"Trees and Flowers" is a song performed by Scottish band

Strawberry Switchblade Strawberry Switchblade were a Scottish pop duo formed in Glasgow in 1981 by Jill Bryson and Rose McDowall, best known for their song "Since Yesterday" from 1985, and their flamboyant clothing with bows and polka-dots. History Before being sign ...

. It was their debut single in 1983, and a subsequently released demo version has become one of their most popular tracks.

Background and composition

Despite the band's usual new wave

indie pop Indie pop (also typeset as indie-pop or indiepop) is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with a DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and s ...

style, "Trees and Flowers" is a reflective ballad in a

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vein. Although band members Jill Bryson and

Rose McDowall Rose McDowall (née Porter; born 21 October 1959) is a Scottish musician who formed Strawberry Switchblade with Jill Bryson in 1981. History McDowall was born in Glasgow, Scotland in 1959. Her first venture into music was in the Poems, an ar ...

officially credited all songs to both of them equally, " Trees and Flowers" was written by Bryson on her own. In contrast to the gentle tune and soft vocal harmonies, the lyrics' main refrain is "I hate the trees and I hate the flowers, and I hate the buildings and the way they tower over me." They describe Bryson's agoraphobia, something that had affected her teenage years so severely that she had missed a year of school. The band recorded two sessions for

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in October 1982. These were heard by

David Balfe David Balfe (born 1958) is an English musician and record company executive, most notable for playing keyboards with the Teardrop Explodes, founding the Zoo and Food independent record labels, signing Blur and for being the subject of thei ...

and

Bill Drummond William Ernest Drummond (born 29 April 1953) is a Scottish artist, musician, writer, and record producer. He was a co-founder of the late-1980s avant-garde pop group the KLF and its 1990s media-manipulating successor, the K Foundation, with wh ...

, who made contact and became their managers. The Peel session had included "Trees and Flowers", and it was this track that made the biggest impression on Drummond:

Recording and release

The song was recorded as the band's first single. Produced by Balfe and Drummond, it was given a baroque arrangement by Nicky Holland, and featured guest appearances from

Kate St John Kate St John (born 2 October 1957) is an English composer, arranger, producer and multi-instrumentalist. She was a member of bands Ravishing Beauties, The Dream Academy, and Channel Light Vessel, and of Van Morrison's live band, in which she pl ...

Aztec Camera Aztec Camera were a Scottish pop/ new wave band founded by Roddy Frame, the group's singer, songwriter and only consistent member. Established in 1980, Aztec Camera released a total of six studio albums: '' High Land, Hard Rain'' (1983), ''Kn ...

Roddy Frame Roddy Frame (born 29 January 1964) is a Scottish singer-songwriter and musician. He was the founder of the 1980s new wave band Aztec Camera and has undertaken a solo career since the group's dissolution. In November 2013, journalist Brian Do ...

, and the

rhythm section A rhythm section is a group of musicians within a music ensemble or band that provides the underlying rhythm, harmony and pulse of the accompaniment, providing a rhythmic and harmonic reference and "beat" for the rest of the band. The rhythm ...

from Madness, Mark Bedford and Dan Woodgate. It was released in the UK in July 1983 on the

independent record label An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small and medium-sized enterprise, small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels ...

92 Happy Customers, owned by

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, guitarist of

Echo & the Bunnymen Echo & the Bunnymen are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1978. The original line-up consisted of vocalist Ian McCulloch (singer), Ian McCulloch, guitarist Will Sergeant and bassist Les Pattinson. By 1980, Pete de Freita ...

. The

12" single The twelve-inch single (often written as 12-inch or 12) is a type of vinyl (polyvinyl chloride or PVC) gramophone record that has wider groove spacing and shorter playing time with a "single" or a few related sound tracks on each surface, compar ...

featured an instrumental version, "Trees and Flowers (Just Music)". In 1985, a limited repress of the 7" was issued on Korova and given away with initial copies of the band's debut album.

