Posted on by chasinvictoria

The Primitives: Bloom! The Full Story 1985-1992 (Disc 4)

Galore + Bonus Tracks
(Cherry Red, 2020)

THE OVERVIEW

Galore is a bit of a mixed bag for early Primitives fans, but that’s not to say it’s not another very good album, because it most certainly is. The group started stretching their super-catchy jangle-pop style on Pure, and while keeping the basic indie-psych-guitar sound here, they move further away from the surf-style periodically, and embrace that darker “psychedelic” side of their nature more heavily.

There also seems to be signs of paying attention to record-company dictates to be more radio friendly by making the songs longer, and having less ambiguous lyrics on the few clearly-identifiable love songs. Partial producer Ian Broudie from The Lightning Seeds co-wrote one of the best songs, “You Are The Way,” but the album suffers from “producer soup” a bit. Broudie, Ed Buller (best known for his later work with Suede and Pulp) and bassist Paul Sampson all get producer credits, along with the band in full.

Although we’ve only mentioned the not-dissimilar band The Darling Buds previously in passing, it’s worth noting that both bands progressed in similar ways across the course of their first three albums. and likewise both broke up (see below) due to a lack of record company success within a year of each other.

(They even reformed within a year of each other! You have to wonder if they ever called each other up and yelled “STOP FOLLOWING US!” down the line.)

THE MUSIC

Galore kicks off with a really strong quartet of songs: radio-friendly love songs sung by Tracy, “You are the Way” and “Lead Me Astray,” followed by more psychedelic “Earth Thing,” sung mainly by Paul (with very New Age/Zen lyrics), returning to what passes for their “typical” style with “Give This World to You.”

The guitar licks are still very satisfyingly tasty, but not so “jangly” as on the first album especially, though you get a taste of that on “Lead Me Astray.” That said, “Earth Thing” is as “heavy” as this band gets, and it’s also got a great fast tempo that makes it great driving music, and nice little bass “solo” three-quarters of the way through.

The band’s knack for writing catchy hooks has never deserted them, and part of the marvel of the group is that they keep coming up with worthwhile variations on their basic 60s/70s-influenced power pop groove.

For the fifth track, the guitars move back behind the bass to give some sonic variety to “Slip Away.” Although their songs have gotten progressively more about attraction and love as a theme, I’m not sure you can really call their stuff “love songs” in a lyrical sense so much as “hazy summer fun + flirting word pictures.”

“Cold Enough to Kill” again mixes things up, trading the driving tempo with a slightly slower, more layered and moody vibe, with a darker yet still airy tone.

And then comes “Hello Jesus.” It starts off with wind sound effects, and a few slow chords before launching the nearest thing yet to a ballad. Is it a religious song? If not, what is it about exactly?

You got me (shrug). Here’s a sample lyric:
You’re just about to fall
You know that you can’t fly
You better make that call
Hello Jesus
… and then it ends as mysteriously as it started. Certainly the oddest thing the band have yet produced.

This quieter, more thoughtful, slower-but-not-balladey groove continues with “Empathise.” Still pretty, still of a certain “evening” mood compared to their sunny mainstays, still exploring alternatives to just doing power pop.

A fan-made music video made using clips from the not-online “Earth Thing” video.

And then just as suddenly, we’re back on the beach, twisting the night away to the uptempo yet still nebulous “See Thru the Dark.” This is followed by a great echoey guitar riff and drum/bass combo that unfolds into “Kiss Mine,” which is another “positive attitude” song, as I suspect a lot of Primitives songs have been, but the real meaning of their lyrics is rarely crystal clear or obvious, with the words just blending into the music.

Boy I sure do hate it when incompetent YouTubers put the wrong cover art on their uploads, don’t you?

Another great riff kicks off the Paul-led semi-ballad “Smile,” which is more unabashedly romantic song that still manages to work in some dark notes into its romantic lyrics.

“The Little Black Egg” is a cover, and the final song of the original album, and I’ve finally given up trying to figure out what the hell this song is about. Here, you give it a try:

Here comes Nancy, here comes Lee
I’ve got what they want to see
I won’t let them stretch their necks
To see my little black egg
With the little white specks

Answers on a postcard, please. I would venture to say the band just found it as weird and folky as I do, and included for “the lolz.”

