Month: January 2018

January 25, 2018

Soft Cell – Bedsitter (Europe 12″)

BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1981

“Bedsitter” is a song by British synthpop duo Soft Cell, from the album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret. Released as a single in October 1981, it reached no. 4 in the UK.

A song that explored the underbelly of the London club scene of the time, it has been described by critic Jon Savage as one of the greatest songs of the 1980s.

Early Morning Dance Side:
Bedsitter 7:52
Written-By – D. Ball*, M. Almond*

Late Night Listening Side:
Facility Girls 7:19
Written-By – Ball*, Almond*

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Vertigo ‎– 6400 516, Vertigo ‎– 64 00 516
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM, Maxi-Single
Country: Europe
Released: 1981
Genre: Electronic, Pop
Style: New wave, Synth-pop

CREDITS:
Artwork [Padded Cell] – Huw Feather
Other [Make Up] – Vivien P
Photography By – Peter Ashworth
Producer – Mike Thorne

NOTES:
German release under license from Some Bizarre.

Made in West Germany

Find the 12″ at DISCOGS

VINYL RESTORATION BY:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net

EQUIPMENT USED:
Turntable: Pro-Ject Debut Carbon (DC)
Cartridge: Ortofon 2M
Stylus: Ortofon 2M Bronze
Isolation: Auralex Acoustics ISO-Tone Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro-Ject Acryl-It platter
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
Phono Pre-amp: Bellari VP130 Tube Phono Preamp
Tube: Tung-Sol 12AX7 TubeGold Pins
Soundcard: Novation Audiohub 2×4 Audio Interface
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner

SOFTWARE USED:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 3.0 (Recording)
Down Sampling: iZotope RX Advanced 2, ocenaudio
Artwork Editor: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Click Removal: Manual
FLAC/MP3 Conversion: dBpoweramp
M3U Playlist: Playlist Creator

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
MP3 (320kbps)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

January 24, 2018

Visage – Fade To Grey (Germany 12″)

BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1980

“Fade to Grey” is the second single by the British pioneers of the New Romantic movement Visage, released on Polydor Records in 1980.

The song was the band’s most successful single. It entered the singles charts in late 1980, peaking at no. 8 in the UK Singles Chart and reaching no. 1 in Germany and Switzerland. Steve Strange was on lead vocals; the French lyrics were spoken by Rusty Egan’s Belgian girlfriend Brigitte Arens.

The music video became one of the first video clips that Kevin Godley and Lol Creme directed before they became known for their works with the Police, Duran Duran, and Herbie Hancock.

The song features the same lyrics in two languages, English and French. The English lyrics are sung, whereas the French lyrics are spoken by a female voice. Steve Strange and Midge Ure both claimed to have been the one who came up with the idea for the French vocal in the track. On the finished track, the French vocal was performed by Brigitte Arens, a young student from Luxembourg who was Rusty Egan’s girlfriend at the time. On the album, the song is credited to Billy Currie, Chris Payne, and Midge Ure. In his 2002 autobiography, Strange said it was not fair to credit the song to Ure, Currie, and Payne only since his input was significant and he was “the focal point of the group”.

Currie and Payne worked on the instrumental part of the sound checks on Gary Numan’s 1979 tour. Cedric Sharpley, the drummer of Numan’s backing band, was also heavily involved. In those days it was called “Toot City”. While setting the track listing of the Visage album, Midge Ure suggested the use of the melody and wrote the song’s lyrics.

SIDE A:
Fade To Grey 6:15
Written-By – Currie*, Payne*, Ure*

SIDE B:
The Steps 3:15
Written-By – Currie*, Formula*, McGeoch*, Ure*, Egan*, Strange*

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Polydor ‎– 2141 318
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM, Maxi-Single
Country: Germany
Released: 1980
Genre: Electronic
Style: New Wave, Synth-pop

CREDITS:
Arranged By – Visage
Producer – Midge Ure, Visage

NOTES:
Made in West Germany

Find the 12″ on DISCOGS

VINYL RESTORATION BY:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
MP3 (320kbps)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

January 23, 2018

Duran Duran – Careless Memories (UK 12″)

BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1981

“Careless Memories” is the second single by Duran Duran, released on 20 April 1981.

