Monster then, monster now. That's all it is. The pandemic the Muppet (think Genesis) in the White House then ignored that lead to millions of unnecessary, lonely, ugly-effing-deaths was simply rooted in a subject that our moralizing culture could vilify. Same politics. Same lack of concern for anyone seen as the out group. Same old bucket of 'isms.'
Absolutely. It's a great track and Vernon Reid is fantastic, one of my favorite solos, but coupled with the lyrics and Cory's delivery ... one of my favourite songs.
"I exploit you. Still you love me. I tell you one and one makes three." God damn if that line is not still depressingly relevant! Such an amazing song.
Where was I when this happened? In the control room. I was the band's guitar and bass tech on the first two albums and a most of the subsequent albums, as well as toured with them on and off from 1986 through 2015 ( including their hiatus from 1995-2000; I was guitarist in Corey's solo band). I'm the "barker" at the beginning of Broken Hearts and some voices at the end of What's Your Favorite Colour? (extended version).
I played a gig with these guys a few years back. All the other bands dropped off the show. It was just us and them. They're all great, humble dudes and it was a joy to watch them play after our set. They played an extra long set to make up some time for the show just to give people their money's worth. What a memory.
First time I saw the video on MTV I was blown away and happy, because I'm a female of color who loves hard rock and heavy metal and even still to this day feel like an outcast for preferring it to Beyonce and Cardi B. And the lyrics are even more relevant now.
Agreed, this music has such social and political relevance. I've just had enough of the fluff girl singers who have nothing to say that's carrying weight, nothing remotely like this.
I heard Unsung 2 days ago, totally forgot about them, that was my first drop D tuning song that I realized you could do that. My buddy was playing along to it and i was blown away, long time ago. I just started listening to living color again I have the tape somewhere
I love how this guy just enjoys all kinds of rock and other kinds of music and you can tell when he is already a huge fan of the songs or band. He's not some elitist who thinks his music is "objectively" better than anybody else's, he's just a cool guy all around and always has a respect for the music. Love this dude.
One of the things that doesn't get talked about enough is the context for Vernon's playing: Reid was pretty active in the avant-jazz/experimental scene in NYC for years leading up to Living Colour's debut album. He cites Miles, Zappa, Fripp (King Crimson), and Coltrane as influences, and had a duo album out with Bill Frisell prior to Cult of Personality. One of the beautiful things about the improvisation style that emerged from folks like Coltrane, Miles, Albert Ayler, Cecil Taylor, and other free jazz/avant-jazz musicians is the emphasis of individual voice, energy, and timbre over harmonic alignment. Vernon definitely knew this at the time, and the fact that these principles tied directly to the narrative content of this song take it from being a phenomenal solo on its own, to one that elevates both itself and the song into a masterpiece. Vernon stays slaying.
I was aware of this song for a little while, but found a whole new appreciation for it when wrestler CM Punk started using it as his entrance during his walkout/return angle.
such an amazing song and great band overall. I got into these guys when a friend said to me "hey if you like Faith No More, you gonna like this too" and he was right!
Vernon Reid is a MONSTER GUITARIST. This 90s Indo-pop fusion group called Colonial Cousins (which combines Indian classical/folk/film music with 80s/90s western pop/rock) has a song called "Adrian's Angel (Lost In The Desert Fair)". Apparently Vernon was in the studio next door while they were recording and came to check them out, then played some guest solos on the song.
If memory serves correctly, the guitar solo was one take, spur-of-the-moment. Vernon Reid talked about this in a print interview for Guitar for the Practicing Musician magazine in the (I'm pretty sure) January 1991 issue. I dog-eared every single page of those magazines when I was first learning the instrument. Andy Aledort's transcriptions were killer. #soundtrackoflife Awwwright!
"Most guitarists start in, take it out, then come back. Vernon starts out, drops in for a while and then leaves!" Corey Glover on how Vernon's solos go compared to other bands.
Vernon Reid's solos in this are so delightfully Insane. Corey Glover's voice is also just gorgeous. Rhythm section does great things. Always loved this song since it came out.
Rex and dimebag had that perfect balance of low and high that made the groove metal thing work so well. I know this isn't Pantera but rex and his dancing around dimes riffs is what made Pantera so good First time I heard this song was mtv spring break live in Daytona Beach lol. When the m stood for music
Dude, the resolution after the solo and into the groove at 8:38 is one of the most driving, rocking bars in rock. You can't help but bang your head. (and Vernon's full open string 'brannnnnng' at 10:46 just seals the deal)
Here I am in Australia. 45. My brother had this on vinyl. Heard this when it came out. Me and my best friend were getting into metal and music in general and used to talk about Vernon Reid and how he uses the whole tone scale. Very unorthodox player, but the sounds he gets out of it... Just great. Same friend turned me onto Fishbone, and also into hip hop, while me and my brother got him into thrash and death metal. Music binds us. Still friends, even though we're hundreds of kilometres away from each other and I haven't seen him in about 20 years.