THE BONUS TRACKS

The version of Galore in this Bloom! box set has all of the bonus tracks found on the deluxe 2CD reissue of Galore from the 2015 UK reissue. That said, they’re not all on this particular disc — the live tracks finally turn up on Disc 5, the “odds and sods” cleanup disc.

The bonus tracks here kick off with “In My Dreams,” which reminds me of the Primitives of earlier albums, i.e. it’s a gorgeous number, and a bit more directly lusty than most of their other songs. Likewise, “Sunpulse” is another signature Primitives track, evoking summer and joy as so many of their songs do — and on this one, the bass gets to shine for a change.

“Flow” appears to mimic the end of “Sunpulse” at first, but very quickly you realise it’s just a portion of “Sunpulse” backwards – another odd choice, but hey we have to cover everything from the band during this period, so here it is.

We then come to an acoustic version of “Stop Killing Me” that you can perfectly picture being sung round an evening campfire on a beach somewhere. The background “bop-bop-de-bop”s are nicely underplayed until the end of the track.

Next up is “You Are The Way (September Mix),” which lays down a solid but unexpected bass-and-drum-heavy music bed that underplays the guitars so that Tracy’s vocals are even more center stage. This, like many of this band’s songs, can’t be performed or re-arranged badly.

We move on to the second of the three versions of “You Are The Way” here, this time the “Re-Ravishing Mix.” It’s a great way to sample how the band re-envisions their songs, with this version going for a longer and hypnotic percussion-led intro and a true “remix,” rearranging the vocal intro and minimizing any guitar presence (!)until a couple of minutes into this six-and-a-half (!!) minute version, and remaining a minimal presence throughout.

It’s an interesting experiment in getting as far away from the band’s “natural” sound as possible, but I doubt many people who aren’t DJs will listen to the track more than once. This is followed by yet another remix version called the “God’s Own Garage Band Mix — Alternate Version,” which is only minimally distinguishable from the “Re-Ravishing Mix.” This one is only a 4’18” mix though.

My favourite version of “You Are The Way,” though, remains the album cut – with the “September Mix” a very close second. The reason we have all these versions is clear: the song was the single, but either the band or the record companies let some others have their way with remixing it for 12-inch b-sides.

Happily, the guitars return with a vengeance (and Paul on vocal) with “Under My Spell.” This one is notable for only have a very minimal trace of Tracy on it.

The bonus tracks wrap up with “Haunted,” which could easily have been an album track. It’s a more polished number than “Under My Spell,” which barely rises above demo status.

THE POST-MORTEM

Galore continues the band’s exploration beyond just jangly guitar pop, since they perfected that form right out of the starting gate with their first major-label album. They continue to struggle with the notion of writing a bad song (a “problem” very few bands can claim to have), but they get close to the idea on this album, without ever actually achieving that “goal.”

The band, down to a threesome for this album, again failed to chart with Galore and decided to call it a day, even as they remained college-radio darlings. Fortunately for us all, this wasn’t where the story ended, but its the final album of the period covered by Bloom!.

Next time: BBC Sessions, and a live gig!

Posted on by chasinvictoria

The Primitives — Bloom! The Full Story 1985-1992 (Disc 3)

Pure + Bonus Tracks
Cherry Red, 2020

THE OVERVIEW

Ah, the “difficult” sophomore album … following a batch of compelling songs as demos, refinements, and finally as their debut album, what do you do for a follow-up? Well, try to break the mold a bit while still relying on what you know you do damn well, apparently.

Released on New Year’s Day, 1989 — one year to the day after their debut album — Pure explores some different approaches, and expands their “jangly airy guitar pop” worldview a bit, but the best songs are the ones that would have sat comfortably on Lovely (and in one case, actually did).

It’s still guitar/bass/drum driven, with Tracy is trying on some new styles within her range, Paul is slowly expanding his songwriting scope, but it is recognizably the same band with — at its core — the same musical approach. Where they are changing things up is mostly to do with mood — embracing some of the darkness in style that one often finds in their lyrics.

Note, for example, the somber way Paul sings “Shine.” Or, for that matter, the world-weary tone Tracy adopts (appropriately) for “Sick Of It.” Despite these more dour choices, there’s still plenty of sunshine here for when the clouds clear away, and it’s all very good indeed.

Despite this record being so much fun to listen to, it didn’t do as well as the band’s debut. It did make into the Top 40 in the UK at number 38, but stalled at number 113 on the US charts (a year after release), and even that was solely due to college radio airplay — why this great record didn’t get mainstream radio spins at least during the summer months, fer cryin’ out loud, must have frustrated the band even more than it does me.

