"Not normally the kind of thing I would listen to, this was the surprise of the pile."
— Charlie Gillett
Well, time hasn't done anything to endear me to either of these records. I approached this (re)entry thinking that at least one of "Release the Bats" or "State of Independence" would throw me, making me wonder why I was so swift to dismiss one or both of them just over four years ago. Alas, I'm as unmoved as ever — even vaguely resentful of having to evaluate them once again — and I'm not even sure I can understand why Charlie Gillett chose them anymore.
People love their Nick Cave, or so I've been told. I've never known any devoted Cave fans but I imagine they're the sort of people who think The Boatman's Call is in fact one of his weaker albums and not at all representative of his musical talent. Nevertheless, I think most people will agree that he was at his best alongside The Bad Seeds. The Birthday Party, his first group of note, were certainly distinctive but Cave wasn't able to put the care into his songwriting during these early years as he would be towards the end of the eighties.
Many have stated that "Release the Bats" was seminal in the burgeoning goth rock movement. Cave has disputed this but he ought to take that up with youngsters in black who heard it and were inspired. It has been suggested that the song was meant to be a joke but The Birthday Party's "frightening intensity" ensures that the gag is lost on all but the most studious of observers.
Jon Anderson had departed Yes and and the late Vangelis had long since bid farewell to Greek act Aphrodite's Child when they formed their partnership. With the latter getting deeper into film scores — his biggest success of 1981 was the soundtrack to Chariots of Fire and would soon work on the music for the overrated Blade Runner — this duo may have been an attempt to keep at least one foot in the pop world. Success for the group was sporadic and it would be a while before they began to reap some financial reward for composing "State of Independence". This windfall came mainfully from Donna Summer's solid cover version. It's much stronger than the original and indicates that Jon & Vangelis had a sturdy composition on their hands, even if they couldn't make much of it on their own.
As if to avoid having to write a proper review, I took up the bulk of my time in this co-Single of the Fortnight's post categorizing some of the other records reviewed by Gillett with oh so clever titles. This time I thought I'd provide classifications for The Birthday Party and Jon & Vangelis. Let's see how I do this time.
People Who Aren't Currently Relevant but Will Be Praised Someday for Their "Influence"
The Birthday Party: "Release the Bats"
As Brian Eno once said, only 10,000 people bought the first Birthday Party album but everyone who did formed a band and bought cowboy hats in an attempt to make goth seem more rustic or something.
People Who Aren't Yet Aware That They're Irrelevant
Jon & Vangelis: "State of Independence"
As Brian Eno once said, over 1,000,000 people bought the J&V album The Friends of Mr Cairo but not one of them formed a band because of it (and it did nothing for the goth cowboy hat industry either). No one seemed to think so at the time but wasn't Kate Bush far more progressive than these two? Vangelis had much more of a future with ambient, impressionist film soundtracks. As for Anderson, I'm sure he had enough money stashed away to open up a pub.
~~~~~
Also Reviewed This Fortnight
Cliff Richard: "Wired for Sound"
(aka People Who Will Have a Hit (Even If They Don't Deserve To), aka People Trying a Little Too Hard to Keep Their Career Renaissance Going)
Cliff's late-seventies revival of "Miss You Nights", "Devil Woman", "Carrie" and "We Don't Talk Anymore" (a better period than his early-sixties heyday, if you ask this humble blogger) entered the eighties with the popular and well-remembered "Wired for Sound". I'm in agreement with Gillett that the song doesn't deserve Cliff and that it's "clever rather than engaging". The fact that he was soon to dry up almost permanently — even though "Saviour's Day" being a great song is a hill I will die on — probably helped fans have fond memories of this good-but-not-great number. Nevertheless, it would have been my SOTF runner-up, trailing only the brilliant "Mother's Hour" by Ludus. (As Brian Eno once said, only only person bought the first Ludus album but everyone who did formed a band called The Smiths and flirted with racism)
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