Track Listing

1. Marjory Razorblade
2. Marlene
3. Talking To No One
4. Eastbourne Ladies
5. Old Soldier
6. I Want My Crown
7. Nasty Lonesome Valley
8. House On The Hill
9. Cheat Me
10. Jack And Edna
11. Everybody Says
12. Mummy
13. Heaven In My View
14. Karate King
15. Dog Latin
16. This Is Spain
17. Chairman's Ball
18. Good Boy
19. Chicken Wing

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #50304 in Music
• Released on: 1990-10-15
• Number of discs: 1

Customer Reviews

Real Sounds.
Kevin Coyne what can you say about him?
Buy the record to hear a true genius at work.
One can hear the influence he has made to British Rytham & Blues in the first few second of any song he sings.
God bless you Kevin.

Harsh but beautiful
This obscure musician has made some unforgettable albums, like Case History and this sprawling masterpiece. His themes are often very dark (fellow Brit Nick Drake’s “Black Eyed Dog” comes to mind when I listen to Coyne) and deals with stuff like insanity, despair, abuse and all manner of deviancies. He’s also a sharp satirist, as demonstrated by Dog Latin, This Is Spain and Good Boy, in which he respectively sends up organised religion, holidays in Spain and the public school system. Eastbourne Ladies also falls into this category. Everybody Says is a beautiul acoustic ballad and Mummy is a sweeping wall-of-sound rocker. His voice is not unlike Van Morrison’s in its scope and expressive range, but while Van’s is likely to be affected by spiritual ecstacy, Coyne’s can be twisted with rage or anguish, as on the title track. Marlene is a catchy number with gorgeous organ and guitar, a galoping beat and a sinister undertone. Talking To No One and House On The Hill are anguished but moving ballads about alienation and insanity. Lonesome Valley is more of the same, but over an uptempo beat and complex vocal arrangement where his voice really shines. Other great tracks include I Want My Crown, Nasty and Chairman’s Ball. With his chosen subject matter, it’s no surprise that Coyne has remained obscure. Still, I think that fans of Leonard Cohen, Richard Thompson, Marianne Faithfull, Nick Drake, Nico, Lydia Lunch and especially Swans, will find much here to appreciate.