Love and Money - Candybar Express (1986)

Love and Money - Candybar Express (New York Mix) (12" Single, 1986)

Some Rare Vinyl Scraps

Thanks to everyone for participating in the 'vinyl vote' this week. I've already digitized the Spoons album Talkback and the Keep It Dark album 1st Down And Ten. Based on the latest poll, I will be doing The Silencers and New Musik next. Great choices too.

I've hit a technical snag in that my new mixer/preamp suddenly decided it only liked one channel. I may be retro but I'm not planning on working in mono anytime soon. So it will be a few days before hopefully I can get a replacement or a repair and be on my way again.

In the meantime, I've put together a short compilation of some of the odd singles and B-Sides I've been working on, most of which are quite rare and probably unknown to you lot. In the tradition of weird foreign compilations I have titled this Super Rare 80's!!! (Volume 1). I hope you enjoy these.

Super Rare 80's!!!

1. Heyday - Come and Go (1986)
2. Ice Cold In Alice - Throw Your Love Away (1989)
3. Seeing Red - Ice (1985)
4. Colour Code - Love Immunity (1984)
5. Fire Next Time - Tears Are Nothing New (1988)
6. Hitlist - High Treason (1986)
7. Lemon Hearts - Honey From The Spoon (1987)
8. This Other Eden - Heaven (1989)
9. Love and Money - She Carved Her Name (1988)
10. Indoor Games - All of Your Lies (1983)

[Update] This link has now been removed. I've now re-posted most of these individually elsewhere on the blog.

Love And Money - Littledeath (1994)

Love And Money - Littledeath (1994)

Littledeath turned out to be an appropriate title for this 1994 release. In 1995, the Scottish band broke up, so Littledeath was the last album that Love & Money recorded before its regrettable demise. And regrettable is definitely the word that describes Love & Money's breakup; this album (which combines pop/rock with soul and folk elements) demonstrates that the band still had a lot to offer. But while Littledeath was not a creative disappointment, it was a commercial disappointment — especially in the United States — and that fact can probably be attributed to the lack of a really strong single. As an album, Littledeath is fine. The writing is consistently strong, and lead singer James Grant is expressive throughout the CD. Littledeath is a great album to sit down and listen to, but that doesn't make it radio-friendly. In 1994, Love & Money desperately needed a powerful, attention-grabbing single that would drive radio programmers wild, and there is nothing on Littledeath that fits that description. While moody, introspective offerings like "Ugly As Sin," "What Time Is the Last Train," and "Pray for Love" work well as album tracks, none of them had serious radio appeal (at least not by U.S. standards). Creatively, Littledeath is successful; commercially, it didn't do Love & Money justice in 1994. That isn't to say that gems like "Ugly As Sin" or "What Time Is the Last Train" should not have been recorded; however, Love & Money could have provided some radio-friendly gems, along with some gems that aren't so radio-friendly. Nonetheless, Littledeath was a rewarding swan song for the Scottish outfit.

1. Littledeath (reprise)
2. The Last Ship on the River
3. I'll Catch You When You Fall
4. Keep Looking For The Light
5. Pray For Love
6. Don't Be Afraid of The Dark
7. Ugly As Sin
8. Love Is Like A Wave
9. Bitched Breach
10. Kiss of Love
11. Sweet Black Luger
12. What Time Is The Last Train
13. Littledeath

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