This is also one of the all time great guitar solos. Not only is it awesome, it's truly expressive of the overall message of the music. The guitar doesn't leave the song to fly away for a minute like happens so often, it takes the song on its back and blasts off WITH it!
You can really hear the jazz roots. The whole solo is based off of the melody and follows it perfectly. I honestly don't know if I can name a better rock solo, and somehow no one at the time (or since) seemed to notice its brilliance.
And again with your superlative taste in music! Living Colour and King's X were immediately adopted into my band's setlists as soon as we heard them. Geebz should have all of them on his channel. Aside from me, you are the only other to mention 24'/ Spyz. 👍😎
Another of my big drum influences.....Wil Calhoun. He goes off on live versions where it sounds like off time or free time and always lands back on the 1. Him and Tim Alexander from Primus were my primary early influences.
Same here dude. along with Stewart Copeland and of course John Bonham. I helped Wil Calhouns tech load in his kit when they came to Cardiff. So much hardware and 3 full hardcases FULL of Zildjians. Nice
He's highly underrated because of the chaotic impression he makes, but he nails it and he can do it live. Mm, there's something special with something chaotic resolving to something ordered.
@@gandalf8216 Exactly....I think that's what impressed me. Some of his fills are like walking down a flight of stairs, slipping half way down and tumbling the rest of the way then landing on your feet at the bottom. LOL
i clicked because i've seen about 5 of your videos and i simply couldn't believe you didn't already consider this a classic. Glamour Boys was awesome too
I heard this song over ceiling speakers in a North Carolina rest area last weekend. It was in the middle of nowhere with only a few travelers. The song stopped me in my tracks and grabbed my attention with a hard grip. Especially where that transition from the riff to the chorus/break... 'Neon lights...noble prizes...when a leader speaks, a leader dies...." Considering what is going on these days my heart sunk to the floor. Amazing freaking masterpiece!
Saw Living Color before Covid at a small club in NC. Amazing band (as we know!) and such cool guys. Incredibly gracious and appreciative of the fans. I wore this album out back in the day and it was one of my first cd purchases thereafter. Great stuff!!!
They came to Brisbane Australia in 1994/95 (they played Festival Hall, now gone sadly) , saw them twice in a row, then had pancakes with them across the street at the pancake house. It was amazing.
I was watching MTV when the video came on. LOVED the song so much I went to the record store on my lunch break from school and bought the casette. My band still plays this song to this day... It was a great album, as were the ones to follow.
Such an awesome album, all of it. This came out at the time of a big change in my life, uprooting from my childhood home in Aberdeen, Scotland to St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada, with an interim stay at a boarding house in Aberdeen. You could also check out King's X, an earlier riff based 3 piece, and of course Rage Against the Machine.
@@misterbayshawn Hey Lenny, beautiful place to be, I miss the pace of life there! I was there 15 years and then in New Brunswick for 4 years and now in Ontario.
There is no guitar more baroque than Vernon's, it is a super band, hardly anyone makes videos of them. I'm glad that you do. I saw them on the old MTV at 15 years old
Not a first time, but a few years ago, a live version of this came up on something, and it was like hearing again for the first time. Such a good some, on so many levels.
I can’t tell you how glad I am that you cover this band. I just discovered your channel yesterday and did a deep dive last night. I would love to see your reaction to their song “Love rears up it’s ugly head”. Another song of theirs you may not have heard is “Money Talks” . In the middle of the song they completely stop keeping time for a while before bringing it back for a melt your face ending. Two other songs from them are “Open letter to a landlord” (Hook bombs all over the place) and “Middle man”.
You guitar players who haven't figured out Vernon Reid's tone on this, he is using a delay pedal with the rate turned way up to the screaming edge of doing the spaceship loopback thing, and the decay set really fast. Took me forever to figure that effect out, but it makes your guitar cut through the mix like a laser.
Love this!!! I had the pleasure of meeting these guys (the original lineup with Muzz Skillings on bass) back in late '89 early '90, when the band that I was in opened for them here in Charlotte. They were some of the nicest and most down to earth Rock stars that I had ever met. We ended up going with them as their guests the next night to this show they were doing for MTV, with The Godfathers, in Columbia, SC. Living Colour (I'm not British, it's just the way that they spell it 😁) is an amazing band to see live. Their energy on stage is as palpable as it is infectious and their playing is so incredibly tight. Such a great band. Peace Brother Geebz!
