If you've read the previous customer reviews and laughed at the review that ranked this disc as one of the best of the 80s, behind Joshua Tree - stop laughing. This disc has NO weak songs. None. Zip. Zilch. Nada. The greatness of this disc lies in the subtle realization that there are no weaknesses here. Do I believe in liberally administering five star reviews? Absolutely not. From the opening keyboard strokes on "I Feel Possessed" to Neil's last breath on "Better Be Home Soon", the sheer quality of the songwriting and production will astound you. Other highlights include "Into Temptation" (perhaps the second-best* song Neil Finn has ever written), "Kill Eye" (killer guitar), and "In the Lowlands" (beautiful harmonies). I didn't particularly care for Crowded House's debut (though I love "World Where You Live"); I first listened to "Temple of Low Men" when a friend recommended it to me and loaned it to me. I've been a fan of this disc for more than twelve years, and it has never aged on me. Trust the customer reviews on this one - you will not be disappointed.

*Neil's best song - written when he was with Split Enz - is "Message to My Girl".

I've long admired Split Enz/Crowded House/Neil + Tim Finn, and it's hard to pick one cd to review without reviewing them all. Temple of Low Men is a classic. Of the four Crowded House cds this one has 10 solid tracks with no filler and no excess. Their debut is great, but I think Temple of Low Men moved Crowded House out of the pop spotlight and into a more mature band. The debut is a rougher, less honed effort than Temple is. Temple is also better than Woodface in that it's shorter and more consistent. It's also better than Together Alone for the same reasons--shorter, more consistent songcraft. All of Crowded Houses cds are great, but Temple of Low Men with songs like "Into Temptation", "I Feel Possessed", "When You Come", "Kill Eye", "Better Be Home Soon", "Love This Life", "Mansion in the Slums", "Never Be the Same" and "Sister Madly" show that they can make a classic cd. This is a must have for any rock collector.

The whims of the pop world and the fickle nature of the record industry have buried many a fine album, but none of those lost gems has been as deserving of mass success as Crowded House's "Temple of Low Men". An assured and thoughtful follow-up to their poppier debut, "Temple" is, quite simply, the best album of the band's rather troubled history (if you can find it, read "Something So Strong" by Chris Bourke to get a glimpse into their tumultuous career) and one of the best pop records ever. Why? Its darker, more somber tone is often mentioned as a knock, but the dynamic elements of the LP are undeniable - the swing from the melancholy of "Into Temptation" and "Better Be Home Soon" juxtaposed against the rollicking "Sister Madly" and buoyant "When You Come" makes for an incredibly satisfying musical experience. There is not a weak track in the bunch, and the band have never played or emoted better; Neil Finn is at his absolute peak as both a singer and a songwriter, and Nick Seymour and Paul Hester play with the confidence gleaned from their early "Don't Dream It's Over" chart success. All that, and Mitchell Froom's stellar production, make for an album that refuses to age.

For years this was my favorite Crowded House {CH} album. Like most of the other reviewers, I'm a huge fan of Neil Finn and all things Finn in general, but this album stood out as the diamond among all their other precious gems. It was quirky, instantly accessible, it sounded great and Neil Finn really came into his own as a writer and a vocalist in a way he hadn't (in my opinion) yet on `Crowded House', the first CH album which only made the 35-40 minute LP length because they included a cover of one of his older Split Enz songs ("Can't Carry On" from Split Enz' 'See You Around' CD).

In fact, while their first album has the big radio hits we still hear (albeit in supermarkets), Temple of Low Men seems more consistent in tone and flavor. The songs are quirkier perhaps, but with the possible exception of 'Kill Eye' there isn't a dodgy track on the disc.

Why only 4 stars? Because I'm grading on a Crowded House curve and this album suffers a bit from when it was produced and a bit in comparison with its soul mate 'Together Alone'. Like their self-titled debut, 'Temple of Low Men' was recorded for vinyl and is therefore mastered at a lower level (not always a bad thing) and has fewer songs than most modern releases. The saving grace is that the production still mostly holds up and doesn't sound particularly dated or '80's-ish. Their last CD 'Together Alone' takes up where 'Temple of Low Men' leaves off and breaks new ground not only for the band, but for the rest of us as well and it's in comparison with that strength that 'Temple' seems to suffer. But that's grading on a curve.

Should you start with 'Temple of Low Men' to see if Crowded House is for you? I did and in a sense it gave me a truer expectation and better appreciation of the rest of Neil Finn's work than I think either 'Woodface (co-written with his brilliant brother Tim Finn)' or 'Crowded House' would have done.

There is NO good reason not to buy this CD. In all honesty, all their albums are great (or nearly great in the case of their debut) and you can't really make a bad choice. Best of all, once you've assimilated the Crowded House catalog you can check out the stunning solo careers of both Neil and Tim Finn, their collaborations together and the whole Split Enz discography.

These guys are the best.

Welcome.

The best description I can give of this cd is that when I go to put on a Crowded House cd, I generally pass over this one at first, and generally end up with "Together Alone." But that may be because I've listened to it so many times over. What belies my affection and respect for this recording is that whenever I make someone a Crowded House tape to share with them the music of this great, and yet somehow little-known, band, every single song from "Temple of Low Men" ends up on it. It is a masterpiece. Finn's songwriting is masterful, and the band is as tight as they come. Mitchell Froom's production is the only flaw, and I think mainly because it came out about the time that all-digital recordings were the thing, and it's all digital, so it doesn't have the sonic "punch" characteristic of analog masters that their other albums typically do have. To his credit, however, the use of synthesizers is sparce, which doesn't laden the music with "80s-ness." It still sounds great because the basic guitar-bass-drums formula drives it. But the songwriting is stellar and poetic; the music not quite so hook laden as the debut, but rewards repeated listenings. Incidentally, for those who think Finn's lyrics are simply modernist impressionistic stuff with random meaning--read a bit closer. It's genuine poetry, not merely the turn of a clever phrase.