THE MUSIC

The album kicks off with the sing-songy “Outside,” using a simplistic riff and what seems to me like xylophone (!) and cymbal rather than their usual percussion. The floating guitar effects and plaintive singing make for a very low-key song compared to the material on Lovely, but then the ominous bass notes come in and you are served notice that this song isn’t going to suddenly “rock out.” For this band, it’s a bit depressing actually.

Luckily, the next track is what I’d call their most Cocteau Twins-like number, “Summer Rain” — a guitar bed with a lovely lead line, fresh lyrics, a catchy melody and another bit of second guitar while the percussion comes in. Tracy’s doubled vocal returns very effectively, and while the pace remains firmly at mid-tempo, the song builds to a chorus that really captures the spirit of the song.

Frankly, I think they may have outdone the Cocteau Twins on this one! It’s a perfect melding of the two bands.

“Sick of It” is about as close as this band is going to get to punk. The lyrics express their negative judgement on what I have to presume is Los Angeles (joke), while the band sets about rocking pretty hard. If the band grew on you from the first album, this one will be a hit with you.

Mimed on TOTP

Then, things take another turn with “Shine” — starting with Paul handling lead vocals, and the use of acoustic guitars. Despite the change of tone, it’s still another example of the band’s primary approach — catchy pop-rock married to ominous (or at least obscure) lyrics.

“Dizzy Heights” starts off with furious riffing and utilizing audio effects and both singers to full effect. This is a group that has a style, but really really wants to switch it up a bit to avoid being called “good, but all the songs are kinda samey.”

Paul returns to his “psychedelic” vocal style to jazz up “All the Way Down” in another catchy exercise that finally brings the bass back in fully. We then get back to Primitives basics and feel-good sunshine pop with “Secrets” — joyous workout with the band at its best. It reminds me of something the Jesus & Mary Chain might have done, especially with the faster tempo of the bonus “Beat Version,” which we’ll come back to shortly.

This is followed by another “typical” Primitives menace-shaded funfest, “Keep Me in Mind.” The melody wanders off from time to time, and the lyrics are again (like most of their songs) about not much in terms of concrete messages or story, but anything that keeps all four members busy for the duration of the number is what I’m here for.

“Lonely Streets” was a popular track on college radio, with its “ooh-ooh” cascades and driving tempo. It threatens to be another sing-songy number like “Outside,” but the tempo changes save it from being a twin to that first song.

Then we try something different again with “Can’t Bring Me Down.” Vocals right up front, with the band firmly behind her. Tracy’s “sassy” style here reminds me of the one-hit-wonder UK band Shampoo and their one hit “We’re in Trouble,” a 1994 UK single.

Following this, a surprise. A re-used song! This version of “Way Behind Me” is straight from the the later editions of the previous album, but to be fair it’s fabulous, and deserved a second spin. The mix here gives everything equal focus as it did on the last album, which hasn’t been the case for most of this album, but it works for this number, at least.

The album proper finishes up with “Never Tell,” another upbeat tune but this time with … gasp! … a carefree upbeat (and metaphorical) lyric with only the lightest touch of vagueness! What the …?

To sum up the album as simply as possible, the group was paying attention to what was going on around them musically (like the “shoegaze” style), and adapted some of their songwriting to bring expanded versatility and influences into their core skill set. The result is varied and excellent.

THE BONUS TRACKS

The original CD version of the album had four bonus tracks — “Noose,” a cover of the Velvet Underground’s “I’ll Be Your Mirror,” a “Beat Version” of “All the Way Down,” and a new song from Paul (at the time going by PJ Court), “I Almost Touched You.” The cassette (!) version of the album only included “Noose” as a bonus song.

Bloom!, on the other hand, includes as many bonus tracks as their were songs on the original album — a whopping 11 extra tracks, kicking off with the far-superior “Beat Version” of “All the Way Down,” which brings the tempo and energy up to the normal Primitives’ enthusiasm levels. This version sounds like something The House of Love (or indeed, many other bands of the very late 80s) would have loved to have covered, rather than the more morose album version.

The organ and handclaps added to the song here really bring it to life and transport it back to the psychedelic 60s, the band’s touchstone influence.

