The Mighty Lemon Drops - Going Under (1991) **UPDATE**

It seems that something went drastically wrong with this post back in November, as jman has already had to point out that one track was wrongly numbered, which I thought that I'd fixed, but it turned out to be much worse than that. After checking it again following a comment from Leon, I found that the track titled 'Rollercoaster' wasn't 'Rollercoaster' at all, and the track titled 'Splash #1' was in fact 'Rollercoaster'. I'd also duplicated 'Out Of Hand' and titled it 'Going Under', and of course 'Splash #1' was missing altogether, as was 'Count Me Out'. So not one of my better efforts. It's all now fixed, so if you've already downloaded it but didn't notice the errors, then you can now get the corrected version from Soulseek or Mega. 

Track listing

Disc One 1985-1988

01 Now She's Gone (b-side of 'Like An Angel' 1985)

02 Sympathise With Us (b-side of 'Like An Amgel' 1985)

03 Uptight (b-side of 'The Other Side Of You' 1986)

04 Open Mind (b-side of 'My Biggest Thrill' 1986)

05 Rollercoaster (b-side of 'My Biggest Thrill' EP 1986)

06 Wait And See (b-side of 'My Biggest Thrill' EP 1986)

07 Waiting For The Rain (Radio 1 Janice Long session 1986)

08 When I Dream (Radio 1 Janice Long session 1986)

09 Out Of Hand (single 1987)

10 Going Under (b-side of 'Out Of Hand')

11 Splash #1 (Now I'm Home) (b-side of 'Out Of Hand' EP 1987)

12 Count Me Out (b-side of 'Out Of Hand' EP 1987)

13 World Without End (previously unreleased 1988)

Disc Two 1988-1991

01 Shine (b-side of 'Inside Out' 1988)

02 Head On The Block (b-side of 'Inside Out' 1988)

03 Paint It Black (b-side of 'Fall Down (Like The Rain)' 1988)

04 Laughter (b-side of 'Fall Down (Like The Rain)' 1988)

05 Rumbletrain (b-side of 'Into The Heart Of Love' 1989)

06 Sometimes Good Guys Don't Wear White (b-side of 'Into The Heart Of Love' 1989)

07 Forever Home At Heart (b-side of 'Beautiful Shame' 1989)

08 Discontent (b-side of 'Too High' 1991)

09 We Love You (b-side of 'Too High' 1991)

10 You Don't Fast (b-side of 'Too High' 1991)            

11 In Vain (previously unreleased 1991)

12 Another Girl, Another Planet (b-side of 'Unkind' 1991)

Thanks to Leon for spotting this and letting me know. 

   

The Mighty Lemon Drops - Going Under (1991)

In December of 1985, The Mighty Lemon Drops released their debut single 'Like An Angel' on regional indie Dreamworld Records, owned and run by Television Personalities' Dan Treacy, and it rose to number one on the U.K. indie chart. After appearing on NME's influential C-86 compilation, the band signed with Geoff Travis' new Chrysalis subsidiary Blue Guitar in the U.K., and with Sire in North America, and they set about recording their debut album 'Happy Head'. When it was released in 1986 it was well-received and was reported by a Sounds magazine critics poll to be one of the 50 best albums of the year. They followed it up with 1987's 'Out Of Hand', and then again in 1988 with their third album 'World Without End', which yielded the hit 'Inside Out'. 'World Without End' rose to number 33 on the U.K. charts and to number one on the U.S. College chart in 1988, but later that year the band parted ways with Chrysalis, although they kept their contract with Sire in the U.S. During sessions for their fourth album, 'Laughter', Linehan left the band and was replaced on bass by Marcus Williams, and as the band remained popular in the American modern rock scene, 'Laughter' debuted at number one on the College charts, even managing to crack the Billboard Top 200 pop chart. The band continued writing and recording their brand of well-made, melodic alt-pop, and released two more albums before disbanding, with 'Sound...' coming out in late 1991, and their final studio album, 'Ricochet' appearing just before their split in 1992. Alongside their album they also released a number of fine singles, and most of them had exclusive tracks on the flip, including some interesting covers of classic 60's psyche, such as The 13th Floor Elevators' 'Splash #1' and The Rolling Stones' 'We Love' You', as well as contemporary songs like The Teardrop Explodes' 'When I Dream' and The Only Ones' 'Another Girl, Another Planet'. So here they all are in one place, so that you can enjoy some rare recordings from one of the founder members of the once much-maligned, but now much-loved, C86 movement.   