Critical reception

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made it their single of the fortnight. Reviewer Peter Martin praised its 'deliciously sad and reflective vocals over some luxuriantly delicate music... the song is an immediate classic.'

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was less effusive, with Mike Gardner describing it as 'a mite disappointing. It sounds like a computer designed dreamy summer single'. It was included in John Peel's 1983

Festive 50 The Festive Fifty was originally an annual list of the year's 50 (though the exact figure varied above and below this number) best songs compiled at the end of the year and voted for by listeners to John Peel's BBC Radio 1 show. It was usually do ...

, his listeners' poll of the best tracks of the year.

Later releases and reissues

An extended version, essentially combining the single and instrumental versions, was created for a 1985 Japanese release "The 12" Album". This version was included as one of the bonus tracks on CD reissues of the band’s eponymous album and a subsequent compilation "The Platinum Collection". Though the original single version has appeared on several various artist

compilation albums A compilation album comprises tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one performer or by several performers. If the recordings are from one artist, then generally the tracks we ...

, apart from the copies given away with the band’s debut album it has never been reissued and is not on streaming services. The band's earliest studio recordings, three songs recorded in 1982 when they were still a quartet, were released as a limited edition 7" EP in January 2017. The version of "Trees and Flowers" on the EP proved very popular on

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and it has since become the band's most popular track on music on

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Recorded versions

Demo, recorded 1982

*Rose McDowall (guitar, vocals) *Jill Bryson (guitar, backing vocals) *Janice Goodlett (bass) *Carole McGowan (drums) Released on "1982 4-Piece Demo" EP (Night School Records, LSSN048), 2017.

Peel session, recorded 4 October 1982

*Rose McDowall (guitar, vocals) *Jill Bryson (guitar, backing vocals) *James Kirk (bass) *Shahid Sarwar (drums) * Alex Fergusson (piano, guitar) *Babs Shores (backing vocals) Unreleased.

Single, recorded 1983

*Rose McDowall (guitar, vocals) *Jill Bryson (guitar, backing vocals) *Nicky Holland (horn and oboe arrangement, piano) *Mark Bedford (bass) *Dan Woodgate (drums) *Kate St John (oboe) *Roddy Frame (additional guitar) *Adam Harding (French horn) Released on 7" and 12" singles (92 Happy Customers, HAPS001 and HAPT001), 1983. Reissued on 7" (Korova, SAM240) with initial copies of the Strawberry Switchblade album, 1985.

Instrumental version

Personnel as per the single, except for the vocals. Released on 12" single (92 Happy Customers, HAPT001), 1983.

Extended version

Personnel as per the single. Released in Japan on "The 12" Album" (Warner Pioneer, P6219), 1985.

Cover versions

A number of other artists have released recordings of the song. *

Dum Dum Girls Dum Dum Girls was an American rock band, formed in 2008. It began as the bedroom recording project of singer and songwriter Dee Dee (née Kristin Gundred). She is currently based in Los Angeles. The name is a double homage to the Vaselines' a ...

- "

End of Daze ''End of Daze'' is the fourth EP by Dum Dum Girls, released September 25, 2012 by Sub Pop. This was the third Dum Dum Girls recording produced by Richard Gottehrer and the Raveonettes' Sune Rose Wagner, and the fourth overall for Gottehrer. Ba ...

" EP (

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, SP1001), USA, 2012 *The Shapists - single released on

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, 2014. This was a band featuring Jill Bryson. *Haruna Yusa - "Spring Has Sprung" (My Best! Records, MYRD86), Japan, 2015 *Sulis Noctis - single released on streaming services, 2022 *Dave Leo Baker - "Piano Reflections vol.1", released on streaming services, 2022 *BooBooSousa - single released on streaming services, 2022 *The Penkiln Burn Players - "Voices From The Galloverse" (Penkiln Burn Recordings, PBR 017), UK, 2024. This is a project of Bill Drummond's.

References

{{Reflist 1983 songs 1983 singles Strawberry Switchblade songs Songs about mental health Korova (record label) singles