What Does Anything Mean? Basically

by The Chameleons

Overview

Easily the high point of the Chameleons' fascination with digital delays, pedals, and making the studio an instrument, the band's second album still is seen by many a fan as being just a little too lost in the production to have the same impact as Script of the Bridge did, despite equally excellent songs. The decision must ultimately be the listener's, but in the end the production argument is much more a quibble than a condemnation -- no matter how you look at it, What Does Anything Mean? Basically proved to be that rarity of sophomore albums, something that at once made the band all the more unique in its sound while avoiding a repetition of earlier work. Ironically, the first track, "Silence, Sea and Sky," turned out to be the least Chameleons-like track ever, being only a two-minute synth intro piece played by Mark Burgess and Dave Fielding. But with the gentle intro to the absolutely wonderful "Perfumed Garden," lyrically one of Burgess' best nostalgic pieces, it rapidly becomes clear exactly which band is doing this. The empathetic fire that infused Burgess' words for songs like "Singing Rule Britannia (While the Walls Close In)," a poetic attack on the Thatcher government, finds itself matched as always by brilliant playing all around. John Lever's command of the drums continues to impress, and Fielding and Reg Smithies remain guitarists par excellence; the searing, sky-bound solo on "Return of the Roughnecks" alone is a treasure. The sublime combination of the rushing "Looking Inwardly" and the soaring, blasting rip "One Flesh," leading into a relaxed instrumental coda, anchors the second side, while "P.S. Goodbye" provides a lovely, melancholic conclusion to an astounding record. CD copies include the 1981 "In Shreds"/"Nostalgia" single as bonus tracks. ~ Ned Raggett

Product Details

Release Date:	01/19/2010
Label:	Blue Apple
UPC:	5024545583922
Rank:	31086

Tracks

Disc 1

1. Silence, Sea and Sky
2. Perfume Garden
3. Intrigue in Tangiers
4. Return of the Roughnecks
5. Singing Rule Britannia (While the Walls Close In)
6. On the Beach
7. Looking Inwardly
8. One Flesh
9. Home Is Where the Heart is
10. P.S. Goodbye
11. In Shreds
12. Nostalgia

Disc 2

13. Intrigue in Tangiers
14. Return of the Roughnecks
15. Singing Rule Britannia (While the Walls Close In)
16. Perfume Garden
17. On the Beach
18. One Flesh
19. Home Is Where the Heart Is
20. Looking Inwardly
21. P.S. Goodbye

Album Credits

Performance Credits

The Chameleons   Primary Artist
Reg Smithies   Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric)
Mark Burgess   Vocals,Strings,Bass (Electric)
John Lever   Drums

Technical Credits

Steve Lillywhite   Producer
Ian Caple   Engineer
Colin Richardson   Producer
Martin Kay   Design
The Chameleons   Arranger,Composer,Producer
Reg Smithies   Composer,Illustrations
Mark Burgess   Composer
John Lever   Composer
Dave Fielding   Composer