Captain Sensible - WOT 12" (1982)

Captain Sensible (born Raymond Burns, 23 April 1955) is a singer, songwriter, guitarist (and sometimes bassist) who grew up in Croydon, England, and co-founded the punk rock band The Damned in 1976. After leaving the band, he reinvented himself as an alternative pop singer with a rebellious, self-conscious image. His signature headwear is a red beret.

Originally a member of the Johnny Moped band, Sensible joined The Damned in 1976 on the suggestion of his work colleague Rat Scabies, the band's drummer, filling a number of positions during his tenure (including bassist, lead guitarist and keyboardist), and eventually becoming the band's main songwriter following the departure of Brian James. He left in the 1980s to concentrate on solo projects, but rejoined in 1996 after Scabies left, and co-wrote Grave Disorder, the band's first new studio album for 8 years, in 2001. He continues to tour with the band today and they released their latest album So, Who's Paranoid? on 17 November 2008.

WOT 12"
1982
CAPTAIN SENSIBLE
Raymond Burns

Side one "WOT" - 5:52

Side two "Strawberry Dross" 9:26

nWu BONUS "One Christmas Catalogue" "Martha The Mouth" "Croydon"

Celebrate Yuletide season with Mister Donut's Merrygalos,

This Christmas, get an extra serving of sweetest smiles effortlessly with Mister Donut’s Merrygalos, cool and festive holiday offers from one of the makers of great-tasting donuts in the country.

The Desert Wolves - Pontification Plus Four (2009 Re-Issue)

A much longed-for reissue of “Pontification” – now sold out compilation released by Firestation back in 2000. This new 2009 edition “Pontificaton Plus Four” includes all the tracks from The Desert Wolves original singles on Ugly Man and additional tracks from “Pontification”. Also included on the new edition of this classic album - with new artwork – are four bonustracks, three of them unreleased elsewhere! This compilation is a fabulous collection of songs by one of the finest bands from the English indiepop scene in the '80s – just like early Orange Juice they made jangly guitar pop that makes your feet want to move. With an added elegance in the production in the form of trumpets and piano they sound a bit like a mix of The Pale Fountains and Orange Juice – and the heartfelt and sweet vocals are really “up there” alongside Edwyn Collins’. A band that really deserves your attention! Nowadays Martin King and David Platten from The Desert Wolves play in the splendid The Vermont Sugar House.

Pontification Plus Four
THE DESERT WOLVES
2009 Re-Issue

Tracks

01. Skin Deep
02. Mexico
03. Love Scattered Lives
04. Stopped In My Tracks
05. Desolation Sunday Morning
06. Passion In The Afternoon
07. Speak To Me, Rochelle
08. Besotted
09. November
10. The Gunmetal Jaguar
11. La Petite Rochelle
12. She Wore My Sweater
13. Passion In The Afternoon (Version)

This Final Frame - Collection (2011)

In 1980, the band made their first demo at Open Eye studios in Liverpool. It was their first recording of “The Diary”. This was played on local radio and passed around by local DJ Chris Fagan, which eventually led to the band being signed by RCA/Scratch records as stablemates of “The Icicle Works”. A local label based at Skeleton records, recorded the band’s second single “The Mask Falls Away” and appointed Dave Roylance as producer. Dave had worked with China Crisis but was also attracted to the orchestral sound of This Final Frame, the trumpets, strings and flute being prominent features of the track. Dave later wrote the Tall Ships suite for the Liverpool Philharmonic as well as the theme tune for long running soap opera “Brookside”.

The strength of the material attracted Direct records to sign the band, and again produced by Dave Roylance, released “Take No Prisoners” in 1985. After eighteen months break, Paul and Eamonn got together again and started to write and play live with Neil Shenton (ex Id) on bass, Greg Gowan on drums and Steve Jones on trumpet. After a few gigs the band recorded “Give Me Back” and released it on an independent label in 1988. Following the break up of the original line up in 1985, the release of Stories had led to some success in Germany and much greater success in the Phillipines. The band were unaware at the time that their songs were being played around the world and of their popularity in Asia.

The new album comes 21 years after the last This Final Frame release of their vinyl 7" single 'Give Me Back' in 1988. Time spent with jobs and family and only passing memories of music let the years slip by. Occasional 'get togethers' at Paul's house over the years sparked the idea of 'Could we do it again?' as there was a feeling that there was some unfinished business and that the band never got the recognition that they perhaps deserved.

