The beginning of the 1980s saw the start of a new personal and creative relationship for Andy Latimer, with partner Susan Hoover. She provided the lyrics and concept for Nude: it was based on the true story of Hiroo Onoda, a Japanese soldier who held out in the Philippines until 1974, denying that WWII had ended. Thus, with the lofty concept in place, Latimer assembled Camel's rhythm section of Andy Ward and Colin Bass, along with former 10cc keyboardist Duncan Mackay and session man Mel Collins at Abbey Road Studios to record the album. Both the opening "City Life" and "Nude" contain all the aspects that make up Camel's music: soft, gentle vocals, easy melodies and pristine production. But that big bass line of "Drafted" starts a series of tracks that provide all of the tension and intrigue of Nude's journey. The album returns to a consistency in composition that echoes Camel's previous epic works. Mackay's keyboards are first-rate throughout, while Ward and Bass certainly earn their keep as well. The second side's "Changing Places" switches to a world music vibe; and again, the well-composed instrumentals offer more than a simple continuity to the storyline. "Lies" is the penultimate conclusion and another great Camel vocal number, with Latimer's brilliant guitar tone also singing over the straightforward beat. The album rose to No. 36 in the UK charts, and saw release on Passport Records in the US. Following the band's spring tour, Ward took his leave from the band for personal reasons; but Decca Records forced Latimer back into the studio in early 1982 to complete another album. The aptly-titled The Single Factor was recorded with a host of guest musicians, including Anthony Phillips, singer Chris Rainbow and bassist David Paton, the latter two part of The Alan Parsons Project. A final studio album, Stationary Traveller, was released in 1984, with Ton Scherpenzeel from Kayak on keyboards and Paul Burgess from 10cc on drums; and after a final live album for Decca the same year, Camel broke up.
Rush ensconced themselves once again at Le Studio in Quebec with Terry Brown to record their eighth studio album, Moving Pictures. "Tom Sawyer" kicks off; and continuing the trend from the previous record, offers another radio-friendly slice of prog rock. Geddy Lee's synthesizers accent the track, which features another of Alex Lifeson's firebrand guitar solos. The tale of a Ferrari roadster, "Red Barchetta," follows, and winds its course in expert fashion. The instrumental "YYZ" takes its name from the airport code for Toronto; but musically it's all Rush, featuring their brand of tight, complex hard rock. "Limelight" was the second single from the album and features Neil Peart's classic lyric of the band's newfound fame. Along with "Tom Sawyer," it entered the UK Top 10. Clocking in at 11 minutes, the two-parter "The Camera Eye" opens the second side in epic fashion, while the ensuing "Witch Hunt" takes a while to get going. The album's cover sports a triple entendre of "moving pictures," courtesy of long-time artist Hugh Syme. Though the album reached No. 1 in their native Canada, the album would peak at No. 3 on both sides of the Atlantic and earn quadruple-platinum status in the US. Rush immediately leaped on tour to support the album, recording material for their next release along the way. Exit...Stage Left, also released in 1981, features those recordings, plus one side recorded on the previous Permanent Waves tour. On subsequent albums, Rush would further embrace synthesizer technology, and also part with long-standing producer Brown. Success, however, would never be more acute than it was here.
Written by Karl Jenkins, Soft Machine's final record was produced by Mike Thorne, who also had just produced Wire's trailblazing trilogy of art-rock albums for the Harvest label. The record's title refers to a medieval land of plenty, and plenty of diverse tracks is what the album holds. Released in 1981, Land of Cockayne arrived well past Soft Machine's sell-by date; their previous studio album was 1976's Softs, with a live album recorded and released the following year. However, joining Jenkins and drummer John Marshall were an A-list of guests: Jack Bruce, Allan Holdsworth, Alan Parker, John Taylor, Ray Warleigh and Dick Morrissey. It's also the only album from the band to feature string arrangements. But what about the music? Composed entirely by Jenkins, he moves between new agey-ness, a good measure of disco-era funk (with strings, of course), some Oldfield-like minimalism and a tiny hint of the Softs of old (there's some nice blowing toward the end of the record). Holdsworth makes his mark on "Sly Monkey," but I still can't believe how much the opener "Over ‘n' Above" sounds like Supertramp! It's a strange record; not that it's difficult to listen to or digest, but it's one that ultimately has no time or place. Soft Machine? Not really. New Age? Maybe. Rock ‘n' roll? Certainly not. 1981? Really!? Well, it opened to little fanfare; and apart from a week-long residency in 1984 at Ronnie Scott's, the album remains Soft Machine's final coda.
