Nick Lowe • Quality Street [LP]

First released ten years ago as a CD and picture disc LP, NICK LOWE’s Quality Street is one of my favorite Christmas records of the last decade or so. Its subtitle, “A Seasonal Selection for All the Family,” is about right unless there are a bunch of headbangers in your household. But you do get a nice assortment of originals, covers and traditional holiday songs done the way Gentleman Nick likes to roll these days: smooth ’n’ easy, with a taste of wry humor. In 2013 when this was first issued I picked up the picture disc, which was cut at 45 rpm to help with the fidelity, but being such an item (regardless of speed) it suffers from a bit of additional surface noise you wouldn’t typically expect on vinyl. So then I bought the CD – not only was the sound quality better, but it was playable in the car. So that’s been my go-to every Christmas since then. When I read that YepRoc was doing a limited (1,000 copies) run of it on red vinyl, AND that they were adding a 7″ single with two songs that had only been issued as downloads, I jumped on it.

Some of Quality Street’s best songs are Nick’s. “Christmas at the Airport” is a tale of being stranded you-know-where when you’d certainly rather be somewhere else, a bit wistful and melancholy but a sweet lil’ song. “A Dollar Short of Happy,” too, is on the slightly sad side but also a winner. (It was co-written with Ry Cooder.) Covers-wise, the hands-down, stone-cold winner is “I Wish It Could Be Christmas Every Day,” the Roy Wood perennial that may have overstayed its welcome in the UK but here in the States that original single barely troubled the charts. Nick’s version here has nice calypso vibe to it that really is a treat to hear. I love it! (And I love the original, too, and even have some positive feelings for the so-so Cheap Trick live version [with Wood].) What a cool song – I wouldn’t be surprised to hear it in the stores during the holiday season. And I used to create music programs for retail and restaurants so I know what it takes to make the cut. Ol’ saint Nick nailed it. Another goodie here is “North Pole Express,” though there is no writer credit and the publishing is “copyright control” so who knows who wrote it? But it’s a toe-tapper regardless of whose pen it came from, so don’t miss it. The traditional tunes here are somewhat abundant but Nick and his fellow musicians do some interesting arranging so as to lighten the likelihood of burn-out. “Children Go Where I Send Thee,” for instance, is like a rockabilly version of “The 12 Days of Christmas” but nowhere near as haggard!

As for Quality Street’s bonus 45, you’ll thrill to both “Winter Wonderland” and “Let It Snow” as recorded by Nick and Los Straitjackets (who aren’t the band on the main album) in 2020 and available until now only as digital files or streamers. The big-holed 7″ comes in a “generic” company sleeve (but which appears to be created solely for this release) like the early ’60s British sleeves, and is a nice touch. These are peppy takes on seasonal faves that won’t likely make you groan when you put ’em on.

I don’t think you should miss this one. Place your order now and get Quality Street on vinyl before it’s gone, or else you’ll have to make do with non-physical formats that don’t lend themselves to being wrapped and put under the tree as a gift for a loved one – especially if that loved one is yourself. – Marsh Gooch

4/5 (YepRoc YEP 2330, 2013/2023) (available here)

 

Klark Kent • Klark Kent [CD, LP]

KLARK KENT has come out of seclusion! With a new kollection of the Policeman’s solo recordings from back in the day, there is now ample evidence to support the opinion that Stewart Copeland was, indeed, the one with all the talent. Available as a 2LP vinyl or 2CD kompact disc release (downloads are also available), Klark Kent is the kleverly-titled kompilation that brings together all of the one man (band)’s recordings, including never-before-released demos (on the CD version).

Kent’s discography starts back in 1978 when his first two singles were released. An 8-song vinyl EP, Klark Kent, followed in 1980. The secret about Kent’s identity wasn’t exactly safe, as the press release included in the US promo, for instance, made barely-veiled konnections to Copeland. Intrepid Police fans knew. I knew (having that US promo version, with press release inside, helped). What is so kool about Kent’s tunes is that they’re snappy and fun. If you’re unfamiliar with Klark Kent (either the original 8-song or this new 18-song version), think of the songs attributed to Copeland on the first two Police albums (“Contact,” “On Any Other Day”). I played the hell out of this on my college radio show back in the early ’80s, especially “Don’t Care” and the teenage freedom epic, “Away from Home.” It may be due to the sheer exuberance of Kent’s tunes that I lost interest in The Police as they got bigger; the quirky fun evaporated as Sting took kontrol of the band (assuming he didn’t already have it). A couple of years after the EP’s release, nascent music video channel MTV aired the IRS Records-subsidised The Cutting Edge, which featured IRS and other record labels’ new wave artists and used “Theme for Kinetic Ritual” as its theme.

