BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1983
Request
NEW 2020 Transfer!
Meticulously Remastered!
Originally posted September 4, 2014
“In a Big Country” is a song by Scottish rock band Big Country from their 1983 debut studio album The Crossing released in early summer 1983. The single reached its highest overall national position in Canada, hitting No. 3 on the RPM Top Singles Chart on November 26, 1983. The song reached No. 17 on the UK Singles Chart in June 1983. The song was released in the US in the fall of 1983 and peaked at No. 3 on the Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks and No. 17 on the Billboard Hot 100 in December of that year.
The band is often described as a one-hit-wonder for the popularity of “In a Big Country” in the United States, though they continued to have success in Europe and were a prolific touring band famous for their live shows more than their studio albums. Frontman Stuart Adamson once remarked about the song in an interview, part of which was shown on a VH1 special celebrating “one-hit-wonders” that, “If we’re known for nothing more than just that one song, I’d be pretty happy with that.”
SIDE A:
In A Big Country (Pure Mix) 6:19
Producer – Steve Lillywhite
SIDE B:
All Of Us 4:09
Producer – Big Country, Steve Lillywhite, Will Gosling
In A Big Country 3:56
Producer – Steve Lillywhite
VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint
U.S. CHART HISTORY:
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | In A Big Country | U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | #17 |
| 1983 | In A Big Country | U.S. Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks | #3 |
RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Phonogram – COUNT 312, Phonogram – 812 467-1
Format: Vinyl, 12″, Single, 45 RPM
Country: UK
Released: 1983
Genre: Rock
Style: New Wave, Pop Rock
CREDITS:
Performer [Big Country Are] – Bruce Watson, Mark Brzezicki, Stuart Adamson, Tony Butler
Photography By – Paul Cox (5)
Sleeve – JB*
Written-By – Big Country
NOTES:
From the LP “THE CROSSING”
Find the 12″ on 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
DAC/Phono Pre-amp: Alpha Design Labs GT40a USB DAC
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/Dither: iZotope RX Advanced 2
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)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi
Username: btg
Password: burningtheground
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I love this track. I never heard this mix before. Thanks for sharing it Paul.
Thank you PAUL! Thank you for fulfilling my request!
thanks one of my fav 80’s songs !
“I never expected to grow flowers in the dancerd.” What’s a dancerd? This must be a signature 12 inch of the 80’s, if only because it’s in my collection. But I wonder if the title of “Pure Mix” is purely out of sarcasm. By it’s nature it is anything but “pure” and would be an offense to most “country” music. There’s loops, touches of reverb, filtered delays, delays with reverse gravity and that huge vocal echo trailing the song out like you’d never believe! All done to a Scottish rock song. It certainly was a time to remember. Perhaps by… Read more »
It’s desert.
later
-1
Yes I know. I had my style of mondegreens going on where I misheard lyrics as well as hearing words the singers made up. After all, song grammar is rarely perfect, so the song spelling could be incorrect as well. 😉
Big Country was very good about printing lyrics to all their songs. Especially since it was hard to understand their accents.
I used to read the lyrics everytime I played the album.
Wore it out, until CDs came out.
later
-1
This is the only Big Country record I have. Cover looks exactly alike. I’ve looked up the lyrics recently and apparently he wasn’t saying “Ha!” and “Shout!” Not exactly. But not all lyric sites are equal:-)
Thanks for this upgrade, Paul.
And only a few months after this record, the same team will be hired by Frida (from ABBA) to make her album “Shine”. Mark Brzezecki on drums, Steve Lillywhite as producer.
I own this one. It’s probably my second favorite BC 12″ after the massive version of Fields Of Fire.
Thank you, I haven’t gotten my vinyl out in ages.
Good to have you back, hope you continue to do better.I own this one. It’s probably my second favorite BC 12″ after the massive version of Fields Of Fire.
Thank you, I haven’t gotten my vinyl out in ages.
Good to have you back, hope you continue to do better.
Thanks for sharing this song from an incredible band. Big Country were way more than a one hit wonder in the UK. Probably not as appreciated as they should have been at the time, they are now seen with real postivity. Stuart took his own life some 20 years’ ago and is dearly missed to this day by his fans. Big Country have kept going since his untimely death – and at one stage were fronted by Mike Peters of The Alarm. Today the only original band members who still tour in the band are guitarist Bruce Watson and legendary… Read more »
thanks for another great post! loved this song
You’re welcome, Feanor 🙂
“In a big country dreams stay with you.”
This post is a dream. I LOVE Big Country, have a couple of cds and a dozen 12-inches.
Stuart Adamson had such a great voice which was the icing on the cake of fantastic rock music with excellent extended remixes. And then again, my top favourite is an album-only song: “The Storm” off the “The Crossing” album which also includes “In a big country”. Great post Paul.
Thank you Song And Dance 🙂
Steel Town and The Seer are fab albums too – and their later albums before Stuart’s sad passing are incredible. Often mocked for being a “one sound band” they were so much more.
Dreams Stay With You, Pal
And have you heard the song “The Crossing” itself? Not on the original album but included in the Remaster in the early 2000s, you listen to it and wonder why on earth it wasn’t included in the original.
Thanks Paul! I’ve never heard this version before, so really looking forward to it!
You’re welcome Skiler 🙂
Thanks Paul for bringing this back. Like you and Negative1, I love these rock remixes. Dance music back then was wonderful and experimental with artists from many genres offering cool mixes of their songs. I love these flashbacks because they take me away from today and the sadness I feel more and more about living in this crazy world. Thank you for giving us an “escape” and a “sanctuary” for our “sufferings.” I’ll never be able to repay you for all you’ve done. Just know that I am eternally grateful to you, now and always.
Love,
Jeff
Piggybacking on your Rock genre mixes, I recall lots of great Rock remixes back in the 80s from bands like Def Leppard, Aerosmith, Genesis, Billy Idol, Bruce Springsteen, Cure, Hall & Oates, Fleetwood Mac, Huey Lewis, INXS, Peter Gabriel, Simple Minds, and Steve Winwood to name a few!
You are very welcome Jeff hope you feel better after giving this a listen 🙂
Some of their slightly later Remixes were pretty cool too…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x8jAghv9PSo
Hi Paul, You have picked a very good choice for this. Thanks for doing a remaster of it. I love Big Country, its one of my favorite Rock bands, along with early U2, and Simple Minds. Back in the 80’s when bands were more expiremental, even Rock Bands used to make remixes of their songs, which would be surprising now. Because it’s not really a dance song. To me, the 12 inch versions were actually the full version of the song, and the shorter edits were on the album. So I liked hearing the guitar, and of course, they were… Read more »
I agree with you negative1 love the early 80s remixes because they were really the full track like you said. Duran Duran’s early mixes were like that and I always loved hearing the extra added instrumentation. 🙂
Longtime fan of your blog, Paul – great to see you back. And I agree with you both – incredible mix.
And another recommendation for the song “The Crossing”. It’s not quite as big and heroic as Fields of Fire, but it’s beautiful and epic in its own right.