Track Listing

1. History Song
2. 80's Life
3. Northern Whale
4. Kingdom Of Doom
5. Herculean
6. Behind The Sun
7. The Bunting Song
8. Nature Springs
9. A Soldier's Tale
10. Three Changes
11. Green Fields
12. The Good, The Bad & The Queen

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #8340 in Music
• Released on: 2007-01-23
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.com
To open this oddball supergroup's debut, Paul Simonon hints at "Guns of Brixton," and when Tony Allen's flex rhythms come in, there's a shadow of Fela Kuti, too. Then Damon Albarn's slow grit of a voice enters--framed by Simon Tong's flecked guitar. And collectively, The Good, the Bad, & the Queen is quickly sui generis, adamantly different than anything you think you've heard. A band with this much power has at least two options: to cut loose raucously or to mute their overt power for a more covert, dub-inflected atmospheric potency. Smartly, Albarn and his crew opt for the half-light of elastic bass lines, the clouds between the parentheses of drums--the covert. It's not until "Kingdom of Doom," the erstwhile 'single' of the album, that motion expands beyond the languorous. And even then, Tony Allen largely sits out. You get the full flush of Simonon and Allen on "Three Changes" shuffling time even while holding the tempo to a dubbish gait. It's not Blur, the Clash, Fela, the Verve, or Gorillaz. It's more than just names on albums. --Andrew Bartlett

Album Description
Standard UK pressing of the debut album from Britpop supergroup The Good, The Bad And The Queen. TGTBTQ is a new album featuring Damon Albarn (Blur/Gorillaz), Paul Simonon (The Clash), Tony Allen (Africa 70/Fela Kuti) and Simon Tong (The Verve). The Good, The Bad and The Queen began life in the Aphrodisia Studios in Nigeria in 2004 and traces a journey from the English music hall tradition, over to West Africa for Afrobeat, zigzagging through the West Indies and its reggae and dub, back to England and London's punk scene, all the while taking in a strand of British beat music from the '50s right through to Britpop. Produced by Brian `Danger Mouse' Burton. EMI. 2007

Album Details
This Project Began in 2004 When Damon Albarn and Simon Tong Travelled to Nigeria to Record with Afrobeat Pioneer Tony Allen. Much Later, Albarn Gave the Tapes to Producer Brian "Danger Mouse" Burton and his Attitude Changed, Feeling Like He Would Just Write the Songs but Not Sing. Danger Mouse Helped Gel the Project and Albarn Just Wanted to Write Tales of West London. The Final Collaborator was Clash Bassist Paul Simonon, Whose Presence Changed the Whole Dynamic. The Result is a Record that Traces a Journey from the English Music Hall Tradition Over to West Africa for Afrobeat, Zigzagging Through the West Indies and Its Reggae and Dub, Back to England and London's Punk Scene, all the While Taking in a Strand of British Beat Music from the '50s Right Through to Britpop. A Very English Record, the Title Refers to a Saying in the Area that is Another Way of Saying "This is About Today, this is About the Present". A Heartfelt Tribute to London.

Customer Reviews

The Good, The Bad and the Queen: Mostly Good
I bought this 1) because I was following the career of ex-Clash bassist Paul Simonon, and 2) I was convinced by all the rave reviews the album was receiving, including several best-of-'07 lists...It was not what I expected; I was not familiar with Blur's work, so I was expecting a more punk/reggae-driven, Clash-like sound. But I do enjoy it, with it's dreamy quality, and an intensity that builds to the intense final track. It's grown on me each time I've listened to it.

Six degrees of...
It might be a little hard to keep track of Damon Albarn because musically, he has so much going on, from being the frontman of rock band Blur to being a member of hip-hop outfit Gorillaz to recording his own songs. Now he comes at us with a new project, The Good, the Bad & the Queen.

Well, I don't know if I can really call this a "new" project after all because it was recorded in 2005. And I really can't tell whether the editorial reviewer likes or DISlikes the album, but anyway, if you're a big fan of Blur or Gorillaz, I'm not sure you'll quite be able to get into this album not because it's bad, but because it doesn't sound much like either "standard" rock or hip-hop (thus, don't expect to find a "Song #2" or "Feel Good Inc" on here). This album sounds more like something that Moby or LCD Soundsystem would make, but it's great nonetheless. Highlights include "Nature Springs", "Northern Whale" and "80's Life".

In fact, the only real flaw I could find is that the closing track, which is also the title track (or SELF-titled track; whatever), has a few too many minutes of instrumental going on after the actual song ends. But Damon still put together a great album (I don't feel like writing out the whole album title again). If you're into great music that deviates from the norm, you shouldn't have a problem with this.

Anthony Rupert

Easily the best pop record of the last quarter century
Perfectly of the moment and timeless too. Everything about this record is brilliant, and tops anything Albarn's ever done. I can't wait for the next one, but in the meantime, this one's not getting stale at all.