This song came into my soundtrack of life early, I was about 12 and just getting serious about guitar and my dad made a list of songs he thought I should hear for educational purposes lol. A cousin who used Napster burned CDs of the list and I was exposed to everything from Pink Floyd to Johnny Cash to Primus, and I remember Cult of Personality specificly blew me away. I had heard some shredding before but THIS was different, it was like assault and battery with a guitar solo haha. And you can really hear just how hard the drummer is slamming the kit... This song is 100% part of my love for heavy music. Thanks for taking me back for a bit 🤘
The level of kickass in this song, and in this band, is on a completely different level than most of their time. I remember wanting some AXO pants so bad after I first saw this video.
We did a couple of gigs with Extreme; Rocklahoma and one in Long Island with King's X opening; I think it was 2012, but I may be wrong... Everyone was great; that could've been one hell of a package tour... I say "we" because I was Vernon's tech for those gigs... We may have been still promoting Chair In The Doorway then...
@@DennisDiamond Wow! Vernon seems like a great guy from afar. I missed that tour but am a huge King’s X fan as well as LC and Extreme. All three created music that still sounds fresh today.
Oh man! This was my Jam in the day. I went back and listened to the whole albulm and while the rest of it really does not follow the mold, they are quite the musicians. very talented
I remember the music video as a kid and liking the song before I really got into music as a teenager. Forgot about them, then 20 some odd years later saw Living Colour as part of the 2010 Experience Hendrix Tour after the show went back through their catalog and was hooked on this song for a few months after that. Thanks for doing this song!
Glad I clicked from another tuber. Loved this song in the 80s when I 1st heard it. After the recent past REALLY heard the lyrics when I heard it again, blew my mind. I appreciate your comments on the technical points of the instruments as it just increases my love of the song.
I'm so glad that reaction channels have kind of re-introduced Living Colour to a lot of people. They are so good. Doug Wimbish (bassist for LC) was also part of TACK>>HEAD who are also super interesting and influential in their own way. Also a small request for Odious - Mono No Aware.
@@matthewswift3347 Man, I love Doug's fretless playing on Nothingness. Not saying I don't like what he brought to the band....I guess I'm one of those guys that prefers the original line up of a band. My friend played in Adam Pascal's band (actor from Rent on Broadway) and Muzz's band opened for them so I got to meet him backstage. This was probably 2 or 3 years after he left Living Colour.
Can't really contribute to the LC convo because I'm only a fringe fan but yo the odious rips. Vesica Piscis is one of my favorite releases of the past 10 years. Such an interesting band that seemingly takes every metal subgenre and arranges it together perfectly
Where was I when this was made? In the studio with them; I was the guitar and bass tech on this album (and four others). That album made my career, and I'll always be grateful for that! Great analysis; thank you!
After watching your reaction of Chevelle's Face to the Floor, the riffs reminded me of Cult of Personality, so I started to look for reaction vids of that song... Which led me right back to you! Love your content man, the diversity in what you explore is awesome!
My dude, nice! Saw them live in 1988 (I think) on a festival in The Netherlands. They blew me away and also the next band: Faith No More. Immediately bought both their albums. Both bands to this day still in my rotation.
Vernon Reid is one of the most slept on guitarists. I know LC aren't an undiscovered gem or anything but the amount of guitarists I know that don't know about him is wild. Such a distinctive style, I absolutely love the energy in his playing.
I remember seeing this video for the first time on MTV at my cousin's house and the date being 8/8/88. I was blown away. Bought the cassette immediately. "Leave It Alone" and "Never Satisfied" from their next album were also really good.
Happened to be bouncing down a rabbithole of Living Colour (reliving the glory days and remembering when I unfolded the cassette insert to stick in my trapper keeper cover :D ) and saw they have a performance from this month over on the Stern channel. Apparently Corey Glover does really good JFK and FDR impersonations. They're still absolutely fantastic.
The solo that makes no sense, but because of the song that it's connected to, it makes perfect sense. One of the best rock songs of the late 80's - early 90's. I was in my early teens at the time.
My man, Living Color shocked me and my buddies in high school. Blew our minds.. Check out the band, Avatar. The songs "the king welcomes you to avatar country" and "hail the apocalypse" are both stupidly fun.
I love this channel. Thanks for doing what you do brother. Really appreciated the pearl jam vid as well and you divulging some personal stuff. Music creates connection, and you really get a sense for that through this channel.
The drummer is raining down thunder bolts... my first time hearing this as a kid I just imagined he must have been punching and swinging fists with the aggression he captures.
