Results 1 to 9 of 9

Thread: Featured CD - The Broughtons : Parlez-Vous English

  1. #1
    Moderator Duncan Glenday's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2003
    Location
    Frederick, MD
    Posts
    2,090

    Featured CD - The Broughtons : Parlez-Vous English



    According to the best reviewer in the history of prog
    One of the last things The Edgar Broughton Band did in their heyday wasn't done by The Edgar Broughton Band. Re-formed in 1979 as simply The Broughtons, that incarnation of the band lasted just long enough to make this album.

    Some writers will tell you there was "a change in style for the band, having a more new wave feel to the tracks". Bah - writers - what do they know! Yes, there was a change in style, but new age probably isn't the best description. Imagine that you're at a party with a bunch of very talented musician friends They're horsing around in a cynically playful way, and and you're lucky enough to be in on the session. No, that isn't what happened here, but it helps describe the atmosphere. There's a slightly psychedelic / acid rock feel to this music, and the irreverent attitude vaguely recalls early Lou Reed.

    Parlez-Vous English was originally recorded in 1979 and has a late '60s / early '70s vibe to it - so it probably missed its market by half a decade. And The Edgar Broughton Band was well known for its anti-everything activism and its political positions, which probably added to this record's lack of commercial success. So the fact that Parlez-Vous English isn't on the shelves of every collector of early Brit / Cantebury progressive music is a pity - it's very nicely put together, there's some good musicianship, every song is different from the next, and the whole package is a lot of fun. The humor and the some of the lyrics will be better appreciated in England than anywhere else (how many Americans know what a lorry is, and how many can make out that rather heavy accent in "Little One"?) "April in England" is a folksy piece, made particularly pretty by a childrens' choir. "All I Want To Be" is the simplest and most melodic song on the album, and the chorus could have been a Beatles piece.

    The LP has been wonderfully remastered, its cover art was designed by Hipgnosis, and with Eclectic Disc's high standard of packaging, and with the band again doing occasional tours this is a good time to round out the classic underground rock section of your collection. Does Parlez-Vous English match the quality of the other Broughton albums? Possibly not - but it's a whole heck of a lot more fun.

    Reviewer: Duncan Glenday
    Score:
    http://www.seaoftranquility.org/revi...ontent&id=4014

    Regards,

    Duncan

  2. #2
    Member Burble's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2012
    Location
    Portland, OR
    Posts
    9
    Didn't spend any time doing internet research here, but is Steve Broughton the same from City Boy?

  3. #3
    Quote Originally Posted by Burble View Post
    Didn't spend any time doing internet research here, but is Steve Broughton the same from City Boy?
    Apparently not. But this *IS* the Steve Broughton who played drums on Oldfield's Tubular Bells - and mightily so, if I might add. He was sidekick to his brother in the Edgar Broughton Band (TEBB) for more than a decade since 1968, plus several reunions during the 80s and up until now. TEBB were pretty much quintessential to the Ladbroke Grove scene in the Notting Hill district of London (along with Hawkwind, Syd Barrett, Quintessence, Pink Fairies, Secondhand and a further string of "alternative" progressive artists in the UK) and created a highly idiosyncratic take on post-psych blues rock, folky tunes, satirical farce and stage theatre. Their most famous and influential release was probably the self-titled third album in 1970, which sported a notorious Hipgnosis cover in a pic from a slaughterhouse wherein a human corpse hangs along with the oxes' cadavers. I guess the most talked-about TEBB songs were the following CLASSIC tunes:


    "Improvisation is not an excuse for musical laziness" - Fred Frith
    "[...] things that we never dreamed of doing in Crimson or in any band that I've been in," - Tony Levin speaking of SGM

  4. #4
    Quote Originally Posted by Scrotum Scissor View Post
    Apparently not. But this *IS* the Steve Broughton who played drums on Oldfield's Tubular Bells - and mightily so, if I might add.
    Also in MAGIC MUSCLE...
    Macht das ohr auf!

    COSMIC EYE RECORDS

  5. #5
    Member old school's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2012
    Location
    La Crescenta Ca USA
    Posts
    2
    The live gig at Hyde Park in 1970 is very good. And can be found on " The Harvest Years " a great comp of the band.

  6. #6

  7. #7
    Member
    Join Date
    Nov 2012
    Location
    England
    Posts
    0
    I agree with the critics who say it is new-wave influenced. I don't concur with your assessment I'm afraid, Duncan. I'd say it's not bad in patches, but doesn't have the hardcore heavy hippie vibe of the earlier albums, which was what was great about them.

  8. #8
    Member
    Join Date
    Nov 2012
    Location
    Coventry, UK
    Posts
    247
    If that track's anything to go by, then they are most certainly adopting a 'new wave' sound.

    And also singing in a 'Brummie' accent. Yuck. I couldn't listen to the whole track. This is one I'll be avoiding!

  9. #9
    Quote Originally Posted by Harbottle View Post
    And also singing in a 'Brummie' accent. Yuck. I couldn't listen to the whole track. This is one I'll be avoiding!
    Ha-ha! Truth be said, they were already heavily into the "farce" thing with their previous outing, Bandages in 1976. Whichcoincidentally has a pic of them standing on the pier of my hometown, Bergen on the back cover.
    "Improvisation is not an excuse for musical laziness" - Fred Frith
    "[...] things that we never dreamed of doing in Crimson or in any band that I've been in," - Tony Levin speaking of SGM

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •