the song rings loudly through these halls
Rooting through old cds earlier today in search of something new to import to iTunes, I came across my copy of Toad the Wet Sprocket’s Fear. The cd case was long gone and the cd was decently scratched, but the computer didn’t seem to mind and imported it seamlessly. I put it on and listened as I mopped up the front bedroom in preparation for painting the closet. The chords drifted through the air from my bedroom door across the hallway to the front room and brought back a lot of memories.
It’s the first cd I bought with my own money, way back in 1994. I had bought tapes before then, but the Toad album was something new. I purchased it after having heard “All I Want” on the radio. I liked the song very much and I remember having a vague premonition that it was going to be the only one of that quality on the album and I would have wasted my money, but happily I was proved wrong. I liked almost all the other songs on the album and Toad became my first real “favorite band” by virtue of that fact.
“Walk on the Ocean” and “All I Want” are easily the most two accessible songs on the album and they were my point of entry for the rest. “Is It for Me” was my favorite for a long time with its strong hook, dreamlike story in the lyrics and straight-ahead rock sound. “Something to Say” and “I Will Not Take These Things for Granted” are more or less dialogue songs between the singer and another party, and as such fit in well for thinking on the drive home after encounters with friends or romantic interests. “Butterflies” is more baroque, with multi-layered rounds in the choruses and surreal imagery in the lyrics and it whetted my appetite for songs that broke the mold of conventional song structure and theme. And the others were all relevant in some way, whether they touched on social commentary or the popular face of religion or anything else. After all that, though, and revisiting the album again, I’d have to single out my enduring favorite as “Nightingale Song.” It’s brooding, sparse, concise and beautiful. And representative of the album as a whole in lots of ways. Quality stuff.
oh, i have dulcinea… but now i want to hear the rest.
I love Toad the Wetsprocket.
Dulcinea is the only Toad album I don’t have. I think Fear is far and away their best. They found their sound on it and didn’t evolve much afterward. You should give a listen!
I love “Walk On the Ocean”…I have a John Mayer cover.
Ooh I’d like to hear that.
just checked it out on itunes – sounds great! just added it to my [somewhat extensive] cd wishlist, haha. i’m glad you recommended it.
Hello. My name’s Mike. Learned about you through and adding you (assuming no objection). This is one of those gruff intro comments. Hi.
Hi Mike. Pleased to meet you (in the virtual sense). I’m flattered Emily mentioned me to you. Now to add you back…
Was ordering textbooks off amazon.com on Thursday and thought about how i really need some new music. I remembered this entry and odered Fear solely on your recommendation. I’m sure i’ll like it in some way, i’m just curious as to how it will sound in light of your analytical comments. :)
:)
I think you’ll like it. The album is one of David Watkins’ favorites.