Into the Gap

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Into the Gap
Into the Gap cover
Studio album by Thompson Twins
Released 1984
Recorded 1984
Genre Alternative rock, Post-punk, New Wave music
Length 42:33
Label Arista
Producer Alex Sadkin and Tom Bailey
Thompson Twins chronology
Quick Step and Side Kick/Side Kicks
(1983)		 Into the Gap
(1984)		 Here's To Future Days
(1985)

Into the Gap is the fourth album by the British pop group Thompson Twins. It was released in 1984 and reached no.1 on the UK album chart. The album also reached no.10 in the US.

Contents

[edit] Production

After the success of their commercial breakthrough album, Quick Step and Side Kick (known in the United States as Side Kicks), the English pop group Thompson Twins followed up with Into the Gap. Although the album was created using the same producer as the previous album, Alex Sadkin, Into the Gap revealed a slight departure from the formula of Side Kicks. In addition to the synthpop stylings that had become their musical direction, Into the Gap made even greater use of exotic instruments and melodies, as well as a more noticeable use of rhythm guitar as a balance to the electronic elements.

As with Side Kicks, recording took place in the Bahamas at Sadkin's Compass Point studio. The first single to be released was "Hold Me Now", which reached the #4 position in the UK in November 1983. The album itself was released in February 1984, and entered the UK albums chart at number one, where it stayed for three weeks. When Into the Gap was released in the United States, it peaked at the #10 position.

[edit] Singles

In addition to "Hold Me Now", there were four other singles released from the album in various countries around the world: "Doctor! Doctor!" (UK #3, US #11), "You Take Me Up" (UK #2, US #44), "Sister of Mercy" (UK #11), and "The Gap" (US #69). The first four of those singles all had music videos that were shot to promote them, and the Thompson Twins were a prominent fixture on MTV and other music video outlets of the era.

[edit] Track listing

  1. "Doctor! Doctor!" - 4:39
  2. "You Take Me Up" - 4:26
  3. "Day After Day" - 3:49
  4. "Sister Of Mercy" - 5:09
  5. "No Peace For The Wicked" - 4:09
  6. "The Gap" - 4:44
  7. "Hold Me Now" - 4:46
  8. "Storm On The Sea" - 5:32
  9. "Who Can Stop The Rain" - 5:46

Some pressings of the album (usually US) have a different order tracklisting and a shorter version of the final track:

  1. "Doctor! Doctor!" - 4:39
  2. "You Take Me Up" - 4:26
  3. "Hold Me Now" - 4:46
  4. "Day After Day" - 3:50
  5. "No Peace For The Wicked" - 4:09
  6. "The Gap" - 4:44
  7. "Sister Of Mercy" - 5:09
  8. "Storm On The Sea" - 5:32
  9. "Who Can Stop The Rain" - 5:16

The version of Into the Gap released on cassette in the UK contained an additional side of remixes and b-sides, many of which were otherwise unreleased. The track listing of this additional album is as follows:

  1. "Leopard Ray" (an original instrumental composition)
  2. "Doctor! Doctor!" (extended version)
  3. "Panic Station" (a remix of album track "Day After Day")
  4. "Down Tools" (a remix of album track "You Take Me Up")
  5. "Hold Me Now" (extended version)
  6. "Funeral Dance" (a remix of album track "No Peace For The Wicked")
  7. "Compass Points" (a remix of album track "The Gap")
  8. "Still Water" (a remix of album track "Storm on the Sea")

[edit] New Expanded Edition

On March 3rd, 2008 (March 4th in North America), "Into The Gap" was reissued in digital remastered form. The original UK Arista master tapes were used and was put together by Edsel Records in the UK. It includes the bonus cassette remixes that originally appeared on the original cassette version of the album in 1984 (as per noted above). It also features a second CD which includes most major 12" versions and B-Sides, most of which appear on CD for the very first time. The tracklists are as follows:

[edit] Disc 1

  1. "Doctor! Doctor!" - 4:38
  2. "You Take Me Up" - 4:23
  3. "Day After Day" - 3:50
  4. "Sister Of Mercy" - 5:04
  5. "No Peace For The Wicked" - 4:04
  6. "The Gap" - 4:43
  7. "Hold Me Now" - 4:42
  8. "Storm On The Sea" - 5:26
  9. "Who Can Stop The Rain" - 5:17
  10. "Leopard Ray" - 3:15
  11. "Doctor! Doctor!" - 7:50
  12. "Panic Station" - 4:40
  13. "Down Tools" - 4:18
  14. "Hold Me Now" - 9:45
  15. "Funeral Dance" - 3:12

[edit] Disc 2

  1. "Compass Points" - 5:00
  2. "Still Water" - 3:40
  3. "You Take Me Up (Machines Take Me Over)" - 7:33 (Original 12" version of "You Take Me Up")
  4. "Sister Of Mercy (12” Version)" - 9:26
  5. "Let Loving Start (12” Version)" - 9:09 (Original B-Side of the "Hold Me Now" 12" Single)
  6. "You Take Me Up (High Plains Mixer)" - 8:30 (Originally appeared as a limited edition white label UK 12" Single in the Spring of 1984)
  7. "Nurse Shark" - 4:05 (Original B-Side of the "Doctor! Doctor!" 7" and 12" Singles)
  8. "Passion Planet" - 3:42 (Original B-Side of the "You Take Me Up" 7" Single)
  9. "You Take Me Up (Instrumental)" - 6:20 (Appeared on the B-Side of the "High Plains Mixer" UK 12" Single of "You Take Me Up")
  10. "Out Of The Gap (Megamix Extended Version)" - 8:57 (Original B-Side of the "Sister Of Mercy" 12" Single)

[edit] Other album credits

  • Tom Bailey: lead and background vocals, guitar, harmonica, synthesizer, programming, keyboards, drums, percussion, bass, drum programming
  • Alannah Currie: marimba, xylophone, percussion, lead and background vocals
  • Joe Leeway: Prophet synthesizer, congas, background vocals, marimba, lead and backing vocals
  • Produced by Alex Sadkin.
  • Engineered & Mixed By Phil Thornalley

[edit] External links

Much of the information used for this article can be found collected here: