Customer Reviews
I STILL RAVE ON ABOUT THE RAVEN.... - By: K. Fotheringham, 24 Sep 2009 
THIS AWESOME ALBUM BY THE STRANGLERS ARE A BAND AT THE PEAK OF THERE POWERS ,WHEN IT CAME OUT IN 79 I WAS ALMOST 13 AND STILL A PUNK MAN.AROUND THIS TIME THE STRANGLERS WERE EVERYWHERE SEEING THEM PERFORM DUCHESS AND HARRY ON TOTP WERE MAJOR MOMENTS IN TIME FOR ME ID BOUGHT THE DUCHESS 7INCH WITH THE SUPERB FOOLS RUSH OUT B-SIDE THEN GOT NUCLEAR DEVICE IN A BARGAIN BUCKET IN WOOLWORTHS ITS MY FAVOURITE TRACK ON THE ALBUM AND THE ONE WHICH PERFORMED THE WORST CHARTWISE,ANYWAY WHEN THE ALBUM CAME OUT I WAS LUCKY ENOUGH TO GET THE RARE 3D COVER WHICH I STILL HAVE UP IN MY ATTIC, EVERY TRACK IS GREAT SHAH SHAH SHOULD HAVE BEEN A SINGLE BUT ITS THEME STOPPED IT I DIDNT KNOW WHO THE SHAH OF IRAN WAS BUT I DIDNT CARE ...THE REMASTERED CD WITH THE BONUS MAKES IT STILL SOUND FRESH..THEY WERE NEVER AS GOOD AGAIN EVEN THOUGH GOLDEN BROWN AND STRANGE LITTLE GIRL PERFORMED WELL ON THE CHARTS....THIS LP IS THE BIZ..BUY IT SIT BACK AND REMEMBER......NOW WHERE IS THAT LADDER I NEED TO GET TO THE ATTIC THE 3D ORIGINAL COVER IS GOING FOR A FORTUNE ON EBAY.....
A timeless masterpiece - By: Dan Smolenski, 13 May 2009 This is the album which showed The Stranglers to be a different proposition to their more acclaimed punk contemporaries. A dark, brooding, avant-garde masterpiece, recorded across Europe under the influence of a range of legal & illegal substances, it is not their most instantly accessible album. However, repeated listens reveal the depth & beauty of these songs as well as a band at the very top of their game.
There is not a weak song on the album. The juvenile lyrics of some of their earlier albums have been replaced with astute political observations, ranging across subjects as varied as the Iranian Revolution to the science of genetics. Moreover, "The Raven" was musically adventurous, with Dave Greenfield's intricate keyboard work complementing Hugh Cornwell's unique, unorthodox jerky guitar work perfectly. Together with the powerhouse rhythm section of bassist Jean-Jacques Burnel & the hugely underrated Jet Black driving the songs along, fans of Radiohead could do better than listen to an album twenty-five years ahead of its time. "Dead Loss Angeles" features two growling, duelling basses; "Shah, Shah a go-go" sees mad, robotic keyboard flourishes; even the lead vocal duties are shared between three - Cornwell, Burnel & Greenfield. Today, the album sounds as fresh as ever. Quite simply, a masterpiece. The title track remains arguably the best song they ever recorded.
Breathtaking and original - By: D. J. H. Thorn, 15 Oct 2007 The Stranglers made so many fine albums that it's impossible to single one out as being their definitive effort. 'The Raven' is certainly my favourite, though. Their debut is on a similar level, but this album sees the band maturing with some finesse. It is the culmination of the experimentation which begins on the similarly-acclaimed 'Black And White' but boasts a little more polish & greater consistency. The homage of the exhilarating title track is juxtaposed against the more characteristic hatchet jobs which follow. No longer so concerned with misanthropy, The Stranglers continue the international put-downs begun on 'Black And White' with attacks aimed at the USA, Australia & Iran, all of them cutting to the bone.
