MUSIC: Us

Us
Peter Gabriel

Peter Gabriel hypnotizes me with this album whenever I listen to it... and as my friend Douglas says "I get depressed when I listen to Peter Gabriel albums because I know that its gonna be another 5 years before he releases another one."
One of the things I really love about this album, aside from all the music, all the lyrics, the total effort and Peter Gabriel's voice (isn't that enough?) is the ten pieces of art that are associated with each song on the album. (They are all printed in the dust jacket if you want to see them)
When I first heard the album I was going through a really nasty breakup, so lots of songs spoke to me, but this one just took what was left of my heart and ripped it out and stomped all over it. Guaranteed gut stomper. Apparently, Peter Gabriel wrote this after ending a really long relationship himself. These are the lyrics from "Washing of the Water" that just killed me the first time I heard them:

"Letting go, it's so hard
The way it's hurting now
To get this love untied
So tough to stay with thing
'Cause if I follow through
I face what I denied
I get those hooks out of me
And I take out the hooks that I sunk deep in your side
Kill that fear of emptiness, loneliness I hide"

This is also one of those albums that I will listen to over and over. The whole album is a cohesive effort instead of 12 songs on a piece of plastic...go get this one...its a definite basic-just like that little black dress they always rave about.

Song List:
(my favorites are in italics)

1. Come Talk To Me
2. Love To Be Loved
3. Blood Of Eden
4. Steam
5. Only Us
6. Washing Of The Water
7. Digging In The Dirt
8. Fourteen Black Paintings
9. Kiss That Frog
10. Secret World