What A Life! 2021 Remastered & Expanded Edition

I was working at Tower Records on Sunset Blvd in L.A. in 1988 and could not wait for the Divinyls show at the Roxy a few days away. Late one night who comes strolling in but Chrissie Amphlett followed by the very out of it Mark McEntire who wandered aimlessly for an hour while Chrissie and I laughed and chatted about... everything. Luckily this was on a slow weeknight which saw little action from idiot Hollywood customers and zero reaction from the sad, useless Tower Records night managers. I was rarely a "can I get your autograph?" kinda person but I am happy I asked and still look at it fondly on that long CD box as well as the cd case. Mark refused an autograph... until young Chrissie gave him a dressing down. Ouch. Chrissie - being and and about in Hollywood was clad in her tight black stage dress and the memory of her brushing against me saying 'bye is still vivid. Of course it was on purpose! The smirk told me that much. That Roxy show was too much! A year or so later "I Touch Myself" broke the band in America for about 90 seconds and that concert was a bit more sedate. Hope you enjoyed the story... As for What A Life!, It was on this tour I saw Divinyls open for The Cult on their Love tour. Chrissie scared the hell out of us. I was an instant fan which makes it even more special - and surprising - to have just heard the What A Life! remaster and the first remaster since the original release 35 years ago. The bonus tracks alone are worth the price: "Talk Like The Rain" sounds like a rough mix but could have easily replaced "Motion" (and should have). "What A Life!" even in its early stages simply did not fit on the album it's named for. With a chorus so catchy (I'm already hooked by the 2nd listen) why the hell did Mike Chapman - who is brilliant - not pursue this? My guess is it was to be the final song but lost out to the more poignant and utterly dismantling "Dear Diary". Anyway "What A Life!" here would not at all be out of place on Blur's "Modern L:ife Is Rubbish" album. As for "Old Radios". Ugh. Musically very good but Chrissie's gruff, cheesy vocal lost me after 30 seconds. "Para-Dice" just needed a vocal. The very Blondie "9:50" is another winner with a chorus equally as cute and ferocious as Chrissie's lead vocal. "Oyyyyeeee-aaaay!". Agreed. "Motion" out "9:50" in! The next Quick! You have 3 minutes to write another song! "More To Choose" is a track I swear I've heard it before and didn't like it then either. "Out Of Time" is OK! Now write a typical Blondie song and make it really terrible... but luckily a slowed down, unrecognizable version appears as the last thing on the CD of Temperamental. Next is a slower early rendering of "What A Life!" - this time perfect for Blur's more jaunty Parklife album. I cannot make this stuff up. The extended "Pleasure And Pain" is one of the very few extended versions that works but how they turned the 3:40 "Sleeping Beauty" into 5+ minutes is a mystery as it's really the same song, same changes. Whatever! What A Life.

The careful remastering and additional tracks from what was a masterwork to start with is well worth the price of admission.I couldn't give Chrissie and the gang less than 5 stars, but the CD cases that both this and the reissue of Desperate came in have a "non-gripping" center hub, so the disc is loose. Beyond me why this is so, as I have been collecting CDs since the '80s. Never seen this particular defect before. Repacked in a good CD case (they are cheap and you should keep some on hand) and rocked on!Be careful when you open this.

Ironically The Divinyls were the greatest ever band to come in the wake of their label mates, Blondie. Part of the signing frenzy to get other female fronted or all female rock bands signed in the US following Miss Harry and her boys immense popularity in the UK.. Sadly, the American public wasn't really interested in Blondie's rock tracks- only their novelty songs ,eg Heart of Glass, Tide is High and Rapture , so even with their producer Mike Chapman of Suzi Quatro , The Divinyls as with other Chapman attempts Altered Images and Bow Wow Wow sunk without a ripple in the US. This album is a masterwork. Good Die Young, In My Life, Casual Encounter and Guillotine Days are amongst their greatest rockers. Miss Chrissy even gets in some cool (ughhh) rap in the closing of In My Life. Dear Diary is a freaky rock nightmare. The amazing thing is that it is (very rare for the band) mostly an electronica track.! Synths may have been cheesy in rock of the 80s but this song is one of the very few that was even cooler than the King of Electronica, Mr. Giorgio Moroder. The band goes soft with the lovely Sleeping Beauty and the amazingly close to synthpop(!!??) Heart Telegraph. Old Radios is superfine. Miss Chrissy's vocals are amongst her strangest ever. Talk Like A Rain , though not a fierce rocker was Chrissy's favorite track of the album. I disagree but respect her opinion. This second version of 9;50 is better than the original. The major misses are the boring instrumental Para-Dice,the dull pop rocker More to Chose and the overlong Don't You Go Walking, which wouldn't even be a great song if it was 2 minutes shorter. The versions included of What A Life and Out of Touch are also probably only for completists of the band. Chock full of extras this is a must for 80s rock music lovers but especially for those who are eager to hear one of the all time greatest rock chicks. What the heck, with her unique stage persona and her talents as a singer and songwriter Miss Chrissy was just one of the greatest rockers of all time , period.

Sounds great

This review is for the Rubellan Remaster of "What a Life" in particular. On the surface, just having all of the original Australian-only tracks included would be reason enough to buy this disc, but the full set of bonus material made this an automatic purchase for a Divinyls fan. The remaster is beautifully dynamic, and listening to it feels like being on a soundstage with the band, with every instrument and vocal sounding clear, distinct, and present. I can crank this cd and hear no distortion, a rarity with modern mastering. Rubellan discs have a limited production run, so if you're on the fence about this release, I'd advise you to get it while you can.

Apparently, some reviewers don't understand what dynamic range is. Drums that pop from the speakers rather than sounding like mush from over-compression. The vocals are clearer than the previous CD edition as well. The album is doubled in size including ten extra tracks from 12" singles and B sides, and three previously unreleased recordings. The packaging includes lyrics and pictures of the single sleeves. The picture CD label nicely matches that of the Desperate reissue from last year. If you want to hear What A Life! in detailed, clear and punchy sound then this is the CD for you.

ポップな曲が粒ぞろい。未知のバンド探すの楽しいね🐤

This is the second Divinyls album that has been given the Rubellan remastering treatment and they do a fantastic job. Divinyls unfairly get left out of the conversation when talking about best Aussie bands but they have an impressive catalogue of catchy pop/rock tunes.

Though not as "warm" as the Desperate remaster, it is still an excellent example of early 1980's remasters done right.

The second Divinyls album. Chrissie Amphlett led this dynamic band whose music stands up well after nearly 40 years! A pot purri of Aussie pub rock flavoured by new wave and sharpened by Chrissie’s lyrics and biting delivery.