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Travis: The Man Who

 A l b u m   D e t a i l s


Label: Independiente Music
Released: 1999.05.24
Time:
 55:28
Category: Pop/Rock
Producer(s): See Artists ...
Rating: *******... (7/10)
Media type: CD
Web address: www.travisonline.com
Appears with:
Purchase date: 2001.06.30
Price in €: 10,99



 S o n g s ,   T r a c k s


[1] Writing to Reach You (F.Healy) - 3:41
[2] The Fear (F.Healy) - 4:12
[3] As You Are (F.Healy) - 4:14
[4] Driftwood (F.Healy) - 3:33
[5] The Last Laugh of the Laughter (F.Healy) - 4:20
[6] Turn (F.Healy) - 4:23
[7] Why Does It Always Rain on Me? (F.Healy) - 4:25
[8] Luv (F.Healy/Seymour) - 4:54
[9] She's So Strange (F.Healy) - 3:15
[10] Slide Show (F.Healy) - 18:31

 A r t i s t s ,   P e r s o n n e l


FRANCIS HEALY - Guitars, Vocals
DOUGIE PAYNE - Bass
NEIL PRIMROSE - Drums
ANDY DUNLOP - Guitars

SARAH WILSON - Cello

IAN GRIMBLE - Producer
MIKE HEDGES - Producer
NIGEL GODRICH - Producer, Mixing

 C o m m e n t s ,   N o t e s


2000 CD Epic 62151
2000 CS Epic 62151
2000 CD Sony International 494624
2000 CD Sony International 65879

Part-time bartender and drummer Neil Primrose, having answered an ad by guitarist Andy Dunlop to join his female-fronted cabaret band, The Glass Onion, recruited songwriter Fran Healy after serving him drinks during an all-day bender at a pub. Soon, they were a pop band with the name Travis (chosen in honor of a character in the 80's film, "Paris, Texas"), with Fran at the mic. At their first ever gig, Travis were introduced (accidentally) by Neil and Fran's mutual Glasgow School of Art mate, Dougie Payne. When the band found major-label interest, they were told to sack their bass player, and quickly replaced him with Payne, who had never played bass until he joined Travis. The band moved into a shared house in London to record demos, the same house that appeared on the back of their debut record, 1997's Good Feeling. Recorded in upstate New York and produced by Steve Lillywhite, the album was well-received by fans and critics, yielding several Top 40 hits and the Brit Award for Best New Band. Travis returned in 1999 with the delicately textured, Nigel Godrich-produced, The Man Who. Three popular singles, including "Why Does It Always Rain On Me?," propelled the album to the top of the British charts three months after its release, beginning a wildly successful end to 1999 through the start of Y2K. Approaching three million copies sold in Europe, it won the Brit Award for Best Album, with the band winning Best Band accolades.



After their successful debut album of murky pop, Travis seemingly felt a need to tinker with the formula. The product of this change is The Man Who, a quiet album filled to the brim with atmospheric and introspective ballads. Acoustic guitars and tranquil melodies rule here, as this release is an entirely different affair than the band's revved-up debut. Fortunately for Travis, this disc became a massive U.K. hit, spawning no less than five hugely successful singles. The album highlight is "Why Does It Always Rain on Me?," a sweeping singalong that took England by storm and became one of the biggest hits of 1999. However, despite the public's warm embrace of this album, fans of the "old" Travis may be disappointed. Gone are the arena-ready stompers and the dirty, grimy singalong pop that comprised Good Feeling. Instead, what is left is merely adequate; The Man Who offers pleasant background music, but no truly gripping moments. It's lite-rock for late 1990s Britain that's, unfortunately, easily forgettable. [The U.S. release of this album, which came almost a year after it's initial release, contains three bonus tracks.]

Jason Damas - All Music Guide
© 1992 - 2001 AEC One Stop Group, Inc.



