London 1986

Last updated

London 1986
Talk Talk - London 1986.png
Live album by
Released19 February 1999
Recorded8 May 1986
Venue Hammersmith Odeon, London
Genre
Length56:13
Label Pond Life
Talk Talk chronology
Asides Besides
(1998)
London 1986
(1999)
12x12 Original Remixes
(1999)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [1]
NME(7/10) [2]

London 1986 is a live album by the English group Talk Talk, released in Europe by Pond Life Records on compact disc in 1999. It was recorded at the Hammersmith Odeon in London on 8 May 1986 near the end of their European tour to promote their 1986 studio album The Colour of Spring . The tour was the band's last, and the show was the band's last live performance in the UK, although they released two more studio albums in 1988 and 1991. Promotional copies released in 1998 were titled Hammersmith. [3]

Contents

The album was met with moderately positive reviews upon its release. It is notable for capturing the band's transition period, when their sound was moving away from their earlier pop phase, from which the performances are mostly drawn, into their later experimental music. [2] Another live release from 2022 contains four songs from the show on 7 May.[ citation needed ]

The album is included in The Quietus' 2013 list of its writers' "40 Favourite Live Albums". [4]

Cover art

The cover artwork, by longtime collaborating artist James Marsh, was originally meant for a video documenting the same tour, [1] and stills from the concert film, directed by Noel Oliver, are included in the album's liner notes. The international release was abandoned, [1] however, and the video package only appeared in Italy. [5] In 1990, one clip from the film, of the band performing "Give It Up", was included in the video album that accompanied the greatest-hits compilation Natural History: The Very Best of Talk Talk , and this was rereleased on DVD in 2007. The Hammersmith film has never been rereleased in its entirety. In 2008, the DVD Live at Montreux 1986 was released, consisting of the complete Montreux show from the same tour.

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Studio albumLength
1."Tomorrow Started" Mark Hollis It's My Life 7:52
2."Life's What You Make It"Mark Hollis, Tim Friese-Greene The Colour of Spring 4:31
3."Does Caroline Know?"Mark HollisIt's My Life7:36
4."Living in Another World"Mark Hollis, Tim Friese-GreeneThe Colour of Spring7:06
5."Give It Up"Mark Hollis, Tim Friese-GreeneThe Colour of Spring5:55
6."It's My Life"Mark Hollis, Tim Friese-GreeneIt's My Life6:29
7."Such a Shame"Mark HollisIt's My Life9:02
8."Renée"Mark HollisIt's My Life7:45

Personnel

Talk Talk
Additional personnel
Production

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Talk Talk</span> English pop and post-rock group (1981–1991)

Talk Talk were an English band formed in 1981, led by Mark Hollis, Lee Harris (drums), and Paul Webb (bass). Initially a synth-pop group, Talk Talk's first two albums, The Party's Over (1982) and It's My Life (1984), reached top 40 in the UK and produced the international hit singles "Talk Talk", "Today", "It's My Life", and "Such a Shame". They achieved widespread critical success in Europe and the UK with the album The Colour of Spring (1986) along with its singles "Life's What You Make It" and "Living in Another World". 1988's Spirit of Eden moved the group towards a more experimental sound informed by jazz and free improvisation, pioneering what became known as post-rock; it was critically acclaimed but commercially unsuccessful.

<i>Nocturne</i> (Siouxsie and the Banshees album) 1983 live album by Siouxsie and the Banshees

Nocturne is a live double album and video by English rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees, released on 25 November 1983 by Polydor Records. Co-produced by Mike Hedges, Nocturne features performances recorded at two shows at the Royal Albert Hall in London, on 30 September and 1 October 1983, featuring Robert Smith on guitar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cardiacs</span> English rock band

Cardiacs are an English rock band formed in Kingston upon Thames by Tim Smith and his brother Jim in 1977 under the name Cardiac Arrest. The band's sound fused circus, baroque pop and medieval music with progressive rock and post-punk, adding other elements like nursery rhymes and sea shanties. Tim Smith was the primary lyricist, noted for his complex and innovative compositional style. He and his brother were the only constant members in the band's regularly changing lineup.

<i>Live and Dangerous</i> Live album by Thin Lizzy

Live and Dangerous is a live double album by the Irish rock band Thin Lizzy, released in June 1978. It was recorded in London in 1976, and Philadelphia and Toronto in 1977, with further production in Paris. It was also the last Thin Lizzy album to feature guitarist Brian Robertson, who left the band shortly after its release.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hammersmith Apollo</span> Live entertainment venue in Hammersmith, London

The Hammersmith Apollo, currently called the Eventim Apollo for sponsorship reasons, and formerly known as the Hammersmith Odeon, is a live entertainment performance venue, originally built as a cinema called the Gaumont Palace. Located in Hammersmith, London, it is an art deco Grade II* listed building.

<i>Paris</i> (Supertramp album) 1980 live album by Supertramp

Paris is a live album by the English rock band Supertramp, released in 1980. It was recorded on Supertramp's Breakfast in America tour in Paris, France, with most of the tracks taken from a 29 November 1979 show at the Pavillon de Paris, a venue which was once a slaughterhouse. The album was originally going to be called Roadworks. Paris reached number 8 on the Billboard 200 in late 1980 and went Gold immediately, while the live version of "Dreamer" hit the US Top 20.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Utopia (band)</span> American rock band

Utopia was an American rock band formed in 1973 by Todd Rundgren. During its first three years, the group was a progressive rock band with a somewhat fluid membership known as Todd Rundgren's Utopia. Most of the members in this early incarnation also played on Rundgren's solo albums of the period up to 1975. By 1976, the group was known simply as Utopia and featured a stable quartet of Rundgren, Kasim Sulton, Roger Powell and John "Willie" Wilcox. This version of the group gradually abandoned progressive rock for more straightforward rock and pop.