This is followed by an acoustic new version of “Way Behind Me,” similar to the album version but without the (missed) “bop-bop-be-doo” intro. I’ve said it before, but this has “hit” written all over it, and it was in fact on a single — paired (oddly) with the morose version of “All The Way Down,” and the a-side was the album version of the A-Side and the superior “Beat Version” of “All the Way Down.”

“Noose” was such a totally different number from the band that it makes an odd choice for the “lead” bonus track, but that’s not to say it’s bad. Alternating vocals from Paul and Tracy (coming together at points throughout) sound like they wrote and recorded the track immediately after viewing some old-school “spaghetti westerns” — particularly for the opening chords and beginning percussion.

As the song gets going properly, the mood then evolves into their idea for a soundtrack to the 60s Italian “high stakes caper” movie Danger Diabolik!, complete with synth strings! If you’re not familiar with John Phillip Law’s 1968 Italian action movie masterpiece, watch that first before you put this on — your enjoyment of it will be doubled!

The mash-up of vintage video works oddly well with this song.

Switching up the mood, the next track is that remake of the Velvets single I mentioned. The Primitives’ respectful version of “I’ll Be Your Mirror” is more upbeat and frankly better in most respects, and sounds very credibly like a cover single made around the same time by a girl group of the the original’s era. It’s hard to beat the groundbreaking original version and Nico’s striking vocal, but The Primitives manage to hold their own with an excellent choice of a song to cover.

Following that cover, we’re treated to another — the Rolling Stones’ classic ballad “As Tears Go By” — but rather than pay homage to the original, the band effortlessly turns the song into … a number you might have sworn The Primitives wrote themselves! This should have been put into the original album’s track list — the mood, style and arrangement give a whole new dimension to the song as one of the band’s own “upbeat music with downbeat lyrics” signature style.

The next track, “I Almost Touched You,” really tries hard to be a different sort of number, getting back to the bass dominance we haven’t heard for a while, married to a lyric about an (unsuccessful) creeper and his quest.

The next three tracks offer alternative versions of the album track “Secrets.” The first is the original demo, which grooves just as well, but lacks the nicer intro of the album version. Godlike producer and remixer Zeus B Held finally got his hands on a Primitives track, and his 12” inch keeps the original intents while bringing Paul’s backing vocals up in places, but otherwise keeps the original’s speedy, 60s style intact. He drops some instruments out periodically for showcasing effects, and breaks out some lyrics for repeating/highlighting, squeezing an extra 42 seconds in compared to the original.

The 12” Dub mix of the song gives the rest of us a chance to karaoke this fun number at our next groovy party. For best results, you’d better have your own harmonizing boy-and-girl singers to try and hold your own against the (completely absent) original vocals.

The bonus tracks draw to a close with another fabulous cover, this time the 1957 Lieber-Stroller number “You’re So Square (Baby I Don’t Care),” originally made famous by that Elvis Presley fellah. That bassline must have proven irresistable to new bassist (and producer) Paul Sampson, and he certainly brings the low notes to life. Tracy sometimes has to fight to be heard over the bass-and-guitar attack, but the song works well with her lower register and points back to the influences the band wears on their sleeve.

Next time: tracks Galore!

Posted on by chasinvictoria

The Primitives – Bloom! The Full Story 1985-1992 (Disc 2)

Lovely, plus bonus tracks (Cherry Red, 2020)

A terrific album with absolutely awful art (front and back).

THE OVERVIEW

Finally, after doing all the right things a band that knows they are good should do, a Real Record Company put them back in the studio to make a proper album and proper singles on a proper label, and the result was its own one-word review: Lovely.

If you are reading this and somehow haven’t heard the band, it’s airy, jangly guitar pop with a 60’s influence, a girl singer, and — if you lean in and listen close — a hint of darkness in the lyrics you’re not really supposed to pay attention to. It’s the sort of stuff radio stations of the commercial variety should’ve played regularly, especially in the summertime, but never did really. Thank heavens for college radio.

You won’t find a full review of Lovely here — if you’re reading this, you very likely already have a copy (at least, you should have a copy). That said, we’ll compare the (many) songs on the official debut album to the various versions that appeared prior to this, and examine the included bonus tracks.

The band’s original, heavier “wall of (guitar)” sound has officially given way to a catchy “indie pop/jangle pop,” vibe, but that C86 influence still creeps in occasionally. The album was oddly overseen with an “executive producer” (their agent, Wayne Morris), but in fact it was produced largely by second guitarist Paul Sampson and engineer/producer Mark Wallis, working together.