I think I first heard it on guitar hero, maybe caught a glimpse of it before then as I recall it sounding vaguely familiar. I grew to really like it upon rediscovering them years after playing the games through the arsenio hall video performance of cult of personality on youtube, so much energy in that performance. I think Type is probably my preferred song from them however as It got stuck in my head for a solid couple weeks upon finding it. So many catchy parts of that song and the video clip is great too.
I got this album for Christmas the year it came out and I listened to it while putting together my lego boat I also got for Christmas. I think I was about 10 or 11 at the time.
For the WWE fans out here , I think we all know of who we think about when he hear this song. Thats right guys, CM Punk's theme song. Like if u miss the old WWE days , 2000-2010 era , where the older generations were on their end paths of their carriers and the newer ones were just starting!
Such an amazing track! Still in my playlist even today. I'm betting you have experimented with Genesis in years past, so I would love to hear a decomposer's throwback of Land of Confusion. Or inversely, the Disturbed cover of Land of Confusion. Awwwriiiightt!
YESSSS! One of my favourites, had the privilege to see them in a small venue in 88 or 89. So much energy, they kicked much butt!! Vernon Reid is a bad ass guitar player. They're all awesome! Have a fantastic TBT everyone!! Would you please add Jeff Buckley to your list? Thank you. 🤙✌️
Let's just take a moment to realise how relevant these lyrics are even today.
Monster then, monster now. That's all it is. The pandemic the Muppet (think Genesis) in the White House then ignored that lead to millions of unnecessary, lonely, ugly-effing-deaths was simply rooted in a subject that our moralizing culture could vilify. Same politics. Same lack of concern for anyone seen as the out group. Same old bucket of 'isms.'
Absolutely. It's a great track and Vernon Reid is fantastic, one of my favorite solos, but coupled with the lyrics and Cory's delivery ... one of my favourite songs.
Ha yeah, this and rage against the machine, shows us how mentally unstable we really are considering not much has changed.
I reflected the last 4 years.
@Kriegsmarschall Grim your guy lost, get over it.
"I exploit you. Still you love me. I tell you one and one makes three." God damn if that line is not still depressingly relevant! Such an amazing song.
Honestly, its still one of the greatest riffs ever.
Where was I when this happened? In the control room. I was the band's guitar and bass tech on the first two albums and a most of the subsequent albums, as well as toured with them on and off from 1986 through 2015 ( including their hiatus from 1995-2000; I was guitarist in Corey's solo band). I'm the "barker" at the beginning of Broken Hearts and some voices at the end of What's Your Favorite Colour? (extended version).
Vernon Reid is a true genius, pioneer and virtuoso.
And so sadly under appreciated
This solo is so incredible. You could teach a course on it, but no one seemed to notice.
Fact
Vernon Reid opened the gates of Heaven and Hell with that solo.
I played a gig with these guys a few years back. All the other bands dropped off the show. It was just us and them. They're all great, humble dudes and it was a joy to watch them play after our set. They played an extra long set to make up some time for the show just to give people their money's worth. What a memory.
First time I saw the video on MTV I was blown away and happy, because I'm a female of color who loves hard rock and heavy metal and even still to this day feel like an outcast for preferring it to Beyonce and Cardi B. And the lyrics are even more relevant now.
I also relate. My family calls it white people music. Last year, when I saw the music video, I felt the exact same way.
Agreed, this music has such social and political relevance. I've just had enough of the fluff girl singers who have nothing to say that's carrying weight, nothing remotely like this.
My first memory of this song comes from ripping through GTA: San Andreas.. a soundtrack that managed to shape a lot of my preferences today
Radio X really was a major influence for a lot of us
You were definitely not in the wrong side of the tracks
Yep. Vice City had a huge impact on me too
Saaaaame lol *And* Vice City
This song and Helmet's "Unsung". I don't care what I'm doing, my full attention goes to them whenever they come on.
I heard Unsung 2 days ago, totally forgot about them, that was my first drop D tuning song that I realized you could do that. My buddy was playing along to it and i was blown away, long time ago. I just started listening to living color again I have the tape somewhere
Hell yeah! Helmet's first four albums are incredible. Wish he would do a reaction to FBLA II.
I love how this guy just enjoys all kinds of rock and other kinds of music and you can tell when he is already a huge fan of the songs or band. He's not some elitist who thinks his music is "objectively" better than anybody else's, he's just a cool guy all around and always has a respect for the music. Love this dude.
Uncle Dave KKonaW
His commentary comes from the heart, as a lover of music. Its so pure. Very refreshing to see.
