|
Stay Positive |  | Artist: The Hold Steady
Label: Vagrant Records
Category: Digital Music Album
This item is no longer available
Rating:  34 reviews
Sales Rank: 21410
Genre: alternative-music
Media: MP3 Download
Running Time: 2647 Minutes
ASIN: B001CKHJHE
Release Date: July 15, 2008
| | |
| Customer Reviews:
 They make their own movies August 8, 2010
hired goon
This is my favourite Hold Steady album. Why? Because there is a sense of a narrative arc playing out which culminates in the finale 'Slapped Actress'. And rather than strictly concentrating on his characters' tales of debauchery, Craig Finn reflects on the power of rock 'n' roll, even directly telling the listener of the band's appreciation of their support on the title track ("We couldn't have done this if it wasn't for you"). The refinement of style, the band's adeptness at both rockers and ballads, and Finn's continued lyrical power all add up to make Stay Positive a revelation.
Great Stuff That Summarizes an Era April 16, 2010
S. Mayer (Hot Arizona)
Craig Fein and The Hold Steady are great artists. Hell, I don't need to tell you how many times I've seen this kind of scene go bad real fast.
Some people know how to survive and relate in some compacted form what they saw and some don't.
The first group may suffer or not. The same is true of everyone else.
Just listen to it. Recognize that Fein's "vision"- as I would call it- is that we can all just get along if we're not too dumb in the meantime.
He isn't talking some kind of "simple" way of getting along, though. I mean, if you fall off the water tower while drunk it really hurts a lot more people than yourself. Still, getting hammered after hard work is understandable, too.
So I'll forego "ranking" or explaining every song to every person who thinks they "know better."
Anyhow, have fun and start ignoring or picking this apart because I didn't tell you what to think or how to live your life.
I personally have a lot of hammering to do. And yes, Joe Strummer really *was* a Great Man. I saw him a few months before he died in one of the original punk clubs in North America and the man really was idolized and adored by a tremendous number of people.
BTW, Strummer didn't just re-create some album live in its exact sequence or take *any* kind of silly, preconceived attitude toward his public.
So just crank up Constructive Summer and do your thang.
Edgy smart rock and roll February 15, 2010
J. Carroll (Island Heights,NJ)
Edgy, smart rock and roll
With a very solid rhythm section anchoring a driving beat, The Hold Steady channel many influences that go right to the heart of rock and roll and on STAY POSITIVE they stay the course with some truly great songs. Starting with the shout out to the days of a hungry young rock band on "Constructive Summer," this CD showcases all the things that make this band one of the few pure rock and roll bands out there. With the world weary, but somehow still hopeful voice of Craig Finn leading the way, songs like the outrageously catchy "Sequestered in Memphis" and the John Cassavetes referencing "Slapped Actress," will stick in your head long after the CD ends, a rarity in these days of the throw away single. This band is what rock should be: tuneful and intelligent.
 Staying Positive While Holding Steady August 22, 2009
David Lazar (Montreal, Canada)
I first caught The Hold Steady in concert on a PBS music show late one Saturday night... Awesome... Then my super cool Millennial-esque nephew told me how much he liked 'em and suggested I check out either Stay Positive or Boys and Girls in America... Couldn't remember which one he preferred, so I flipped a coin and went with the former... Definitely no regrets!
Kinda reminiscent of Bob Mould and Husker Du... Kinda reminiscent of this great Montreal 80's band whose name eludes me right now, but whose members were all Med students at McGill University Medicine... Despite The Hold Steady evoking memories of my Alt Rock days of yore, they are a breath of fresh air in today's sea of digitally perfect and vocally enhanced music world...
Chapeau!
One of the best of 2008 December 23, 2008
Patrick (Honeoye NY USA)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
If you are familiar with this band at all you have probably heard all of the comparisons from "The Replacements" to "Springsteen" and most of them are apt comparisons in their own little ways, but the sum of the parts is much better than the individial pieces here.
Musically they have never been in finer form. This is an album that you just want to crank the volume on your stereo or while in your car...yet you can also dial it down and listen to Craig Finn's lyrics which like Springsteens are often about those who fall between the cracks, where Springsteen's visions may be more poetic...Finn's are more harsh and demanding. Top all of that with his unique voice and delivery which demands the casual listener to give them a repeated listen when they forst come across the band and when you put it together you have one of the finest albums of 2008.
|
|
|
CERTAIN CONTENT THAT APPEARS ON THIS SITE COMES FROM AMAZON SERVICES LLC. THIS CONTENT IS PROVIDED ‘AS IS’ AND IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE OR REMOVAL AT ANY TIME. DRM Free MP3s | |