When Travis released Good Feeling in 1997, the fledgling band's feel-good debut was a bit overlooked on American shores despite having one of the most winsome singles of that year, "All I Want to Do Is Rock." Hopefully, the band's stunning follow-up, The Man Who, won't suffer a similar fate. On its sophomore effort, Travis harnesses the emotive force of Radiohead and the pop songcraft and occasional attitude of Oasis. On "Writing to Reach You," the Scottish foursome take the piss out of Brit-pop giant Oasis by asking, "Still the radio keeps playing all the usual / And what's a wonderwall anyway?" And on "Slide Show," singer Fran Healy ponders, "There's no design for life / There's no devil's haircut in my mind / There's no wonderwall / To climb or step around." Such lines may sound mocking or disillusioned, but -- in the rock-and-roll locker room, much like the football one -- a wry jab is often an affectionate nod in disguise. And the influence of the big boys has never been more evident than on The Man Who. While the older blokes lately appear bored, cynical, or indulgent, Travis comes off as four nice guys who just happen to play lovely, transcendent songs.

Michelle Kleinsak - April 7, 2000



With The Man Who, Scottish quartet Travis captured the very essence of their homeland, and unassumingly blew us away. The moderately paced, longing melodies, and lead singer Fran Healy's quietly desperate vocals, provide a haunting mask on what is actually a rugged, enduring, and entirely beautiful slice of Brit-rock.

Beth Massa, Amazon.com's Best of 2000



As much as one would like to resist the temptation, it is impossible to avoid drawing comparisons between Travis's latest and Radiohead. The Man Who is a great album that stands strong on its own merits and a simple comparison threatens to cheapen it. However, since imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, this release should make Radiohead feel damn good about themselves. The Glaswegian group summons the same tortured spirits, but what's absent is the insipid Orwellian undertones that make Radiohead's OK Computer so disturbing and difficult. Travis's singer, Fran Healy, strains and soars in a Thom Yorke fashion, minus the maniacal, slightly salivated exasperation. And musically, there are some nearly uplifting moments. The wonderful, circular rhythms and lilting vocals in "Driftwood" are as celebratory as a James song and the sitar-tinged "The Last Laugh of the Laughter" is so sweetly sad, its beauty overrides its sentiment. "Why Does It Always Rain on Me" builds on the swelling momentum of great classic pop (and, as a matter of fact, shuffles along the same downbeat as "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head "--an inadvertent irony that should suit the band just fine). The Man Who is a highly recommended break from the Brit-rock pack.

Beth Massa, Amazon.com



Indie guitar music has become a strange creature. Without the alignment of Manchester or Britpop, several bands have found themselves burning the midnight oil in large shiny studios loosely defining the post OK Computer generation. Occasionally these scuttling beasts emerge from the gloom to release a record and claim their moment in the limelight. It's too easy to overlook these bands! Travis are great, and are finally gaining the critical acclaim they deserve. As well as the glorious single "Why Does It Always Rain On Me?", The Man Who includes nostalgically jangling, yet eminantly forward-looking, moments such as "Driftwood" and "The Fear", and there's even a hidden extra track for those of you who like to get your money's worth. The Rough Guide Rock

From Rough Guides



With its 1997 debut, Good Feeling, Travis came across as a raggedly soulful band trying to distinguish itself from the wave of post-Oasis Brit-pop acts. The band's follow-up, however, has taken the Glasgow band's homeland by storm, becoming the top-selling U.K. album of 1999 by uniting the best parts of OK Computer's disillusionment and melodrama with a classic British rock sensibility. The cut "As You Are" produces a languid churn similar to that found on the Beatles' "Across The Universe," while the gentle shuffle of the single "Why Does It Always Rain On Me?" results in a flawless, hum-all-day kind of song that offers a taste of lead vocalist Fran Healy's most yearning, paranoid lyrics ("I can't stand myself/I'm being held up by invisible men"). While The Man Who is a bit top-heavy with melancholic near-ballads, the record makes up for its navel gazing with rapturous melodies and, as demonstrated by "Writing To Reach You" and "The Fear," a sense of hopeful radiance within an otherwise sad and gloomy art-pop framework. Considering how well Travis' sophomore effort translates the group's influences into compelling works of beauty, it's hard to imagine how much better this band can get.

Glen Sansone: CMJ New Music Report Issue: 659 - Mar 27, 2000
© 1978-1999 College Media, Inc.



