The definitive collection of After The Fire, Bright Lights 1974-1983 contains all of the bands five albums as well as demos, B-sides and live tracks, with 12 recordings that are issued here on CD for the first time and 14 that are completely unreleased.

The project has been overseen by founding member Peter Banks who, along with members Andy Piercy and John Russell, has been interviewed exclusively for the sleeve notes and has also opened up his photo archive, providing a wealth of rare images.

Disc One features the band’s debut album Signs Of Change as well as bonus tracks. Disc Two contains three early demos, previously unreleased on CD as well as 13 previously unreleased demos recorded in preparation for Laser Love.

Disc Three features Laser Love that includes hit single One Rule For You as well as rare single edits, B-sides and live tracks. Disc Four includes 80-f as well as nine recordings that have never been issued on CD before, including rare B-sides and seven tracks from the original version of 80f.

Disc Five contains Batteries Not Included and two bonus tracks. Disc Six features AT2F, one track unreleased on CD, a completely unreleased track as well as a rare extended version of the band’s hit Der Kommissar.

Disc One: Signs Of Change (1978)
After the Fire was one of those bands that got me running like hell! After all, in 1982 they were responsible for giving us Der Kommissar (an English language remake of a song Falco did that same year). The song became a staple of early MTV (although the song took a little longer to take off in America, not until 1983, by which point, the American audience didn’t realize that ATF already disintegrated, although I discovered that song didn’t do so well in my native UK).

I was in a huge shock to find out they started off as a prog rock band, and in 1978 they released their debut, Signs of Change, which is a full-blown prog rock album, although on one cut, Back to the Light, you can see the New Wave future the band would quickly be headed, and a couple others have more in common with Fairport Convention or Steeleye Span.

Peter Memory Banks (not the Yes Peter Banks) really lays it on thick with Hammond organ and Mini Moog in grand tradition of Yes, ELP, Genesis and Greenslade, with lots of Banks (that is Tony Banks), Wakeman, and Emerson-like keyboards. As mentioned, Back to the Light shows some New Wave tendencies, but the song still features plenty of creative proggy passages.

Jigs finds the band doing English folk music, complete with fiddling, and fife-like sounds from a Moog, while Pilgrim starts off something like Fairport Convention or Steeleye Span, but then suddenly the music gets more complex and the English folk rock is thrown out in favor of prog which is more typical of the album.

In closing, this is nice 1978 stuff for the prog rock fan, even those who run at the thought of Der Kommissar, since this is nothing like that!

1. Dance Of The Marionette 2. Back To The Light 3. Now That I’ve Found 4. Signs Of Change 5. Jigs 6. Pilgrim 7. Samaritan Woman [Bonus Track] 8. Dreamaway [Bonus Track] 9. Hallelujah [Bonus Track] 10. Back To The Light (Demo) [Bonus Track]

Disc Two: Early Demos & Pre-Laser Love Demos
Disc Two contains three early demos, previously unreleased on CD as well as 13 previously unreleased demos recorded in preparation for Laser Love.

1. Here On My Island (Previously unreleased on CD) 2. Psalm (Previously unreleased on CD) 3. Choice (Previously unreleased on CD) 4. Time to Think (Previously unreleased) 5. Listen to Me (Previously unreleased) 6. Check it Out (Previously unreleased) 7. You Never Told Me (Previously unreleased) 8. Suspended Animation (Previously unreleased) 9. Can You Face It? (Previously unreleased) 10. Your Love is Alive (Previously unreleased) 11. Little Sun, Little Rain (Previously unreleased) 12. Beatles Medley/Help! (Previously unreleased) 13. Life in The City (Previously unreleased) 14. Like the Power of a Jet (Mix 3) (Previously unreleased) 15. One Rule (Previously unreleased) 16. Suspended Animation (Previously unreleased)

Disc Three: Laser Love (1979)
I was surprised to discover that this was After the Fire’s second album. In case you don’t know, none of After The Fire’s albums were released in the U.S. until the band broke up in 1982. Quite frankly while listening to this album I kept thinking, these guys do “The Cars” better than The Cars.

This album came out in 79 and The Cars in 1978 so they were probably recorded around the same time so who knows who came first. I swear I will never understand why none of these After The Fire’s album were released in the U.S.A. or Canada for that matter.

Anyway, and regardless, the album that marked a definitive shift from the band’s earlier progressive rock style towards a more New Wave and pop-oriented sound. The album features shorter, radio-friendly songs, with One Rule for You being a notable track along with both Suspended Animation and the titular Laser Love.

While the album received mixed reviews, it should be noted that the band’s strong musicianship and melodic instrumental work, especially on tracks like Joy and Timestar, are sill to this day a joy to behold.

