Why the Long Face (album)

Last updated

Why the Long Face
Big Country - Why the Long Face.jpg
Studio album by
Big Country
Released12 June 1995 [1]
Recorded1994–1995
Genre Alternative rock, celtic rock
Label Transatlantic
Producer Big Country and Chris Sheldon
Big Country chronology
The Buffalo Skinners
(1993)		Why the Long Face
(1995)		 Eclectic
(1996)
Singles from Why the Long Face
  1. "I'm Not Ashamed"
    Released: 30 May 1995
  2. "You Dreamer"
    Released: 21 August 1995

Why the Long Face is the seventh studio album by Scottish band Big Country, released in 1995. It was produced by Chris Sheldon and members of the band.

Contents

The album received a reissue as a deluxe four-disc box-set by Cherry Red Records in 2018. In addition to a remaster of the original album on disc one, the three additional CDs contain demos, B-sides and single edits, as well as the band's 1996 live album Eclectic . [2]

Background

Why the Long Face was recorded between August 1994 and January 1995. The new material was met with a lukewarm response from the head of the band's label Compulsion, Chris Briggs, who felt the band needed to do more work on the material. Compulsion ended up dropping Big Country and the band subsequently signed to Transatlantic in March 1995, with Why the Long Face being released on the label in June 1995. [3]

Speaking to The Lennox Herald in 1995, lead vocalist and guitarist Stuart Adamson said of the album, "I think that this album flows well and that there is no filler on it. It's strong enough for us to do most of it live on stage." [4] He added to the Evening Herald , "It's not a departure from or a return to anything really. This time round though, I think the songs are more intimate and personal as opposed to being about big impersonal issues. They've got real characters, strong verses and choruses." [5]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [6]
NME 1/10 [7]

On its release, Neil McKay of Sunday Life felt Why the Long Face failed to meet the same standard as The Buffalo Skinners. He wrote, "Solid and workmanlike, it lacks real inspiration. 'Sail into Nothing', 'God's Great Mistake', 'Wildland in My Heart' and 'Blue on a Green Planet' all try hard, but diminishing returns seem to be setting in." [8] Chris Heath of The Daily Telegraph described the album as "rather good" and noted, "It was with minimal interest that I put on their new album, and with astonishment that I heard tune after tune of the sort which, if they had released them in 1987, would have saved their career." [9] Mark Beaumont of NME was highly negative of the album, calling it "turgid bargain-bin fodder", with "a cesspool full of anonymous squidge-rawkers", "slabs of immense blandness", "a huge dollop of Huey Lewis" and lyrics "that have all the subtlety of Vinnie Jones". [7]

Track listing

Original release (1995)

All tracks are written by Stuart Adamson; except where noted

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."You Dreamer" 4:50
2."Message of Love" 4:05
3."I'm Not Ashamed" 4:13
4."Sail into Nothing" 3:47
5."Thunder & Lightning" 3:38
6."Send You" 4:11
7."One in a Million" 5:05
8."God's Great Mistake"Adamson, Tony Butler 4:48
9."Wildland in My Heart" 4:04
10."Take You to the Moon" 4:55
11."Far from Me to You" 4:11
12."Charlotte"Adamson, Bruce Watson 3:54
13."Post Nuclear Talking Blues"Adamson, Butler, Watson, Mark Brzezicki 3:21
14."Blue on a Green Planet"Adamson, Butler, Watson, Brzezicki4:52
US CD release bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
15."Vicious" Lou Reed 3:14
16."In a Big Country" (Unplugged Version)Adamson, Brzezicki, Butler, Watson3:13
Japan 1996 CD release bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
15."In a Big Country" (Acoustic Version) 3:13
16."All Go Together" (Acoustic Version)Adamson, Watson3:21

Cherry Red deluxe edition (2018)

Disc One – Why the Long Face

No.TitleLength
1."You Dreamer"4:50
2."Message of Love"4:06
3."I'm Not Ashamed"4:13
4."Sail into Nothing"3:47
5."Thunder & Lightning"3:38
6."Send You"4:12
7."One in a Million"5:05
8."God's Great Mistake"4:48
9."Wildland in My Heart"4:04
10."Take You to the Moon"4:55
11."Far from Me to You"4:11
12."Charlotte"3:54
13."Post Nuclear Talking Blues"3:21
14."Blue on a Green Planet"4:54

