As it was produced by XTC's Andy Partridge (who also plays most of the drums), this was Newell's first project to receive any semblance of mainstream media attention in the U.S. What he was presenting, however, differed little in essence from what he'd been doing since Cleaners From Venus started in the early '80s: tuneful pop with heart and clever lyrics that could be joyfully optimistic, whimsically satirical, or dourly cynical. In fact, a few of these songs are remakes of things that Newell had done in the Cleaners days, such as "Home Counties Boy" and the very Kinks-like "A Street Called Prospect" and "Christmas in Suburbia."
The production was more in line with state-of-the-art standards, but really the results were no worse or better than on Newell's '80s recordings: less idiosyncratically homespun, perhaps, but more accessible to a wider audience. Playing, as always, like a snapshot of English life, it's the most suitable introduction to Newell's work, not in the least because it's one of his few albums that's reasonably obtainable without a major effort.(allmusic.com)
Very strong work by Martin Newell ( and Andy Partridge). Can there be a better producer as Partridge for an artist like Martin Newell? I think that was the best choice for this project and it's audible in every song here. Great pop music.
Enjoy
SB1 Flac p1 & Flac p2 mp3@320
p.s.: In case you wonder why the two bonus tracks don't be in the tracklist on the disc (only on the back cover) i haven't a clue but it's the right disc.
This could be the best pop album of the 1990s, and "When My Ship Come Comes In" might be the best Newell song.
ReplyDeleteVery nice indeed. Thanks for the post.
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