Ah, the Funland that is being on a proper record label is written all over Bram's face, as depicted on the front cover of his third and final LP. You'd have thought he'd have learned his lesson after Virgin ruined his previous group, The Motors.
A fitting epitaph for Mr Tchaikovsky's pop career.
It contains the usual finely crafted melodic power pop of the previous two albums,although audibly running out of steam, and over produced. Which equals another flop and the sack; probably owing Arista tens of thousands of pounds for the privilege.
Tracklist:
A1 Stand And Deliver 3:30
A2 Shall We Dance? 3:06
A3 Heart Of Stone 3:30
A4 Breaking Down The Walls Of Heartache 2:40
A5 Model Girl 4:32
B1 Why Does My Mother 'Phone Me? 3:29
B2 Used To Be My Used To Be 2:56
B3 Soul Surrender 3:30 (missing Mp3 for download)
B4 Together My Love 3:50
B5 Miracle Cure 2:44
B6 Egyptian Mummies 4:18
DOWNLOAD the sheer and utter fun of record label funded failure HERE!
Wow! A gatefold sleeve! Someone was expecting sucess!?
Of course it never happened, and it was just a matter of time before ex-Motor Bram and the chaps resided in the 'Where are they now?' file alongside The Thamesmen* (*Spinal Tap reference).
This album is just the same as the first album, but with slightly weaker songs and better production values, thanks to the minor hit single in the USA.
It was also renamed "Pressure",with different artwork, in the States, the land of 'free speech', because of the communist references!? I'm sure there was gonna be a revolution once the American Youth had a butchers (Butchers Hook = look) at Bram Tchaikovsky's new album.
What are they so afraid of?....still to this day, even the Russians are making a comeback in the US Fear charts. And that's the only chart Bram managed to get a hit in this time around.
Tracklist:
Let's Dance 5:08
Mr. President 4:03
Missfortune 3:10
Hollywood Nightmare 3:20
Pressure 2:49
The Russians Are Coming 3:20
Heartache 2:45
Letter From The U.S.A. 3:18
Can't Give You Reasons 3:45
Jeux Sans Frontieres (Game With No Rules) 2:42
New York Paranoia 4:03
I suspect that Bram Tchaikovsky was not too enamored with the second album direction of The Motors, and left the group to it. His solo work is more or less a more melodic version of the Motors before 1978. Powerful, and tuneful Power pop of the highest quality.
I'm sure there was a US hit tune on here that got in the Billboard top 40..."Girl Of My Dreams"(Bloody Hell, it features Mike Oldfield on ...Tubular Bells!) it was I reckon? This gave our Bram more albums to record in the future.....but no more hits were forthcoming, so he got the boot after album three.
This one is his/their best.
Tracklist:
A1 Robber 3:06
A2 Strange Man, Changed Man 4:05
A3 Lonely Dancer 3:54
A4 I'm The One That's Leaving 3:27
A5 Girl Of My Dreams4:10
B1 Bloodline 3:48
B2 Nobody Knows 4:32
B3 Lady From The USA
B4 I'm A Believer 3:46
B5 Sarah Smiles 3:37
B6 Turn On The Light 2:49
DOWNLOAD this sweet nutcracker of an album HERE!
Oh how we laughed when we heard 'Airport'. We used to sing 'Airport' in maths class at school to amuse ourselves and also annoy the authorities of course. Dexy's 'Geno' was another favourite a year or so later I remember.
The first album was a forceful singalong classic,packed full of strong tunes.
The follow up was a mash up of lightweight pop tunes, varying in styles from Synth Pop, to some perverted chart orientated version of Neu, to Power poop.In places they seem to have changed from the New-Wave Status Quo into the New Wave Wings.
'You Beat The Hell Outta Me' seems to be a refugee from the debut LP,and is uncomfortably out of place.
As terrible I thought this group and album were back in 1978, I now find myself really enjoying its diluted nu-wave lite formula.
Yes they got one 'hit', but it was also a lesson in how to commit career suicide.
Tracklist:
A1 Airport 4:36
A2 Mamma Rock'n Roller 4:03
A3 Forget About You 2:51
A4 Do You Mind 3:22
A5 You Beat The Hell Outta Me 3:24
B1 Breathless 4:30
B2 Soul Redeemer 2:40
B3 Dreaming Your Life Away 4:48
B4 Sensation 3:22
B5 Today 3:59
Here's The Motors, churning out the hits for the John Peel Show in 1977.
I like Peel Sessions that have less than 4 tracks on 'em, like the first Motors sessions. Mainly because their tunes around 1977 were always around 5 or 6 minutes in length. Like a Meat Loaf track, just when you think they've ended, they start again,and again; but i'd rather listen to The Motors than one of Jim Steinman's (I think thats what he was called,either that or Bastard) toe curlingly bad, mini rock opera atrocities.
I also like bands that play the same songs in different sessions.The Motors do this too....so it can't be all bad?
Tracks:
1st Session - rec 22/03/1977 transmission 22/04/1977
1- Emergency
2- Bringing in the Morning Light
3- Dancing the Night Away
2nd Session - rec 12/09/1977 transmission 21/09/1977
4- Phoney Heaven
5- Freeze
6- You Beat The Hell Outta Me
7- Dancing The Night Away
DOWNLOAD some motors to your head HERE!
Two former members of Ducks deluxe formed New wave cash-in band, The Motors.
One of those bands who's records you had to hide from your mates in 1977....alongside The Drones, Stranglers, and secret Prog records you liked.
Mainly because Nick Garvey looked like someones Dad desperately clinging on to his yoof; and they sounded like a new wave Status Quo.
Despite that, "Dancing The Night Away" topped John Peel's Festive Fifty that year, narrowly beating Althea and Donna's "Uptown top Ranking" into second place. I think the Pistols scrapped in at number 11 with Holidays In The Sun"????. In fact The Motors had four entries compared to the Pistols pitiful three.
Like prime period Quo, this album is packed with powerful euphoric anthems topped by terrace chant vocals, that beg to be sang along to with yer hands in the air......too much fun for 1977.
How "Dancing the Night Away" wasn't a hit, i'll never know.This is most likely the reason they watered down their sound for the second album,which worked,and produced the 'hit'.
Tracklist:
1 Dancing The Night Away 6:33
2 Freeze 4:27
3 Cold Love 4:49
4 Phoney Heaven 4:06
5 Bring In The Morning Light 3:30
6 Emergency 6:13
7 Whiskey And Wine 3:03
8 Summertime (Is Calling) 5:05
9 Be What You Gotta Be 3:54
Bonus Tracks:
10 Dancing The Night Away (Single Version)
11 You Beat The Hell Outta Me (Single Version)
12 Cold Love (Remix)
