Innholdsfortegnelse for September - October 2023 i Classic Pop

Across his illustrious back catalogue, Prince may have released more hard-hitting studio albums (Sign O’ The Times), or even more grandiose (Purple Rain) – but did he ever create anything as downright entertaining front-to-back as Diamonds And Pearls? The Purple One’s 1991 pop masterpiece has always been my personal favourite of his, instantly transporting me back to a shared house at uni where the record battled for supremacy on our stereo that year alongside Nevermind, Blue Lines and Screamadelica. So the news that Prince’s team are preparing another of their stunning boxsets specifically for Diamonds And Pearls is hugely exciting. Its run of six singles were fantastic, helping the parent album to sales of six million and counting. From bangers to ballads and jazzy numbers, Diamonds And Pearls has it…

Thousands of mourners gathered in the County Wicklow town of Bray as Sinéad O’Connor was laid to rest on 8 August. The public were able to pay their final respects to the singer when the cortège passed through Bray’s seafront following a private funeral service. Irish President Michael D Higgins, Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar and Bob Geldof were among the mourners. Shaykh Dr Umar Al-Qadri, the Islamic scholar and chief imam at the Islamic Centre of Ireland, delivered the eulogy at the funeral. He said: “Gifted with a voice that moved a generation of young people, [Sinéad] could reduce listeners to tears by her otherworldly resonance. Her voice carried with it an undertone of hope, of finding one’s way home.” On the weekend before her funeral, 30-foot tall letters…

GIRLIE GIRLIE SOPHIA GEORGE Jamaican singer Sophia George hit the charts as Christmas approached in 1985 with a gentle reggae singalong about a man with too many female friends. The lyrics were inspired by the estranged partner of producer Sangie Davis after she saw a large number of girls chatting away to him in Kingston. Intending it as an insult, she labelled him “so girlie girlie”, but Davis saw the potential in the phrase and quickly wrote some lyrics. The 21-year-old George, a wannabe singer working as a teacher of deaf children, recorded the song after her manager, a friend of Davis, heard him repeating the chorus over and over. It became an enormous hit in Jamaica and, after entering the Top 40 in the UK at No.39, enjoyed a…

BITTER SWEET KING Paul King, and the band that took his surname, managed to both shoot to fame and sink without trace in 12 exhausting months, with their second album providing a sudden and unexpected last hurrah. Barely had the coins been counted from the sales of debut LP Steps In Time and enormous breakthrough hit Love & Pride that the follow-up was in the pressing plant and launch single Alone Without You, the album’s mighty opener, was making a gigantic leap into the Top 10. Second single The Taste Of Your Tears, with a ticklish piano and masculine harmonies, was a worthy big hit, proving the charismatic, handsome lead singer certainly had capability for catchy songwriting. However, there wasn’t enough of it here on an album afflicted by too…

If rock stars have, to borrow Neil Tennant’s famous phrase, an ‘imperial phase’, then 1985 found Midge Ure scaling the dizzy peak of his. It was a year that began with Band Aid’s box-fresh Do They Know It’s Christmas? at No.1 in the charts, and closed out with a triumphant show at Wembley Arena. Between those festive bookends, the 31-year-old singer, songwriter, musician and producer had also released his debut solo album, landed a No.1 single and helped pull off “the greatest show on Earth” as one of the architects of Live Aid, at which he also performed as part of his day job fronting Ultravox. “They were heady times,” says Ure, with no small understatement, when Classic Pop catches up with him over Zoom at his home studio in…

RUN ON/MODERN SKY ★★/★★★★ No strangers to an experimental album, The Coral went Top Five with the gonzoid Nightfreak And The Sons Of Becker five months after Magic And Medicine gave them their only No.1 in 2003. This time, following 2021’s acclaimed Coral Island successfully merging all their worlds, they’re releasing the low-key companion album at the same time as its parent. Frankly, it’s a mistake. Sea Of Mirrors is getting the attention, complete with Cillian Murphy starring in the video for the contemplative Oceans Apart. Trouble is, the whole of that album is stuck in a thoughtful and serene tone. It’s The Coral at their most laidback and ageappropriate – fine for a few songs, but anyone who wants their usual fire is likely to drift off into a…

YOUNG ★★★★ The last of The xx to release a solo album, singer Romy Madley Croft actually began her debut in 2018, when she was co-writing with Fred Again for Dua Lipa and King Princess. That spawned album opener Loveher, with Fred’s subsequently honed mastery of sad bangers in his own acclaimed trio of long-players, Actual Life 1-3, perfect for Romy’s melancholic voice. Stuart Price produces, too, with bandmate Jamie xx’s production cameo on the tender Enjoy Your Life a highlight among many here. A love letter to queer clubs as well as her wife, video director Vic Lentaigne, Mid Air is actually more universal than Romy’s band and, for unabashed pop, even more direct than Jamie xx’s justly acclaimed dancefloor album In Colour. The euphoric Twice and elastic Did…

