The Sisters Of Mercy - Body And Soul (1993)

The Sisters Of Mercy were formed in Leeds, England, in 1980 by Gary Marx and Andrew Eldritch, driven by their desire to hear themselves on the radio. In their inaugural year, the band experienced several line-up changes, with one early formation including vocalist Keith Fuller and keyboardist Claire Shearsby, who accompanied Eldritch on drums and Marx on guitar. After this line-up disbanded, only Marx and Eldritch remained, both taking on vocal duties, and during this period Jon Langford played keyboard in the band, but left due to infrequent attendance at practice. At the end of 1980 the band, who had named themselves after the Leonard Cohen song from his 'Songs Of Leonard Cohen' album, recorded and released the single 'Damage Done' on their own Merciful Release label, on which Marx played guitar through a practice amplifier, while Eldritch played drums, which he had purchased from Langford. Each member contributed to the song-writing, with Eldritch penned 'Damage Done', while Marx wrote the b-side 'Watch'. The band later regrouped with Craig Adams on bass, while Eldritch's drumming was replaced by a drum machine, christened Doktor Avalanche, allowing him to focus solely on vocals. Eldritch assumed responsibilities for lyric writing, Doktor programming, and record production, while co-writing the music with Marx and, occasionally, Adams. During this early period, the band cycled through two additional guitarists in Tom Ashton and Dave Humphrey, but later in 1981, Ben Gunn was recruited as the Sisters' permanent second guitarist.

Eldritch's melancholic baritone, Craig Adams's pulsating bass, Doktor Avalanche's beat, and Marx's flowing guitar contributed to the band's early underground success, and in 1982, the band recorded their second single, 'Body Electric', this time on the CNT label. Further singles regularly featured in UK independent charts, with some being named single of the week in various UK indie magazines, and 'The Reptile House' EP exemplifies the Sisters' early work, and highlights the maturation of songwriter Eldritch, who wrote, produced, and reportedly played all instruments on the release. Their live performances included many cover versions,  among them being a medley consisting of 'Sister Ray' (by the Velvet Underground), 'Ghostrider' (by Suicide), and 'Louie Louie' (by Richard Berry), but only four covers were ever recorded and released as b-sides on their records. In late 1983, following the highly successful single 'Temple Of Love', the band signed a contract with major record label WEA and simultaneously, Gunn departed amidst an atmosphere of widespread discontent, and he was succeeded by Wayne Hussey, who focused on 12-string electric and acoustic guitars while also contributing as a songwriter. His studio experience with Dead or Alive proved invaluable as the Sisters set out to record their first full-length record. The Black October UK tour solidified the band's underground cult status, but the growing estrangement between Eldritch and the rest of the group became increasingly problematic during the recording of the debut album 'First And Last And Always'. 

Most songs were written and rehearsed by Marx, Hussey, and Adams, with Eldritch stepping in at the final stage to write lyrics and provide vocals. Following the release of 'First And Last And Always'  Marx departed from the band in the midst of a supporting tour, citing an inability to continue working with Eldritch, and The Sisters completed the tour as a three-piece act, bidding farewell to fans with their final performance at London's Royal Albert Hall on 18 June 1985. Shortly after that last gig, Eldritch relocated to Hamburg, where he was soon joined by Hussey, and their intention was to begin working on a follow-up album, tentatively titled 'Left On Mission And Revenge', for which Hussey had written several songs, including 'Dance On Glass' and 'Garden Of Delight', and demo versions of both songs featuring Eldritch on vocals have since surfaced, suggesting that the band worked on the material together. Adams and Hussey then left the new band to form The Sisterhood, and they were replaced by the American singer and bass guitarist Patricia Morrison, ex-The Gun Club. Meanwhile, Eldritch protested against their use of the Sisterhood name as being too similar to the Sisters of Mercy, and in an attempt to stop Hussey's band, Eldritch released the single 'Giving Ground' by his own band, the Sisterhood, and they followed that with the album 'Gift'. Hussey's band eventually named themselves The Mission, and never recorded as the Sisterhood, just using the name when they went out and played some early gigs. 

