''Jeopardy'' is the debut studio album by the English

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of music that emerged in late 1977 in the wake of punk rock. Post-punk musicians departed from punk's fundamental elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a broader, more experiment ...

band the Sound. It was released in November 1980 through the record label Korova. The album fared poorly commercially, only reaching No. 23 in New Zealand, but received critical acclaim. One single, "Heyday", was released from the album.

Background

Following their 1979 EP ''Physical World'', the band started work on a full-length album. Impressed by the rough mixes, Korova signed the group. ''Jeopardy'' was recorded inexpensively at Elephant Studios in London, and was produced by the Sound themselves and Nick Robbins. Adrian Janes, ex-member of

the Outsiders The Outsiders may refer to: Literature and stage * ''The Outsiders'' (novel), a 1967 novel by S. E. Hinton * ''The Outsiders'' (musical), a 2023 musical based on S. E. Hinton's novel * ''The Outsiders'' (play), a 1911 play by Charles Klein * ...

along with Sound frontman

Adrian Borland Adrian Kelvin Borland (6 December 1957 – 26 April 1999) was an English singer, songwriter, guitarist and record producer, best known as the frontman of post-punk band The Sound (band), The Sound. Following a substantial musical career spanni ...

and Bob Lawrence, contributed writing to two tracks, despite not being a member of the Sound. Regarding the album, drummer Michael Dudley said:

I felt I had really achieved something in my life. I couldn't wait to hand out copies to family and friends ..It was the most fun to record and the biggest challenge to work on in the studio f all the Sound's albums

Release

The album was preceded by the release of the single "Heyday" in September 1980. The single was well received in the press, with Dave McCullough of '' Sounds'' calling the song "one of the most exciting and most astonishingly adept big label debut singles I've heard since

the Jam The Jam were an English rock band formed in 1972 in Woking, Surrey, consisting of Paul Weller, Bruce Foxton and Rick Buckler. They released 18 consecutive top 40 singles in the United Kingdom, from their debut in 1977 to their break-up in ...

's ' In the City'". ''Jeopardy'' was released in November 1980. It was lauded by critics upon its release, but fared poorly commercially, failing to chart in the UK and with the band's fanbase failing to expand further than a cult following. The album was re-released in 2002 by Renascent with the ''Live Instinct'' EP included. The EP contains four tracks recorded live at a show at The Venue in London on 14 January 1981.

Reception

''Jeopardy'' was critically lauded, and received full 5-star reviews from three major music publications: ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'', ''Sounds'' and ''

Melody Maker ''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. In January 2001, it was merged into "long-standing rival" (and IPC Media sister publicatio ...

''. Steve Sutherland of ''Melody Maker'' wrote: "''Jeopardy'' is one of those records that makes me want to throw all the windows open, crank it up to full volume and blast it out to the world. It clears my head of boredom, strips away the gloom and single-handedly restores my belief in the power of pop to make people stop, think and question. ..''Jeopardy'' has got more spirit, more soul and more downright honesty about it than any other record I've heard this year". In a retrospective review, 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 Mus ...

called ''Jeopardy'' "a caustic jolt of a debut that startles and fascinates".

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, ...

critic Devon Powers said the album revealed "startling maturity and skill", while ''

Trouser Press ''Trouser Press'' was a rock and roll magazine started in New York in 1974 as a mimeographed fanzine by editor/publisher Ira Robbins, fellow fan of the Who, Dave Schulps, and Karen Rose under the name "Trans-Oceanic Trouser Press" (a reference ...

'' remarked that it "has a stark, beautiful quality, with the material given direct exposure rather than a production bath".

Brendan Perry Brendan Michael Perry (born 30 June 1959) is a British singer and multi-instrumentalist best known for his work as half of the duo Dead Can Dance with Lisa Gerrard. Early life Perry was born in Whitechapel, London, England, UK, in 1959 to a mot ...

of the Australian musical group

Dead Can Dance Dead Can Dance are a British-Australian band founded in Melbourne in 1981 by Brendan Perry and Lisa Gerrard, before relocating to London the following year. The Australian music historian Ian McFarlane described Dead Can Dance's style as "const ...

has praised the album, calling it an "Existentialist post punk jewel".

Track listing

Charts

Personnel

; The Sound *

– vocals, guitar, production * Michael Dudley – drums, production * Green (Graham Bailey) – bass guitar, production * Belinda "Bi" Marshall – keyboard, production ; Technical * Nick Robbins – production * Sara Batho – sleeve artwork * Spencer Rowell – sleeve photography

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1980 debut albums The Sound (band) albums