Everyone that owns a copy of Skylarking should listen to it in its entirety in the next 24 hours.

YES, even "Ballet for a Rainy Day."

decisions decisions

.

for some reason, despite being a huge XTC fan, I still don't own this album. do have the aforementioned Horace Andy best-of, though.

This is definitely in the bottom third of the XTC discography. Toward the bottom of the bottom third, even.

i have 2 xtc rekkids

Johnny Fever so RONG

so RONG i'm RITE!

most people who talk this up haven't heard english settlement or drums & wires or psonic psunspot

Skylarking is way superior to all of those. Particularly the pre-Skylarking ones.

!(Skylarking is way superior to all of those. Particularly the pre-Skylarking ones.)

Geirlarking

The Man Who Sailed Around His Hongro

That's Really Super, Supergeir

Really, XTC are so much better as a powerpop band than they were as a new wave/postpunk band. That's not to say that "Black Sea" or "Drums And Wires" are bad albums in any way, but everything they have done since "Skylarking" is downright fantastic.

^Agreed. It doesn't take anything away from "Making Plans for Nigel" and all that goodness.

This is a classic album through and through, I'm shocked, I say SHOCKED that there are people who actually dislike it. Thanks, internet!

but everything they have done since "Skylarking" is downright fantastic.

Errrrrrrrrrr, no

Errrrrrrrr yes, he's right on that one.

Except parts of Wasp Star, maybe.

They're almost like two different bands, with _Mummer_ being the before and after dividing line, dontcha think? I adore both periods though feel _Skylarking_ is way overrated. An excellent album but it seems to be the one XTC album people own who aren't really into XTC. Overproduction started to creep in around this time, too, which detracts from otherwise excellent songs.

Hmm. Yes It would be more correct to put the dividing line at "Mummer", which represents later XTC more than it represents early XTC. Then, "The Big Express" sounds nothing like anything they've ever done before or since though.

And there's no such thing as "overproduction". The more, the better.

I completely agree re: _The Big Express_, which is my favorite. Amazing songwriting & cool sounds all over the place (e.g. "Train Running Low On Soul Coal").

I think my definition of "production" might differ from yours. If you compare the demos of material from _Orange & Lemons_ to the final product, to my ears the stength of the songwriting comes through clearer. There's a glossiness to the studio version that obscures the song. Someone who has better language to describe it will have to comment.

"Orange & Lemons" is certainly not 'downright fantastic'

pink THING!!!

I'll take Drums & Wires and English Settlement and some Black Sea (preferably my own mix of tracks from those) over any the later material.

I only got The Big Express a couple of weeks ago. It's a mid eighties version of their seventies funk pop-a-roll, with the contortions now synthetic and rather clunky. The extra tracks are refreshingly straightforward, but that's all they are.

I heard TBE when it came out, so perhaps context plays a large part of my view.

It's like the first 2 Big Star albums - I like them fine but I can understand how the uniqueness of them when they came out added to their appeal.

I'll take Drums & Wires and English Settlement and some Black Sea (preferably my own mix of tracks from those) over any the later material.

me too.

I listened to Skylarking for the first time in foreva the other day. Still not feeling it at all.

I still take the smooth muso softrock perfection of their Skylarking-onwards material any day. And, yes, "Mummer" too, is great.

Not saying the earlier material is worthless. "English Settlement" is too long though. And "Black Sea" would have been better without the awful "Travels In Nihilion", which is their worst ever moment. They always released great singles even from day one though.

Despite hating the bulk of Skylarking, I'll make an exception for "Dear God," a song I'll probably never find it in myself to hate.

Now, 7-10 posts will immediately follow saying it's not even officially a song on the album, but it's been on every pressing of the album since 1987 which, I think, makes it pretty "official".

Every US pressing, maybe.

English Settlement is not too long.

How about we listen to only the first half?

And hum the melody to 'Mermaid Smiled' rather than suffer through the fey English cocktail party-inspired arrangement for the second verse?

I'm on that. Starting now.

I forgot how long it takes to get going.

'Summer's Cauldron' and 'Grass' are my favorite things they recorded!

Ballet doesn't ever stop being magic.

WOAH and then the strings come in. Misery oh-oh misery. MAGIC.

xp It's a good coupling, certainly. Bit wet though.

ARGH 1000 MEETINGS OPEN TO SPOIL THIS RECORD

Just listened straight through. First time in years. It's still spectacular.