Creation-02

Creation Records

Albums 011-020

Rating Key

••••••

CRE 011
Felt - Forever Breathes The Lonely Word

1) Rain Of Crystal Spires
2) Down But Not Yet Out
3) September Lady
4) Grey Streets
5) All The People That I Like Are Those That Are Dead
6) Gather Up Your Wings And Fly
7) A Wave Crashed On Rocks
8) Hours Of Darkness Have Changed My Mind

••••

Let's face it, this was the one everybody was waiting for. Felt's debut foray on Creation had been a largely pointless instrumental binge and Forever Breathes The Lonely Word marked what most considered to be their first proper record since they had departed from Cherry Red in 1985. Bringing in their own designers to provide some decent artwork, the record became the first from Creation to be accompanied by a lyric sheet, a necessary accompaniment for this band, though it was shame the Shanghai boys made a monumental cock-up in omitting track three from the credits on the sleeve, a mistake that was carried on to the eventual CD release. Musically, the record is built on the foundation of Martin Duffy's Hammond organ which drives things along, lit occasionally by some sparkly guitar flourishes accompanied by some breathy backing vocals. Lawrence Hayward's vocals, with their limited range, seldom stray from the monotone, but it is his phrasing and lyrical timing that help lift the songs above the mundane and make this a very smart collection of songs. His meaning is often unfathomable in poetically dense tales of life, sex and death set against epic backdrops with seemingly little hope of joy or redemption. "I'd like to do something that makes somebody somewhere care", he intones, and on the whole succeeds in the task.

CRE 012
Nikki Sudden - Texas

1) Jangle Town
2) Death Is Hanging Over Me
3) In Your Room
4) Glass Eye
5) Such A Little Girl
6) Broken Tooth
7) Dumb Angel
8) Basement Blues
9) Wedding Dress
10) When I Left You
11) Captain Kennedy's Lament
12) Depper's Bridge

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Extra tracks on CD release
CRE 016
Dead Men Tell No Tales

CD Cover

Creation's other 'big' name signing in its early days was former Swell Maps guitarist Nikki Sudden whose debut with his band The Jacobites came out soon after Felt's debut in 1986. Mainy consisting of his brother, ex-Swell map Epic Soundtracks, on drums and Duncan Sibbald on bass, the band was occasionally swollen to include strings and the slide guitar contributions of the former Birthday Party guitarist Rowland S Howard. Running to twelve tracks and nearly 43 minutes long with a lyric sheet included, a rare thing for the label to go to such expense, this is a proper album with a proper budget, in which the emotionally detached Sudden drawls tales of disjointed relationships and a dysfunctional world. You sense for the singer nothing is new, all things have already been said and done, and death permeates even your emotions and your desires. 'Death Is Hanging Over Me' is a delicious, maudlin ballad accompanied by weeping slide guitar, whilst 'Glass Eye' is a chaotic romp with feedback, piano and viola all thrown into the mix. 'Jangle Town' (single 33) sounds as though it is collapsing in on itself all the way through and 'Broken Tooth' is typical, desolate Sudden blues. 'Wedding Dress' is another highlight with a strong vocal and emotive lyrics and the record concludes with a shambling instrumental riddled with violin. Splendid.

CRE 013
The Jasmine Minks - Sunset

1) Think!
2) Work For Nothing
3) Where The Traffic Goes
4) Mr Magic
5) Ghost Of A Young Man
6) Sunset
7) What's Happening
8) Black And Blue
9) Cold Heart
10) World's No Place
11) Forces Network

•••

Following on from the disappointment of The Jasmine Minks' first proper album for the label, the departure of guitarist and vocalist Adam Sanderson seemed to spell the end for the disillusioned band and Creation quickly pushed out a farewell retrospective featuring most of the band's single tracks, a number of which had already been released on previous compilation albums. Of the tracks not available on an album before, 'Work For Nothing' is a rather primitive 60s pastiche worked around two chords, whilst 'World's No Place', one of the b-sides of the 12-inch release of 'Cold Heart' (single 25), is a good, uptempo rocker with thoughtful lyrics that really should have taken a place on the last album. 'Sunset', a previously unreleased track with a muggy production that hints that it was recorded in the Jasmine Minks sessions, is decent enough and loaded with harmonies that mostly work. The decent 'What's Happening' (single 18) and its b-side 'Black And Blue' are also included along with two tracks that appeared on the 1234567 mini-album, the unimpressive 'Mr Magic' and the aborted single 'Ghost Of A Young Man'. The latter is a moody, dark number lightened by some nice guitar flourishes and ending with two singers in tandem. An up and down album, but luckily the best of the Minks was yet to come.

