''Early'' is a 2002 compilation album by
A Certain Ratio
A Certain Ratio (abbreviated as ACR) are an English post-punk band formed in 1977 in Flixton, Greater Manchester by Peter Terrell (guitar, electronics) and Simon Topping (vocals, trumpet), with additional members Jez Kerr (bass, vocals), Martin ...
.
Content
The album includes songs by A Certain Ratio between their formation in 1978 and 1985. Dave Simpson of ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers '' The Observer'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the ...
'' described A Certain Ratio's sound as "a combination of
Eno
Eno may refer to:
Music
* English National Opera, London
* ''Eno'', an album by Japanese band Polysics
* "Eno", a song by X-Wife from '' Rockin' Rio EP''
Organisations and businesses
* Eno (company), a Chinese clothing and accessories busine ...
ambience,
Wire
Overhead power cabling. The conductor consists of seven strands of steel (centre, high tensile strength), surrounded by four outer layers of aluminium (high conductivity). Sample diameter 40 mm
A wire is a flexible strand of metal.
Wire is co ...
post-punk
Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-r ...
,
George Clinton funk and later, Latin percussion".
Release
''Early'' was released on March 22, 2002 by
Soul Jazz Records.
Reception
Andy Kellman of
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...
gave the album a four star rating out of a potential five, noting that four songs are presented in two versions, which led to "eating up space that could have been taken up by other highlights." while concluding that "All things considered, there is no shortage of great material here, and the packaging is phenomenal." Simpson also gave the album a four star rating, noting that tracks "The Fox" and "Life's a Scream" "would have been massive hits". Matt Harvey of the
BBC commented that "on listening to these tracks you can see why
house music
House is a music genre characterized by a repetitive Four on the floor (music), four-on-the-floor beat and a typical tempo of 120 beats per minute. It was created by Disc jockey, DJs and music producers from Chicago metropolitan area, Chicago' ...
, as the 80s progressed, found a spiritual home in Manchester (it's not for nothing that
Andy Weatherall cites ACR as his favourite band). Tracks like "Knife Slits Water" kick in a way that makes you think
Joey Beltram might have spent his school holidays visiting a trendy uncle in Manchester."
David Stubbs of ''
Uncut'' referred to the album as a "sorely overdue CD release, in particular for the long unavailable material from their first two EPs" while noting that "A pity 1981's ''To Each...'' is so under-represented here – "Forced Laugh'" would have topped off this collection perfectly."
Track listing
Disc one: Early
# "Do the Du" – 2:49
# "Flight" – 6:04
# "Waterline" – 4:07
# "Shack Up" – 3:13
# "The Fox" – 3:03
# "Blown Away" – 3:11
# "Gum" – 3:01
# "Life's a Scream" – 6:32
# "Skipscada" – 2:06
# "Knife Slits Water" – 7:32
# "Sounds Like Something Dirty" – 6:54
# "Touch" – 5:03
# "Saturn" – 3:48
Disc two: B-Sides, Rarities & Sessions
# "All Night Party" (original 7" single) – 3:13
# "Faceless" (''
Graveyard & Ballroom'') – 2:18
# "Do the Du" (
John Peel
John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey (DJ) and radio presenter. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly fr ...
session, 1979) – 2:41
# "All Night Party" (John Peel session, 1979) – 3:47
# "Flight" (John Peel session, 1979) – 3:15
# "Choir" (John Peel session, 1979) – 3:05
# "Skipscada" (John Peel session, 1981) – 2:04
# "Felch" (Original NYC Mix) – 3:43
# "Abracadubra" (Sir Horatio 12") – 3:31
# "Tumba Rhumba" (7" single B-side) – 2:34
# "Si Fermir o Grido" (''Touch'' cassette) – 3:22
# "Tribeca" (video) – 11:52
References
Sources
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{{A Certain Ratio
2002 compilation albums
Soul Jazz Records compilation albums
A Certain Ratio compilation albums