In the early 90's, "alternative" was all the rage wasn't it? And in that pile of debuts, only three stand out for me. Let's see... It was 1993. There was Radiohead. There was The Smashing Pumpkins. And there was a little band from Ireland called The Cranberries. They just came out of nowhere and took the world by storm. But, brilliant as those other bands may be (and Radiohead's excellence didn't really show until their second album, by the way), The Cranberries had one up on them with their debut Cd: "Everybody Else Is Doing it, So Why Can't We?" Because they weren't trying to innovate. Theirs was a message of simplicity, and they hammered it home in such dreamy and elyptical fashion, that you could not get that incrdible voice or those haunting melodies out of your head. With their more pretentious contemporaries trying to give new spins to 60's psychodelia, The Cranberries had a down-to-earth pop sensibility that made them irresistible. A timelessness. Consider that "Linger" is such a perfect love song, that it can exist at any point in time and fit right in. As lead singer Dolores O'Riordan once said: "Patsy Cline could have sang it." And she's right. If one could travel back in time to the late 50s or 60's with this recording, and pump it through someone's turntable, it wouldn't seem out of place. And yet, it doesn't seem dated. Most of the other songs on this wonderful 41 minute recording (even the length and structure of the album itself is old-fasioned) have that same quality to them. Even "Dreams", that unforgettable pop song that echoes in our minds to this very day. You could see that they were influenced by the British indie scene of the 1980's (particularly The Smiths); all the more evident when you consider that Smiths and Morrissey producer, Stephen Street, handled this recording as well. But they gave all that a freshness and a unique quality that made their music seem totally original. After this, The Cranberries moved on and produced more quality work. Their follow-up, "No Need To Argue" (released the following year), showed a rare maturity that most bands don't accomplish in a decade, let alone a year. Their varied range is just another of this often underappreciated band's attributes. Later on, they went from experimental ("To The Faithful Departed"- 1996) to whimsical (last year's "Bury the Hatchet.") But with this first release they truly marked a moment in time. "Linger" is to the 90's what "Every Breath You Take" was to the 80's. This kind of watershed is not a common occurance, and so The Cranberries remain one of this generation's most important bands. Their debut, in a sense, is the quintessential 90's debut because it proved without a doubt that there really was new music worth listening to out there... Too bad this is no longer true.

This remarkable CD is, in my opinion, the most remarkable debut album I have ever heard. I fell in love with the song Linger as soon as I heard it, so I naturally went right out and bought the album. I was impressed then and I'm still impressed. This music is so distinctive and achingly beautiful that it remains as fresh and enjoyable now, all these years later, as it did then. It is ironic that an album with such a long name features songs with short titles, but the overall disc really takes precedence over the individual songs. I actually have trouble remembering the title for each song, but this is primarily because this album is almost organic in its completeness, simply teeming with life and substance. I just don't put this CD in the drive and listen to a song here or there; I have to experience the whole thing every time I play it. I'm not sure how this distinctive type of music should be classified; I don't know if its primary influence is Welsh or Celtic or something else. All I know is that Dolores O'Riordan has the most distinctive voice I have ever heard, and her vocals make each song hauntingly beautiful and absolutely amazing. This album creates a surreal atmosphere inside your mind and really and truly hypnotizes you with its power. I love every single song on here; Linger is of course my favorite, while I Still Do and Dreams stand out slightly from the crowd, but the quality of this music is spread lavishly from start to finish. This is as polished and unbelievably complete an album as a group or artist can hope to deliver. Even the Cranberries, as much as I love their music, have never quite been able to recapture the magic of this first album.

I will end my lavish praise of this CD by pointing out the great utility of its music. This album is perfect for just about any occasion or any mood. If you are feeling good, this music reinforces and increases your happiness; if you are feeling sad and lonely, it touches your heart and helps you indulge your blue mood in a way that refreshes you; if you are angry, it calms you down with its hypnotizing calmness. Many are the nights I have played this album to help me calm down and go to sleep. Few albums can boast this sort of utility; this is music that fits every mood and never fails to move me in some way. If I live to be 100, I will still be turning the old hearing aid up and listening to this album on a regular basis.

It's a rare treat to find a CD (a debut album, no less!) thatis nothing but awesome songs, one after the other... no weird, bizarreor annoying tracks that need to be skipped... just incredible Dolores O'Riordan's haunting vocals through-out... thoughtful lyrics and a great sounding band. The Cranberries don't have lyrics that repeat a million times in each song, so you don't always realize the name of a track when you hear it on the radio... but believe me, you've heard at least one of their songs. If you've ever seen the promotional vacation commercial for travel to Ireland, you've heard "Dreams" sung in the background. Definitely a pick-me-up, but not a jazzy dance song... easy to listen to at work or as background music to housework or a country drive... one excellent melody after another! I have a library of over 600 CDs, but I only take about 20 with me when I go on a road trip... just the few I can listen to over and over again w/o skipping tracks... this is one of those CDs. Sometimes you buy a CD because you hear one song on the radio that you like... then you listen to the whole thing a few times and if the band is really good, the music can grow on you to the point you actually like/tolerate all the songs... but in the case of this initial offering by the Cranberries, all tracks were great listening on the first go-round.

