From Her to Eternity
| From Her to Eternity | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds | ||||
| Released | June 18, 1984 | |||
| Recorded | September 20 - October 1983 at The Garden and March 1984 at Trident Studios in London, United Kingdom | |||
| Genre | Post-punk, experimental rock | |||
| Length | 43:32 | |||
| Label | Mute | |||
| Producer | Flood | |||
| Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds chronology | ||||
| ||||
From Her to Eternity is the debut album released by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds in 1984. The title is a pun on the book/movie From Here to Eternity.
Background and production
After the breakup of Nick Cave's former band The Birthday Party, Cave formed a new project with former band member Mick Harvey. Cave and Harvey were joined by a semi-fluid group of bandmates, initially including Einstürzende Neubauten member Blixa Bargeld on guitar, Hugo Race on guitar, and former Magazine member Barry Adamson on guitar, bass, and piano. After some studio work, the band's premiere public performance was held on New Year's Eve, 1983 in Melbourne, under the name "Nick Cave - Man Or Myth?", followed by a tour.[1] The band then briefly called themselves "Nick Cave and the Cavemen" before adopting the "Bad Seeds" moniker, in reference to the final Birthday Party release, The Bad Seed EP.
The majority of the album was recorded at Trident Studios in London in March 1984. "Saint Huck", "Wings off Flies" and "A Box for Black Paul" were recorded at The Garden studio (owned by John Foxx) between September and October 1983. The band is also seen playing a live performance of the title track in the 1987 Wim Wenders film Wings of Desire. This version, recorded at Hansa Studio, Berlin in February 1987, is included on CD reissues of the album.
Cave later said, "Well, I guess we weren't kicking people in the teeth anymore. I mean, it just became different. I wanted it to be more lyrically orientated and getting Blixa Bargeld from Einstürzende Neubauten in the group made an incredible difference. He's a completely kind of atmospheric guitarist and incredibly economical and it gave me room to breathe."[2]
Critical reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [3] |
| Pitchfork Media | (7.3/10)[4] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide |  [5] |
From Her to Eternity received very positive acclaim upon its release, with Chris Long of BBC Music describing it as "imperfect, visceral, exciting and, ultimately, classic."[6]
2009 remaster
The album was remastered and reissued on April 27, 2009 as a collector's edition CD/DVD set, along with the three subsequent albums in the Bad Seeds catalog, namely The Firstborn Is Dead, Kicking Against the Pricks, and Your Funeral... My Trial. The CD features the original 7-song vinyl LP's track listing, while "In the Ghetto", "The Moon Is in the Gutter", and "From Her to Eternity" (1987 version) are featured as bonus audio tracks on the accompanying DVD, rather than being sequenced into the album as in earlier CD pressings. The DVD also includes music videos from the time and the first installment of 'Do You Love Me Like I Love You', a 14 part documentary by Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard.
Track listing
All songs written by Nick Cave unless otherwise noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Avalanche" | Leonard Cohen | 5:13 | |
| 2. | "Cabin Fever!" | Nick Cave, Blixa Bargeld | 6:11 | |
| 3. | "Well of Misery" | 5:25 | ||
| 4. | "From Her to Eternity" | Cave, Anita Lane, Bargeld, Hugo Race, Barry Adamson, Mick Harvey | 5:33 | |
| 5. | "Saint Huck" | 7:22 | ||
| 6. | "Wings Off Flies" | Cave, Peter Sutcliffe, Jim Thirlwell | 4:06 | |
| 7. | "A Box for Black Paul" | 9:42 | ||
Total length: |
43:32 | |||
Singles
- "In the Ghetto" (MUTE 032) (June 18, 1984)
- b/w: "The Moon Is in the Gutter"
Personnel
- Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
- Nick Cave – vocals, Hammond, harmonica
- Blixa Bargeld – guitar, backing vocals
- Hugo Race – guitar, backing vocals
- Barry Adamson – bass, backing vocals
- Mick Harvey – drums, piano, vibes, backing vocals
- Technical personnel
Chart positions
| Chart (1984) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Albums Chart[7] | 40 |
| UK Independent Albums Chart[8] | 1 |
References
- ↑ "Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Concert Chronology/Gigography". From the Archives. fromthearchives.com. Retrieved June 18, 2010.
- ↑ Tracee Hutchison (1992). Your Name's On The Door. Sydney, New South Wales: ABC Enterprises. p. 104. ISBN 0-7333-0115-0.
- ↑ Raggett, Ned. From Her to Eternity - Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds at AllMusic. Retrieved January 24, 2011.
- ↑ Berman, Stuart (May 6, 2009). "Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds: From Her to Eternity". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved January 24, 2011.
- ↑ Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (2004). "Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds". The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (Completely revised and updated 4th ed.). New York: Fireside. p. 151.
- ↑ Long, Chris (May 8, 2009). "Review of Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - From Her To Eternity". BBC Music. Retrieved June 18, 2010.
- ↑ "Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds | Artist". Official Charts Company. British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
- ↑ Lazell, Barry. "Indie Hits: "C"". Cherry Red. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
