''The Devil Drives'' is the sixth album by

Dave Graney Dave Graney is an Australian rock musician, singer-songwriter and author. Since 1978, Graney has collaborated with drummer-multi instrumentalist Clare Moore. The pair have fronted or been involved with numerous bands including The Moodists (19 ...

'n' The Coral Snakes. It was released in May 1997 on Mercury Records. Note: n-lineversion updated from 1999 book. The album peaked at No. 18 on the

Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) is a trade association representing the Australian recording industry which was established in the 1970s by six major record companies, EMI, Festival Records (Australia), Festival, Sony Music ...

(ARIA) Album Charts. It was also produced by

Clare Moore Clare Christina Moore is an Australian musician, songwriter, arranger, producer and performer whose principal instrument is the drums. She has also performed as a keyboard player, singer and vibraphone player. Moore writes and performs with son ...

and David Ruffy. The album was recorded in August 1996 in Kiss Studios, Melbourne and mixed in October 1996 at London at Matrix Maison Rouge studios. The singles from the album were, "Feelin Kinda Sporty" in April, and "A Man on the Make" in September. The album was also accompanied by a media CD with an interview with Dave Graney called ''Coffins Have No Pockets''. This was part of a media booklet based on a

Holden Monaro The Holden Monaro ( ) is a car that was manufactured by General Motors' Australian division Holden. It has a front-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout and was produced with a two-door coupé body from 1968 to 1976 and again from 2001 to 2006 and wit ...

owners manual in a plastic booklet/folder. The single won 'Best Video' by Mahony in

1997 Events January * January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States. * January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis. * January 1 ...

, the album was nominated for 'Best Cover Art' by Mahony and Graney received a nomination as 'Best Male Artist'. It was the last studio album with the Coral Snakes and with Universal Music as the group disbanded in December.

Title concept

The name of the album follows the old proverb "''Needs must when the devil drives''", in which drive is a reference to coercing or (figuratively) pushing. However, the imagery of the album is suggestive of a literal interpretation of the devil driving (piloting) a car.

Reception

Professional reviews

See table.

Track listing

# "The Oblivion Seekers" - 3:57 # "My Only Regret (I Opened My Mouth)" - 4:25 # "I Don't Know You Exist" - 4:15 # "Rackin' Up Some Zeds" - 4:25 # "Everybody Loves a Mass Killer" - 4:52 # "I Dig the Pioneers" - 3:50 # "The Sheriff of Hell" - 4:58 # "Pianola Roll" - 3:16 # "Land of the Giants" - 5:24 # "I Love Your Gravity" - 4:48 # "Biker in Business Class" - 4:29 # "A Man on the Make" - 4:11 # "Pascal et Caroline" - 6:41 # "The Devil Drives" - 3:59 # "Feelin' Kinda Sporty" - 3:11

Personnel

Musicians

* Andy Baldwin - violin *

Rebecca Barnard Rebecca Chirnside Barnard is an Australian singer, songwriter, Record producer, producer, and musician. She was the lead singer of the band Rebecca's Empire from 1993 to 2000 and has forged a solo career since her debut album, ''Fortified'', wa ...

- backing vocals * Gordy Blair - bass, backing vocals * Robin Casinader - piano, organ, violin, backing vocals *

- vocals, acoustic guitar * Rod Hayward - guitar, backing vocals *

- drums, percussion, organ, vibraphone, vocals * David Ruffy - sampler (programming, edits, loops) * Liduina Van Der Sman - flute, backing vocals

Production details

Engineer - Kenny Jones Engineer Assistant - Sean Thompson Engineer - Andy Baldwin Mixer - David Ruffy Producer - Dave Graney, Clare Moore, David Ruffy Studio - Kiss, Melbourne (recording) Matrix Maison Rouge, London (Mixing)

Artwork

Cover art - Tony Mahony

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Devil Drives 1997 albums Dave Graney 'n' the Coral Snakes albums Mercury Records albums