One record at a time: 146. Fad Gadget - The Best Of

When I originally bought the CD of this compilation in 2001, I hadn't really heard any of Fad Gadget's music. I think my interest must have purely stemmed from their links to Mute records and Daniel Miller.

However when I did listen to the CD, I liked a lot of what I heard and I decided to buy this silver coloured vinyl pressing when it was released in 2019.

This album is something of a strange pot-pourri of post punk noise, new wave innovation and unrefined synth-pop. Tracks flow in a roughly chronological order and Daniel Miller's familiar ARP 2600 drum sounds punch through some of the early cuts. Other influences are exposed by the extended "Handshake" which serves as the "Metal on Metal" to the "Trans Europe Express" of "Ricky's Hand".

As the band's sound began to diversify we find an increasing use of acoustic or traditional rock instruments and its impossible not to notice Alison Moyet singing backing vocals on "For Whom The Bells Toll". There is prominent use of bass guitar on songs like "Make Room" and "King of the Flies" meaning synth purest have to take refuge in b-sides such as the excellent "Ladyshave" and "4M". The inclusion of the outstanding "Luxury" is curious as it was released under Frank Tovey's own name when he elected to leave the Fad Gadget moniker behind.

In terms of electronic music, Frank eventually moved on and by the time he was releasing "Bridge St Shuffle" and "Sam Hall" there was no way back. Frank seemed to stop releasing records in the late eighties and this compilation serves as an excellent summary of his work in the field of electronic music. 3/5

Trevor Horn book

I like the work of Trevor Horn. I don't regard him as a 'production god' or the new messiah, but there are quite a few records in my collection that bear his name. As a result, I took a great interest in his recently published autobiography. 

The book is generally quite good and is full of interesting stories. However, there are some aspects of the book that contradict other people's accounts and whole chunks of Horn's career seem to be omitted.

In the book Trevor repeats the story that the lady who says "Goodbye" in ABC's "Look of Love" is the actual girl Martin is singing about in the song. However, in a podcast first broadcast in April this year, engineer Gary Langan tells us the lady in question was actually the receptionist at SARM studios who happened to be his girlfriend and not Martin's. Who to believe?

Trevor recites a tale of meeting Michael Mertens in the canteen at Townhouse Studios following Propaganda's defection to Virgin Records. In the book Mertens approaches Horn and gets short shrift. In Mertens' version published on Facebook he merely says hello to Horn and receives an angry tirade in return.

I am not a Frankie Goes to Hollywood fan so I don't really know their history; but Horn's account of the band's demise and the subsequent court case seems relatively cursory to me. Maybe this is because Trevor regards this as a less interesting aspect of his career and he doesn't want to dwell on it. Maybe he doesn't go into detail because ZTT lost the court case. Either way, those looking for more information about the whole Frankie saga will be left a little wanting. 

There is no mention of recording "It's Alright" with the Pet Shop Boys and only some vague references to the creation of the album "Fundamental". Disappointingly there is no room for Mike Oldfield's "Tubular Bells II" and the chapter dedicated to Seal only discusses "Crazy".

I acknowledge you can fit everything into one book and at no point does Trevor state this is a definitive version of events; but I still felt a little short changed. Hell, the only production tip I got from the whole book is that tweaking a mix to get a good stereo field can be a waste of time: just pan some things hard left and others hard right. Easy. 

So whilst it is an interesting book, it is not perfect. This is clearly one man's recollection of events and as Winston Churchill wrote, "History is written by the victors."

One record at a time: 145. Eurythmics - Peace

I was pleased when Eurythmics re-formed after an 8 year hiatus, but this elation was tempered by a fear they would 'go rock' again. Once I heard the comeback album "Peace", I was confused. Was this rock, pop or something else? 

Whilst this music is hard to pigeonhole, it clearly is not 'synth pop' or electronic music. Ultimately, I found this disappointing. The tunes are good, the vocals are exceptional and the production skilful; but its just not my kind of music.

