In his definitive intro to the box set of The Fall: 58 Golden Greats, long time maven, Daryl Easlea, writes of the late, great Mark E Smith... "In a world of fake news, Brexit, snowflakes and political correctness, the dystopia that Mark sung of now seems to be everywhere..."
And if music was ever dystopic it was hammered out by The Fall. This compilation grafts 58 tracks spanning the whole career of the band across an array of record labels, 31 albums and a zillion and one tracks onto three CDs. It charts the various incarnations of the band and musical rollercoasters where the only constant was Mark E Smith himself from 1976 onwards, rolling out the stream of consciousness lyrics and vocals as only he could...
Yes, the producers of this set can be accused of a Christmas cash-in, but given that Cherry Red Records produced the first Fall compilation, 50,000 Fall Fans Can't Be Wrong, eons ago and that Easlea compiled the set and did the notes, while long time Fall designer Becky Stewart did the graphics, shows it's very much a labour of love. Here, the music spits and spiels for itself.
While there's billions of tracks and albums to select from, this set condenses, distils and fillets the mountain into a hothouse of specimens that remain largely untamed. And what comes across from the early stuff (Disc One) is just how freshly frantic and psychically free it all sounds. Bang up the volume and revel in punky non-funky tunes like Totally Wired, Prole Art Threat and The Man Whose Head Expanded. How can it still sound so sweatily experimental over thirty years later?
Hit Disc Two and there's the Beggar's Banquet/Fontana and Brix years where the mainstream beckoned, via the covers Victoria, There's A Ghost In My House and the classic Lost In Music, plus originals like the phenomenal Hit The North, Telephone Thing, US 80s/90s and Big New Printz from I Am Kurious Oranj.
Disc Three continues the jagged journey, from Theme From SpartaFC#2, that decorated the BBC's Final Score, to the galloping Venice With The Girls, to the growling New Facts Emerge and Bury! with those classic lines weaved into the key lined avenues... 'I'm from Bury, don't mess around...'
...Of course Mark E was from Salford but lived in Prestwich, where he was a regular feature in the pubs and chippies. Drive down Bury New Road with this lurching from the car speakers, loud and luscious and so underground. If you've never been 'into' The Fall, get this and wish you'd been there amongst the 50,000. You too can now be so fucking edgy...
The Fall: 58 Golden Greats is released on 30th November by Cherry Red Records
The full track list...
Disc One:
1. Repetition
2. Rebellious Jukebox
3. Industrial Estate
4. Rowche Rumble
5. Fiery Jack
6. How I Wrote 'Elastic Man'
7. Totally Wired
8. New Face In Hell
9. Prole Art Threat
10.Lie Dream Of A Casino Soul
11.The Classical
12.Hip Priest
13.Joker Hysterical Face
14.The Man Whose Head Expanded
15.Kicker Conspiracy
16.Eat Y'self Fitter
17.Oh! Brother
18. C.R.E.E.P .
Disc Two:
1. No Bulbs
2. Cruiser's Creek
3. Spoilt Victorian Child
4. Us 80's-90's
5. Mr Pharmacist
6. Living Too Late
7. Hey Luciani
8. There's A Ghost In My House
9. Hit The North
10.Carry Bag Man
11. Victoria
12.Big New Prinz
13.Dead Beat Descendant
14.Telephone Thing
15.High Tension Line
16.Free Range
17.Why Are People Grudgeful?
18.Lost In Music
19.Behind The Counter
20. M5
21.Feeling Numb
Disc Three:
1. The Chiselers
2. Powder Keg
3. Masquerade
4. Touch Sensitive
5. Dr Buck's Letter
6. Hollow Mind
7. Susan Vs Youthclub
8. Mountain Energei
9. Theme From Sparta Fc # 2
10. Blindness
11.Reformation (Uncut)
12.Wolf Kidult Man
13.Bury!
14.Greenway
15.Sir William Wray
16.The Remainderer
17.Venice With The Girls
18.Wise Ol' Man
19.New Facts Emerge
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