Curiously, Anthony Phillips's next offering was an album of electronic music released in 1981, and under the title 1984. Assisted by Richard Scott in the studio, Phillips composed and created all of the music exclusively on electronic keyboards, though Morris Pert did add some percussion to the recordings. The Roland CompuRhythm CR-78 was an early programmable drum machine, and its familiar "chirp" can be heard on Phil Collins's classic track, "In the Air Tonight." The Orwellian black-and-white cover image of a cage presents a stark contrast to previous Peter Cross creations, yet the music was divergent as well. "Prelude ‘84" b/w "Anthem 1984" was issued as a single, but the meat of record is the two-part title track "1984," which encompasses most of the album. Gone are Phillips's pastoral, acoustic compositions; instead, the music is constantly propelled by the driving force of the drum machine. It's a contemporary work, though as lyrical as any of Phillips's previous efforts. Themes reprise themselves, tension ebbs and flows and all of it culminates in a grand vocoder finale. The layers of Polymoog and ARP 2600 synthesizers blast away, forging a landscape of dark beauty; it's a brilliant work and a bold step forward for Phillips. The album was released by RCA Records in the UK, and again on Passport Records in the US. For the remainder of the 80s, Phillips concentrated on his Private Parts & Pieces series. Another curious outlier though was the 1983 album Invisible Men, again recorded with Richard Scott. Ostensibly a pop album, it saw Phillips return to both contemporary song-form and subject matter (the Falklands War) for a final time.
Peter Hammill entered the 80s as a solo artist and without a label, yet still managed by former Charisma director Gail Colson. This link led to a (somewhat controversial) production job for Random Hold's 1980 debut album, Etceteraville, and later, briefly, a label, S-Type, that released his 1980 album A Black Box. Arranged, performed and produced by Hammill himself, it's a curious record, full of technological experimentation and odd, chunky production. For his next album, Sitting Targets, Hammill again enlisted David Lord in what must have been a larger role: sonically, the album is light years ahead of its predecessor, presenting a contemporary, if still unconventional record. The opening "Breakthrough" benefits from Guy Evans's crisp drumming, as does the following "My Experience." Layers of guitars, synths, punchy bass and compressed drums push Hammill into the 80s, while his compositions offer strangely appealing songs. "Ophelia" slows the pace, offering one of Hammill's emotive ballads, while "Empress's Clothes" and "Glue" crank up the drum-machine for more serene rides. "Hesitation" is raw, with David Jackson offering his sax. The strong title track opens the second side, while the piano-based "Stranger Still" offers one of Hammill's classic lyrics. "Sign" jumps with Evans's drums, and features Hammill's thick-toned guitar; it's the highlight. All-in-all, the album is one of Hammill's most cohesive efforts, and one fitting for the times. His next move was to form the K Group—a "beat combo" featuring Evans, bassist Nic Potter and guitarist John Ellis—to tour the album, which saw release on Virgin Records (and PVC in the US). The K Group would remain together for another three albums, all of which were built around the foundation laid here. Moving forward, Hammill would foster a solo career that was-surprise, surprise-uniquely his own. However, while others would find mainstream success in the 80s, Hammill's career would be best defined by a different measure: perseverance. One of the most prolific artists to emerge from the progressive era, Hammill continues to this day to release records to his ever-fervent fan base.
