Rod Stewart - Every Picture Tells A Story
Rod the Mod finds his solo footing, headed for stardom, with the Faces in his wake.
6:00 AM GMT 22/06/2011
Features Disc of the day
Thomas Dolby
The Flat Earth
(EMI, 1984)
He wore headphones with aerials, but he wasn't Dave Stewart, heavens be praised.
"Techno-boffin" was a description slapped on many an early-'80s synth-prodder, but Thomas Morgan Robertson was the real deal, a former Members' sound man who earnt his nest egg playing the innovative synth parts on 1981's Foreigner 4 before splurging it on four surprising, eclectic solo albums and, latterly, making it all back as a magus of mobile phone software. This, his second album, spawned Top 20 Latin-electro-funk novelty Hyperactive!; the rest roamed the canyons of his over-read, under-sensible mind with baffling, beautiful results. Screen Kiss is a vertiginous crane shot over the debris of Hollywood's dreamland; Mulu The Rainforest is lysergic world-jazz brained on dead man's root; The White City an utter synth-spazz about someone called Keith who builds "a drug cathedral" while Robyn Hitchcock contributes a hatstand monologue. Unimaginable sounds boom and whistle, while a preoccupation with mental dislocation adds a constant dark undercurrent, even unto the haunted dinner-jazz cover of Dan Hicks' I Scare Myself. After the chart action of The Flat Earth, Dolby appeared to please himself too much, and indulgent collaborations (George Clinton on the P-Funk-lite May The Cube Be With You) and tacky promo concepts (Dolby as Travis Bickle - or is it Mr T? - in Fieldwork) ensued. But at his mid-'80s peak - 1985 also witnessed his masterly production of Prefab Sprout's Steve McQueen - there was method in his mad scientist act.
Danny Eccleston
Posted by Ross_Bennett at 6:00 AM GMT 26/10/2009
Further Listening
Donald Fagen - Kamakiriad (Reprise, 1993)
Thomas Dolby - The Golden Age Of Wireless (EMI, 1982)
Prefab Sprout - Steve McQueen (Kitchenware, 1985)
Previous Disc of the day
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-
Earl Brutus - Larky
Last salvo of Ginsters Pasty-Warholism from Britpop ramraiders.
12:04 PM GMT 08/06/2011
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Loudon Wainwright - T-Shirt
An overlooked small wonder from an unpredictable career.
6:00 AM GMT 03/06/2011
-
Landscape - From The Tea-rooms Of Mars… To The Hell-holes Of Uranus
Dry computer club Futurists, upon hitting implausible chart paydirt.
6:00 AM GMT 17/05/2011
-
-
Causa Sui - Summer Sessions Vol 1-3
Epic Danish jams, for when the neighbours get you down.
6:00 AM GMT 12/05/2011
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Comments
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Personally prefer 'Golden Age of Wireless', it has a hunger and desire which I think is slightly missing on'Flat Earth'.
Dolby himself admits that 'Flat Earth' was rushed, and I think you can feel that. He did literally run out of time.
Posted by Anonymous at 5:13 AM GMT 24/12/2009 Report Abuse
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