The Bottom Line: If you thought The Verve was a one trick pony, think again. The British band proved that they deserved recognition with their final studio album.
At the peak of his band’s success, Richard Ashcroft left to pursue his solo career. It was strange timing and could have backfired horribly but it seems the swaggering singer-songwriter is still making fantastic pop music. Still despite his solo accomplishments I am partial to those Ashcroft earned with The Verve.
Over the course of their ten-year career, The Verve released just three studio albums. They were particularly well received in the United Kingdom but the band did score the occasional hit stateside with songs like Bittersweet Symphony and Lucky Man. Each of these three releases got rave reviews with each selling more copies than the last. The Verve’s space-rock, glam-pop, and neo-psychedelia scored with fans as well. They were creative and massively appealing at the same time.
Despite the fact that A Northern Soul (1995) is perhaps the band at their creative apex, it is 1997’s Urban Hymns that will go done in history as their most popular. A great deal of the fame attained from the album was due to a tiff with rockers the Rolling Stones over an obscure riff the band lifted from an obscure recording that was then translated into a major part of the hit song Bittersweet Symphony. As they say in showbiz, the only bad press is no press. Urban Hymns by far outsold The Verve’s other albums and even made the improbable leap to American popular music audiences.
Ashcroft (vocals, guitar) may have been the centerpiece of this oft lauded band of Brits, but there were other creative forces at work in the form of Simon Jones (bass guitar), Nick McCabe (guitar), Peter Salisbury (drums), and Simon Tong (keys, guitar). The Verve may not be everybody’s proverbial cup of tea but for me they are precisely what music is about—emotion and creativity meshed with new and old musical ideas. Despite the controversy, opening number Bittersweet Symphony is the most moving and representative offering.
Bittersweet Symphony open with a magnificent sound. A combo of strings, light percussion, and pop melody it is pure perfection. The song is about the melody, arrangement, and orchestra—Ashcroft’s delivery is part of the equation rather than the dominant force. This is indeed a symphony. The Verve has created a proper pop movement. It is so rich and deep that there is little denying that the song will remain one of the most notable representations of British music in the 1990s. It invites listeners to pull up a comfortable chair and to delve further into the outstanding Urban Hymns.
I’m never disappointed by anything on this album. It is a classic of British rock/pop because it adventurously dabbles with such a wide variety of musical form. The cool, beautiful Sonnet is next up. The Verve experiments with slide guitars flanking classic pop ideas and a tapestry of tender sound. The band exudes honesty and melancholy without coming off as melodramatic or cliché. As the album continues, I’m struck by its consistent quality and vision. Ashcroft and company are never afraid to break out into extended guitar solos or instrumental sections. This is clearly an outfit about the music and not about pop brevity which makes their success even more impressive.
Urban Hymns only impresses me as it continues. The Drugs Don’t Work is a striking country influenced ballad. There is no question that this is the most evocative song on this entire album and when heard in this context it is even more touching. Ashcroft’s delivery is impeccable and when paired with the outstanding instrumentation it’s the kind of thing I can’t stop enjoying. I also love the droning, psychedelic Catching the Butterfly a great deal. It is easy relaxing and lovely as is the electric guitar and drum dominated Space and Time.
Weeping Willow and Lucky Man both help to make the middle part of this CD something special. The former smacks of post-grunge more than the rest of the songs, but the performances make the song something different and new. Lucky Man is creatively different still with a distinct acoustic sound, a lovely string section, and Ashcroft’s ardent voice. Even the final four songs are worth hearing—there is no obvious lull anywhere on Urban Hymns. This is the kind of album that pop and rock fans alike can love and that British pop fans certainly already own and adore. The Verve remains one of the more interesting acts to come out of the nineties despite their brief career, scant releases, and limited American exposure.
If there is one thing you need to know about The Verve it is that Bittersweet Symphony is just the tip of a gargantuan iceberg. Both Urban Hymns and A Northern Soul are modern classics while sweeping debut A Storm in Heaven is something of an unknown gem. This is a rare perfect album that can still be gotten for cheap. Don’t let it slip through your fingertips.
Rating: 5/5 stars
Track Listing:
01. Bittersweet Symphony
02. Sonnet
03. The Rolling People
04. The Drugs Don’t Work
05. Catching the Butterfly
06. Neon Wilderness
07. Space and Time
08. Weeping Willow
09. Lucky Man
10. One Day
11. This Time
12. Velvet Morning
13. Come On
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