"All I wanna do is rock," Fran Healy of the Scottish band Travis sang on their exuberant 1997 debut Good Feeling. Travis rocked rather well, ranging from "U16 Girls'" sha-na-na chorus to the tea-stained melancholy of "Happy." Now that it's out of their system, Travis turn up with an altogether more miserable second album, which will placate bores who rant about classic songwriting and fans of French movies. The bores can dribble over lead single "Why Does It Always Rain On Me?" The album's best song, it's an acoustic strum you can whistle to and manic depressive couplets like "Even when the sun is shining/I can't avoid the lightning." The cineastes will appreciate the dedication to Stanley Kubrick and Healy's saturated despair wrapped up in sitcom-theme-waiting-to-happen "Driftwood." Healy seems to think his pain will add a little substance to Britrock's legacy, asking on album opener "Writing to Reach You," "What's a wonderwall anyway?" and later concluding, "There is no design for life." With Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich at the knobs, his unquestioned sincerity is extremely busker friendly. It just would have been nice if Travis hadn't tried to grow up so damn quickly.

VH1 Online - VH1.com
© 1999 Viacom International Inc. Alle Rechte vorbehalten.



The second Travis album finds them reclining in summer sunshine melancholy, long distance winter love letters and the warmth of swirling acoustics and mystically resonating keys. Previously, all Fran Healy wanted to do was rock, wear cowboy hats, emulate U2 and hang with Oasis. Nowadays, maybe it's the Scottish air (you can almost hear a little Belle And Sebastian creeping into "Writing To Reach You"), maybe it's a broken heart, maybe it's a mended heart but Travis find themselves suspended between the everyman songwriting of his aforementioned Manc role-models and the mellow-gold folk-pop of the Sixties. "Driftwood", "The Last Laugh of the Laughter" and "Why Does It Always Rain On Me" are manifestations of a more soothing outlook, weighted with haunting cello and the harmonies of a singalong soul. Only "Turn" really retires to the Radiohead-styled let-it-rip outbreaks of distortion. The closing "Slide Show" intimates Travis' mood change best, "Cause there's no design for life/There's a devil's haircut in my head/ There is not a wonderwall to climb or step around/But there is a slideshow and it's so slow". It's an assured if not earth-shaking follow-up, far more beguiling and delicate than it's predecessor.

Leagues - © 2001 rondomondo



It may seem as though The Man Who has come out of nowhere...this from the band that could barely contain its Oasis-like Britpop swaggering on 1997's Good Feeling. In fact, Travis made such a big point at the time about putting out deliberately dumb music, as though that were something to really strive for...the lowest common denominator as a high artistic goal. But that's only half the story and it's before Radiohead upped the ante with OK Computer. I suspect Travis was always plenty cognizant of how ridiculous that marketing method was because even on Good Feeling, the traces of a brilliant band hid on the second half of the album away from the laddish anthems of underage sex and boy's fun. The Loaded (popular British men's magazine associated with laddishness) culture of 1990s Britain was giving way to sensitive guy post-rock right before our eyes on Good Feeling and it completely missed most of the pundits of the time.

It's hard to believe a band who offered up "All I Want To Do Is Rock" and "U16 Girls" is the same band giving us "The Fear" and "Driftwood" in 1999/2000. But all you have to do is pop in Good Feeling around track seven and listen to the six tracks that essentially serve as the preface to The Man Who. All the subtle attention to mood and slightly downcast dynamics, smarter lyrics are there in the embryonic phase completely developed to near perfection on The Man Who.

Daft critics have suggested Travis merely made the move from Oasis to Radiohead as their prime inspiration. I beg to differ. Rather, Travis is the bridge between the two dominant ends of British rock in the 1990s. Less defiantly miserable than Thom Yorke and company, with more classical tastes in songwriting, and a more than a little unaware of their own monstrously enormous talent, Travis stands in no band's shadow. And hell, they're putting themselves out there while Radiohead goof around in the studio for three years searching for a musical nirvana they're unlikely to ever find. I'm even willing to go out on a limb and suggest that The Man Who is the logical successor to OK Computer as the "important rock" album of its year at least in Europe.

by Sarah Zupko - PopMatters Music Editor
© 1999, 2000 PopMatters.com. All rights reserved.



