Say Something Good

Say Something Good is the debut studio album by River City People, released by EMI in Europe and Capitol in the US in 1989. Following a reissue in 1990, it reached No. 23 in the UK and remained in the charts for nine weeks.^[2]

River City People signed a recording contract with EMI in 1988, after Channel 4's The Chart Show commissioned a video for the band's song "(What's Wrong With) Dreaming?". The band then recorded their debut album in Los Angeles during January–March 1989 with producer Don Gehman.^[3]

Six singles were released from the album, the first of which, "(What's Wrong With) Dreaming?", was released in July 1989 and peaked at No. 70 in the UK. The follow-up, "Say Something Good", failed to chart and the third, "Walking On Ice", reached No. 62. The double A-side, "Carry the Blame"/"California Dreamin'", was released in June 1990 and gave the band a No. 13 hit. A remixed version of "(What's Wrong With) Dreaming?" peaked at No. 40 and the final single, "When I Was Young", peaked at No. 62.^[2][4]

Upon release, Music & Media wrote: "The band seem to have their roots in the late 60s. The songs all have a distinct 60s feel for melodies and harmonies, which makes it a pleasant, if not lovable record."^[8]Billboard described the album as one which "merges London pop sensibilities with American rock vibes". They added: "Singer Siobhan Maher breathes dimension into sensitive and perceptive prose composed by bandmates/brothers Tim and Paul Speed."^[9] Mark Frith of Smash Hits wrote: "Virtually all the songs are excellent and the Rivers aren't afraid to use manic guitars on straight-forward pop songs. On top of all that, Siobhan Maher's vocals are positively the chirpiest in pop."^[7]

Anne Warren Murray del Dayton Daily News consideró el álbum un "sólido primer intento" y añadió: "Es difícil decir qué lado es mejor, ya que ambos están llenos de canciones atractivas y melódicas". Destacó los temas "alegres" "(What's Wrong with) Dreaming?" y "Walking On Ice", y los "más suaves" "No Doubt" y "When I Was Young". ^{[ 5 ]} Steven Miller del Daily Utah Chronicle escribió: "El [álbum contiene] diez temas de pop peculiar que debe algo a All About Eve , al U2 clásico y a Laurie Anderson, pero que destaca por tener una identidad propia". ^{[ 10 ]}

Gente de River City

• Siobhan Maher - voz
• Tim Speed ​​- guitarras, voz
• David Snell - bajo
• Paul Speed ​​- batería, percusión

músicos adicionales

• Phil Shenale - teclados, programación de teclados
• John Helliwell - saxofón en "Home and Dry"

Producción

• Don Gehman - productor, ingeniero
• John Carter, Ed Thacker - ingeniero
• Dan Bosworth, Pete Magdeleno, Robin Laine - ingenieros asistentes
• River City People - productores de "California Dreamin'" y "Huskisson St."
• Nick Davis - productor, ingeniero y mezclador en "California Dreamin'"
• Ronnie Stone - productor de "Huskisson St."
• Ronni O'Keefe - productor de "Find a Reason"

Otro

• Abraham Pants - ilustración (lanzamiento en 1989)
• Paul Cox - fotografía (lanzamiento en 1989)
• Normal Service - dirección artística, diseño (estreno en 1990)
• Peter Mountain - fotografía (lanzamiento en 1990)