No Dice

Last updated

No Dice
BadfingerNoDice.jpg
Studio album by
Badfinger
Released9 November 1970
Recorded18 April –26 August 1970
Studio EMI and Trident in London
Genre Power pop [1]
Length40:00
Label Apple
Producer Geoff Emerick, Mal Evans
Badfinger chronology
Magic Christian Music
(1970)		No Dice
(1970)		 Straight Up
(1971)
Singles from No Dice
  1. "No Matter What"
    Released: 12 October 1970 [2]

No Dice is the third studio album by British rock band Badfinger, issued by Apple Records and released on 9 November 1970. Their second album under the Badfinger name, but their first official album under that name, and first to include guitarist Joey Molland, No Dice significantly expanded the British group's popularity, especially abroad. The album included both the hit single "No Matter What" and the song "Without You", which would become a big hit for Harry Nilsson, and later a hit for Mariah Carey.

Contents

Background

Although this was the band's second album released under the Badfinger name, the previous album, Magic Christian Music , was originally recorded as The Iveys but released as Badfinger. It was the band's first album recorded after new guitarist Joey Molland joined the group, replacing bassist Ron Griffiths, but Molland's addition caused Tom Evans to switch from rhythm guitar to bass. Badfinger would release five albums, generally their most successful recordings, with this line-up.

The model depicted on the album cover has never been formally identified. According to Molland, "the woman was a model hired by Gene Mahon and Richard DiLello for the shoot, they designed the cover, [and] we never actually met her." Molland continued that he asked Richard DiLello who the cover model was "at a Beatlefest in the 70s." DiLello stated that she was named Kathy, but not Kathie Molland who was a model.

Release

No Dice peaked at number 28 on the Billboard Hot 200 chart. Widely praised in music reviews at the time, Rolling Stone magazine opined that it represented what the Beatles would have sounded like had they retained their initial formula. [3]

The single from this LP, "No Matter What", peaked in the United States at number 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1970. The song is often regarded as an early offering in the power pop genre. [4] The album also contains the original version of "Without You". Although Badfinger did not release the song as a single in Europe or North America, it was taken to number 1 on the Billboard charts in 1972 by Harry Nilsson, and became a hit for Mariah Carey in 1994. "Without You" has been the top money-earner for Badfinger in publishing royalties, having been covered by over 200 artists. [5] The song was also picked to provide the title for Dan Matovina's 1997 biography Without You: The Tragic Story Of Badfinger.

In October 1991, No Dice was digitally remastered at Abbey Road Studio by Ron Furmanek. The remastered album was released in 1992 by Capitol Records and Apple, with five previously unreleased bonus tracks. Of the bonus tracks, "Friends Are Hard to Find" was an outtake from the same Mal Evans-produced session that saw the recording of "No Matter What" and "Believe Me". "Get Down" was originally attempted with Evans, but the version here was recorded with Geoff Emerick. The three remaining tracks, "Mean, Mean Jemima", "Loving You", and "I'll Be the One", were recorded with Emerick between January and March 1971 (after the completion of No Dice) for the intended follow-up album that was never released. [6]

Critical reception

Retrospective professional reviews
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [7]
Christgau's Record Guide B [8]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [9]
The Great Rock Discography 7/10 [10]
Mojo Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [11]
MusicHound Rock 5/5 [12]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg[ citation needed ]
Tom Hull B [13]
Uncut Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [14]

Reviewing for Creem in 1971, Mike Saunders wrote effusively about the album and the band itself: "Badfinger is one of the best songwriting groups around, one of the best singing groups anywhere, and now with an absolutely great lead guitarist in Pete Ham, they're really one fucking whale of a group." [15] Robert Christgau was somewhat less enthusiastic, writing in Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies (1981): "I don't think these guys imitate the Beatles just so Paul will give them more hits — they've got hits of their own. But from the guitar parts (play 'Better Days' right after 'I Feel Fine') and harmonies (the Paul of 'I've Just Seen a Face' atop the Paul of 'Long Tall Sally') to concept and lineup, an imitation is what this is, modernized slightly via some relaxed countrification. They write almost well enough to get away with it, too. But somehow the song that stands out is 'Blodwyn,' a simulated (I think) English folk ditty about a swain and a spoon that has nothing to do with the Fab Four at all." [8]

Track listing

1970 LP: Side one
No.TitleLength
1."I Can't Take It" (Pete Ham)2:57
2."I Don't Mind" (Tom Evans/Joey Molland)3:15
3."Love Me Do" (Molland)3:00
4."Midnight Caller" (Ham)2:50
5."No Matter What" (Ham)3:01
6."Without You" (Ham/Evans)4:43
1970 LP: Side two
No.TitleLength
1."Blodwyn" (Ham)3:26
2."Better Days" (Evans/Molland)4:01
3."It Had to Be" (Mike Gibbins)2:29
4."Watford John" (Evans/Gibbins/Ham/Molland)3:23
5."Believe Me" (Evans)3:01
6."We're for the Dark" (Ham)3:55
1992 CD bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
13."Get Down" (Evans/Gibbins/Ham/Molland)3:43
14."Friends Are Hard to Find" (Molland)2:28
15."Mean Mean Jemima" (Molland)3:41
16."Loving You" (Gibbins)2:51
17."I'll Be the One" (Evans/Gibbins/Ham/Molland)2:54

