Well, since the Gary Moore CD's I was expecting to arrive today, didn't, I have to delay my planned my Moore marathon (hey, that's alliterative!). In the meantime, I'm instead having a Thompson Twins marathon.
I've only just lately got the 2008 double CD reissue of their first two albums, A Product Of...(Participation) and Set. I always knew that their first Stateside album, In The Name Of Love, was actually a compilation of tracks from the above two named albums, and as such, I've been holding out for 35 years (!!!!) until I could hear the albums as they were released in the UK. Well, the wait is finally over!
I should say, I'm a big fan of their third and fourth albums, Quick Step And Side Kick (released Stateside as Sidekicks) and Into The Gap. To me, those are two of the definitive synth pop records. So, it's slightly surprising to hear A Product Of..., which I'm listening to for the very first time right now. This has a very different sound, with live drums, lots of guitar, a little bit of wailing sax, and very little synth.
I'm actually digging this quite a bit. Like I said, it sounds different from what I'm used to from this band, but it's actually very good. Sounds like they spent some time listening Afro-pop music, and maybe it's just my imagination, but it sounds like Tom Bailey's approach to bass lines on this record is very similar to what one hears on the later, more famous records.
Looking forward to listening to Set later.
Edit: Prog rock relevance: Gong bassist Mike Howlett produced two of the songs on A Product Of...
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