THE TESTIMONIAL TOUR OF 45s (aka The Singular Adventures of Edwyn Collins)

#6:Felicity/In A Nutshell : Orange Juice (Polydor, POSP 386, 1982)

Possibly the only man who had any involvement with Orange Juice who was really smiling when 1982 rolled out was Geoff Travis of Rough Trade.  He had been conned out of the band’s debut album when they had taken the tapes he had funded to a major label, only for half of the band  – James Kirk and Steven Daly – to then abruptly quit just as the first single on Polydor was released and the marketing plans for the album were beginning to get into full flow.

The live shows were turning into a shambles, with most of the songs on which James Kirk took lead vocal being left off the set lists. The release date for the album, to be called You Can’t Hide Your Love Forever, was announced as mid-February 1982.  A second Polydor single was chosen, and released some four weeks in advance of the album.  There’s no doubting that it made for a great 45, being one of the band’s best songs of all, but the fact it had been written by James Kirk, (albeit one sung by Edwyn Collins) makes it a bit of a strange decision, almost as if everyone was in denial.

mp3: Orange Juice – Felicity

In at #63, and that was as good as it got, sliding down to #68 and #73 over the next two weeks.  There must have been a sharp intake of breath as the debut album hit the shops, but it came in at #21, reflecting perhaps that fans were really keen after such a long time to finally have an album’s worth of material, and it probably helped that the band had re-recorded Falling and Laughing for inclusion as its opening track.

But back, briefly, to Felicity.

No images of the band were used on the sleeve…no real surprise, given the fact the Orange Juice of January 1982 was not the Orange Juice that had recorded the single.  It also meant that what what should have been the b-side, an Edwyn Collins song, was promoted to function as a double-A side:-

mp3: Orange Juice – In A Nutshell

The two different aspects of the band are very apparent.  Felicity, one of their very oldest songs, has the rougher new wave feeling and energy.  In A Nutshell is a more polished offering with backing singers very much to the fore. In later years, a demo version of In A Nutshell would emerge, and other than the use of the backing vocalists, it wasn’t too different, so perhaps there were early indications that Edwyn, if not necessarily the rest of the band, was prepared to smooth out any rough edges.

The 12″ came with an extra song.

mp3: Orange Juice – You Old Eccentric

Not just another of the James Kirk songs dating back to the old days (and seemingly a piss take of their manager Alan Horne), but it also has James on lead vocal. Totally wasted as a b-side……but for me, the definitve version dates back to December 1980 with this highly energetic take was recorded for a Peel Session.

mp3: Orange Juice – You Old Eccentric (Peel Session)

All of what I’ve written above is very much with the aid of hindsight and the emergence of what was going on behind the scenes.  The 18-year old me just simply thought Felicity was one of the best records I’d heard in my then young(ish) life, and it’s an opinion I hold to this day.

JC