<i>Hammersmith Odeon, London 75</i> 2006 live album by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

Hammersmith Odeon, London '75 is a concert video and the fourth live album by Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band, released in 2006. It is a full-length recording of their performance on November 18, 1975, at the Hammersmith Odeon in London, during their Born to Run tours. It was first released as a DVD on November 14, 2005, as part of the Born to Run 30th Anniversary Edition package, and then several months later on February 28, 2006, released as an audio CD. The album was reissued on vinyl for the first time for Record Store Day on April 22, 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Now I'm Here</span> 1974 single by Queen

"Now I'm Here" is a song by English rock band Queen, released on their third studio album, Sheer Heart Attack (1974). Written by guitarist Brian May, the song is noted for its gritty guitar riffs and vocal harmonies. In the UK, the song reached #11 on the charts when released as a single in 1975. The song was a live favourite, performed at virtually every concert from late 1974 to 1986.

<i>Pack Up the Plantation: Live!</i> 1985 live album by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

Pack Up the Plantation: Live! is the first official live album by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, released in November 1985 by MCA Records. It was released as a double LP and, in slightly truncated form, a single cassette or compact disc. A concert film of the same name was released on home video in 1986. Stevie Nicks sings on two songs, including the US single "Needles and Pins", which reached No. 37 on the Billboard Hot 100.

<i>Out of the Blue: Live at Wembley</i> 1980 video by Electric Light Orchestra

Out of the Blue: Live at Wembley is a concert film by the Electric Light Orchestra.

<i>All That Glitters Is a Mares Nest</i> 1992 video / Live album by Cardiacs

All That Glitters Is a Mares Nest is a live album and concert film by the English rock band Cardiacs. It is their third live album, and was originally recorded in the afternoon in the Salisbury Arts Centre on 30 June 1990 with Napalm Death. It is the only Cardiacs album to feature guitarist Christian Hayes throughout. The album was released on VHS in 1992 and as a live album on 1 June 1995.

<i>Live at Montreux 2003</i> 2007 live album by Yes

Live at Montreux 2003 is a 2007 live album and video from the English progressive rock band Yes. It is a live recording of the group's headlining concert at the Montreux Jazz Festival on 14 July 2003. The performance was filmed and is also available on DVD/Blu-ray.

<i>Seven Days Live</i> 1993 video by Poison

Seven Days Live is the fourth video/DVD album from the American heavy metal/glam metal Poison, featuring a live concert at the Hammersmith Odeon, in London England, from the Native Tongue world tour in 1993, in support of the fourth Poison studio album Native Tongue, which was certified Gold by the RIAA on April 21, 1993.

<i>Live at Montreux 1986</i> 2008 video by Talk Talk

Live at Montreux 1986 is a concert video release by the English band Talk Talk of a concert at 1986 Montreux Jazz Festival. The show was part of a tour that started in April 1986 to promote the band's recent album The Colour of Spring, and was to be their only appearance at Montreux, from their last tour. The video captures Talk Talk at the peak of their career.

<i>Last Night at The Palais</i> 2009 live album by the Fall

Last Night at The Palais is a live album by English post-punk band the Fall, recorded at the Hammersmith Palais on 1 April 2007 and released in 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">T. Rex (band)</span> English rock band

T. Rex were an English rock band, formed in 1967 by singer-songwriter and guitarist Marc Bolan, who was their leader, frontman and only consistent member. Though initially associated with the psychedelic folk genre, Bolan began to change the band's style towards electric rock in 1969, and shortened their name to T. Rex the following year. This development culminated in 1970 with their first hit single "Ride a White Swan", and the group soon became pioneers of the glam rock movement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cities (song)</span> 1980 single by Talking Heads

"Cities" is a single, released in 1980, by the American new wave band Talking Heads. It is the fourth track on the 1979 album Fear of Music.

<i>Algiers</i> (Algiers album) 2015 studio album by Algiers

Algiers is the debut album by American experimental band Algiers. The album was released through Matador Records on June 2, 2015.

<i>A Night at the Odeon – Hammersmith 1975</i> 2015 live album by Queen

A Night at the Odeon is a live album by the British rock band Queen. The album is the first official release of the band's Christmas Eve performance at the Hammersmith Odeon in 1975, filmed by the BBC. The show was broadcast on BBC2 and BBC Radio 1, and included one of the first live performances of "Bohemian Rhapsody". It is the band's most popular bootleg.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Badgley, Aaron. "Talk Talk: London 1986". AllMusic. Retrieved 9 April 2014.
  2. 1 2 "London 1986". NME . 26 January 1999. Retrieved 9 April 2014.
  3. "Talk Talk Hammersmith – Withdrawn UK Promo CD album (CDLP) (135221)". eli.com. Retrieved 10 April 2014.
  4. "The Quietus | Features | the Quietus Writers' 40 Favourite Live Albums".
  5. Asides Besides (booklet). Talk Talk. EMI Records. 1998.{{cite AV media}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)