Album details
Released 14 years after Cold Chisel had released their last studio album ( Twentieth Century ), there was a considerable amount of speculation in the press before the release of The Last Wave of Summer. Walker stated that after so long apart, the band was curious and intrigued by the possibility of recording together, and felt everyone had improved as songwriters. He also said it was very inspiring swapping songs with other members of the band, especially considering their history. [2]
The band was not intending to progress to studio recording unless they deemed the songs were of sufficient quality. When Don Walker was asked how the band decided which songs to work on next, he replied, "Psychological manipulation, sullen looks, petulance, tantrums, insane rages both faked and real, sexual coquettishness and pathological violence. Sometimes the last two together." [3]
Some early sessions were done with Paul McKercher and another with Rick Will, neither of which the band found satisfactory. [4] Over a hundred songs were considered for the album over a 3-month rehearsal period, [5] all recorded as demos at the Sydney Opera House. Barnes and Prestwich had both stockpiled songs. Walker, who had recently used songs for Moss's Petrolhead , Tex, Don and Charlie's Sad but True , and his own solo debut, felt he had little to offer. "I didn't have much around. So a lot of that is written from a standing start. I assumed the reunion album was going to be largely written by the other guys and I was quite relaxed about that." [6]
The band had signed an unusual contract with Mushroom Records, a partnership whereby the band would split all expenses and profits with the label. The contract also stipulated that the label would have no creative input whatsoever.
Barnes described the recording process as, "very unorthodox. Normally when you record, everyone wears headphones and everything is isolated, so if someone makes a mistake you can cut it out. We had a PA in the studio - everything bled through everything else. What it meant was we had to record virtually live. So it's an album that's got lots of warts on it, little things that are technically wrong, but at the same time it has an immense amount of feel." [7] Elsewhere he said, "You can almost hear the guitars going slightly out of tune as the song progresses because Mossy's hammering away." [8]
Walker later said, "Last Wave of Summer was a production nightmare. There hadn't been much growing up done in the previous 15 years, or all the growing had been in the wrong direction." [9]
The album covers topics ranging from the serious, including the Australian Aboriginal stolen generation in the Ian Moss penned "Red Sand" and judicial inequity in Don Walker's "Mr. Crown Prosecutor", to the flippant, such as the pub adventure "Yakuza Girls".
The cover photo, by Adrienne Overall, of the band seated at a service station in Wyong, New South Wales, references Edward Hopper's Nighthawks.
A rockabilly version of "Yakuza Girls" appeared on Don Walker's 2006 solo album Cutting Back.
Reception
Allmusic described the album as a, "less visceral; more cerebral," album by, "an older, more mature Chisel -- accomplished songsmiths and musicians with nothing left to prove." It's noted that, "there's a shade less catchiness to this album than, say, Breakfast at Sweethearts or East." Barnes' vocals have, "never sounded better or bitten harder." [10]
Michael Smith from Drum Media said the album opened and closed, "with a couple of swamp rockers that remind you that the Cruel Sea and Beasts of Bourbon didn't write the book," and closed by saying the album was, "a damned fine addition to the catalogue of one of the real musical treasures of this country." [9]
The Age wrote, "Barnesy's voice is its best in years, and Don Walker lyrics are, as ever, thoughtful. Because of its bluesy feel, the album will be as welcome at a yuppie dinner party as at a Chisel fan's piss-up." [11]
Cold Chisel are an Australian pub rock band, which formed in Adelaide in 1973 by mainstay members Ian Moss on guitar and vocals, Steve Prestwich on drums and Don Walker on piano and keyboards. They were soon joined by Jimmy Barnes on lead vocals and, in 1975, Phil Small became their bass guitarist. The group disbanded in late 1983 but subsequently reformed several times. Musicologist Ian McFarlane wrote that they became "one of Australia's best-loved groups" as well as "one of the best live bands", fusing "a combination of rockabilly, hard rock and rough-house soul'n'blues that was defiantly Australian in outlook."
Ian Richard Moss is an Australian rock musician from Alice Springs. He is the founding mainstay guitarist and occasional singer of Cold Chisel. In that group's initial eleven year phase from 1973 to 1984, Moss was recorded on all five studio albums, three of which reached number one on the national Kent Music Report Albums Chart. In August 1989 he released his debut solo album, Matchbook, which peaked at number one on the ARIA Albums Chart. It was preceded by his debut single, "Tucker's Daughter", which reached number two on the related ARIA Singles Chart in March. The track was co-written by Moss with Don Walker, also from Cold Chisel. Moss had another top ten hit with "Telephone Booth" in June 1989.
"Flame Trees" is a song by Australian pub rock band Cold Chisel from their 1984 album Twentieth Century. One of their best known songs, it was written by drummer Steve Prestwich and keyboardist Don Walker. On its release it reached No. 26 on the Kent Music Report Singles Chart. It resurfaced in August 2011 due to download sales, peaking at No. 54 on the ARIA chart.