Disc Two – Bonus Tracks

All tracks are written by Stuart Adamson; except where noted

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."I'm Not Ashamed" (Single Edit) 3:46
2."One in a Million" (1st Visit) 5:21
3."Monday Tuesday Girl"Adamson, Brzezicki, Watson3:56
4."In a Big Country" (Acoustic Version)Adamson, Brzezicki, Butler, Watson3:16
5."Crazytimes" 4:05
6."Blue on a Green Planet" (Cool Version)Adamson, Butler, Watson, Brzezicki4:40
7."You Dreamer" (Single Edit) 3:39
8."Ice Cream Smile" 3:54
9."Magic in Your Eyes" 2:59
10."Bianca"Adamson, Butler4:41
11."Hardly a Mountain" (HITW Tapes) 3:58
12."Golden Boy Loves Golden Girl" (HITW Tapes) 4:39
13."Can You Feel the Winter" (HITW Tapes) 6:36
14."I'm Eighteen" Alice Cooper, Michael Bruce, Glen Buxton, Dennis Dunaway, Neal Smith 2:55
15."Vicious" Lou Reed 3:15
16."On the Road Again" Floyd Jones, Alan Wilson 4:22
17."All Go Together"Adamson, Watson3:21

Disc Three – Eclectic

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."River of Hope"Adamson4:06
2."King of Emotion"Adamson4:10
3."Big Yellow Taxi" Joni Mitchell 3:50
4."The Buffalo Skinners"Adamson, Watson5:58
5."Summertime" George Gershwin, DuBose Heyward, Ira Gershwin 3:57
6."The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down" Robbie Robertson 3:44
7."Eleanor Rigby" John Lennon, Paul McCartney 3:47
8."Winter Sky"Adamson, Watson4:06
9."Sling It" Steve Harley 3:04
10."I'm on Fire" Bruce Springsteen 2:39
11."Where the Rose Is Sown"Adamson, Brzezicki, Butler, Watson4:10
12."Come Back to Me"Adamson, Brzezicki, Butler, Watson4:43
13."Ruby Tuesday" Mick Jagger, Keith Richards 4:16
14."Teenage Lament" (Bonus Track)Cooper, Smith3:54
15."Down on the Corner" (Bonus Track) John Fogerty 2:49
16."Hey Hey My My" (Bonus Track) Neil Young 5:04
17."You Dreamer" (Bonus Track - Acoustic Version) 4:09
18."I'm Not Ashamed" (Bonus Track - Acoustic Version) 3:46

Disc Four – Demos

All tracks are written by Stuart Adamson; except where noted

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."You Dreamer" (Demo) 4:45
2."Message of Love" (Demo) 3:40
3."I'm Not Ashamed" (Demo) 4:41
4."Sail into Nothing" (Demo) 4:31
5."Thunder and Lightning" (Demo) 4:01
6."Send You" (Demo) 5:17
7."God's Great Mistake" (Demo)Adamson, Butler5:53
8."Wildland in My Heart" (Demo) 4:03
9."Take You to the Moon" (Demo) 4:41
10."Far from Me to You" (Demo) 4:27
11."Charlotte" (Demo)Adamson, Watson4:03
12."Post Nuclear Talking Blues" (Demo)Adamson, Butler, Watson, Brzezicki2:59
13."Crazytimes" (Demo) 4:34
14."What About Peace" (Demo) 3:30
15."Normal" (Demo)Adamson, Watson2:25
16."God's Great Mistake" (Alternate Version)Adamson, Butler3:11

Charts

Chart (1995)Peak
position
Scottish Albums (OCC) [10] 28
UK Albums (OCC) [11] 48

Personnel

Additional personnel

Related Research Articles

<i>The Crossing</i> (Big Country album) 1983 studio album by Big Country

The Crossing is the debut album released by Scottish band Big Country in July 1983. The album reached #3 in the UK; overseas, it hit #4 in Canada on the RPM national Top Albums Chart and #18 in the US on the Billboard 200 in 1983. It went on to be certified platinum in the UK and Canada. It contains the song "In a Big Country" which is their only U.S. Top 40 hit single.

