The Stone Roses (1989)

The Stone Roses – The Stone Roses

England-1989. A group of lads from Manchester calling themselves The Stone Roses, having brought out multiple singles and an EP, finally release their self-titled debut. Little did they know they were about to completely raise the bar for debut albums….

The eclectic group blended the guitar pop revival sound of the 90s with the rolling dance beats of the 80s. This was not immediately found to be a winning combination, with critics giving the debut a lukewarm reception. This did not matter to the Roses however, as by 1990, they were already hometown legends, kick-starting the Madchester movement and inspiring a generation of young musicians, who grew up to become the likes of Oasis and The Courteeners. The album’s opener (I Wanna Be Adored) is not only one of the band’s strongest tracks, but, I feel, one of the strongest album openers of all time. The song also plays a crucial part in live performances, serving as a rousing anthem for Roses fans everywhere. With all concerts beginning with Mani’s rumbling bass, inducing chants of the iconic opening notes that captivated a generation.

The album doesn’t let up after this rousing opener, with Adored being followed by fan favourite She Bangs the Drums. The structure of the chorus is found to be so appealing due to the repeated structure and sing along quality of Brown’s writing which gives the track a ‘catchy’ quality that seems to be engineered and finely tuned to aid in the creation of good memories. Nostalgia is a huge part of the appeal of this album, which could explain the apparent U-turn on critical opinion. Every track on this album feels more than capable of serving as the soundtrack to various different experiences, it is most definitely a soundtrack for life. Not to diminish the quality of musicianship however, as any of the four-piece would be more than capable of success with other projects. Beginning with Brown, perhaps not the strongest of singers, but what he lacks in technical ability, he makes up for in his ability as a frontman, for many fans epitomising cool. Moving on to John Squire, a supremely talented guitarist, with clear influences from the likes of Jimmy Page (Love Spreads, anyone?), but is also perfectly comfortable belting out 60s-esque wah-wah riffs on tracks like Fools Gold. Gary ‘Mani’ Mounfield, one half of the Roses’ rhythm section, arguably the anchoring element of the band has a knack for creating rolling basslines that create a punchy sound, giving a dance quality to the band’s overall sound. And finally, Alan ‘Reni’ Wren, a hugely talented drummer who is possibly the rhythmic driving force behind such crowd pleasing anthems as I Am the Resurrection, his now classic dance-infused drum beats paving the way for iconic 90s tracks such as Primal Scream’s Loaded.

As for the album itself, the most prominent element (besides of course the clear camaraderie and talented musicianship) is the balance, something the album as a standalone piece does very well. With a rousing starting 3 (I Wanna be Adored, She Bangs the Drums, Waterfall). Track 4 (Don’t Stop) marks a gradual but distinct change in pace, where vocals and drums seem to take a back seat to Squire’s mesmerising riffs, the best example of this being Bye Bye Badman (track 5). After another 3 less intense tracks, singalong favourite Made of Stone ‘resurrects’ the anthem-like nature, its chorus holding a lot of good memories of youth. This fluidity of pace and tempo is not without purpose, as all these ups and downs build to a big finish, widely considered to be the Roses’ best work. I Am the Resurrection, 8 minutes of quintessential Stone Roses, a perfect blend of wailing riffs, rolling basslines, tantalisingly rhythmic drums and anthem-like lyrics



To sum up, The Stone Roses is a damn near perfect effort, especially for a debut from a group of young lads. Whether you’re unwinding after a long day at work, enjoying time with friends in your local, or tearing up the town on a self-proclaimed ‘mad one’, stick any of these tracks on and sheer happiness is sure to follow as floods of grinning nostalgia rush into both your brain and your heart, while you think back to that time you and your best friends sat in the living room at 4 in the morning belting out those iconic opening lines ‘I don’t have to sell my soul’ and having the time of your life (think back, everyone’s done it). To paraphrase the immortal words of Ian Brown, this is still the one…