Collection
THIS FINAL FRAME
2011

Tracks

01. "The Diary"
02. "Discontent"
03. "Monday's Child"
04. "The Mask (Falls Away)"
05. "Memories Are Stone"
06. "Take No Prisoners"
07. "Eden
08. "Stories"
09. "Blue And Grey"
10. "Give Me Back"
11. "When You're Around"
12. "The Diary (12" Version)"
13. "Take No Prisoners (Shortest Day Mix)"
14. "Stories (12" Version)"
15. "Training For Life (Demo)"
16. "Israel (Demo)"
17. "The Mistake (Demo)"
18. "Xhosa"
19. "Run To Me (Demo)"
20. "Always (2007 Demo)"

The previously released EPs.

VA - Winters Of Discontent - The Peel Sessions 77-83 (1991)

A feature of Peel's BBC Radio 1 shows were the famous John Peel Sessions, which usually consisted of four songs recorded by an artist live in the BBC's studios, and which often provided the first major national coverage to bands that later would achieve great fame (These 'sessions' are similar to 'Live Lounge' sessions recorded today for the station). The BBC employed it's own house bands and orchestras and it also engaged outside bands to record exclusive tracks for its programmes in BBC studios. This was the reason why Peel was able to use "session men" in his own programmes. Sessions were usually recorded and mixed in a single day; as such they often had a rough and ready, demo-like feel, somewhere between a live performance and a finished recording. John Peel remained on BBC Radio 1 for 37 years, until his death in 2004. During that time over 4000 sessions were recorded by over 2000 artists. Many classic Peel Sessions have been released on record, particularly by the Strange Fruit label and this one of these. - wilddevilrules

Absolutely and ridiculously great collection of nearly every important Post-Punk band you can think of, live at Maida Vale studios. Yep, all of these recordings were radio sessions for the late, great DJ, John Peel. To name just a few of the artists featured, how about Buzzcocks, The Skids, The Ruts, The Birthday Party, Young Marble Giants, The Redskins, Associates, The Chameleons and many, many more. As you already know, John Peel wanted each artist to feel comfortable and to experiment. Bands tended to stretch out a bit, relax and have fun. These sessions prove this to be the case. 25 tracks, all of them Fan-Fucking-Tastic. - isupplythecountrywithbutter

Winters Of Discontent - The Peel Sessions 77-83
VARIOUS ARTISTS
1991

TRACKLIST

01. "Somethin' Better Change" - The Stranglers
02. "Love In A Void" - Siouxsie And The Banshees
03. "Gary Gilmore's Eyes" - The Adverts
04. "Shoplifting" - The Slits
05. "Fast Cars" - The Buzzcocks
06. "Rich Kids" - Rich Kids
07. "Of One Skin" - The Skids
08. "It Doesn't Matter" - Adam And The Ants
09. "Another Girl Another Planet" - The Only Ones
10. "Suspect Device" - Stiff Little Fingers
11. "Mess Of My" - The Fall
12. "Stretcher Case" - The Dammned
13. "Anti-Pope" - King
14. "Read It In Books" - Echo & the Bunnymen
15. "Sus" - The Ruts
16. "A Brand New Life" - Young Marble Giants
17. "Start From Scratch" - The Nightingales
18. "Big Jesus Trash Can" - The Birthday Party
19. "A Matter Of Gender" - The Associates
20. "The Fan And The Bellows" - The Chameleons
21. "Wall Of Fir" - The Very Things
22. "Enchanted" - The Wild Swans
23. "Sun" - Microdisney
24. "Kick Over The Statues" - Redskins
25. "A New England" - Billy Bragg

The Alarm - The Best of The Alarm (1998)

The Alarm are an alternative rock band that emerged from North Wales in the late 1970s. They started as a mod band and stayed together for over ten years. As a rock band, they displayed marked influences from Welsh language and culture. By opening for acts such as U2 and Bob Dylan, they became a popular alternative rock band of the 1980s, retaining a small but loyal following to the present day. (wiki)

The Best of the Alarm is a generous collection, containing all of the Alarm's standards plus several solo cuts from their leader, Mike Peters. All of the group's hits and best album tracks are here, making this an excellent choice for either the curious or the casual fan. A reissue of a collection originally released in 1998, The Best of the Alarm added two new singles — "45 R.P.M." and "Superchannel" — that weren't on the original program. (itunes)

The Best Of The Alarm
1998
THE ALARM
Mike Peters (v), Dave Sharp (g), Eddie Macdonald (b), Nigel Twist (d)

