Thursday, January 25, 2007

From Langley Park to Tooting

So there I am climbing in to my brother's car and in the passenger side pocket there's the clearly identifiable font that appears on the back of Prefab Sprout's, From Langley Park to Memphis. I reach over excitedly open the CD case and my hopes are dashed as I'm confronted by an empty jewel case. So I switch on the engine and joy of jos it's in the CD player.

I'd completely forgotten about this album, but it really is pure pop perfection. Now consider that when it was released in 1988, The Pixies were just about to release Surfer Rosa which is by the way my favourite album of all time. I wasn't in the slightest bit embarassed about loving this record.

Rather oddly though, for some reason as I was driving along listening to cars and girls it brough back huge memories of my 3rd Year ski trip which isn't possible as that was in March 1987 a year before this was released and anyway 'Money for Nothing' by Dire Straits (I hated it even then) was the sound of the trip, but nevertheless my memory log is malfunctioning and I can now remember things about that trip away that I'd completely forgotten about.

To end:

Brucies thoughts - pretty streamers
- guess this world needs its dreamers may they never wake up.

It's a lovely lyric I always thought.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hear hear. One of the best pop albums ever.

Name Witheld said...

Langley Park is a place with which I am well acquainted : I was in said village on the only occasion that I've ever heard a councillor say "F**k".

It's a former pit village, BTW.

Paul said...

Hot dog jumping frog.

I played this album to death when it came out - that and Deacon Blue's second album. Incidentally Paddy McAloon's brother is a dead ringer for my cousin Simon.

It's really weird but last night while I was waiting for some music to download I picked up a copy of a book called Classic Albums - it was the book of the Radio One series about twenty years ago. Anyway Mark Knopfler is interviewed about Brothers in Arms and he says how much he dislikes 'Money For Nothing' because it never sounded on record the way it sounded in his head and he was always embarassed by the "woo-hoos" at the start which seemed good in the studio but sound dreadful over the radio.

Kayfer Kettle said...

I am so chuffed that someone other than me has liked something by Prefab Sprout.

One of my al time favourite albums, and certainly their best work IMO, is 'Steve McQueen'.

It is a beautiful creation, full of passion and promise.

I suggest you all give it a go, and allow yourselves to be immersed in it's loveliness.

K xxx