Phantasmagoria | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | July 1985 | |||
Recorded | March–June 1985 | |||
Studio | Eel Pie, London | |||
Genre | Gothic rock [1] | |||
Length | 39:19 | |||
Label | MCA | |||
Producer |
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The Damned chronology | ||||
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Singles from Phantasmagoria | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [1] |
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. [1]
After much wrangling, the Damned received a new contract with MCA Records in October 1984 on the strength of the song "Grimly Fiendish", [2] issued as a single the following March. They recorded the album in Eel Pie Studios from March to June 1985. It reached No. 11 in the charts, and was the band's highest-charting album ever, until the release of Evil Spirits in 2018, which cracked the top-ten at No. 7. The non-album single "Eloise," (a Barry Ryan cover), released six months later, became a huge UK hit, reaching No. 3.
The Damned centred the entire album around David Vanian's deep voice, giving much of the album a gothic feeling. [3] The album was remastered and reissued by Geffen Records in Japan in 2007, featuring replicas of the LP's outer and inner sleeves and a CD label resembling the white vinyl edition. In 2009, an expanded edition was issued by Universal Music Group in Europe. [4]
The cover image of Susie Bick was taken by photographer Bob Carlos Clarke [5] at Kensal Green Cemetery, Harrow Road.
All tracks are written by Dave Vanian, Rat Scabies, Roman Jugg and Bryn Merrick, except where noted
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Street of Dreams" | 5:38 | |
2. | "Shadow of Love" | 3:51 | |
3. | "There'll Come a Day" | 4:15 | |
4. | "Sanctum Sanctorum" | 6:27 | |
5. | "Is It a Dream" | Vanian, Scabies, Jugg, Merrick, Captain Sensible | 3:27 |
6. | "Grimly Fiendish" | Vanian, Scabies, Jugg, Merrick, Clive "Doctor" Jackson | 3:50 |
7. | "Edward the Bear" | 3:37 | |
8. | "The Eighth Day" | 3:46 | |
9. | "Trojans" | 4:53 | |
Total length: | 39:19 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
10. | "Grimly Fiendish" (The Bad Trip Mix) | Vanian, Scabies, Jugg, Merrick, Jackson | 5:11 |
11. | "The Shadow of Love" (Ten Inches of Hell Mix) | 6:41 | |
Total length: | 51:39 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Place of Origin | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
10. | "Grimly Fiendish (The Bad Trip Mix)" | Vanian, Scabies, Jugg, Merrick, Jackson | "Grimly Fiendish" 12" | 5:10 |
11. | "The Shadow of Love (Ten Inches of Hell Mix)" | "The Shadow of Love" 10" | 6:42 | |
12. | "Is It a Dream (Wild West Express Mix)" | Vanian, Scabies, Jugg, Merrick, Sensible | "Is It a Dream" 12" | 6:45 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Place of Origin | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Grimly Fiendish (Spic 'n' Span Mix)" | Vanian, Scabies, Jugg, Merrick, Jackson | "Grimly Fiendish" 12" | 5:21 |
2. | "Edward the Bear" (B-side single version) | "Grimly Fiendish" 7" | 3:53 | |
3. | "The Shadow of Love (The Pressure Mix)" | "The Shadow of Love" 12" | 5:34 | |
4. | "Nightshift" (B-side) | "The Shadow of Love" 7" | 2:24 | |
5. | "Let There Be Rats" (Rat Scabies solo single) | Scabies | "The Shadow of Love" 7" double pack single | 2:09 |
6. | "Wiped Out" (Rat Scabies solo single) | Scabies | "The Shadow of Love" 7" double pack single | 1:34 |
7. | "Would You" (B-side) | Vanian, Scabies, Jugg, Merrick, Vivian Mason | "The Shadow of Love" 12" | 2:46 |
8. | "Is It a Dream (Wild West End Mix)" | Vanian, Scabies, Jugg, Merrick, Sensible | "Is It a Dream" 7" | 8:11 |
9. | "Street of Dreams" (Live) | "Is It a Dream" 7" | 5:05 | |
10. | "Curtain Call" (Live) | Vanian, Scabies, Sensible, Paul Gray | "Is It a Dream" 12" | 4:27 |
11. | "Pretty Vacant" (Live) | Paul Cook, Steve Jones, Glen Matlock, Johnny Rotten | "Is It a Dream" 12" | 2:04 |
12. | "Wild Thing" (Live) | Chip Taylor | "Is It a Dream" 12" | 2:14 |
13. | "The Shadow of Love" (BBC Radio 1 session) | The Radio One Sessions , 1996 | 4:05 | |
14. | "Is It a Dream" (BBC Radio 1 session) | Vanian, Scabies, Jugg, Merrick, Sensible | The Radio One Sessions | 3:36 |
15. | "Street of Dreams" (BBC Radio 1 session) | The Radio One Sessions | 4:43 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI) [6] | 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.
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.
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.
"Thanks for the Night" is a single by English punk rock band the Damned, released in May 1984.
"Grimly Fiendish" is a single by English rock band the Damned, released on 18 March 1985.
"The Shadow of Love" is a single by English rock band the Damned, released by MCA on 10 June 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 6 November 1986 by MCA Records.
"Gigolo" is a single by English rock band the Damned, released on 23 January 1987 by MCA Records.
"In Dulce Decorum" is a song by English rock band the Damned, released on 16 November 1987 by MCA Records.
"Shut It" is a song by the Damned, released as a single in September 1996 on Cleopatra 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.
Dave Vanian and the Phantom Chords were a 1990s British rock band, featuring The Damned's Dave Vanian on vocals. The band's style is a fusion of rockabilly and gothic rock, which has been classified as gothabilly. They performed a mixture of covers and new material.
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).
Black Is the Night: The Definitive Anthology is a 2-CD, career-spanning compilation album by the British punk rock band the Damned, released on 1 November 2019. It collects tracks from most of the band's studio albums between 1977 and 2018, as well as selected non-album singles and B-sides. It also includes the new track "Black Is the Night". Of the band's eleven studio albums to date, Not of This Earth (1995) and So, Who's Paranoid? (2008) are not represented on the anthology. All tracks were chosen by the band themselves, and sequenced thematically instead of chronologically.