Yazoo TS: "Upstairs At Eric's" vs. "You And Me Both"

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The former has more songs I want to hear more often ("Don't Go", "Goodbye 70s", "Situation"...), but the latter is better a whole album. Also, the latter has an excellent album cover... and that's saying a lot, given how cool the former's cover is, as well. Also, "You And Me Both" has "Nobody's Diary" and their best song "Walk Away From Love".

― donut bitch (donut), Wednesday, 21 April 2004 19:17 (twenty-two years ago)

This is a true six of one/half dozen of the other conundrum. I think I would have to lean towards You and Me Both -- my secret fave on there is the closer, "And On."

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Wednesday, 21 April 2004 19:22 (twenty-two years ago)

"Upstairs at Eric's" for me, just because some friends and i used to make really bizarre (and eerily homoerotic) home videos and at the end of each video we'd lipsync to a song off of U@E, sometimes while stripping.

― Felonious Drunk (Felcher), Wednesday, 21 April 2004 19:30 (twenty-two years ago)

For all their flaws, I love both of these albums. But U@E wins on the strength of "Don't Go" and two ballads that qualify as "gorgeous" on the strength of Clarke's arrangements more than Moyet's vocals, "Midnight" and "Only You". Don't get me wrong -- Moyet's vocals are intermittently gorgeous, too, but she's got such a HUGE voice that she's a bit of a bull in a china shop, especially this early in her career.

Y&MB, meanwhile, is an interesting glimpse at the direction Vince Clarke's arrangements might have gone if he hadn't renounced samplers for the rest of his career. (Sampled drums stuck around through the early Erasure albums and got dropped circa ??? Chorus).

But some of the lyrics on Y&MB are just unbearably preachy...

― Paul in Santa Cruz (Paul in Santa Cruz), Thursday, 22 April 2004 02:08 (twenty-two years ago)

I can't believe I completely missed You And Me Both I really like Yaz they were crucial to me.

The ignorance of youth.

― hector (hector), Thursday, 22 April 2004 03:02 (twenty-two years ago)

Y&MB, meanwhile, is an interesting glimpse at the direction Vince Clarke's arrangements might have gone if he hadn't renounced samplers for the rest of his career.

Well, Erasure's Wonderland pretty much takes off exactly where You And Me Both left off, as far as the instrumentation goes, except now the singer was a gay man who kinda sounded like Moyet. "Walk Away From Love" is especially evidence of that. The transition was pretty direct there.

― donut bitch (donut), Thursday, 22 April 2004 04:25 (twenty-two years ago)

I think Wonderland sounds pretty different from You And Me Both. Or from parts of You and Me, which was my point: that you get a glimpse on that album of the road not taken in Clarke's subsequent career. I'm thinking of tracks like "Ode to Boy" and "Anyone," both of which are loaded with vocal samples (not house-style words and phrases, mind you, but breathy vowel sounds on "Ode" and sparkling ones on "Anyone"). That's not a sound I associate with Erasure.

Anyway, there's three years and Clarke's Assembly project in between the albums, so I don't think it's right to say the "transition was pretty direct" even if they did end up in a similar place.

And you're right that tracks like "Walk Away From Love" suggest a plausible starting point for the sound of Erasure; I was talking about the obscure corners of the Yaz[oo] album. Does Wonderland have similar obscure corners of its own? I don't think so but I don't own it anymore so I can't refresh my memory.

― Paul in Santa Cruz (Paul in Santa Cruz), Thursday, 22 April 2004 04:50 (twenty-two years ago)

I don't own Wonderland either, but just keeping in mind the singles off that album, I could easily imagine Moyet singing those songs had she not left the duo when she did. Whereas, I don't necessarily imagine Moyet singing the Erasure stuff that followed as easily.

― donut bitch (donut), Thursday, 22 April 2004 05:06 (twenty-two years ago)

Sure, no argument -- early Erasure is very close to some of the stuff on You and Me. Honestly, the first time I heard Erasure (not paying close attention probably) I thought it was a lost or new Yazoo track with Moyet.

I was just commenting that the second Yazoo album also points in (interesting) different directions on at least a few tracks.

― Paul in Santa Cruz (Paul in Santa Cruz), Thursday, 22 April 2004 05:26 (twenty-two years ago)

Oh, I agree with you there. Maybe my use of the word "direct transition" was not applicable.

― donut bitch (donut), Thursday, 22 April 2004 05:29 (twenty-two years ago)

What is Alison Moyet up to these days anyway? She should guest on a Basement Jaxx track or something. Hmm. Maybe not.

― Paul in Santa Cruz (Paul in Santa Cruz), Thursday, 22 April 2004 05:35 (twenty-two years ago)

Hell, what's Eric Radcliffe up to these days?

― donut bitch (donut), Thursday, 22 April 2004 05:36 (twenty-two years ago)

I have no clear idea what he did in the old days besides climb stairs.

― Paul in Santa Cruz (Paul in Santa Cruz), Thursday, 22 April 2004 05:39 (twenty-two years ago)

Oh, he was the producer.

― Paul in Santa Cruz (Paul in Santa Cruz), Thursday, 22 April 2004 05:42 (twenty-two years ago)

Why not ask what the hell Vince Clarke is up to these days while I'm at it?

― donut bitch (donut), Thursday, 22 April 2004 05:49 (twenty-two years ago)

eight years pass...

'Too Pieces' and 'Winter Kills' are such beautiful songs.

― The Jupiter 8 (Turrican), Saturday, 1 December 2012 00:05 (thirteen years ago)

yes

― the little prince of inane false binary hype (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Saturday, 1 December 2012 00:05 (thirteen years ago)

five months pass...

i can't stop listening to "situation".

obviously this is not a problem yet but it could become one....

― i lost my shoes on acid (jed_), Thursday, 9 May 2013 22:12 (thirteen years ago)

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