COOKING VINYL ★★★★ As the man who, as the DJ at iconic 70s nightclub the Roxy, introduced the punks to reggae, took Joe Strummer to a reggae all-nighter and thus inspired White Man (In Hammersmith Palais) and the film buff who sourced the samples for Big Audio Dynamite, Don Letts’ place in British pop folklore is secure. From filmmaking to writing to radio presenting, Letts has virtually done it all, so a debut solo album? At the age of 67, when most of his fellow music pensioners are putting up their feet? Why not? As you’d expect from his CV, Outta Sync is largely indebted to reggae, with splashes of punk attitude, a bit of ska and plenty of wisdom accrued from the pivotal role that he’s long held in…

SONY ★★★ Having nearly split to leave singer Roy Stride to his sideline writing for 5 Seconds Of Summer and Jax Jones, the trio find their purpose again. Running To You and The Missing Part have the zest that made She’s So Lovely so huge, while the title track and fatherhood ode Marnie’s Lullaby have a passionate simplicity that previously eluded them. A couple of songs tip over from sweet into schmaltz, but the good nature and ability to turn a simple idea into something new ensures most of this new album will join their festival anthemics perfectly. JE…

SONIC CATHEDRAL ★★★★ For a certain generation, she’ll always be One Dove’s singer, but nowadays Dot Allison operates in The Wicker Man’s shadow. Hannah Peel aids Allison’s otherworldly vulnerability, elevating Milk And Honey with delicate string arrangements and overcoming Moon Flowers’ Nick Drake echoes. The acoustic spell is punctuated by understated percussion on the clarinetembellished Shyness Of Crowns and during Weeping Roses’ “flowering” climax. Ride’s Andy Bell pops up twice, including on the delicate Double Rainbow. WW…

WARNER ★★★★ Originally released in 2006, Electronic’s Best Of arrived at a juncture when the duo could conceivably have been a going concern: New Order’s split with bassist Peter Hook was about to emerge, while Johnny Marr was happily touring with Modest Mouse, but seven years away from releasing his first solo LP. While Marr and Bernard Sumner remain friends, the chances of them making a fourth Electronic LP grow vanishingly smaller every year. Both are now content in their regular work, and who can begrudge them that? Still, for three albums bookending the 90s, Electronic were one of the great pop supergroups, a proper meeting of minds. Enhanced by Pet Shop Boys on vocals and keyboards, Getting Away With It was a sensational debut single. That they then promptly…

SFE ★★★★ When Pet Shop Boys started their own record label, Spaghetti, in 1991, they released singles by German Eurodance trio Masterboy and Ignorants, an R&B duo comprised of two PSB backing dancers. Boy George’s theme to The Crying Game was also on Spaghetti. The label’s only album is this curio by Scottish musician David Cicero, whose offering of a demo to PSB’s PA after their gig in Glasgow was very handily timed. Despite backing vocals from Neil Tennant, keyboards from Chris Lowe and production by PSB on four songs, Future Boy failed to chart in 1993. Reissued for its 30th anniversary, including a first-time vinyl release, the album’s failure seems unfair, both to Cicero and to Tennant & Lowe’s A&R skills. True, the am-dram political pop of The Butcher…

NOW ★★★★★ NOW are no newcomers to the world of soul music compilations. Both 2017’s 3CD Now That’s What I Call Classic Soul and the more recent 4CD NOW Decades Of Soul from 2021 proved they had a firm grasp on the very best the genre has to offer. They’ve outdone themselves here, though, with this latest 5LP vinyl release, which doesn’t put a foot wrong across its dazzling 85 tracks. It’s an ideal introduction for anyone wanting to get to grips with soul in all its varying flavours. Selecting the most well-known tracks from soul icons including Aretha, Stevie, Otis and Marvin, NOW are in the fortunate position of being able to delve into the back catalogues of many of the greatest vocalists to ever stand in front of…

CHERRY RED ★★★★ These days, Toyah Willcox memorably spends her time covering Slipknot and Nirvana with husband Robert Fripp as part of their Sunday Lunch YouTube phenomenon. As her reissue campaign has been serving notice, in the 80s Toyah was on an equally offbeat path as the fiery figurehead of her namesake band. Produced by Steve Lillywhite, 1982’s The Changeling was their second consecutive album to reach the UK Top 10. This remastered deluxe version is a comprehensive look at how The Changeling came to sound so unique. A 2CD release features 31 bonus tracks, in the form of different vocal takes, instrumentals and work-inprogress versions, while the 3CD+2LP super deluxe set throws in another disc housing 18 previously unreleased tunes. These archival gems are illuminating, such as an instrumental…

CHERRY POP ★★★★ Sheena Easton’s ballad-heavy third album receives a welldeserved second look. Quirky pop hit Machinery and the horn-sharpened There When I Needed You have aged well, while Easton’s version of Bette Midler’s future standard Wind Beneath My Wings impresses. Newly remastered, the CD also boasts eight bonus tracks, including a punchier version of Weekend In Paris and the unreleased midtempo rocker The Lonely Stay Alone. A bonus DVD features the first release of Easton’s TV special Act One. AZ…

