Out of print
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Our Little Girl |
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No Easy Targets |
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DAVID HARROW The Succession
David Harrow is a producer, remixer and recording artist that has been active for over twenty years. Over his career, he has worked with people like Anne Clark (with whom he recorded classic tracks as "Sleeper in Metropolis"), The Box singer Peter Hope, Psychic TV, Jah Wobble, Dub maestro Lee Scratch Perry or Pinkie Maclure. In 1983 his first solo album came out, a Synth Pop/New Wave classic called "The Succession" with Clock DVA's Roger Quail on drums. In addition to this, this re-issue also features his collaborations "Sufferhead" with Peter Hope and "Bite The Hand That Feeds You" with Pinkie Maclure and some other rare tracks.
Here is what David Harrow says about recording The Succession:
Written, recorded and mixed in 24 hours and at the tender age of 18, The Succession was my first ever release. The studio was at a converted slipper baths in Croydon , South London. It seems so long ago, probably because is was! i am still proud of my first efforts, although i should have let Janice be the main vocalist... Our little girl, written about my recently deceased sister Sally, still is too much for me to listen to. The stutter edits on the 12” are all actual tape splicing, the laborious process of cutting quarter inch tape copies of single beats with a razor blade and joining them together to make new rhythms. A skill long gone. I don’t think at the time that much credit was given to some of the amazing people that worked on this with me. Roger from Clock DVA on drums, my first ever band mate Gary on bass and john white from UV Pop on sax but my main thanks goes to Ian Caple, the engineer. Everything i know about making records is still based on the things Ian taught me. He snuck me into studios whenever he could , stayed up all night teaching me how to use the studio as a creative tool. I owe him a great deal more than an album dedication can give. Complete control/no easy targets, recorded at the then futuristic-guerrilla studios owned by William Orbit, it had a room full of now vintage electronica and the first AMS sampler that i had seen. The ability to take snatches of sound and trigger them from the drums seems so ubiquitous now, but then was somewhat mind-blowing. The incredible Pinky Maclure from Pumajaw on backing vocals. Pinkie was so good i was more than happy to give up my role as vocalist and was fortunate to collaborate with her and Pete Hope on the next 2 releases, both fiercely independent and unique singers . These early recordings represent a chapter of my life, I soon after moved to Berlin, and a different path. I am unsure of the feelings they evoke listening now to these recordings, I can hear i had learned so much in such a short time and was trying to grow further in perfecting the art of production. Enjoy them for what they are. David Harrow California ‘13. Track list: 1. Introduction 2. Without Sin 3. Driving Force 4. Our Little Girl 5. Here 6. Kick 7. Still Optimistic 8. Civilised 9. Belief 10. Reflections 11. Our Little Girl (12" Mix) 12. No Easy Targets 13. Complete Control (Night-Time Sleaze) 14. Too Hot 15. Buckle Down 16. (Excerpt From) Bright Boys 17. Snakes Washed In 18. Bite The Hand That Feeds You 19. Don't You Go. Price: € 17,-/copy incl worldwide shipping.
Es ist schon irgendwie seltsam, dass bisher noch niemand auf die Idee gekommen ist, das erste Solo-Album von David Harrow im CD-Format wieder zu veröffentlichen, denn schließlich hat dieser Mann Musikgeschichte und richtige Welt-Hits geschrieben. Die bekanntesten davon sind natürlich „Sleeper In Metropolis“ und „Our Darkness“ für bzw. zusammen mit Anne Clark und heute keine 80er Wave-Party ohne diese beiden Songs. (...) Im Stil noch deutlich rauer und experimenteller als seine Arbeiten für Anne Clark, lassen die 10 Tracks jedoch schon deutliche Hit-Qualitäten erahnen und auch das später bei „Our Darkness“ zu Ruhm gelangte Saxophon ist hier ständig präsent. Im Groben und Ganzen bewegt sich das Album in der seiner Zeit aufregenden Grauzone des Post Punk, New Wave und Synth Pop oder irgendwo zwischen alten CLOCK DVA, CABARET VOLTAIRE und NEW ORDER. Gerade an letztere erinnert vor allem das auch als Single ausgekoppelte „Our Little Girl“, welches selbst heute noch Tanzflächen füllen könnte. Neben dem direkt vom Vinyl geremasterten Album bietet die CD-Auflage von Klanggalerie ebenfalls die kompletten Tracks der später erschienenen vier 12“-Maxis „Our Little Girl“, „No Easy Targets“, „Sufferhead“ (mit Peter Hope) und „Bite The Hand That Feeds You“ (mit Pinkie Maclure). Dank Klanggalerie ist diese musikalische Geschichtsstunde also eine richtig runde Sache geworden, die im Digipack auf 500 Exemplare begrenzt ist und hoffentlich David Harrow wieder etwas mehr in das Gedächtnis der Szene zurück bringen wird. (Black Magazin, August 2014)
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