Early in 1981, drummer and vocalist Phil Collins released his debut solo album, Face Value. Featuring the single "In the Air Tonight" b/w "The Roof is Leaking," it was a huge success, reaching the top of the UK and US charts, and launching Collins to superstar status during the 80s and early 90s. It was Collins then that brought engineer Hugh Padgham along when Genesis reconvened at their Farm Studio in Surrey to record their 11th studio album, Abacab. A play on the arrangement of the title track, "Abacab" opens, revealing an altogether different Genesis: sparser, and with a reliance on synthesizers, there's a simplicity to the sound here that belies the band's artistry-laden past. Harsh drums, big synth lines and an almost jam-like ending still contain an edge, but the music is light years from the band's progressive rock of the 70s. Only Tony Banks's "Me and Sarah Jane" and Mike Rutherford's "Like It or Not" ever so gently reach back towards the band's previous work. "Keep It Dark" lumbers over Collins's plodding drums, while "Dodo / Lurker" and "Who Dunnit?" similarly offer a rough edge. Collins's "Man on The Corner," built over a chirping drum pattern, is firmly of the new era. In fact, the band recorded enough material for a double-album during the sessions, but relinquished what they deemed too similar to their past to b-sides and elsewhere. Complete with horns from Earth, Wind & Fire, the R&B of "No Reply at All" b/w "Naminanu" was a huge hit, rising to No. 2 in the US. Released in September, the album too was a success on both sides of the Atlantic, reaching No. 1 in the UK and No. 7 in the US. It also serves as the dividing line between the Genesis of the 70s, and the Genesis of the new era. Following the album's release, the band embarked on a worldwide tour, culminating in the double-album Three Sides Live in 1982. In the US, the fourth side contained tracks from the 3x3 EP, while the UK version included live material from their 70s repertoire. The tour was the first to feature Vari-Lite technology, one that the band's investment helped create. For the next few years, Genesis would reign supreme in popular music, with further platinum and No. 1 albums, numerous hit singles and the runaway success of Collins's solo career—at least until the early 90s, when the reappraisal began.
After Robert Fripp's League of Gentlemen ceased to be in late 1980, he re-teamed up with drummer Bill Bruford for a new "first-division" venture. First aboard was guitarist Adrian Belew, fresh from a stint with the Talking Heads, while bassist Tony Levin joined up after Bruford's choice, Jeff Berlin, was rejected. The band, Discipline, debuted at Moles Club in Bath, Somerset, on April 30th, 1981. Why and when they became King Crimson is ultimately a matter of course; the change did, however, provide a title for the record, Discipline. "Elephant Talk" opens, offering not only a great lyric from Belew, but also a fresh and modern sound from the band. "Frame by Frame" continues, highlighting the guitar interplay between Fripp and Belew; the former's arpeggios are contrasted with the free-form sonics of the latter. "Matte Kudasai" slows the pace, with Belew's guitar up front and center, though his voice is perhaps an acquired taste. "Indiscipline" unleashes the band's fury, with Levin's Stick bass cementing his unique signature to the group's overall sound. "Thela Hun Ginjeet" (an anagram of "heat in the jungle") intersperses some hilarious field recordings from Belew recounting a street encounter; while "The Sheltering Sky" sees Bruford bringing electronic drumming into his repertoire. Band name aside, the music presents a clean break from the King Crimson of the 70s; yet one equally compelling and one in keeping with the aesthetics of a new decade. Released by EG Records, the album was a moderate success, reaching the Top 40 on both sides of the Atlantic. The band's live set would only feature "Larks' Tongues In Aspic, Part Two" from the Crim back catalog; and less than a year later, a second album, Beat, would appear with a similar modus operandi. Another two years and one album later, however, the experiment would come to an end. King Crimson were no more—well, until they became even more again later in the 90s.
