"Fighting Fit" by Gene

1. Gene, for most of their career, was dubbed as Smiths copyists, Smiths soundalikes, Smiths fanatics, and all things Smiths-related, the point being that they sound a lot like the Smiths (duh)
2.Their song titles read like stolen snatches from Morrissey's journal ("I Cant Help Myself", "London Can You Wait?", "Your Love It Lies")
3.Needless to say, they werent as good as the Smiths. Hell, even Morrissey and Johhny Marr themselves cannot attain the heights reached by their former band.
4.Beyond the surface resemblance, one can find certain subtle touches that made Gene a wee bit more distinctive : the guitars are glammy instead of jangly, the song structures are mostly conventional verse-chorus-verse, and Martin Rossiter's habit of yelling "No!" every third line or so.
5.Their first album, "Olympian", is really rather good.
6."Drawn to the Deep End", their second album, is a bit uneven, but it contains such pearls as "Long Sleeves For The Summer" and "Save Me I'm Yours".
7.The album was produced by Chris Hughes, whose previous credits include Tears for Fears and Adam Ant.
8.Though do not expect any tribal beats, war-paint or primal scream therapy anywhere on the LP.
9.Instead, it's a bold, risk-taking LP that is still severely under-rated.
10.It still sounded like the Smiths, but instead of a slavish imitation, Gene provided the sonic possibilities had the Smiths continue beyond their final LP.
11. I want to share with you the sumptuous "Save Me I'm Yours", but even the wonder that is Youtube doesnt have any clip on it. So, enjoy the Tamla-Motown-like grooves of "Fighting Fit"
12. The guys looked dapper in it, no?
13. I miss Gene.