Der absolute Dauerbrenner; das zweite Album von Travis verschaffte sich mit reizend graziöser Bescheidenheit im Bewusstsein des Post-Radiohead Großbritannien seinen Platz. Es ist einem nicht so ganz klar, wie Travis es schafften, von ihrem Debüt mit dem Tingel-Tangel Britpop Good Feeling, das unter ferner liefen registriert wurde, zu begabten Pop-Profis zu werden, die den sanften, gefühlsbetonten Bereich mit dem Charts-Stürmer The Man Who prägten. Aber es scheint, dass diese ein wenig schläfrige Herz-Schmerz-Ecke ganz gut zu Travis passten. Daher sind "Writing To Reach You", "Driftwood" und "Why Does It Always Rain On Me?" die sanftesten Songs, die jemals so viel Radio-Sendezeit am hellichten Tag verschlingen konnten. Ansonsten klingt "As You Are" wie Thom Yorke in Decken eingehüllt, und der Abschluss-Song "Slide Show" versetzt dem Rock-Mythos mit seinem unmöglichen, schönen Text einen Stich: "There is no design for life/There's no Devil's haircut in my mind/There is not a wonderwall to climb, or step around".(Es gibt keinen Entwurf für das Leben/es gibt nichts Teuflisches in meiner Gesinnung/es gibt keine Wunderwerke zu erobern oder zu umgehen.)

Louis Pattison - Amazon.de



"The Man Who' ist wen immer man sich darunter vorstellen mag. Der Titel basiert auf einem Theaterstück nach einer Idee des Psychoanalytikers und Autors Oliver Sacks ("The Woman Who Walked Into Doors'), in dem es um Außenseiter geht. Und Travis haben ein Herz für Außenseiter und vielschichtige Anspielungen, sind erstaunlich schnell erwachsen geworden. Statt "All I Wanna Do Is Rock' gibt es nun "I Don't Really Wanna Rock' (ein Stück dieses Namens befand sich tatsächlich ursprünglich auf der CD, wurde jedoch wegen Offensichtlichkeit entfernt). Denn: rocken tun Travis auf "The Man Who' nun wirklich nicht mehr. Angesagt sind kontemplative Balladen - nicht ohne Power, aber ohne "Hüpf-Faktor' - mit schönen Melodien, schrägem Humor und verblüffend pfiffigen Wortspielereien. Sänger und Songwriter Fray hat sich kompositorisch selbst Maßstäbe gesetzt, die er zwar nicht immer erreicht, aber selbst im Scheitern noch bestehen kann. Mit "Man' machen die Schotten eine ganz gute Figur in der momentan eher stagnierenden britischen Szene.

Ullrich Maurer / © Intro - Musik & so
mehr unter www.intro.de



"Every day I wake up and it's Sunday," Fran Healy exhales to begin The Man Who. This lazy day mood stretches throughout Travis' sophomore release. The tunes stay in their sweats and don't get around to showering until 5:45pm-- fifteen minutes before the pizza arrives. The tunes flip through football and golf. Healy sounds like he's spilling his soul to an empty cabin after 13 hours of sleep. Check out a daily planner, though-- Sunday has the least amount of space. This is the least productive day, yet most anticipated. Travis fulfills the musical equivalent of this basic human need for the occasionally mundane. While by no means groundbreaking, The Man Who massages with sincerity and crisp precision.

The production is cool and spacious thanks to Nigel Godrich (of OK Computer fame), and his breath can be seen slowly puffing throughout. Icicle pickings chime over jangling acoustic ballads. Elegent and deceptively simple, like unfinished furniture, the ten songs never rise to a scream, yet the trembling ambience is nonetheless smothering. Your ears will shift focus through translucent layers of sound. Godrich truly is blessed. Fran Healy sounds remarkably like a stable Thom Yorke, and songs like "The Fear" point directly to this influence, but with a more folky, tender approach. Some of his notes will make your cheeks tingle. And eminating from his lungs, the repetition of "Turn" brings goosebumps.

Travis' debut shamelessly prayed to power rock like a British Weezer, and there are still echos of that boyish glee here. Along with Weezer, Travis keep the flame of the righteous guitar solo lit while uninspired, obvious guitarists continue the Tom Pettification of this lost art and continue to piss on it. The ability to imbue solos with any sort of soul and intensity should be cherished.

On The Man Who, power comes from restraint and space. There are enough subtle flourishes buried beneath the pillowy snow to reward repeated listens-- the chimes and ominous keyboard under "As You Are," the wind in "Slide Show," and the sitar strums on the dramatic chorus to "The Last Laugh of the Laughter." The hidden track even rewards those who need to rock with bellowing choruses, gong guitars, and unnerving cymbal ticks.

British bands tend to leave a bad aftertaste with American audiences with their cognizant conceit. If anything, the raw humility of Travis is refreshing. Figures that this has still only seen release in the UK, while Gay Dad is being dumped on us from bombers.