Though not a member of The Primitives, Wallis has had an incredible career producing acts across a wide spectrum of 80s and later rock. Oddly, Lovely was his only credit with this band.

THE ALBUM

As you might expect, the gang put their best foot forward and kicked off Lovely with the single “Crash.” It’s fun to compare the original demo to this beautifully perfected single; the first version started off with a very Joy Division emphasis on bass, setting a dark mood for the song, which is (to be fair) about the breakup of a relationship.

By contrast, the lead off track on the album starts with wonderfully 60s-flavoured jangly guitar, with a harsh bass/second guitar note cutting the intro short with a “brake” effect, and getting into the song itself. A growly guitar bed of melody and counter-melody plus a rock-solid bassline marry themselves to an unstoppable beat, and echoed Tracy’s vocals (softly backed with Paul’s presence) hums along in what the a music press article called “the perfect single by the perfect band.”

“Spacehead” gets a big-beat sound on drums this time, and we can finally make out Tracy’s vocals clearly. Both versions have the lovely “sha-la-la-la-la” mantra to keep this psych-influenced number grounded in beach blanket bliss.

“Carry Me Home” is a re-recorded version that still features lead vocals by songwriter Paul Court. Tracy comes in on some backing vocals, but only occasionally (as with the ‘87 Album Sessions version). The album version ups the “pop” quotient and tempo a bit to make it a better number.

This brings us to “Shadow,” which gets a radical revamp on Lovely compared to the “Guitar Version” we got on Disc 1. This time, the band goes all-out on the Indian influence. After a short menacing guitar buzz (probably meant to emulate the hiss of a cobra), the tablas kick right in and instantly give the song a more hypnotic quality, complemented nicely by Tracey’s mysterious vocal. The lead guitar from the original version can be heard way in the background, but this version is just way better and more atmospheric in every way.

Next up is “Thru the Flowers,” which we have heard two previous versions of back on Disc 1. The first version was on a self-produced EP that almost but not quite drowned Tracy behind a waterfall of guitar, the second was the “new version” with considerably more restrained and melodic guitar and better vocals, recorded for a Lazy Records single, and now we get the official album version.

The new version is like a cross between the previous two — bringing back the “crunchy” guitar intro and sporadic reappearance that will remind you of the demo version, but apart from a bit more echo its quite similar to the “New Version,” with an extra guitar instrumental break and still better vocal production. All three versions flirt (to some degree) with psychedelia touches, but never quite get there.

“Dreamwalk Baby” gets a considerably snazzed-up version compared to the “1987 Version” from Disc 1. Both version rollick along, but the album cuts puts the guitars behind Tracy as it should do, but is otherwise quite similar. I do miss the synth touch on the original, however.

Another song redone from the 1987 sessions is “I’ll Stick With You.” The 1987 version still had the crunchier guitar, but thankfully as co-equal with the vocals. What’s interesting to me (at least) in comparing these versions is how little the songs themselves changed; just the arrangement and production is really different for the most part. The band knew they had solid material, even as often as the word “hey” is repeated in a lot of them.

Whoever put the packaging and liner notes together for Bloom! somehow overlooked the next track, the new song “Way Behind Me,” but nonetheless it is in fact there, as it was on the album. It’s a great song, and there’s not much more to say about that. By this point, The Primitives have a signature sound, and most songs are clever variations on that sound.

“Nothing Left” gets a hell of a great intro compared to the original demo, which just jumped right into the lyric. The album version tracks closely with the “1987 Version” (which was informed by the “Sounds Version”), but just lacks the propelling energy of the album version with its ticked-up tempo. Again, it’s fun to hear how the song matures.

Tracey sings the lead of the instrumental break, which was a genius idea, and puts more passion into the chorus. This is the best version of them all, and the slightly-rearranged lyric is the icing on this cake. Like “Crash,” it’s a perfect song, done perfectly.

Likewise, “Out of Reach” gets its energy from a urgent tempo. Paul’s accompaniment of Tracy at key points only adds to the enjoyment. Like most of their best songs, it marries a nihilist lyric with deliriously happy jangle pop. There is more Paul on backing vocals in the “1987 version,” and a different arrangement, but it’s still the same great song.

“Ocean Blue” is a great change of pace at this point in the album, a slower and dreamier number, and features touches of drone and gentle percussion here and there. It follows very closely the “London Astoria single” version, but was re-recorded for the album.

