In the Long Grass

By the time In the Long Grass was released, Bob Geldof's sights were set on more important issues, like the "Do They Know It's Christmas" project and the monumental Live Aid concert that came to fruition in 1985. All of the intensity and raw ardor that he and the rest of the band established on past albums is nowhere to be found on In the Long Grass, with "Drag Me Down" peaking at a measly number 50 on the U.K. charts, the album's best effort. Geldof's material comes off like hurried-up poetry haphazardly put to music, and without the flamboyancy of Johnny Fingers' piano playing, the songs seem empty and uninspiring. "Tonight" teases with a glimmer of hope because of its lyrical appeal, but tracks such as "Up & Down" and "Hard Times" bring the band down to a level of averageness that is unfamiliar, especially when compared to the genius of A Tonic for the Troops or the eccentricities of The Fine Art of Surfacing. Although the Boomtown Rats began to show signs that they were losing their flair on the V Deep album, it is much easier to forgive the shortcomings of In the Long Grass when looking back at Geldof's Herculean attempts at curbing world hunger that soon followed.