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Scratch My Back (Special Edition)

Peter Gabriel

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iTunes Review

As always, even Peter Gabriel’s album of covers is conceptual. This isn’t just a collection of 12 covers, six from established veterans (David Bowie, Randy Newman, Neil Young) and six from newer artists (Radiohead, Bon Iver, Arcade Fire, etc.), but there’s to be a companion piece entitled I’ll Scratch Yours that features those artists covering Peter Gabriel songs. Gabriel slows everything down to a muted trickle. Paul Simon’s “The Boy In the Bubble” has its buoyant bounce removed leaving just piano and strings. David Bowie’s “Heroes” crawls with its sense of glam replaced by an end- of-the-world-solemnity. Randy Newman’s “I Think It’s Going to Rain Today” comes close to the original recording, but that’s about it. Bon Iver’s “Flume,” Magnetic Fields’ “The Book of Love,” Arcade Fire’s “My Body Is A Cage” sound more like modern classical pieces with orchestral arrangements filling the soundstage. It’s a brilliant, somber move by a man known for his great theatrics. The “Special Edition” features three remixes and a cover of Ray Davies and the Kinks’ classic “Waterloo Sunset” given the Gabriel twist.

Customer Reviews

Bloody Brilliant!

This album is daring and creative, from an artist who continues to be a risk taker well into his 60's. One does not need a comeback album when you are not and never have been about being "there" in terms of the music industry. Where is the top 10 radio hit here? Well you guessed it, there isn't one, it is not intended for that purpose, and bravo to him for not caring about that garbage. Peter Gabriel has always been on the darker side of things and this album is no exception, it's not a "pick me up", but neither was "The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway" in 1973 or his first solo record. Each piece in this collection is crafted with such sensitivity, and coming from an artist who has been criticized from day one for being "aloof" and "distant" it is by far his most intimate and emotional work to date. Yet, unfortunately most people like some of those reviewing here just won't get it. Too classical for your average non-thinker rock fans and not classical enough for all the Avro Part listeners out there. Alas to be such an artist is to defy labels like rock or classical. Bravo Peter for having the courage to make art not airplay!

Bears repeating

I'm a huge PG fan, but I have to admit when I heard the next thing was an orchestral cover album, I looked awkwardly at my shoes and slowly backed out of the room. But, I am happily surprised with this -- a stark, dark and soulful collection of well written songs. Set against sparse orchestration, PG's voice is allowed to paint some lovely tonal pictures as only he can. He is singing as well now at 60 as he ever has, maybe even better. This time, he is not buried beneath track after track of sequencers and pounding rythms, and his voice runs the gamut between tenderness, power and heartbreak here. Takes a few listens in isolation -- a real album! -- before the grand scheme reveals itself. It works, but it won't be for everyone.

Disappointing

Am I just getting older, or is the new music coming out recently just plain old garbage? Anyone who has grown up with the music of Genesis and Peter Gabriel's early solo efforts will surely wonder the same thing. I find myself buying older music. There simply hasn't been anything half decent on iTunes in quite a while, and this latest effort from Peter is no exception. Every song sounds the same as the one before. It is monotonous and uninteresting. Peter Gabriel has been around for a long time, but hasn't put anything out until now. If this is supposed to be a "comeback" album, it failed. Sometimes one needs to know when it's time to pull the plug. I don't even know why this is in the Rock category!!

Biography

Born: February 13, 1950 in London, England

Genre: Rock

Years Active: '70s, '80s, '90s, '00s, '10s

As the leader of Genesis in the early '70s, Peter Gabriel helped move progressive rock to new levels of theatricality. He was no less ambitious as a solo artist, but he was more subtle in his methods. With his first eponymous solo album in 1977, he began exploring darker, more cerebral territory, incorporating avant-garde, electronic, and worldbeat influences into his music. The record, as well as its two similarly titled successors, established Gabriel as a critically acclaimed cult artist, and...
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