Klark Kent released numerous singles in the UK, nearly all of which included tracks not on the original 10″. (“Don’t Care” made the Top 50 in England and included 2 non-EP tracks, for instance.) This new Klark Kent (kinda konfusing; kouldn’t they kome up with something more katchy?) has all of the early B-sides and tracks released on the 1995 Kollected Works CD, and you get the never before released, bombastic “It’s Gonna Rain,” the similarly over the top “Someone Else,” and Kent’s lone Khristmas tune, “Yo Ho Ho,” which had originally appeared on IRS Records’ Just in Time for Christmas (among other compilations). In all there are 18 tracks on the 2LP and first disc of the CD set and they’re all alotta fun. Disc 2 of the CD set features a dozen of Klark’s demo versions and they’re all pretty interesting, too, some being quite different from their final, official versions. The vinyl release, though, is a beautiful pressing on thick wax and has a great gatefold cover, too. You’ll probably need your readers to check the kredits, though, so be ready for that. (You youngsters, just skip past that last comment. Oh wait – you’re already past it now. My bad.) Since Kent played all the instruments, though, you may not need the kredits to enhance your enjoyment when listening to his amazingly cheerful discography.

So there you have it. Klark Kent is back and the best thing to do about it is to welcome him into your home. Krank him up! – Marsh Gooch

4/5 (BMG 538907281, 2023)

The Beatles • “Now and Then” [7″, CD single]

It’s new, it’s now!, it’s… odd. THE BEATLES have returned to the charts with what is being touted as their last single and the press is all over it. The YouTube video brigade has weighed in heavily, too, but there’s not much opinion about the music – it’s all “the cover is horrible,” “this one’s on clear-with-blue-streaks vinyl,” “the packaging on the CD single’s cheap and thin,” etc. “Now and Then” is certainly a pretty good song but as can be the case so often these days, the marketing of the single and the timing of its release has taken the spotlight. (I’ve already mentioned some of it here before talking about the song itself!) Well, Fab Four Fans, I’ll give you my opinion and it’s worth every cent you paid for it.

“Now and Then” is a sweet, melancholy song. It started out as a late ’70s cassette recording of just John Lennon singing at the piano. Yoko sat on it (literally, I don’t know) for decades and in the mid ’90s Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr attempted to do something with it the way they had with similar Lennon home recordings (“Real Love” and “Free As a Bird,” which were tarted up by the remaining Beatles and released as singles and on the first two Anthology collections). They shelved it at the time and 25 years later took another crack at it (without George, since he died in 2002). AND WHAT WE HAVE NOW, THEN, is a nice tune augmented by every trick in the Beatles’ book. Paul and Ringo (okay, it’s mostly Paul) have heaped so much on top of John’s humble recording that it practically buckles under the weight. (Hey Paul, you mean you didn’t add any theremin? What’s wrong with you?!) Seriously. Somewhere under multiple guitars, orchestra and more is a nice little song trying to get some air. I also find that what has been added sounds off-time from John – like everything else is just… off… center. (Houston, we have a latency problem.) And finally, Paul and Ringo’s backing vocals add a very weird flavor: you’ve got these two old men, over 80 years old, singing along with 37 year old Lennon and it’s kind of eerie. When Paul, George and Ringo added vocals to those mid ’90s Anthology centerpieces, their voices hadn’t changed so notably so it sounded like everything could have been recorded around the same time. Now there’s a noticeable difference. (Your mileage may vary…)

“Now and Then” is still a beautiful song, and it has brought a wee lil’ tear to each of my eyes nearly every time I’ve played it (I bought the clear vinyl, for those of you keeping score at home). Who knows where it will land in The Beatles canon? It could end up sitting right next to their greatest, or it could end up at the kids’ table. But it’s The Beatles! Yeah. Yeah? Yeah! – Marsh Gooch

3/5 (Apple/Parlophone Records 0602448145864/45-R 4814586, 2023)

Marshall Crenshaw • Field Day [CD, LP]

Yours truly’s a bit late on getting this review completed. Reissued this summer, MARSHALL CRENSHAW’s Field Day has come out in a new edition with interesting bonus tracks and an explosive sound that’s nowhere near as bombastic as some said it was back in the day.

