Del Amitri
Band members Related acts
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line up 1 (1982-88) - Justin Currie -- vocals, bass, guitar - Iain Harvie -- lead guitar - Brian Tolland -- guitar - Paul Tyagi -- drums, percussion
line up 2 (1988-89) - Justin Currie -- vocals, bass, guitar - Iain Harvie -- lead guitar NEW - Mick Slaven -- guitar (replaced Brian Tolland - Paul Tyagi -- drums, percussion
line up 3 (1989) - Justin Currie -- vocals, bass, guitar - Iain Harvie -- lead guitar NEW - Brian McDermott -- drums, percussion (replaced Paul Tyagi) - Mick Slaven -- guitar (replaced Brian Tolland
line up 4 (1989-94) NEW - Andy Alston -- keyboards NEW - David Cummings -- guitar (replaced Mick Slaven) - Justin Currie -- vocals, bass, guitar - Iain Harvie -- lead guitar - Brian McDermott -- drums, percussion (replaced Paul Tyagi)
line up 5 (1994) - Andy Alston -- keyboards - David Cummings -- guitar (replaced Mick Slaven) - Justin Currie -- vocals, bass, guitar - Iain Harvie -- lead guitar NEW - Chris Sharrock -- drums, percussion (replaced Brian McDermott)
line up 6 (1994-95) - Andy Alston -- keyboards - David Cummings -- guitar (replaced Mick Slaven) - Justin Currie -- vocals, bass, guitar - Iain Harvie -- lead guitar NEW - Ashley Soan -- drums, percussion (replaced Chris Sharrock)
line up 7 (1995-97) - Andy Alston -- keyboards - Justin Currie -- vocals, bass, guitar - Iain Harvie -- lead guitar NEW - Jon McLoughlin -- guitar (replaced David Cummings) - Ashley Soan -- drums, percussion (replaced Chris Sharrock)
line up 8 (1997-) - Andy Alston -- keyboards, percussion - Justin Currie -- vocals, bass, guitar, keyboards - Kris Dollimore -- guitar - Iain Harvie -- lead guitar NEW - Mark Price -- drums, percussion (replaced Ashley Soan)
line up 8 (1997-) - Andy Alston -- keyboards, percussion - Justin Currie -- vocals, bass, guitar, keyboards - Kris Dollimore -- guitar - Iain Harvie -- lead guitar NEW - Ash Soan -- drums, percussion (replaced Mark Price)
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- All About Eve (Mark Price) - Bonsai Forest (David Cummings) - Justin Currie (solo efforts) - The Damned (Kris Dollimore) - The Godfathers (Kris Dollimore) - The Higsons (David Cummings) - Mice (Mark Price) - Seeing Stars (Mark Price) - The Uncle Devil Show (Justin Currie)
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Genre: rock Rating: 3 stars *** Title: Del Amitri Company: Chrysalis Catalog: BFV-41499 Country/State: Glasgow, Scotland Grade (cover/record): VG+/VG+ Comments: -- Available: 1 Catalog ID: -- Price: $35.00
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Most
of us have a band, or a particular album that instantly throws us back to a
certain time in our lives. The memories may be joyful, or painful ... but
there's that connection to our past. In my case, Del Amitri is one of those
bands, though the charms associated with their 1984 debut initially escaped
me. (I'll spare everyone the details of my particular memories ...)
"Del
Amitri" track listing:
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Genre: rock Rating: 4 stars **** Title: Fatal Mistakes Company: Cooking Vinyl Catalog: 7
11297 52801 5 Country/State: Glasgow, Scotland Grade (cover/record): NM/NM Comments: sealed Available: 2 Catalog ID: -- Price: $50.00
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Well, it only took eighteen years for Del Amitri to record a follow-on to 2002's "Can You Do Me Good?" In the big scheme of things that's not all that long of a delay, but in the music business that's a lifetime and raises the question of whether a band can reclaim an audience after two decades; let alone make a comeback in this age without at least acknowledging popular (if not always good), tastes. Can a band that plays their own instruments, avoids rap, vocoders, samples, and at least one "guest' collaboration actually record a decent album, let alone cultivate an audience? Judging by 2021's "Fatal Mistakes" the answer is yes, though not many folks may be listening.
