The Stone | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | March 8, 1994 | |||
Length | 51:27 | |||
Label | Reprise/Warner Bros. Records 45387 | |||
Producer | Tom Bailey Alannah Currie Keith Fernley | |||
Babble chronology | ||||
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The Stone is the debut studio album by Babble, an electronic dance music group that was composed of Tom Bailey, Alannah Currie (formerly of the Thompson Twins), and Keith Fernley. The group changed its name as it changed the outward appearance of its sound, from pop to dub-influenced chill-out. The underlying melodies and the familiar voices of Bailey and Currie still gave a Thompson Twins tone. However, the addition of Quest vocalist Amey St. Cyr ("Take Me Away" and "Tribe"), emcee Q-Tee ("Beautiful"), deep basslines, and loads of spacious effects made it a much more relevant album for the lounge music scene. Promotion of the album was minimal. However, during an interview in Classic Pop magazine in 2014, Bailey stated the album was influential in the recording of Original Soundtracks 1 , an album released in 1995 by U2 and Brian Eno under the pseudonym Passengers.
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [1] |
William Ruhlmann of AllMusic considered the album to "sound a lot like a Thompson Twins record, especially when Tom Bailey is singing." He added: "The group has brought in some ambient sounds, borrowed some cheesy Indian restaurant music, and stolen the main riff from "I Am the Walrus." These are not improvements. By whatever name they choose, Bailey and Currie have not returned to form." [1]
Thompson Twins were a British pop band that formed in April 1977. Initially a new wave group, they switched to a more mainstream pop sound and achieved considerable popularity during the mid-1980s, scoring a string of hits in the United Kingdom, the United States, and around the world. In 1993, they changed their name to Babble, to reflect their change in music from pop to dub-influenced chill-out. They continued as Babble until 1996, at which point the group permanently dissolved.
Thomas Alexander Bailey is an English singer, songwriter, musician, composer and record producer. Bailey came to prominence in the early 1980s as the lead vocalist for the new wave band Thompson Twins, which released five singles that entered the top ten charts in the United Kingdom during the 1980s: "Love On Your Side", "We Are Detective", "Hold Me Now", "Doctor! Doctor!", and "You Take Me Up". He was the only member of the band to have formal musical training. From 1994, Bailey was also a member of its later incarnation, Babble, releasing two commercially unsuccessful studio albums. He released his debut solo studio album Science Fiction in 2018.
Alannah Joy Currie is a New Zealand artist based in London. She is a musician and activist, best known as a former member of the pop band Thompson Twins.
A Product of... is the first studio album by the English pop group, the Thompson Twins. It was released in June 1981 on the T Records imprint, a label created by the band and distributed through the Fame/EMI label. At the time of its release, the band were a six-piece group that did not include later member Alannah Currie. In comparison to the glamour of their later years, the group had a somewhat scruffy image during this period, because they were very poor and living in squats in London.
Into the Gap is the fourth studio album by British pop group Thompson Twins, released on 17 February 1984 by Arista Records. The album was recorded during 1983 at Compass Point Studios, in Nassau, Bahamas, and was produced by Alex Sadkin who had produced the band's previous studio album, Quick Step & Side Kick (1983).
Here's to Future Days is the fifth studio album by British pop group Thompson Twins, released on 20 September 1985 by Arista Records. It was the third and final release for the band as a trio, which was their most successful and recognisable line-up. It peaked at No. 5 on the UK Albums Chart and No. 20 on the US Billboard 200.
Close to the Bone is the sixth studio album by the British pop group Thompson Twins, released by Arista in March 1987. Now only the duo of Tom Bailey and Alannah Currie remaining, this was the first album the group made without Joe Leeway. It was produced by Bailey and Rupert Hine.
Big Trash is the seventh studio album by the British pop group the Thompson Twins, released in 1989 by Warner Brothers/Red Eye. It was produced by Tom Bailey and Alannah Currie, with two tracks produced by Steve Lillywhite.
Queer is the eighth and final studio album by the British pop group Thompson Twins, which was released in 1991 by Warner Bros.
Ether is the second and last album by Babble, an electronic dance band that was composed of Tom Bailey, Alannah Currie, and Keith Fernley.
"Hold Me Now" is a song by British band the Thompson Twins. Written by the band members, the song was produced by Alex Sadkin and the group's lead vocalist Tom Bailey. The song is a mid-tempo new wave song that uses a varied instrumentation, including keyboards, a xylophone, a piano and Latin percussion. It was released in November 1983 as the first single from their fourth studio album, Into the Gap.
Babble was a British-New Zealand electronic dance music group active in the 1990s. It was formed by Tom Bailey and Alannah Currie, formerly of the Thompson Twins), with Keith Fernley.
International Observer is a British-New Zealand musical duo formed by Tom Bailey, musician and ex-lead singer of the British band the Thompson Twins, which rose to fame during the 1980s. Its debut album, Seen, featured Māori visual artist Rakai Karaitiana as part of the project.
"Sugar Daddy" is a song by British pop group Thompson Twins, which was released in 1989 as the lead single from their seventh studio album Big Trash. The song was written and produced by Tom Bailey and Alannah Currie. "Sugar Daddy" reached number 28 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number 97 in the UK Singles Chart.
"Come Inside" is a song by British pop group Thompson Twins, released in 1991 as the lead single from their eighth studio album Queer. It was written and produced by Alannah Currie and Tom Bailey. The single peaked at No. 56 in the UK and spent four weeks on the chart. The single also peaked at No. 7 on the US Billboard Dance Music/Club Play Singles Chart. The single had a music video filmed to promote it.
"Long Goodbye" is a song by the British pop group Thompson Twins, released in 1987 as the second and final single from their sixth studio album Close to the Bone. It was written by Alannah Currie and Tom Bailey, and produced by Rupert Hine and Bailey. "Long Goodbye" peaked at No. 89 in the UK.
"Lay Your Hands on Me" is the first single released from the album Here's to Future Days by the British band Thompson Twins. Written by Tom Bailey, Alannah Currie, and Joe Leeway, it was released in the UK almost a year in advance of the album.
"Sister Of Mercy" is a song by the British pop group Thompson Twins. It was originally included on the group's 1984 album Into The Gap, though a remixed version was released as the fourth single from the album in the summer of 1984. The single peaked at #11 in the UK, spending ten weeks on the UK singles chart.
"Play with Me (Jane)" is a song from the British pop duo Thompson Twins, which was released in 1992 as a single from Songs from the Cool World, the soundtrack release for the 1992 film Cool World. The song was written and produced by Alannah Currie and Tom Bailey.
"Take Me Away" is a song from British-New Zealand electronic dance music group Babble, which was released in 1994 as the lead single from their debut studio album The Stone. The song was written and produced by Alannah Currie and Tom Bailey. It reached number 18 on the US Billboard Hot Dance Music Club Play chart.