2010 CD bonus tracks

  2. "I Can't Take It (Extended Version)" (Ham) – 4:14
  3. "Without You"(Mono Studio Demo Version) (Ham, Evans) – 3:57
  4. "Photograph (Friends are Hard to Find)" (Molland) – 3:24
  5. "Believe Me" (Alternate Version) (Evans) – 3:04
  6. "No Matter What" (Mono Studio Demo Version) (Ham) – 2:57

2010 digital bonus tracks

  2. "Love Me Do" (Instrumental Version) – 2:57
  3. "Get Down" (Alternate Version) – 5:13

Personnel

Badfinger

Additional personnel

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Badfinger</span> Welsh rock band

Badfinger were a Welsh rock band formed in 1961 in Swansea, Wales. Their best-known lineup consisted of Pete Ham (guitar), Mike Gibbins (drums), Tom Evans (bass), and Joey Molland (guitar). They are recognised for their influence on the 1970s power pop genre. It is estimated that the band sold 14 million records.

<i>Straight Up</i> (Badfinger album) 1971 studio album by Badfinger

Straight Up is the fourth studio album by the Welsh rock band Badfinger, released in December 1971 in the United States and February 1972 in Britain. Issued on the Beatles' Apple record label, it includes the hit singles "Day After Day" and "Baby Blue", and the similarly popular "Name of the Game", all of which were written by singer and guitarist Pete Ham. The album marked a departure from the more rock-oriented sound of Badfinger's previous releases, partly as a result of intervention by Apple Records regarding the band's musical direction.

<i>Airwaves</i> (Badfinger album) 1979 studio album by Badfinger

Airwaves is the eighth studio album released by British rock band Badfinger in 1979 on the Elektra label, the seventh album released that was credited to Badfinger. Anticipated as a comeback album for the group at the time, expectations were not quite realised, as the "group" now consisted of just the duo of Tom Evans and Joey Molland, accompanied by guitarist Joe Tansin and various session musicians.

"Without You" is a song written by Pete Ham and Tom Evans of British rock group Badfinger, and first released on their 1970 album No Dice. The power ballad has been recorded by over 180 artists, and versions released as singles by Harry Nilsson (1971), T. G. Sheppard (1983) and Mariah Carey (1994) became international best-sellers. The Nilsson version was included in 2021's Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. Paul McCartney once described it as "the killer song of all time".

<i>Ass</i> (album) 1973 studio album by Badfinger

Ass is the fifth studio album by British rock band Badfinger, and their last album released on Apple Records. The opening track, "Apple of My Eye", refers to the band leaving the label to begin its new contract with Warner Bros. Records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bob Jackson (musician)</span> English musician

Robert Jackson is an English rock musician most famous for being a member of Badfinger from 1974–75 and 1981–83, and of The Fortunes from 1995-2018. He currently tours under the name Badfinger in the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joey Molland</span> English composer and rock guitarist (b. 1947)

Joseph Charles Molland is an English songwriter and rock guitarist whose recording career spans five decades. He is best known as a member of Badfinger, the most successful of the acts he performed with. Since 2005, Molland is the last surviving member from the band's classic line-up. He lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

<i>Wish You Were Here</i> (Badfinger album) 1974 studio album by Badfinger

Wish You Were Here is the seventh studio album by rock band Badfinger and their third consecutive album produced by Chris Thomas. It was recorded in the spring of 1974 at Colorado's Caribou Ranch and released in November of that year on Warner Bros. Records. Wish You Were Here was the second and last album the band released on the Warner Bros. label.

<i>Badfinger</i> (album) 1974 studio album by Badfinger

Badfinger is the sixth studio album by British rock band Badfinger. The album was recorded in autumn 1973 and released in 1974 on Warner Bros. Records. It was the first of two albums released by the band on the Warner label. The cover art for the album shows a woman wearing a riding outfit and hat from the 1920s and smoking a cigarette in a cigarette holder.

<i>Magic Christian Music</i> 1970 studio album by Badfinger

Magic Christian Music is the second studio album by the British rock band Badfinger, released on 9 January 1970 on Apple Records. It was their first release under the Badfinger name, having previously released the album Maybe Tomorrow in 1969 under the name The Iveys. It includes the band's first international hit, "Come and Get It", written and produced for them by Paul McCartney.