I don’t remember the furor being as big as is stated in the notes to this new 40th anniversary CD (also out on vinyl), but apparently it left enough of a mark that Marshall says in this edition’s booklet, “I think that all the criticism it got back then was completely lame.” Before we dig in to that, let’s just say now that Field Day is packed with some of Crenshaw’s best songs and sounds real good this far out from 1983. Producer Steve Lillywhite was a young, hot shot British producer then who was known – like fellow compatriot producer Hugh Padgham – as one who liked to use a ton of gated snare drum in his mixes. (You know the sound I’m talking about?! It was on a crazy number of hit records in the ’80s…) The critics thought that would ruin Crenshaw’s momentum, or uniqueness, or something. I was so hot for MC’s first record that I could barely wait for the followup, and when I heard that he was recording it with Lillywhite, I thought it was a great idea. Field Day arrived and I loved it right outta the… ummm… gate. After Richard Gottehrer’s bright, snappy production on Marshall Crenshaw, I figured this guy was gonna give us a sort of modern take on the Phil Spector wall-of-sound. The moment lead-off track and single “Whenever You’re on My Mind” broke into full instrumentation, I thought I was right. Mostly, I am.

Field Day’s not only filled to its jingle-jangle gills with power pop hooks galore, like on “Try” and “One Day with You,” it’s got a brilliant take of a somewhat obscure early ’60s tune called “What Time Is It” that was seemingly purpose-built for Crenshaw’s merry band of popsters AND the production style Lillywhite would bring to the mixing board. Yes, that big gated snare really stands out on the LP’s final cut, “Hold It,” though it’s used more as a sound effect than for its humongous song-propulsion capabilities. Now, when you get to the bonus tracks, the instrumental “TV track” of “Our Town” definitely suffers from mega-gate, but this was meant to be a backing track for the band to sing and mime to on television (Lillywhite insisted they mix these; not sure why there’s not one for “Whenever You’re on My Mind,” which was the only single released from the album). Anyway, the inclusion of this and “Monday Morning Rock (TV Track)” don’t really support Crenshaw’s “lame” comment, since these two tracks weren’t publicly available back in ’83. I suppose hindsight – and 40 years of rock ’n’ roll – softens the, ummm, blow of Gategate.

Speaking of bonus tracks, I really enjoy the covers of “Jungle Rock” and the live version of “Little Sister.” Not sure I like the new album cover artwork, but that shouldn’t prevent me or you from digging this disc. Altogether, this release of Field Day shows us how the talented Mr. Crenshaw was both ahead of his time and woefully behind it at the same time… in a good way. – Marsh Gooch

3/5 (Yep Roc YEP-3058X, 2023)

General Public • All the Rage, Hand to Mouth [LP]

Being that Dave Wakeling is still touring as both (or either) The English Beat and (or) GENERAL PUBLIC, it certainly makes sense that the latter’s two original albums, All the Rage and Hand to Mouth, are getting a vinyl reissue.

Wakeling and his English Beat cohort Ranking Roger started the group after their former band called it a day. Coming just after The Beat (as they are known nearly everywhere else) had just made solid inroads to the US charts with their 1982 release, Special Beat Service – and a couple of minor hits, “Save It for Later” and “I Confess” – it was anyone’s guess if the momentum could be capitalized on. Apparently, Dave and Rog had some ideas about how to do that. Beef up the dance beat and production values, keep some of the ska ingredients and melodies, bingo. You have to admit there’s something about General Public’s  swing that makes you wanna move around. And it’s kinda hard not to get tunes like “Come Again,” “Tenderness” and “General Public” out of your head. (And these three charted much higher in the US than any of The Beat’s singles.) Regardless, I preferred (and still do prefer) the scruffiness of The Beat. Always the rebel.

For most of the last couple of decades the two friends kept touring, eventually even doing shows that featured both “bands” – as in, the two lead singers doing songs from both General Public and The Beat. Sadly, Ranking Roger passed away in 2019 so it was up to Dave to keep the fire burning. He has, and this summer The English Beat toured the US and at the time of this writing are playing UK dates. I missed my chance to see them this time but I DO have my original Beat albums and these two snazzy General Public reissues to ease the pain. – Marsh Gooch

3/5 (BMG 538889351 and 538889361, 2023)

 

Peter Blecha • Stomp and Shout: R&B and the Origins of Northwest Rock and Roll [Book]

Published all the way back in February, PETER BLECHA’s Stomp and Shout: R&B and the Origins of Northwest Rock and Roll is a captivating read that any fan – or nascent scholar – of the region’s popular music history should lay their eyes on. I certainly have no excuses for taking this long to read and review it.