Track listing

Disc One 1985-1988
01 Now She's Gone (b-side of 'Like An Angel' 1985)
02 Sympathise With Us (b-side of 'Like An Amgel' 1985)
03 Uptight (b-side of 'The Other Side Of You' 1986)
04 Open Mind (b-side of 'My Biggest Thrill' 1986)
05 Rollercoaster (b-side of 'My Biggest Thrill' EP 1986)
06 Wait And See (b-side of 'My Biggest Thrill' EP 1986)
07 Waiting For The Rain (Radio 1 Janice Long session 1986)
08 When I Dream (Radio 1 Janice Long session 1986)
09 Out Of Hand (single 1987)
10 Going Under (b-side of 'Out Of Hand')
11 Splash #1 (Now I'm Home) (b-side of 'Out Of Hand' EP 1987)
12 Count Me Out (b-side of 'Out Of Hand' EP 1987)
13 World Without End (previously unreleased 1988)

Disc Two 1988-1991
01 Shine (b-side of 'Inside Out' 1988)
02 Head On The Block (b-side of 'Inside Out' 1988)
03 Paint It Black (b-side of 'Fall Down (Like The Rain)' 1988)
04 Laughter (b-side of 'Fall Down (Like The Rain)' 1988)
05 Rumbletrain (b-side of 'Into The Heart Of Love' 1989)
06 Sometimes Good Guys Don't Wear White (b-side of 'Into The Heart Of Love' 1989)
07 Forever Home At Heart (b-side of 'Beautiful Shame' 1989)
08 Discontent (b-side of 'Too High' 1991)
09 We Love You (b-side of 'Too High' 1991)
10 You Don't Fast (b-side of 'Too High' 1991)            
11 In Vain (previously unreleased 1991)
12 Another Girl, Another Planet (b-side of 'Unkind' 1991)

The Mighty Lemon Drops - Some Of My Best Friends Are Songs (1986)

The Mighty Lemon Drops formed in Wolverhampton in 1985, and featured Paul Marsh (vocals/guitar), David Newton (guitar), Tony Linehan (bass) and Keith Rowley (drums), who had all enjoyed chequered careers in numerous Wolverhampton outfits. Newton had previously played with Active Restraint in 1982, which also included Marsh and Linehan. They in turn played regularly alongside Another Dream, and both bands featured on single releases by local label Watchdog Video And Records. Newton and Neal Cook of Another Dream put together the Wild Flowers, alongside Dave Atherton, and after a further single and a support to Simple Minds, Newton moved on once more, forming the Sherbert Monsters with Marsh and Linehan, later changing their name to The Mighty Lemon Drops. The temporary drummer was Martin Gilks (later with the Wonder Stuff), before Keith Rowley stepped in full-time. Their first recordings were issued as a cassette under the title of 'Some Of My Best Friends Are Songs', which included a number of songs that would later be re-recorded for their debut album, although a couple of other tracks remain exclusive to the tape. Only 150 copies were run off, and they were originally sold at gigs, with the leftovers being sold by mail order. In June and July of 1986 the band recorded some demos in Birmingham, and you can hear how much they'd progressed in that year from those early recordings. They'd already released their first single, 1985's 'Like An Angel', on Dan Treacy's Dreamworld Records label, and had recorded three tracks for the NME's 'C86' cassette album, of which 'Happy Head' was selected for inclusion, putting them at the forefront of the nascent jangle-pop genre that the cassette was trying to promote. By adding the 1986 Birmingham demos to the eight songs from the 'Best Friends' cassette we have an album from the very earliest days of the band, showing that even at the start of their career they knew where they wanted to go. 

Track listing

01 Pass You By
02 Take My Heart
03 My Biggest Thrill
04 Like An Angel
05 My Feelings
06 Sympathize With Us
07 Behind Your Back
08 On My Mind
09 Now She's Gone
10 There She Goes Again
11 Uptight
12 Take Me Up
13 Hypnotized