Blinded by Science

Just seen Thomas Dolby is touring in the US and is also doing some dates in the UK. Sadly I’ll be away when he plays at the Scala in Kings Cross on June 23rd 2006 but tickets are now available.

His two first albums are firmly in my all time favorites. I bought the Golden Age of Wireless when it came out and absolutely loved it. It has loads of fantastic tracks on it, some of which came out on 45. Oddly enough, Dolby only really broke through to the mainstream as I recall with ‘She blinded me with science’, probably thanks to the quirky video featuring scientist Magnus Pyke, and this was followed up with another hit, Hyperactive (a track I’ve never particualrly taken to though I like it more now than I did then).

I would highly recommend the Golden Age of Wireless to anyone with an interest in fine sophisticated synth pop from the early 80’s.? My favorite tracks on it were Cloudburst in Shingle Street and The Wreck of the fairchild, though I can’t think of any on there I don’t really like. His next album, The Flat Earth also has some wonderful tracks on it as well. Again, highly recommended. I particularly like Screen Kiss and Dissidents.

I’ve never come across any acetates or test pressings of Dolby’s early material, which is a shame. I do have (somewhere) the very early yellow vinyl flexi 7″ of Urban tribal with ‘One of our submarines is missing’ on the flip. Submarines is a fantastic track and was the?B-side of She blinded me with science. Get the 12″ for the fantastic?extended mix. If anyone knows or has vinyl or acetates that are rare, unusual or unreleased?(up to the Flat Earth era or before) then I would be interested to know about them (i.e. promo copies, press packs etc).

His other more collectible 45 is the first 45 he had out, Urges/Liepzig, another good double sider. I also have one or both of these tracks?on an early compilation called ‘Terpsichore’. I seem to remember it had a lot of other relatively lesser known (and, I’m afraid, insignificant)?acts like Tick and Tock on it.

Anyway, Thomas has his own website which looks very busy, complete with blog, and by all the accounts the shows are going really well. I’m very jealous of anyone who gets to see him perform. A superb, and underrated talent from the early 80’s who like many post-punk artists got remembered for one or two?relatively inferior tracks leaving his best stuff unappreciated by most?(Devo?were another victim of this phenomenon whereby most people know ‘Whip it’ but are criminally unaware of ‘Are we not men’ ‘Duty now for the future’?or their many other amazing early albums).

Record wise it has been a quiet couple of weeks really. I’ve picked up a couple of 45s by another favorite band of mine, The Peddlers. Oh, and I’m waiting for a couple of Latin albums which should be good- Johnny Zamot on Decca (second album I think, with ‘You dig’ on it etc), and Pete Terrace Boogaloo which looks like all classic contemporary latin covers - but obviously done in a Pete Terrace style. I will report back when they arrive. Yes both are lovely originals, now 40 -ish years old. And yes I’m not sorry about that ha ha…..