Is There Anything About? is the sixth studio album by British jazz fusion group Brand X. It is the last album to feature longstanding members Robin Lumley and Phil Collins. It was assembled from outtakes from the 1979 Product sessions. Bassist Percy Jones first heard about the album after it was released, and was unsatisfied with the results.[1] These sessions produced around twenty tracks which also comprised the Do They Hurt? album (1980). "Modern, Noisy and Effective" is actually the backing track to "Soho" with a new keyboard line overdubbed on it. "A Longer April" is an extended version of "April" from Product, with a bit of synth noise added in the middle. "TMIU-ATGA" is taken from an old cassette tape running in the studio while the band were improvising; the title is an acronym for 'They Make It Up- As They Go Along'.[2]
Is There Anything About? | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | September 1982 | |||
Recorded | Startling Studios, Ascot, UK, April 1979, except track 5, "Is There Anything About", recorded mid 1970s | |||
Genre | Jazz fusion | |||
Length | 33:37 | |||
Label | CBS | |||
Producer | Robin Lumley, Brand X | |||
Brand X chronology | ||||
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Background and recording
editThis album is outtakes from the Product (1979) sessions.
"A Longer April" is a re-engineered version of "April" from the Product sessions.
"Modern, Noisy, and Effective" is a recycling of the backing track of "Soho" from the Product album; the liner notes for Product include the following credit for "Soho": "Eng: P. Collins (Modern, Noisy, and Effective)". However, this phrase first appears in the film Three Dates with Genesis (1978); the narrator describes the scene in which the stage has been torn down and all the equipment loaded into trucks thus: "Like the rock band they service, the trucks are noisy, modern, and effective; at 2:30 on a Friday morning, they leave Mannheim to drive halfway across Europe to the Dutch border."
Reception
editReview scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [3] |
Track listing
edit- Side one
- "Ipanaemia" (John Goodsall) – 4:30
- "A Longer April" (John Giblin) – 7:00
- "Modern, Noisy and Effective" (Goodsall, Robin Lumley, Stephen Short) – 3:56
- Side two
- "Swan Song" (Phil Collins, Giblin, Lumley, Short) – 5:37
- "Is There Anything About?" (Collins, Goodsall, Percy Jones) – 7:53
- "TMIU-ATGA" (Giblin, Lumley, J. Peter Robinson) – 5:09
CD version
edit- "Ipanemia" (Goodsall) – 4:13
- "A Longer April" (Giblin) – 7:23
- "TMIU-ATGA" (Giblin, Lumley, Robinson) – 5:09
- "Swan Song" (Collins, Giblin, Lumley, Short) – 5:37
- "Is There Anything About?" (Collins, Goodsall, Jones) – 7:53
- "Modern, Noisy and Effective" (Goodsall, Lumley, Short) – 3:58
Personnel
editBrand X
- Robin Lumley – keyboards (1-5), vocals (4)
- J. Peter Robinson – keyboards (6)
- John Goodsall – guitars
- John Giblin – bass (1-4, 6), vocals (4)
- Percy Jones – bass (5)
- Phil Collins – drums, percussion
Additional personnel
- Raphael Ravenscroft – saxophone (2)
- Steve Short – Syndrums (4), vocals (4)
- Ed Carson – handclaps (3)
Production
edit- Robin Lumley – producer, remixing
- Steve Short – producer, engineer, remixing
- Colin Green – engineer
- Neil Kernon – engineer
- Craig Milliner – engineer
- Ray Staff – mastering
- Bill Smith – sleeve design
- Andrew Douglas – photography
Charts
editYear | Chart | Position |
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1982 | UK Album Chart | 93[4] |
References
edit- ^ "Percy Jones (Brand X, PAKT) Interview December 30, 2022".
- ^ "Brand X > is There Anything About?".
- ^ "AllMusic ((( Brand X - Is There Anything About (1982) > Overview )))". www.AllMusic.com. Retrieved 2010-01-08.
- ^ "The Official Charts Company: Brand X - Is There Anything About (1982)". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2010-01-09.
External links
edit- "Discogs.com: Brand X - Is There Anything About? (1982) album releases & credits". www.Discogs.com. 1982. Retrieved 2010-01-08.
- "ProgArchives.com: Brand X - Is There Anything About? (1982) album credits & user reviews". www.ProgArchives.com. Retrieved 2016-07-23.