'Nuclear Device' harks back to the band's earlier recordings as it derides the Australian nation, while the title track & 'Duchess' also provide conventional pop moments. Elsewhere, the music is accessible, yet with an oddball element. The intros to songs tend to be lengthy & catchy, yet give way to unusual arrangements. 'Don't Bring Harry' is striking for its use of piano instead of organ.
They keep the two most chilling tracks for the end, however. The helium-voiced 'Meninblack' is a piece of genius ('Human flesh is porky meat, tee hee') which would be developed across the whole of the next album, while 'Genetix' is a disturbing reminder of science going too far.
Of the bonus tracks, 'Bear Cage' is the stand-out, a minor hit, if I remember correctly. 'The Raven' is a must for anyone who likes this band.
the raven - stranglers - By: M. Baker, 24 Jun 2007 
i should nt really moan about this band , after all most punk, & bands that came out of punk could only manage one maybe two classic albums (stiff little fingers , clash , pistols , banshees stand up please ) but this album was & still is a big let down for me . with the loss half way through recording of producer martin rushent , arguably the man who honed the stranglers early sound the band totally lost their edge .
the album starts off brightly enough & there are certanly some good tracks on here but the production is so weak its heart breaking
worth having if only as a what could have been album ..........certanly no more heros after this
FIND ME A NEW DIRECTION - By: Kelvin J. Dickinson, 14 May 2007 The first STRANGLERS album I bought rather than borrowed. But where to start? Right at the beginning, I suppose.
(DEEP BREATH) I first saw themin 1980 at Leeds University during The Raven tour. Halfway through the set there was a power cut, so when they eventually returned to the stage, the band (like us) were Seriously Pissed Off & what should have been the remaining thirty minutes were thrashed outin less than twenty. I don't even think there was an encore, although that may be down to the don't-give-a-damn punk ethic of the times. But still I loved the gig & still I love the album. And here's why:
Following on from BLACK AND WHITE, 1979's THE RAVEN was like a breath of fresh air to my ears. The sound is more thoughtful & the instruments easier to differentiate & place, with a production designed to emphasise the gaps, so to speak, yet being far from spartan as a whole. And even though the theme of the album (Viking/Nordic symbolism) peters out after only two tracks, there's still a cohesion that insists you play these songsin order.
It's roughly 50/50in the writing & performance stakes on THE RAVEN & at this point neither HUGH CORNWELL nor JEAN JACQUES BURNEL are significantly dominant or more accomplished than each other as songsmiths. But it doesn't matter anyway, because each song compliments the next & so on. Highlights include the title track, DEAD LOSS ANGELES, DON'T BRING HARRY (with a beautiful guitar solo), MENINBLACK & GENETIX (DAVE GREENFIELD providing his usual ought-to-belong-on-some-kind-of-creepy-register vocals). Even the bonus tracks are a delight, especially BEAR CAGE, a dinky little number with a typically flat (again, of the time) Cornwell delivery. Marvellous stuff.
And another point worth mentioning: after all these years, there's still nothing to comparein sound or texture to THE RAVEN (if you'rein any doubt about that, just listen to the extraordinary SHAH SHAH A GO GO). Timeless? Maybe not. But unique? In spades.
So, a few reasons why the album is worth owning. You'll no doubt discover the rest for yourself.
Oh, & finally: In 1979 I was lucky enough to buy one of the first 10,000 copies of THE RAVEN featuring a 3D hologram stuck over the standard LP cover. So, what do I go & do? Needing some cash, I sell it to a schoolfriend for £[...], having played it to death & figuring that I'll buy another copy before too long. Of course, the utter stupidity of that decision only hits home a few weeks later when I'min the Bradford branch of Boots the Chemist, face as long as a fallpipe, about to pay £[...] for the non-limited edition. Then, as I prepare to hand over the cash, another assistant walks up & asks if I'd I prefer a 3D copy, SHE THINKS THERE'S ONE LEFT IN THE BACK SOMEWHERE(!!!)
Confirmationin my book that there is indeed a God.
VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