BMG/MUTE ★★★★ Originally released in 2015 and now on vinyl for the first time, these 20 tracks form a wellchosen all-eras set, now including a song each from World Be Gone and The Neon. A vinyl best-of was much needed. If there’s no pleasing everyone – what, no Am I Right? or You Surround Me? – then within the constraints of four sides of vinyl this is a great celebration, in the lineage of Erasure’s classic Pop! comp. Chronologically arranged, it shows the duo lost their way in the noughties but have recently come galloping back. JE…

YOUNG TIKI ★★★★ Effectively Primal Scream’s real debut before Sonic Flower Groove emerged, this 16-song set houses three Radio 1 sessions plus first singles It Happens and Crystal Crescent. The landmark compilation C86 means most fans know Velocity Girl, but this fresh assemblage shows how unified Bobby Gillespie and guitarist Jim Beattie were in sounding the spikiest janglers around: Gillespie’s innocence offset by Beattie’s helter-skelter guitars. Equally good as history lesson and indie headrush. JE…

FABER & FABER ★★★★★ When it comes to documenting one of the most iconic and notorious record labels of its time, not to mention the antics of the motley crew responsible for its rise and demise, My Magpie Eyes Are Hungry For The Prize ranks among the greats. First published in 2000, shortly after the implosion of Creation, this encyclopedic history of the indie colossus has long been regarded as the authority, not only on the label, but on the indie scene in general. Essentially, it serves as a guide on how to, or rather how not to run a label. Back to coincide with the 40th anniversary of the start-up of Creation, this anecdotal feast traces founder Alan McGee’s humble beginnings in Glasgow and follows his pursuit of success…

The winner of the Best Writer, Specialist category, in 2022’s British Society of Magazine Editors Awards, our latest issue sees John Earls meet the New Power Generation and the team behind the Diamonds And Pearls boxset, plus he chats to Soft Cell and oversees our new albums and reissues reviews sections. Paul Kirkley makes his living from interviewing famous people with much more interesting and glamorous lives than his own. He is also, to the best of his knowledge, the only paid TV critic for a national supermarket chain. This issue, he follows up his recent CP interview with Ultravox to grab Midge Ure for a deep dive into his debut solo album, The Gift. Formerly Commissioning Editor (Music) at NME, Jordan Bassett has also written for the BBC, Esquire,…

A freshly remastered cut of ABBA: The Movie is making its way to cinemas worldwide for two nights only in September. The new version of ABBA’s feature-length film that was originally released in 1978 in the UK is set for the big screen on 17 and 19 September, and includes exclusive content from the creators of ABBA Voyage and ABBA The Museum in Stockholm, plus extremely rare unseen footage from the group’s highly successful 1977 tour of Australia. Helmed by acclaimed Swedish director Lasse Hallström, the movie boasts an array of ABBA hits, including Dancing Queen, SOS, The Name Of The Game and Waterloo. Tickets are now on sale. For screening details and a full list of participating countries, visit abbathemovie.com.…

"I was a divvy at school,” admits Will Sergeant to Classic Pop. “But writing a book wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be.” In his second autobiography, Echoes: A Memoir Continued..., he maintains the narrative established in volume one, Bunnyman: A Memoir. “I really enjoyed writing the first one,” he continues. “It took me back to my childhood and it was amazing how it all flowed out. “So, I was a bit worried that Echoes would be like one of those boring rock and roll books where people just go on about how great they are.” Far from the boring read that Sergeant fears, Echoes skips along and perfectly captures the band’s whirlwind rise to fame. In the first memoir you talk about your early influences, and touch…

"Diamonds And Pearls is where the second chapter of Prince’s career begins. He’d had his way for an entire decade, but now he was trying to find his footing.” So says Prince And The New Power Generation drummer Michael Bland of the fallout from Graffiti Bridge. The psychedelic Graffiti Bridge album and film in 1990 was a fascinating but flawed project, leading critics to seriously question if Prince was a one-decade wonder. However, the subsequent Diamonds And Pearls sold six million copies to become Prince’s second best-selling album, after Purple Rain. “Diamonds And Pearls showed Prince could always come back,” smiles Bland. “Give Prince the right soldiers and the right team members, he could always win. A lot of people had counted Prince out after Graffiti Bridge, but his next…

Q When did you first become a Superfan of Japan and why do you like them? A I would caveat this by saying I don’t regard myself as a Superfan. I think there are friends more deserving of that title who have followed the band from the beginning. I first became aware of Japan in early 1981 after a friend suggested that I would like their Quiet Life album. Their music has become various reference points in my life; they take me back in time. Q What do you have in your personal collection? A I collect almost everything relating to Japan and the band members’ respective solo careers, including collaborations. As well as the usual array of vinyl, CDs, magazines, posters, t-shirts etc, I also own some of their…