1. Laser Love 2. Joy 3. Take Me Higher 4. Life In The City 5. Suspended Animation 6. Like The Power Of A Jet 7. One Rule For You 8. Time To Think 9. Timestar 10. Check It Out 11. Your Love Is Alive (B-side of Laser Love 7”) [Bonus Track] 12. Life In The City (12” version) [Bonus Track] 13. Listen To Me (B-side of Life In The City 7”) [Bonus Track] 14. One Rule For You (Live) (Live Rainbow Nov 79) (Promo) [Bonus Track] 15. Time To Think (Live) (Live Rainbow Nov 79) (Promo) [Bonus Track] 16. Take Me Higher (Live) (B-side to Frozen Rivers 7”) [Bonus Track]

Disc Four: 80-f (1980)
Simply put, 80-f is a brilliant and now classic 80’s synth pop album and still one for the ages, in my humble opinion. I actually had this tape in 1984 (imported from the US) and played it to death as it was, for me at least, a true-to-life early 80’s soundtrack of school life and adolescent angst typically found in my area of UK suburbia circa 1984.

Chock full of catchy songs such as both Who’s Gonna Love You (When You’re Old And Fat And Ugly)? and Billy, Billy, there are just so many first-rate 80’s classics on this release it is hard to find a bad one to complain about.

With their chopping guitar riffs, hard hit drums and undeniably catchy choruses, the songs are all brilliant. Another stand out would be their cover of Why Can’t We Be Friends? but in all honesty every song played just makes me very happy each time I play this cassette!

1. 1980-F 2. Love Will Always Make You Cry 3. Can You Face It? 4. Who’s Gonna Love You (When You’re Old And Fat And Ugly)? 5. Starflight 6. Wild West Show 7. Billy, Billy 8. It’s High Fashion 9. Why Can’t We Be Friends? 10. Joanne 11. Why Can’t We Be Friends? (B-side of Love Will Always Make You Cry 7”) [Bonus Track] 12. Every Mother’s Son (B-side of Love Will Always Make You Cry 7”) (Promo) [Bonus Track] 13. Starflight (80-f Four Track Sampler) (Previously unreleased on CD) [Bonus Track] 14. Love Will Always Make You Cry (80-f Four Track Sampler) (Previously unreleased on CD) [Bonus Track] 15. It’s High Fashion (80-f Four Track Sampler) (Previously unreleased on CD) [Bonus Track] 16. 1980-F (80-f Four Track Sampler) (Previously unreleased on CD) [Bonus Track] 17. Wild West Show (7" version) (Previously unreleased on CD) [Bonus Track] 18. Billy, Billy (Live) (B-side of Rich Boys 7”) (Previously unreleased on CD) [Bonus Track] 19. Another World (From unreleased version of 80-f) (Previously unreleased on CD) [Bonus Track][Bonus Track] 20. Operator (From unreleased version of 80-f) (Previously unreleased on CD) [Bonus Track] 21. Satellite in Orbit (From unreleased version of 80-f) (Previously unreleased on CD) [Bonus Track]

Disc Five: Batteries Not Included (1982)
While this album always lifts my spirits while I listen to it I always know that this was also it from/for the 80’s version of After The Fire. The singles were Rich Boys and Frozen Rivers and a music video was produced for Rich Boys.

There is some info out there that Dancing In The Shadows was a single but it actually wasn’t, at least not in relation to this album. It was released as a single for the American release of the album Der Kommissar. The album did not do that well which is entirely baffling to me but again I just don’t agree with the choice of singles.

To my 80’s ears Sometimes is the obvious single. Anyway love the band, love the album and luckily for us this would not be the last we heard from them, but it would take quite a few years.

1. Short Change 2. Frozen Rivers 3. Sometimes 4. Sailing Ship 5. I Don’t Understand Your Love 6. The Stranger 7. Rich Boys 8. Carry Me Home 9. Dancing In The Shadows 10. Space Walking 11. Gina 12. Stuck In Paris (Nowhere To Go) 13. Bright Lights 14. Nobody Else But You (B-side of Dancing In The Shadows 7”) [Bonus Track] 15. Starflight (Live) [Bonus Track]

Disc Six: AT2F (1983)
As we all know now, this was ATF’s last recording from 1983 before the band members all went their separate ways. Fans of the band will not be disappointed - their originality, fine musicianship and reasonable diversity are present, however as it was also an album that never saw the light of day [when it should have been released] always begs the question: Why?

I suggest that artistically speaking, there is little profound here that we have not heard on previous ATF albums. That does not mean to say it is uninteresting, rather like old sofas around the house, familiar and not a great deal to excite.

It is steady, foot-tapping rock that just holds it head above the water in innovation of sound and compositions, even if it does fail to sound like the cohesive and disciplined sound that have been a hallmark of their earlier output.

1. Young Love 2. Step By Step 3. Don’t Say Goodbye 4. Cariba 5. Who Do You Think You? 6. Dark Side 7. 1984-F 8. Over And Over 9. It’s Over 10. Night Is Still Falling 11. It’s Over (No Voiceover) 12. Genz 13. Space Walking (Demo) 14. Stand By Me (Demo 2) 15. I’m Bored (Demo) (Previously unreleased) [Bonus Track] 16. Starflight (new version)[Bonus Track] 17. Sternenflug (7” version) (Previously unreleased on CD) [Bonus Track] 18. Der Kommissar (7” version)[Bonus Track] 19. Der Kommissar (Specially Extended Remixed Version) 7” [Bonus Track]

Official Purchase Link

After The Fire - Bright Lights 1974-1983 6CD Box-Set [Official Trailer]