Left to his own devices, Eldritch recorded 'Floodland', marking a shift away from guitar-based rock toward atmospheric, Wagnerian rock and the keyboard-oriented explorations pioneered on 'Gift'. The next incarnation of the Sisters Of Mercy featured an unknown German guitarist, Andreas Bruhn, whom Eldritch allegedly discovered playing in a Hamburg pub and brought into the band in April 1989. Joining him were bassist Tony James, formerly of Sigue Sigue Sputnik and Generation X, and last-minute guitar recruit Tim Bricheno, formerly of All About Eve. The new line-up kicked off with the 'Vision Thing' album, released in October 1990, which was produced by Eldritch, and which also featured guitarist John Perry. The band launched a world tour from 1990 to 1991 to promote the album, and following the tour bassist James left the group to pursue a solo career, with the band continuing by using a pre-recorded backing track. The US tour fiasco did not help the already strained relationship between Eldritch and the Sisters' new record company EastWest, and conflicts with WEA led to the termination of the band's US record distribution deal circa 1991–92, meaning later recordings became available in the US only as imports. In 1993 Bricheno left the band and was replaced by Adam Pearson, who was the only guitarist on the single 'Under The Gun', which also featured former Berlin lead vocalist Terri Nunn on backing vocals. The track was co-produced by Billie Hughes, who also co-wrote the song, and it was recorded to promote the "greatest hits" compilation, 'A Slight Case Of Overbombing', which was released in 1993. 

Bruhn left the group shortly afterwards, and that single was the last new material to be released by the group. In 1996, the name was revived for several gigs supporting the Sex Pistols, with Bruhn's place initially taken by Chris Sheehan, although during subsequent tours the guitarist position rotated between Sheehan and Mike Varjak. In late 1997, the contract with EastWest was terminated after the company agreed to accept material recorded under the SSV name instead of the two albums for which the Sisters of Mercy had contractual obligations, but Eldritch presented them with an album of techno-like droning featuring mumbling vocals and with no drums. After hearing the record EastWest dumped the band and refused to release it, and the recordings have only ever circulated through pirate MP3s (and on this site). In 2005, the Sisters Of Mercy recruited Chris Catalyst as a guitarist, followed by the addition of Ben Christo on guitar in 2006, and they embarked on a world tour that spanned North and South America and Europe. The group has maintained an active touring schedule ever since, performing at headline shows and music festivals almost every year, showcasing both released and unreleased material, but they have so far avoided the recording studio, and so none of the new songs have appeared on an album. In an interview with Classic Rock magazine, Eldritch has confirmed that he saw no reason to release an album, citing time constraints and a lack of available material as some of the issues involved. As a reminder of the music that they produced during their classic period between 1980 and 1993, here is a 4CD collection of b-sides, non-album singles, radio sessions and unreleased demos.

Track listing

Disc I - 1980-1982
01 Floorshow (from the 'Floorshow' demo EP 1981)
02 Lights (from the 'Floorshow' demo EP 1981)
03 Teachers/Adrenochrome (from the 'Floorshow' demo EP 1981)
04 The Damage Done (single 1980)
05 Watch (b-side of 'The Damage Done')
06 Home Of The Hit-Men (b-side of 'The Damage Done')
07 Body Electric (single 1982)
08 Adrenochrome (b-side of 'Body Electric')
09 Afterhours (b-side of 'Body Electric')
10 Alice (single 1982)
11 Floorshow (b-side of 'Alice')
12 1969 (b-side of 'Alice')

Disc II - 1982-1983
01 Good Things (John Peel session 1982)
02 Driver (previously unreleased 1982) 
03 Anaconda (single 1983)
04 Phantom (b-side of 'Anaconda')
05 Kiss The Carpet (from the 'Reptile House' EP 1983)
06 Lights (from the 'Reptile House' EP 1983)
07 Valentine (from the 'Reptile House' EP 1983)
08 Fix (from the 'Reptile House' EP 1983)
09 Burn (from the 'Reptile House' EP 1983)
10 Kiss The Carpet (Reprise) (from the 'Reptile House' EP 1983)
11 Jolene (Kid Jensen session 1983)