Despite the CD being released in 1999, an LP wasn't pressed until this 180g version from 2018.  This is another half speed master from Abbey Road and, unlike my copy of "Savage", it sounds OK. Not good, not bad, just OK. I really don't see the point in going to the expense of creating a new half speed master and then giving it to GZ Media to press up. 

The highlights of this album are the soaring "17 Again" and "I've Tried Everything". The Beatles pastiche "Forever" is best forgotten along with the disappointing heavy rock of "Power to the Meek" and "I Want it all". All in all, there's more to dislike than enjoy here for me. 2/5

This brings our trawl through the Eurythmics back catalogue to an end. Next time we get to move on to something more varied and....electronic.

One records at a time: 144. Eurythmics - Greatest Hits

As I already owned all of the music on this record and the track choices were less than inspiring, I dodged it when it was released in 1991. However, everyone else in the UK seemed to buy it and it sold in its millions. 

For whatever reason I did end up buying the 12" singles of "Love Is A Stranger (Remix)" and "Sweet Dreams '91" which were released as part of the corresponding promotional campaign (the CD singles didn't have remixes and were just EPs full of tracks I already owned). I only acquired the CD of this album in 2014 and bought a copy of the LP in 2019.

I'm not really sure what criteria where applied when selecting the tracks for this compilation but I assume space is reserved for singles that reached the Top 40 in the UK. However, "The King and Queen of America" and "Revival" should have qualified under this rule but aren't included.

The problem with basing a compilation purely on successful singles is that it presents a very myopic view of a band. There's so much more to Eurythmics than these hits. Singles like "Julia" and "Shame" are amongst the bands best songs despite not being commercially successful. There are many inspirational album tracks and sonic experiments that illustrate Dave and Annie's ability that don't get a look in here. But let's face it, this isn't a mixtape. This is a Greatest Hits album and is designed to sell. And sell it did. It's just regrettable that some people's awareness of the band will be restricted to these songs alone. 3/5

One record at a time: 143. Eurythmics - We Too Are One

I received the CD of this album as a Christmas present in 1989 and I listened to it a lot; and I mean A LOT. Therefore I recognise that familiarity and rose tinted spectacles will cloud my judgement here.

Whilst this record represents a move back towards a 'band recording' the end result is much better than the last time Dave and Annie attempted such a thing. Unlike the horror show that is "Revenge", the compositions on this album are strong enough to withstand the antiquated rock production and the album is an unqualified success.

Things kick off with the title track which is a lively rock outing with more than enough keyboard overdubs to keep me interested. However, as a general comment, I would say that Annie doesn't need backing vocalists and they sound completely misplaced here. Next track "King and Queen of America" sounds like a calculated effort to appeal to the all important American market with its rasping brass arrangement and driving beat. Generally I'm not a fan of acoustic drums and they sound especially insipid on songs like this.

"(My My) Baby's Gonna Cry" ensures that the band's penchant for parenthesis continues and Dave even gets to sing. This song was released as a single in the USA and there is a nice remix that is more dance orientated. In my teenage years I was a little bit obsessed by "Don't Ask Me Why" and hearing it now, I understand why. This song and its execution are flawless. I still treasure my limited edition 12" bought all those years ago (for some reason I found CD singles really hard to come by in the late eighties and early nineties and I always ended up with the vinyl).

"Angel" is one of those haunting but strangely inspiring songs which sees Annie deliver an exquisite vocal. "Revival" made for an odd choice as a single as it didn't strike me as being especially catchy and it suffers from backing vocals that are too intrusive. "You Hurt Me (and I hate You)"  is a nice song that delivers a stinging retort most of us have wanted to deliver from time to time. "Sylvia" is a vivid tale that was strong enough to make me wince a little when it played in my headphones on the walk to school all those years ago. Unfortunately "How Long?" is a little like album filler and doesn't quite cut the mustard for me. 

