“The Stone Roses” by The Stone Roses
The birth of Madchester turns 35.
Hello! 😊👋
Welcome to a new edition of the Best Music of All Time newsletter!
Today’s music pick marks the 35th anniversary of an album that helped popularize an entire musical subculture.
Genre: Alternative, Rock
Label: Silvertone
Release Date: May 2, 1989
Vibe: 🎸
The Stones Roses is widely lauded as one of the records that birthed the Madchester movement in the late-80s, but you’d never know it by listening to it now. Groups like the Happy Mondays, 808 State, and even the Chemical Brothers were far more explicit in their amalgamation of rock and dance music. This LP is much more subtle in its approach, whether the group knew it at the time or not. More often than not, it hints at the idea of indie dance rather than blowing the doors off those hinges. The rhythm section, with Mani and Reni on bass and drums respectively, isn’t forcing you onto the dancefloor but isn’t saying you shouldn’t end up there, either. Ian Brown’s vocals are similarly unfussy throughout, a forebearer of the disaffected nonchalance that would permeate many UK hits during the 90s. On the album’s opener, “I Wanna Be Adored,” he avoids cloying cliches, positioning the statement as an expectation, not a demand.
After listening to the record again, what stood out the most were John Squire’s guitar hooks. From the swirling psychedelia of “Elephant Stone” to the shimmer he brings to “Waterfall,” it’s deceptively simple tactics that work incredibly well. Not only to dance to, you understand, but also to experience while out of your mind on your substance of choice. In a way, it’s a perfect thematic bridge between the experimental pop-rock sounds of the 60s and the calm before the Britpop craze that took the world by storm. Like other artists that achieved mainstream success in either of those eras, the Stone Roses had the swagger to go along with the talent. Producer John Leckie said that, during the recording process, the band “didn't seem to feel any pressure other than that they were a band making their first album and didn't want to lose the opportunity to make it good […] they knew they were good.”
Call it ego, machismo, or the talent of multiple virtuosos (or some combination of all three). From Oasis to the Strokes to LCD Soundsystem and beyond, it’s not difficult to hear the wide-ranging influence of the Stone Roses through their cool, confident debut.
👉 Don’t forget to click the album image to stream the album on your favorite platform 👈
I lived in London from 1993-2007 and one cannot emphasize enough how important The Stone Roses' influence was on the nation in the 90s. Today, all the cool kids cite Shoegaze. Still, in those days pre-BritPop and beyond, nobody mentioned MBV or Slowdive - the holy grail for all bands to cite as influence, the NME & Melody Maker and those in the British public who loved all things rock - the Stone Roses were on the highest pedestal. Their debut album was always near the top of the music rags & mags list of "Greatest British Records of All Time." When they dropped their much anticipated second album, 'Second Coming,' it was viewed with mixed results, and many felt like they made a wrong turn into American-influenced guitar-heavy rock. Their debut, however, will be forever lauded in the UK as one of the best Pop/Rock British releases, ever.
One of my absolute favorites of that era, and it still holds up really well!