Brent DiCrescenzo
Copyright © 2001, Pitchforkmedia.com.



I began hearing the hype about this record last year when it was released to unending praise in the UK. I was incredibly skeptical to the point of thinking I had Travis mixed up with someone else. This was because their debut album Good Feeling from 1997 was such a steaming turd that I couldn't imagine Travis had improved 1000%. Good Feeling had similar praise heaped upon it though the praise quickly faded. At the time, Noel Gallagher from Oasis championed Travis as the Greatest British Band at the time. Perhaps he did this to draw attention away from his own band's stinking turd of a new album at the time, Be Here Now. Perhaps Noel thought that "D'Ya Know What I Mean?" would look like "Hey Jude" in comparison to Travis's boring-ass songs.

I cannot overemphasize this: Travis's Good Feeling is incredibly bad. So bad I just abandoned my copy. I didn't bother to return it or try to sell it. I just wanted it away from me post haste. If you're going to name a song "All I Want To Do Is Rock" you damn well better rock. Instead, it and the rest of the album sound like a dead cow deflating.

I elaborate so much to emphasize what a remarkable turnaround Travis have made. The Man Who captures a completely different sound. There is no overdriven "rock" guitar. It is as if they found their voice. Every song on The Man Who is a ballad. And remarkably, they're not bad. "Writing to Reach You," which opens the album, sets a perfect mood with its clean, ringing guitars and Fran Healy's fragile, tender voice. The next two tracks are good evidence of the "Radiohead lite" sound Travis have been described as having. It is by the fourth track that Travis really hit their stride. "Driftwood," the first song I had heard from the album, moves easily through its free-associative lyrics to it's big shiny chorus and refrain cribbed from Blur's "The Universal" (Hey, it's okay, none of you know it). Throughout the album, Fran's lyrics and melodies make slight references to other pop culture. Most blantantly in "Slide Show" where he addresses other lyrics by the Manic Street Preachers, Beck and Oasis: "there is no design for life/ there's no devil's haircut in my mind/ there's no wonderwall to climb." I'll admit it's a tad embarassing, but Travis's heart-on-sleeve-honesty thing seems to make it all right. There's not a trace of irony on this record. So when Fran sort-of accidentally sings the "I'd like to buy the world a coke" melody in "As You Are," it doesn't seem incongruent.

Beginning with "Driftwood" and reaching through the next three songs, Travis seem to have constructed a mini-greatest hits. "The Last Laugh of the Laughter," "Turn," and "Why Does It Always Rain On Me?" are each as radio-friendly as the tune before. "Laughter" is the most uplifting Radiohead ever got; it's "Exit Music" turned inside out and sung partly in French. "Turn" is probably as stadium-ready as Air Supply could ever hope to get. The song's steady build releases its tension in Fran's strained high chorus. The only thing which would make the song more complete would be the sound of lighters striking up around you. The singles section of the album is put to rest by the swinging "Why Does It Always Rain On Me?" which is part Carpenters and part Smiths.

These ridiculous descriptions are not at all derisive. Travis is stronger for their unabashed earnestness. Their former ironic rock star posturing did them no justice and was horribly bad. The Man Who may be an unrepeatable product of zeitgeist, so my advice is enjoy the wholesome ballads and file the album proudly with your Unwound and Bolt Thrower.

ta - Copyright © 1999-2001 by bombast-xxx media.



The Man Who (1999) is the second album from the collection of British band Travis, a group whose sound and style easily ensures their identification with the Britpop phenomenon of the mid to late 1990s.

As such it does not take many listens to get a feel of the songs. All of them have a very pleasant, soothing sound to them, with the one exception being ‘Turn’ which is all guitars, drums and hoarse vocals. Another example of their Britishness is the ‘homage’ they pay to some illustrious predecessors: ‘Luv’, with its strumming chords and meandering style, is very reminiscent of The Beatles’ ‘Across the Universe’, while in the introduction of ‘Writing to Reach You’ one can clearly hear the introduction to ‘Wonderwall’ from Oasis (who, themselves, have also been known to pay ‘homage’ to the Beatles.

