Only Life
1988 studio album by the Feelies
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Only Life is the third album by the American rock band the Feelies, released in 1988.[3][4] It was made with the same line-up that appeared on the band's previous album, The Good Earth.[5] The album contains a cover of the Velvet Underground's "What Goes On".[6]
| Only Life | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | September 13, 1988[1] | |||
| Length | 39:17 | |||
| Label | Coyote/A&M[2] | |||
| Producer | Steve Rinkoff, Bill Million, Glenn Mercer | |||
| The Feelies chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Only Life | ||||
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The album peaked at No. 173 on the Billboard 200.[7] Jonathan Demme directed the video for "Away".[8]
Style
Only Life has been described as an "updated and mature form" of its predecessor, The Good Earth. It features fewer acoustic tracks, with a "greater focus on speedy jangle-strum rockers".[9]
Production
The album was produced by Glenn Mercer, Bill Million, and Steve Rinkoff.[10]
Critical reception
Magnet wrote that "the songs grapple with apprehension and the longing for comfort, which the music delivers in the form of indelible hooks and transcendent rave-ups."[18] Rolling Stone wrote: "Driven by the interlocking guitars of Mercer and Bill Million, the band constructs waves of beautiful hypnotic drone, with subtle tempo shifts and percussion accents that ripple through the arrangements."[16] Trouser Press praised the "amazingly exacting sound and performances" and "riveting songs of breathless electricity."[19] USA Today listed the album at number nine on its list of the ten best albums of 1988.[20]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Glenn Mercer except where noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "It's Only Life" | 3:01 | |
| 2. | "Too Much" | Bill Million, Glenn Mercer | 4:38 |
| 3. | "Deep Fascination" | 4:07 | |
| 4. | "Higher Ground" | 4:38 | |
| 5. | "The Undertow" | 3:43 | |
| Total length: | 20:07 | ||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "For Awhile" | 4:05 | |
| 2. | "The Final Word" | Million, Mercer | 2:23 |
| 3. | "Too Far Gone" | Million, Mercer | 3:38 |
| 4. | "Away" | 5:27 | |
| 5. | "What Goes On" | Lou Reed | 3:37 |
| Total length: | 19:10 | ||
Personnel
- Glenn Mercer – lead, rhythm and slide guitars, lead vocals, keyboards
- Bill Million – electric and acoustic guitars, backing vocals, e-bow
- Brenda Sauter – bass, backing vocals
- Stan Demeski – drums, percussion
- Dave Weckerman – percussion, drums