Spirit of Eden is the fourth studio album by English band Talk Talk,released in 1988 on Parlophone Records. It was compiled from a lengthy recording process at London's Wessex Studios between 1987 and 1988,with songs written by singer Mark Hollis and producer Tim Friese-Greene. Often working in darkness,the band recorded many hours of improvised performances that drew on elements of jazz,ambient,classical music,blues,and dub. These long-form recordings were then heavily edited and re-arranged into an album in mostly digital format. The results were a radical departure from Talk Talk's earlier synth-pop recordings,and would later be credited with pioneering the post-rock genre.[3]
Compared to the success of 1986's The Colour of Spring,Spirit of Eden was a commercial disappointment.[8] Despite its mixed reception,the album's stature grew more favourable in subsequent years,with contemporary critics describing Spirit of Eden as an underrated masterpiece.[9][10][11] In 2013,NME ranked Spirit of Eden at number 95 in its list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time".[3]
Although critics did not favour the band's early output,the first two albums were commercially successful in Europe. This gave Talk Talk the money needed to hire additional musicians to play on their next album,The Colour of Spring (1986). The band no longer had to rely on synthesizers. Instead,musicians improvised with their instruments for many hours,then Hollis and producer Tim Friese-Greene edited and arranged the performances to get the sound they wanted. A total of sixteen musicians appeared on the album around the core of Hollis and Friese-Greene. The Colour of Spring became Talk Talk's most successful album,selling over two million copies and prompting a major world tour.[12] At the same time,minimalist songs like "April 5th," "Chameleon Day," and the B-side "It's Getting Late in the Evening" pointed towards the band's next direction.[13]
Music
Recording
It was very, very psychedelic. We had candles and oil wheels, strobes going, sometimes just total darkness in the studio. You'd get totally disorientated, no daylight, no time frame.
Following the commercial success of The Colour of Spring, EMI gave Talk Talk an open budget for the recording of their next album, Spirit of Eden.[15] Talk Talk were given complete control over the recording process; their manager and EMI executives were barred from studio sessions.[12] Recording for Spirit of Eden began in 1987 at Wessex Studios, London and took about a year to complete.[12]
The sessions took place in a blacked-out studio, with an oil projector and strobe lighting.[8] Engineer Phill Brown said that the album, along with its successor, was "recorded by chance, accident, and hours of trying every possible overdub idea."[16] According to Brown, "twelve hours a day in the dark listening to the same six songs for eight months became pretty intense. There was very little communication with musicians who came in to play. They were led to a studio in darkness and a track would be played down the headphones."[8]
Style
Writing for The Guardian, Graeme Thomson described Spirit of Eden as "six improvised pieces full of space and unhurried rhythm," which blend together "pastoral jazz, contemporary classical, folk, prog rock and loose blues into a single, doggedly uncommercial musical tapestry" which would be labeled "post-rock."[8] Simon Harper of the Birmingham Post observed the album's "combination of jazz, classical, rock and the spacey echoes of dub, using silence almost as an instrument in its own right."[17] Although the album is noted for its tranquil soundscapes, Graham Sutton of Bark Psychosis notes "Noise is important. I could never understand people I knew who liked Talk Talk and saw it as something 'nice to chill out to' when I loved the overwhelming intensity and the dynamics."[18]
Mark Hollis' lyrics reflect his religious and spiritual outlook. Though he acknowledges that his lyrics are religious, he says they are not based on a specific creed, preferring to think of them as "humanitarian."[19] "I Believe in You" has been described as an "anti-heroin song."[15] When asked whether the lyrics are based on personal experience, Hollis replied, "No, not at all. But, you know, I met people who got totally fucked up on it. Within rock music there's so much fucking glorification of it, and it is a wicked, horrible thing."[19]
Contract dispute with EMI
By early March 1988, the band had finished recording Spirit of Eden and had sent a cassette of the album to EMI. After listening to the cassette, EMI representatives doubted that it could be commercially successful. They asked Hollis to re-record a song or replace material, but he refused to do so. By the time the masters were delivered later in the month, however, the label conceded that the album had been satisfactorily completed.[20]
Despite their reservations towards Spirit of Eden, EMI chose to exercise their option to extend the recording contract. The band, however, wanted out of the contract. "I knew by that time that EMI was not the company this band should be with," manager Keith Aspden told Mojo. "I was fearful that the money wouldn't be there to record another album."[12] EMI and Talk Talk went to court to decide the issue.[21]
The case centred on whether EMI had notified the band in time about the contract extension. As part of the agreement, EMI had to send a written notice within three months after the completion of Spirit of Eden. The band said that EMI had sent the notice too late, arguing that the three-month period began once recording had finished; EMI argued that the three-month period did not begin until they were satisfied with the recording, on the basis that the definition of an "album" in the contract provided that the album had to be "commercially satisfactory". The band disputed this, particularly on the basis that there were no changes made to the album in the space between its recording and eventual release. Justice Andrew Morritt ruled in favour of EMI, but his decision was overturned in the Court of Appeal.[20] Talk Talk were released from the contract and later signed to Polydor.
