I Start Counting – Letters To A Friend (UK 12″)

BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1984

-DjPaulT Recommended 12″

“Letters To A Friend” is the debut single by electronic music duo from North London. The band consisted of David Baker and Simon Leonard.

In 1984, the duo was signed by Mute and released its debut single, the quirky “Letters to a Friend.” “Letters to a Friend” easily distinguished itself from the glut of synthesizer-laden records from the mid-’80s with Baker’s distinctly British talk-sing style and the psychedelic feel of the keyboards. The single was produced by British producer and founder of Mute Records Daniel Miller.

I Start Counting gained a significant cult following in the U.K. and the U.S., especially among American suburban teens who were discovering Depeche Mode and Kraftwerk in dance clubs.

In 1985 the duo released their debut album My Translucent Hands.

SIDE A:
Letters To A Friend (Sunrise Mix) 8:04
Engineer – Trigger (6)

SIDE B:
Adman’s Dream (Admix) 4:58
Engineer – John Fryer

VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint

RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Mute ‎– 12 MUTE 034
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM
Country: UK
Released: 1984
Genre: Electronic
Style: Synth-pop

CREDITS:
Artwork [Still From “Topology And Mechanics: Flows On The Torus.”] – David Laidlaw, Hüseyin Koçak, Prof. Tom Banchoff*
Mastered By – timtom* (tracks: A), TY* (tracks: B)
Photography By – David Margolis
Producer – Daniel Miller

NOTES:
Dying Art
Track A engineered at Aosis Studios
Track B engineered at Blackwing Studios

Still from “Topology and Mechanics: Flows on the Torus”. Courtesy Prof. Tom Banchoff, David Laidlaw and Hüseyin Koçak.

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 
Phono Pre-amp:
Bellari VP130 Tube Phono Preamp
Tube:
Tung-Sol 12AX7ECC803-S Gold Electron Tube
Soundcard:
ESI Juli@
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

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rewinn arpora
rewinn arpora
January 9, 2021 8:34 pm

please re-upload thanx!

Adman
Adman
August 30, 2017 6:05 pm

Best. Post. Ever. Bought it when it originally came out, and was supremely irked when I downloaded it from the “official” compilation on Amazon a few years back, and they turned out to be crappy vinyl rips. Without even hearing it yet, I know your rip will be 1000% better.

Now howz about a Funky Worm repost? 😉

memoryboy
memoryboy
August 30, 2017 2:18 am

I love this! Thank you Paul. Listening now

RollingStoner
RollingStoner
August 29, 2017 8:02 pm

Is there a link that brings up all of your “DJ Paul recommended” postings?

Gilbert Gonzales
Gilbert Gonzales
August 29, 2017 4:14 pm

I love this song. Just so darm hard to find their debut album.

Will McCammon
August 29, 2017 2:38 pm

Another great pick. Love this band so much now and really wish I had keyed-in with them more, back in the day.

memoryboy
memoryboy
August 29, 2017 1:50 pm

I can’t wait to hear this it sounds to me like it’s going to be something that I will absolutely love

Junior
Junior
August 29, 2017 1:07 pm

This is a welcome surprise as I was listening to the shorter version on the 7″ vinyl yesterday.

Thanks for the 12″ mix Paul 🙂

Jeff
Jeff
August 29, 2017 12:24 pm

With all the appreciation and praise I have for you Paul and your Burning The Ground, I always….STILL….am besides myself with great awe and wonderment at all you’ve posted and continue to post. What you do brightens up my days, weeks, months and years with love and light. I could never have dreamed that I would have discovered something this great, and IMPORTANT, in all my discoveries on the world wide web! I am swooning ever so much because of your “DjPaulT recommended 12” postings. These are very special presentations because, obviously, they mean so much to you. I know… Read more »

Jeff
Jeff
Reply to  DjPaulT
August 30, 2017 5:05 am

Like you said Paul, this so reminded me of a fusion between Depeche Mode and Kraftwerk. Love it! Love it! LOVE IT!!! Thank you for introducing me to such a delightful record!! Just awesome!

Jeff

OMAR
OMAR
August 29, 2017 11:53 am

Thanks Paul a million. I’ve heard this song before on youtube. Thanks for the 12″ version.