The story of Kevin Coyne (1944-2004) is as much about the social worker and activist, working with and for the outsiders - the mentaly ill, addicts, homeless and institutionalized - all his life struggling for the less fortunate, which clearly shows in songwriting and expression. This was his second solo LP after quitting the band Siren and first after leaving John Peel's Dandelion label for the then new Virgin. Always been a big fan of the succeeding "Blame It On The Night" (see earlier post) - for the dramatic blend of raw and soft, making it both heartbreaking and catchy at the same time. While that has been criticized by some fans for being too embellished, this is as naked as it gets. A mix of blues, rock and folky seemingly recorded right on without much overdubs - some by him alone and some with basic band backing. Lyrics describe the world below society's glossy surface, giving voice to people and matters seldom publically mentioned by others. His vocals switch between cool, bombastic, whining and unbridled, always in sync with the songs messages and beautiful just as they are. You get the feeling he's just expressing his mind and it'll be whatever. It all sticks together almost like a theme album and it's hard to pick absolute favorites out of the twenty songs, but if I try - "Chicken Wing", "Eastbourne Ladies", "Marlene" and "Nasty". To my ears a timeless album, earning its right to exist beyond ever shifting public tastes. It wasn't a hit on release, but has been rediscovered and reissued many times since. Released as a double album also in Italy, Germany and France while the US and Australian were pared-down to an eleven track single LP. UK vinyl reissues came with colored labels. EU CD on Virgin (CDVM 2501)included two bonus tracks. Premiere UK had label as shown here and matt fold/out cover. (SYSÖ*)
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