Disco de Bangles: “Everything”

Normally, a new sound is a nice way of saying that the album stinks. Exceptions are artists and groups like the Beatles, David Bowie, KISS, Prince, and Kate Bush, whose musical quality or fan base was never compromised. Included in this category, is Everything, the sayonara of the Bangles.

Susanna gets the best songs, especially the Bangles' last indelible mark on the radio, "Eternal Flame" with its stirring string section, the other single, the upbeat "In Your Room" with its weird Indian stylings, the remarkably Byrdsian "I'll Set You Free" whose accompanying backing by her bandmates add to the 1960's sound, and "Waiting For You," which has a slight Byrds sound not as apparent as the other song.

Bassist Michael Steele gets to sing three songs and they are all striking: they are "Complicated Girl" the mid-paced, wistful, introspective "Something To Believe In" and "Glitter Years." She's second in vocal talent after Susanna.

"Complicated Girl" with mid-song "ooh la-la-la" that recalls the Beatles, their original muse. "Glitter Years," with its fiery drum and guitar opening, is Michael's ode to 1973-74, the height of glam rock, whose main protagonists wrecks his father's car singing a familiar tune: "You better hang on to yourself." Thank you, Mr. Stardust.

Vicki Peterson has vocals on "Bell Jar," with its weird droning guitar. I assume the song is about poet Sylvia Plath. The same long-drawn out drone is present in the dirge-like "Watching The Sky." She gets help from Vinnie Vincent on the 12-string on "Make A Play For Her Now." More on "Crash And Burn," also sung by her, later.

Debbi Peterson gets to sing "Be With You," Everything's third single, and the engaging "Some Dreams Come True."

My favorite song is the bitter and suicidal "Crash And Burn," a tune that has popped up for a visit during my darker moments: "Going nowhere/and I don't care/Can't wait till I get there/Sometimes I wish I could crash and burn." However, I wouldn't do a grisly car-induced self-snuff vis-a-vis the last verse of the song: "There was a wreck-o yesterday/And by tomorrow/they'll clear the char-o/and wash the tar and trouble away." Not tar and rubble? Well, that too, obviously.

This is the closest to their "white album" but I'll bet they could've come out with that if they'd stuck around for one more album. Like its predecessors, Everything is solid, with the usual mix of jamming rockers and lush ballads with nary a filler song present. Everything thus closes the all-too brief chapter on the Bangles.

When I think of the '80s, one of the bands that immediately pops into my mind is The Bangles. They were one of my favorite bands from the decade of excess and self-indulgence. Their music then (and still is now) was incredibly infectious and difficult not to get stuck in your head. As much as I loved the Go Go's, The Bangles were my personal favorite of the two girl bands. "Everything" is my all-time favorite album by the band. I thought the band's sound really matured after their last two albums. The girls contributed more to the songwriting (although with outside songwriters). I can hear the maturity in the band's choice of producer. They ditched svengali producer David Kahne for Davitt Sigerson. I can't really say that the first single off "Everything" was one of the band's better songs. I didn't think it held up very well next to stronger songs like "Complicated Girl" (one of my favorite songs sung by bassist Michael Steele). For me the strongest tracks on "Everything" weren't sung by Susanna Hoffs with the exception of "Eternal Flame" and "I'll Set You Free", but rather by the Peterson sisters and Michael Steele. Songs such as "Some Dreams Come True", "Make A Play For Her Now", and "Crash and Burn" are so irresistably catchy. The songs never left my head for over a decade now. My only problem with "I'll Set You Free" is the mixing job. I definitely prefer the remastered version that is found on the band's greatest hits cd but it is still a good catchy song to sing along to. After I got "Everything" as a present, I was crushed to find out that the band broke up. Now that they are back together. I hope soon I will have the pleasure of seeing the women perform live in concert.

The final album of The Bangles at least for the 80s. My favorites are In your Room, Eternal Flame, and Be With You. Eternal Flame and Be With You are so catchy that I just can't help but hum them all day. Like the other ones my dad had this on tape but I just bought the CD because I found it so cheap. Great music of the 80s.

Of all the albums that The Bangles have put out in the 1980s, Everything is my personal favorite album. I always like the songwriting, pop hooks, and the harmonies between the four members. I recently acquired a cd copy of the album and have found myself falling in love with the music all over again. I find myself relating to the lyrics in the songs as much as a I did when I was a teenager, especially on tracks such as "Complicated Girl" and "Some Dreams Come True". My personal favorite tracks features now former bassist Michael Steele "Glitter Years", and "Complicated Girl". "Glitter Years" reads like a great story right out of the glam rock years in the '70s. I will say that I prefer the version of "I'll Set You Free" on the band's greatest hits album over the version on Everything. I also wasn't big on the melodies and lyrics on "Watching the Sky". Just not my favorite song but overall I still give Everything five stars. Just love this album and the band.