Legendary tune, you rarely hear a song that hits this hard nowadays
One of the things that doesn't get talked about enough is the context for Vernon's playing: Reid was pretty active in the avant-jazz/experimental scene in NYC for years leading up to Living Colour's debut album. He cites Miles, Zappa, Fripp (King Crimson), and Coltrane as influences, and had a duo album out with Bill Frisell prior to Cult of Personality. One of the beautiful things about the improvisation style that emerged from folks like Coltrane, Miles, Albert Ayler, Cecil Taylor, and other free jazz/avant-jazz musicians is the emphasis of individual voice, energy, and timbre over harmonic alignment. Vernon definitely knew this at the time, and the fact that these principles tied directly to the narrative content of this song take it from being a phenomenal solo on its own, to one that elevates both itself and the song into a masterpiece.
Vernon stays slaying.
Only Will Calhoun can make a simple 4/4 time beat sound like a freakin explosion!!! Love this band!!
Only sometimes it flip flops to 3/4
I was aware of this song for a little while, but found a whole new appreciation for it when wrestler CM Punk started using it as his entrance during his walkout/return angle.
What an incredible bunch of musicians ❤ Corey Glover has one of the most awesome soulful rock voices of all time.
Living Color was (is) such an underrated band, and were very ahead of their time for this song being written in 1988
So underrated people don't remember the band's name.
Just goes to show nothing ever changes...history keeps repeating. Would have worked in 1937 Germany also
such an amazing song and great band overall. I got into these guys when a friend said to me "hey if you like Faith No More, you gonna like this too" and he was right!
Riff kicks your teeth in, drums and bass knock you onto your back, lyrics pour in knowledge. Perfect rock song.
Living color and faith no more were absolute trailblazers in funky alt metal/rock
Vernon Reid is a MONSTER GUITARIST.
This 90s Indo-pop fusion group called Colonial Cousins (which combines Indian classical/folk/film music with 80s/90s western pop/rock) has a song called "Adrian's Angel (Lost In The Desert Fair)".
Apparently Vernon was in the studio next door while they were recording and came to check them out, then played some guest solos on the song.
Dude living colour was always under rated.... right up there with faith no more at that time!
First thing that comes into my head when this plays: CM Punk.
If memory serves correctly, the guitar solo was one take, spur-of-the-moment. Vernon Reid talked about this in a print interview for Guitar for the Practicing Musician magazine in the (I'm pretty sure) January 1991 issue. I dog-eared every single page of those magazines when I was first learning the instrument. Andy Aledort's transcriptions were killer. #soundtrackoflife Awwwright!
You are correct; V. did three takes of the solo and one was chosen... no edits...
"Most guitarists start in, take it out, then come back. Vernon starts out, drops in for a while and then leaves!" Corey Glover on how Vernon's solos go compared to other bands.
@@MikkyD666 it was actually Muzz Skillings who said that, on the Time Tunnel video.
@@stephencampbell877 Thanks mate! I haven't seen it since the mid-90's, so my memory was probably fuzzy on that
Vernon Reid's solos in this are so delightfully Insane. Corey Glover's voice is also just gorgeous. Rhythm section does great things. Always loved this song since it came out.
This song punches you right in the face and doesn't stop until the end. My band covered this once and it took all of the energy we had.
Rex and dimebag had that perfect balance of low and high that made the groove metal thing work so well. I know this isn't Pantera but rex and his dancing around dimes riffs is what made Pantera so good
First time I heard this song was mtv spring break live in Daytona Beach lol. When the m stood for music
Dude, the resolution after the solo and into the groove at 8:38 is one of the most driving, rocking bars in rock. You can't help but bang your head. (and Vernon's full open string 'brannnnnng' at 10:46 just seals the deal)
Here I am in Australia. 45. My brother had this on vinyl. Heard this when it came out.
Me and my best friend were getting into metal and music in general and used to talk about Vernon Reid and how he uses the whole tone scale. Very unorthodox player, but the sounds he gets out of it... Just great.
Same friend turned me onto Fishbone, and also into hip hop, while me and my brother got him into thrash and death metal.
Music binds us.
Still friends, even though we're hundreds of kilometres away from each other and I haven't seen him in about 20 years.
This is also one of the all time great guitar solos. Not only is it awesome, it's truly expressive of the overall message of the music. The guitar doesn't leave the song to fly away for a minute like happens so often, it takes the song on its back and blasts off WITH it!
You can really hear the jazz roots. The whole solo is based off of the melody and follows it perfectly. I honestly don't know if I can name a better rock solo, and somehow no one at the time (or since) seemed to notice its brilliance.
I still wake up with that riff stuck in my head with astounding frequency.
ahh .. this first living colour album was a high school mainstay for me, along with fishbone, bad brains, king's x, 24/7 spyz ...
