Track Listing

1. Rollercoaster
2. Troubled Mind
3. I Don't Understand Anything
4. Walking to You
5. Get Me
6. Missing
7. Two Star
8. We Walk the Same Line
9. 25th December
10. Disenchanted

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #4510 in Music
• Released on: 1994-07-19
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.com essential recording
Amplified Heart marked a number of changes in Everything but the Girl's career, the most obvious of which was their sudden popularity when a Todd Terry remix of "Missing" became a dance-floor hit. But before the album was even recorded, Ben Watt--who with Tracy Thorn is EBTG--was hospitalized for a life-threatening intestinal disorder (see his book, Patient: The True Story of a Rare Illness, for a full account). His recovery invigorates Amplified Heart, making the love songs that much more passionate, the relationship songs that much more tender, and "25th December"--the one song in which Watt sings lead--that much more heartbreaking. Thorn's captivating vocals are the focus on the rest of the album, and she's as smooth as ever; combined with the focus that she and Watt share here, it makes for EBTG's best album. --Randy Silver

Amazon.com
Mired in an easy-listening rut since Baby, The Stars Shine Bright (1986), Everything But the Girl's return to self-production is a plus and might account for "Amplified Heart" being their most striking and listenable album in eons. --Jeff Bateman

Customer Reviews

me like
Having become enthralled with EBTG through Walking Wounded and Temperamental I was not at first able to get my head around their earlier albums. On first hearing, Amplified Heart was barely above elevator music to me. But I find that many tracks have grown on me dramatically, so that now I listen to the album non-stop. Tracey Thorne's voice is like a balm to my troubled nerves. I could listen to her sing the phone book. One of the tracks that has particularly grown on me is Your Troubled Mind, particularly the lyric, "When you're dooooown you bring me down too-oo; and that is somethi-in' I would not do-o. You say its hard I know its hard; that is somethi-in' I don't dis-re-ga-ard."
My advice is, buy the album. If you don't like it at first, force yourself to listen to it over and over and you will come crawling on you knees begging the album to forgive you for ever having doubted it.

Listen loud and feel it
If you listen to Amplified Heart for the first time, you'll find that one song will strike very deeply, and resonate with you for days or weeks. It's the best song you've heard in a long time. You'll skip over songs to get to it. As it starts to wear off, you'll find that another song, probably one you were actually skipping, is perhaps the best song you've heard in a long time. This will continue until you realize that this is one of those albums where there's really not a bad moment. This turns out to be a great collection of very strong, simple songs.

The emotion runs deep and true through this album without getting overbearing. A lot of that has to do with the songs themselves, which are just simple and powerful. But it's even more to do with the spare but rich production. The vocals are pitch perfect, and the choice of instrumentation prevents any song from getting overdone. When not to play is often as important as when to play. This album is one where every note seems to have a place and a meaning. The overall mood is longing, but thoughtful, profound, and mature.

I started out on Rollercoaster, jumped to Get Me, then found We Walk the Same Line, drove around on Two Star for a couple weeks, realized I Don't Understand Anything and just started playing the whole thing. There are many essentials that I'll be returning to for a long time.

Uplifting Music, Poetic Lyrics, Outstanding CD
This review refers to the "Amplified Heart" CD by Everything But The Girl.....

The music of Everything But The Girl is many things. On this album, "Amplified Heart", I found the music upbeat yet soothing, the lyrics poetic, romantic and profound. It is the kind of music you can listen to while kicking back and reading, working around the house, or for a quiet dinner for two.

To be honest, I had never heard their music nor heard of them before I made this purchase. I had just finished reading Ben Watt's "Patient:The True Story of a Rare Illness", and was so touched by the inspirational, and very human account of his illness, that I just had to hear the music of the person who words had touched me so, and, Tracey Thorn the woman who remained at his side through the whole ordeal.

I had no idea what to expect, and was delighted after my very first listen. I chose this particular album because it was made after his hospital experience. Through this music you can really feel the love, the loyalty and the bonding that these two have experienced together.

In one of the songs "We Walk The Same Line", they say "If you lose your faith babe, you can have mine, and if you're lost I'm right behind.....". How beautiful is that??? This album is filled with wonderful songs like that.There are 10 tracks and includes "Rollercoaster", "Walking To You" and "Missing".(For a complete list of songs, see buying info). I seem to always add this to whatever mix I'm loading up my CD player with, it just makes me feel good.

The CD is excellent. A very good quality recording, it fills the room with the wonderful sounds of this album. It also comes with a booklet that has the words to all the songs as well.

For a nice soft rock/ballad type atmosphere I highly recommend this album as well as Ben Watt's book for a beautiful reading experience.

Feel the love..and enjoy...Laurie