As aforementioned, the best description that one can apply to The Man Who is that it is a very pleasant, soothing listen. Though their musicianship and sense of melody are quickly obvious there is something- inexplicable- missing from their music. The head says that this record should be brilliant, but deep down the heart knows that it is just nice and pleasant. Apart from the anthemic ‘Why Does it Always Rain on Me?’ there is nothing which grabs the listener by the throat. The best one can say about Travis is that they stroke your neck with intent.

Still, it’s important not to be excessive in one’s criticism. You get the feeling that this collection of songs is the best Travis can do. While their best is good, it could never be mistaken for the sophistication of the Beatles, or even the polished aggression which Oasis are so good at. Nevertheless, it is further evidence of the quality of British music.

RATING: 7/10

Nick Bendel - April 1, 2001
Copyright © 1996-2001 Suite101.com, Inc., All rights reserved.



If it's true that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then Radiohead and Oasis ought to feel amply lauded by the Glasgow-based band Travis. Produced by Radiohead's designated knob-twiddler Nigel Godrich, The Man Who finds the four lads of Travis graduating from the canned, frat-cad shenanigans of 1997's Good Feeling and hurdling headlong (and perhaps just a wee bit prematurely) into midlife-crisis ennui. Gently cascading acoustic guitars adorned with subtle swells of piano and cello are the order of the day -- the aural equivalent of drifting down an indolent river in a heroin-veined haze.

Subdued and unprepossessing as it may seem on the surface, The Man Who has already made quite the tsunami splash in the British Isles -- shifting more than six million units and earning almost unanimous raves from the typically prickly English music press. Standout single Why Does It Always Rain on Me? "suffers" from the same sort of Mersey-beat melancholia that made Rufus Wainwright's April Fools such a contagious and charming treat. Elsewhere, the Radiohead influence reaches its apex on the languid As You Are; Driftwood sounds like vintage, mid-'70s Bread; Luv's heavy-hearted harmonica sounds borrowed from the Hollies' He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother; and, like the Beatles' sweetly multilingual Michelle, the somber, late-night dirge The Last Laugh of the Laughter injects some flavorful français into its Fabergé-fragile soufflé.

Though unquestionably pleasant and pretty, The Man Who lacks the sort of passionate-yet-effortless epiphanies for which Radiohead and Oasis seem to have a natural knack. The better part of the problem can be traced to the album's almost mordantly monochromatic sonic palette. Color it gray. Color it beige. Color it a significant step forward for the four lads of Travis -- but, alas, just a tad too mannered to qualify as a classic.

Written by Michael Karpinski
The Music Box, August 2000, Volume 7, #8



On Good Feeling, Fran Healy sings "all I want to do is rock." Though he doesn't say it outright on The Man Who, this time all he wants to do is talk. As the chords begin to pour forth from opener "Writing To Reach You," Healy begins to realize the impact of his lyrics on those who may or may not have listened to his band's first album. Where other songwriters might retreat, Healy here reveals an even deeper vulnerability, a bold move that is all the more compelling considering how much every member of Travis has upped the ante from their debut.

Credit Nigel Godrich, who yet again produces and mixes a landmark pop record, or credit Healy for demonstrating a thorough belief in his songwriting skills and his band's ability to deliver them, but The Man Who could be the best British pop album since OK Computer and Urban Hymns. Meticulous in its execution, quiet and introspective in its mood, yet strikingly poignant and uplifting, Travis have lovingly painted many shades of grey into the scenery of this album.

Whether it is the expression of sorrow ("The Last Laugh of The Laughter"), hope ("Turn"), or nostalgia ("Slide Show"), Healy and company prove themselves to be seducers of the senses, opening the floodgates of the deepest emotions. The voyeuristic yet intensely passionate "The Fear" is a shockingly lucid depiction of lost summer love. Healy's lyrical supplication is then matched musically by Andy Dunlop and Neil Primrose on the slow-burning "As You Are." Similarly, the smoky harmonica interlude adds a proper dose of remorse to the woeful lyrics of "Luv."

Still, it's Healy's soulful expressions that stir even the most unsuspecting punter's insides. The poetic "Driftwood," exalted by Healy's irony-free delivery, lovingly surrounds you like a warm quilt on a cold night. Climactic highlight "Why Does It Always Rain On Me?" is sweetly naïve in its wonderment, yet its sing-along chorus makes it easy to cherish.