Bit Rate: 320kbps

Track listing

1. "68 Guns" - 3:16
2. "Spirit of '76" - 6:59
3. "Rain In the Summertime" - 3:46
4. "Strength" - 3:34
5. "The Stand" - 2:47
6. "Where Were You Hiding When the Storm Broke?" - 2:59
7. "Majority" - 3:25
8. "The Deceiver" - 3:34
9. "One Step Closer to Home" - 4:30
10. "Presence of Love" - 3:20
11. "Sold Me Down the River" - 3:01
12. "Rescue Me (Tearing the Bonds Asunder Radio Edit)" - 3:03
13. "Absolute Reality" - 3:26
14. "Unsafe Building (Live)" - 3:47
15. "Knocking On Heaven's Door (Live)" - 4:25
16. "Walk Forever By My Side" - 3:34
17. "A New South Wales" - 3:20
18. "Love Don't Come Easy" - 4:14
19. "Blaze of Glory" - 3:18
20. "45 R.P.M." [The Poppy Fields] - 3:13
21. "Superchannel (Radio Edit)" [The Alarm MMVI] - 2:44

nWu Bonus

"Rescue Me" (Live)
"Absoulte Reality" (Acoustic)
"Strength" (Extended Version)

Videos

"Absoute Reality" (Live)
"One Guitar/Rescue Me" - Reading SUB April 13, 2010

Mike Peters: Vocals, guitars, harmonica - born Michael L Peters, 25 February 1959, Prestatyn, Wales.
Dave Sharp: Guitars - Born David Kitchingman, 28 January 1959, Salford, England.
Eddie Macdonald: Bass - born 1 November 1959, St Asaph, Wales.
Nigel Twist: Drums - born Nigel Buckle, 18 July 1958, Manchester, England.

EMI also released "The Best of The Alarm and Mike Peters":

Echo & The Bunnymen (1987 | 2003 Remastered and Expanded)

Echo & the Bunnymen is the fifth studio album by the British post-punk band Echo & the Bunnymen, and the last with founder member Ian McCulloch and drummer Pete de Freitas. The album was produced by Laurie Latham who recorded the album in Germany, Belgium, London and Liverpool after an aborted attempted at recording the album without de Freitas and with producer Gil Norton. With Latham being an exacting producer and singer Ian McCulloch receiving star treatment and drinking heavily, the recording of the album was more difficult than the band had initially hoped. The album made more use of keyboards than their previous albums, which had been string heavy.

2003 digitally remastered reissue with 7 extra bonus tracks. Echo & the Bunnymen are one of rock's great contributions. Fronted by Ian McCulloch, the Bunnymen deliver consistently excellent recordings, and this self-named 1987 release is no exception. The lyrics alternate between the surreal and delightfully depressing. Always, though, are they delivered in McCulloch's inimitable, heart-achingly earnest style. For the surreal, try: I dream of my days as a desert farmer, Living my life on the fat of the sand. Or for the delightfully depressing, try: All the ghosts have gathered round me, Come to tell me of a change. In the darkness that surrounds me, I am falling down again. And then there's the Bunnymen's music. It's endearingly complex; the songs sound fresh and new with repeated plays. Will Sergeant's guitar work, in particular, is outstanding. "Lips Like Sugar" is the best of the bunch, but all are good. All in Your Mind is full of good old-fashioned angst (I pray, and nothing happens/Jesus, it's all in my mind), and has a killer tune to boot, as does the somewhat Doorsish Bedbugs and Ballyhoo. Lips like Sugar, Bombers Bay, and Blue Blue Ocean are also standouts. All in all, if you like the Bunnymen you should get this album.

Echo & The Bunnymen (Remastered and Expanded)

ECHO & THE BUNNYMEN
2003

Tracklist

1. "The Game" - 3:50
2. "Over You" - 4:01
3. "Bedbugs and Ballyhoo" - 3:28
4. "All In Your Mind" - 4:32
5. "Bombers Day" - 4:22
6. "Lips Like Sugar" - 4:52
7. "Lost and Found" - 3:37
8. "New Direction" - 4:45
9. "Blue Blue Ocean" - 5:08
10. "Satellite" - 3:04
11. "All My Life" - 4:07

 

Bonus Tracks

12. "Jimmy Brown (Early version of Bring On The Dancing Horses)" - 4:07 *
13. "Hole In The Holy" - 4:44
14. "Soul Kitchen" - 3:56
15. "The Game (Acoustic Demo)" - 3:57
16. "Bedbugs and Ballyhoo (Original Version)" - 3:41
17. "Over Your Shoulder" - 4:10
18. "Bring on The Dancing Horses (Extended Mix)" - 5:50

*previously unreleased

CD INLAYS

Modern English - Stop Start (1986 | 2010 Remastered)

Yeah, this was never one of Modern English's best selling albums back in the day when it was issued on tape and vinyl because of advertising, but MAN how the years have progressed and this sounds even BETTER than before!