Disc III - 1983-1984
01 Temple Of Love (single 1983)
02 Heartland (b-side of 'Temple Of Love')
03 Gimme Shelter (b-side of 'Temple Of Love')
04 Wide Receiver (unreleased demo 1983)
05 Body And Soul (single 1984)
06 Train (b-side of 'Body And Soul')
07 Poison Door (b-side of 'Walk Away' 1984)
08 On The Wire (b-side of 'Walk Away' 1984)
09 Long Train (flexi-disc 1984)
10 Garden Of Delight (Eldritch vocal) (unreleased demo 1984)
11 Garden Of Delight (Hussey vocal) (unreleased demo 1984)

Disc IV - 1984-1993
01 Serpent's Kiss (unreleased demo 1984)
02 Blood Money (b-side of 'No Time To Cry' 1985)
03 Bury Me Deep (b-side of 'No Time To Cry' 1985)
04 Torch (b-side of 'This Corrosion' 1987)
05 Colours (b-side of 'This Corrosion' 1987)
06 Untitled (b-side of 'Dominion' 1988)
07 Sandstorm (b-side of 'Dominion' 1988)
08 Ozymandias (b-side of 'Dominion' 1988)
09 Emma (b-side of 'Dominion' 1988)
10 You Could Be The One (b-side of 'More' 1990)
11 Knocking On Heaven's Door (b-side of 'Doctor Jeep' 1990)
12 Under The Gun (single 1993) 

Len Barry - It's That Time Of The Year (1966)

Leonard Warren Borisoff, known professionally by the stage name Len Barry, was born on 12 June 1942, and was raised in Philadelphia. He had little thought of a show business career while still in school, as he aspired to become a professional basketball player, and it was not until he entered military service and had occasion to sing with the US Coast Guard band at Cape May, New Jersey, that he decided to make music a career. On his discharge from military service, Barry returned home to Philadelphia and formed the Dovells, with him as the lead singer, appearing on all of the group's best-selling records, such as 'Bristol Stomp', 'Hully Gully Baby', and 'You Can't Sit Down'. 'Bristol Stomp' sold over one million copies and was awarded a RIAA gold disc, and the group toured with James Brown. Barry also made film appearances with the Dovells in films such as 'Don't Knock The Twist', and the band toured the UK with the Motown Revue. Barry left the Dovells in 1964 and signed a solo deal with Cameo Records, who released two singles before he moved to Decca Records in the US and Brunswick Records in the UK. His first single for the new label was the smash hit '1-2-3', which he followed with 'Like A Baby' the same year, and he also co-wrote 'I Struck It Rich' with Leon Huff of the Philadelphia International Records producers, Gamble and Huff. His first two hits also made the Top Ten of the UK Singles Chart, with '1-2-3' reaching number three. He released his first album, also called '1-2-3' in 1965, and he soon became a major singing star in the UK. In 1966 he recorded his second album for Brunswick, and the title track was released as a single. 'It's That Time Of The Year' was another co-write with Leon Huff, and it was backed by 'Happily Ever After', but shortly after that release Barry signed a deal with RCA Records, and so Brunswick cancelled the album. Reportedly only three original copies without artwork exist from the aborted 1966 pressing, and so it has become Barry's most sought after record. It's a great R&B/pop album, very much of its time, and you can now hear what his fans have longed for, complete with contemporary cover art. 

Track listing

01 It's That Time Of The Year
02 I'll Always Need You
03 Soul Concerto
04 It's A Cryin' Shame
05 Happily Ever After
06 Love, Love, Love
07 Somewhere
08 I'm In Love
09 Love Is A Many Splendored Thing
10 Love Is
11 First Kiss To The Last
12 When You Call Me Baby

Nearly there with the cover art upgrades

I've now finished working my way through the whole site, and picked out the albums whose covers could do with improvement, and so here are the final batch that I've run through the programmes that I've been using. There will be one more batch in a few days which I was able to improve just by using colour adjustments and brightness/contrast, and then that will be every post updated. 
While I was adding the new cover the The Who's 'Rock Is Dead...Long Live Rock' I had a nagging feeling that there was something that I wasn't happy with on that album, and it was the fact that I had to use a live recording for the final reprise of the title track, and the sound was therefore a bit muddy compared to the other tracks. I've now boosted the high register to make it sound a bit clearer, and I've also removed the crowd at the end, so that the final chord ends the album in an echoey silence.  

