Paul Young Albums (8)
'Love Will Tear Us Apart'
Release Date 1/1/2001
Tracks 24
Label Columbia
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Following the success of Other Voices (1990), Paul Young embarked on this very ambitious project. Using several big-name artists as backup (including Mark Isham, Jeff Porcaro, Billy Preston, Don Was, Kathleen Turner, and Benmont Tench, to name a few), Young put together a very consistent, smooth, well-produced album of soft rock/soul songs. Young also contributes a great many original titles to the mix, and the songs are wonderful. This is a beautifully produced CD, with strong horn and string arrangements with Young's awesome voice over it all. "Now I Know What Made Otis Blue" is worth the price of the CD alone, but the other songs are top-notch as well. It is to Young's credit that he can put together a very cohesive album given the patchwork in which it was recorded. ~ Aaron Badgley, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Other Voices marked a comeback from the tepid Between Two Fires, featuring a set of lush, soulful covers (the Top Ten hit "Oh Girl") and several harder-rocking numbers, including a cover of Free's "A Little Bit of Love." ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Paul Young's third album, Between Two Fires, suffered from a lack of strong material and an overly slick production, with only the minor hit single "Some People" to recommend it. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
'The Secret of Association'
Release Date 1/1/1985
Tracks 12
Label Columbia
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
In 1984, Paul Young scored a couple of medium-sized U.S. hits with "Come Back and Stay" and "Love of the Common People" from his album No Parlez. In 1985, however, with his stellar album The Secret of Association, the British singer gained his highest level of commercial success with several hit singles, most notably his chart-topping cover of Daryl Hall's "Every Time You Go Away," which was miles better than the original. Featuring lush orchestration and Young's signature, soulful vocals, this album remains the singer's best, and one of the better albums of the 1980s. Other notable tracks include his wicked take on "I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down," the gorgeous "Everything Must Change" (which almost sounds like a country song), and the popular album tracks "Soldier's Things" and "Tomb of Memories." Note, however, that the radio versions of all three singles released from this album are not the versions included here. Those versions can be found on his hits collection From Time to Time. ~ Jose F. Promis, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
One of the most assured debut albums of the mid-'80s, and one of the finest pop-soul confections of all time, No Parlez was the record that, following from the stellar success of Paul Young's earliest hits, left him poised to dominate the remainder of the decade like no other vocalist could have. Three singles laid bare all that Young was so eminently capable of. "Wherever I Lay My Hat," a beautifully impassioned take on what was, in all fairness, never one of Marvin Gaye's greatest performances, left mouths hanging open in awe; a meaty revision of Nicky Thomas' "Love of the Common People" proved that the earlier performance was no fluke; and "Come Back and Stay" indicated that the boy wasn't only a great singer, he had access to some great originals as well. Add the idiosyncratic yowling of the so-evocatively-named Fabulous Wealthy Tarts backing singers, jabbing a wealth of seemingly meaningless refrains, yelps and cackles into the gaps around Young's own vocal and, before it was even on the racks, it was clear that No Parlez was going to be an invigorating ride. And still it was capable of shocks. The title track was borrowed from former Slapp Happy art rocker Anthony Moore's "Industrial Drums" (from his Only Choice album) -- scarcely the kind of role model that Young's apparent drive for pop superstardom normally looked towards, while Moore's erstwhile bandmate Dagmar Krause surfaced elsewhere, to layer mystifyingly Euro-flavored vocals over a deeply soulful version of "Love Will Tear Us Apart." Yes, that "Love Will Tear Us Apart," a song still so draped in the martyrdom of Ian Curtis that to even think of revising it was regarded as sacrilege in some quarters. Young did more than that, though, he reinvented it. As a whole, the album does not live up to its greatest moments -- once past that so-superlative "Love of the Common People," side two lags badly as it heads towards the nadir of the closing "Sex." Breathtakingly original in small doses, Laurie Latham's production (and the Wealthy Tarts' keening) both lose their appeal after a while. One cannot help, too, but wish that the regular single mixes of the hits had been replaced by the superlative 12" mixes that accompanied their original release -- "Come Back and Stay," in particular, is up there with any Soft Cell or Frankie extension in the annals of classic 12"s. But though it's not flawless, still No Parlez is fearless and, looking back over Young's entire career (so far), one can only wonder how it all went so wrong? He could have ruled the decade like no other Brit of his age. Instead, the back cover photo simply makes him look like the younger brother of one of the guys who beat him to it. And you can bet Robert Smith wasn't expecting that! ~ Dave Thompson, All Music Guide