After the new song “Run Baby Run,” we get to the album version of “Don’t Want Anything to Change,” in a more restrained version that offers some piano (!) for the first and only time on the album. I actually prefer the “1987 Version” to the album version, for once.

Lovely closes with the fuzzy surf rocker, “Buzz Buzz Buzz,”which gets a quick snare intro before the buzzsaw guitars take over. As with the two previous versions, Paul Court takes lead with Tracy doubling him. Again, it’s a very close remake of the original album sessions.

THE BONUS TRACKS

We start with some of the b-sides from the “Crash” single. The A-side was of course the album version of “Crash,” but came with three b-sides — the album track of “I’ll Stick With You,” the “Crash” demo version, and an all-new song, “Things Get in Your Way,” which starts off kind of oddly but really grows on you. Only “Stick” and “Things” are here on Disc 2 as bonus tracks, since we’ve already gotten the demo verion of “Crash” on Disc 1.

A (slightly) alternative version, from a John Peel session.

The remainder of the tracks in the bonus section for Lovely consist of an amalgamation of the a- and b-sides of the “Out of Reach” single. The UK 12-inch versions contained the remixed (and sped-up slightly) 1’54” version of “Out of Reach,” the album version of the same song (20 seconds longer), and two live tracks: “Really Stupid” and “Crash.”

The 7” version of the UK single had the shorter version of “Out of Reach” and live versions of “Dreamwalk Baby,” “Really Stupid,” and “Crash.”

Of these, the big treat of the b-sides is to be found here and on the CD-single version: a b-side live cover of Iggy Pop’s “I Wanna Be Your Dog,” which originally appeared nowhere else, but eventually turned up on the previous Primitives anthology CD sets. It sounds a lot like the earlier “wall of guitar” incarnation of the band, and of course if you’ve not heard a woman singing it, that’s kind of novel as well. It’s the final track on Disc 2, and a wrap on Lovely.

Next time: Pure delight!

Posted on by chasinvictoria

The Primitives – Bloom! The Full Story 1985-1992 (Disc 1)

The Lazy Years (Cherry Red, 2020)

THE PREFACE

Okay, this one is an ambitious 5-CD undertaking, and needs a little bit of backstory before we can get into it properly. The Primitives kickstarted their career by recording singles on their own record label, Lazy Records. This lasted from 1985 to 1987. They achieved enough success to get signed by RCA in ‘87, which released their past and subsequent material until their (first) breakup in 1992.

Jump ahead to 2013, and Cherry Red released a two-CD compilation of that early material called Everything’s Shining Bright: The Lazy Recordings 1985-1987. That set covered all the singles and b-sides, some live demos, some previously-unreleased sessions from ‘87, one bonus track they cut for UK mag Sounds, and a 15-song concert at the Institute of Contemporary Arts called “Live at the ICA 15-Aug-87.”

The reason I mention this is that all of the material on Everything’s Shining Bright — except for the 15-track live gig — are also on Bloom!’s first CD of the box set, which has been dubbed “The Lazy Years.” The running order is slightly rearranged, but it’s the same material. If you’re an obsessive Primitives collector, you’ll want both ESB and Bloom. If you can live without the live gig, skip ESB and just buy Bloom.

THE MUSIC

Disc 1 kicks off with five demo tracks, three of which were re-done for Lovely: “Crash,” “Spacehead,” and “Nothing Left.” “Crash” is quite basic but still insanely catchy, and was improved to perfection for the eventual album version. The demos for “Across My Shoulder,” “Spacehead,” and “Really Stupid” are similarly basic, but the production quality steps up noticeably for the demo of “Nothing Left.”

The band then put out a four-track EP called Through the Flowers, and the improvement in production heard in the “Nothing Left” demo is heard in these tracks. Paul Court’s guitar lines are more dominant — equal to, rather than buried by, Steve Dulligan’s bass lines. Peter Tweedie’s drums weren’t quite so “thuddy” anymore, and Tracy Tracy’s (Tracy Cattell) vocal were were more prominent, though still playing second fiddle to the guitar and bass.

The EP kicked off with the catchy title track, Tracy doing her own backing vocals as well as lead. “Across My Shoulder” was also improved, but “She Don’t Need You” is a fairly forgettable entry — only notable by the first appearance of Court as backup singer.

Court went further on the final track “Lazy” by taking lead himself. Tracy backs him up only on the song’s final lyric.

