This Nation's Saving Grace
This Nation's Saving Grace is a 1985 LP by The Fall. It reached number 54 in the UK charts.[4] The album is frequently cited as one of the group's strongest and most consistent. It ranked at 46 in Spin's "100 Greatest Albums 1985-2005".
Early in 1985 Smith fired Paul Hanley (after their 1984 tour), later his brother, bassist Steve Hanley took four months paternity leave in the early part of the year. After a toilet tour of the North of England the group recorded the double a-sided single "Couldn't Get Ahead / Rollin' Dany" and subsequent single "Cruiser's Creek" with Simon Rogers standing in on bass.[5] The group had met Rogers through ballet dancer Michael Clark and he had already co-produced the early recordings of Brix Smith's side project The Adult Net. When Hanley returned, Rogers remained with the group, switching to guitar and keyboards - Hanley's return was marked with the inscription "S Hanley! He's Back" on the run-out groove of side one of the album.
Track listing
LP
| Writer(s) |
| 7. |
"Gut of the Quantifier" |
Karl Burns, M. Smith |
5:16 |
| 8. |
"My New House" |
M. Smith |
5:16 |
| 9. |
"Paint Work" |
Rogers, Scanlon, M. Smith |
6:38 |
| 10. |
"I Am Damo Suzuki" |
Burns, B. Smith, M. Smith |
5:41 |
| 11. |
"To NK Roachment / Yarbles" |
B. Smith, M. Smith |
1:23 |
- Several non-UK editions of the LP omitted "Barmy", replacing it with UK standalone single "Cruiser's Creek".
Personnel
Influences
- Yarbles (from the song entitled "To NK Roachment: Yarbles") appears in the novel to A Clockwork Orange as Nadsat for testicles or bollocks.
- The CD edition of the album was covered in its entirety by members of the forum on the band's then-official website with the approval of Mark E. Smith. The complete album was also covered in concert by Triple Gang, who featured members of Faith No More and Fudge Tunnel.
- The original vinyl version of the album has also been covered in its entirety by electronica act Globo, as an 'experiment'.[6]
- 'I Am Damo Suzuki' is a tribute to Can vocalist Damo Suzuki. The riff descending in semitones is based on 'Don't Turn The Light On, Leave Me Alone' from Soundtracks, while the drum pattern is taken from 'Oh Yeah' from Tago Mago. The lyrics make reference to a number of Can songs, including Vitamin C.
- "What You Need" takes its title from an episode of The Twilight Zone. The line "slippery shoes for your horrible feet" originates from the plot of this episode.
References
- ^ Allmusic review
- ^ Pitchfork Media review
- ^ Robert Christgau review
- ^ "This Nation's Saving Grace". www.chartstats.com. http://www.chartstats.com/albuminfo.php?id=10164. Retrieved 2010-08-01.
- ^ Daryl Easlea - interview with Paul Hanley, "The Fall Box Set 1976 - 2007" accompanying booklet (Castle Music/Sanctuary 2007)
- ^ Globo.co.uk
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