Boomslang: Johnny Marr & The Healers: Amazon.ca: Music

1. The Last Ride

2. Caught Up

3. Down On The Corner

4. Need It

5. You Are The Magic

6. In Betweens

7. Another Day

8. Headland

9. Long Gone

10. Something To Shout About

11. Bangin' On

Product Description

From Amazon.com

Musician, heal thyself. Having lived with advanced sideman syndrome ever since his glory days in the Smiths, Johnny Marr finally steps into the spotlight with his full-length frontman debut. So how do Marr and the Healers stack up against alma maters the Smiths, The The, and Electronic? Boomslang is a rock-solid collection of dreamy, droning, sublimely melodic pop offerings. Marr makes little attempt to match the languid solipsism of Morrissey, the existential dread of Matt Johnson, or the enigmatic electro-pop of Bernard Sumner. Instead, from the hypnotic rock of "The Last Ride" to the reflectively pastoral "Something to Shout About," Marr's songs are as unaffected, his singing as mellifluous, as the tastefully expressive guitar work that's earned him a place among rock's most acclaimed instrumentalists. Already together for three years, Marr, Zak Starkey, and Alonza Bevan form a tight rock trio that knows when to loosen up, not least on the seven-minute "You Are the Magic." While cohort Sumner's career trajectory from Joy Division guitarist to New Order frontman was decidedly faster, the cofounder of Manchester's other best known band has made a two-decade journey from codependency to creative control that, in its own unassuming way, is no less satisfying. --Bill Forman

Album Description

Japanese edition of 2003 album includes one exclusive bonus track, 'Here It Comes'. Copy control CD. Imusic.

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Customer Reviews

35 Reviews

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(6)

Average Customer Review

3.2 out of 5 stars (35 customer reviews)

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Most helpful customer reviews

1.0 out of 5 stars Proof that Morrissey was the REAL talent behind the Smiths., Jun 8 2004

By

depthfunction "depthfunction" (St. Louis, Missouri USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Boomslang (Audio CD)

While Morrissey has managed to carve a successful solo career for himself, in spite of being hounded by the ghost of the Smiths, Johnny Marr, whom some people tend to deify, turned into little more than a second-rate session musician, playing with other bands for an album or two and then moving on, never releasing anything all his own. After more than a decade, Boomslang finally came out, and . . .

. . . it's a bad, bad album. There are a couple of good songs, but the rest of it sounds like the boring, uninspired crap-rock that you hear from aging musicians who are long past their prime. Perhaps if Marr had released an album shortly after he left the Smiths instead of wasting his time with that Electronic nonsense, he might have established a solo career. This is just too little, way too late.

Smiths fans sometimes like to argue over who was the real driving force behind the Smiths, Morrissey or Marr? Given the very different paths these two have taken post-Smiths, it's clear that Morrissey was the real talent behind the Smiths.

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4.0 out of 5 stars Johnny Marr steps out from the shadows, April 20 2004

By

Daniel Friedman "dfja17" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: Boomslang (Audio CD)

The Smiths were a great band that was clearly greater than the sum of its parts, but whereas Morrissey gets a little too much credit for their success, Johnny Marr doesn't get enough. If you listen to the last couple of Smiths albums, the melodies and production of the songs stand out tremendously and that can be (mostly) attributed to Marr. Since he was more or less a glorified side man, Marr continued in that role with Bryan Ferry, The Pretenders, The The, and Electronic before finally putting together his own solo effort.

As a fan, I've been waiting for this for a long, long time. Yes, it could have been a little better but it's far better than a lot of the stuff being released these days. Marr's vocal ability is not the strongest, but he acquits himself well for the most part and comes across a little like Noel Gallagher. The songs are, for the most part, very catchy and emblematic of Marr's work with the Smiths. He, I think, captures a mood through music better than almost any other songwriter out there. Down On The Corner and Last Ride are both quality songs, as are Something To Shout About, Inbetweens, and You Are The Magic.

Smiths albums were a great combination of melancholy and pop and while there is no equal here to a song like How Soon Is Now or Paint A Vulgar Picture, there are some very likable tracks. Marr also again proves himself a good instrumentalist and the band he's assembled shows some muscle as well as technique. A worthy purchase for the CD collection and here's hoping there's more to come.

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2.0 out of 5 stars Stone Roses B-sides, April 15 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Boomslang (Audio CD)

What a shocking dissapointment. Love the man and his former work, but this is.........really..........weak.

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