Side by side – Page 6

28 February, 202127 January, 2022

Simple Minds – ‘Celebrate’ UK 7″ and 12″ (Arista ARIST 394 and ARIST 12394, 1981)

Released as the second single from 1980’s ‘Empires and Dance’, the band’s third album on Zoom/Arista records, truth be told Arista appear to have largely given up on the band by this time and it seems to have been a half-hearted push at best to back the single on its release in February 1981. Hell, there seems to have been a long-running fault-line between Zoom and Arista stretching back to 1979, with music press reports of label boss Bruce Findlay looking to ditch Arista and license with another major as early as October 1979. This particular single was released near enough forty years ago, on Friday 20 February 1981. Even at the time of release, music press gossip had them down as soon to sign with either Virgin or Polydor. Within a few months they would have their first single release on Virgin records, the abrasive funk clatter of ‘The American’, and the slow but steady rise in popularity would commence. How quickly it all moved back then jumping labels and swiftly back with new material. (See Japan and their ownÂ toot de suite move from Ariola Hansa to Virgin…)

Simple Minds - 'Celebrate' UK 7" front cover design — *^Simple Minds – ‘Celebrate’ UK 7″ front cover design*

Regardless of that back story… With the original album version coming in at 5’03” in length, the singles feature different mixes on both 7″ and 12″. First off, the 7″ buzzcut treatment. Continue reading “Simple Minds – ‘Celebrate’ UK 7″ and 12″ (Arista ARIST 394 and ARIST 12394, 1981)”

21 January, 202131 July, 2023

Side by side: Hard Corps – Porte-Bonheur / Lucky Charm versions

A surprisingly complicated tale to tell when it comes to the various versions of Hard Corps and their final single release, ‘Lucky Charm’ (in English) / ‘Porte Bonheur’ (en Français) that go beyond just the different language variants. In short – most have never been issued on CD and remain exclusive to the various original vinyl releases of the time, both UK and France, since the 7″ and 12″ versions not only differ in language, but in some cases the edits (rather than mixes) too. The only versions from vinyl that have ever appeared on CD are the 7″ mix of ‘Porte Bonheur’ – found on the B sides of the UK 7″ and French 7″ – this version appeared on the ‘Metal and Flesh’ CD – and the UK 12″ A side on a semi-official(?) compilation CD (and possibly a needle-drop at that?) ‘Euro Disco – The Lost Legends Vol. 2’. If you’re thinking that the ‘Metal and Flesh’ CD had the French language 12″ mix on it… pardonez moi, non! It nearly did… the mix is there, but edited down much shorter.

Hard Corps - Lucky Charm UK 7 inch single front cover — *^ Hard Corps – Lucky Charm UK 7 inch single front cover*

Continue reading “Side by side: Hard Corps – Porte-Bonheur / Lucky Charm versions”

7 September, 202027 January, 2022

Side by side: Brian Eno and John Cale – ‘One Word’ CD singles

What news it was at the time of the ‘Wrong Way Up’ album release that Brian Eno had returned to vocal duties and was actually to be heard singing on record once more. As big a thing as his continual questioning in interviews in those first few years of why wasn’t he singing anymore… Of course, he had still been singing, just not centre-stage on his own albums. Just listen to Talking Heads for example and even closer to this period he had sung on his take of ‘You Don’t Miss Your Water’ included on the soundtrack of the movie ‘Married To The Mob’ in 1988.

Brian Eno and John Cale - 'One Word' UK CD single front cover design — *^ Brian Eno and John Cale – ‘One Word’ UK CD single front cover design*

Continue reading “Side by side: Brian Eno and John Cale – ‘One Word’ CD singles”

28 June, 20206 May, 2023

Bill Nelson – ‘Chimera’ and ‘Savage Gestures for Charms Sake’

Two Bill Nelson releases hailing from 1983, both of the mini-album variety that was so very much in vogue at the time. The first of these, ‘Chimera’, capped off Bill’s short but highly productive two year stint with Mercury records, the second, ‘Savage Gestures for Charms Sake’, saw the return to Cocteau Records as a going commercial concern once more. Both very enjoyable in their own way, they were later brought together on a single Cocteau Records CD for re-issue before later being being split apart again with ‘Chimera’ upgraded to a single CD expanded edition in 2005, while ‘Savage Gestures for Charms Sake’, other than a long since deleted stand-alone re-issue on CD in 1989, currently languishes in the wastelands. First up…

‘Chimera’

It has an unusual back story, this album. Recorded late 1982 at The Garden and Riverside Studios, it apparently started life with the intention of being a bridging four track EP between 1982’s ‘The Love That Whirls’ album and the next intended full-length album, but ended up a six track mini-album released around the time the intended album should have been with the addition of two extra tracks. (Production work for amongst others Gary Numan and The Units got in the way…) Continue reading “Bill Nelson – ‘Chimera’ and ‘Savage Gestures for Charms Sake’”