Link1 & LinkB. I’m usually of the opinion that anything released after 1982 is shit, and have bought probably 2 CD’s of new music in the last ten years, but I stumbled upon the LDN video on some channel one night, and then the video of “Smile”. And damn, in my opinion these two sound like two all-time classics- quintessential British Pop that would be hits in any decade (with era appropriate lyrics, natch). That’s why I don’t think the nursery rhyme knock is bad- most pre-Beatles classics were like that, and even some after that.
And I can’t think of any two back to back or close hits where the second one perfectly catches the feel and vibe of the first, without being a copy or lower quality- the only comparable songs I can think of are Gary Wrights “Dream Weaver” & “Love Is Alive”.
Hopefully this album which I just ordered is consistently good- the only three songs I have heard are the above and “Nan”, and since when I used to buy albums three good songs would be enough to make the album worth getting, I guess even if the rest are duds, its better than most.
Well, I’m not certain about they’re place among the greatest singles of “all time,” but I just wanted to share that as I clicked on Cafe Society, SMILE came on shuffle. Like, right before I saw this thread. And I haven’t listened to this song in ages.
Weeeeird.
I like Lily Allen, though I hear she’s difficult to work with and I’m not too suprised that she hasn’t had much popularity stateside; it’s always a bit hard for acts from the U.K. to break into the American music scene, I think. I really can’t see her ever being a big star here. Pity.
What I can’t believe is the Amy Winehouse album, who I find to be an insufferable poser, is outselling the Lily Allen album stateside by quite a bit. Sadly, classic pop songs have gone the way of the instrumental and story songs in the US.
I freaking love that girl. Even Dannyness does, he sings along under the presence of mocking her. Suuuure her lyrics are juvenile, you can stop singing along whenever you want, right?
I hated this record with an absolute passion and I find that most people with whom I’ve spoken who profess to like it are people who want to be a fan of something no one else has heard of but don’t like ACTUAL obscure music.
YMMV, of course, but I can’t find one redeeming thing about it. And I tried. I bought it on the strength of “Smile” and an Onion AV Club review and I’ve regretted the purchase ever since.
I liked both *Smile * and LDN when they first came out, enough to download them. I found that after a couple of months I was skipping past them and eventually I removed them from my regular playlists. This is true for most pop music for me though, it wears thin quickly. Some songs never wear out, these are what I would consider classics in pop music. I don’t know about Lily Allen yet. Maybe LDN will turn out to be a keeper after its had time to settle, but I don’t know. I remember that U2’s Mysterious Ways wore out quickly at first for me, now its the one track from that album that doesn’t leave my Ipod. Will LDN be like this? Time will tell. I don’t think Smile will last, I’m just sick of it.
Actually, “Smile” is one of the weaker tracks on the album. The music is good, but the lyrics just don’t have the witty spark of the album tracks. My faves off the album are the gorgeous ballad “Littlest Things” and the hilarious avoiding-the-sleazy-bar-guy boogie-woogie of “Knock 'Em Out”. Nearly every track has a great chorus, Lily’s voice is sultry, and the backing tracks have a teriffic ska groove without falling to the obvious soul homages of Amy Winehouse.
My girlfriend got me listening to Lily Allen’s *Alright, Still * album just this week, and I LOVE IT. “LDN” is a highlight for sure, but there are better songs on it than “Smile.” Every one is catchy and memorable pop fun, perfect summer songs with just enough ska and reggae grooves to give them some indie cred – Lulu meets Madness. I love her “mockney” accent and playful persona, and I can’t see getting tired of this album anytime soon.
Then again, we also love Amy Winehouse’s Back To Black album. It’s a great homage to '60s soul, but sounds fresh and new rather than tired and uninspired. I personally like the horn-heavy arrangements the best, but it’s another strong album all the way through.
Meh. At least as far as “Smile” goes. Nice summer song but nothing more. In this vein, “Break My Stride” and “Pass The Dutchie” were much better singles.
I’m with the others who say no. I thought Lily Allen was refreshingly different and new when I first heard her. Enough so that I bought Smile, LDN, and Everything’s Just Wonderful. It didn’t quite take me a month to grow tired of them. They do sound rather simple and poppy, although they are different & unique. Just not enough to hold my interest. That being said, I always find myself watching any performances I might catch on the tube because I find her incredibly sexy and different from the typical poptart image.
Seriously, why aren’t all you people riding for “Smile” equally jazzed about Paris Hilton’s “Stars are Blind”? It’s the same damn song, but Hilton is less of an annoying bint than Allen is.
And “Alfie” is the worst of the lot. Daft Eurovision-sampling schoolmarmy bullshit that makes people snigger because she sings “THC.” It’s “How Much is that Doggy in the Window” level inanity, but because some hot hipster chick is warbling it, all the kids go nuts.
Not to mention that (on record) Allen is a throughly unlikeable character who you want to spend as little time listening to as possible. Ugh.
How you define schoolmarmy? I seriously can’t figure out how that term applies to Allen, especially in the context of your sentence.
I can’t see Allen as being obscure in any way, she’s as ubiquitous as any other pop singer these days. And obscurity has nothing to do with quality.
I hate pop-music snobbery. If there is anything that should repulse supercilious snottiness it should be pop music, a form of art that takes pride in not taking things so damn seriously.
This will do - from Dictionary.com: “a female schoolteacher, esp. of the old-time country school type, popularly held to be strict and priggish.”
The whole damn song is about her sticking her nose into her brother’s life because he doesn’t meet her standards. And there is no sense of concern - this isn’t an intervention - just sneering condescension. She delivers the whole thing with an air of contrived old fashioned cutesiness (“oh deary me,” “my baby brother”), but she still comes off like a hectoring harpy.
If I had only heard Smile in the background, I’d probably like it. As it is, the video portrays her as a vicious, scheming little bitch (whatever her boyfriend may have done) and that’s put me off her and her music completely.
I love this album. The music is so light and fun, yet she’s talking about seeing a pimp and his crackwhore and her ex’s tiny dick and bitches at the clubs. Love it! I agree that “Alfie” is a great tune.
The people who say obscure music is somehow better are the real poseurs, IMO. I was like that in high school and I was a real asshole, but I outgrew it. Besides, Lily Allen may not be Top 40 in the U.S., but she’s by no means obscure.