Blecha himself already has a track record of knowing what he’s talking about when it comes to Northwest Rock. He has written numerous articles on it for the website HistoryLink.org, wrote a long-running column in Seattle’s The Rocket* called “Northwest Music Archives,” and has authored a handful of great books – including Sonic Boom: The History of Northwest Rock, from “Louie Louie” to “Smells Like Teen Spirit” (Backbeat Books, 2009). With Stomp and Shout it was one of Peter’s goals to expand greatly on what he was only able to surface-scrape in Sonic Boom, which he most certainly does. This book, though, goes back much further in time, beginning roughly in the 1940s (with flashbacks to earlier times when necessary) and wrapping up at the dawn of the ’70s. Did you know that both Ray Charles AND Quincy Jones got their start in Seattle? Or the convoluted story of how “Louie Louie” became so ubiquitous in the Pacific Northwest? How about that Jimi Hendrix once spelled his name the same way most people spell “Jimmy”? (Okay, I’ll bet you suspected that.)

What Blecha achieves most successfully in this book is communicating the raw, visceral excitement Northwest musicians craved and delivered to their ravenous audiences. If you think listening to the Sonics today is a thrill, you will absolutely go ape over how it must have been at one of their raucous shows in 1966! And they aren’t the only band detailed in this book. Besides the dozens of musicians and groups he goes in depth on, he also names a thousand more. With The Kingsmen, The Ventures, The Wailers, Sonics, Merrilee Rush, Paul Revere & The Raiders, and on and on, you’d think he couldn’t have missed one. (I therefore have to assume the reason The Bandits from Mercer Island aren’t covered is because, aside from their real cool version of “Little Sally Walker” [released in ’65 on Jerden], that they recorded nothing else worthy of noting.) Anyway… If you want to know who the bands were, who the local DJs, promoters and record label owners were, and the way things were way back when, it’s all here for ya.

Stomp and Shout may very well go down as the last word on the primal music that oozed out of the Pacific Northwest’s primordial muck, covering the world in some of the most despicable, evil, exciting music ever perpetrated. Peter Blecha is probably the only person who could have written the story. Here it is – have at it. – Marsh Gooch

4/5 (University of Washington Press, 2023)

*(FULL TRANSPARENCY DEPT.: Pete and I both wrote for The Rocket, and we worked for the same great guy, Robert Jenniker, back in the late ’80s via Park Avenue Records. RIP, Bob.)

Nick Lowe • Dig My Mood (25th Anniv. Ed.) [LP+10″]

Twenty-five years ago when NICK LOWE’s Dig My Mood was first released, I was twenty-five years younger. I mean, duh!, but my point is: I was not ready for a mature record. Of any sort. Still in my mid-thirties, I was in thrall to harder-edged music, still thinking that my alliance was with the punks, new wavers, and college rockers. Nick Lowe had been a member of that group, at least in terms of the “new wave” label given his music up until then. By 1997 I had been a college radio DJ, a writer for Seattle’s local music paper, The Rocket, and played in rock bands – not to mention “slaving” away at my day job, putting together music programming for restaurants and retail establishments. What had not occurred yet was, as Nick’s friend John Hiatt may have termed it, that slow turning indicating I had graduated into adulthood. But, being a longtime Lowe fan, I duly picked up Dig My Mood when it came out. And I didn’t really dig it.

Oh, sure, I could appreciate the musicianship, since Nick Lowe had always surrounded himself with top-notch players. Some of the guys on Dig My Mood had even played on some of his previous releases. But I just couldn’t get into the songs. “Faithless Lover,” “Man That I’ve Become,” all the rest, they were not “I Love the Sound of Breaking Glass” or “Cruel to Be Kind” or even “Raging Eyes.” Nick had grown up (well, jeez, he was in his mid-40s by then) and I hadn’t. Now, a song’s title doesn’t necessarily mean its lyrics are going to be youthful or mature, but there’s not a title here that sounds like “Crackin’ Up” or “Shake That Rat.” Alright, I think you get my point: I have grown up. Nick Lowe continues to be grown up (though he does employ his youthful wit on occasion), and his records – in an adult way – get better and better. (See my previous reviews of Nick’s stuff here.)