While many popular acts had to move through the gears before delivering some of their most recognised and representative work, there were some who flew out of the traps with a signature song, or even a seismic single that defined an era. In this generation-spanning list, we’ve picked 20 of the most iconic debut singles of all time, tracks still talked about years on from release. Our list doesn’t include EPs, or songs re-recorded in superior versions, so there’s no place for the likes of Take On Me and West End Girls... 20 NENEH CHERRY BUFFALO STANCE (1988) Released during an era when the likes of Coldcut, M/A/R/R/S and S’Express had turned sound collaging into a veritable art form, this feisty cut-and-paste single – referring to an inner city attitude…

THE HOT LIST 84 Beastie Boys, Fleetwood Mac, The House Of Love, China Crisis, The Blow Monkeys, Ocean Colour Scene NEW RELEASES 85 Kylie Minogue, Pretenders, Rick Astley, Andy Taylor, The Chemical Brothers, Róisín Murphy, Kool & The Gang, Corinne Bailey Rae, The Coral, Teenage Fanclub, Don Letts, Beverley Knight, Romy, Ash, Scouting For Girls, Jessy Lanza, Dot Allison, Say She She, Laura Groves, Mae Muller, Claire Richards REISSUES 92 Midge Ure, Prince, Jimmy Somerville, Madonna, Electronic, Cicero, Deacon Blue, NOW, Tracie, Various Artists – NOW Presents Classic Soul, Siouxsie, Depeche Mode, Various Artists – Autonomy: The Productions of Martin Rushent, Toyah, Erasure, Primal Scream, Disclosure, Madness, The Cinematic Orchestra, The Boo Radleys, Bad News, Sheena Easton LIVE 99 P!nk/Gwen Stefani, Blur, Let’s Rock, Sparks BOOKS 105 So It Started…

BMG ★★★★ “Are we there yet?” Good question, if one more associated with kids pleading from a back seat than a star 35 years into their career. Still, Stock Aitken Waterman survivor Rick Astley spent much of that time the butt of patronising Never Gonna Give You Up wisecracks, only to experience a redemptive renaissance thanks to his good-natured response to 2007’s rickrolling meme, his two subsequent albums, and – most unlikely of all – his scene-stealing Glastonbury appearance performing Smiths songs with Blossoms. Consequently, his ninth album’s title reads more like a tongue-in-cheek query: “Are we done with all that nonsense yet?” Before responding, let’s consider where Astley is. That, apparently – despite this being recorded largely alone in his South London studio – is the United States, inspired…

NINJA TUNE ★★★★ It’s always been about the art for Róisín Murphy. Easily and effortlessly one of the best pop stars of the last – gulp – 25 years, even if recent singles aren’t spending the time they should in the chart, Murphy’s catalogue is full of the quality that, having sold millions in the Moloko days, should still be flying off the shelves. On her sixth solo album, Murphy pivots away from the spectacular dirty arty doof of 2020’s masterpiece Róisín Machine towards a broader range of tunes. Echoing the quite distressing AI-influenced cover art, producer DJ Koze contorts both the music and Murphy herself into twisted forms on the self-sampling You Knew, the nursery-rhyme feel of The Universe and magical light balm of CooCool, while short skits such…

BFD ★★★ Let’s Party, People Just Wanna Have Fun, We Are The Party: the opening section of Kool & The Gang’s 34th album is almost enough to make LMFAO seem antisocial. Indeed, with their signature blend of slick grooves, rubbery basslines and dynamic horns, the relatively quick follow-up to 2021 comeback LP Perfect Union proves that even in their seventies, surviving founding members Robert ‘Kool’ Bell and George ‘Funky’ Brown are still determined to kill it on the dancefloor. Even the deaths of saxophonists Ronald Bell and Dennis ‘Dee Tee’ Thomas since sessions began five years ago haven’t dampened the feelgood vibes: along with late trombonist Clifford Adams, the duo even posthumously provide brass accompaniment on several tracks. But perhaps with their 60th anniversary next year in mind, the New…

PEMA ★★★★ Now well over three decades into their career, Teenage Fanclub are unlikely to surprise anyone with Nothing Lasts Forever, which sticks to their familiar template like gum to a shoe. To many, however, this will be welcome: often determinedly mid-paced, seemingly effortless, and ultimately uplifting. It’s full of simple riffs and hazy harmonies, like the opening Foreign Land, which sounds a little like Simon And Garfunkel landed an early 1990s deal with Creation, or the laidback Falling Into The Sun, its mood reflective of late summer recording sessions in the Welsh countryside. It also succeeds in combining ruminations on the passing of time with a seemingly incompatible optimism. As we “watch the seasons go,” Tired Of Being Alone provokes a memorable couplet – “Feelings now recovered/ Everyone feels…

DEMON ★★★ Claire Richards’ 2019 solo debut came equipped with a scented candle, but a cheap, cheerful glitterball feels more appropriate for her covers follow-up. Orchestral closer Goodbye To Love aside, Euphoria is an unabashed Hi-NRG affair in which her diva faves are sent hurtling onto the dancefloor. Steps fans will already be familiar with covers of Dancing Queen and Celine Dion’s I Surrender, both live staples. But although Delta Goodrem and Andy Bell’s contributions provide an element of surprise, they can’t elevate this beyond glorified karaoke. JO…

