There are quite a number of different versions out there for ‘Whistling For His Love’, one of Danielle’s uniquely odd and wonderful tales set to a sweetly electronic, sequencer-driven backing. The original version was first released on the Japanese only album ‘The Chemical Wedding’, which I focussed on a few posts back – while the second, most commonly available version, was first released on the ‘Dark Adapted Eye’ album and subsequently on the flip side of the UK single, ‘White Knuckle Ride’*in 1989 – and also the ‘Comatose Non-Reaction’ compilation album from 1995.
As well as those two, four other mixes are to be found on this promo-only 12” EP from Sire Records…
^ Danielle Dax – ‘Whistling For His Love’ US 12″ Promo front
I tend not to feature live Joy Division recordings on VersionCrazy because… well… where will it end?! There are simply so many of them released over the years – official, semi-official, unofficial… and as for the sound quality. I shouldn’t be too harsh as it is from an era where documentation of every movement was not the norm it seemingly is now… and with the ease of finding recordings online, who even needs physical versions? But once in a while a release comes along that is worth celebrating, if you still crave a physical copy. If you come across this one, you will be in for a treat as sonically, this is as good as you can expect from the era… and the packaging, while no Peter Saville production by any means, does a decent job.
^ Joy Division ‘Live In Amsterdam 1980’ 2020 Japanese CD front cover design with OBI.
The gig in question is from 11th January 1980 at The Paradiso, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. You can read more about the gig and its unique background on why there were two Joy Division sets on the treasure trove of info that is the wonderful Joy Division Central website. Its one of the most bootlegged gigs and has also ‘officially’ been re-issued, though somewhat cack-handedly, on the ‘official’ versions here and here. There is a forum discussion about live recordings of the gig on the interactive message board area of the site dedicated to the gig and you’ll find plenty of discussion as well as links to online YouTube recordings of the 2010 high quality recording from which its likely this is sourced from too. Continue reading “Joy Division ‘Live In Amsterdam 1980’ Japanese CD [Alive The Live / King Street, INGCD4174, 2020]”
In a comment on my previous Danielle Dax post about the ‘Yummer Yummer Man’/‘Fizzing Human Bomb’ single, PostPunkMonk absolutely nailed it about Dax with his customary pinpoint accuracy and brevity – “a talent with no fear and ideas to spare”. No better example of that than this curious release, ‘The Chemical Wedding’, which was a mini-album release in Japan only. (Mini-album I presume, based on its duration.) A curio in that it features various tracks that were originally unique and later would re-appear in re-recorded/remixed form over the next couple of years, making this a desirable item to track down for the version crazy completist Dax fans amongst you. (Assuming that’s not just me then!)
^ Danielle Dax – ‘The Chemical Wedding’ Japanese CD – front cover design and disc label with folded insert in jewel case
I didn’t come by this release at the time though, only much later. I had been able to see Danielle Dax live in November 1987 on a brief UK tour, at The Venue, in Aberdeen – a great show it was too, the experience something else altogether. I don’t think it was even until sometime close to midnight before Danielle even took to the stage, not unusual back in those days at The avenue. Earlier in 1987 was when the ‘Inky Bloaters’ album came out, to some degree of celebration in the music press, it’s fair to say – so, subsequently getting a chance to see the live show in due course, even better.
This release passed by my radar though – perhaps no surprise, as it had no UK equivalent. Seems to have been released in November of that year and when I did find out about it, much later, I assumed it was a straightforward singles A and B sides mopping-up compilation from foreign climes, just the type I like… There was no discogs.com nor eBay to easily find out details back then. But this release was much more than that, as it turns out… a treat for Danielle’s fan base in Japan, since it contains unique versions of ‘Cat-House’ and ‘Whistling For His Love’ and early dibs on ‘Touch Piggy’s Eyes’ and ‘Olamal’, which wouldn’t get releases elsewhere until 1988 and 1995 respectively. And let’s get one thing clear from the off – Dax B sides contain some incredible songs. That 1987 gig at The Venue in Aberdeen and the transformed version of ‘Up In Arms’ a good example – a sonic juggernaut when taking flight in live performance. Continue reading “Danielle Dax – ‘The Chemical Wedding’ Japanese CD (Vap, 85018-25, 1987)”
‘Letter From America’ is a double vinyl compilation album and cassette released in the US in 1982 that gathered together all of the tracks from two of the wonderful Thomas Leer’s original UK releases for Cherry Red records, the ‘4 Movements’ four track 12″ EP and the ‘Contradictions’ 2 x 12″ album, in a sleeve that adapted the Matisse cut-outs inspired design of the ‘4 Movements’ EP.
^ Thomas Leer – ‘Letter From America’ US double LP – front sleeve design
The ‘4 Movements’ 12″ EP had been my entry point – specifically, the track ‘Tight As A Drum’, which I had heard played on the BBC Radio 1 John Peel show one night, August 1981. It sounded amazing – such a busy, unique sound and structure, its no surprise that that track in particular has had something of a renaissance by its inclusion on various post-punk compilations over the years. The sound has movement alright – like it’s been plugged into the voltage and animated into life as some form of echoing dub that is both coming and going at the same time. Continue reading “Thomas Leer – ‘Letter From America’ US double album (Cachalot Records / Cherry Red, A RIPE 1, 1982)”
1985 was a year in which Cocteau Twins played around with expectations a good bit, perhaps randomly, but perhaps also a reaction to how close they had sailed to the mainstream the year before with the successes of ‘Pearly Dewdrops’ Drops’ and ‘Treasure’. Starting off their main releases for the year with a single/EP release, by year’s end the band released what most likely would have ordinarily been issued as an album as two separate 12″ EPs instead. Meanwhile, exclusive versions of existing tracks would keep on coming on compilation releases. Plus, the band’s first ever compilation of choice cuts from their back catalogue – albeit one that was intended to gather up single tracks, obscurities and album tracks rather than anything as obvious as a singles or ‘best of’ collection.
Electronic Soundmaker and Computer Music – magazine and compilation cassette – February 1985 issue
^ Electronic Soundmaker and Computer Music February 1985 magazine – compilation cassette – side A
A real obscurity this one – since the magazine contained an interview with the band, somewhat reluctantly mulling over the previous year’s ‘Treasure’ album, the accompanying cover-mounted cassette contained one of the band’s tracks, ‘Otterley’ – a different, more basic version compared to the album mix by the sound of it – this text is from the magazine;
Featured on our cassette this month is an original version of Otterley, the second to last track on the album. I wondered whether that too began with a drum track.
Simon: “No, that one didn’t. There was a click. It was an open tuning that began it.”
Robin: “All there is on it, in fact I think this might illustrate what I mean by treating and mucking about with instruments, when you hear this particular version, all there is on it is two tracks of guitar, one track of bass and one track of percussion. We only used four tracks. I like to create a sort of space, but not through sort a’ not playing a lot…”
Sadly, I have yet to come by this cassette – anyone out there with a copy?
Thanks, as ever, to Lieutenant030 and his treasure trove of a collection for some photos of this item and a tape of the version, which is indeed another take – closer to the John Peel session version in its minimal style – it is noticeably more of an electric guitar take rather than acoustic guitar, to my ears – and, again, no voice from Elizabeth. Continue reading “Year by Year: Cocteau Twins – 1985”
