 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids. |
 | OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age. |
How to Save a Life
- By The Fray
- Genre: Indie Rock
Common Sense Media says
Sweet, sentimental, and similar-sounding songs.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that there are no offensive lyrics here -- just a collection of sweet and ever-so-slightly monotonous love songs, with one or two very subtle references to suicide.
What's the story?
HOW TO SAVE A LIFE is the full-length debut of The Fray, a Denver quartet deeply committed to medium-tempo, melodic pop songs about love, loss, and that all-important occasional glimmer of hope. Serious and emotional, the songs are well-crafted and well-played, though there really isn't a stick-in-your-head standout among them. Articulate on the subject of the complexities of love and relationships while covering no new ground, The Fray express themselves well with lyrics that are direct and honest. "Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend/Somewhere along in the bitterness/And I would have stayed up with you all night/Had I known how to save a life" ("How to Save A Life") is a good example of The Fray's songwriting. Competent and expressive, their greatest flaw is an absolute lack of humor or irony.
Is it any good?
Isaac Slade (vocals, piano), Joe King (guitar, vocals), Ben Wysocki (drums), and Dave Welsh (guitar) deliver fine performances all the way around, with an extra nod to Slade's piano playing and impressively emotive high notes. But some of his singing verges on whiny, and the songs (mostly credited to Slade and King) become monotonous after the first few tracks. If you love one, you'll love 'em all. If you don't, then wait awhile until the members of The Fray have had a chance to grow into their own unique sound... and their record-label press-kit hype.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about what it means to have a "sound" -- is it more important to have an identifiable musical MO that's recognizable or more important to take risks and dare to be different? Can you think of any groups that do both?
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AGE
The "Grey's Anatomy" Song
I LOVE "How to Save a Life"! IT'S CATCHY AND MAKES YOU WANT TO WATCH "Grey's Anatomy"! YOU JUST WANT IT TO COME ON THE RADIO ALL THE TIME! IT'S THAT GOOD!
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AGE
I Love this CD
i love the fray and i love their first two singles cable car/over my head and how to save a life they are both great songs and the fray is a good group not having a lot of bad stuff in their songs
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AGE
OK Cd for 11+
Bad stuff:
none
Great CD!!!
Fav song:
Hundred
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AGE
i like the song
i never heard the hole album but i love how to save a life
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AGE
very good!
If I feel like listening to it i'll slide in the disk and blast the radio!very good music really nothing bad that you can catch easily.
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AGE
Not that great
This is a pretty boring cd. Nothing for parents to worry about, but it just isnt that good. All of the songs sound pretty much the same, and even though the two hit singles are good the first few times you hear them, they get old pretty fast. The only good song on here that doesnt get old after a few listens is all at once.
The Fray sound a lot like John Mayer, w/piano instead of acoustic guitar. Dispite what you may have heard, they are NOTHING like Coldplay. The Fray dont have half of Coldplay's creativity, and the lyrics arent nearly as insightful.
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AGE
A CD with great redeeming qualities, 2 thumbs up.
I got this CD for Christmas and it's wonderful. All of the songs are generally calm and have a quality meaning. No language, sex, drugs or alcohol are mentioned in the CD, so you could say it's for all ages. Not only those things, but Isaac Slade's piano playing is breathtakingly wonderful and is a fabulous touch to the songs.
Bottom line: 5 stars, 2 thumbs up. Just plain fabulous.
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Kid, 10 years old
April 7, 2011
AGE
APPROPIATE FOR ALL AGES! :)
I LOVE THIS SONG! I LISTEN TO IT ON DAD'S iPOD! Good messages are....."Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend, somewhere along, in the bitterness sand". and "I stayed up with you all night...you go left..and I stay right......did I know, How to Save a Life"? It's about wanting his friend back and wanting to save him/her very bad.:)
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AGE
The Fray.
The Fray has been my very favortie band ever since "Over My Head--Cable Car" came on the radio. EVERY single one of their songs is fabulous and they all have very good meanings. 2 thumbs up. 5 stars. Definetly the most talentist [[not even a word]] band ever.
--oh and yes. They do sing "that song" on Grey's Anatomy.
[[:
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| Artist: | The Fray |
| Release date: | September 13, 2005 |
| Label: | Sony Music |
| Genre: | Indie Rock |
| Parental advisory: | No |
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