COLEMINE ★★★★ Female trio Say She She have been attracting fans for the last two years, finding many takers for their discodelic analogue funk. Like a combination of Luscious Jackson, Tom Tom Club and Love Unlimited, Silver is amazing. It scores extra for including 2022’s best single, Forget Me Not, after somehow forgetting to put it on debut album Prism. A sublime affair breezily taking on abortion (NORMA), gun control (Echo In The Chamber) and women’s rights (Reeling), Silver might just make Say She She your new favourite band. IW…

HYPERDUB ★★★★ A nominee for Canada’s prestigious Polaris Prize, Jessy Lanza has previously worked with Junior Boys and Caribou, with Tensnake a co-producer on her fourth album. A dance musician with the fierce independent spirit of Alison Goldfrapp and Róisín Murphy, Lanza’s wide-ranging vocals mean she could thrive in the bewitching realm of Kate Bush or Cocteau Twins. She’s too immersed in rave to bother, instead deploying that piercing voice to bangers like Limbo and Gossamer recalling S’Express and Bomb The Bass. JE…

LONDON ★★★★ After their sturdy approach to both Communards albums, London do a similarly decent job here of re-examining Jimmy Somerville’s solo debut. On its release in 1989, just two years after The Communards’ final LP Red went Top Five, Read My Lips barely scraped into the Top 30. At this remove, it appears political rather than musical estrangement from the public caused the commercial wariness. Mostly living in New York, Somerville was promoting the local AIDS campaign group Act Up at every turn, arrested for protesting in Australia and daringly pressing an Act Up T-shirt on President Chirac of France. If those protests meant that the media were unwilling to champion Somerville, the public – as ever – embraced him when they could. As with The Communards, the big…

WARNER ★★★ “The most controversial thing I’ve ever done is to stick around,” announces Madonna at the start of this live album recorded at Lisbon’s opulent 19th century 4,300-capacity theatre Coliseu Dos Recreios shortly before lockdown in 2020. It’s a statement given extra intent ahead of her hits tour Celebration belatedly starting in London in October, following a hospital stay in June. This is the second consecutive tour to be affected by Madonna’s health, after her Madame X live residencies were overshadowed by numerous cancellations resulting from a knee injury. Playing intimate residencies was a fantastic idea, and Portugal’s run was generally considered the tour’s best, largely down to the country’s inspiration for Madame X’s infusion of fado. Finally getting a physical release via 3LP regular and picture disc vinyl…

CHERRY RED ★★★ Now a DJ on quietly anarchic independent station 365 Radio, Tracie Young briefly looked like she’d move beyond being known as “Paul Weller’s protégé” when the terrific handclapped pop of The House That Jack Built became the first hit on the Modfather’s Respond label. Debut album Far From The Hurting Kind was similarly exuberant, Souls On Fire itself taut funk in the vein of The Style Council’s Money Go Round. But that LP didn’t include Tracie’s first two hits and, when Respond shut, her subsequent label Polydor failed to release second album No Smoke Without Fire. In truth, that record – eventually released in 2014 – was no lost classic, a major label presumably responsible for removing Tracie’s spikiness in favour of overly polished Swing Out Sister-aping…

ACE ★★★★ A key figure from the era that saw punk mutate into new wave, only to be superseded by synth-pop, this compilation features 19 of Martin Rushent’s productions including his collaborations with The Stranglers, The Human League and Then Jerico. It’s a diverse body of work. Unlike, say Martin Hannett, there’s no trademark Rushent sound. So what’s the common thread? Well, there’s a beautiful clarity about these tracks. Guitars sparkle, synths gleam. There’s clear separation between all the instruments. But the other thing they share is that they’re all indisputably melodic – catchy, accessible and direct. Most Classic Pop readers will probably be familiar with a third of this compilation. Of the off-the-beaten track material there’s a beautiful new wave surf instrumental by The Raybeats and a cool dance…

SIOUX SONGS ★★★★ “I feel a force I’ve never felt before/ I can’t hold it down I’ve just got to soar.” Judging by the primal alt-rock of opener Into A Swan, the debut solo album of Siouxsie without the Sioux wasn’t just another chapter of her chameleonic career, but something she literally had to get out of her system. That’s perhaps little surprise, considering she’d spent the previous 30 years sharing her artistic vision with The Banshees, The Creatures and a host of one-off collaborators. 2007’s Mantaray, remastered and reissued on vinyl, is the sound of an artist determined to make the most of the opportunity. Co-produced by Steve Evans and Charlie Jones, its 10 self-penned tracks veer from vampish big band (Here Comes That Day) and industrial electronica (Loveless)…

BMG ★★★ With a new Madness album due soon, BMG’s decent vinyl reissue series ends just in time. Readily available and often in vinyl special offers, there’s no real need for their 2016 album to resurface, especially as there are no extras beyond new sleevenotes. Not one of their strongest LPs, at 16 songs there’s a lot of excess here. Still, Mr Apples is textbook yearning under the euphoric surface and the sinister Pam The Hawk has one of Lee Thompson’s finest sax solos. At its best, a reminder there’s no-one quite like them. JE…

