C/D : Ian Brown's remake of "Where Angels Play"

http://www.juno.co.uk/artists/Ian+Brown/

based on one listen, I'm not sure if I like this; the lyrics have been changed, in my opinion for the worse. And somehow it just sounds weird and wrong without the classic reverby Roses sound.

why would he do this ?

maybe it is better not to hear it at all... but it's like watching horror movies when you're a kid; you know if you watch them you'll get nightmares and regret it, but yet some strange curiosity draws you in anyway.

But that's exactly why it's butchery; it completely betrayed the feel for the orignal song, and turned it into some overproduced arena-rock shit. admittedly, it's largely the same song, but it's stripped completely of its otherworldliness, which I think is the whole point given the theme of the song. now it sounds like some boring bar band with "punchy" drums. and the lyrics are much worse now. And the guitarist sounds incompetent (but you'd have to listen to the outro, which isn't on that 1:00 clip).

I think it's fair to say about faith in the Roses' abilities, but I think it also goes to show the level of hope there was and still is, based on what was basically about a year of brilliance. It doesn't surprise me. Nick, I take it you're referring to Squire and Brown being bitter, I don't see any of that coming from Mani or Reni. Reni has in fact managed to keep his mouth shut in public for almost ten years now, which deserves a great big pat on the back.

Yeah, I thought that too, but no... he's left it alone, strangely enough. In fact, the new version seems less finished than the original!

They are old, bitter men now.

Squire is not a bitter old man, in my opinion. He is by far the more dignified and diplomatic of the two. Brown took shots at him in the press at every opportunity he could get since the breakup in 1995. Squire, meanwhile, didn't reply to those attacks for nearly 10 years! (Imagine yourself in Squire's shoes, where you're being publicly attacked, repeatedly by your former best friend) Instead of lashing out, which is what 95% of the population would do, he maintained a quiet dignity while Brown constantly fueled the fire of his inner rage and hurt in the press. It was only recently that Squire said anything, and even then it was not a savage attack, the likes of which Ian Brown is capable of. The "tuneless knob" comment that recently came out was also taken out of context. Here's the whole comment, taken from Q Magazine:

"When he [Ian] was stoned, he was at best a tuneless knob and at worst a paranoid mess. That made it very hard to make a record"

Anyway, I just think John is a quiet and agreeable person who is enjoying his life of doing his own thing (painting and playing the occasional gig), while Brown is the bitter one, living in the past and dragging both their names through the mud. Sure, Ian is by far the more commercially successful of the two right now, but his behavior is disgusting and unbecoming of someone whose songs talk so much about spirituality. In his own words:

"Forgive everybody and remember"
- Ian Brown, F.E.A.R.

So much for that.