Anything | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 1 December 1986 | |||
Recorded | June–August 1986 | |||
Studio | Puk Recording Studios, Denmark | |||
Length | 41:00 | |||
Label | MCA | |||
Producer | Jon Kelly | |||
The Damned chronology | ||||
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Singles from Anything | ||||
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Alternative cover | ||||
Anything is the seventh studio album by U.K. punk rock band the Damned,released by MCA Records in 1986. On the album's release,it charted in the United Kingdom,peaking at No. 40,and was certified as silver by the British Phonographic Industry. Four singles were released that all charted in the UK.
The album began production in June 1986 in Puk Recording Studios in Denmark. [4] The Damned's vocalist,Dave Vanian,later stated that the group were forced into the studio to record the album before they had prepared any new material for it. [5] Drummer Rat Scabies mentioned that the group had demoed the song "In Dulce Decorum",but most of the songs were written in the studio. [4]
In July,the group took a break from recording to perform a 10th anniversary performance in London at the Town and Country Club and two in Finsbury Park,where the group performed some songs that would appear on Anything,and were joined by Captain Sensible to perform "Smash It Up". [4] On returning to Denmark,the group recorded a cover of "Alone Again Or" which Scabies originally thought was written by Roman Jugg. [4] The album concluded production in August. [4]
Following the recording sessions,the Damned toured Ireland and Britain in October and concluded the tour in Ireland in November. [4] The group began having issues with technology on the tour (the brass parts of "Psychomania" crept in when the group were performing "In Dulce Decorum") and had to use an emulator to recreate some of their studio sound. [4] Prior to the album's release,a single for "Anything" was released in November. [6]
Anything was released on MCA Records on 1 December 1986 in the United Kingdom. [7] [8] In the UK,the album charted for two weeks,peaking at No. 40. [9] It was certified Silver by the British Phonographic Industry. [8] After the release of the "Gigolo" single in January 1987,the Damned toured Europe until February. [6] [4] They toured in Australia in March and Japan in April. [4] During a booking hiatus,the group returned to performing shows as the alter ego Naz Nomad and the Nightmares. [4] "In Dulce Decorum" was released as the final single from the album in November 1987. [4]
In the United States,MCA released "Anything","In Dulce Decorum" and "Alone Again" as singles. [10] [11] MCA followed the release of Anything with a Damned compilation album titled Light at the End of the Tunnel in November 1987. [4] [12] MCA and The Damned parted ways the following year. [4]
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [13] |
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [14] |
MusicHound Rock:The Essential Album Guide | [15] |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [16] |
Contempory reviews were mainly positive, The Ottawa Citizen gave the album a positive review,describing the album as "varied but not disjointed" and that the Damned had become a "superb pop band" that make a "better pop band of the '80s than it did a punk band of the '70s". [17]
The Vancouver Sun also praised the album,stating that the Damned "have made the switch to mood music quite well,almost rising to the level of the mighty Stranglers". The review compared the album to music by Simple Minds,opining that the album was what they "want to sound like,moody and atmospheric without getting all doomy and gloomy". [18]
Retrospective reception was far more negative,A retrospective review from AllMusic was negative,awarding the album 2 stars and calling it the worst album of the original group's catalogue. [13] The review specifically pointed out "Restless" and "In Dulce Decorum" as meandering,and noted that the tracks "Psychomania" and "Anything" were the only tracks that "generate anything approximating the energy of the Damned's best music". [13]
Trouser Press dismissed the album,observing,"Anything boasts a neat version of Love’s “Alone Again Or,”but otherwise falls well short of achieving anything memorable. Despite the Damned’s proven ability to alternately rock gothic and play nice,there’s no audible point to the music;it’s hard to imagine who would find this LP pleasurable." [19]
In an album ranking list Mörat of Louder put Anything second to worst on the list,praising only the cover of Alone Again Or "and the vaguely hummable Gigolo," saying "the rest is turgid at best,and plain boring at worst. Such was their lack of inspiration that they couldn’t even come up with a proper album title,so for want of a better idea... “Oh,call it anything.”" [20]
When later asked about the Phantasmagoria and Anything albums,Vanian said that "some of the production in retrospect could have been done a little better,but it was the '80's. Some of those songs were just as heartfelt as anything that had gone before despite the frills and ruffles". [5]
All tracks are written by Roman Jugg, Rat Scabies, Bryn Merrick and Dave Vanian, except where noted
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Anything" | 4:47 | |
2. | "Alone Again Or" | Bryan MacLean | 3:38 |
3. | "The Portrait" | 3:50 | |
4. | "Restless" | 4:57 | |
5. | "In Dulce Decorum" | 4:47 | |
6. | "Gigolo" | 6:02 | |
7. | "The Girl Goes Down" | 4:35 | |
8. | "Tightrope Walk" | 4:21 | |
9. | "Psychomania" | 4:03 |
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Year | Song | Peak positions |
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UK [9] | ||
1986 | "Anything" | 32 |
1987 | "Gigolo" | 21 |
"Alone Again Or" | 27 | |
"In Dulce Decorum" | 72 | |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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United Kingdom (BPI) [21] | Silver | 60,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
The Damned are an English punk rock band formed in London in 1976 by lead vocalist Dave Vanian, guitarist Brian James, bassist Captain Sensible and drummer Rat Scabies. They were the first punk band from the United Kingdom to release a single, "New Rose" (1976), release a studio album, Damned Damned Damned (1977) and tour the United States. Nine of the band's singles charted on the UK Singles Chart Top 40.