NINJA TUNE ★★★★ Written alongside their classic 2002 second album, Every Day, some of whose tracks appear here in different form, 2003’s follow-up was a soundtrack commissioned for Dziga Vertov’s astonishing 1929 documentary about Soviet life. Far lusher than this suggests, it was recorded in two days on the back of heavy touring, when their grooves were tightest, illustrated by the frantic Work It! (Man With The Movie Camera), and their performances at their most elegant, as The Awakening Of A Woman (Burnout) attests. Wyndham Wallace…

OMNIBUS PRESS ★★★★ Though we may have got a history of Pulp of sorts last year, thanks to Jarvis Cocker’s brilliant Good Pop, Bad Pop, an enjoyable, quirky collection of memories and anecdotes triggered by the contents of his loft, drummer Nick Banks’ version of events arrives in a much more traditional format. So It Started There offers a more complete account of the band that reached its zenith by infiltrating Britpop with a blend of sonic adventure, suburban sleaze and social commentary. A beautifully recounted story of life in Sheffield in the late 70s, tribe-hopping from punk to goth, Nick’s story will be charmingly familiar to anyone that grew up amid the DIY aesthetic of the time. His journey with Pulp is also an eye-opener, detailing extensively how hard…

SONICBOND PUBLISHING ★★★★ The latest in Sonicbond’s superb series of discography-spanning titles sees the focus shift onto a band that has managed to be both hugely successful and, in some respects, sorely underrated too, particularly in their homeland. Brian J. Robb does a fantastic job putting Depeche’s incredible canon under the microscope, giving each track its moment. Presented chronologically, enabling readers to delve into a particular era, album or song, On Track guides us through the history of the band – from the bouncy synth-pop of the Vince Clarke-helmed Speak & Spell, through the industrial thump of Black Celebration, globeconquering Violator, the emotional rawness of Songs Of Faith & Devotion and on to the recent return to form via this year’s Memento Mori LP. Each album is introduced with essential…

PICADOR ★★★★ Bewildered by the barrage of books purporting to be the definitive history of dance music and club culture which has surfaced recently, we got to thinking whether they were the result of frustrated clubbers. Are they pining for the dancefloor, after being confined to their homes during lockdown, their hedonistic havens abruptly halted, nostalgically yearning for the return of their halcyon days? While the quality of said tomes has deviated vastly, the good news with Party Lines, the first book from writer and filmmaker Ed Gillett, is that it’s undoubtedly one of the best. Tracing the roots of dance music and sound systems, this examines its sub-genres and places them in a political context, illustrating what an integral form of expression it has been for multiple generations and…

China Crisis are marking the 40th anniversary of their second studio album Working With Fire And Steel with a six-date UK tour and special one-off Liverpool show. Beginning on 29 September at The Atkinson in Southport, the tour visits Milton Keynes, London, Bury, Sunderland and Edinburgh. Along the way, there will be a special hometown show at the Liverpool Philharmonic on 4 November where the band, featuring mainstays Gary Daly and Eddie Lundon, will perform two of their albums in full – 1986’s What Price Paradise and its 1989 follow-up Diary Of A Hollow Horse – alongside other favourite selections from their back catalogue and some specially crafted visuals.…

Who were your musical heroes while growing up? Early days, I guess it would have been The Beatles. I remember as a kid refusing to eat any food that my mum put in front of me unless it was on my Beatles tray. I wanted to be Ringo Starr, so I would bash all the pots and pans. I was lucky because I was exposed to music at a very young age because my cousins had this legendary nightclub in Manchester called The Twisted Wheel and they’d always take me there. When everyone else was getting me handkerchiefs for my birthday, they would bring me the Top 10 singles as a present. So I grew up being a massive fan of music through that. What was the first song that…

Frankie Goes To Hollywood have reformed and played together – the classic five-strong line-up – for one last time at a Eurovision opening event in Liverpool back in May. It made me realise that if there’s one thing in pop that’s an absolute guarantee, it’s that bands that split up will reform. Including – and maybe even especially – the ones that assure us they never will. Definitive groups of the 60s, 70s and 80s have all now proved this to be the case. In the 60s, not only did The Beatles assure us they weren’t getting back together, we even had album tracks from John Lennon such as the anti-Paul McCartney tirade How Do You Sleep? on Imagine. And while they never performed together again, all four Beatles had…

"Everyone is a little crazy underneath the surface, I just think that we’re a bit more exposed than most.” So said Fleetwood Mac’s Lindsey Buckingham in 1987, upon the release of the group’s latest record, Tango In The Night. As even the most casual observer knows, Fleetwood Mac’s offstage domestics are as legendary as their back catalogue. But then, for this group, the art and the antics are inseparable. The Buckingham-Nicks soap opera is woven into the very fabric of the classic line-up; an integral ingredient in their unique chemistry. Rumours, of course, is the infamous embodiment of that, but Tango In The Night, released a decade later, remains true to form. Contemporary interviews with Lindsey and Stevie, and John and Christine McVie, on NBC’s Today show are quite literally…

