This one was a recent charity shop purchase, for not very much at all, but was a firm favourite when first released and I bought it on vinyl.
Arguably, this is their breakthrough album, their first to hit the top ten album charts, containing their first (and only) top ten single.
And the album kicks off with said top ten hit, The King Of Rock 'N' Roll, a blatant attempt for a hit, with its nonsense chorus, set up for a cheesy MTV video, but quickly eclipsed musically by the fantastic Cars And Girls, a fine pop song, which preceded King Of Rock 'N' Roll, but sadly failed to engage the record buying public. After that it's more low key, with the song of nostalgia I Remember That, Enchanted - very laid back, very eighties - and the smooth Nightingales, featuring a surprise harmonica solo by Stevie Wonder.
The second place starts of with the glorious Hey Manhattan! a song of wonder for a first visit to NYC (yes, I did put it on my phone as I walked along Brooklyn Heights Promenade on my first visit, last year). Knock On Wood is a piece of faux-reggae, which really doesn't work, but the pace hots up with the straight rock of The Golden Calf, a strange song which to me sometimes sounds lively, yet sometimes leaden. Nancy (Let Your Hair Down For Me) is a slow, pleasant song which doesn't really move me, while final track, The Venus Of The Soup Kitchen, feels a little preachy but has its moments (and gives the album its title).
There's some nice stuff on this album, and it's always an enjoyable listen, but much of it is quite ordinary, and certainly not Prefab Sprout at their best.
3* - a couple of great songs, but doesn't feel as strong as much of their catalogue.
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