OK, let’s get this straight; 'The Stone Roses’ is NOT, repeat NOT, the best album of all time, no matter what the NME says. However, it is still, sfter 20 years, pretty damn fine and might just be the ultimate statement of the acid-rave scene.
The classic tracks still stand up bloody well; 'I Wanna Be Adored’ chills as kit begins the build like the beginning of an Ecstasy rush and as the vocals whisper 'I wanna be adored,. I don’t wanna sell my soul' over the repetition of the bass and the guitar howls quietly it grows and crashes around your ears. The Velvet Underground wrote 'Waiting For My Man’ to be just like the rush of adrenaline that a junkie feels as he waits to score and this album maps the peaks and troughs of an E jag too closely to be accidental. ’She Bangs The Drum’ is like the blast of energy that hits you as the warmth envelops your body and then track after track take you on the ride until the magnificent 'I am The Resurrection’ brings you down to earth with a shimmering glide and a timebomb of a rhythm track to ease you to the end of the rush.
Not the greatest album of all time but wow, what a ride even after 20 years.
The package that surrounds the original album is huge – 3 cds a DVD of the legendary Blackpool gig and the videos and a 48 page bound book but frankly all you need is the main album – the rest is a bonus.