When: Released October 27, 1986
Why? I know absolutely nothing about this band, yet they are occasionally mentioned as inspirations in artist interviews. This album is included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. My only connection is having heard the song “Dear God,” which was added to this album after its initial release, in a cover version by Sarah McLachlan.
What? Fifteen songs, 49 minutes. Apple Music categorizes this album as “alternative,” but it also has appeared in lists of 80s pop that I’ve seen.
First Impressions: What a delightful surprise. Harmonies, melodies, and instrumentation echo some of my favorite songs by such artists as Godley & Creme, Klaatu, The Beach Boys, The Beatles, Bowie, and Todd Rundgren, who produced this album with XTC. (I was convinced “That’s Really Super, Supergirl” was actually written by Rundgren, it sounded so much like him. I was wrong.) And the songs themselves are, for the most part, captivating.
XTC, at this point, were vocalist/guitarist/primary songwriter Andy Partridge, vocalist/bassist/secondary songwriter Colin Moulding, and vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Dave Gregory. Drums were recorded separately, played by studio drummer Prairie Prince. “Dear God” features a guest female vocal from 8-year-old Jasmine Veillette. (Oddly, the accompanying music video features a boy lip-syncing Veillette’s part.)
The lyrics are poetic, ranging from poignant to playful: “Trees are dancing, drunk with nectar / Grass is waving underwater / Please don’t pull me out / This is how I would want to go,” the narrator sings in opener “Summer’s Cauldron.” The playful side comes in on “Grass”: “Shocked me too, the things we used to do on grass…. / Over and over we flatten the clover.”
Musically, the arrangements are consistently fresh, often defying my expectations for typical pop songs. For example, there are frequent moments in “Summer’s Cauldron” where the accompaniment teases, seemingly leading up to big moments that never come. “1000 Umbrellas” is a beautiful breakup song propelled entirely by a powerful string arrangement that hints at “Eleanor Rigby,” the fadeout of “Glass Onion,” even Bernard Herrmann’s “Psycho” strings. “Earn Enough for Us” is upbeat pop that belies the desperation running through the lyrics. “The Man Who Sailed Around His Soul” gives us smoky, early-1960s beatnik jazz.
With one exception, I found myself responding more positively to the songs written by Andy Partridge than those by Colin Moulding. Highlights include “Summer’s Cauldron,” “Grass” (by Moulding), “That’s Really Super, Supergirl,” “1000 Umbrellas,” “Season Cycle,” “Earn Enough for Us,” “Big Day,” “Another Satellite,” and “Dear God,” which ended up being tacked on to subsequent releases once it had become an underground hit on American college radio. (It had been deemed too controversial—especially for conservative US audiences—for the original album.) While closing with “Dear God” does not necessarily make sense within the carefully plotted sequencing of this album’s tracks, I think it provides a stronger end to the album than the now-penultimate “Sacrificial Bonfire,” which was my least favorite song.
So? By all accounts, this was a difficult record to make, due to in-studio conflicts between Andy Partridge and Todd Rundgren, as well as between bandmates Partridge and Moulding. There were disagreements about the song selections, arrangements, even how to approach the recording process. Yet the results speak for themselves. Despite the behind-the-scenes frustrations—or, perhaps, because of them—this is a highly enjoyable album packed with musical creativity. This one will be listened to again and again.