Thompson Twins – A Product Of … Participation + Set [Deluxe Edition] (2CD)

Thompson Twins – A Product Of … Participation + Set [Deluxe Edition] (2CD)
EAC Rip | Included: EAC + CUE + Flac + Covers | Size: 1.07 GB | RAR files
Release Date: 2008 Remastered | Label: EDSD Records | Number: 2026
Genre: New Wave, Synthpop | Stereo | FileServe.com

Album Notes

“A Product Of…Participation”, originally released in June 1981,  was released on the Twins’  own T Records label, when the group featured six members, led by founder Tom Bailey. Second album “Set” was issued in February 1982 with seven members in the line-up, which now included Joe Leeway and Alannah Currie. The album commenced with the huge UK and US hit “In The Name Of Love”. This 2 CD release features nineteen bonus tracks added to the two albums, including their earliest singles as well as non-album singles sides and 12″ extended versions, on CD for the first time.

 

by Damian Thomas

“This is turning out to be the best year for Thompson Twins releases, so far. We are truly being spoiled “, declares a discussion site hosted by a fan. The fan is talking about the first three Thompson Twins re-issues released on the Edsel label in 2008. These deluxe 2 CD sets of the Twins’ three biggest albums certainly jogged a few memories (including my own), lifted some spirits and caused Thompson Twins fans to re-emerge from their hiding places. This time we go way back to the very beginning of the Thompson Twins story.

Actually, it’s rather like the Star Wars saga. If “Quick Step & Side Kick” is Star Wars- A New Hope, “Into The Gap” is Empire Strikes Back, and “Here’s To Future Days” is Return Of The Jedi, then the two albums here “A Product of … Participation” and “Set” is the part George Lucas kept us all waiting for when in 1999 he took us back to the beginning to tell us the story of the early Jedi days in Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace!

 

Thompson Twins Episode 1:

The Early Days

So let’s go back to the beginning, to a long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far away from the big-haired 80s pop-techno  trio that became international mega-stars. In 1985 they performed at Uve Aid, were packing out huge arenas and racecourses across North America and employing a robot called Tin Twin (C3PO of ‘Star Wars’ perhaps!) to play keyboards. The Thompson Twins began life in 1977 as a scruffy ex-student (Jedi) do-it­yourself outfit, initially four young men from Chesterfield fronted by Tom Bailey and taking their name from a pair of clumsy detectives in Herge’s Adventures of Tintin, finding their feet touring small venues and clubs in Northern England and South London.  

Trained as a classical pianist and music teacher, Bailey was responsible for bass and vocals. Making up the rest of the band were Pete Dodd on guitar and vocals, John Roog on guitar and Jon Podgorski (also known as ‘ Pod’) on drums. By ’79 they had ditched their day jobs in a post-punk fashion and moved to South London. They shacked up as squatters in a run-down and rickety house in Lillieshall Road, Clapham, finding similar minded artists, musicians and performers. Alannah Currie, who would later join the group, and was then playing crazy, wailing sax in an all-girl dreaded punk group called The Unfuckables, was squatting in another house in the same street.

In May 1980, after failing to be signed by any major label, the Thompson Twins released their first single ‘Squares And Triangles’ on their own independent label, Dirty Discs. The pop song received positive responses from UK music journalists and the NME said of a live show at the ICA, London that the “highlight of their set is the attractive, vaguely XTC-ish single “Squares And Triangles”. They managed to sell 1,500 copies of the single and it peaked at number eight in the NME indies chart at the same time as Joy Division’s “Love Will Tear Us Apart” occupied the number one spot.

The song appears here in the bonus tracks section on disc one along with the original version of “Could Be Her…Could Be You” which appeared on the flip side. Also included are two experimental B side tracks “Weather Station” and “Modern Plumbing’ which appeared on the B-side of the “Squares And Triangles”  single that was later included free with the album “Set” but recorded in this period. According to the sleevenote (written in 1982) of the single, “”Weather Station” (credited to Tom Bailey alone) was recorded by Tom when he did the music soundtrack for an independent film called “The Onlooker” was recorded for a total of 60 pence in late 1979 by an enthusiastic group called The Blankets (Tom Bailey, John Hade & Traci) using very basic equipment and only three conventional instruments (bass and acoustic guitar and wasp). The rest was done with a saw, plantrot, bottle and various bits of wood…. We used this track as the intro tape to the live set for our first year or two in London.” At this point the Thompson Twins were beginning to get notice for their gigs in South London at the 101 Club in Chapham and the Old Queen’s Head in Stockwell.

