Love and Rockets (album)

Love and Rockets is the fourth studio album by English alternative rock band Love and Rockets; released in 1989 by Beggar's Banquet Records on Cassette, Vinyl, and Compact Disc.

For the Murs album, see Love & Rockets Vol. 1: The Transformation.
Love and Rockets
Studio album by
Love and Rockets
ReleasedMay 1989
Recordedalbum recorded
1988
at Blackwing Studios,
South-East London, England
except "The Purest Blue"
at Far Heath Studios,
Northampton, England
radio sessions recorded
05th July 1989
on "SNAP with Deirdre O'Donoghue",
on KCRW, Santa Monica College
for NPR
GenreAlternative rock
Length41:44 (original)
127:20 (reissue)
LabelBeggars Banquet, Sonolux,
Vertigo, Big Time, RCA
ProducerJohn Fryer, Love and Rockets
Love and Rockets chronology
Earth, Sun, Moon
(1987)		 Love and Rockets
(1989)		 Hot Trip to Heaven
(1994)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]

Background

Love and Rockets dismissed Earth, Sun, Moon's folk sound in favour of a stronger rock sound. Hints of the band's former psychedelic and gothic rock sound remains. Chief songwriters Daniel Ash and David J had begun concentrating strictly on their own material (rather than writing together) on Earth, Sun, Moon.

The album featured Love and Rockets' biggest hit, the Ash-penned "So Alive". The song was a surprising number 3 hit on the Billboard Hot 100, and stayed at number 1 for five weeks on the US Modern Rock chart. Because of the popularity of the single in the US, Love and Rockets became the band's best-selling album in America. It did very well in Canada as well, being certified platinum there in 1989, largely on the strength of "So Alive" which was a #1 single.

After the release of the album, the band embarked on a long worldwide tour. Afterward, instead of recording a new album and a follow-up single to "So Alive", J and Ash both focused on their solo careers, continuing in the directions represented on this album. They each released two solo albums after the break (with drummer Kevin Haskins working primarily with Ash) before returning as a band to record Hot Trip to Heaven in 1994.

In 2002, the album was remastered and expanded into a double album. The bonus tracks featured a single remix, three b-sides, all five songs from the aborted Swing! EP, and a radio session. The Swing! project was to be an outlet for some of the band's eccentric output, but the material was never released, except for "Bad Monkey", which ended up on the Glittering Darkness EP in 1996.

"The Purest Blue" is a radical reworking of "Waiting for the Flood" from Earth, Sun, Moon, and "**** (Jungle Law)" was later reworked as "Bad Monkey", recorded as part of the Swing! project.

Track listing

Original release
  • All lyrics as noted. All music by Love and Rockets.
  1. "**** (Jungle Law)" – 4:32 (David J.)
  2. "No Big Deal" – 4:56 (Daniel Ash)
  3. "The Purest Blue" – 3:43 (J.)
  4. "Motorcycle" – 3:31 (Ash)
  5. "I Feel Speed" – 3:24 (Ash)
  6. "Bound for Hell" – 6:01 (J./Traditional)
  7. "The Teardrop Collector" – 4:09 (Ash)
  8. "So Alive" – 4:16 (Ash)
  9. "Rock and Roll Babylon" – 3:22 (J.)
  10. "No Words No More" – 3:50 (Ash, Gary Ash)

2002 reissue
Disc one
  1. "**** (Jungle Law)" – 4:32
  2. "No Big Deal" – 4:56
  3. "The Purest Blue" – 3:43
  4. "Motorcycle" – 3:31
  5. "I Feel Speed" – 3:24
  6. "Bound for Hell" – 6:01
  7. "The Teardrop Collector" – 4:09
  8. "So Alive" – 4:16
  9. "Rock and Roll Babylon" – 3:22
  10. "No Words No More" – 3:50
  11. "Bike" – 3:54
  12. "Bikedance" – 7:07
  13. "No Big Deal (Remix)" – 7:11
  14. "Dreamtime" – 8:41
Disc two
  1. "Wake Up!" – 3:58
  2. "Cuckoo Land" – 2:48
  3. "The Early Worm" – 2:13
  4. "1000 Watts of Your Love" – 2:48
  5. "Bad Monkey" – 4:20
  6. "Intro" (Radio Session) – 0:58
  7. "1000 Watts of Your Love" (Radio Session) – 3:08
  8. "No Words No More" (Radio Session) – 4:11
  9. "Interview" (Radio Session) – 34:19

Personnel

Love and Rockets
  • David J. - Vocals, Guitars, Bass, Bass Feedback, Harmonica, Keyboards
  • Daniel Ash - Vocals, Guitars, Bass, Fuzz Bass, Saxophone, Keyboards
  • Kevin Haskins - Drums, Samples, Guitar Feedback, Percussion, Keyboards, Vibraphone

Additional Personnel
  • "Mr. Drum Machine" - Drum Programming on "The Purest Blue"
  • John Fryer - String Synthesizer on "The Teardrop Collector"
  • Lorna Wright, Sylvia Mason-James, Ruby James - Backing vocals on "So Alive"
  • Bill Thorp - String Arrangement on "Rock & Roll Babylon" (Bill Thorp & Brian Brooks: Violin; Josie Abbott: Cello; Penny Thompson: Viola)

Production
  • Produced by John Fryer & Love and Rockets
  • Recorded & Mixed by John Fryer at Blackwing Studios (London) except "The Purest Blue"; recorded & mixed by "Whispering Angus" at Far Heath Studios (Northamptonshire)
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References
  1. Raggett, Ned. "Love and Rockets – Love and Rockets". AllMusic. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
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