<i>The Seer</i> (Big Country album) 1986 studio album by Big Country

The Seer is the third studio album by the Scottish band Big Country, released in 1986. The album featured very traditional Scottish musical settings, reminiscent of the band's debut album The Crossing (1983). Kate Bush worked on the title song in a duet with lead singer and lyricist Stuart Adamson. The album's first single, "Look Away", was an Irish number one, and was also the group's biggest hit single in the UK, reaching #7.

<i>Peace in Our Time</i> (Big Country album) 1988 studio album by Big Country

Peace in Our Time is the fourth studio album by Scottish band Big Country, released in 1988.

<i>No Place Like Home</i> (Big Country album) 1991 studio album by Big Country

No Place Like Home is the fifth studio album by Scottish band Big Country, released in 1991. Its title derives from a quote in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, which is referenced by the first track, "We're Not in Kansas". Dorothy's statement was in turn taken from the famous poem and song Home! Sweet Home! by John Howard Payne and Henry Bishop.

<i>The Buffalo Skinners</i> 1993 studio album by Big Country

The Buffalo Skinners is the sixth studio album by the Scottish band Big Country, which was released in 1993. Two songs, "We're Not In Kansas" and "Ships", are re-recordings of songs from their previous album. The difference is more noticeable on "Ships" which features heavy use of guitars. The album featured two UK top 30 hits, "Alone" and "Ships".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skids (band)</span> British punk rock band

Skids are a Scottish punk rock and new wave band, formed in Dunfermline in 1977 by Stuart Adamson, William Simpson, Thomas Kellichan (drums) and Richard Jobson. Their biggest successes were the 1979 single "Into the Valley" and the 1980 album The Absolute Game. In 2016, the band announced a 40th-anniversary tour of the UK with their original singer Richard Jobson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stuart Adamson</span> Scottish guitarist, songwriter and vocalist (1958–2001)

William Stuart Adamson was a Scottish rock guitarist and singer. Adamson began his career in the late 1970s as a founding member and performer with the punk rock band Skids. After leaving Skids in 1981, he formed Big Country and was the band's lead singer and guitarist. The group's commercial heyday was in the 1980s. In the 1990s, he was a member of the alternative country band The Raphaels. In the late 1970s the British music journalist John Peel referred to his musical virtuosity as a guitarist as "a new Jimi Hendrix".

The discography of Big Country, a Scottish rock band which formed in 1981, consists of nine studio albums, eighteen live albums, twenty-five compilation albums, one extended play (EP), and twenty-nine singles released on Mercury Records, Reprise Records, Vertigo Records and Cherry Red Records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Big Country</span> Scottish rock band

Big Country are a Scottish rock band formed in Dunfermline, Fife, in 1981.

<i>The Journey</i> (Big Country album) 2013 studio album by Big Country

The Journey is the ninth studio album by Scottish rock band Big Country, released on 8 April 2013 through Cherry Red Records. The Journey is the first and only Big Country album with The Alarm vocalist Mike Peters taking over for the late Stuart Adamson, who died on 16 December 2001 at the age of 43, and former Simple Minds bassist Derek Forbes replacing Tony Butler, who retired in 2012. It is also the first album to feature Jamie Watson, who joins his father Bruce Watson on guitar. The elder Watson along with drummer Mark Brzezicki are the sole remaining members of the band's classic lineup present on this album.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Save Me (Big Country song)</span> 1990 single by Big Country

"Save Me" is a song by Scottish rock band Big Country, released in 1990 as a single from their compilation album Through a Big Country: Greatest Hits. The song was written by Stuart Adamson and produced by Tim Palmer. It reached number 41 in the UK Singles Chart and remained in the top 100 for three weeks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">King of Emotion</span> 1988 single by Big Country

"King of Emotion" is a song by Scottish rock band Big Country, released in 1988 as the lead single from their fourth studio album Peace in Our Time. It was written by Stuart Adamson and produced by Peter Wolf. "King of Emotion" reached number 16 in the UK Singles Chart. In the US, it reached number 11 on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart and number 20 on the Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ships (Where Were You)</span> 1993 single by Big Country

