TALK TALK
Hammersmith Odeon, London, 1986
I never understood why Talk Talk were compared to Duran Duran back in the day - other than both bands have a repeated word for their name. But founding member and artistic driving force, Mark Hollis (rest in peace), is certainly no Simon Le Bon!
Don't get me wrong, I like both bands, but Talk Talk were on a very different trajectory to the Duran boys. Hollis had a unique voice and quickly trancended to embrace a more artistic endeavour, penning some of the era's most thoughtful and well-crafted pop songs.
Finding worldwide success with the first three albums, TT seemed to be on their way to major stardom, but Hollis's uncompromising approach and pursuit of a higher musical artform eventually moved the band too far away from their fanbase and their record label pulled the plug. This show, from the 1986 tour supporting the third album The Colour of Spring, is probably Talk Talk's pinacle.
Recorded by the BBC, it's a tour-de-force of a performance that leaves you wondering why you don't hear much about this great band any more! Seriously, the songs are amazing, they still sound fresh and Hollis has a unique delivery that ties the whole thing together perfectly.
The sound quality is spot on and the CD comes with unique cover art and directly printed art.
Track list
1 Talk Talk
2 Dum Dum Girl
3 Life’s What You Make It
4 Mirror Man
5 It’s You
6 Chameleon Day
7 Living In Another World
8 Give It Up
9 It’s My Life
10 I Don’t Believe In You
11 Such a Shame
alex.relaxandswing@gmail.com
Postage is £1.80 for up to 3 CDs (£6 international)