CRE 014
Bill Drummond - The Man

1) True To The Trial
2) Ballad For A Sex God
3) Julian Cope Is Dead
4) I Want That Girl
5) Going Back
6) Queen Of The South
7) I Believe in Rock ‘n’ Roll
8) Married Man
9) I’m The King Of Joy
10) Son Of A Preacher Man
11) Such A Parcel Of Rogues In A Nation

••

The first of the real Creation curiosities which helped make the label what it was and kept the indie record buying public scratching their heads in confusion or despair. Like most of the others, this is a record that is not going to hit your turntables with regularity and, indeed, it is probably true to say it has not aged very well. Drummond was best known at this time for founding Zoo Records in Liverpool and releasing the debut records from both The Teardrop Explodes and Echo & The Bunnymen, both of whom he had a spell managing. He had just quit his job as an A&R man for WEA, feeling uncomfortable with the inflexible corporate structure and disappointed that the band Brilliant whom he had been pushing had proved to be an expensive commercial failure. Linking up with Australian group the Triffids, Drummond recorded this solo album live with consequent overdubs and the band performs solidly enough, producing a country-tinged backdrop to Drummond’s personal tales. In truth, there is little to get excited by and Drummond’s heavily Scottish-accented singing is not always easy on the ears. That said, ‘I’m The King Of Joy’ is a class above and well deserving of the single release it consequently received (single 39). Other than that ‘Julian Cope Is Dead’ is an intriguing song that ponders whether the shooting of Drummond’s former charge would ensure him legendary status.

CRE 015
Biff Bang Pow! - The Girl Who Runs The Beat Hotel

1) Someone Stole My Wheels
2) Love's Going Out Of Fashion
3) She Never Understood
4) He Don't Need That Girl
5) She Shivers Inside
6) The Beat Hotel
7) The Happiest Girl In The World
8) If I Die
9) Five Minutes In The Life Of Greenwood Goulding
10) The Whole World Is Turning Brouchard!

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Extra tracks on CD release
CRE 004
Pass The Paintbrush Honey

CD Cover

Coming in at ten tracks and around 28 minutes, the second offering from Biff Bang Pow! is only marginally longer than their debut mini album, though as a package it possibly holds together a little better. The production work, though unspectacular, is more consistent and helps in capturing the haunted, dreamy sound that became the band's recorded trademark. Strangely enough, it is the singles that detract from the whole. The opener, 'Someone Stole My Wheels' (single 34) is an under-the-weather plod, and this is followed by 'Love's Going Out Of Fashion' (single 24) which opens brightly and just about remains listenable despite the slightly awkward lyrical phrasing. The album's final track 'The Whole World Is Turning Brouchard!' (single 38) is an instrumental psychobilly romp that weighs in at less than a minute and half and thus remains inconsequential. On the up side 'She Never Understood' has some nice vocal interplay; 'He Don't Need That Girl' is graced with some pleasing female backing, and 'The Beat Hotel' is terrific, a vocal-led acoustic stunner. 'She Shivers Inside' tries to be atmospheric but doesn't quite make it and 'The Happiest Girl In The World' is good in parts, clumsy in others. Over one seventh of the album is taken up by 'Five Minutes In The Life Of Greenwood Goulding', a more successful stab at psychedelia than the band managed on their debut.

CRE 016
Nikki Sudden - Dead Men Tell No Tales

1) When I Cross The Line
2) Before I Leave You
3) Dog Latin
4) Wooden Leg
5) Dog Rose
6) How Many Lies
7) Cupful Of Change
8) Kiss At Dawn

••••

Extra tracks on CD release
CRE 012
Texas

Allegedly having told label bosses he was going into the studio to record 200 songs from which he would pick the best for his next album, Sudden had laid a few tracks down when informed by Creation there was no more money for him to continue. Dead Men Tell No Tales consequently followed in 1987 and it seemed cuts were being made all round. The cover consisted of one photo used five times, and with no lyric insert there was no mention of who played on the record, or who composed the songs. The album lasts just under 27 minutes and Sudden himself produced the tracks, a job he managed decently enough. As you may suppose, there were no huge changes in approach. The singer tells his tales as if disappointment is his natural state; failure is his constant companion and one he could not shake off if he tried. Living in the shadows in the dying weeks of Autumn, Sudden crafts some terrific tales of woe. The opener 'When I Cross The Line' is one of his strongest ever vocals to a simple, acoustic accompaniment, and there are the usual number of wasted blues numbers. However, the highlights of the record come at the ends of each side. 'Wooden Leg' and 'Kiss At Dawn' are both played out acoustically with a wildly feedbacking electric guitar singing out deep in the background. Terrific stuff.

CRE 017
Felt - Poem Of The River

1) Declaration
2) Silver Plane
3) She Lives By The Castle
4) Stained-glass Windows In The Sky
5) Riding On The Equator
6) Dark Red Birds

••••

The third production from Felt for the label comes in at just six tracks and around 26 minutes and represents quite a sea change from Forever Breathes The Lonely Word. The music is less urgently keyboard driven and a lighter sound is captured with the addition of plenty of chiming guitar parts, with a particularly impressive contribution from Neil Scott on the Fender Jazzmaster. Lyrically the album is far less dense than previously and more emotionally open and accessible. The vocals are heartfelt, responsive and emotive, making the songs come across as less severe and less clever (in a good way). Produced by Mayo Thompson the record satisfies on every level and a tidy sleeve and lyric insert helped create a decent package for the consumer. Opening with the splendid, "I will be the first person in history to die of boredom", 'Declaration' grows from a moody intro into a defiant conclusion, though is by no means representative of what is to follow. 'She Lives By The Castle' is a touching number and 'Riding On The Equator' is a very pleasant epic with a noddy guitar outro which carries the song to nearly nine minutes, a large percentage of the album as a whole. Really very good indeed.

