Everything But The Girl – The Language Of Life

What the Hell is this ? I probably said on listening to this for the first time back in 1990 or whenever it was. If I thought Idelwild was polished MOR, this follow-up made that album sound like The Clash debut.
Sax solos - check
Tasteful production - check
Fretless and slap bass - check
DX7 synth - Check

This is music you would hear being quietly played in a New York advertising agency. Its so saccharine and polished. So much so Tracys soulful vocsls sound as though theyve been spliced onto a Michael Bolton album multitrack.
Funnily enough, I prefer the songs on this to any on Idlewild. The Road is heartbreaking and tracks like Driving, Me And Bobby D, and Take Me certainly get my feet tapping. But then so did Simply Red if I ever heard them on the radio in 1990.
The bonus disk has some ok stuff, but we’re in the age of a hundred different club mixes of singles. CD singles were all the rage and consumers often found themselves face to face with all manner of variations and limited releases. Thankfully, Ben and Tracy appear to have picked out their favourites so we’re spared 55 minutes of variations on the same thing. A couple of the mixes immediately date them by the use of the “classic” Baggy funky drummer loop.
So, a curates egg indeed and one I like a lot more since it was first released. Im sure I actually threw my original copy away, I disliked it so much.
I was wrong. Sort of.

What the Hell is this ? I probably said on listening to this for the first time back in 1990 or whenever it was. If I thought Idelwild was polished MOR, this follow-up made that album sound like The Clash debut.
Sax solos - check
Tasteful production - check
Fretless and slap bass - check
DX7 synth - Check

This is music you would hear being quietly played in a New York advertising agency. Its so saccharine and polished. So much so Tracys soulful vocsls sound as though theyve been spliced onto a Michael Bolton album multitrack.
Funnily enough, I prefer the songs on this to any on Idlewild. The Road is heartbreaking and tracks like Driving, Me And Bobby D, and Take Me certainly get my feet tapping. But then so did Simply Red if I ever heard them on the radio in 1990.
The bonus disk has some ok stuff, but we’re in the age of a hundred different club mixes of singles. CD singles were all the rage and consumers often found themselves face to face with all manner of variations and limited releases. Thankfully, Ben and Tracy appear to have picked out their favourites so we’re spared 55 minutes of variations on the same thing. A couple of the mixes immediately date them by the use of the “classic” Baggy funky drummer loop.
So, a curates egg indeed and one I like a lot more since it was first released. Im sure I actually threw my original copy away, I disliked it so much.
I was wrong. Sort of.

Too mainstream smooth jazz for most ebtg hipster fans, this album is what it is. But for what it is, it is really good. AMAZING sound quality on this pressing as well btw. And that's coming from a vinyl die-hard !

Great jazzy album. Takes me back to my senior year in high school.

Probably the most contemporary the duo have ever been, 'The Language Of Life' gets the deluxe treatment by Rhino & Edsel. This reissue of the 1990 album sees a vast improvement in sound quality due to superb remastering as well as a swathe of bonus content from around the time. Starting off with the record itself, 'Language Of Life' sounds fresh and wide open in it's production, giving off a distinctive American vibe to their work. Some fans of their older or later work may be put off by it's sound at first, but hitting it off with their chart topper 'Driving' that just oozes cheese and charm and wears the group's expert creativity on it's sleeve. Other highlights include the ear-catching 'Meet Me In The Morning', the gorgeous lullaby 'Me & Bobby D' and the stunning closer helmed by Ben Watt 'The Road', but lets face it, if you're going to fork out for this version, it's the bonus features you'll be after.
The first disc closes with a bunch of remixes taken from the album's singles 'Driving' & 'Take Me', given new life here by the likes of Underdog and Masters At Work. The second disc continues the trend of lost gems by including not only some nice b-sides, but also rare demos taken from the band's sessions in New York, as well as low key Home Demos, live tracks and Out-Takes that are perfect for those who are addicted to their more scaled back sound.
One of the rarest to come across in the reissue collection, 'The Language Of Love' isn't their best work, but it's a great way to see their evolution in real time before the Trip-Hop took over.

Love it. This CD must have to all EBTG lovers

Very chillout music.Propably the best listen this when U Are going to sleep
4/5

Lovely tinted photo of the duo with details of distressing and old tape marks give it the feel of a scrapbook. Original CD pressing is best in my opinion. Vibrant and rich but not too polished.

Language of Life is the fruition of jazz promised by its predecessors Baby the Stars Shine Bright and Idlewild. Gems stand out like the O-Supermanliness of "Driving" (is Laurie Anderson the influence for the ha-ha effect?). Perfect pairing vocals on a song about immigrants in the early 1900s in "Imagining America". The beautiful yet unashamed love song of a woman courting a married man "Meet Me in the Morning". And the wistful finale, "The Road" sung by Ben Watt. Exquisite.

This is a sonically bad reissue/remaster. Stick with the OG.