    

    

 

Van Morrison - Hard Nose The Highway (1973)

Van Morrison released his sixth album, 'St. Dominic's Preview', in 1972, and it was warmly received by both fans and critics alike, with Erik Hage writing "it is one of the strongest albums in the Van Morrison canon because it seems to adapt and incorporate all of the lessons and discoveries of the rich period of evolution that came before it while still opening up new windows". Morrison now had to follow that with something as good, or even better, and so he built a recording studio next door to his home in Fairfax, California, and assembled a team of musicians that he felt could bring his new songs to life. This was to be the first album that was completely produced under his control, and during a series of prolific recording sessions, Morrison recorded nearly thirty songs, with at least three quarters of them original compositions. In fact, the new album would be his first solo album since his 1967 debut 'Blowin' Your Mind!' to contain songs not written by Morrison, and covers included the song 'Bein' Green', usually associated with Kermit the Frog, and a take of the traditional song 'Purple Heather'. In the end there was more than enough material to fill a double-album, and so Morrison proposed the idea to Warner Bros. Records, but he was ultimately convinced to release a single LP. A few of the leftover tracks, such as 'Bulbs' and 'Country Fair', were saved and re-recorded for his next album 'Veedon Fleece', but most of them, including 'Madame Joy', 'Contemplation Rose' and 'Drumshanbo Hustle', were consigned to the vaults. On the abridged version of the album, 'Snow In San Anselmo' is the opening song, featuring the backing vocals of the Oakland Symphony Chamber Chorus, and this was followed by 'Warm Love', which was released as a successful single. 'Bein' Green' was the first non-original composition Morrison had included on any album for Warner Bros., and the ten and a half-minute 'Autumn Song' reflects the splendours and moods of the season. The album enjoyed rave reviews at the time of release, although one dissenting critic, Charlie Gillett, didn't think the record lived up to the high standards that Morrison had set himself. If you've ever wondered what a double-album version of this release would have sounded like, then you can now experience just that, as I've slotted back in nine of the songs which were excised to trim it down to a single disc, and as would be expected, considering that they were recorded at the same time as the original eight songs which did make the record, they perfectly match the mood of those other recordings.   

Track listing

01 Snow In San Anselmo 
02 Warm Love 
03 Madame Joy
04 Contemplation Rose
05 Hard Nose The Highway 
06 Not Supposed To Break Down
07 Wild Children 
08 Laughing In The Wind
09 Try For Sleep
10 The Great Deception 
11 Don't Worry About Tomorrow
12 Bein' Green 
13 Wonderful Remark
14 Autumn Song 
15 Lover's Prayer
16 Drumshanbo Hustle
17 Purple Heather 

Atlanta Rhythm Section - Sleep With One Eye Open (1983)

In the spring of 1970, former members of the Candymen (Rodney Justo, Dean Daughtry and Robert Nix) and the Classics IV (Daughtry and James B. Cobb Jr.) became the session band for the newly opened Studio One recording studio in Doraville, Georgia, near Atlanta. After playing on other artists' recordings, the Atlanta Rhythm Section was christened in May 1970, with Justo (singer), Barry Bailey (guitar), Paul Goddard (bass), Daughtry (keyboards), Nix (drums) and Cobb (guitar), and they were soon signed by Decca Records, who released their first album, 'Atlanta Rhythm Section', in January 1972. Due to the record's limited commercial success, Justo quit the band and relocated to New York City as a session singer, being replaced by Ronnie Hammond. With Hammond on board, the band's second release, 'Back Up Against The Wall' appeared in February 1973, but it also failed to sell, and Decca dumped ARS from their roster. After signing to Polydor, they released their third album, 'Third Annual Pipe Dream', in August 1974, yielding the band's first hit single, 'Doraville', which peaked at #35, and pulled the album up to #74 on Billboard's Top 200. Their next two releases, 1975's 'Dog Days' and 'Red Tape' from 1976 sold in even lesser quantities, but the band toured extensively through those years, and they appeared with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra during an outdoor show in Atlanta's Chastain Park in July 1975. 