Now a trio of Edgar Froese, Chris Franke and Johannes Schmölling, Tangerine Dream's first release of 1981 was the soundtrack to the film Thief in April. Although it reprised material from Force Majeure (as was often the case with soundtracks), the band would record another three studio albums for Virgin Records, beginning with the not-to-be-missed Exit in September. Offering six discreet tracks, it's a contemporary, if not timeless album of electronic music. "Kiew Mission" offers a slight return to vocals, albeit disguised in the spoken chant of continent names of its first section; the second half spryly skips over a trio of synths before fading off. "Pilots of Purple Twilight" offers a more conventional theme, but equally thrives from its use of space; "Choronzon" dances to a brisk, drum-like tempo. The second side contains some of the finest TD on record. The slow moving "Exit" ambles over an undulating sequence, while "Network 23" blasts open with a tight groove, approaching song-form. Yet it's the closing "Remote Viewing" that most heralds the return to their 70s glory: A powerful, monolithic wall of sound gives rise to a hypnotic and detailed sequence, one both sinister and epic, and full of the band's expert sound design as it goes for the long fade. Brilliant. Both the soundtrack and the studio album (oddly enough) rose to No. 43 in the UK, while seeing release on Elektra Records in the US. Henceforth, Tangerine Dream would further concentrate their work on soundtracks and film scores—effectively a replacement for their live shows, which had all but disappeared after a final European tour in 1982. From Hollywood blockbusters (Risky Business, Firestarter, Legend), to lower budget films (Wavelength, Heartbreakers), they would foot the bill for the band. But by 1983, their contract with Virgin Records would expire, and by mid-decade Schmölling had left the band. With Paul Haslinger on board, Tangerine Dream would relocate to Los Angeles. Their subsequent output would have little, if any, resemblance to their work from the 70s and earliest 80s.
Hawkwind headlined Glastonbury Festival in June, and in a bizarre twist of fate, none other than Ginger Baker was co-headliner! The band had recovered from the debacle with their former drummer and regrouped around Dave Brock, Huw Lloyd-Langton and Harvey Bainbridge—the latter now sharing keyboard duties with Brock. Martin Griffin, previously a member of Ark and the Hawklords, returned on drums, as did poet Michael Moorcock (absent during most of the Robert Calvert era). Recorded in the summer of 1981 at Kingsley Ward's Rockfield Studios for his RCA-distributed Active label, Sonic Attack would be Hawkwind's 11th studio record in as many years. The album opens with a rehash of "Sonic Attack" and its familiar lyric, which dates to the Space Ritual days. But the Lloyd-Langton-penned "Rocky Paths" points to the band's new sound for the early 80s: the so-called "heavy metal years." Hawkwind's music is firmly riff-driven, pulsing over a click-track steady rhythm with sequencers and synths galore. Lloyd-Langton adds his proficient lead guitar, bending more than a few notes. Moorcock takes a vocal for his "Coded Languages," and Brock's "Angels of Death" (also the album's single) and "Streets of Fire" follow suit. Both of Brock's tracks highlight the driving rhythm that Hawkwind had perfected over the past decade. The album was released to near unanimous acclaim, reaching No. 19 on the UK charts. An appearance at London's Rainbow Theatre in December even saw former colleagues Nik Turner and Robert Calvert take the stage. Two further albums appeared in 1982 on RCA/Active: The more electronic Church of Hawkwind was released in May, while Choose Your Masques came out in October. Hawkwind would then sign to Flicknife Records, releasing several albums that consisted of live recordings, demos and other detritus—including the Hawkwind, Friends and Relations series (heir apparent to Brock's mail-order only Weird Tapes). However, it wouldn't be until 1985 that the band released a proper studio album: the epic saga The Chronicle Of The Black Sword. With Brock in the captain's chair, Hawkwind would soldier on through the 80s amind numerous lineup and personnel changes and continue to experiment with new musical directions; defying fate and fortune, Hawkwind continue to this day.
The Strawberry Bricks Guide to Progressive Rock
Third Edition
by Charles Snider
ISBN: 978-0-578-48980-3
On sale now!