And again with your superlative taste in music! Living Colour and King's X were immediately adopted into my band's setlists as soon as we heard them. Geebz should have all of them on his channel. Aside from me, you are the only other to mention 24'/ Spyz. 👍😎
Fishbone! I spent so much time listening to them
@@ShutchyerLips FISHBONE FAMILYHOOD!
24/7 spyz, they deserve attention!
@@rafanj824 "Grandma Dynamite" rocks. I love their take on reggae just as much as their metal.
Another of my big drum influences.....Wil Calhoun. He goes off on live versions where it sounds like off time or free time and always lands back on the 1. Him and Tim Alexander from Primus were my primary early influences.
Herb and Brain are both amazing musicians and we're so lucky that Primus sucks.
Same here dude. along with Stewart Copeland and of course John Bonham. I helped Wil Calhouns tech load in his kit when they came to Cardiff. So much hardware and 3 full hardcases FULL of Zildjians. Nice
He's highly underrated because of the chaotic impression he makes, but he nails it and he can do it live. Mm, there's something special with something chaotic resolving to something ordered.
@@gandalf8216 Exactly....I think that's what impressed me. Some of his fills are like walking down a flight of stairs, slipping half way down and tumbling the rest of the way then landing on your feet at the bottom. LOL
@@fubar1217 Spot on, haha, and then you run fast with dem feel guds.
I've LOVED this song since the first time I saw it on MTV. Still crank it every time it pops up on the radio🤘
I remember feeling so cool listening to this when i was 11. Still kinda makes me feel that way, lol. Thanks Geebz!
i clicked because i've seen about 5 of your videos and i simply couldn't believe you didn't already consider this a classic. Glamour Boys was awesome too
I heard this song over ceiling speakers in a North Carolina rest area last weekend.
It was in the middle of nowhere with only a few travelers.
The song stopped me in my tracks and grabbed my attention with a hard grip.
Especially where that transition from the riff to the chorus/break...
'Neon lights...noble prizes...when a leader speaks, a leader dies...."
Considering what is going on these days my heart sunk to the floor.
Amazing freaking masterpiece!
Saw Living Color before Covid at a small club in NC. Amazing band (as we know!) and such cool guys. Incredibly gracious and appreciative of the fans. I wore this album out back in the day and it was one of my first cd purchases thereafter. Great stuff!!!
I've always wanted to see them though keep missing when they've rolled through.
They came to Brisbane Australia in 1994/95 (they played Festival Hall, now gone sadly) , saw them twice in a row, then had pancakes with them across the street at the pancake house. It was amazing.
Oh YES YESSSS! I loved this song in High school. Just a awesome song. Great choice Geebz. #tbt
Great Song, Great Album, Great Band! Open Letter To A Landlord is Epic!
I was watching MTV when the video came on. LOVED the song so much I went to the record store on my lunch break from school and bought the casette. My band still plays this song to this day... It was a great album, as were the ones to follow.
Corey Glover's vocals on Love Rears It's Ugly Head are phenomenal. I rocked these guys hard at the time, and they still hold up big time.
THROWBACK THURSDAY'S THE JAM!! FUN STUFF
One of the greatest rock songs of all time
Dude. The 12 minute mark. It's refreshing to hear someone say that about drummers.
this is a genius song! the whole band plays well but the guitar player is just unbelievable.
I heard it on the radio when it first came out. I was 14 then and this song was terrific. I still love it today.
Such an awesome album, all of it. This came out at the time of a big change in my life, uprooting from my childhood home in Aberdeen, Scotland to St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada, with an interim stay at a boarding house in Aberdeen.
You could also check out King's X, an earlier riff based 3 piece, and of course Rage Against the Machine.
Newfie here also!
@@misterbayshawn Hey Lenny, beautiful place to be, I miss the pace of life there! I was there 15 years and then in New Brunswick for 4 years and now in Ontario.
@@JohnSmith-fl4bj come on back when you can John! We re pretty much covid free at the moment. Be safe up there on the mainland!
@@misterbayshawn Yeah and we're stuck in Covid Central at the moment! Staying safe tho'. Hope to get my vaccine soon.
There is no guitar more baroque than Vernon's, it is a super band, hardly anyone makes videos of them. I'm glad that you do. I saw them on the old MTV at 15 years old
I saw them at a Raleigh, NC small venue a couple years ago for Halloween. They were flawless and blew my damn mind.
This song changed my life as a kid. Still remember the release and how my friends and I were just blown away
Oohh
And mr. Mike Patton 🤘🤘❤❤
Timeless Classic! Top ten forever!
I was a kid, and that guitar riff pulled me in instantly.
Not a first time, but a few years ago, a live version of this came up on something, and it was like hearing again for the first time. Such a good some, on so many levels.