CRE 018
Revolving Paint Dream - Off To Heaven

1) Sun, Sea And Sand
2) Flowers In The Sky
3) Stop The World
4) My My, Hey Hey
5) Seven Seconds
6) The Judges
7) Walter Valentine's Dead
8) Yellow Ball (Take Me Away)

•••

Creation being nothing if not incestuous, The Revolving Paint Dream, responsible for the label's second single release, consisted of friends of the founders who were among the group of musicians who remained involved with Creation for many years. Andrew Innes, later of Primal Scream and Biff Bang Pow!, was one of the prime movers, with Christine Wanless, also later to feature with Biff Bang Pow!, taking over the vocal duties. Some three years after the one-off single emerged the album, Off To Heaven, an eight-track experiment in sound. Only four of these tracks were ever to make it on to CD, stuck on to the end of the 'Mother Watch Me Burn' album, though in many ways this release was more significant, being a forerunner of the acid dance movement, full of samples and repetitive psychedelic beats. 'Stop The World' is the high point, a guitar-driven jangle with decent hooks and effects-laden vocals, whilst 'Flowers In The Sky' is a pretty listenable pyschedelic romp. 'My My Hey Hey' is a more straightforward three-minute pop song, with 'Sun, Sea And Sand' making good use of Wanless's vocal talents. On the down side 'Seven Seconds' is the old Biff Bang Pow! track put through the mixer and dragged out to six minutes, and 'The Judges' sounds like Syd Barrett singing Joy Division. Which may not be a bad thing come to think of it.

CRE 019
David Westlake - Westlake

1) The Word Around Town
2) Dream Come True
3) Rings On Her Finger
4) Everlasting
5) She Grew And She Grew
6) Talk Like That

••••

David Westlake was the driving force behind The Servants, an underrated indie band who first appeared on the influential New Musical Express 'C86' cassette with the song, 'Transparent'. Their single 'The Sun, A Small Star' was one of the hidden highlights of 1986 and should have propelled the band to better things, but it was not to be and Westlake split from the band to sign for Creation, releasing this debut mini-album in 1987. As with his former charges, there is a lot to admire in this collection of measured tales of love and life, often dwelling on broken or breaking relationships and how to conduct yourself in the face of adversity. 'The Word Around Town' is a very decent, eloquent opener and 'Rings On Her Finger' is another highlight with the love-struck singer apparently blinded to an all too apparent reality, and contains whistling to add to the quality. 'Everlasting' is a gentle tale of troubled love, and 'Talk Like That' features some nice guitar from the Auteurs' Luke Haines. Released in a monochrome cover with the lyrics on the back, 'Westlake' was not heavily promoted and with rumours that the singer had made himself unpopular at the label, it was to be his only Creation recording. Two years passed before Westlake was heard from again, a brief reunion of The Servants with Haines on guitar, released a single and an album before Westlake, disillusioned, finally quit the music business.

CRE 020
Biff Bang Pow! - Oblivion

1) In A Mourning Town
2) There You Go Again
3) Seven Seconds
4) A Girl Called Destruction
5) She's Got Diamonds In Her Hair
6) The Only Colour In The World Is Love
7) Baby Sister
8) Then When I Scream
9) I See The Sun
10) I'm Still Waiting For My Time

•••••

Extra tracks on CD release
CRE 058
Songs For The Sad Eyed Girl

CD Cover

Whoa! Take a big leap forward and take a bow Biff Bang Pow! The third album from the band, a proper one weighing in at around 30 minutes, shows a monumental progression. The band is tighter, the songwriting vastly improved and the production much finer, all shaping a work that is coherent and whole and by far the best thing the label had yet produced. There is some terrific guitar work and some fine vocal performances as the band romps through ten quality numbers. 'In A Mourning Town' is a stunning opener and the standard is maintained to the busy and captivating 'A Girl Called Destruction' with its terrific guitar licks. 'She's Got Diamonds In Her Hair' is beautifully sung, evocative and moving, while 'The Only Colour In This World Is Love' should be far longer than its 2 minutes 40 seconds. Background feedbacking guitars complement a nice organ riff lit by some splendid vocal 'ah hahs". Great stuff. 'Then When I Scream' is dreamy and the album's closing track 'I'm Still Waiting For My Time' is accompanied by a blistering guitar attack that you hope will go on forever. This is a rare thing, a record with no weak links, and a sure statement of intent from both band and label. For anyone caring to criticise the musical output of the label's founders and owners this release waves two fingers. And some.

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