Many bizarre experiences have happened in Soft Cell’s three eras across the 45 years since Marc Almond and Dave Ball met at Leeds Polytechnic. Becoming accidentally massive pop stars thanks to releasing an obscure Northern Soul cover as their second single is just part of Soft Cell’s brilliantly mad and madly brilliant career. After their huge 2018 comeback show at London O2, Soft Cell toured their classic 1981 debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret in full three years later. One of Soft Cell’s most ambitious adventures caps the celebrations of that album. In October, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret is the subject of a lavish 6CD boxset. In the spirit of the original album, it’s a more inventively compiled deluxe edition than most boxsets: for every track, there are instrumental and extended versions…

PARLOPHONE ★★★★ Forty-five years after forming in London, Pretenders are showing no signs of rust. Summer brought a triumphant Glastonbury set featuring a reunion with Johnny Marr, while Paul McCartney nodded in approval offstage. We can credit this longevity to Chrissie Hynde. Her voice sounds remarkably just like it did during the band’s 80s heyday – empathetic but uncompromising, a perfect balance of tough and tender – and her, well, relentless creativity ensures the music she’s making always surprises, whether solo (a collection of Dylan covers) or with her band. Pretenders’ new album offers plenty of trenchant ruminations on life’s ups and downs. Sonically, it offers unexpected gifts all around. Featuring a quintet of musicians that Hynde has dubbed The Pretenders Collective, including her songwriting collaborator James Walbourne, this eclectic…

EMI ★★★★ While it ended the duo’s run of six consecutive chart-topping albums by “only” reaching No.4, 2019’s No Geography was The Chemical Brothers’ most consistent LP this century. The quality control extends to Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons’ 10th album, which does a fine job of incorporating all their flavours while remaining concise. Having delivered a tour that was full-on even by their standards for No Geography, festival shows this summer were relatively subtle, a chilled mood present in preview singles The Darkness That You Fear and especially the shoegaze vibe of Live Again, the latter dreamily swooned by French singer Halo Maud. Her other contribution, the closing title track, is even woozier, worthy of other blissed-out Chems classics like Where Do I Begin? However, those recent concerts were…

THIRTY TIGERS ★★★★★ Only her fourth album in 17 years and first since the No.14 charting The Heart Speaks In Whispers in 2016, Corinne Bailey Rae is invariably worth the wait. Even by her standards, Black Rainbows is stunning. Punky first single New York Transit Queen – think PJ Harvey tackling Malcolm McLaren’s Double Dutch – is a good indicator that Bailey Rae is a long way from the silky pop of Put Your Records On. Meanwhile, the extended guitar workout of Erasure is even more intense, but this is far from a “Corinne goes punk” exercise. Red Horse shows Bailey Rae can still offer chilled melodic pop when she wants, topped by the elegant piano ballad Peach Velvet Sky resembling a lost Nina Simone classic. As if that wasn’t…

TAG8/BMG ★★★★ Forget decadent desserts or elaborate gifts: for her 50th birthday, Brit-soul queen Beverley Knight has decided to celebrate by releasing her first collection of new music in seven years. The Fifth Chapter reflects this milestone by leaning into optimism. The disco-inflected Last One On My Mind extols the virtues of starting over, while R&B standout The One I’m Gonna Love prioritises self-love and empowerment: “This time around, the one I’m going to love is me.” Busy with a successful acting career in musicals, Knight turned to songwriters such as Diane Warren and Andrew Roachford to capture these good vibes, while co-production comes from star names including Jimmy Hogarth and Paloma Faith associate AC Burrell. Having so many voices in the mix is an asset, as The Fifth Chapter…

BELLA UNION ★★★★ Fair play to Yorkshire-born Laura Groves, also of Bat For Lashes’ band, who hits high notes on Sky At Night with a saintly purity last heard on a Kate Bush record. There are also gentle reminders of Joni Mitchell on her Bella Union debut, but Groves carves out her own space on the dreamy, drowsy Synchronicity and dusky synth-pop of D 4 N, its coda provided by Sampha. Elsewhere, Good Intention is like a female-fronted Steely Dan, while the weepy, Rhodesdominated I’m Not Crying is happily as convincing as 10cc’s I’m Not In Love. WW…

FIERCE PANDA ★★★★ Working on an electronic album before the pandemic, the solace of lockdown instead convinced Tim Wheeler to return to Ash’s noisenik roots. Not only are the trio back on their original indie record label, they celebrate their 30th anniversary with the kind of grandstanding solos and condensed punky dramas that made 1977 such an essential Britrock debut. The 100-second Peanut Brain has as much fun as ever, while the two-part epic Like A God and bittersweet acoustics of Crashed Out Wasted show maturity suits Ash just as well. JE…