The increased exposure paid off as the group's next album, December 1976's 'A Rock and Roll Alternative', rose to #13 on the Billboard chart and was certified gold in the spring of 1977. In January 1978 the band released what would turn out to be its most successful album, 'Champagne Jam', which led off with the song 'Large Time', a tribute to Lynyrd Skynyrd, some of whom had lost their lives in a plane crash the previous October. 'Champagne Jam' became their biggest-selling album, shifting over a million units and being certified platinum. The album provided two more hits for the band, 'Imaginary Lover', which reached #7, and 'I'm Not Gonna Let It Bother Me Tonight' which peaked at #14. On 24 June 1978 the band appeared at the Knebworth Festival in Knebworth, England before a crowd of 60,000, on a bill that included Genesis, Jefferson Starship, Brand X, Devo and Roy Harper. The eighth Atlanta Rhythm Section album, 'Underdog', was released in June 1979, and produced Top 20 hits 'Do It or Die' and 'Spooky', which was a remake of Cobb's and Buie's 1968 Classics IV hit. Early in 1979, drummer and primary lyricist Nix had a falling out with manager/producer Buie over the group's musical direction, wishing to move the band in a more rocking direction, while Buie was content with their current approach, which incorporated the mellower ballads. The rest of the band's dissatisfaction with Nix's excessive "lifestyle choices" sealed his fate and he was replaced by Roy Yeager, who had previously played for Lobo. 

'The Boys from Doraville' appeared in August 1980, but showed a steep falling off in sales for the group as radio programmers began turning their attention away from Southern rock to other rock genres, such as new wave. The album provided no hit singles and was their last for Polydor. Bruce Lundvall offered a better deal at Columbia Records (CBS), who released the next ARS album, 'Quinella', in August 1981, which containing the hit single 'Alien', but like 'The Boys From Doraville', it struggled with sales. In 1982 ARS worked on a second album for CBS, to be titled Sleep With One Eye Open', but before completion, CBS wanted the band to drop some of the tracks and record more. Insiders regarded some of the tracks as among the best work the group had ever done, but CBS wanted to swap out certain songs, leading to a standstill and a creative dispute that resulted in the album being shelved entirely, and CBS dropping its contract with the group. Late in 1982 singer Ronnie Hammond decided to leave ARS for a solo career, and was joined by Buie, although their work with Alabama musicians never resulted in commercial release. The disappointment over the unreleased album, and the fact that CBS kept them in limbo for months by not releasing them from their contact, signalled the end for the first incarnation of ARS, but if 'Sleep With One Eye Open' had been released as the band intended then it might have turned around their fortunes, but we'll never know. Give it a listen, and if you are already a fan then you'll be able to tell if this would have been their swansong, or if CBS were right to can it. 

Track listing

01 Sleep With One Eye Open
02 High Time
03 Longing For A Feeling
04 Long Distance Love
05 Stone Cold Hit
06 Two Note Boogie
07 Bad Situation
08 Wine With Dinner

Cover art upgrades again

I'm still working my way through the site and picking out covers that I think are in need of improvement, and while I've been generally pleased with the subtle improvements that have been made, the cover for Gordon Lightfoot's 'Day Before Yesterday' was so washed out and pale that when I asked for the colour to be improved the programme gave it a complete makeover. I'm really pleased that I've managed to improve the She Trinity and The Orchids covers (where one of the girls had her eyes closed), as it was a disappointment that I couldn't find better pictures at the time. And speaking of She Trinity, I decided to listen to them again while sorting out their cover, and some of their tracks were ripped from really scratchy singles, so I've either sourced new copies or improved the ones I used, so that post has now had a complete revamp. Soulseek updated, and a new link will be in the next links pdf.

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

UK - Waiting For You (1979)

In 1972, John Wetton (formerly of Family) and Bill Bruford (formerly of Yes) both joined King Crimson, recording three albums before guitarist Robert Fripp disbanded the group at the end of 1974. Wetton then spent a brief time with Roxy Music, who also included Eddie Jobson, before joining Uriah Heep for two albums. In July 1976, after leaving Uriah Heep, Wetton reconnected with Bruford, recording demos originally proposed for a Wetton solo album, but by September they'd formed a band with keyboardist Rick Wakeman, who had previously worked with Bruford in Yes. The project was stopped after rehearsals by Wakeman's label, and so Bruford and Wetton next approached Robert Fripp to reform King Crimson, but when Fripp eventually declined, Bruford and Wetton decided that each would choose a musician in order to form a new band. Wetton brought in Eddie Jobson, who since leaving Roxy Music in 1976 had joined Frank Zappa's band, thus "stealing" him from Zappa, while Bruford recruited Allan Holdsworth, formerly of Soft Machine, Nucleus, Gong, Tempest and The Tony Williams Lifetime, who had played on Bruford's debut solo album, 'Feels Good To Me', in 1978. The band's formation coincided with the introduction of the Yamaha CS-80 synthesizer, and this instrument became an integral part of their developing sound. Naming themselves UK, they released their self-titled debut album in 1978, and followed it with a supporting tour and two lengthy American tours, but when they were finished Wetton and Jobson decided to fire Holdsworth over musical differences and, since Bruford had indicated to Wetton that he would favour Holdsworth’s more improvisational approach in the event of a disagreement on the direction of the band, he was also fired and another former bandmate of Jobson's, Terry Bozzio, was brought in to replace him. 

