Good Feeling was the debut album from Travis and was recorded back in 1997.
Although I was familiar with a few of the songs on it, I’d never ever got round to buying or listening to the whole album, so I was really glad when somebody bought it for me this Christmas.
Like their second album ‘The Man Who’ this album has some great songs on it, but the overall feel of the album isn’t as good. I think it’s a bit too patchy. There are some good tracks, but the quality of the songs varies considerably throughout the album.
While there are one or two standout tracks, there are too many slow dirge like ballads for my liking and one or two tracks that sound as if they are just fillers.
Saying that it’s still a good album, and for a debut album it’s well above the average offering you get from most bands. There are 12 twelve tracks on the CD ranging from the usual Travis type rock/pop, to slow acoustic numbers. I won’t go through each track individually, but tell you about some of the tracks I personally like and dislike.
The album starts with ‘All I want to do is rock’ the song is definitely not as rocky as the title might suggest, but it’s a good enough start to the album, even if it’s a solid rather than dynamic exciting opening.
U16 Girls –Opens with a catchy little guitar riff and has a chant like chorus that you end up singing to yourself, and wondering just where the hell you’ve heard it
The Line is Fine - – s a typical Travis type song, melodic, with a great sing-along type hook that the band seem to be able to write so well.
Good Day To Die – One of my favourite tracks, although it does take a few listens, this song is definitely a grower. Really pounding rhythmical guitar throughout the song has a definite Indie feel to it.
Tied To the 90’s – Probably the most commercial song on the album, catchy melodic. well crafted – A truly great pop song.
Happy – Was a single. It’s part of the bands live set but this version seems to lacks the energy and enthusiasm that the band capture live, (it might be the production) and is a little flat, lacks the sparkle of the live version. Still a good upbeat track though.
The album ends with ‘Funny Thing’ which is a slow song with nice melodies and a prominent acoustic guitar, but with the electric guitar in the background contrasting violently with this by being played with lots of controlled feedback, and the solo being aggressive and discordant and not melodic at all. But it works and I personally like this track a lot.
Tracks like ‘I love you Always’ and ‘Falling Down’ are pretty mediocre to say the least. The other tracks, which I haven’t mentioned, are okay, nothing special but still very listenable.
If you’ve only bought or heard ‘The Man Who’ then you might be a little disappointed with this album, because I don’t think the overall quality of the songs are as good. But in saying that, it’s still a pretty good album, and for a bands debut album surprisingly good with definite hints of what was to follow.
In my opinion it’s definitely worth a listen – or two!
Travis are:
Fran Healy – Vocals, Guitar
Andy Dunlop – Guitar
Dougie Payne – Bass
Neil Primrose – Drums
For more information on Travis - discography, Band Member Profiles lyrics, tab to tracks etc. Visit their Website: https://travisonline.com