To me there is no doubt, "Everybody Else..." is the best album of the Cranberries. "No Need To Argue is certanly great, "To The Faithful..." was OK, but this is the one I listen to today, if I want to hear Dolores'¨lovely voice.

What I like about this album is the slow, emotional sound of for example "I Still Do", "Pretty", "Put Me Down" and the excellent songs "Not Sorry", "Linger" and "Waltzing Back" (these three, together with "Dreams", are my favorites).

"Dreams" is unforgettable - that melody just stays in your head for days when you've heard it - and it lightens up together with "Sunday", "How" and "Still Can't" - they are all uptempo and somehow merry tunes, even uf the lyrics are melancolic.

So, on "Everybody..." there's something for every occation, and when I'm sad (or when I-m writing to people that I haven't seen for a long time) this is the perfect album to make me feel better.

This CD was The Cranberries' first, and was refreshing even though they deviated little from middle of the road pop. Perhaps it was the combination of Dolores O'Riordan's lovely Irish voice delivered periodically in a grunge style that made this debut so fun to listen to. In general the music here is safe, though the lyrics sometimes are not. The Cranberries have a history of choosing sometimes distressing topics for their music. It can sometimes be uncomfortable to confront their world, which seems to be so tainted by despair and a variety of angst.

"I Still Do" is an angst-ridden track, heavy on mellow bass, about someone who is in love, and wants to break it off, even though the person is still in love. The reason for breaking it off is not clear, and perhaps it need not be. This song is the generic break up song when you have mixed feelings about the relationship, but realize that it is in at least one person's best interests to end the relationship.

We go from the angst of a possibly impossible relationship to the dream relationship in "Dreams", which was also featured in "You've Got Mail". A pretty, fast-paced, song, Dolores tells her significant other that she has given herself to him, and he now has her heart, so please don't hurt her. Even more, she also says that she is amazed by his mind and how caring and understanding he is. The ethereal music with a rock beat I personally find to be very satisfying.

We go back to angst again with "Sunday". This time the singer cares for or loves someone, but can't seem to make the connection. This situation has happened to me, and I'll bet it's happened to many of you. Dolores starts singing this one is a grunge style, slowly, then the pace picks up and the song attains a solidly pop beat. Seems like anything Dolores sings is pretty.

"Pretty" has throwaway lyrics to vaguely blues-sounding music with heavy bass. Dolores gets to trill her voice in that endearing way. My guess is that the intent of the lyrics is to be there for the sound more than for the meaning. It works!

"Waltzing Back" is an angry song. How did these people come back into your life? They are going to take you away from me. It's not fair. In the end, there's nothing she can do about it, because it's your life. It doesn't mean she has to be happy about it.

I really like this next song. The style of "Sorry" makes solid use of Dolores' ability to hit those high notes. This song is combination anger and angst, she's upset and angry, but at the same time, you sense that she wanted it to work out. She still misses him, but is still angry too. The rock beat in the background punctuates her anger with heavy bass and percussion, and a fast beat. There is a good contrast musically between her bluesy angst laments and her anger.

The Cranberries love angst about love. "Linger" tells how she saw her significant other with someone else, and communicates the hurt she feels. She wonders why he can't just go with her instead of letting her believe that they have any hope of a relationship. This song is all string laments, solid angst.

And the angst just keeps on rolling with "Wanted". A fast-paced song, here Dolores sings about the communication gap between two people, and their ability to understand each other's needs. Just what is it you want, what are you trying to say?

"Still Can't..." starts acoustically, and then takes off with bass and backing drums. Dolores' sultry voice expresses her anger that her significant other is telling lies about the situation between her and him. He won't apologize, he's laughing about the situation behind her back. I don't think I'd want to be the other person in this song.

"I Will Always" expresses the simple thought that she gives everything of herself to him. He needs to do whatever he will do, and she'll be there. The music here is slow and mellow, Dolores sings very slowly, mournfully, she still manages to hit the high notes with a grunge flavor, even though it's not really a grunge song. Grunge blues maybe.

I get the feeling that "How" is The Cranberries version of "You're so Vain", sung by Carly Simon. The words express how he is self-centered, and he left her alone, at least emotionally, if not physically. Dolores was looking for a closeness that he isn't providing. Heavy drum beat in this relatively fast-paced song.

"Put Me Down" again makes such wonderful use of Dolores' voice. Sultry to start, and then going for the high notes. The topic of the song is pretty much like the title says. She keeps getting put down; she keeps trying, but keeps getting treated like a second-class person. Lovely song to finish off the CD.

This CD is full of heavily orchestrated music, very well played. Dolores has an incredible vocal range, and the Irish accent adds something to these songs. There are so many influences, it's hard to categorize the music. I call it lovely and mellow, and my favorite Cranberries CD. Five stars plus from me.