Cold Chisel is the debut album of Australian pub rock band Cold Chisel. Released in April 1978, it spent 23 weeks in the Australian charts, peaking at number 38.
Chisel is a compilation album by Australian pub rocker band Cold Chisel, released in September 1991. It features a selection of their best songs from previous albums, including live versions of the tracks "Bow River", "Merry-Go-Round," "Star Hotel" and "Goodbye ." The track "Misfits" was previously a B-side and was removed from later re-issues of this album. A limited edition release of this album included the long-deleted 1978 live EP You're Thirteen, You're Beautiful, and You're Mine.
"When the War Is Over" is song by Australian band Cold Chisel from their 1982 album Circus Animals. The song was written by drummer Steve Prestwich and issued as the third single from the album, peaking at number 25 on the national singles chart, and also resurfaced in August 2011 due to download sales.
You're Thirteen, You're Beautiful, and You're Mine is a live EP by Australian pub rock band Cold Chisel, recorded at the Regent Theatre in Sydney in October 1978 and released in November 1978.
East is the third studio album by Australian pub rock band Cold Chisel, released in June 1980. The album peaked at No. 2 and spent 63 weeks on the national chart. It was the biggest-selling Australian album release of the year. It was the only Cold Chisel album to chart in America, reaching 171 on the Billboard 200. It also reached number 32 on the New Zealand charts.
Circus Animals is the fourth studio album by Australian band Cold Chisel, released on 8 March 1982. It was recorded and mixed at Paradise Studios and EMI Studios 301, Sydney, between September and December 1981. It reached number one on the Australian charts, remaining in the charts for 40 weeks, and also topped the New Zealand charts. The working title for the album was "Tunnel Cunts".
Swingshift is a live album released by Australian band Cold Chisel in 1981. It was their first album to reach No. 1 on the Australian chart, debuting there in its first week. It peaked at number 9 in New Zealand. A press release said the title referred to, "the midnight to dawn shift that the staff in asylums dread: the hours when the crazies go crazy."
Twentieth Century is the fifth and final studio album by Australian band Cold Chisel until the group reformed in 1998. The album was written and recorded over various sessions during the period of the band's break-up and during breaks in their final tour. It was released in early 1984 and peaked at No. 1 on the Australian albums chart, their third consecutive album to do so. It charted for a total of 46 weeks.
The Barking Spiders Live: 1983 is a live album by Australian rock band Cold Chisel. It was recorded during the final performances of their Last Stand tour in 1983, at the Sydney Entertainment Centre. The name of the album derives from a name the band used occasionally when playing warm-up shows before tours. Don Walker states a "barking spider" is "Scottish slang for a fart."
Teenage Love is a compilation album by Australian pub rock band Cold Chisel, released in 1994. The album collected studio recordings, many just demos, that were not used on previous albums. Phil Small said, "There was always a surplus of 3 to 4 tracks with each album." The tracks were recorded between 1976 and 1983. "Hands Out of My Pocket", "Nothing But You" and "Yesterdays" were issued as singles.
"Choirgirl" is a song by Australian rock band Cold Chisel, released as the lead single from their third studio album East (1980) in November 1979. A ballad written by Don Walker with an R&B-influenced melody, the song marked the first time the band had recorded with producer Mark Opitz. It peaked at No. 14 in Australia on the Kent Music Report.
No Plans is the seventh studio album by Australian rock band Cold Chisel. It was released on 6 April 2012 and was the band's first studio album in 14 years. It features the final recorded performances by drummer Steve Prestwich, who died of a brain tumour in January 2011. The album peaked at number 2 on the Australian charts.
Ringside is a live album released by Cold Chisel in 2003. Recorded over 4 nights in June 2003, it peaked at number 27 in 2003 and peaked at number 16 following its vinyl release on 12 November 2021.
The Perfect Crime is the eighth studio album by Australian rock band Cold Chisel. It was released on 2 October 2015. It was the first album not to feature a contribution from drummer Steve Prestwich, who died of a brain tumour in January 2011. The album peaked at number 2 on the Australian charts and number 7 in New Zealand.
"The Things I Love in You" is a song by Australian rock band Cold Chisel. It was released in August 1998 as the lead single from their sixth studio album, The Last Wave of Summer (1998). The song peaked at number 10 in Australia and 43 in New Zealand.
"Hands Out of My Pocket" was a 1994 single from Australian rock band Cold Chisel, the first from the album Teenage Love. It reached number 9 in the Australian charts.
Blood Moon is the ninth studio album by Australian rock band Cold Chisel. It was released on 6 December 2019, and is supported by the lead single "Getting the Band Back Together". It is the band's first studio album since 2015's The Perfect Crime. The band toured in support of the album from 31 December 2019 until February 2020. The album debuted atop the ARIA Albums Chart, becoming the band's fifth album to reach the summit and first since The Last Wave of Summer in 1998.
