200.[14] Jonathan Demme directed the video for "Away".[15]

Style

Only Life has been described as an "updated and mature form" of its predecessor, Crazy Rhythms. It features fewer acoustic tracks, with a "greater focus on speedy jangle-strum rockers".[16]

Production

The album was produced by Glenn Mercer, Bill Million, and Steve Rinkoff.[17]

Critical reception

Magnet wrote that "the songs grapple with apprehension and the longing for comfort, which the music delivers in the form of indelible hooks and transcendent rave-ups."[18] Rolling Stone wrote: "Driven by the interlocking guitars of Mercer and Bill Million, the band constructs waves of beautiful hypnotic drone, with subtle tempo shifts and percussion accents that ripple through the arrangements."[8] Trouser Press praised the "amazingly exacting sound and performances" and "riveting songs of breathless electricity."[19] USA Today listed the album at number nine on its list of the ten best albums of 1988.[20]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Glenn Mercer except where noted

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."It's Only Life" 3:01
2."Too Much"Bill Million, Glenn Mercer4:38
3."Deep Fascination" 4:07
4."Higher Ground" 4:38
5."The Undertow" 3:43
Total length:20:07
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
6."For Awhile" 4:05
7."The Final Word"Million, Mercer2:23
8."Too Far Gone"Million, Mercer3:38
9."Away" 5:27
10."What Goes On"Lou Reed3:37
Total length:19:10

Personnel

  • Glenn Mercer – lead, rhythm and slide guitars, lead vocals, keyboards
  • Bill Million – electric and acoustic guitars, backing vocals, e-bow
  • Brenda Sauter – bass, backing vocals
  • Stan Demeski – drums, percussion
  • Dave Weckerman – percussion, drums

References

  1. ^ Dupler, Steven (1988-09-03). "The Eye". Billboard. Vol. 100, no. 36. p. 48. ISSN 0006-2510. Coyote/A&M act the Feelies' new single, "Away," from the album, "Only Life," due out Sept. 13
  2. ^ a b Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 3. MUZE. p. 415.
  3. ^ Ned Raggett. "Only Life - The Feelies | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 2015-11-10.
  4. ^ "CG: feelies". Robert Christgau. 1991-03-26. Retrieved 2015-11-10.
  5. ^ MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 419.
  6. ^ Moon, Tom (9 Oct 1988). "A STRONG BAND THAT WINS WITH ITS INSTRUMENTALS". The Philadelphia Inquirer: G14.
  7. ^ "The Feelies: Only Life/Time For A Witness". Pitchfork.
  8. ^ a b "The Feelies: Only Life : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone". Rolling Stone. November 3, 2008. Archived from the original on 2008-11-03.
  9. ^ a b The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. p. 242.
  10. ^ Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. 1995. pp. 146–147.
  11. ^ "The Feelies | Biography & History". AllMusic.
  12. ^ "The Feelies: Only Life & Time for a Witness". Relix Media. June 10, 2016.
  13. ^ Earles, Andrew (September 15, 2014). Gimme Indie Rock: 500 Essential American Underground Rock Albums 1981-1996. Voyageur Press. ISBN 9780760346488 – via Google Books.
  14. ^ "The Feelies". Billboard.
  15. ^ "FEELIES SAYING SOMETHING - Record Collector Magazine".
  16. ^ Earles, Andrew (September 15, 2014). Gimme Indie Rock: 500 Essential American Underground Rock Albums 1981-1996. Yoyageur Press. p. 104.
  17. ^ Jenkins, Mark (14 Sep 1988). "Records: The Feelies And Pere Ubu: Polished Power". The Washington Post: C7.
  18. ^ "Essential New Music: The Feelies' "Only Life" And "Time For A Witness"". April 17, 2016.
  19. ^ "Feelies". Trouser Press. Retrieved 15 April 2021.
  20. ^ Gundersen, Edna (13 Dec 1988). "The year in music: Only a few stand out in a so-so period for rock: In 1988, pop falls short on substance". USA Today: 1D.