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Boys and Girls

Bryan Ferry - Boys and Girls Audio CD

A fair review of the Bryan Ferry "Boys and Girls" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Bryan Ferry reviews here, or go back to the Bryan Ferry tabs.

Band: Bryan Ferry
Title: Boys and Girls
Rating:

Release Date: 2000-03-28
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Sensation 2: Slave to Love 3: Don't Stop the Dance 4: Wasted Land 5: Windswept 6: Chosen One 7: Valentine 8: Stone Woman 9: Boys and Girls

I Agree: Ferry''s Best CD
I couldn't agree more: it is fantastic. I'm glad a lot of Bryan Ferry fans think that this is his best solo album.

"Sensation," "Slave To Love," "Don't Stop The Dance," "Stone Woman" and "Windswept" are my favorites. The latter (Windspect) just blows me away (no pun intended) every time! It is Bryan Ferry at his most haunting.

I also agree with fellow reviewer than Ferry is vastly under-appreciated and known here in the United States. Fellow Americans: you don't know what you're missing! I am Ferry's age and have listened to music since the mid `50s and I believe Ferry is one-of-a-kind.

"Haunting" is the first word that comes to mind when I think of Ferry's songs and presentations. They remind me of a Salvador Dali painting - just bizarre yet mesmerizing stuff. I've never heard music quite like it.

Actually, many times it is the steady beat, the great background vocals, fantastic instrumentation and original material that always make this album fresh - no matter how many times I play it. If you've watched any his concerts (watch him and the band in the Roxy Music Reunion DVD) you can appreciate how great the musicians are that surround him. Ferry knows how to get the most out of his unique songs.

Some of his best are on this CD. Don't pass it up!
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Nirvana -- beyond imagination
I am glad that I missed out at a younger age because now I am being enriched through the delerium of discovery. I came late to most of Bryan Ferry and Roxy Music, save for Avalon. In this album, as in most all Roxy/Ferry albums, lies genius and penultimate beauty. I realized one night while Boys and Girls was spinning on my turntable, reading the liner, the date, comparing it to sound of Avalon, Bette Noire, Flesh and Blood, Frantic, The Bride Laid Bare, early Roxy -- seeing that it was dedicated to his father who had just passed away (which explains so much of the album's deep solemnity) -- looking at the unbelievable lineup of famous musicians on this album (and later searching them all online) -- I realized that Boys and Girls is the second best album of all time. Second to Sargent Pepper. In that this: every song is a gem. I have been on a 40-year search for the "perfect" music, having been engrossed in all the works of Eno/Genesis/Fripp/Camel/Gabriel/Bowie/BJH/Young/Bryne/and hundreds of artists beyond. But here it is in Boys and Girls, the long evolution of Ferry reaching his zenith, blessed by God with talent, and bereaved by the passing of his dad: the perfect sound is achieved.
But Ferry did not make it big, and I know why: his videos are lame. He is self conscious in them; they're all about beauty babes who have no presence in front of a camera. His videos don't tell a story, nor do they provide insight into Ferry and his virtuoso band entranced in the act of making his magical music. Had he made good videos, he would have been a smash sensation in the United States. Alas, it was not to be; and maybe that's why Bryan Ferry is a smash sensation.

Great Album
It has the unique sound to it that really can calm you after a stressful day or just something to really enjoy. Bryan Ferry is great and this album proves it.

Wow
Like in the top 25 at least. "Don't Stop The Dance" is one of the most beautiful, hypnotic songs ever written. I have to admit that, in spite of the fact that this isn't normally my style of music.

Remember--that one isn't just Bryan Ferry. It's also Rhett Davies. To the eternal glory of them both.

Worth buying for that track, and for the classic cover picture.

A Gem from 1985 that went virtually unnoticed in the U.S.
Ferry achieved success as the lead singer for Roxy Music - who also had established themselves in Europe, but not in the United States. Bryan Ferry is one of those artists that is well-known among European music fans, but in the United States - Ferry's career has almost gone unnoticed. During his Roxy Music years, Ferry also had a parallel solo career going In 1983, for all practical purposes - Roxy Music would split up and Bryan Ferry would focus on his solo career. In 1985, Ferry would release "Boys and Girls". 1985 would be one of the most competitive years in the music industry. Artists such as Sting ("The Dream of the Blue Turtles"), Phil Collins ("No Jacket Required"), Bryan Adams ("Reckless"), Tears For Fears ("Songs From the Big Chair"), Wham ("Make It Big"), and Dire Straits ("Brothers in Arms") would all release (or have released) landmark albums during that time would garner both commercial and critical acclaim. I think it's also safe to add Bryan Ferry and his "Boys and Girls" album to that list. "Boys and Girls" went unnoticed in the United States, but it became a Number One album in the UK.

