the Virgin Prunes, Gavin Friday - classic or dud

Like I said, I love Gavin Friday's solo discography. You want to talk about overlooked, but brilliant, his album Catholic from a few years back was fantastic and it was totally ignored.

Really impressed by The Moon Looked Down And Laughed (the Baby label version, not Mute), so many great songs and Gavin's voice is so wonderful. As much as I would have liked more of the early savage stuff, it has it's own fascinating strangeness and odd touches like Gavin sounding like he's buzzing with electricity at the end of "Love Lasts Forever". "Betrayal" is gorgeous, I think maybe it should have ended with that because it packs much more punch than the actual last track. I'm in two minds over whether they should have milked the "my whole world is on fire" part for longer. A beauty.

The old irish guy voice on Heresie is brilliant. Second track is like a subway nightmare.

I think The Moon Looked Down And Laughed is my favourite now, even though it doesn't really represent their usual style.

one of the more beautiful soundtracks i own is the Gavin Friday/Maurice Seezer score for THE BOXER. Very moving and haunting and moody, mostly, and an impressive achievement for guys who afaik haven't done much in the way of film scoring. it has some film dialogue mixed in sparingly, on a few of the tracks. it can probably be found for a couple bucks on ebay.

I'll keep it in mind.

Dude, the live album (The Hidden Lie, I think it's called) is my favorite thing by them. Got it in the cut-out bin years ago, was totally blown away. Lost my records in a devastating home situation and I truly miss this.

Have to admit I was getting nervous at remembering the song titles "Caucasian Walk" and "White History Book" but the former seems to be a dystopia in which black slavery is allowed and there isn't much I can read into the latter song.

There's a quote here that suggests the former song doesn't really mean much at all...
https://songmeanings.com/songs/view/3530822107858552956/

i played "Caucasian Walk" in a disco last week for the first time since the 80s. it sounded incredible. i have never understood the lyrics so figured it was ok to play.

Some amazing stuff on Over The Rainbow (2 disc version). Gavin's voice in "King Of Junk" is hilarious, "Greylight" is beautiful, "Revenge" is a great horrory track.

But what on earth is that secret track after "Love Lasts Forever"? Cant find anything about that. Gorgeous song that must have been from Moon Looked Down And Laughed era.

Some real surprises in Gavin's discography
https://gavinfriday.com/discography/score-get-rich-or-die-tryin/

Classic. This almost went in The Irish thread.

https://www.rte.ie/archives/2019/0916/1076206-virgin-prunes-theme-for-thought/

Nice

their glory days, it just wasn't the same without Guggi :(

eons ago in college a friend had a bootleg cassette tape of a show where they did "Moon Looked Down And Laughed" tracks but with the 5-piece (6 if you count Dav-Id) lineup, wish I could find that somewhere

(sorry for revive, no news) How is there so much 1983 live footage from them on Youtube? Not complaining though, amazing

Ohohoh! Seen an expanded remaster of If I Die, I Die today! I think that's the only album reissue so far, some vinyl single reissues, and seemingly everything is available digitally.

Lots of new stuff on youtube, mini podcasts and video projects
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdvpXJq5vis

thanks!

"2022 remaster" - I have no problems with the 2004 remaster?

I liked it too, but it was very clipped and Sleeve didn't like it, so I'm curious about what people say and if the extras are noteworthy

lol yeah don't get me started on those botched Mute CDs, more clipping than I have ever seen anywhere else ever

oh I see - yeah, the new remaster fixes that.

yeah this new LP remaster sounds great, can confirm

it's such a bummer that all the original artwork from this era seems to be lost, but there are tons of super cool new photos from the era that are used here to great effect, I'm still keeping the 1982 Italian Base pressing that I've had for decades because the art is all different but this is a worthy reissue and highly recommended

this is also available as a double CD with bonus tracks on the 2nd disc, I can't comment on the mastering here but I assume it's better than previous CD iterations
https://www.discogs.com/release/25162990-Virgin-Prunes-If-I-Die-I-Die

I can really hear the remastering details on "Bau-Dachong" which is my fave, I am thrilled

It would appear that "Fádo" from the 2004 reissue is different than "Fado (rough mix)" on the new release. The piano-driven second half of the former in particular doesn't appear in the latter.

Enjoyed that youtube series. I learned there's another 2 parts of A New Form Of Beauty that might yet be released (Gavin wouldn't tease us without delivering would he?), I was surprised that his favorite release was Heresie

If you can, find "The Hidden Lie".

It's a live album that I picked up at the old cut-out store in Old Town in Chicago.

It's my personal favorite Prunes album. Beautiful sound quality.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hU9s85pTlz0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yEbSSn2meuM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujlhMEHLrsE
4 part doc, on a channel with a treasure trove of Prunes/Gavin Guggi videos

thank you! gee I'd love to hear those other New Form parts before I die, or Gavin dies...

but hey, if I die, I die, right?

Okay, that documentary is badly cropped so I can't see the names of some of the speakers and there's more parts that I can't find, it obviously had longer to go

Revive! what I’ve heard from his upcoming album sounds devastatingly excellent.

thanks, Alex in NYC

the album, Ecce Homo, is out this Friday - I was just coming here to post this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HqmKmCIvSZU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F68NB7LIRTw

Ecco Homo—Lyrics are great, the music is kinda ehhhh…

How dare you

could never ever connect with this guy solo, what a great band they were though. pretty much my same take on Marc Almond (sorry Ned), great guest spots with Coil but the solo stuff is way too cabaret/arch for me

Ecco Homo—Lyrics are great, the music is kinda ehhhh…

― Booger Swamp Road (Boring, Maryland), Tuesday, October 22, 2024

The beats are the best part!

Oh shit

I always come back to this live footage - totally unhinged - smoking ciggs, drinking wine and being FABULOUS all in the daylight!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXn4zwsrGhg

yeah that's the stuff

pretty much my same take on Marc Almond (sorry Ned)

TSK, etc. Anyway you will all come around on Gavin, so.

I don't hold his bestie relationship with Bono against him.

I really liked hearing about that whole group of friends, especially the way they could get together after a long absence and make art in a room together

Eno said once that Bono's secret sharer isn't Edge or the other U2ers, it's Gavin Friday.

Once I heard Gavin Friday, Bono’s entire vocal style shift in the 1990s made perfect sense. Hearing next to them on the title track to In the Name of the Father was a bit uncanny.

*them next to each other!

I know how to construct sentences, but my faulty voice text does not…

The beats sound totally 1997

That is why they rule

Yeah I'm gonna say, as someone who loved the Tim Simenon-produced Shag Tobacco out of the gate almost thirty years back, play to strengths here.