XTC - Apple Venus Volume 1

Year of Release: 1999
Label: Idea Records
Catalog Number: n/a
Format: CD
Total Time: 50:02:00

This review is excerpted from Clayton's May 4, 2003 The Prog Life column found here -ed.

Any lover of sophisticated pop music shouldn't overlook XTC, whose Beatle-ish compositions overflow with inventive instrumentation, clever lyrics, spot-on playing, and just plain ol' intelligence. XTC has been putting out their original brand of music for a long, long time, with each album slicker than the previous one. In fact, since the early 70s, XTC has produced over a dozen albums of smart and quirky music. Apple Venus Volume 1 is a great place to start, not just because it's one of their most recent offerings, but also because it's darn great, combining inspired orchestrations and conventional rock instrumentation with masterful songwriting. (It also has one of the most elegant album covers I've ever seen.) By the way, former XTC member, Barry Andrews, once played in the League of Gentlemen with Robert Fripp.

Idea Records is the band's label, but this was also, apparently, releaed by Cooking Vinyl (COOKCD 172)

Tracklisting:
River Of Orchids (5:53) / I'd Like That (3:50) / Easter Theatre (4:37) / Knights In Shining Karma (3:39) / Frivolous Tonight (3:10) / Greenman (6:17) / Your Dictionary (3:14) / Fruit Nut (3:01) / I Can't Own Her (5:26) / Harvest Festival (4:15) / The Last Balloon (6:40)

Musicians:
Colin Moulding - vocals, bass
Andy Partridge - vocals, guitar
Dave Gregory - piano, keyboards, guitars, backing vocals
Prairie Prince - drums, percussion
Guy Barker - trumpet, flugelhorn (11)
Steve Sidwell - trumpet solo (3)
Nick Davis - extra keyboards
Haydn Bendall - extra keyboards
Mike Batt - orchestral arrangements (6, 9)

Discography:
White Music (1978)
Go 2 (1978)
Drums And Wires (1979)
Black Sea (1980)
English Settlement (1982)
Mummer (1983)
The Big Express (1984)
Skylarking (1986)
Oranges And Lemons (1989)
Nonsuch (1992)
Apple Venus Volume 1 (1999)
Wasp Star (Apple Venus Volume 2 (2000)

Genre: Rock

Origin UK

Added: May 4th 2003
Reviewer: Clayton Walnum

Artist website: www.xtcidearecords.co.uk
Hits: 2892
Language: english