Their second single was released in November 1980 on an independent label called Latent, run by two journalists. ‘She’s In Love With Mystery,’ and the B-side tracks “Fast Food” and “Food Style” are also featured in the bonus section on disc one. Influential UK music paper, Melody Maker said at the time that “The Twins have all the potential of being a consistently sparkling pop band and their new single, ‘She’s In Love With Mystery’, is a more than adequate example of their tight, imaginative songs.” The single topped the UK independent charts and was followed by a tour supporting The Teardrop Explodes. Joe Leeway was not yet a full member of the band but was persuaded by Bailey to join them on this tour as a roadie. At the time an actor in between auditions, he was already taking some responsibility for stage atmospherics, a role that he would later take on when the band reduced to a trio. Leeway would attack the audience’s senses by burning sticks of incense out of hubcaps before Torn Bailey would appear on stage in his scruffy mac. Bailey was developing a theatrical stage presence: when asked by their publicist why he wore the mac, he said he liked the effect it gave when the coat flared out when he turned around on stage. These exciting, spontaneous shows became known as the “Thompson Twins rituals”. Audiences were encouraged to participate by clambering onstage to play on homemade percussion instruments. It was on this tour that Joe Leeway actually made it on stage to play with the Twins with a new set of bongos. Alannah Currie would also join them on stage with her wailing saxophone and lively energy. The group’s personnel eventually rose to as many as eleven members when gigging and they began to acquire a following, as well as interest from the press for their exciting live gigs.

“A Product of … Participation” By 1981, the recording line-up was Bailey, Dodd, Roog and three new members: Chris Bell on drums, Joe Leeway on congas and percussion, and Jane Shorter on saxophone (who replaced Currie while she went back to New Zealand for three months). This sextet recorded the first album “A Product of … Participation”, released in June 1981 on their own T Records imprint and featured on disc one in its entirety. This release also features eleven bonus tracks, including the previously mentioned earliest singles as well as non-album singles B-sides and 12′ extended versions, on CD for the versions, on CD for the first time. Currie sang and played on the album, but was not yet a full member. The original intention was for reggae guitarist and record producer Dennis Bovell (who had worked with the likes of 1-Roy, Sharon Shannon, The Slits and Madness) to produce the album, but only four tracks were recorded before the group chose to continue with Tom Bailey and manager John Hade at the helm. “A Product of … Participation” is full of African rhythms, chanting and has a rough, punk feel. Instead of writing new material for the album, the band tried to re-create the energy of their live shows. The NME said that “Everywhere the accent is on riddum, with an appealing you- can–all-join-in indiscipline dancing round the central axis”, but the album received mixed reactions; mostly the press thought it lacked the energy that typified their live shows. Some of the key album tracks are “When I See You” (containing the rough and ready lyrics “When I see you it’s like taking some drugs”) and “Slave Trade” which experiments with tribal rhythms and heavy use of percussion. Several singles were taken from the album. “Perfect Game” was the first to appear in January 1981 and was produced by Mike Howlett (late of Gong), as was its b-side “Politics”. This was followed by “Oumma Aularesso (Animal Laugh)”, a traditional song from Sierra Leone, and “Make Believe (Let’s Pretend)” which featured an Indian sitar intro possibly inspired by Bailey and Roog’s trip to India after finishing college. The 12-inch extended versions of these singles are included, along with their 8-sides.

 

“Set”

In the wake of the first album, there were more changes to the band’s personnel. Currie replaced Jane Shorter on saxophone and percussion and Matthew Seligman, previously a member of The Soft Boys, came in on bass. Tom Bailey took on lead vocals and keyboards, and Joe Leeway joined on vocals and percussion. Their second album “Set” saw Bailey writing the majority of songs, but the songs weren’t coming easily. At this point, Bailey bought a synthesizer in the belief that he would be able to create something exciting from this new box of tricks. It was with this piece of kit that they created their first real hit, “In The Name Of Love” which was released as a single in January 1982. Although it did not make much of a dent in the UK charts, the multi-tiered funk dance track was extremely successful in the US particularly in the gay and black Manhattan discos. Rolling Stone magazine praised the Twins on their American debut “In The Name Of Love”, saying that they were “a welcome alternative to the arch synth-pop then rolling across the Atlantic….working with a bubbly, salsa­ inflected bounce instead of the usual electronic angst.” The single went straight to number one in the Billboard dance charts, remaining there for five weeks. This release of the album features nine bonus tracks including the B-side tracks that appeared on the flip to the single, “In The Beginning” and additionally on the 12 inch, “Coastline”. The US chart position led to the band signing to the Arista label and the “Set” album being issued in the States with the title “In The Name Of Love”. As well as the album track, this release contains the original 12-inch “Dance Extension” version, and perhaps more importantly the ‘Big Value Version” (also labelled “Super Synthesized Version” on the tape box). The story goes that after ‘ Set” had been released On February), Bailey returned to the studio alone (in April) and mixed an entirely different version of “In The Name Of Love”. He added heavier synth elements and lowered the level of the guitars and all the other instruments. This version marks a pivotal point in the Twins’ history in as much as it is likely that Tom Bailey created this mix as a template for the new direction that he wanted to take the group. This new sound dramatically changed the course of his musical life and the lives of the other band members. When he played it to John Hade and Alannah Currie they encouraged him to play it to the other members of the band. The other members were not keen on the sound, apart from Currie and Leeway.

“Set” has a more polished sound than its predecessor and was produced by Steve lillywhite, who in the early 80s was producing Peter Gabriel, XTC, The Psychedelic Furs debut album as well as U2′s debut album “Boy”. Thomas Dolby who had contributed the keyboard hook to Foreigner’s Christmas ’81 hit “Waiting For A Girl Like You”, and who was beginning to make waves in the UK and the US in 1982 with his debut album “The Golden Age Of Wireless”, assisted on keyboards on three tracks. “Set” received mixed reactions from the British music press, some being positive with the NME still comparing them to XTC. The album spawned a further single in May 1982 in “Runaway•.  Included here is the 12 inch version plus the related B-side tracks “Open Your Eye” and “Bouncing (like A Ball)”. Strong album tracks include “living In Europe” with its edgy live sound, manic keys and jangly guitar. It was this song that the Twins performed on the BBC 1V music programme the Old Grey Whistle Test. In this performance, with dynamic redhead Bailey at the forefront, and Currie and Leeway firmly at either side in their percussion stage positions, it is clear to see that a change of direction was imminent for the Twins. The bonus section of this disc ends with a live version of “living In Europe”. This track (and a live version of “Make Believe”, omitted here due to CD running time restrictions) was featured on a special double 7 inch single (in a gatefold sleeve) release of “Runaway” and was recorded at the Hammersmith Palais in April 1982, their last-ever gig as a seven piece. This final show completely sold out and was a tremendous success.

 

After “Set”: The Saga Continues…

Widespread commercial success beckoned but the current seven­ piece line-up seemed unwieldy. A major shake-up was needed. The band needed a new identity that would move them away from the hippy persona that they had acquired from the British press. Bailey was ambitious and with the persistence of their manager John Hade it was decided they would whittle the band down to a three-piece consisting of Bailey, Currie and Leeway. The slimmed down trio drafted a new manifesto: Bailey was in charge of the music, Currie’s role was to look after their image and would later take care of promotional videos and lyrics; and Leeway was responsible for the live shows.

With their debut album as a three-piece, 1983′s “Quick Step & Side Kick”, they began to receive real international recognition. They replaced guitars with synthesizers and percussion. Singles from the album made the charts with “Love On Your Side” reaching number 9 in the UK. After the huge success of “Quick Step & Side Kick”, which spent fifty-six weeks in the UK album charts, they began working on a follow-up, entitled “Into The Gap”. The first single taken from it, “Hold Me Now”, released just before Christmas 1983 amongst serious seasonal competition, achieved a number four position in the UK charts, sold in excess of three quarters of a million units and stayed in the Top Ten for ten weeks. “Into The Gap” was a tremendous success and went straight into the UK album charts at number one in February 1984. Selling five million units worldwide, it reached number ten in the US and charted throughout Europe. “Into The Gap” spawned four hit singles all of which reached the UK Top Five. The band also embarked on an extensive world tour in support of the album and by the summer of 1984 they had a huge following in the US.

After “Into The Gap”, The Thompson Twins returned with the follow-up album “Here’s To Future Days”. During the making of this album Bailey suffered a nervous breakdown and Nile Rodgers was brought in to help finish the recording. The album was released in 1985 and reached the US Top 10 and climbed to number 22 in the UK charts, but by this point the Twins had reached their peak. On finishing the world tour in 1986, Joe Leeway left the group to pursue a solo career. The remaining duo, Bailey and Currie continued to make music for another seven years, releasing a further three Thompson Twins albums, and two as Babble. ~ Damian Thomas, September 2008

 

Artist: Thompson Twins
Title: A Product Of … Participation (Cd1)
==========================================
01 – When I See You
02 – Politics
03 – Slave Trade
04 – Could Be Her … Could Be You
05 – Make Believe (Let’s Pretend)
06 – Don’t Go Away
07 – The Price
08 – Oumma Aularesso (Animal Laugh)
09 – Anything Is Good Enough
10 – A Product Of …
11 – Perfect Game
12 – Vendredi Saint
13 – Squares And Triangles
14 – Could Be Her … Could Be You [Original Version]
15 – Weather Station
16 – Modern Plumbing
17 – She’s In Love With Mystery
18 – Fast Food
19 – Food Style
20 – Oumma Aularesso (Animal Laugh) [Special Re-Mixed Extended Version]
21 – A Dub Product
22 – Make Believe (Let’s Pretend) [Extended Version]
23 – Lama Sabach Tani

 

Title:  Set (Cd2)
==========================================
01 – In The Name Of Love
02 – Living In Europe
03 – Bouncing
04 – Tok Tok
05 – Good Gosh
06 – The Rowe
07 – Runaway
08 – Another Fantasy
09 – Fool’s Gold
10 – Crazy Dog
11 – Blind
12 – In The Name Of Love (12Inch Dance Extension Version)
13 – In The Beginning
14 – Coastline
15 – Open Your Eye
16 – Runaway (Extended Remix)
17 – Bouncing (Extended Remix)
18 – In The Name Of Love (Big Value Version – New Super Synthesized Version)
19 – Living In Europe (Live Version)

usmnFS

Project co-ordination – Val Jennings

Project consultants – Damian Thomas and Norm Authier

Original album and singles sleeves – Damian Thomas

Very special thanks to Norm Authier

CD package – Jools at mac.concept

CD mastering – Alchemy Soho

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Only for your information.
Please delete it from your HDD after listening to.
If you like the music, buy the CD.
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