Marketing and release
Spirit of Eden's moody, experimental nature made it a challenge to promote; one critic said it "is the kind of record which encourages marketing men to commit suicide."[22]Tony Wadsworth, Parlophone's marketing director at the time, told Q: "Talk Talk are not your ordinary combo and require sympathetic marketing. They're not so much difficult as not obvious. You've just got to find as many ways as possible to expose the music."[23] Evaluating some masterpieces of the eighties in a 2004 article for The Guardian, John Robinson calls Spirit of Eden, like David Sylvian's Brilliant Trees, "triumphant, [but] completely unmarketable."[24]
Although the band did not originally plan to release a single, EMI issued a radio edit of "I Believe in You" in September 1988 (the previously unreleased "John Cope" was included as the B-side). The single failed to breach the UK singles chart Top 75. Around August, Tim Pope directed a music video for "I Believe in You", featuring Hollis sitting with his guitar, singing the lyrics. "That was a massive mistake," said Hollis. "I thought just by sitting there and listening and really thinking about what it was about, I could get that in my eyes. But you cannot do it. It just feels stupid."[23]
The band did not tour in support of the album. Hollis explained, "There is no way that I could ever play again a lot of the stuff I played on this album because I just wouldn't know how to. So, to play it live, to take a part that was done in spontaneity, to write it down and then get someone to play it, would lose the whole point, lose the whole purity of what it was in the first place."[25] The band would never tour again.
Spirit of Eden was released worldwide in 1988. It did not enjoy nearly as much commercial success as The Colour of Spring. The album spent five weeks on the UK Albums Chart, peaking at number 19.[26] The album cover depicts a tree festooned with seashells, snails, birds, and insects. It was illustrated by James Marsh, who did Talk Talk's artwork throughout their recording career. The booklet provides reproductions of Hollis' handwritten lyrics. The album was digitally remastered by Phill Brown and Denis Blackham in 1997.
Spirit of Eden has been both acclaimed and panned by numerous music critics. Among contemporary reviews of Spirit of Eden, Record Mirror's Betty Page commented that Talk Talk had become "a law unto themselves, unconstrained by narrow ideas of 'what will sell'",[31] while Q's Mark Cooper likened the album to "the pastoral epics of the early 70s" and noted "a range, ambition and self-sufficiency that enables Hollis and co to step out of time and into their own."[22] "No hit singles then", the latter wrote, "but a brave record that is not afraid to follow its own muse and damn the consequences."[22] In Sounds, Roy Wilkinson said that Talk Talk had "evolved into contemplative muso-techs", and while finding their lyrics occasionally awkward and the album's second half not at the level of the first's "magnificence", he deemed Spirit of Eden as a whole "uncommonly beautiful."[33] Simon Williams began his review for NME with a joking dismissal of the album as an exercise in "conceptualism", before going on to describe the band as "resolute and determined" in their flouting of "commercial rules with fascinating disregard for understanding or acceptance."[29]
In the 1992 Rolling Stone Album Guide, J. D. Considine rated Spirit of Eden one star out of five: "Instead of getting better or worse, this band simply grew more pretentious with each passing year ... by Spirit of Eden, Mark Hollis's Pete Townshend-on-Dramamine vocals have been pushed aside by the band's pointless noodling."[32]Marcus Berkmann of The Spectator in a 2001 retrospective felt that the album was "almost wilfully obscure", with a musical style close to free-form jazz that was too far removed from The Colour of Spring for fans to enjoy.[35]
Spirit of Eden has received more unanimous acclaim in the decades following its release.[36]AllMusic reviewer Jason Ankeny considered the album, in its eschewing of "electronics for live, organic sounds" and of "structure in favor of mood and atmosphere", an "unprecedented breakthrough".[27]Mojo's Danny Eccleston wrote in 2012 that "there will never be another album like it, since the demise of the profligate old-school record industry means that no one will ever spend so much money making anything so left-field again."[28] In a 2019 review, Jeremy D. Larson of Pitchfork lauded the record as a masterful achievement in contemporary music, stating that "Spirit of Eden was the great inhale of religious feeling, one rock and pop music had been expelling for years and years. The thrill and stasis of a held breath carry the album from beginning to end."[9]
