A–Z (album)

A–Z
Studio album by Colin Newman
Released October 1980
Recorded 1980
Studio Scorpio, London, England
Genre Post-punk
Language English
Label Beggars Banquet
Producer Mike Thorne
Colin Newman chronology
A–Z
(1980)
Commercial Suicide
(1986)

A–Z is the debut studio album by Colin Newman, lead singer for post-punk band Wire. It was released in October 1980, through record label Beggars Banquet.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Robert ChristgauB+[2]
Head Heritagefavourable[3]

A–Z has been well received. In its retrospective review, AllMusic wrote "A-Z truly deserves to be held in the same regard as Pink Flag, Chairs Missing and 154".[1]

Legacy

"Alone" and "Not Me" were covered by This Mortal Coil on the albums Filigree & Shadow and It'll End in Tears, respectively. "S-S-S-Star Eyes" was covered by P-Model and released as a supplementary cassette to an issue of the band's fan club newsletter. "Alone" was used in the 1991 film The Silence of the Lambs.

Track listing

All tracks written by Newman, except where noted.

Side A
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."I've Waited Ages" 5:05
2."& Jury"Newman, Desmond Simmons2:47
3."Alone"Graham Lewis, Newman3:57
4."Order for Order" 2:44
5."Image" 4:18
6."Life on Deck" 3:12
Side B
No.TitleLength
7."Troisieme"4:09
8."S-S-S-Star Eyes"2:09
9."Seconds to Last"7:07
10."Inventory"2:11
11."But No"3:06
12."B"2:58

Personnel

  • Colin Newman – guitar, vocals, album cover
  • Desmond Simmons – bass guitar, guitar
  • Mike Thorne – synthesizer, keyboards, production
  • Robert Gotobed – drums
  • Charles Bullen – Clarinet on "Troisieme"

Technical

  • A. Newman – album cover
  • Harvey Goldberg – engineering
  • Dennis Weinreich – engineering
  • Steve Parker – engineering
  • Malti Kidia – sleeve layout and typography
  • Jack Skinner – cutting

References

  1. 1 2 Kellman, Andy. "A–Z – Colin Newman: Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards: AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 15 February 2013.
  2. Christgau, Robert. "Robert Christgau: CG: Colin Newman". robertchristgau.com. Retrieved 15 February 2013.
  3. Parkes, Jason (5 June 2007). "Julian Cope Presents Head Heritage | Unsung | Reviews | Colin Newman – A–Z". Head Heritage. Retrieved 19 August 2016.
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