The pinnacle of the album comes with the final song "When the Day Goes Down" which is nothing short of a masterpiece; I can't tell you how many times I have fast forwarded a cassette to get to this song. The atmospheric introduction gradually builds into a soaring anthem that I find strangely affecting. "All the people of this lonely world, have a piece of pain inside." 4/5

One record at a time: 142. Eurythmics - Savage

When I bought Dave Stewart's autobiography a couple of years ago, the section I was most keen to read was about the creation of my favourite Eurythmics album "Savage". After the car crash that was "Revenge", Dave and Annie decided to return to a more experimental electronic sound. Dave's book confirms that this change in direction was a conscious decision following the realisation they had become too much of a Rock 'n Roll band.

I first bought this album on CD in 1989 from Britannia Music Club and here I will be playing a copy of the original vinyl which I bought in 2014 (when I seem to have been buying all of the Eurythmics back catalogue). I also own a remastered 180g vinyl from 2018, but the least said about that pressing the better. Somewhere in the loft I also own a copy of the video album which I watched endlessly in my youth.  

The experimental nature of this album is perfectly illustrated by the opening track "Beethoven (I Love to Listen)" which features a thundering Synclavier backing track and Annie's spoken vocals. The second track "I've Got a Lover (Back In Japan)" sees Annie channel her inner Aretha Franklin (as well as highlighting the bands love of parenthesis). The juxtaposition of the twee delivery and disconcerting subject matter on "Do You Want To Break Up?" make for a great song. "You Have Placed a Chill in my Heart" sounds like a hit record and "I Need a Man" is the kind of radio friendly track record companies would have been desperate for. 

The synth funk of "Put the Blame on Me" provides perfect contrast to some of the darker songs such as the title track and "I Need You". The single "Shame" has always been one of my favourites and it remains drastically underrated in my opinion. "Wide Eyed Girl" is probably my least favourite track but it still remains head and shoulders above anything on "Revenge".

Some might see the largely instrumental track "Heaven" as filler, but to me this is one of the best tracks on the album. Dave wrote most of the music for this album on his own, and it is my guess that when it came time for Annie to make her contribution the track couldn't be moulded into a conventional song structure. As a consequence we end up with a fantastic slice of pre-house dance music. A perfect album deserves a perfect ending and "Brand New Day" does not disappoint. Things begin with Annie singing acapella before layers of vocal harmony give way to Dave's dreamlike Synclavier arrangement. Perfect. 5/5

One record at a time: 141. Eurythmics - Revenge

I'll be upfront and say I've never liked this album. My summary of it would be: a dreadful eighties rock/pop crossover with near constant saxophone solos, endless harmonica riffs and sloppy drumming. This is a traditional rock and roll 'band in room' recording and was clearly designed to be easily replicated on the road (I think Dave even says as much in his autobiography). Electronic music this is not...

"Missionary Man" has some synth elements but they are overwhelmed in the primordial rock soup of the backing track. "Thorn In My Side" is a great song but a bit of Mellotron is the only nod to electronic music. The dreadful "When Tomorrow Comes" merely serves to remind us that we have moved a million miles from "Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This)". Things improve slightly with the next track "The Last Time" as it features a squelchy synth line and some DX7 tubular bells alongside the primitive acoustic drums and obligatory harmonica. "The Miracle of Love" is a ballad that just makes me want to throw the record out of the window: it's just dull twaddle.

The upbeat "Let's Go!" opens side two but the sonic ingredients remain depressingly familiar and as a consequence, the end result is indistinguishable from the rest of the dross on here. "Take Your Pain Away" is excruciating to listen to and whilst "A Little Of You" is slight more palatable, it remains tedious with only a little orchestra thrown in for variety. I can't bring myself to listen to "In This Town" but I don't remember it offering any improvement on what has gone before. Only the closing track "I Remember You" has any interest as it has an enchanting melody and the harmonica has finally been ditched. Unfortunately, as the last track on the vinyl, this song suffers from terrible distortion on my copy and thus the only decent track is ruined. Quite fitting. 1/5