Stations of the Crass

Stations of the Crass
Studio album by Crass
Released 1979
Recorded August 7 & 11, 1979
Studio Southern Studios
(London, United Kingdom)
Pied Bull
(Islington, London, United Kingdom)
Genre Anarcho-punk, hardcore punk, art punk
Length 79:23
65:25 (Crassical release)
Label Crass Records
Producer Crass
Crass chronology
The Feeding of the 5000
(1978)		 Stations of the Crass
(1979)		 Penis Envy
(1981)
Alternative covers
Cover of the remastered 'Crassical Collection' rerelease
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
The Sleeping Shaman(favorable)[2]

Stations of the Crass is the second album by Crass, released in 1979. The record, originally released as a double 12", includes live tracks from a gig recorded at the Pied Bull pub in Islington, London, on August 7, 1979. The first three sides contain the studio tracks and play at 45 rpm, while the final side comprises the live material and plays at 33 rpm. The album's title is not only a pun on the Catholic rite of the Stations of the Cross (such jibes against the religious establishment were typical of Crass), but is also a reference to the graffiti campaign that the band had been conducting around London's underground railway system, the cover artwork depicting a wall at Bond Street tube station that had allegedly been 'decorated' by them. Although the album met mixed critical reception at first, it managed to sell at least 20,000 copies within two weeks.[3]

A remastered edition of the album, complete with new artwork by Gee Vaucher designed specifically for the small size of a CD case, was due to be released in March 2009, but was delayed because of contentions with former members. The remastered 'Crassical Collection' version was eventually released in October 2010, including a 64-page booklet of liner notes by Steve Ignorant and Penny Rimbaud, as well as bonus tracks in the form of the band's 1979 John Peel Session. The live tracks recorded at the Pied Bull are not included on the remastered edition.

Critical reception

Graham Lock, when writing for New Musical Express, criticized the album in a 1979 review by questioning certain lyrics and the band's overall performance.[4] More recent reception towards the album has been mostly warm, however. Ned Ragget of the AllMusic Guide rewarded the album four out of a possible five stars, stating that "Crass creates a unique brand of fierce, inspirational music."[1] In a review for the Sleeping Shaman for the 2010 Crassical Collection edition, Ollie Stygall was very favorable of the album and praised it's variety in style.[2] Trouserpress, on the other hand, stated that the album's tracks "blur into white noise."[5]

Track listing

Side One
No.TitleLength
1."Mother-Earth"4:11
2."White Punks on Hope"2:22
3."You've Got Big Hands"1:42
4."Darling"1:56
5."System"0:56
6."Big Man, Big M.A.N."2:46
7."Hurry Up Garry (The Parsons Farted)"1:11
Side Two
No.TitleLength
8."Fun Going One"2:16
9."Crutch of Society"1:52
10."Heard Too Much About"1:08
11."Chairman of the Bored"1:18
12."Tired"3:19
13."Walls"2:59
14."Upright Citizen"3:15
Side Three
No.TitleLength
15."The Gasman Cometh"3:17
16."Demo(n)crats"3:20
17."Contaminational Power"2:01
18."Time Out"2:16
19."I Ain't Thick, It's Just a Trick"4:24
20."Prime Sinister" (unlisted track)1:20
Side Four (Live at Pied Bull, Islington, August 7, 1979)
No.TitleLength
21."System" 
22."Big Man, Big M.A.N." 
23."Banned from the Roxy" 
24."Hurry Up Garry" 
25."Time Out" 
26."They've Got a Bomb" 
27."Fight War, Not Wars" 
28."Women" 
29."Shaved Women" 
30."You Pay" 
31."Heard Too Much About" 
32."Angels" 
33."What a Shame" 
34."So What" 
35."G's Song" 
36."Do They Owe Us a Living?" 
37."Punk Is Dead" 

Personnel

References

  1. 1 2 Allmusic review
  2. 1 2 Stygall, Ollie (2010-09-24). "Crass 'Stations Of The Crass'". thesleepingshaman.com. The Sleeping Shaman. Retrieved 2017-05-11.
  3. ↑ O'Conner, Alan (2008). Punk Record Labels And The Struggle For Autonomy. Estover Road, Plymouth, United Kingdom: Lexington Books. ISBN 978-0-7391-2659-2.
  4. ↑ McKay, George (1996). Senseless Acts of Beauty: Cultures of Resistance Since the Sixties. 6 Meard Street, London: Verso. ISBN 1-85984-908-3.
  5. ↑ Fricke, David and Robbins, Ira. "Crass Overview". trouserpress.com. Trouserpress. Retrieved 2017-05-11.
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