A Grand Don't Come For Free tracks, album, songs, music, reviews and overview

Album Name: A Grand Don't Come For Free
Singer(s): Mike Skinner
Recorded:
Released: May 18, 2004
Genre: Electronica, Garage
Length: 47:56
Label: Vice, Atlantic

Album Review

A Grand Don't Come For Free is the second album for UK garage musician Mike Skinner, aka The Streets, released on May 18 2004.

A Grand Don't Come For Free is a concept album. In the story, the protagonist loses Â£1000 pounds. In the first track on the album, "It Was Supposed To Be So Easy", he loses the money while he is out returning a rental DVD and attempting to get money from a cash machine. In the process of trying to recover the money, he:

conquers a girl ("Could Well Be In")
attempts to win money via gambling ("Not Addicted")
finds himself in situations of being high on Ecstasy in a nightclub in "Blinded by the Lights"
followed by arguing with his girlfriend in "Get Out Of My House"
posing to impress a girl ("Fit But You Know It") in a chip shop in a holiday resort;
suspects a friend of stealing his coat and Â£1000. Discovers that his girlfriend is having an affair ("What is he Thinking?")
and finally trying to cope with his girlfriend breaking up with him ("Dry Your Eyes").
The final track, "Empty Cans", features two endings to the plot, a bitter ending and a happy ending (in which he finds the thousand pounds hidden in his TV) with matching music for both. In the happy version he appears to have an epiphany, however Skinner suggests it may not be very deep as the inspirational music continues to swell while the lyrics begin to return to mundane details about his life.

Tracks

"It Was Supposed To Be So Easy" (Skinner)
"Could Well Be In" (Skinner)
"Not Addicted" (Skinner)
"Blinded By The Lights" (Skinner)
"Wouldn't Have It Any Other Way" (Skinner)
"Get Out of My House" (Skinner)
"Fit But You Know It" (Skinner)
"Such A Twat" (Skinner)
"What Is He Thinking?" (Skinner)
"Dry Your Eyes" (Skinner)
"Empty Cans" (Skinner)

Singles:
"Fit But You Know It" was the first single from the album, which debuted at No. 4 in the UK singles charts and in the top 40 in Australia. The single was also used in the soundtrack to British film "The Football Factory" and the video featured cameos from the stars of the film, Danny Dyer and Frank Harper. The second single, "Dry Your Eyes", entered the UK chart at No. 1. The album itself reached No. 1 in the UK albums charts, No. 11 in Australia and No. 82 in the US. "Fit But You Know It" and "Dry Your Eyes" both featured in the 2004 Triple J Hottest 100 in Australia placing #18 and #19 respectively.