Another Harrison album came and went with barely any notice. George didn’t care, Warner Bros. didn’t care, and radio didn’t care. Gone Troppo would almost be worth discussing if it were a phenomenally bad record, or surprisingly good. Unfortunately for the consumer, it’s neither. “Wake Up My Love” was the single, another nod to the contemporary sound of Elton John. It was not a hit, unfortunately, since it’s pleasant enough. “That’s The Way It Goes” is also pleasant, featuring the bass voice of Willie Greene, who also dominates the doo-wop cover “I Really Love You” to the point we can barely hear George. He’d lately been putting odd covers on his LPs, and usually surprised us with his canny choices, but not here. “Greece” is an instrumental that instead sounds unfinished; there’s supposed to be some clever wordplay over the bridges, but the vocals are mixed so low they’re tough to decipher. The title track has a quirky island motif, with a hook that seems very close to that interlude before “Beware My Love” by Wings. Well, at least he doesn’t sound as grumpy.
“Mystical One” has some nice hooks but they just aren’t sharp enough to stick. The same can be said for “Unknown Delight”, but at least this one has some touches reminiscent of the :George Harrison album. “Baby Don’t Run Away” sounds odd coming out of his mouth. This would have had more emotional effect had he finished the song; as it is it seems more like a barely fleshed-out synth demo. “Dream Away” was first heard over the closing credits of the Python-related film Time Bandits. The best part is the chorus, which is always on the verge of meaning something, yet stays just out of grasp. Finally, “Circles” was another orphan from 1968; already one of his most depressing melodies, it’s even more of a dirge here.
And with that, we wouldn’t hear from him again for five full years. Again, there’s nothing wrong with this album. There’s also nothing right with it. Even the cover seemed both patchwork and garish, with an outdated photo on the cover and too much space spent on a thin joke taking up a full side of the inner sleeve. (The tank must really have been empty; while the expanded CD only had a six-minute acoustic demo of “Mystical One” as a bonus, it makes us long for a disc of tracks just like it.) He seemed to be stuck back in his mid-’70s hole, with all the antiseptic qualities of that era. At least, unlike many rock legends, he didn’t bother making a hideous album in 1983 or 1984.
George Harrison Gone Troppo (1982)—2
2004 Dark Horse Years reissue: same as 1982, plus 1 extra track
I disagree. There is something wrong with this album, and your second sentence nails it. He didn’t have anything to say and didn’t care to say nothing in an interesting manner. He might not have been John or Paul, but he was better than Ringo, and this is George’s Ringo Rama where he just put something out to put something out. Gone Troppo makes me angry. It’s rock bottom, but at least there’s only one way to go when at rock bottom. The albums after Gone Troppo aren’t masterpieces but they show what he could do when he cared.
ReplyDeleteJT
Excellent points. But I ask you: what's worse, an album like this that the creator didn't care about, or something that took a lot of time and effort but still sucks? To explore this, we're coming up on McCartney's mid-80s career, so stay tuned.
ReplyDeletewasn't he putting in a lot of time with the pythons and world troubles and going through all sorts of family issues at this point? maybe he was just pulled too thin but had a contractual obligation to fulfill.
ReplyDeletedick
The contractual obligation may well have been a big factor. From here on out he made music on his own terms -- except for the occasional financial impetus -- and that usually worked out well for him and the audience. As we shall soon see.
ReplyDelete