Fans have long waited for this to be reissued on CD!!!! It's FINALLY here and as CRISP and CLEAR as ever! You can hear the subtle keyboards, fading in and out, sounds I haven't heard before, pounding drums, clean vocals, etc. I got tired of listening to my old worn on cassette tape and vinyl.

Over the years my tape broke and the vinyl got scratched! I was shocked to see this was reissued! Your in for a REAL TREAT if you order this now and hear it either for the first time or again; even after listening to your crusted tape and melted vinyl a million times, you'll still want to hear this remastered!

With this Newly REMASTERED and REISSUED classic 1986 CD; the sound has never been any better!? Long awaited fans and newbie's alike will totally enjoy this from Modern English! If you don't have this CD in your collection yet your really missing out! If you passed this up the first time back in 1986, well now's your chance to go get it in 2010 before possibly never seeing this classic CD again!? Let's hope not!? Check it out, you won't be disappointed!

These Guys have a New Website and are going on tour this summer too! Go check this one out and the new album too! Then go see them on tour! (Amazon by COSMOS)

Modern English will held a concert on Manila on January 2012. 

Stop Start
MODERN ENGLISH
2010

Tracklist

1. "The Border" - 4:08
2. "Ink and Paper" - 3:58
3. "Night Train" - 3:07
4. "I Don’t Know The Answer" - 3:10
5. "Love Breaks Down" - 5:24
6. "Breaking Away" - 4:04
7. "The Greatest Show" - 4:52
8. "Love Forever" - 3:30
9. "Start Stop – Stop Start" - 5:47

 

STOP START LYRICS

Propaganda - Present The Nine Lives of Dr. Mabuse (1984)

The third ZTT release, Propaganda Present the Nine Lives of Dr. Mabuse by the Dusseldorf group Propaganda, represented the next stage in this master plan of raiding the (early, European) twentieth century. "The children of Fritz Lang and Giorgio Moroder" is how NME's Chris Bohn tagged Propaganda. Inspired by Lang's expressionist trilogy of movies about a shadowy master criminal, "Dr. Mabuse" was epic Eurodisco, for which Horn and engineer Steve Lipson constructed a monumental edifice of arching synths and percussion as imposing as marble colonnades.

Propaganda's conceptualist, Ralf Dorper, justified this "very bombastic sound" to ZigZag. "The character Mabuse was symbolizing something extraordinary, something more or less unreal, so we had to have an unreal production." Formerly in metal-bashing pioneers Die Krupps, Dorper was a fanatic cinephile who preferred movies to music. "Cinema is much more inspirational to me," he declared. "It's much more multi-leveled: you have to have a storyline, a setting, a soundtrack."


Present The Nine Lives of Dr. Mabuse
PROPAGANDA
1984
Bit rate: 320kbps

TRACK LISTING

A. Das Testament Des Mabuse
B1. Femme Fatale (The Woman With The Orchid)
B2. (The Ninth Life Of...) Dr. Mabuse

FEMME FATALE LYRICS

Wenn wir entweder ob wir es so d’rauf lassen
Oder ob wir direkt mit dem Stück
Bis reinkommt... mit dem ersten Takt anfangen

[If we either… If we leave it so…
Or shall we directly with the track…
Until it comes in… Start with the first beat]

Before you start you already bleed
Before you start you already bleed
Before you start...

The Railway Children - Gentle Sound (2003)

An album which highlights the 'Best Of ' The Railway Children as chosen by the fans. These tracks span the life of TRC and include Factory, Virgin and the more recent Ether songs. This time however the recordings are largely acoustic. Recorded in Tokyo, Gary Newby has stripped the songs bare and then rebuilt each song with a new enthusiasm, giving each song a completely different and more contemporary feel. Mainly acoustic, giving the album the kind of warmth you'd expect from an MTV unplugged album. Above all though the album gives space for Gary Newby's true vocal depth, reminiscent at times of a young Scott Walker. In addition to the 13 acoustic tracks, there are 2 new (2002) tracks released for the first time.