I proclaimed (to anyone who would listen) that The Man Who was the best album of 1999. A warning to those same people - my year-end pick will sound rather familiar come the end of 2000. Classics like this last a lifetime; this album is a must-have.

Copyright © 1998, 1999 Big Shot Entertainment, Inc. All rights reserved.
 

 L y r i c s


WRITING TO REACH YOU

Every day I wake up and it's Sunday
Whatever's in my head won't go away
The radio is playing all the usual
And what's a wonderwall anyway

Because my inside is outside
My right side's on the left side
'Cos I'm writing to reach you
But I might never reach you
I long to teach you about you
But that's not you

It's good to know that you are home for Christmas
It's good to know that you are doing well
It's good to know that you all know I'm hurting
It's good to know I'm feeling not so well

Because my inside is outside
My right side's on the left side
'Cos I'm writing to reach you
But I might never reach you
I long to teach you about you
But that's not you
Do you know it's true
And that won't do

Maybe then tomorrow will be Monday
And whatever's in my head should go away
Still the radio keeps playing all the usual
And what's a wonderwall anyway

Because my inside is outside
My right side's on the left side
'Cos I'm writing to reach you
But I might never reach you
I long to teach you about you
But that's not you
Do you know it's true
And that won't do
You know it's you
I'm talking to


THE FEAR

All I wanted was the chance to say
I would like to see you in the morning
Rolling over to have you there
Would make it easy for a little bit longer

But here
Closer every year
So near
The fear is coming clear
My dear
The fear is here

Hottest summer in a hundred years
But summer didn't bother
Getting up this morning
And so all the trees forgot to wake
They were dropping all their leaves
On the ground below them


But here
Closer every year
So near
The fear is coming clear
My dear
The fear is here

All I wanted was the chance to say
I would like to see you in the morning
Rolling over just to have you there
Would make it easy for a little bit longer
Make it easy for a little bit longer
Make it easy for a little bit longer
Make it easy for a little bit longer
Make it easy for a little bit longer
Make it easy for a little bit longer


AS YOU ARE

Everyday I wake up alone
I'm not like all the other boys
And ever since I was young
I had no choice
But it's OK to lead me on
I admit it's not much fun
To be led on by such a one
As you are
As you are
As you are

And ever since I woke up I felt the net
Was lifting me out of the sea
And even when I'm sinking I feel the need
But it's OK to lead me on
I must admit it's not much fun
To be alone with such a one
As you are
As you are
As you are

And ever since a long time
I felt the rain
And there was no danger
And no more strangers
As you are


DRIFTWOOD

Everything is open
Nothing is set in stone
Rivers turn to oceans
Oceans tide you home
Home is where the heart is
But your heart had to roam
Drifting over bridges
Never to return
Watching bridges burn

You're driftwood floating underwater
Breaking into pieces, pieces, pieces
Just driftwood, hollow and of no use
Waterfalls will find you, bind you, grind you

Nobody is an island
Everyone had to go
Pillars turn to butter
Butterflying low
Low is where your heart is
But your heart has to grow
Drifting under bridges
Never with the flow

And you really didn't think it would happen
But it really is the end of the line
So I'm sorry that you've turned to driftwood
But you've been drifting for a long, long time

Everywhere there's trouble
Nowhere's safe to go
Pushes turn to shovels
Shovelling the snow
Frozen you have chosen
The path you wish to go
Drifting now forever
And forever more
Until you reach your shore

You're driftwood floating underwater
Breaking into pieces, pieces, pieces
Just driftwood, hollow and of no use
Waterfalls will find you, bind you, grind you

And you really didn't think it would happen
But it really is the end of the line
So I'm sorry that you've turned to driftwood
But you've been drifting for a long, long time
You've been drifting, for a long, long
Drifting for a long, long time


THE LAST LAUGH OF THE LAUGHTER

When the laughter fades away
Ma vie
Tout ma vie
When there's nothing left to say
Ma vie
My oh my
 
It's the last laugh of the laughter
Sur la dernier page du chapitre
On the last day of the year
Ma vie
Tout ma vie

When the spotlight fades away
Ma vie
C'est la vie
When the blue skies turn to grey
Ma vie
Tout ma vie

It's the last laugh of the laughter
Sur la dernier page du chapitre
On the last day of the year
Ma vie
Tout ma vie

When the laughter fades away
Ma vie
Tout ma vie
When there's nothing more to say
Ma vie
My oh my

