That's All Very Well But...

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That's All Very Well But... is a best of compilation of the band McCarthy.

Initially planned for release in 1991 but shelved after the Midnight Music label went bankrupt. It finally surfaced in 1996 on Cherry Red who took over the rights to a number of artists from the defunct Midnight Music label (among them The Wolfhounds, The Snake Corps, The Essence and Sad Lovers & Giants).

"That's All Very Well But..." is a somewhat haphazardly organised but still essential collection of McCarthy singles, rarities and Peel Sessions. The release presents many of the band's best moments at combining political passion with sparkling Indie pop music.

The Peel Session tracks, taken from three different appearances in total, generally come across in slightly crisper fashion than the other studio cuts. It includes an alternate version of "Should The Bible Be Banned" which is a touch quieter with more prominent acoustic guitar.

Track listing

1. "Red Sleeping Beauty" – 3:43
2. "Should The Bible Be Banned" – 3:08
3. "An MP Speaks" – 2:02
4. "The Fall" – 1:48
5. "The Funeral" – 2:15
6. "We Are All Bourgeois Now" – 4:46
7. "Antinature" – 1:46
8. "Kill Kill Kill Kill" – 1:31
9. "Frans Hals" – 3:15
10. "The Myth of the North – South Divide" – 3:00
11. "Something Wrong Somewhere" – 2:00
12. "This Nelson Rockefeller" – 4:01
13. "Charles Windsor" – 2:02
14. "From The Damned" – 3:26
15. "A Child Soon in Chains" – 1:47
16. "The Enemy Is at Home (For The Fat Lady)" – 2:09
17. "The Well of Loneliness" – 2:33
18. "You're Alive" – 2:13
19. "Keep An Open Mind Or Else" – 3:11
20. "I'm Not A Patriot But" – 3:17
21. "The Comrade Era" – 1:22
22. "Should The Bible Be Banned (alternate version)" – 3:22

Peel Session No. 1 (recorded 7 October 1986, transmitted 12 November 1986) tracks 3, 7, 9, 15 Peel Session No. 2 (recorded 20 October 1987, transmitted 28 October 1987) tracks 5, 13 Peel Session No. 3 (recorded 23 October 1988, transmitted 1 November 1988) tracks 10, 19, 20

Originally Planned Release

Originally this record was planned to be released on 25 March 1991 by Midnight Music in 3 different formats (LP/CD/MC). Catalogue number would have been CHIME 00.41 D/CD/CC and the first 5,000 LP's would have been released with a bonus Mini-LP called "We'll Get You You Creeps". Test pressings for the LP exist, it is not clear if the same goes for the CD, Cassette and Mini-LP.

The promo booklet had the following text:

"McCarthy may well be no more... that's all very well, but... they've left us with many fine memories and a rich heritage of classic sounds. Most of the material on this album is no longer available and most of it was never available on album. None of it has ever been on CD or cassette before. Because there was such a wealth to choose from, the CD and cassette are bulging with extra tracks – and so that vinyl fetishists don't miss out, the first 5,000 come replete with a whole mini-LP of extra tracks, a few of which didn't make it onto the CD or cassette. Confused? You most probably will be! To cap it all, there were still a few goodies that got left out.

A combination of 'best of' and collectable rarities, "That's All Very Well But" satisfies both approaches with this fitting testament to the McCarthy legend. From the tension of "Red Sleeping Beauty" through the spine-tingling melody of "This Nelson Rockefeller" to the soap-box tirade of "Keep An Open Mind Or Else", this vintage collection traces their whole career, illustrating the depth of their lyrics and their musical development.

All McCarthy's previous records were well-received throughout certain sections of the media with consistent entries in the Independent Charts; expect this to do the same."

Planned track listing CD/cassette

1. "Red Sleeping Beauty"
2. "Should The Bible Be Banned ('7-inch' Version)"
3. "The Myth of the North/South Divide"
4. "The Enemy Is at Home"
5. "The Funeral" *
6. "This Nelson Rockefelle]"
7. "The Vision of Peregrine Worsthorne"*
8. "The Fall"
9. "An MP Speaks" *
10. "Kill Kill Kill Kill"
11. "We Are All Bourgeois Now"
12. "From The Damned"
13. "You're Alive"
14. "Antinature" *
15. "Frans Hals" *
16. "Charles Windsor" *
17. "For The Fat Lady"
18. "Keep An Open Mind Or Else (Acoustic Guitar Mix)"
19. "A Child Soon in Chains" *
20. "Should The Bible Be Banned"

• John Peel/Janice Long BBC session recordings

Planned track listing LP

Side A:

1. "Red Sleeping Beauty"
2. "The Myth of the North/South Divide"
3. "The Funeral" *
4. "This Nelson Rockefeller"
5. "The Vision of Peregrine Worsthorne" *
6. "The Fall"
7. "Should The Bible Be Banned ('7-inch' Version)"

Side B:

1. "We Are All Bourgeois Now"
2. "From The Damned"
3. "You're Alive"
4. "Keep An Open Mind Or Else (Acoustic Guitar Mix)"
5. "The Enemy Is at Home"
6. "Frans Hals" *
7. "Charles Windsor" *

• John Peel/Janice Long BBC session recordings

Note: The test pressing has the tracks "Frans Hals" and "Charles Windsor" the other way around.

Planned track listing mini-LP We'll Get You You Creeps

Side A:

1. "Frans Hals (7-inch Version?)"
2. "Something Wrong"
3. "In Purgatory"
4. "An MP Speaks" *
5. "The Comrade Era" *

Side B:

1. "Kill Kill Kill Kill"
2. "A Child Soon in Chains" *
3. "God The Father"
4. "Antinature" *
5. "For The Fat Lady"

• John Peel/Janice Long BBC session recordings

The BBC Session for "The Vision of Peregrine Worsthorne" remains unreleased. The Studio version for "The Myth of the North/South Divide" comes from the "Lie To Me" compilation album. Several other tracks also have their origin from elusive releases and are not on the final release.

References