I can’t tell you how glad I am that you cover this band. I just discovered your channel yesterday and did a deep dive last night. I would love to see your reaction to their song “Love rears up it’s ugly head”. Another song of theirs you may not have heard is “Money Talks” . In the middle of the song they completely stop keeping time for a while before bringing it back for a melt your face ending. Two other songs from them are “Open letter to a landlord” (Hook bombs all over the place) and “Middle man”.
This song changed my life... you keep landing on my soundtrack of life songs. This one is up there!
You guitar players who haven't figured out Vernon Reid's tone on this, he is using a delay pedal with the rate turned way up to the screaming edge of doing the spaceship loopback thing, and the decay set really fast.
Took me forever to figure that effect out, but it makes your guitar cut through the mix like a laser.
Never really heard the song before I started playing Guitar Hero! And what a tune it was to play with a plastic guitar!
Love this!!! I had the pleasure of meeting these guys (the original lineup with Muzz Skillings on bass) back in late '89 early '90, when the band that I was in opened for them here in Charlotte. They were some of the nicest and most down to earth Rock stars that I had ever met. We ended up going with them as their guests the next night to this show they were doing for MTV, with The Godfathers, in Columbia, SC. Living Colour (I'm not British, it's just the way that they spell it 😁) is an amazing band to see live. Their energy on stage is as palpable as it is infectious and their playing is so incredibly tight. Such a great band.
Peace Brother Geebz!
This song came into my soundtrack of life early, I was about 12 and just getting serious about guitar and my dad made a list of songs he thought I should hear for educational purposes lol. A cousin who used Napster burned CDs of the list and I was exposed to everything from Pink Floyd to Johnny Cash to Primus, and I remember Cult of Personality specificly blew me away. I had heard some shredding before but THIS was different, it was like assault and battery with a guitar solo haha. And you can really hear just how hard the drummer is slamming the kit... This song is 100% part of my love for heavy music. Thanks for taking me back for a bit 🤘
So this means you're gonna get us som FAITH NO MORE too, right? No faces will remain un-melted.
They were my fave band in high school, would love to see you react to "Ignorance is bliss" from their album "Stain" Aaaaaaaaaawright!
The level of kickass in this song, and in this band, is on a completely different level than most of their time. I remember wanting some AXO pants so bad after I first saw this video.
Same here. Until I found out that they were $300 a pair.
Living Colour and Extreme are two of my heavy favs from the late 80’s! Great choice!!
Extreme... So under appreciated. Nuno is a guitar god amongst mere mortals
@@wxmaggot5669 I saw them live in Springfield, MA in the early 90’s. They blew us away with their energy and musicianship. A real treat!
We did a couple of gigs with Extreme; Rocklahoma and one in Long Island with King's X opening; I think it was 2012, but I may be wrong... Everyone was great; that could've been one hell of a package tour... I say "we" because I was Vernon's tech for those gigs... We may have been still promoting Chair In The Doorway then...
@@DennisDiamond Wow! Vernon seems like a great guy from afar.
I missed that tour but am a huge King’s X fan as well as LC and Extreme. All three created music that still sounds fresh today.
Oh man! This was my Jam in the day. I went back and listened to the whole albulm and while the rest of it really does not follow the mold, they are quite the musicians. very talented
Was a great song back in the day and it still holds up. Good pick.
I remember the music video as a kid and liking the song before I really got into music as a teenager. Forgot about them, then 20 some odd years later saw Living Colour as part of the 2010 Experience Hendrix Tour after the show went back through their catalog and was hooked on this song for a few months after that. Thanks for doing this song!
Glad I clicked from another tuber. Loved this song in the 80s when I 1st heard it. After the recent past REALLY heard the lyrics when I heard it again, blew my mind. I appreciate your comments on the technical points of the instruments as it just increases my love of the song.
I'm so glad that reaction channels have kind of re-introduced Living Colour to a lot of people. They are so good. Doug Wimbish (bassist for LC) was also part of TACK>>HEAD who are also super interesting and influential in their own way.
Also a small request for Odious - Mono No Aware.
No slight on Doug but I still prefer the Muzz Skillings era Living Colour. His solo on Broken Hearts is still a thing a beauty.
@@fubar1217 Stain was my first Living Colour album so I always associated Wimbish with them, but Skillings or Wimbish are good by me :)
@@matthewswift3347 Man, I love Doug's fretless playing on Nothingness. Not saying I don't like what he brought to the band....I guess I'm one of those guys that prefers the original line up of a band. My friend played in Adam Pascal's band (actor from Rent on Broadway) and Muzz's band opened for them so I got to meet him backstage. This was probably 2 or 3 years after he left Living Colour.