UK attempted unsuccessfully to find another guitarist, notably auditioning a then-unknown Steve Vai, before resolving to continue as a trio, and as such they recorded the studio album 'Danger Money', released in March 1979. The album spawned a minor hit single, 'Nothing To Lose', which reached number 67 on the UK charts, and a live album, 'Night After Night', was recorded in Japan that spring and released in September 1979. Following a final European tour in December 1979, and in spite of plans to record a new studio album in the USA in March 1980, UK disbanded as Jobson and Wetton had different ideas on how the band should develop. Jobson wanted UK to go on with more long instrumental pieces, while Wetton thought that performing shorter, more commercial songs was a better idea, with one particularly pop-oriented song, 'When Will You Realize', contributing to the band dissolving. Jobson worked with Jethro Tull on their 1980 album 'A', while Wetton, following the recording of his solo album 'Caught In The Crossfire' in 1980, started Asia with Steve Howe, Carl Palmer and Geoffrey Downes, and Bozzio formed Missing Persons with his then-wife Dale Bozzio. When Bruford left the band, they kept a couple of his songs which they sometimes played live, and Jobson had also written a couple of instrumentals, and so they already had enough material for the fourth album that they were planning to record in the USA. As they never got round to that, I've taken all the tracks that we have from them post the 'Danger Money' album, and put together a third "studio" album from the group. 

Track listing

01 Forever Until Sunday
02 As Long As You Want Me Here
03 Waiting For You
04 Night After Night
05 Nostalgia
06 When Will You Realise
07 The Sahara Of Snow

Pink Floyd - It Would Be So Nice (1970)

This post is very much an album that I wish existed, as I fancied hearing some of Floyd's early singles, and when I looked in my Pink Floyd folder on the laptop I had so many collections by the group that it was overwhelming. There were the official releases, live albums, bootlegs, collections that I'd put together, collections that other people had put together, anthologies and archive box sets, soundtrack albums, and some that I'd downloaded when I saw them but have only listened to them once, such as 'Wish You Were Tranced', 'Double Core', 'Early Flights', and even a live concert with Frank Zappa. What I couldn't find was an album of just their early singles, and so just for my own listening pleasure I put this collection together. I just wanted the original seven singles from 1967 to 1970, plus their b-sides, (single edits if they were taken from an album), plus the studio version of 'Embryo', the aborted single 'Scream Thy Last Scream', and the second album out-take 'Vegetable Man'. Now that I have these songs all together in one place I'm sure that I'll play them much more often than if I have to hunt around for them on the dozens of Floyd albums that I have. And if anyone out there has the same problem as me, then this should solve it for you as well.   

Track listing

01 Arnold Layne (single 1967)

02 Candy And A Currant Bun (b-side of 'Arnold Layne')

03 See Emily Play (single 1967)

04 Scarecrow (b-side of 'See Emily Play')

05 Scream Thy Last Scream (aborted single 1967)

06 Apples And Oranges (single 1967)

07 Paint Box (b-side of 'Apples And Oranges')

08 Point Me At The Sky (single 1968)

09 Careful With That Axe Eugene (b-side of 'Point Me At The Sky')

10 It Would Be So Nice (single 1968)

11 Julia Dream (b-side of 'It Would Be So Nice')

12 Vegetable Man (second album out-take 1968)

13 Let There Be More Light (single 1968)

14 Remember A Day (b-side of 'Let There Be More Light')

15 Embryo (studio version 1970)

16 The Nile Song (single 1970)

17 Ibiza Bar (b-side of 'The Nile Song')