Having lost their recoding contract and simply tired of pursuing fame, front man Justin Currie folded Del Amitri in 2002. Over the next two decades Currie pursued a low-keyed solo career seeing the release of four solo albums and a collection credited to The Uncle Devil Show. He continued to write and perform, as well as working part time as a Glasgow bartender. There were occasional Del Amitri reunion tours, but in a good piece of timing Currie and original guitarist Iain Harvie decided to reform the band and record new material in the Spring of 2019. Rounding out the reactivated line-up were keyboardist Andy Alston, guitarist Kris Dollimore, and drummer Ash Soan. Three weeks of recording sessions were largely completed prior to COVID-19 lockdowns. It then took almost two years to finish mixing (done remotely) and to actually release the collection. So the good news is working with producer Dan Austin, Del Amitri sounded like they had some scores to settle and were in fine fighting form. Currie's instantly recognizable voice remained ageless, his performances on tracks like the opener 'You Can't Go Back' and 'Musicians and Beer' easily mistaken for material that could have been recorded as 'Roll with It' era Del Amitri. Similarly, the rest of the band sounded tight, enthusiastic, and so old-school as to be cool again. As chief songwriter Currie aptly displayed his gift for dark lyrics and bouncy melodies. While there were plenty of radio-friendly jangle-rockers including the single 'You Can't Go Back', they were rounded out by patented emotionally draining power ballads like 'All Hail Blind Love' and 'Second Staircase.' Elsewhere the acoustic ballad 'Lonely' introduced an CSN&Y vibe to the proceedings. Currie's material had always included a dark streak, but this time around he focused his anger and frustration on bigger targets. The almost hymnal 'Close Your Eyes and Think of England' should have sent politicians running for their safety rooms, while the scathing 'Nation of Caners' seemingly took a bitter look at commercialism and consumption.
Biggest compliment I can give the album is to tell you it's been on my turntable for the last two weeks.
Hey, anyone know anything about the odd album cover? Must be a story behind this odd collection of items ...
"Fatal
Mistakes" track listing: The album started out with a classic slice of Del Amitri jangle-rock, made even better by the fact Currie and company were clearly poking fun at themselves and their long delayed comeback. Currie sounded in fine form and the rest of the band were equally impressive. Instant flashback to prime-era Del Amitri (unless you weren't buying music in the mid-'80s). The accompanying video was simply hysterical: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lCGigqiAEXU 2.) All Hail Blind Love (Justin Currie · Iain Harvie) - 4:04 rating: **** stars Initially the bitter ballad 'All Hail Blind Love' struck me as an also-ran effort. And then one day while hiking the refrain popped into my head and I simply couldn't shake it. The tune was a perfect example of Currie's seemingly effortless ability to toss off criminally catchy melodies, coupled with unexpectedly dark lyrics. Recorded during the COVID-19 lockdown, YouTube has a remote, live version of the tune: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p6WbJVf06ks&list=RDp6WbJVf06ks&start_radio=1 3.) Musicians and Beer (Justin Currie) - 2:47 rating: *** stars 'Musicians and Beer' was a great title for a rock and roll song, but the vicious lyrics and a couple of choice words guaranteed radio wouldn't touch it with a ten foot pole. 4.) Close Your Eyes and Think of England (Justin Currie) - 3:31 rating: **** stars I barely understand American politics and cultural affairs, so trying to figure out the meaning of 'Close Your Eyes and Think of England' wasn't a task likely to bring much success. If I had to guess, I'd say the song was a brutal takedown of British politics and perhaps a commentary on Brexit, but who knows? Didn't Scotland want to remain in the EU? And perhaps I wasn't too far off the mark. Poking around the Del Amitri website I found the song described as "the state-of-the-nation