The Time (Bros album)

The Time is the second album by British pop band Bros and the follow-up to their debut Push. It was released on 16 October 1989 and was their first album as a duo of twins Matt and Luke Goss, following the departure of bassist Craig Logan earlier in the year. It was also the first album to feature Matt and Luke as co-writers, along with Nicky Graham. Four singles were released from the album: "Too Much", "Chocolate Box", "Madly in Love" and "Sister". The track "Sister" was written about Matt and Luke's stepsister Carolyn, who was killed in a collision with a drunk driver in London in 1988.[1]

The Time
Studio album by
Bros
Released16 October 1989
GenrePop, dance-pop
Length49:20
LabelCBS
ProducerNicky Graham
Bros chronology
Push
(1988)		 The Time
(1989)		 Changing Faces
(1991)
Singles from The Time
  1. "Too Much"
    Released: 17 July 1989
  2. "Chocolate Box"
    Released: 25 September 1989
  3. "Sister"
    Released: 4 December 1989
  4. "Madly in Love"
    Released: 26 February 1990

The album reached number four in the UK Albums Chart and was certified gold in the UK.[2]

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[4]
NME4/10[5]
Q[6]
Record Mirror (music)
(lyrics)[7]
Smash Hits6½/10[8]
Sounds[9]

Mike Soutar of Smash Hits recognised the duo's talent and stated that their playing had become more accomplished and that their sound was "more mature" compared with debut album Push. He called the opening four tracks "promising", but then went on to say, "Where Bros do come unstuck, however, is when they turn their attention to serious 'social' issues, namely drugs in 'Streetwise' and racism in 'Black & White'. Well intentioned as they may be, neither of these topics are particularly new to pop music, and Bros have nothing fresh to say about them... And that's Bros' big problem: about half the songs on this LP are just ideas thrown together and never really finished properly."[8]

In NME, Simon Williams stated that "the most astonishing fact is that the boys have social consciences" and that "the messages are delivered in a trite manner, but their earnestness can't be denied". However, he called the music "crap, f—ed up funk workouts which Wham! perfected five years ago ... And the bottom line is that Bros are sorely short of chummy, hummable tunes."[5] Lloyd Bradley of Q stated that the duo were attempting to break the US market by copying Michael Jackson's mix of pop and rock, complete with Jackson's vocal stylings, but "in trying for a level of aggression totally at odds with their long suit – punchy easily danceable pop – it sounds uncomfortably forced". His conclusion about the album was that "it's difficult to see its appeal: while remaining distinctly juvenile, by losing its predecessor's essential innocence, it's a little too, er, challenging for [the US's] established market".[6]

Self-confessed "Bros apologist" Andy Ross of Sounds was disappointed with the album, calling the songs "well-above-average pop" but that "the major criticism is that the material is polished to the extent of losing all character ... The most so-so record of the year."[9] In Music Week Andrew Martin called the album a "response to apparent waning popularity", stating that "The drums may sound meatier, the guitar raunchier and the lyrics as risky as they are banal", and concluded, "Bros's second album surprises no-one".[10] Tim Southwell of Record Mirror praised Matt Goss's vocals and the album's production, and said that "all 10 songs are delivered with skill and a soulful zest". However, he criticised the "dire Stevie Wonder imitations" and the "lyrical naïvety", with the exception of "Sister", and said that "Bros should credit their fans with a bit more upstairs before they are outgrown by the very people who made them famous."[7]

In a retrospective review, William Ruhlmann of AllMusic noted that Bros were coming to the end of their popularity, and that their music had not travelled well across the Atlantic, saying, "As with most teenage heartthrobs, the music wasn't the point; all of these songs are heavily produced, glossy dance tracks in which Matt Goss's enthusiastic but thin vocals are the least noticeable aspect. The point was image, and without a big promotional push, that image never became visible to Americans, while, in England, it was only good for the life of this record, completing Bros' two years of fame."[3]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Matt Goss, Luke Goss and Nicky Graham