Legacy
Some music critics consider Spirit of Eden and its 1991 follow-up Laughing Stock influential to the post-rock genre, which developed in Britain and North America in the 1990s. In a review of Bark Psychosis' album Hex, where the term "post-rock" was coined, Simon Reynolds opined that Hex aspires to the "baroque grandeur" of Spirit of Eden.[18] Andy Whitman of Paste magazine argued that Spirit of Eden represents the beginning of post-rock: "The telltale marks of the genre—textured guitars, glacial tempos, an emphasis on dynamics, electronica, ambience and minimalism—were all in place, and paved the way for bands like Sigur Rós, Mogwai, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Low and latter-period Radiohead." In the Birmingham Post, Simon Harper held that "there can be little argument that Tortoise and their Chicago-based compatriots would hardly sound the same were it not for the staggering achievements of Hollis and Tim Friese-Greene".[17] Numerous bands and artists, including Graham Coxon,[37]Doves,[38]Elbow[8] and Bedhead,[39] have praised Spirit of Eden or have cited it as an influence.
In 2008 Alan McGee wrote: "Spirit of Eden has not dated; it's remarkable how contemporary it sounds, anticipating post-rock, The Verve and Radiohead. It's the sound of an artist being given the keys to the kingdom and returning with art."[40]
Mark Lager, writing about the album on its 30th anniversary in September 2018 for PopMatters, similarly stated that Spirit of Eden "influenced and inspired the three most experimental and innovative albums of the 1990s: Lazer Guided Melodies (Spiritualized), A Storm in Heaven (The Verve), and Hex (Bark Psychosis). All three albums followed its patterns of dynamic intensity, free jazz improvisations, and spaces of silence."[41]
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 improvisation, pioneering what became known as post-rock; it was critically acclaimed but commercially unsuccessful.
Jesus Jones are a British alternative rock band from Bradford-on-Avon in Wiltshire, formed in late 1988, who continue to record and perform, as of 2024. Their track "Right Here, Right Now" was an international hit, and was subsequently globally licensed for promotional and advertising campaigns. The single was also nominated for a Grammy award at the 34th Annual Grammy Awards in 1991, as was its album, Doubt. They also achieved chart success with the songs "Real Real Real", "International Bright Young Thing" and "Info Freako".
The Party's Over is the debut album by Talk Talk. It was released on 12 July 1982 and produced by Colin Thurston, who was a former engineer for David Bowie but was better known for producing Duran Duran's first two albums.
It's My Life is the second studio album by English band Talk Talk, released on 13 February 1984.
The Colour of Spring is the third studio album by English band Talk Talk, released on 17 February 1986. Written by Mark Hollis and producer Tim Friese-Greene, the album combines elements of jazz and art pop in an effort by Hollis to embrace more organic instrumentation and production values. Unlike previous Talk Talk albums, synthesizers are rarely featured on the album, being replaced by guitar, piano, and organ. The album went on to become Talk Talk's greatest commercial success, spawning the hit singles "Life's What You Make It" and "Living in Another World" and reaching the Top 20 in numerous countries, including the UK, where it reached No. 8 and stayed in the UK charts for 21 weeks.
Natural History: The Very Best of Talk Talk is a 1990 greatest hits album by Talk Talk. It collects songs that the band released under EMI between 1982 and 1988.
Laughing Stock is the fifth and final studio album by English band Talk Talk, released in 1991. Following their previous release Spirit of Eden (1988), bassist Paul Webb left the group, which reduced Talk Talk to the duo of singer/multi-instrumentalist Mark Hollis and drummer Lee Harris. Talk Talk then acrimoniously left EMI and signed to Polydor, who released the album on their newly revitalised jazz-based Verve Records label. Laughing Stock was recorded at London's Wessex Sound Studios from September 1990 to April 1991 with producer Tim Friese-Greene and engineer Phill Brown.