It’s a treat to hear Dig My Mood on this new vinyl reissue. Limited to 1500 copies, you get the original album with its dozen songs including Nick’s renditions of his own tunes (as mentioned above) as well as stellar covers of Henry McCullough’s “Failed Christian” and Ivory Joe Hunter’s “Cold Grey Light of Dawn.” As a bonus there’s a five-song 10″ EP that includes one studio recording (the great “I’ll Give You All Night to Stop”) and four live cuts, including “Cruel to Be Kind,” “Half a Boy and Half a Man,” and a nice solo rendition of the aforementioned John Hiatt’s “She Don’t Love Nobody.” All five tracks appeared on a fabulous box set, The Doings, back in 1999. (The live tracks also appeared on the 1997 CD single of Dig My Mood’s “You Inspire Me.”)

If you’ve been a Nick fan for awhile then this is a worthy addition to your collection, with real nice colored vinyl (blue for the LP, yellow for the 10″) and a great mastering job. I love the sound of Dig My Mood… now that I’m old enough to appreciate it. – Marsh Gooch

3.5/5 (YepRoc YEP-2635, 1997/2023)

#nicklowe #nudiscnet

A Produce • Land of a Thousand Trances [2CD]

Ambient music is something I’ve never written about. I have been listening to it – or actively not listening to it – for a few decades now, ever since I was first turned on to one of Eno’s ambient releases (knowing me, I probably started with Ambient 1!) Trying to describe it really puts my writing and communication skills to the test, so when I saw that Independent Project was putting out a reissue of an ambient release by A PRODUCE called Land of a Thousand Trances, I decided to give it a listen. If I liked it enough I’d give it a go. And so here we are.

One thing you can say about ambient music is that it has the power to transport you to any number of places. Indeed, the more influences that seep into the music, the more likely you are to be taken out of your somewhat dark apartment with light blue carpet (hey, I’m renting this place!) and gently placed in a lightly breezy desert landscape, on top of an iceberg floating in the Antarctic, or among a large group of people beating out drums and other percussive objects to a heavy groove. Some ambient music I’ve heard is literally ambient: you almost wouldn’t know it was there if you didn’t see the record spinning or see the CD player’s digital counter showing the track and time info. But A Produce – the name Barry Craig used for his ambient projects – created music that could transport you somewhere exotic or put you in a trance right there in your living room.

Craig passed away in 2011 but this 1994 release (reissued and expanded in 2007) has continued to intrigue those who have come into its midst. Land of a Thousand Trances has now been re-reissued as a deluxe 2CD set with the full Independent Project treatment, including letterpress cover and a nice booklet giving you a little more information about A Produce and Craig’s philosophy about his music. What comes through listening to this release, including its bonus tracks like “The Dreaming Room” (both studio and live versions) is that there’s just as much room for Gilmour-ian electric guitar as there is for long, contemplative keyboard pads and textures or African drums and Aztec flutes. As attributed to Craig in this package, in relation to producing such music in the cacophonous atmosphere of L.A., “I like being near so many environments: the oceans, the desert, the mountains. These things influence me as much as the urban side of Los Angeles.” That all comes through on Land of a Thousand Trances. It’s highly worth your attention if ambient music floats your boat… or wisps you away on a desert breeze. – Marsh Gooch

3.5/5 (Independent Project IP090SECD, 2023)

The Minus 5 • Calling Cortez (Neil Vol. 3) [CD]

“Don’t be denied” – it’s a line from the song of the same name, which also closes THE MINUS 5’s new album, Calling Cortez (Neil Vol. 3). (We’ll get to why it’s dubbed “Vol. 3” further on down the road…) Well, apparently my old friend Scott McCaughey won’t let himself be denied of releasing, what?, an album every other month just like his idol Neil Young! Granted, Scott puts his out under completely different names that keep you guessing a bit – Scott The Hoople, The Minus 5, The No Ones, The Baseball Project, Young Fresh Fellows, phew! – but still. The thing is (and I hate to say it), McCaughey’s stuff is sounding better than ever while Young’s releases aren’t as consistent. At least as far as I can tell, since I have not heard every single release Neil’s put out in the last decade (8 in 2022 alone, 3 so far this year). I haven’t been let down yet by The No Ones (see my reviews here), The Baseball Project (here) or Young Fresh Fellows (here). So I guess I’m not being denied, either. But I digress.