"Ships (Where Were You)" is a song by Scottish rock band Big Country, written by Stuart Adamson (lyrics, music) and Bruce Watson (music). The song was originally recorded for and included on the band's fifth studio album No Place Like Home (1991). It was then re-recorded for their following album, The Buffalo Skinners (1993), and released as the album's second single. "Ships (Where Were You)" reached number 29 in the UK Singles Chart and remained in the top 75 for three weeks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alone (Big Country song)</span> 1993 single by Big Country

"Alone" is a song by Scottish rock band Big Country, released in 1993 as the lead single from their sixth studio album The Buffalo Skinners. It was written by Stuart Adamson and produced by Big Country. "Alone" reached number 24 in the UK Singles Chart and remained in the top 100 for three weeks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The One I Love (Big Country song)</span> 1993 single by Big Country

"The One I Love" is a song by Scottish rock band Big Country, released in 1993 as the third and final single from their sixth studio album, The Buffalo Skinners. It was written by Stuart Adamson and Bruce Watson, and was produced by Big Country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beautiful People (Big Country song)</span> 1991 single by Big Country

"Beautiful People" is a song by Scottish rock band Big Country, which was released in 1991 as the second and final single from their fifth studio album No Place Like Home. It was written by Stuart Adamson and produced by Pat Moran. "Beautiful People" reached No. 72 on the UK Singles Chart, and No. 36 on the BBC's Heavy Metal/Rock chart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heart of the World (song)</span> 1990 single by Big Country

"Heart of the World" is a song by Scottish rock band Big Country, released in 1990 as a non-album single. It was written by Stuart Adamson and produced by Tim Palmer. "Heart of the World" reached number 50 on the UK Singles Chart and remained in the top 100 for three weeks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I'm Not Ashamed (song)</span> 1995 single by Big Country

"I'm Not Ashamed" is a song by Scottish rock band Big Country, released in 1995 as the lead single from their seventh studio album Why the Long Face. It was written by Stuart Adamson, and produced by Big Country and Chris Sheldon. "I'm Not Ashamed" reached number 69 in the UK Singles Chart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">You Dreamer</span> 1995 single by Big Country

"You Dreamer" is a song by Scottish rock band Big Country, which was released in 1995 as the second and final single from their seventh studio album Why the Long Face. It was written by Stuart Adamson, and produced by Big Country and Chris Sheldon. "You Dreamer" reached No. 68 on the UK Singles Chart.

<i>Non!</i> (Big Country EP) 1995 EP by Big Country

Non! is an extended play by Scottish rock band Big Country, which was released in the UK in 1995 as an action awareness record for Greenpeace. Non! reached No. 77 in the UK Singles Chart in December 1995.

References

  1. ↑ O'Reilly, Aileen (23 May 1995). "Big Country comes back the Emo way". Evening Herald . p. 12.
  2. ↑ "You Dreamer: Big Country's 'Long Face' Gets Longer with Cherry Red Box Set". The Second Disc. 28 June 2018. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
  3. ↑ Why the Long Face (CD liner notes). Big Country. UK: Cherry Red Records. 2018. CRCDBOX58.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  4. ↑ Lawn, Jim (29 September 1995). "Touring the Big Country". The Lennox Herald . p. 32.
  5. ↑ O'Reilly, Aileen (19 September 1995). "Country boys to face the music". Evening Herald . p. 15.
  6. ↑ Ruhlmann, William. "Big Country: Why the Long Face [Bonus Tracks]" at AllMusic. Retrieved 20 September 2011.
  7. 1 2 Beaumont, Mark (1 July 1995). "Long Play". New Musical Express . p. 48. ISSN   0028-6362.
  8. ↑ McKay, Neil (6 August 1995). "Albums - Foo for thought". Sunday Life . p. 33.
  9. ↑ Heath, Chris (22 July 1995). "Pithy revival for Juice's front man". The Daily Telegraph . p. A9.
  10. ↑ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 17 January 2022.
  11. ↑ "Big Country | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 17 January 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.