Mark David Hollis was an English musician and singer-songwriter. He achieved commercial success and critical acclaim in the 1980s and 1990s as the co-founder, lead singer and principal songwriter of the band Talk Talk. Hollis wrote or co-wrote most of Talk Talk's music—including hits like "It's My Life" and "Life's What You Make It"—and in later works developed an experimental, contemplative style.
Mark Hollis is the only solo album by the former Talk Talk frontman Mark Hollis. It was released on Polydor Records on 26 January 1998, then reissued on Pond Life on 13 March 2000. In 2003, the album was released in LP format on Universal Records.
Sidi Bou Said were a British rock band formed in 1990 by Claire Lemmon, Gayl Harrison and Melanie Woods. Their music combined an indie rock/folk sound with complex arrangements and literate lyrics. They were often compared to Throwing Muses and the Pixies, with whom they shared a taste for sometimes uncomfortable lyrical themes—murder, religion, the workings of the human body and surrealist stories and films. Their name comes from a town in Tunisia.
Timothy Alan Friese-Greene is an English musician and producer. He worked with the band Talk Talk from 1983 to their breakup in 1991. He currently releases solo albums under the name Heligoland. He is the grandson of filmmaker Claude Friese-Greene and great-grandson of photographer and inventor William Friese-Greene.
History Revisited: The Remixes is a 1991 album comprising remixes of hit Talk Talk songs. It followed the successful greatest hits collection Natural History, released the year before. The band itself did not take part in the making of the album and condemned its release; consequently, they sued their former record label EMI for using Talk Talk material without permission.
"Life's What You Make It" is a song by the English band Talk Talk. It was released as a single in 1985, the first from the band's album The Colour of Spring. The single was a hit in the UK in January 1986, peaking at No. 16, and charted in numerous other countries, often reaching the Top 20.
Missing Pieces is a 2001 compilation album by Talk Talk. The first six tracks are the A- and B-Sides of the three CD singles released in 1991 for their final album Laughing Stock. Four of these are versions of album tracks, with the addition of the otherwise uncollected B-Sides "Stump" and "5:09". The final track, "Piano", was recorded pseudonymously by Mark Hollis for the 1998 album "AV 1" by Allinson / Brown, which was produced by former Talk Talk producer Phill Brown. According to Hollis, it was designed to cycle indefinitely for a Dave Allinson/Phill Brown art exhibition and is presented twice in a row on the CD. Missing Pieces was released in 2001 to a generally mixed to positive reception.
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.
Sweetness and Light is the second extended play by the English alternative rock band Lush. It was released on 15 October 1990 on 4AD. Featuring a less abrasive sound than the band's earlier releases, the title track was also released as Lush's first single and included the B-side "Breeze".
"Give It Up" is a song by English band Talk Talk, released by Parlophone in 1986 as the third single from their third studio album The Colour of Spring. The song was written by Mark Hollis and Tim Friese-Greene, and produced by Friese-Greene. "Give It Up" peaked at number 59 in the UK Singles Chart.
"Living in Another World" is a song by English band Talk Talk. It was recorded for the band's 1986 album The Colour of Spring and was the second single from the album, making the top 40 in Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands and Flanders.
"I Believe in You" is a song by English band Talk Talk, released by Parlophone in 1988 as the only single from their fourth studio album Spirit of Eden. The song was written by Mark Hollis and Tim Friese-Greene, and produced by Friese-Greene. "I Believe in You" peaked at number 85 in the UK Singles Chart.
"I Don't Believe in You" is a song by English band Talk Talk, released by Parlophone in 1986 as the fourth and final single from their third studio album The Colour of Spring. The song was written by Mark Hollis and Tim Friese-Greene, and produced by Friese-Greene. "I Don't Believe in You" peaked at number 96 in the UK Singles Chart.
↑ Paste Staff (3 June 2024). "The 300 Greatest Albums of All Time". Paste. Retrieved 3 June 2024. ...the complex, pastoral post-rock of final two albums Spirit of Eden and Laughing Stock.
↑ "The 150 Best Albums of the 1990s". Pitchfork. 28 September 2022. Retrieved 26 April 2023. Directly inspired by Talk Talk's experimental rock seance Spirit of Eden...
1 2 Young, Rob (January 1998). "Return from Eden". The Wire. No.167. London. Archived from the original on 11 January 2014. Retrieved 3 September 2012.
1 2 EMI Records Limited v Hollis & Others(Court of Appeal (Civil Division)23 May 1989).
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