The band’s debut single “Planet Earth” had been a Top 20 hit, so it was regarded as a major setback when “Careless Memories” stalled at No. 37 in the UK charts, particularly as it was to herald the June release of the debut album Duran Duran.

It has since come to light that the decision to release the single was not the bands but EMI’s. After its failure, executives decided to let Duran Duran choose their own single releases. The band’s first selection was “Girls on Film” and it duly became their first Top 5 hit in the UK.

The song “Khanada” (pronounced “keh-NAY-duh”) was included as the B-side to the single. It is reported to have been written for fashion designer Jane Kahn who owned, with partner Patti Bell, the Hurst Street shop Kahn & Bell where Duran Duran (and numerous other clubgoers of the day) shopped for clothes.

“Careless Memories” is one of three original-era singles that didn’t include a remix of the title track (although the fade-out on the 12″ is slightly longer), the other two being “Save A Prayer” and “A View to a Kill”. To compensate for this, EMI issued a bonus B-side on the 12″, a faithful cover of David Bowie’s “Fame”. However, the “Careless Memories” 12″ version fades out at 3:44 seconds, the 7″ version three seconds earlier at 3:41. The 7″ version is included in the “Singles Box Set 1981-1985” but runs to 3:44 as it includes three seconds of silence after the fade out. The album version has a cold end.

SIDE A:
Careless Memories 3:46
Written-By – Duran Duran

SIDE B:
Fame 3:18
Written-By – Alomar*, Bowie*, Lennon*

Khanada 3:27
Written-By – Duran Duran

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: EMI ‎– 12EMI 5168, EMI ‎– 12 EMI 5168
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM, Single
Country: UK
Released: 1981
Genre: Electronic, Rock, Pop
Style: New Wave, Synth-pop

CREDITS:
Photography By – Peter Ashworth
Producer – Colin Thurston

NOTES:
B2 styled with diacritics as “KHĀ̑NĀDĂ” on back sleeve and labels.

Assorted Images ®

Find the 12″ on DISCOGS

VINYL RESTORATION BY:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
MP3 (320kbps)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi

January 22, 2018

Spandau Ballet – To Cut A Long Story Short (UK 12″)

BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1980

“To Cut a Long Story Short” is a 1980 song by Spandau Ballet. It was their debut single and reached number 5 on the UK Singles Chart. It appeared on the album Journeys to Glory.

The song has been speculated to be about a veteran, perhaps of Vietnam, who is drafted and suffers from PTSD; the lyrics are told from the man’s point of view as a boy being drafted, how he gets no answers as to why he must join the war. “To Cut a Long Story Short” was Vince Clarke’s inspiration to write Depeche Mode’s “Just Can’t Get Enough”, to which the keyboard style bears a certain similarity.

The signature riff from “To Cut a Long Story Short” is used as a sample looping throughout the Freestylers track “In Love with You” on their album Adventures in Freestyle.

SIDE A:
To Cut A Long Story Short (Mix 1) 6:31

SIDE B:
To Cut A Long Story Short (Version) (Mix 2) 3:57

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Reformation ‎– CHS 12 2473, Chrysalis ‎– CHS 12 2473
Format: Vinyl, 12″, Single, 45 RPM
Country: UK
Released: 03 Nov 1980
Genre: Electronic
Style: New Wave, Synth-pop

CREDITS:
Graphics – Graham Smith (5)
Producer – Richard James Burgess
Written-By – G. Kemp*

NOTES:
Packaged in a special embossed die-cut sleeve.

Find the 12″ on DISCOGS

VINYL RESTORATION BY:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net

RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
MP3 (320kbps)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi