The Great Puzzle is an album by the American musician Jules Shear, released in 1992.[2][3] The initial pressings of the album were packaged with the acoustic EP Unplug This.[4]
| The Great Puzzle | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1992 | |||
| Genre | Pop | |||
| Label | Polydor[1] | |||
| Producer | Stewart Lerman, Jules Shear | |||
| Jules Shear chronology | ||||
| ||||
"The Sad Sound of the Wind" was the first single.[5] Shear promoted the album with a North American tour, including shows with Alison Moyet.[6] The album sold fewer than 100,000 copies.[7]
Production
editThe album was produced by Stewart Lerman and Shear.[8] Shear considered it to be made up of independent songs taken from his life experience; he tried to avoid writing songs that contained overt social themes.[9] Shear employed the lower end of his vocal range on many tracks.[10] Tony Levin played bass on the album.[11] "Something Else to Me" is about the death of a former girlfriend.[12]
Critical reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [13] |
| Calgary Herald | A−[14] |
| Chicago Tribune | [11] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music |  [15] |
| The Indianapolis Star | [12] |
| Los Angeles Times | [16] |
| MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide | [17] |
The Philadelphia Daily News deemed the album a "philosophical jigsaw of love's fragmented state."[18] The Chicago Tribune praised the "fresh-sounding chord changes, articulate lyrics and irresistible choruses."[11] The Calgary Herald determined that Shear "tempers his incredible facility for hook-drive melodicism with a bracing dose of metaphorical allusiveness."[14]
Rolling Stone note that Shear "focuses primarily on the games lovers play ... Shear mitigates his skepticism with tenderness."[19] The Washington Post called the title track one of Shear's "would-be metaphysical riddles."[6] The Los Angeles Times stated that the album "finds him wading comfortably within the more eccentric rapids of the mainstream."[16] The Gazette considered it to be "one of 1992's finest pop albums."[20]
AllMusic wrote that "The Great Puzzle stands as Shear's high point."[13]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The Trap Door" | |
| 2. | "The Great Puzzle" | |
| 3. | "We Were Only Making Love" | |
| 4. | "The Sad Sound of the Wind" | |
| 5. | "Something Else to Me" | |
| 6. | "Make Believe" | |
| 7. | "Much Too Much" | |
| 8. | "Dreams Dissolve in Tears" | |
| 9. | "The Mystery's All Mine" | |
| 10. | "Jewel in a Cobweb" | |
| 11. | "Bark" |
References
edit- ^ Pick, Steve (10 Jan 1992). "Jules Shear Puts the Case for Pop". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. p. 4F.
- ^ "Jules Shear Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic.
- ^ "Concert and Interview with Jules Shear". Fresh Air Archive: Interviews with Terry Gross. NPR.
- ^ Johnson, Greg (16 Apr 1992). "Shear's best recordings ever fit together on 'Great Puzzle'". Onward. Austin American-Statesman. p. 18.
- ^ Flick, Larry (5 Jan 1992). "New releases by old favorites top the list". The Province. Billboard Publications. p. C4.
- ^ a b Jenkins, Mark (28 Feb 1992). "Moyet's Vocal Heft; Shear's Dylan Notes". The Washington Post. p. N13.
- ^ Moon, Tom (3 May 1992). "Singer-Songwriters Lost in the Crowd". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. N1.
- ^ "Album Reviews — The Great Puzzle by Jules Shear". Billboard. Vol. 104, no. 6. Feb 8, 1992. p. 44.
- ^ Fisher, Harry (17 Jan 1992). "Singer=Songwriter Jules Shear Is Still in Search of the Big Time". The Morning Call. p. D1.
- ^ Erskine, Evelyn (7 Mar 1992). "Jules Shear". Ottawa Citizen. p. G3.
- ^ a b c Rothschild, Dave (30 Jan 1992). "Rave recordings". Tempo. Chicago Tribune. p. 7.
- ^ a b Hall, Steve (30 Mar 1992). "Record Reviews". The Indianapolis Star. p. D2.
- ^ a b "Jules Shear The Great Puzzle". AllMusic.
- ^ a b Tremblay, Mark (1 Mar 1992). "Recent Releases". Calgary Herald. p. C4.
- ^ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 7. MUZE. p. 398.
- ^ a b Willman, Chris. "For Jules Shear, Love Is Still a Puzzle". Calendar. Los Angeles Times. p. 63.
- ^ MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 1005.
- ^ Takiff, Jonathan (17 Jan 1992). "The Man Behind the Hits". Features Yo!. Philadelphia Daily News. p. 41.
- ^ Gardner, Elysa (Feb 6, 1992). "For the Sake of Song". Rolling Stone (623): 73.
- ^ Griffin, John (9 May 1992). "Appeal of Great Puzzle isn't hard to figure out". The Gazette. p. D7.