An occasional feature between now and mid-December. There will be ten albums in all, and maybe having read what I’ve had to say, and listened to a few tunes, you might like the idea of suggesting something to Santa. It’s not a rundown or a Top 10 – the latter would be just too difficult to try and do.
Cut To Black – Barry Adamson
Barry Adamson‘s career dates back to 1977 when he picked up the bass guitar so that he could answer Howard Devoto‘s call to join Magazine. He played on all five of the band’s albums (four studio and one live) and when they called it a day, he joined Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, prior to going solo in 1988. He very quickly made a name for himself as a performer and composer of note, with his work expanding into film soundtracks, real and imaginary, encompassing a wide range of genres. He’s never been one to chase any type of commercial success – Cut To Black was his tenth studio offering, on top of which there have been three soundtrack albums, four EPs and twelve singles, from which he has a collective three weeks worth of album chart success, thanks to Oedipus Schmoedipus (two weeks in 1996) and As Above So Below (one week in 1998).
In some ways, Cut to Black isn’t that different from many of his previous releases, and yet it is possibly the most straightforward. It has a soundtrack feel, in that you could imagine all ten of its songs being picked up by directors/producers and inserted into key scenes; indeed, most of the songs feel as they themselves would make for a great short story, with at least one of them, the album opener, being based on a real-life and infamous incident.
The Last Words of Sam Cooke is very much among my favourite songs of this calendar year.
The album’s title track is equally memorable. There’s less singing and less foot stomping, and it’s one that Nick Cave himself would have been proud to have come up with:-
mp3: Barry Adamson – Cut To Black
And if you’re looking for a touch of the blues with a hint of Tom Waits, how about lending your ears to this?
“It’s not gospel, it’s not soul, it’s not blues and it ain’t rock’n’roll. It’s all of them,” are the words Barry Adamson used when he was asked to succinctly sum up the album. Nobody can possibly put it any better.
THE NEW VINYL VILLAIN 