Ferry employs the use of classical instruments with dance beats for several of his songs. "Boys and Girls" is definitely not a Disco album, but in 1985 many of the tracks could have easily been played in Dance Clubs. Ferry also has some of the most unique vocals in the music industry. I would put Ferry's voice as a cross between a haunting voice and a crooning voice. For "Boys and Girls", Ferry employs a musical style that was seen on his previous Roxy Music album entitled "Avalon". While this is a "solo project", Ferry brings in some major names - including Dire Straits' Mark Knopfler (guitar) and Guy Fletcher (keyboards); Pink Floyd's David Gilmour (guitar), Nile Rodgers (guitar); and jazz musicians Marcus Miller (bass) and David Sanborn (saxophone).

Here is a synopsis of the tracks:

"Sensation": The song opens with a classic sound before segueing into a dance-beat which will dominate this track. The instrumentation on this track is outstanding. As for the vocals, Ferry's unique voice really balances well with some of the outstanding background vocals. This track helps set the tone for the remainder of this album.

"Slave to Love": This track opens with more of a haunting feel. This is one of the songs where you really see that intersection between Ferry's haunting and crooning vocals. Once again, the background vocals are right on the money. A little over 2 minutes into the song, the bridge will also have a deeper haunting feel than the opening. The guitar work is underrated on this track.

"Don't Stop the Dance": This song also has a dance club feel - but I'd categorize it as a slower dance tempo. It could easily qualify as a song that could be played in the dance clubs. There is some great guitar and horn work on this track.

"A Waste Land": This track is a prelude to the next track - "Windswept". This might only be a minute long, but Ferry draws a nice analogy between a waste-land and when love is gone.

"Windswept": This song is outstanding. Once again, there is a haunting feel to this song, but this time Ferry constructs a haunting beach-like song. The instrumentation is going to be shine on this track - especially the way the horns are integrated with some of the percussion. There is a nice buildup to wrap up this track before the track fades into the ending.

"The Chosen One": This song also uses the slower dance tempo. Ferry employs more of a crooning style for his vocals. Like "Sensation", Ferry balances his voice with the background vocals. This song almost seemed like a creative sandbox as I could easily see Ferry speeding up the tempo as well.

"Valentine": For this track, Ferry employs somewhat of a reggae-like tempo into the melody - also giving this song a "beach-like" feel. This song features Mark Knopfler on guitar, but it will be the integration of the horns that will really make this song shine. Ferry's vocals shine on the chorus part when he sings "how many men in a world of their own".

"Stone Woman": This might be the strongest track on the album and I'm very surprised this was not released as a single. Despite the name "Stone Woman", this song is one of the collection's most up-tempo tracks. At times the melody almost has a Far Eastern feel to it. I love Ferry's vocals from start to finish on this track - they really shine on the prelude to the chorus when he sings "let's be cool about it". I also love all of the instrumentation on this track - especially some terrific guitar work and more horns.

"Boys and Girls": This is a segue from "Stone Woman". This has the most haunting feel of all of the tracks. The horns once again demonstrate a feeling on the beach. While this wasn't my favorite track, I do feel it are the horns that are the strong point.

Ferry has always had a reputation for strong instrumentation in his work. Co-producers Ferry and Rhett Davies with master mix engineer Bob Clearmountain clearly keep the bar high in the instrumentation arena. This is where the remastering really helps - as it makes the instrumentation shine on this album. A couple of minor gripes about the liner notes: - while the lyrics are somewhat incomplete, what really hurts are the credits of the all-star lineup of musicians are not matched up to the tracks. On an album that has such strong instrumentation, it would be really nice to see what musicians are credited to what track on the collection. This is a very good collection. Ferry fans will not only appreciate this collection, but also the fan of music in general. Highly recommended.

You can see a complete list of all Bryan Ferry discography, or go back to the Bryan Ferry tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.