it's sad to think how at the end you could hear Richey playing more, and he didn't even sound bad, simple and humble, nothing too fancy. but he was definitely improving and then we never got to hear him again:( wherever he is I wish him nothing but peace and a calm heart.
It's incredible sometimes watching how much James can still play on the guitar while singing. He's genuinely doing two lead roles at the same time. Same on La Tristesse Durera, Of Walking Abortion and Motorcycle Emptiness. He's two people rolled into one.
@@smashingpumpkin1986 Richey was never really good guitarist, I think by the end of his time in the manics he had just managed to get the feel for bar chords but I dont think his playing was ever really needed or utilised. James is one of the most underrated guitarists in the world hes a fucking genius with the thing
@@brandonmusic736 Yes, agreed re James and Richey's guitar playing respectively, but one must remember that Richey's lyrics were pivotal to direction of both The Holy Bible and Everything Must Go, as well as Journal For Plague Lovers later. He has had a huge effect on their output, even by absence. But "Yes". James is an amazing guitarist, and deserves more credit.
James said it was a relief to not have to get all those lyrics to fit into such short spaces. You can see what he meant - Richey wrote books in his songs.
Bradfield was a tour-de-force during this period - he tethered this awesome ship beautifully..................................unfortunately he took singing lessons for EMG and all the power was lost, but you cant blame them for changing. I saw them live on this tour in Nottingham and it was the closest to a religious experience i've ever had - the Holy Bible played in full live is something that will stay with me forever - it felt like they could take the fkn universe on....x
Like you said " can't blame them for changing ". They HAD to change. They did the right thing, because once Richie was gone, they had to become a different band. I don't like some of the stuff they've done since, but at the same time I have a lot of respect for the way they've reinvented themselves, because that's the only way they could have continued with any credibility. Imagine if they'd tried to release five more albums like Holy Bible after the Richie era. Would not have worked.
There aren't many albums that still sound like they were recorded the day before even though there years old, The Holy Bible is one of them, never has there been such a masterpiece before or since, you hear something different everytime you listen to it. Dont know how they would of followed it up if circumstances had of been different.
Today I listened to it at its fullest. I've been captured by "Yes" and "Motorcycle emptiness" and want to listen more of these guys, which I only knew because the legend of Richey James. I have to admit that I love some melodies but not got me amazed at its fullest. Like you say (and this had happened with many albums) I will become become a fucking fan of this album and will call it Rita if I want.
i used to have this glasto on vhs and this performance by the manics was their best ever in full cama and sailor suit i was only 15 at the time im 28 now and cant belive i get 2 watch it again cheers for posting!!!!!!
@@MyBeautifulDarkTwistedFantasy6Blur definitely got better when they started incorporating more eccentric influences. The self titled album and 13 are their two best albums to me
I still got all the old Holy Bible gigs on VHS... But...havent got a vhs player anymore.. I'd love to get them put on to DVD, I got the Astoria xmas gig, Glasto, almost the whole tour... and cant watch them...BOO!
I agree - the phrasing on this stuff is unique. The last album as a four piece (holy bible) seems to have this in extremes. It makes it engaging and challenging to listen to at the same time (if that's not a contradiction). It's not just the narrative of the lyrics that I enjoy, but the rhythm of them.
FFS, if only Channel 4 hadn't recorded / aired the complete set; this was the Manics at there very, very best. I bought all their first 3 albums on release and The Holy Bible to this day remains in my top 10 best albums of all timr. Whilst Everything Must Go was decent it sadly swung a change in direction which was not my cuppa tea. If i could turn back time (twice) i would go back to this set, and any Saints game played at The Dell.
I think some smart record company person noticed the rise of Britpop and pushed for a change in production so that they could cash in and, to be honest, I wouldn't have known about them if it wasn't for A Design for Life and If You Tolerate This... I do like both of those albums but The Holy Bible is by far their best!
Richey's guitar doesn't sound awful. Of course its not terribly brilliant either but you can definitely see that he had improved over time. I think that the idea of going to America (or just touring in general) and being exposed as "talentless" really upset him, more so than he had ever let on. That would explain why around the time he was in The Priory he really tried and focused on playing the guitar.
He was still really ill look at the pictures from his last interview show how unwell he was shaved head wearing pj looking like he was in a death camp I guess he fell into the 27 club i reckon he's alive somewhere living away from everybody and no internet with a dog that's what I hope for but I could be so wrong and he died in 95 such a waste of talent the lad could have been so world famous with his lyrics so sad for his family and the band who loved him so much the last indie casualty God bless him xxxxx
Cortney Broughton let's not forget how fucking awesomely beautiful he was on stage. you can still feel that void today if you see them live. James struggles to fill it.
There was a 'sweet spot' in 1995 where I saw the Manics, Therapy? and Elastica locally and went to see Suede In Bristol's Colston Hall. Crikey I am old, but glad I got to see them all..
Why people focus and zero in on Richey's guitar is bizarre. As a guitarist and musician who worked professionally for 20 yrs-I can tell you that Richey could keep up and play fine live. It helps of course to be shadowing the incredible James D. Bradfield-but Richey's fine...and quite better-comparable to other rhythm gtr tracks come to mind (Courtney Love- Radiohead- Coxon) and contrast Richey's limited ability w/any 'artist' of today that claims to write their own tunes (when ghost writers do it) and record w/autotune-protools etc.---hey, he's friggin Mozart!!!
Richey’s focus was on writing some of the most brilliant and inventive lyrics in rock music. He is a more than competent rhythm guitarist and, as his band mates have testified, a charismatic stage presence. Notice how much physical movement he brings to the set.
I jus† can'† believe all †he old, new & local s†uff I've been finding ou† abou† la†ely, I never knew abou†, i† feels like my head is going 2 pop from †he Joy of i† all!!!!! Le† †he †rue Grea†s of †he World never be forgo††on!!!!!
Sounds like what they experienced in Thailand, there is ofc detective work needed for any song that is clearly mining/channeling a state of mind- not necessarily the reasons for his departure. I read they look back at that trip as a point where they lost control of the ship and clearly their principles. It is not fun to witness actual human degradation, the kind that involves child prostitution and the poverty of the third world. He was obsessed with the photographer Kevin Carter who was haunted by what he saw in war torn Sudan and killed himself. Also, the price of that kind of searing intellectual honesty as fuel is that the most basic of human interaction involves horrors, what the kabbalists call "the shading of god." It is hard to make peace with if your whole self is based around a certain puritanism that has elevated you yet also brought you to extremities. To paraphrase Allan Watts "it is not wise to emulate Jesus, look where he ended up"
