Squeeze released Ridiculous

Ridiculous Squeeze

Released: November 13, 1995 Peak: -- US, 50 UK Sales (in millions): -- Genre: new wave

Tracks: Song Title (Writers) [time] (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. Electric Trains [4:03] (10/30/95, 44 UK) Heaven Knows [4:34] (5/27/96, 27 UK) Grouch of the Day [3:27] Walk Away [4:43] This Summer [3:39] (8/21/95, 32 UK) Got to Me (Wilkinson) [3:45] Long Face [4:31] I Want You [4:03] Daphne [3:44] Lost for Words [1:59] Great Escape [3:27] Temptation for Love [3:37] Sound Asleep [4:38] Fingertips [5:40] Songs written by Chris Difford and Glenn Tilbrook unless noted otherwise. Total Running Time: 55:59 The Players: Chris Difford (vocals, guitar) Glenn Tilbrook (vocals, guitar, keyboards) Keith Wilkinson (bass) Kevin Wilkinson (drums)

Rating: 3.033 out of 5.00 (average of 17 ratings) Quotable: ”Smart and stylish pop music for discerning listeners” – CdUniverse.com

About the Album: ”After nearly 20 years of recording, it would be easy to write Squeeze off as spent creative force – certainly their mosty recent albums have seemed like somewhat forced attempts to recapture the glory days.” AMG Ridiculous isn't an embarrassing attempt to rewrite previous hits, but rather, a natural progression executed with a dignified maturity rather than resignation.” AMG ”This…album came out to little fanfare in the States, though Squeeze continued to be a solid draw in their homeland England, with a back catalog justifiably revered by their following.” CDU Chris Difford and Glenn Tilbrook, “the only original members left and still the band's primary songwriters” AMG “offer up…smartly written and arranged odes to the ins and outs of life and love.” CDU The pair “seem content to have passed the Brit-pop torch on.” AMG ”The record is jammed with distorted guitars, fat bass lines, plodding electric organ lines, and echoey drums. They get totally carried away with shameless Baby Boomer pandering on the record's one obvious potential hit ("Electric Trains"), a relatively upbeat effort with an enthusiastic beat and groovy string and backing vocal arrangements.” JA ”This is smart and stylish pop music for discerning listeners. The hooks are subtle and yield their rewards slowly but unshakably.” CDU Electric Trains is a heartfelt reminiscence back to a boyhood transition from the hobby mentioned in the title to a guitar and a band.” CDU “Grouch of the Day is a moderately successful attempt at emulating [The Beatles’] Revolver [with it's] bouncy, reverby 12-string sound.” JA “Long Face is a moody, thoroughly modernized electronic dance number with a breathless, distorted Chris Difford lead vocal.” JA “I Want You gets a big bombastic string arrangement.” JA ”As the band are wont to do, the album's name shows up as simply a word in Daphne which has a chorus of ‘Daphne, don't be ridiculous’” CDU and “a warped country-western vibe that's a little amusing.” JA "Great Escape has a funky chorus worthy of Midnight Oil.” JA ”The gorgeous Temptation for Love finds Tilbrook dueting with one Cathy Denis whose parallel singing is like a soft drop shadow.” CDU “The very mellow love song…sounds much like early 70's Stevie Wonder.” JA When all is said and done, this album falls into the same pile as most of Squeeze’s output – a collection of well-written and sung shoulda-been hits that go nowhere fast. Then again, “catchy” isn’t enough to make an album a classic and while this album may be able to boast of catchiness, it can’t call itself a classic.

Resources and Related Links: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Squeeze AMG All Music Guide review by Chris Woodstra JA John Alroy, Wilson & Alroy’s Record Reviews CDU CdUniverse.com Other Related DMDB Pages: First posted 3/16/2006; last updated 2/7/2022.