Title - Swan Songs: The Singles 1976-1981 [2CD]
Artist - Dave Edmunds
For those not in the know, after hitting the charts in 1968, Dave Edmunds began a spectacular career as a writer, performer, and producer.
Signing with Swan Song Records, all of the pieces of the puzzle would fit into place. Beginning with “Here Comes The Weekend” (co-written with Nick Lowe), Dave began a stellar run on the charts, showcasing his propensity for, and ability to bring a “classic” sound back to the airwaves, and to remember where all of those sounds came from.
Swan Songs: The Singles 1976–1981 reveals the magic of the 7″ single in a way that has yet to be explored. Containing 29 tracks, covering every A- and B-side from that period, guide the listener through that pivotal time when listeners heard what they liked and liked what they heard.
Funny thing is, if you missed them the first time, you heard them later, of course, and so from covers of contemporaries Graham Parker, Elvis Costello, and beyond, these Swan Songs all meld into Chuck Berry, Rodgers & Hart, and more.
They’re the songs you know and love, played with the passion of their roots. Huey Lewis & The News had a huge hit with “Bad Is Bad,” but Dave released it in 1979. Same with Hank DeVito’s “Queen Of Hearts,” with Juice Newton took onto the US airwaves years later.
Bob Seger’s “Get Out Of Denver,” John Fogerty’s “Almost Saturday Night”—classics and stunning originals, this was the time where music ruled, and it is collected here on Swan Songs: The Singles 1976–1981.
Disc One:
1. Here Comes The Weekend
2. As Lovers Do
3. Where Or When
4. New York’s A Lonely Town*
5. Juju Man
6. What Did I Do Last Night?
7. I Knew The Bride
8. Back To Schooldays
9. Little Darlin’
10. Get Out Of Denver
11. Worn Out Suits, Brand New Pockets
12. Deborah
13. What Looks Best On You
14. Television
15. Never Been In Love
16. Trouble Boys [* First time on CD]
This brilliant collection opens on the rousing quartet of the rockabilly vibe that drives Here Comes The Weekend, its lush 7 inch single B side As Lovers Do, the beautifully harmonized Where Or When and the produced-and-arranged-by Brian Wilson cut New York’s A Lonely Town (first time on CD), and then we get brought forth the jubilant Juju Man, the rambunctious What Did I Do Last Night?, the always-brilliant roustabout track I Knew The Bride and the dulcet dancefloor rocking swing that drives Back To Schooldays.
Along next is the low key rocker Little Darlin’ and the frenetically-charged Get Out Of Denver (although I actually grew up on the Bob Seger version), which are in turn backed in style by the Buck Owens-styled Worn Out Suits, Brand New Pockets, the upbeat Deborah, the lonesome country of What Looks Best On You, the Edmunds-Bremner rockabilly, two-guitar attack of Television, the first disc rounding out on the melodic rocker Never Been In Love and the foot-to-the-floor rocker Trouble Boys.
Disc Two:
1. A.1. On The Jukebox
2. It’s My Own Business
3. Girls Talk
4. Bad Is Bad
5. Queen Of Hearts
6. The Creature From The Black Lagoon
7. Crawling From The Wreckage
8. Singing The Blues
9. Boys Talk*
10. Almost Saturday Night
11. You’ll Never Get Me Up (In One Of Those)
12. The Race In On with the Stray Cats
13. (I’m Gonna Start) Living Again If It Kills Me [* First time on CD]
The second disc then opens on the countrified A.1. On The Jukebox, the propelent It’s My Own Business, one of my all-time Edmunds favorites, the alt-pop sound of Girls Talk, and then we get his version of Bad Is Bad, before the all-time great cut Queen Of Hearts, the gritty rocker The Creature From The Black Lagoon, and the absolutely pulsating, frenetically-charged Crawling From The Wreckage.
Up next is the lighter fare of the melodic Singing The Blues and the delightfully luxurious pop of Boys Talk (weirdly, this being its first time on CD), and they are followed by the all-embracing power pop lushness of Almost Saturday Night, the twanging rock of You’ll Never Get Me Up (In One Of Those), with his feisty duet with the Stray Cats The Race In On along next, the second disc closing out on the Everly Brother-styled harmonies of (I’m Gonna Start) Living Again If It Kills Me.
With new mastering and restoration from multiple Grammy-winner Michael Graves, the packaging of this double-CD and double-LP features a look at picture sleeves that 7″ collectors cherish, as well as detailed liner notes from Joe Marchese (theseconddisc.com) which outline Edmunds’ roots and trajectory from performer and band leader, to super producer (including his work with Stray Cats, as featured on their version of “The Race Is On”).
Swan Songs: The Singles 1976–1981 is truly the definitive look at Dave Edmunds: the artist—whether with his incredible guitar tone, his signature production style, or his ability to make every song distinctive, and truly his own. Take the (swan) dive.
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