It's the last laugh of the laughter
Sur la dernier page du chapitre
On the last day of the year
Ma vie
Tout ma vie
Ma vie
My oh my


TURN

I want to see what people saw
I want to feel like I felt before
I want to see the kingdom come
I want to feel forever young
I want to sing
To sing my song
I want to live in a world where I belong
I want to live
I will survive
 
And I believe that it won't be very long
If we turn, turn, turn, turn, turn
Then we might learn
So where's the stars?
Up in the sky
And what's the moon?
A big balloon
We'll never know unless we grow
There's so much world outside the door
I want to sing
To sing my song
I want to live in a world where I'll be strong
I want to live
I will survive
And I believe that it won't be very long
If we turn, turn, turn, turn
And if we turn, turn, turn, turn
Then we might learn
Turn, turn, turn, turn
Turn, turn, turn
And if we turn, turn, turn, turn
Then we might learn
Learn to turn


WHY DOES IT ALWAYS RAIN ON ME?

I can't sleep tonight
Everybody saying everything's alright
Still I can't close my eyes
I'm seeing a tunnel at the end of all these lights

Sunny days
Where have you gone?
I get the strangest feeling you belong
Why does it always rain on me?
Is it because I lied when I was seventeen?
Why does it always rain on me?
Even when the sun is shining
I can't avoid the lightning

I can't stand myself
I'm being held up by an invisible man
Still life on a shelf when
I got my mind on something else

Sunny days
Where have you gone?
I get the strangest feeling you belong
Why does it always rain on me?
Is it because I lied when I was seventeen?
Why does it always rain on me?
Even when the sun is shining
I can't avoid the lightning

Oh, where did the blue skies go?
And why is it raining so?
It's so cold
I can't sleep tonight
Everybody's saying everything's all right
Still I can't close my eyes
I'm seeing a tunnel at the end of the lights

Sunny days
Where have you gone?
I get the strangest feeling you belong
Why does it always rain on me?
Is it because I lied when I was seventeen?
Even when the sun is shining
I can't avoid the lightning
Oh, where did the blue skies go?
And why is it raining so?
It's so cold
Why does it always rain on me?
Why does it always rain on....


LUV

What's so wrong?
Why the face so long
Is it over?
And where you going that
You no longer belong here?
And distance tells you that
Distance must come between love
Where have you been Luv?
When the mistake we made
Was in never having planned to fall in love, Luv
 
Singing this song
Singing along
Makes it easier for me to see you go
But in doing so
I'm letting you go
It only serves to show me
That I'm still in love with you

Singing this song
Singing along
Makes it easier for me to see you go
But in doing so
In letting you go
It only serves to show me
That I'm still in love with you

So what's so wrong?
Why the face?
So long
Are you changing?
And where you been to that
You no longer remember?
And distance tells you that
Distance must come between love
Where have you been Luv?

It's just the chance we took
Having never planned to fall in love, Luv
Having never planned to fall in love, Luv
Having never planned to fall in love, Luv
Luv


SHE'S SO STRANGE

She's so strange
And she wore a black moustache
And pilfered all the petty cash
She went to Birmingham
She'll soon be in the can
 
She's so cruel
And she knew what just what to do
And while the cats were all sniffing glue
They played their silly games
And now they'll take the blame

What she'd done
And she didn't know quite what she did
And they told her that she better had
So now she starts to cry
Without a reason why

She's so poor
And only now she's looking back
Sees her story on a paperback
What will become of her
There's not much left for her


SLIDE SHOW

Today is the day
For dancing and for singing
The birds in the trees and all
The bells are ringing
The sun is in the sky
Is bright as bright second light
Is bright oh god I hope I'm alright
 
Cause I'm gonna cry
Hold on, hold on
Slow down, slow down
You're out of touch
Out of touch
'Cause there is no design for life
There's no devil's haircut in my mind
There is not a wonderwall to climb
To climb or step around
But there is a slide show and it's so slow
Flashing through my mind

Today was the day
But only for the first time
Hold on, hold on
Slow down, slow down
You're out of touch
Out of touch

'Cause there is no design for life
There is no devil's haircut in your mind
There is not a wonderwall
To climb or step around
But there is a slidesshow and it's so slow
Flashing through my mind

Today was the day
But only for the first time
I hope it's not the last time

 M P 3   S a m p l e s


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