On balance, it was a pretty strong recorded debut. At this stage of the game, the band can’t really be called “jangly guitar pop” as the might have be labeled further down the road; they sound much more like C86 contemporaries The Wedding Present or even a happier version of Joy Division, only with a pixieish female singer instead of those two bands’ more dour male vocalists.

A three-track single showcased the first “proper” version of “Really Stupid,” complete with a nice touch of echo on Tracy’s voice. The second “A-Side” of the single, “We Found a Way to the Sun” is the song where the band starts to sound like the RCA studio band they would become.

“Where the Wind Blows” joins the other two tracks in sounding like a fully-gelled combo that can’t stop writing and realizing great guitar-driven songs. It also caused the music press to sit up, take notice, and fall in love with the band.

The next three-track single lead off with “Stop Killing Me,” and continued the party with “Buzz Buzz Buzz,” which brought in a hyperactive bit of twang to the mix (!). The b-side, “Laughing Up My Sleeve” starts with a bit of studio noise and a count-in, with Court taking lead vocal once again, with Tracy duetting in parts, ending with a rave-up and guitar freak-out on the last line.

It’s pretty amazing to hear a band come together this well before they’d even been signed to a proper label, but the group could already do no wrong with the ever-fickle UK music press at the time, which — again — is kind of astonishing.

The next single, “Ocean Blue” b/w “Shadow (Guitar Version)” were, amazingly, given away to attendees at a gig at the London Astoria. The a-side is a languid wash of voice and music that actually does remind me a bit of the later band known by that moniker, which formed not long after the Primitives.

The b-side is exactly what it says on the tin — the vocals are there, but the guitar is the star of this show. Some nice whisper and echo effects on this version, and then … it goes all 60s Bollywood on us with sitar and such! Super cool. I can’t believe I’d never heard this version until I bought Everything’s Shining Bright!

The 1986 “Thru the Flowers” self-recorded single got a re-do in ‘87 with a “New Version,” which again strongly reflects their sound getting refined and production style defined — gone is the “wall of guitar,” and now all the elements play nicely together — with even a touch of (synth) strings (!) .

The b-side of the new single was “Everything Shining Bright,” and it shifted gears for a more driving sound, pushing Tracey back in the mix (with Frank on backing vocals), but we still get clear separation of the guitar tracks, with the bass and drums operating as a single unit.

In a promotional effort, the band recorded another version of “Nothing Left” for a vinyl EP put out by UK mag Sounds. This is a considerably better effort than the more crudely-recorded demo version, but there’s no way for this band to perform the song poorly, they know its a hit in the making, and they persued it.

Possibly inspired by the Sounds EP opportunity, the band opted to re-record seven of their songs as an self-produced “demo package” on their own label, Lazy Records. This included some all-new songs, and a new version of “Buzz Buzz Buzz” and yet another version of “Nothing Left.”

The effort paid off — they got signed to RCA on the polish of the material and the strength of their trade-paper praise.

The demo package (referred to here as “1987 version(s)” kicks off with the debut of “I’ll Stick with You,” which puts Tracy up front and properly mixes the bands instruments and backing vocals. Also debuting here is “Dreamwalk Baby” (notable for the return of synth string touches). Both have nice touches of vocals from Court and Tracy doubling herself here and there.

The new version of “Buzz Buzz Buzz” isn’t really new at all, though Court’s vocal is mixed more prominently (Tracy is just barely present). Sonically the mix is much clearer, but seems identical to the version we previously heard on this disc.

Not quite likewise, “Nothing Left” (‘87) is clearly a new version, with doubled Tracy vocals, and some nicer guitar strumming. It’s similar to, but distinct from, the Sounds version, and of course much improved from the original demo. It’s still lacking some magic though, which we’ll have wait until the version from Lovely to get.

Future hit “Out of Reach” gets its debut in this ‘87 package, and is still not quite what it could be but all the ingredients are there. It’s easy to see why RCA execs jumped on this band.

Also debuting here is “Carry Me Home,” with Paul on lead. At this point, the music being good is a given, and the difference between “pleasant album track” and “potential single” is solely in how well the lyrics fit the music. Likewise, new song “Don’t Want Anything to Change” has some elements going for it (like more piano than we’ve heard thus far), but it’s definitely not a single, and even ends on kind a confused chord, like a question mark asking “so are we signed or not?”

Thankfully for us all, the answer was “yes.”

Next time: Lovely plus bonus tracks!