Calling Cortez is, apparently, an homage to Neil that started with Scott The Hoople’s Neil Vol. 1, which he self-released in 2020. (Neil Vol. 2 is MIA but slated for release sometime in the future, according to the Bandcamp page.) Only a handful of the tunes here are actually Neil Young songs, but they’re all quite good. I first found “Pocahontas” to be lacking the pathos of NY’s version, with its peppier, happier vibe. But it’s grown on me. And I really like the closer, “Don’t Be Denied,” a helluva lot. It appears to have been recorded live (you can hear some hoots and hollers near the beginning and end) and is solidly in the NY/Crazy Horse camp (though it appeared on Neil’s Horse-less 1973 album Time Fades Away). “Hitchhiker” has some nice, chiming piano chords and an excellent memoir-ish story (it’s from 2010’s LeNoise), and the others are pretty good, too.

Scott’s own tunes on Calling Cortez definitely fit in with the NY stuff, and sometimes are better than the man of the hour’s. Where Roky Erickson constantly heard white noise and alien planets in his head, McCaughey must channel rock ’n’ roll 24 hours a day. He’s certainly a big enough Neil Young fan that he probably has to be cognizant of his tunes coming out too “Neily,” and that may be why he created a “concept album” that could handle it. I really dig “Bad Fax” (with its punky Crazy Horse vibe and the chorus of “Everyone’s a work in progress”), “Empty Quiver” and “One Last Tank,” which laments those who have tried, flailed, floundered and failed while using up “one last tank of the American Dream.”

This time the Minus 5 isn’t noted explicitly but McCaughey and Peter Buck (who’s also a sometime member of The No Ones and The Baseball Project) are listed first, and then come guest appearances from everybody from Mike McCready (Pearl Jam) to Debbi Peterson (Bangles). (Oh yeah, for those keeping score, yes, Kurt “I’m Gonna Be Ubiquitous If It Kills Me” Bloch is here.) Calling Cortez is a real fun album and worth repeated listenings. Problem is, getting to know any one of McCaughey’s releases is difficult unless you just keep a stack of his various projects next to your stereo and shuffle through them and only them. But it can be done and this is one I’d definitely keep toward the top of the pile. – Marsh Gooch

4/5 (YepRoc YEP 3082, 2023)

The 3 Clubmen • The 3 Clubmen [CD EP]

XTC’s Andy Partridge always seems to have a new project cooking. This one, THE 3 CLUBMEN, is a trio performing what I would call posh pop. The four songs on their EP, The 3 Clubmen, are smooth and kinda quirky. Think of the early, experimental XTC of Go 2 merged with the end-of-life XTC of Apple Venus and you’re getting close. Andy’s mates on this one are multi-instrumentalist Stu Rowe of The Lighterthief and singer/guitarist Jen Olive, who does the bulk of the singing. (Andy supplies supporting and backing vocals, among the various instruments he plays.)

Right from the start there’s a dreamy vibe to The 3 Clubmen, as evidenced on opening track “Aviatrix” (is that like a dominatrix-slash-flight attendant?), with its sing-songy verses and chorus of “Straight into the sun you shoot me like a gun/I’m flyyyyying, flyyyying, I’m coming undone.” Track 2, “Racecar,” has a definite Go 2 thing going on – I can hear hints of “Battery Brides” and its off-kilter, kooky time signature throughout. (Traces of the guitar slashes of latter day XTC “Wake Up” are also detected.) Following track “Green Green Grasshopper” sounds like it could almost be a Dukes of Stratosphear outtake, as if the Dukes were trying to tame their psychedelic tendencies and make them safe for the world of 2023. “Look at Those Stars” is a showcase for Olive’s mod, affected vocals, which border on being twee but with a decidedly more adult sound. The song’s message is a good one (things aren’t so good in my life “but, hey, would you look at those stars?”).

Don’t know if we’ll ever get another XTC album but at least Andy’s keeping busy with his “solo” releases. Something from him is better than nothing, and anything is at least something. Something/anything? Yes, The 3 Clubmen is really something. – Marsh Gooch

3/5 (Lighterthief TAB001, 2023; available via Burning Shed)