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CD reviews

The Night

Morphine - The Night Audio CD

A fair review of the Morphine "The Night" 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 Morphine reviews here, or go back to the Morphine tabs.

Band: Morphine
Title: The Night
Rating:

Release Date: 2000-02-01
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Night 2: So Many Ways 3: Souvenir 4: Top Floor, Bottom Buzzer 5: Like a Mirror 6: Good Woman Is Hard to Find 7: Rope on Fire 8: I'm Yours, You're Mine 9: Way We Met 10: Slow Numbers 11: Take Me With You

Sax on the Beach
After the well-received but by-the-numbers Like Swimming the band was running out of ideas. By the late 1990's Morphine was at a crossroads. They had built their name on the unique minimalist combination of bass, sax, and drums, but it's not so unique if you do the same thing every album. Something more was needed. So they hit the studio, armed with a bunch of ideas about how to take their sound to the next level. Singer/ bassist Mark Sandman didn't get the chance to see the fruit of his bands labors - he died onstage in 1998 after suffering a heart attack - but his contribution to the album was complete, and DreamWorks released The Night on February 1st, 2000; a bittersweet occasion, but one that was necessary for everyone involved. The Night wasn't intended to be a swan song, but that's what it turned into, a dreamy, intimate vibe permeating the albums 11 tracks. Considering the circumstances it's almost impossible to look at the album in an objective light. Many songs go above and beyond anything Morphine has ever done, like the after-hours lounge vibe of 'Souvenir' or the Middle Eastern-flavored 'Rope on Fire'. Violins, cellos, and pulsating organs all have their go; there are a lot of guest appearances on this album. Most of the time this newfound approach is rewarding, taking you to places the old Morphine never dared to venture; even when it's not, it's still something different. On the albums last track, 'Take Me With You', it all comes together - the soft string section, the chug-a-lug drumming, the grace, the general soulful air. Sandman's voice takes wings and soars. I admit it was a weird feeling, hearing him sing 'I can't live without you/ take me with you/ take me with you when you go' after I heard of his heart attack on stage. The Night is the most subtle, mature album the band has ever recorded, becoming a somber, lasting swan song to close the final chapter of Morphine.

Great album
I was really into this album for a while, lost it along with a bunch of other CDs, and just now purchased it again. Jazzy, smooth, and dark. Takes me back.

Yawn...
I'd never heard of Morphine but it felt like it was a worthy risk. I took the gamble and purchased this CD because of some of the positive reviews that it was given. I gotta admit I was disappointed. I just couldn't find much substance in the lyrical or instrumental composition. I listened to it many times hoping that I might discover some subtle appeal, but nuttin. . . I found it empty and boring. .

The buzz of the Night....
The low-sounding buzzing monotonic jazz-rock vibrates from the speakers without becoming too boring or annoying. Released posthumously, the Night stands out as the culminating masterpiece of the Boston trio. Dim the lights, put your feet up, close your eyes and enjoy.

I was introduced to Morphine in 1993, when they had just released their classic album "Cure for Pain". The low-rock minimalistic sound with that incredible baritone saxophone just did the trick to me. The songs on that album are quite open to a general audience, with choruslines of many songs like " Buena", "Candy" and "All Wrong" remaining in your head. The sound was low, but quite crisp and clear. Coming from the sound of their more jazz-like debut album "Good" (1993) it had evolved. This debut album contains some jewels like "The Saddest Song" and "The other Side". However, the characteristic baritone sax sound was not that prominent then. I can remember once hearing a live version of "the saddest song" during their Cure for Pain time, when Dana Colley had added more sax to the song; it was great!

While anticipation was high, the third album was a bit of a disappointment to me. It was clear to me that the music was evolving further, but IMHO the general sound on "YES" was too experimental. "Free Love" however, contained by far the lowwest baritone sax note ever striking my ears and I found myself up to my stereo set increasing bass to a maximum to relive the feeling I encountered on the one occasion I heard Morphine live (1994): the feeling of my pants vibrating to the dark low waves of the sax. The disappointment about YES was the reason I never bought "Like Swimming".

When I heard Sandman had collapsed on stage, but not until he had handed in material for a full studio album, I was curious what his final musical accomplishment had been. From the moment I heard the titlesong "The Night", it just struck me: this was some of the best Morphine had produced. Integrating the jazz-like sound of their first album with the catchy choruslines of Cure for Pain and topped with the experimental flavor of YES Morphine had proven to advance. "Top floor, Bottom buzzer" reminded me again of the some of the cure for pain songs. "Souvenir" struck me as a very jazzy song (especially the drumming), more like the songs on "Good", but then with the improvement I have already been talking about. Then again, The Night also contains unique material like "Rope on Fire". Never in my life I have heard a saxophone play this catchy eastern tune. Marvellous! In "Take me with You", minimalism has been reduced with even backing vocals; but, I have to say, the combination of Sandman's intriguing monotonic sound combined with more instruments (even orchestrated) and backing vocals is very nice to the ear.

To me, "the Night" is a Morphine classic with overall quality rising to the level of "Cure for Pain", but with a sound which has evolved and grown. Sandman left us where he was best, in the sound of the Night.

Low rock at its best
The band mixed it up on this record. This album is my favorite album by morphine. Not all the songs sound the same. There is more variety and the band seems to showcase their musicianship well. I finally found a guy singing a song about how partners dont always meet under romantic circumstances. That, mixed with the sax, is the antithesis of the dave mathews band and that alone earns it five stars. .

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