lament" and "our European valediction, a ballad of pure bile and remorse, sweetened by a sledgehammer of sarcasm." Definitely a pretty tune with sad, haunting and disturbing lyrics. I can easily picture pubs full of drunk folks singing along with the tune, perhaps not realizing Currie really didn't intend it to be a patriotic anthem. Hey, does that make it a Scottish version of Bruce Springsteen's 'Born In the USA'? Here's a link to the promotional video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRhTFlfwbgM 5.) Losing the Will To Die (Justin Currie) - 2:35 rating: **** stars Even when just going through the motions Currie and company manage to turn in melodies that most band's can only fantasize over. Hearing 'Losing the Will To Die' it's easy to forget Currie's voice was incredibly versatile. A rollicking blue-eyed soul tune that was highly commercial. Speculation on my part, but I remember reading an interview with Currie where he mentioned he never expected to make it to 50 and found himself unexpectedly jubilant when he made that milestone and so many of his friends and acquaintances had not. 6.) Otherwise (Justin Currie) - 3:02 rating: **** stars Pretty ballad showcasing some glistening harmony vocals. Currie does heartbreak better than virtually anyone in music. 7.) It's Feeling (Justin Currie) - 2:54 rating: **** stars Another slice of classic Del Amitri, 'It's Feeling' had it all - great melody, wonderful Currie vocals, shimmering harmonies. I was humming the refrain for weeks. Now if someone could explain the thematically dark promotional video to me ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fDQzHNOV4Ok
(side 2) 1.) I'm So Scared of Dying (Justin Currie) - 4:27 rating: **** stars A dark ballad with some wonderful harmonies, drawing a link to COVID-19 might be too obvious, but in an interview I read Currie discussed succumbing to COVID fear that saw him spending much of the pandemic isolating in his home. He also lost his father to the disease. 2.) Mockingbird, Copy Me Now (Justin Currie - Kris Dollimore) - 2:24 rating: *** stars I'm not a big folk fan so 'Mockingbird, Copy Me Now' left me cold. I'll admit I didn't have a clue what the song was about, but in a lengthy interview with Tom Lanham in Illinois Entertainer, Currie described the song as "being about a brow-beaten husband whose spouse constantly mimics him to take the piss out of him, so he eventually decides that he's gonna kill himself because he thinks she'll copy him doing that, and then he'll get his revenge on her." 3.) Missing Person (Justin Currie) - 3:20 rating: *** stars Country and folk influences in songs don't usually don't do much for me, but on the bouncy 'Missing Person' they were acceptable. Always laugh at the lyric "Alone with my one obsession, me, me, me ...." I can see myself drinking a couple of beers to this one. 4.) Second Staircase (Justin Currie) - 3:01 rating: *** stars Built on a song title he'd written years earlier, 'Second Staircase' has some interesting lyrics and was one of the prettiest ballads the band has ever recorded. Once again Currie took heartbreak to a new level. 5.) Lonely (Justin Currie - Iain Harvie) - 3:28 rating: **** stars Unlike anything they'd previously recorded, the stark, acoustic ballad 'Lonely' spotlighted the band's wonderful harmonies accompanied by some tasty acoustic guitar. There was kind of a CSN&Y vibe going on here. You can just imagine hardcore romantics swooning to this one. 6.) Nation of Caners (Justin Currie) - 7:39 rating: **** stars The lyrics for 'Nation of Caners' constituted another diatribe largely lost on my American ears. Built on a rollicking melody that built in intensity, the tune featured a tidal wave of lyrics - You had to wonder how Currie would ever remember the lyrics in a live performance. Perhaps a jab at modern commercialism and our collective insatiable demand for "stuff" Currie seemed to be taking aim at a wide spectrum of humanity, including social media, science deniers, climate change deniers, etc. The track just built up layers of scorn, criticism, and anger ... Great way to end the album.
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