Can't really contribute to the LC convo because I'm only a fringe fan but yo the odious rips. Vesica Piscis is one of my favorite releases of the past 10 years. Such an interesting band that seemingly takes every metal subgenre and arranges it together perfectly
I loved this song when it came out and brought the cassette with my pocket money. Thanks for the throw back Geebz.
Where was I when this was made? In the studio with them; I was the guitar and bass tech on this album (and four others). That album made my career, and I'll always be grateful for that! Great analysis; thank you!
After watching your reaction of Chevelle's Face to the Floor, the riffs reminded me of Cult of Personality, so I started to look for reaction vids of that song... Which led me right back to you!
Love your content man, the diversity in what you explore is awesome!
My dude, nice! Saw them live in 1988 (I think) on a festival in The Netherlands. They blew me away and also the next band: Faith No More. Immediately bought both their albums. Both bands to this day still in my rotation.
Vernon Reid is one of the most slept on guitarists. I know LC aren't an undiscovered gem or anything but the amount of guitarists I know that don't know about him is wild. Such a distinctive style, I absolutely love the energy in his playing.
Will Calhoun is one of many underrated drummer....clean and hard hits.
I remember seeing this video for the first time on MTV at my cousin's house and the date being 8/8/88. I was blown away. Bought the cassette immediately.
"Leave It Alone" and "Never Satisfied" from their next album were also really good.
Great song and band. So underrated in my opinion. Vernon Reid is amazing!
Great song. Good memories of music when growing up.
This was 1988. Light years ahead of any other hard rock band at that period.
Happened to be bouncing down a rabbithole of Living Colour (reliving the glory days and remembering when I unfolded the cassette insert to stick in my trapper keeper cover :D ) and saw they have a performance from this month over on the Stern channel.
Apparently Corey Glover does really good JFK and FDR impersonations.
They're still absolutely fantastic.
Amazing song. Amazing memories of sneaky mid-night Headbanger's Ball sessions. Thanks, Geebz!
The solo that makes no sense, but because of the song that it's connected to, it makes perfect sense. One of the best rock songs of the late 80's - early 90's. I was in my early teens at the time.
This most definitely is a jam!!!!
My man, Living Color shocked me and my buddies in high school. Blew our minds..
Check out the band, Avatar. The songs "the king welcomes you to avatar country" and "hail the apocalypse" are both stupidly fun.
I knew some guys who would play this at gigs. Such a fun tune!
At 9 years old this was the first song I listened to loud. Fell in love with heavy metal. This riff is HAF.
I love this channel. Thanks for doing what you do brother. Really appreciated the pearl jam vid as well and you divulging some personal stuff. Music creates connection, and you really get a sense for that through this channel.
I had a moment today when a song took me back. Yea. Awwlright
ELDER. ELDER. ELDER. Dead roots stirring thanks. I am still here.
The drummer is raining down thunder bolts... my first time hearing this as a kid I just imagined he must have been punching and swinging fists with the aggression he captures.
I think I first heard it on guitar hero, maybe caught a glimpse of it before then as I recall it sounding vaguely familiar. I grew to really like it upon rediscovering them years after playing the games through the arsenio hall video performance of cult of personality on youtube, so much energy in that performance. I think Type is probably my preferred song from them however as It got stuck in my head for a solid couple weeks upon finding it. So many catchy parts of that song and the video clip is great too.
I got this album for Christmas the year it came out and I listened to it while putting together my lego boat I also got for Christmas. I think I was about 10 or 11 at the time.
For the WWE fans out here , I think we all know of who we think about when he hear this song. Thats right guys, CM Punk's theme song. Like if u miss the old WWE days , 2000-2010 era , where the older generations were on their end paths of their carriers and the newer ones were just starting!
Awesome song, definitely still listen to it.
Such an amazing track! Still in my playlist even today.
I'm betting you have experimented with Genesis in years past, so I would love to hear a decomposer's throwback of Land of Confusion. Or inversely, the Disturbed cover of Land of Confusion.
Awwwriiiightt!
I _may_ have made the hole in the floorboard of my '78 Pinto a _teensy_ bit bigger playing along with Will Calhoun as I played my tape of this.
YESSSS! One of my favourites, had the privilege to see them in a small venue in 88 or 89. So much energy, they kicked much butt!! Vernon Reid is a bad ass guitar player. They're all awesome!
Have a fantastic TBT everyone!!
Would you please add Jeff Buckley to your list? Thank you.
🤙✌️
Geebz, if you haven't already done it, Faith No More - Epic.
Saw Living Colour at Summerfest in Milwaukee, WI in the 2000's and my face melted, incredible incredible show
Fantastic album!!! One of my college party jams...
Been loving the content for the past few months, would love to see some more Mudvayne here, possibly "Not Falling"?