No.TitleLength
1."Madly in Love"7:09
2."Too Much"3:30
3."Chocolate Box"3:57
4."Money"4:21
5."Streetwise"4:29
6."Club Fool"5:28
7."Black and White"3:52
8."Don't Bite the Hand"3:10
9."Space"3:40
10."Sister"4:23
CD bonus track
No.TitleLength
11."Life's a Heartbeat" (B-side of "Chocolate Box")4:43
2010 CD reissue bonus tracks
No.TitleRemixLength
12."Too Much (Extended Version)"Tom Lord-Alge6:43
13."Astrologically" (B-side of "Too Much") 3:30
14."Chocolate Box (Swing Mix)"Justin Strauss6:18
15."Sister (Remix)"Tom Lord-Alge4:23
16."Madly in Love (Joe Smooth 12" Version)"Joe Smooth6:24

US and Canada version

All tracks are written by Matt Goss, Luke Goss and Nicky Graham, except where noted

No.TitleLength
1."Madly in Love"7:09
2."Too Much"3:34
3."Chocolate Box"4:00
4."Money"4:23
5."Life's a Heartbeat"4:48
6."Club Fool"5:31
7."Black and White"3:55
8."Don't Bite the Hand"3:09
9."I Owe You Nothing (remix)" (The Brothers)3:57
10."Sister"4:23
11."Space" (bonus track on CD only, incorrectly listed as "Streetwise")4:30

Personnel

Bros

  • Matt Goss – vocals, keyboards, programming and bass
  • Luke Goss – drums, percussion, keyboards, programming and bass

Additional personnel

  • Scott Davidson – keyboards, programming and bass
  • Paul Gendler – guitars
  • Nicky Graham – keyboards, programming and bass
  • Paul Powell – bass on "Madly in Love"
  • Jim Turner – saxophone
  • Brass arrangements and playing by the Kick Horns

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts
Chart (1989) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[11] 34
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[12] 90
European Albums Chart[13] 18
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[14] 23
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[15] 34
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[16] 7
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[17] 17
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[18] 42
UK Albums (OCC)[19] 4

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[20] Platinum 100,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[2] Gold 100,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References
  1. Scott, Danny (16 November 2003). "Best of Times, Worst of Times: Matt Goss". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 8 January 2019.
  2. BRIT Certified – Bros – The Time
  3. Ruhlmann, William. "The Time – Bros". AllMusic.
  4. Larkin, Colin (2011). "Bros". The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0-85712-595-8.
  5. Williams, Simon (28 October 1989). "Bros – The Time". NME. p. 39.
  6. Bradley, Lloyd (November 1989). "Bros – The Time". Q. No. 38. p. 111.
  7. Southwell, Tim (31 October 1989). "Bros – The Time" (PDF). Record Mirror. p. 19. ISSN 0144-5804. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 November 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2021 – via American Radio History.
  8. Soutar, Mike (18–31 October 1989). "Review: Bros – The Time". Smash Hits. No. 284. p. 78.
  9. Ross, Andy (28 October 1989). "Bros – The Time". Sounds. p. 43.
  10. Martin, Andrew (21 October 1989). "Bros – The Time" (PDF). Music Week. p. 24. ISSN 0265-1548. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 April 2022. Retrieved 6 June 2022 – via World Radio History.
  11. "Australiancharts.com – Bros – The Time". Hung Medien.
  12. "Dutchcharts.nl – Bros – The Time" (in Dutch). Hung Medien.
  13. "Hits of the World – Eurochart". Billboard. 18 November 1989. p. 80.
  14. Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin - levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. p. 263. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
  15. "Offiziellecharts.de – Bros – The Time" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts.
  16. "BROSのアルバム売上ランキング".
  17. Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
  18. "Swedishcharts.com – Bros – The Time". Hung Medien.
  19. "Bros | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart.
  20. Salaverrie, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (PDF) (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Madrid: Fundación Autor/SGAE. p. 928. ISBN 84-8048-639-2. Retrieved 22 July 2022.
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