The Railway Children were just one of a string of successful independent bands poached and groomed for obscurity by the majors in the second half of the '80s. Anyone jonesing for, ironically, something close to the Postcard sound-sparkling guitars, a melancholy, yearning tenor-will swoon for this quietly gorgeous album of acoustic revamps. Three tracks from their sole album for Factory (Reunion Wilderness, 1987) are obvious highlights, especially the irresistible lilt of "Brighter". You'd think, given the Coldplay/Keane hegemony, there'd be an audience for this superior version: gentle, epic music but, here, with a soul. (UNCUT magazine)

Gentle Sound (Acoustic Compilation Album)
THE RAILWAY CHILDREN
2003
Bit rate: 320kbps

[Track Listing]

1. "A Gentle Sound" - 4:00
2. "Every Beat Of The Heart" - 4:10
3. "Big Hands of Freedom" - 3:54
4. "It Won't Be Long" - 3:29
5. "In The Meantime" - 3:14
6. "Brighter" - 4:17
7. "Collide" - 4:06
8. "I Know Tomorrow" - 3:32
9. "A Pleasure" - 4:05
10. "Over & Over" - 4:03
11. "Somewhere South" - 3:37
12. "Peacenik" - 2:46
13. "Monica's Light" - 3:59
14. "Skinship" - 4:26
15. "The Forgotten" - 4:42

Credits

Written & Produced by Gary Newby Words and music Gary Newby / vocals, instruments & mix: Gary Newby / except songs 14 & 15 drums: makoto sakamoto bass: yasper matsson mix: ken takizawa / executive producer: David Bloom All tracks copyright control Gary Newby / cover photography: hiromi newby / sleeve artwork: Gary Newby

Paul Simpson - Man In a Burning Anorak Vol. 1 (2004)

Frontman/songwriter Paul Simpson of The Wild Swans has released two albums worth of previously unreleased songs , in part to raise funds to finish the band's forthcoming album. All for a worthwhile cause.

Man In a Burning Anorak 1 (12 tracks) Unreleased antiques, curios and failed experiments from Paul’s wilderness years.

*Please Note: Recording quality is poor on the home demos Peace Man, Beautiful and Northern Lights.

TRACK LISTING

1. Contact High
2. Electric Sunrise Pt.1
3. Sunken Ships
4. Beautiful French Degenerate
5. Apollo Tomorrow
6. Peace Man (Demo)
7. Astral Girl
8. Beautiful (Demo)
9. Northern Lights (Demo)
10. Ghosts Of The Russian Forest
11. I'm Gone
12. Dark Blossoms

Review

by D.C. Harrison

Volume 1 is essentially a set of previously unused tracks from over the last 20 years or so. With this in mind, sound quality varies greatly. Beautiful was described, according to the sleeve notes, by Shack manager Nathan McGough as the worst sounding demo he’d ever heard, a fact Simpson takes some pride in. Underneath, though, there's a strong melody begging to be reborn in the future. The strongest tracks are, perhaps predictably, those that benefit from the best recordings. Contact High is a solid opener, Apollo Tomorrow is excellent and earned the approval of Ian McCulloch. Astral Girl, meanwhile, was strong enough to almost snare Simpson a record deal alone, before bad luck with greedheads scuppered that idea. Collections of unused tracks are often a decent barometer to a songwriter’s quality control. Judging by this, Simpson's is on the high side. Ghosts Of The Russian Forest and Beautiful French Degenerate are other highlights, the latter featuring a great line of how someone close to you can raise you up even when your friends are against you ('My girl tells me that I'm great/she makes me feel like William Blake').

The Wild Swans - The Coldest Winter for a Hundred Years (2011)

The Coldest Winter for a Hundred Years, finished on 10 September 2010 and already released. Comprise of 16 tracks (13 initially) and features Paul Simpson, Les Pattinson, Ged Quinn, Ricky Maymi, Mike Mooney, Will Sergeant, Henry Priestman, Candie Payne, Steve Beswick and Richard Turvey. 

'For the first time ever I am happy with the results, the unmixed tracks are sounding so good its scary. It may be 20 odd years late but I think we have finally made the definitive Wild Swans masterpiece' - Paul Simpson

The Coldest Winter for a Hundred Years THE WILD SWANS 2011 [Enjoy] 1. Falling To Bits 2. Liquid Mercury 3. Chloroform 4. In Secret 5. English Electric Lightning 6. When Time Stood Still 7. Underwater 8. Intravenous 9. Glow In The Dark 10. My Town 11. Lost At Sea 12. The Bluebell Wood 13. Outro

Tracks In Snow EP
THE WILD SWANS
2009

[Enjoy]

1. Dark Times
2. Disintegrating
3. Poison

English Electric Lightning 7"
THE WILD SWANS
2009

[Enjoy]

1. English Electric Lightning
2. The Coldest Winter For A Hundred Years

Liquid Mercury 7"
THE WILD SWANS
2009

[Enjoy]

1. Liquid Mercury
2. The Wickedest Man In The World