| Totale's Turns (It's Now or Never) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Live album by | ||||
| Released | 5 May 1980 | |||
| Recorded | 27 October 1979 – 29 February 1980 | |||
| Genre | Post-punk | |||
| Length | 43:05 | |||
| Label | Rough Trade | |||
| The Fall chronology | ||||
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Totale's Turns (It's Now or Never) is a (mostly) live album by the Fall, released on 5 May 1980.
The first of the band's many live and part-live albums, it was mostly recorded at gigs in the north of England, but the track "New Puritan" was recorded at Mark E. Smith's home and "That Man" is a studio recording, an outtake from the recording sessions for the "Fiery Jack" single. [1]
Rather than record themselves in front of a receptive home crowd, the Fall chose to use recordings made in working men's clubs and other less obvious settings; [2] Side 1 of the album was recorded at a leisure centre near Doncaster [3] while the first two tracks on Side 2 are from a February 1980 gig in Bradford. It is clear on the recording that the reception the band received ranged from indifferent to hostile, the enmity between band and audience evident from Smith's introductory statement "The difference between you and us is that we have brains". [4] Friction within the band is also apparent, with Smith apparently chastising one of the musicians during "No Xmas for John Quays" with "Will you fuckin' get it together instead of showing off". [1]
Smith said of the album in his 2008 book Renegade:
"Nobody wanted to release it, because nobody played the sort of venues that you hear on it – places like Doncaster and Preston. The North was out of bounds; it might as well have been another country. We just pieced a load of tapes together. In the band's eyes it was commercial suicide releasing this dirge; they couldn't see the soul that lay behind it. That's musicians for you." [5]
The album was released on 5 May 1980, the band's first release after signing to Rough Trade Records. [6]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [4] |
| The Austin Chronicle | [7] |
| Robert Christgau | B [8] |
| Q | [9] |
| Sounds | [1] |
Dave McCullough in Sounds gave the album a five star rating, calling the band "a living reminder of the failure of Punk and the almost solitary exponents of the directions in which it should have gone". [1] Robert Christgau gave the album a B rating, describing himself as "a sucker for the overall sound, maybe even the attitude". [8] AllMusic reviewer Ned Raggett gave the album three stars, stating that it saw the band in "a hilariously aggressive mood", and delivering "some brilliant performances". [4] Martin Longley, in a 1998 review, gave it three stars, calling it "a terse, brittle classic of cranky Mark E. Smith ranting". [9] A 2002 review of the reissued album was given two stars by Marc Savlov in The Austin Chronicle , describing it as "live with God-awful acoustics and utter crap recording that renders it barely there at the best moments". [7] Trouser Press described the album as "Jagged, largely recitative and nearly oblivious to musical convention, Smith's witty repartee carries the show as the band lurches and grunts along noisily." [10]
The album was chosen by Luke Haines in 2011 as one of his favourite thirteen albums. [11]
The album topped the UK Independent Chart in 1980, spending a total of 31 weeks on the chart. [12]
The album has been issued on CD several times, in 1992 by Dojo, in 1998 and 2004 by Castle Communications, and in 2017 by Westworld Recordings. The 2004 Castle reissue included the Fall's third Peel session as bonus tracks. It was reissued on vinyl in 2004 by Earmark, and in 2017 by Let Them Eat Vinyl.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Intro" | Mark E. Smith | 0:46 |
| 2. | "Fiery Jack" | Smith, Marc Riley, Steve Hanley, Craig Scanlon | 4:27 |
| 3. | "Rowche Rumble" | Smith, Riley, Scanlon | 4:50 |
| 4. | "Muzorewi's Daughter" | Smith, Kay Carroll | 3:42 |
| 5. | "In My Area" | Smith, Yvonne Pawlett, Riley, Scanlon | 4:31 |
| 6. | "Choc Stock" | Smith, Scanlon | 2:33 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7. | "Spector Vs. Rector 2" | Smith, Mike Leigh, Scanlon, Hanley | 5:54 |
| 8. | "Cary Grant's Wedding" | The Fall | 3:35 |
| 9. | "That Man" (Studio recording) | Smith, Riley, Scanlon | 1:43 |
| 10. | "New Puritan" (Home Demo recording) | Smith, Scanlon, Riley, Hanley | 3:21 |
| 11. | "No Xmas for John Quays" | Smith | 7:43 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12. | "The Container Drivers" (BBC Session) | Smith, Scanlon, Riley, Hanley, Paul Hanley | 3:40 |
| 13. | "Jawbone and the Air-Rifle" (BBC Session) | The Fall | 3:24 |
| 14. | "New Puritan" (BBC Session) | Smith, Scanlon, Riley, Hanley | 7:13 |
| 15. | "New Face in Hell" (BBC Session) | Smith, Scanlon, Riley, Hanley | 5:05 |
The Fall were an English post-punk group, formed in 1976 in Prestwich, Greater Manchester. They underwent many line-up changes, with vocalist and founder Mark E. Smith as the only constant member. The Fall's long-term musicians included drummers Paul Hanley, Simon Wolstencroft and Karl Burns; guitarists Marc Riley, Craig Scanlon and Brix Smith; and bassist Steve Hanley, whose melodic, circular bass lines are widely credited with shaping the band's sound from early 1980s albums such as Hex Enduction Hour to the late 1990s.
Slates is an EP by the Fall, released on 27 April 1981 by Rough Trade Records. It was one of singer Mark E. Smith's favourite Fall releases, and he claimed it was aimed at "people who didn't buy records".
Live at the Witch Trials is the debut studio album by the Fall. It was released on 16 March 1979 through record label Step-Forward. It is not, despite its title, a live album and was recorded in a studio in a single day and mixed by producer Bob Sargeant.
Room to Live, subtitled Undilutable Slang Truth!, is the fifth studio album by English post-punk band the Fall. It was released on 27 September 1982 through record label Kamera.
Hex Enduction Hour is the fourth studio album by the English post-punk group the Fall. Released on 8 March 1982, it builds on the low-fidelity production values and caustic lyrical content of their earlier recordings, and features a two-drummer lineup. Frontman Mark E. Smith establishes an abrasive Northern aesthetic built in part from the 20th century literary traditions of kitchen sink realism and magic realism. Smith described the album as an often-satirical but deliberate reaction to the contemporary music scene, a stand against "bland bastards like Elvis Costello and Spandau Ballet ... [and] all that shit."
Grotesque (After the Gramme) is the third studio album by English band the Fall. Released on 17 November 1980, it was the band's first studio album on Rough Trade.
Dragnet is the second studio album by English post-punk band the Fall, released on 26 October 1979 through Step-Forward Records. Appearing less than eight months after its predecessor, Live at the Witch Trials,Dragnet established at an early stage two key patterns characteristic of the group's future: that of high productivity and that of a regular turnover of group members.
Perverted by Language is the sixth studio album by English post-punk group The Fall, released in December 1983 on Rough Trade Records.
The Wonderful and Frightening World Of... is the seventh studio album by English musical group the Fall, released in October 1984. It was the band's first album after signing to the Beggars Banquet label. Newcomer Brix Smith co-wrote three of the tracks, ushering in a relatively pop-oriented sound for the group. Paul Hanley left the band immediately after the accompanying UK tour, ending the group's distinctive "twin drummers" period.
Bend Sinister is the ninth studio album by English post-punk band the Fall. It was released in September 1986 by record label Beggars Banquet.
In the Flat Field is the debut studio album by English gothic rock band Bauhaus. It was recorded between December 1979 and July 1980, and was released on 3 November 1980 by record label 4AD, the first full-length release on that label. The cover artwork is a reproduction of Duane Michals' 1949 photograph, Homage to Puvis de Chavannes.
Cerebral Caustic is the seventeenth full-length studio album by English post-punk group The Fall, released in 1995 on Permanent Records. It spent one week on the UK Albums Chart at number 67, 19 places lower than its predecessor Middle Class Revolt, marking the end of one of the group's relatively more successful periods.
Fall in a Hole is a live album by the Fall, recorded in Auckland in August 1982 and released in December 1983 on the Flying Nun label of New Zealand.
The Complete Peel Sessions 1978–2004 is a compilation box set by English post-punk band the Fall. It was released in 2005 by record label Castle Music.
The Twenty-Seven Points is a double album by the Fall, released in 1995. Subtitled "Live 92-95" the album consists of live recordings made in various locations between 1991 and 1995, but also contains 2 previously unheard studio tracks as well as some mildly diverting interludes. Credits on the album are sketchy but the front cover lists the cities in which the tracks were recorded; Prague, Tel Aviv, London, Glasgow, New York City and Manchester.
Live in London 1980 is a live album by the Fall, released in 1982 on cassette on the Chaos Tapes label. Initially a limited edition of 4,000 copies, the album has since been reissued several times as The Legendary Chaos Tape.
A Part of America Therein, 1981 is a live album by the Fall, recorded on their 1981 U.S. tour and originally released only in the U.S. in 1982.
"Rowche Rumble" is a 1979 song by British post-punk band the Fall, written by Mark E. Smith, Craig Scanlon and Marc Riley. Released as the band's third single, it was the first record by the Fall to reach a recognised national chart when it reached number 31 on the indie chart in January 1980, the first month of that chart's existence.
"Fiery Jack" is a song by the Fall released in 1980 as their fourth single.
Hip Priest and Kamerads is a 1985 compilation album by British rock band The Fall, containing tracks taken from their releases on the Kamera label together with a previously-unreleased live track from the same era. It was subsequently reissued with a further four live tracks added.