EMI ★★★★ Mae Muller’s chances of doing a Sam Ryder and parlay Eurovision fame into an enduring career took a hit when I Wrote A Song nearly received the wooden spoon. Yet, packed with potential hits, her debut album is actually far stronger than her Eurovision predecessor’s. Muller’s surprisingly eclectic debut excels at 80s-tinged new wave (Nervous), orchestral noir-pop (Written By A Woman) and summery Calvin Harris-esque funk (Me, Myself & I). Should the public forget her 25th placing, Muller may just become the next big pop girl. JO…

WARNER ★★★/★★★★★/★★★★/★★★/★★★★ Before the announcement of the Diamonds And Pearls boxset, some of Prince’s albums have quietly reappeared on vinyl with a less lavish fanfare. Following The Truth and The Gold Experience re-pressed with no fuss, five titles now arrive together, seemingly as a vault-clearing exercise to prepare the way for the re-emergence of the lavish boxsets that Prince deserves. Given the attention to detail of Prince’s deluxe editions, no-one can complain if any of these albums get revisited for similar treatment later. It’s a delight simply to have them readily available again: Warner deserve credit for recognising these are Prince’s hardest-to-find albums, with just Love Symbol now due back on vinyl, please. Debut album For You from 1978 is more curio than classic. Prince was sole player and producer…

COOKING VINYL ★★★★/★★★★ Dismissed by rock poseurs for not being arch or ironic enough, Ricky Ross and his fellow hoodlums are now having the last laugh by performing their literate, heart-on-sleeve Celtic soul music to bigger audiences than ever. Career-spanning anthology All The Old 45s is a timely reminder of why, tracing Deacon Blue’s singles output across 41 tracks (24 on the 2LP edition), from signature bluecollar anthem Dignity to 2021’s reassuringly still on-brand Riding On The Tide Of Love. While radio playlisters are still inevitably drawn to the early hits – be it Real Gone Kid or the graceful swoon of Your Swaying Arms – the band’s second act, post-2012 comeback The Hipsters, offers just as many rewards. And isn’t it time 1992’s Steve Osborne and Paul Oakenfold-produced Your…

NOW ★★★★/★★★★/★★★★★/★★★★★ It seemed so exotic back in days of yore when shonky satellite connections showed us what was happening over in the USA chartwise. These bizarre, hairy and grizzled characters were making something real, while distrusting synthesizers: it felt like the antithesis of our (more fun, let’s be honest) perfumed pop stars. NOW USA The 80s captures that era on a 78-track 4CD or 44-track 3LP, ranging from the divine – and biggestselling US single of the 80s – Physical by Olivia Newton- John, alongside similar exuberant splendour from Anita Baker, Pat Benatar, Kim Carnes and Paul Simon’s Late In The Evening, to the excessively haired, ridiculous and sometimes grimly “authentic” posturing of Foreigner, Journey, Survivor and co. NOW Yearbook Extra ‘92 fulfils its mission to showcase its year…

TWO-PIERS ★★★★ Wake up! It’s a beautiful LP, finally back on vinyl! 1993’s NME Best Album, the Boos’ third slotted well between predecessor Everything’s Alright Forever’s shoegaze and the Britpopfriendly indie-pop that would deliver chart success, represented by the likes of I Hang Suspended and Barney (...And Me). Along the way, there’s the jangly Wish I Was Skinny and Thinking Of Ways’ spangled Arcadia. Established fans will welcome the reissue’s addition of Saint Etienne mixes of the dubby Lazarus and gritty Rodney King, plus energetic B-side Peachy Keen. WW…

HNE ★★ Timing in comedy is everything. Though it had been conceived long before, by the time The Comic Strip’s spoof metal band’s only self-titled album was released in 1987, Spinal Tap had landed, rendering Bad News somewhat old news. This compiles that album plus various singles and a never-released second LP. The music isn’t great, the jokes haven’t got any better in 35 years and the Troggs Tapes-style arguing between tracks is just tedious. Ade Edmondson and Rik Mayall are rightly comedy icons, but this really wasn’t their finest hour. BS…

ISLAND ★★★★ Brothers Howard and Guy Lawrence arrived seemingly out of nowhere a decade ago with one of British disco’s most accomplished albums. Settle launched Sam Smith via total banger Latch, but even guest-free tunes like F For You were irresistible. The 10th anniversary 2LP edition’s five bonus tracks include early singles Apollo and Tenderly, proof that even the likes of Disclosure had to start somewhere, while Flume’s remix of You And Me is exemplary in building tension. One of the best albums of the 2010s. JE…

SEPTEMBER 1988 Elton John fans with a bit of dough were in seventh heaven between 6 and 9 September 1988 when Sotheby’s hosted a four-day auction of the singer’s cast-off clothes, jewellery and other artefacts. More than 2,000 items were put up for sale and the entire collection netted Elton and the auction house a whopping $8.2 million. Among the items up for auction were a painting by Magritte of a blue fish wrapped in pearls ($119,700), a pair of pottery busts of Queen Elizabeth II, the giant Doc Marten boots the singer had worn in The Who’s big screen version of Tommy and a pair of Cartier silver baskets he’d been using as soap dishes. “The house was so crammed full of stuff, that even if I’d have got…