<i>Head First</i> (Badfinger album) 2000 studio album by Badfinger

Head First is the tenth and final studio album to be released by British rock band Badfinger, released on 14 November 2000, but recorded over 25 years earlier at the Beatles' Apple Studios in London, although it was not released at the time. Originally intended to be Badfinger's eighth album, the recordings were shelved when legal difficulties erupted between the band and WB that year, and the version that was finally released was a rough mix of the album made in 1975 by Phil McDonald, one of the recording engineers at Apple Studios.

<i>Day After Day: Live</i> 1990 live album by Badfinger

Day After Day: Live is a CD release by Rykodisc in 1990 of live recordings made by the British rock group Badfinger in 1974.

<i>Say No More</i> (Badfinger album) 1981 studio album by Badfinger

Say No More is the ninth studio album recorded by British rock band Badfinger that contained new material. Issued in January 1981 on Radio Records, the LP was the second and last reunion by Tom Evans and Joey Molland, after the suicide of band founder Pete Ham in 1975. The album was recorded in Miami, Florida, by Evans, Molland, pianist and organist Tony Kaye, guitarist Glen Sherba and drummer Richard Bryans and was co-produced by Jack Richardson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">No Matter What (Badfinger song)</span> Single by Badfinger

"No Matter What" is a song originally recorded by Badfinger for their album No Dice in 1970, written and sung by Pete Ham and produced by Mal Evans.

"I Don't Wanna Be a Soldier, Mama" is a song written and performed by John Lennon, and released in 1971 as the fifth track on his second studio album, Imagine. The song's lyrics oppose the expectations of society.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Evans (musician)</span> English musician (1947–1983)

Thomas Evans was an English musician. He is best known for his work as the bassist of the band Badfinger.

<i>BBC in Concert 1972–1973</i> 1997 live album by Badfinger

BBC in Concert 1972–1973 is a CD of live recordings by the British rock group Badfinger released in 1997 by Strange Fruit Records and then re-released in 2000 by Fuel 2000 Records. The recordings were made for the BBC in 1972 and 1973, in two separate concerts at the Paris Theatre in London. The album also includes a 1970 BBC recording of Badfinger's first Top 10 hit, "Come and Get It".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baby Blue (Badfinger song)</span> 1972 single by Badfinger

"Baby Blue" is a song by Welsh rock band Badfinger from their fourth studio album, Straight Up (1971). The song was written by Pete Ham, produced by Todd Rundgren, and released on Apple Records. As a single in the US in 1972, it went to #14.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Apple of My Eye (song)</span> 1973 single by Badfinger

"Apple of My Eye" is a song recorded by the rock/pop band Badfinger for inclusion on their 1973 album, Ass. The song was written and sung by Pete Ham, produced by Chris Thomas and Badfinger, and released on Apple Records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Name of the Game (Badfinger song)</span> 1971 song by Badfinger

"Name of the Game" is the sixth track from power pop band Badfinger's 1971 album, Straight Up. The song was written by Pete Ham.

References

  1. ↑ AllMusic review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
  2. ↑ "Billboard". 17 October 1970.
  3. ↑ "Badfinger – No Dice". SuperSeventies.com. Super Seventies RockSite. Retrieved 28 December 2016.
  4. ↑ Matovina, Dan (2000). Without You: The Tragic Story of Badfinger. Frances Glover Books. p. 156. ISBN   9780965712224.
  5. ↑ "Without You". SecondHandSongs. Retrieved 30 October 2023.
  6. ↑ No Dice (CD). Badfinger. Capitol Records/Apple Records. 1992. CDP 7 98698 2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  7. ↑ AllMusic review
  8. 1 2 Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: B". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies . Ticknor & Fields. ISBN   089919026X . Retrieved 21 February 2019.
  9. ↑ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (4th edn), Volume 1. New York, NY: Oxford University Press. p. 358. ISBN   0-19-531373-9.
  10. ↑ Strong, Martin C. (2004). The Great Rock Discography (7th ed.). New York: Canongate. p. 79. OL   18807297M.
  11. ↑ Harris, John (November 2010). "Strange Fruit: Various, Original Apple albums, 1969–73". Mojo . p. 116.
  12. ↑ Graff, Gary; Durchholz, Daniel, eds. (1999). MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide . Farmington Hills, MI: Visible Ink Press. p.  65. ISBN   1-57859-061-2.
  13. ↑ Hull, Tom (December 2010). "Recycled Goods". Static Multimedia. Retrieved 8 July 2020– via tomhull.com.
  14. ↑ "Badfinger – No Dice CD Album" > "Product Description". CD Universe/Muze . Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  15. ↑ Saunders, Metal Mike (March 1971). "Badfinger: 'No Dice'" . Creem . Retrieved 24 May 2019– via Rock's Backpages.
  16. ↑ "Questions and Answers with Joey Molland – June 6, 2011". Badfinger Official Website. 6 June 2011. Archived from the original on 8 November 2011. Retrieved 14 November 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.