Strawberries is the fifth studio album by English punk rock band the Damned. It was released in October 1982 by record label Bronze. Limited editions included a strawberry-scented lyric insert. The album reached No. 15 in the UK charts,the band's first to reach the Top 20.
Machine Gun Etiquette is the third studio album by English punk rock band the Damned, released on 2 November 1979 by Chiswick Records. The album peaked at No. 31 on the UK Charts
Not of This Earth is the eighth studio album by The Damned, released on 11 November 1995. It is often called I'm Alright Jack & The Beanstalk.
Roman Jugg is a British keyboard player and guitarist. He began his career in the Welsh punk band Victimize in the late 1970s.
Final Damnation is a live album by the Damned. The album was recorded at The Town & Country Club in London on 13 June 1988. It was originally released in August 1989 by Essential, and was later re-released on DVD.
Phantasmagoria is the sixth album by English punk rock band the Damned, released by MCA in July 1985. Special editions were available on white vinyl or picture disc; some versions included a free 12-inch of their No. 3 hit "Eloise". It is the first album by the band without original member Captain Sensible, and was a style shift to gothic rock compared to the band's punk sound of its early and later career.
"Thanks for the Night" is a single by English punk rock band the Damned, released in May 1984.
"Generals" is a single by English punk rock band the Damned, released in November 1982.
"Grimly Fiendish" is a single by English rock band the Damned, released on 18 March 1985.
Naz Nomad and The Nightmares was a British musical group featuring the members of British punk and gothic rock band the Damned, active in the 1980s and occasionally thereafter.
"Is It a Dream?" is a single by English rock band the Damned, released in September 1985 by MCA Records.
"Eloise" is a song first released in 1968 on the MGM label. It was sung by Barry Ryan, and written by his twin brother Paul Ryan. Running for over five minutes, it features strong orchestration, melodramatic vocals, and a brief slow interlude. It sold three million copies worldwide, and reached No. 2 in the UK Singles Chart as published by Record Retailer, but hit No. 1 in the NME and Melody Maker charts. It topped the chart in 17 countries, including Italy, the Netherlands and Australia.
"Anything" is a single by English rock band the Damned, released on 10 November 1986 by MCA Records.
"Gigolo" is a single by English rock band the Damned, released on 23 January 1987 by MCA Records.
"Alone Again Or" is a song originally recorded in 1967 by the rock group Love and written by band member Bryan MacLean. It appears on the album Forever Changes, and was released as a single in the USA, UK, Australia, France and the Netherlands.
"In Dulce Decorum" is a song by English rock band the Damned, released on 16 November 1987 by MCA Records.
The Light at the End of the Tunnel is a double compilation album by the Damned, released by MCA in 1987 as a retrospective collection. The same name was also given to a concurrently released video cassette and an approved band biography by Carol Clerk.
Smash It Up: The Anthology 1976–1987 is a compilation album by the English punk and gothic rock band the Damned, released on 22 October 2002. It collects tracks spanning the first eleven years of the band's career, beginning with their debut single "New Rose" (1976) and continuing through their first seven studio albums—Damned Damned Damned (1977), Music for Pleasure (1977), Machine Gun Etiquette (1979), The Black Album (1980), Strawberries (1982), Phantasmagoria (1985), and Anything (1986)—along with the non-album singles "Stretcher Case Baby" (1977), "Lovely Money" (1982), and "Eloise" (1986).