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"...Alan In The River With Flowers..."
"...It's all right Lady
Eleanor..." Well on the evidence presented here - indeed it is.
Newcastle's Lindisfarne made a wonderful Folk-Rock sound - similar in many ways
to Matthews Southern Comfort, Brinsley Schwarz, Fotheringay and even at times
John Martyn.
Re-listening to their
November 1970 debut album "Nicely Out Of Tune" in November 2016 (46
years after the event) and you're struck by the accomplished songwriting - the
warmth of the melodies - and especially the lovely audio on this 2004 CD
Remaster (done at Abbey Road). In fact I'm thinking it's a bit of a lost and
forgotten classic. And I love the way this Virgin/Charisma CD reissue has used
the 'Pink Scroll Label' variant of 'The Famous Charisma Label' on the CD aping
the appearance of the rare November 1970 original British LP (Charisma CAS
1025). Here are the Roads To Kingdom Come...
UK released May 2004 -
"Nicely Out Of Tune" by LINDISFARNE on EMI/Virgin/Charisma CASCDR
1025 (Barcode 724357990226) is an 'Expanded Edition' CD Remaster with Two Bonus
Tracks and plays out as follows (52:53 minutes):
1. Lady Eleanor
2. Road To Kingdom Come
3. Winter Song
4. Turn A Deaf Ear
5. Clear White Light (Part
2)
6. We Can Swing Together
[Side 2]
7. Alan In The River With
Flowers
8. Down
9. The Things I Should Have
Said
10. Jackhammer Blues
11. Scarecrow Song
Tracks 1 to 11 are their
debut studio album "Nicely Out of Tune" - released November 1970 in
the UK on Charisma Records CAS 1025 (Pink Scroll Label variant) - Produced by
JOHN ANTHONY. It was reissued January 1972 on the Charisma 'Mad Hatter' Label
variant with the same catalogue number - this version rose to No. 8 on the UK
LP charts.
NOTE: The American LP was belatedly
issued late September 1971 on Elektra EKS-74099 and was also called
"Nicely Out Of Tune". But it not only featured different 'upgraded'
die-cut artwork on the front and rear and a lyric inner bag (no lyrics appeared
with the UK issue) - but was reputedly remixed. It also featured an altered
Side 2 track list that ran as - "We Can Swing Together", "Float
Me Down The River", "Down", "Nothing But The
Marvellous" and "Scarecrow Song". "Float Me Down The
River" is "Alan In The River With Flowers" under another name
and if you use the Bonus Track of "Nothing But The Marvellous Is Beautiful"-
you can also sequence that US album variant from this CD. The supposed American
remix is still absent from CD - this disc uses UK tapes.
BONUS TRACKS:
12. Knackers Yard Blues -
non-album B-side to "Clear White Light - Part 2" - UK 7" single
released September 1970 on Charisma CB 137
13. Nothing But The
Marvellous Is Beautiful - non-album B-side to "Lady Eleanor" - UK
7" single released January 1971 on Charisma CB 153
LINDISFARNE was:
ALAN HULL - Lead Vocals,
Acoustic and 12-String Guitar, Piano, Electric Piano and Organ
ROD CLEMENTS - Electric
Bass, Organ, Piano, Violin, Guitar and Vocals
RAY JACKSON - Vocals,
Mandolin and Harmonica
SIMON COWE - Lead Acoustic,
12-String Guitars, Mandolin, Banjo and Vocals
RAY LAIDLAW - Drums and
Percussion
The gatefold slip of paper
gives only the basic album details with two black and white photos in the
centre spread of our heroes giving it some live welly at some festival
somewhere. While the inlay is lo-fi and cheap - the KATHY BRYAN Remaster
carried out at Abbey Road is nothing of the sort. This album sounds gorgeous -
alive and full of warmth and melody - a superb transfer. Let's get to the
music...
Charisma tried "Clear
White Light – Part 2" as the band’s debut 45 in September 1970. Charisma
CB 137 came with the non-album "Knackers Yard Blues" on the flipside
(the first of two bonus tracks presented here) – but it sank without notice. In
January 1971 the famous types at Charisma tried again but this time with
"Lady Eleanor" backed with another non-LP B-side "Nothing But
The Marvellous is Beautiful" (the second bonus track) – but again it
initially received no joy. But when Lindisfarne’s second album - October 1971's
"Fog On The Tyne" unexpectedly went all the way to No. 1 in the UK on
the strength of the "Meet Me On The Corner" 7” single (Charisma CB
173, February 1972) – Charisma resurrected "Lady Eleanor" in May 1972
and were promptly rewarded by a UK No. 3 placing on the Pop charts. What is
surprising now is that Joe Public didn’t seem to notice (or perhaps hear) the
first time around?
Its writer ALAN HULL also
penned six other songs on the 11-cut LP - "Winter Song", "Clear
White Light – Part 2", "We Can Swing Together" (another of the album’s
anthems), "Alan In The River With Flowers", "Down",
"Scarecrow Song" and the B-side "Nothing But The Marvellous Is
Beautiful". The other creative force in the band was ROD CLEMENTS who
penned the truly lovely "Road To Kingdom Come" – a song so good THE
BAND might give it a begrudging nod. On the LP Roderick also contributed
"The Things I Should Have Said" and the first non-album B-side – the
jaunty "Knackers Yard Blues". The other two LP cuts are cover
versions – Rab Noakes for "Turn A Deaf Ear" – a song Noakes wouldn’t
release himself until his fourth LP "Never Too Late" on Warner
Brothers K 56114 in April 1975 – and Woody Guthrie’s Traditional
"Jackhammer Blues".
Highlights are many but the
simplicity and beauty of "Winter Song" gets me every time while the
speaker-to-speaker panning of "Alan In The River With Flowers" also
makes great use of their unique harmonising. I could probably live without the
jugband-whomp of Woody's "Jackhammer Blues" – better is the Rod
Clements ballad "The Things I Should Have Said" where he meets a new
lady but each is waiting for the silence to be broken as the sparks in the
campfire start to fade. "We Can Swing Together" has become something
of an anthem for the band – Jackson's growl and Harmonica making the 'roll your
own' lyrics feel like a shanty-sailor-song – Dutch courage press-ganged kids drunk
and pining for home. And that Bass/Mandolin break at the end of "Lady
Eleanor" is middle-eight genius.
"Nicely Out Of
Tune" has always been in the shadow of its more famous follow-up – 1971's
"Fog On The Tyne" – a Number One album back when such things mattered
and took serious sales to achieve. But I'm thinking its time to call both
albums sweethearts ("Dingly Dell" too for that matter).
"...Didn’t think there
could be more..." – Lindisfarne sang on the hypnotic and ethereal
"Lady Eleanor" Turns out there is...
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