Best band to never break America

Your reaction to John's solo was priceless 🤙 I love this song too. Great to see you enjoy the roses so much 😊

Love your appreciation for the fine details produced by the stone roses!! 🙌🏼

That is why The Stone Roses has cermented my love of the band. Uniquely exquisite.

Thanks for reacting to my recommendation. I loved your reaction! To answer some of your questions, I think John wasn’t as recognised as a guitarist because this album was basically his Magnus opus, but (most) critics hated it. The reason they did was because the music scene had changed to Britpop, and they’d changed their sound. But also, The Roses couldn’t give two shits about the music media. Their long awaited return obviously would have an interview. N.M.E and others thought they would get the gig of the interview, but The Roses being themselves, instead did only one interview: to “The Big Issue”. A magazine made for homeless people to sell and make money from. The music media retaliated by giving it crap reviews. Another question you had was on why they had a lot of religious songs: I honestly don’t know. I know “I Am The Resurrection” is anti religion I think, from Ian. But the second album is mainly written by John, and a lot of this album is religious. I don’t think it falls into either “he hates religion” or “it’s him evangelising”. I don’t think he’s religious (could be wrong) but I think he takes an interest in it. My recommendations for you now would be to eventually go through every single song on this album that you haven’t already done/know. So: “Driving South”, “Daybreak”, “Tightrope”, “How Do You Sleep” are some of my favourites you haven’t got round to yet. Any would be great. You also need to get into their b-sides if you don’t already know them: “Mersey Paradise” and “Something’s Burning” are two of my favourites. You should get round to them. Also, (sorry this is long), if you like John’s guitar on this, then you definitely have to react to Fools Gold live at Heaton Park. It’s from when they reunited about 10 years ago. Possibly my most favourite performance by John there. I don’t know if you react to live performances, but if you do, definitely do this. Out of all the recommendations I’ve given you, I’d do this first. It’s brilliant

When you name a Roses song; whichever, whatever the album. I can isolated, in my head, each individual component: bass, drums, guitar lines, vocal melody. Each one is unique - that surely is the mark of a great band!

Great reaction as always. It's funny you should mention the 'movie' feel of this song, i always get Apocalypse Now vibes when i hear the intro, i picture the boat, going up the river at night, fires on the banks etc lol Its an outstanding sprawling epic of a song, i love it to bits, seems to get better on every listen, Squires a god on this. Songs like this from The Roses give me a tinge of sadness when i think about what they could have done after this, but it wasn't to be.. But to quote Ian Brown from their last ever gig "don't be sad its over, be happy it happened" 10/10 song for me.

Alex here. Just sat down with you, stopped me mid tracks …. I forgot!!!! Flipping ace. Absolutely hidden Rises gem. I know this track and yet forgot it. Squire pisses me off and yet I love him. Brilliant!!!! 👏

The 2nd album is so under rated IMO

As a 52 year old Mancunian. I remember their 1st album, it was inspiring at the time. As mancunians we get lost in our own cities sounds and we can't escape them from radio play. It gets really boring and monotonous. Hearing this as a forgotten classic it sounds so fresh, as we don't often hear album tracks on the radio. Over the years, I've listened and explored music which is out of the Manchester Microcosm, and realised there is much good stuff out there. At the time you thought Manchester was the centre of the universe. How naive we were. It's a shame that so many Manchester bands never lived to their full potential. Every city has their sound be proud and embrace it!

Completely underrated album, a couple of critics didn’t like the fact it wasn’t the same as previous early on after release, it snowballed from there, but this is a tremendous album and unfairly treated my the music media

I used to listen to 'Tears' off this album over and over. I would recommend that one. Very cathartic.

I said it before, I'll say it again. I love this album! The whole thing. I'm glad it wasn't the first album part 2. They were really stretching out and experimenting. Like some one said, don't be sad for what wasn't, but happy for what was...However, I'll always wonder where they would have gone after this one.

48 year old man here... Huge fan of Robyn Hitchcock, The Beatles, The Kinks, the Chemical Brothers and Tricky, but my teen years were full of the sound of there Roses. Loving your reactions... Keep going.

Glad you got around to this one. Next up... Tightrope

Bought the first album when I was 16 and would say it's the best album ever made but im now 50 and i listen to the second coming a lot more 🤷

Just mint..

Definitely picked the right version with full intro building up the anticipation. The version from the Very Best of ....album without this intro never felt right to me.

One possible explanation for why the album starts with Breaking In To Heaven is it continues the religious-type title of the closing track of their first album, I Am The Resurrection. (songs they recorded inbetween the albums arguably have a religious feel to their titles too, One Love and Somethings Burning). Another is it has such a tentatively mysterious start that it brilliantly conveys a sense of a passage of time - it had been 5 years since their first album. They recorded the album in rural Wales, which helps explain some of the sounds on the album, from the running water in this track to Your Star Will Shine to the campfire singalong nature of Tightrope. Led Zeppelin was said to be a particular influence on John Squire on this album. They had several other influences, not least themselves I'm sure. Elizabeth My Dear on their first album is the tune of Scarborough Fair/Canticle. Breaking In To Heaven never fails to blow me away.

The guitar solo at the end is quite aggressive, in a good way....

You have got it mate You get that sound

You need to react to keep what ya got by Ian brown, the singer of the stone roses, it’s probably his best solo song and Noel Gallagher plays the guitar on it

You’re right about John.

I loved the second album, but I wasn't familiar with the Roses before I heard it, so I didn't have any baggage so to speak. It was not well liked at the time, mainly because it was such a long time coming, and considered self indulgent, but out of that context it stands on it's own merits. Squire is clearly a huge talent but Mani and Reni are just as important in creating the groove that allows Squire to flourish. they're a hugely talented band all round (well, 3 out of 4 ain't bad). Always loved this song.

Please do Mariya Takeuchi - Doors of Life

I love this track, but as an album opener, the intro is more than a bit pretentious. They may have got away with that had the album been released in 92 or 93, but this was the end of 94. At that same point, Oasis had released Definitely Maybe, which opened by punching us in the face with Rock n Roll Star. It was a similar trap to the one Manic Street Preachers fell in, when they released The Holy Bible while the UK was falling in love with Oasis's WTSMG or Blur's The Great Escape. To the credit of both the Roses and the Manics though, neither band gave a shit what other bands were doing.

Given the Roses' political beliefs this song sounds to me like something about poor people and rich with their organized religion. I haven't thought about it enough yet, but lines like "laugh at your locks as they hit the ground" "heaven's gates can't hold me, I'll saw those suckers down", the title "breaking into", and all those parts about him being cold and having a hard life sound like on some level they considered that. Especially considering poor people were always told not to try to make "heaven on earth" but that the afterlife is more important and they need to follow the church to get to heaven when they die.

Intros too long imo but once it starts.. perfect