- Audio CD (20 Sep 2004)
- Number of Discs: 1
- Label: EMI
- ASIN: B0002Y2F6Q
- Other Editions: MP3 Download
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 156,591 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
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Product Description
Review
Bill Nelson, lead guitarist, songwriter and vocalist with Be Bop Deluxe is living testament to the power of dreams. For a brief period in the mid 70s this lad from Wakefield dared to dream of a future filled with rocket ships, surrealist films and deadly women. Of course the template for all of this was pilfered from any number of sources, be it 50s pulp sci-fi, Jimi Hendrix, David Bowie or the films of Jean Cocteau (who gets an homage here with the song deftly called...''Jean Cocteau''). What made it rise above the level of glam rock wannabes was Nelson's way with a tune and, of course, a guitar. So how come he's currently in the 'where are they now?' file?
Many people now know him as a rather dour practitioner of sub-Fripp ambience and noodlery but in 1974 he was a fully-fledged axe victim (as the first album was also titled). From the first track of this neat little career summation (released to coincide with the thirtieth anniversary of the band's debut) the listener veritably drowns in demonstrations of the forgotten art of fretboard wizardry. But for all of Nelson's skill one still has to contend with a certain mannerism in the singing and lyric writing. Songs like ''Fair Exchange'' or ''Sister Seagull'' are structurally divine, yet cursed with a hellish archness that irrevocably dates them.
Still, the ensemble playing is breathtaking -these boys loved to show off - and Nelson was always self-aware enough to know that rock was a game. ''Axe Victim'', ''Stage Whispers'' and ''Fair Exchange'' all begin with references to the pretence of standing on stage and playing the star. It was this increasing reluctance and awareness that the band's brand of prog glam was fast becoming an anachronism that led him to going solo. Later tracks from the band's swansong, Drastic Plastic show how he was already taking his cues from bands like the Stranglers rather than his beloved Hendrix.
Nelson never forsook his retro-futurist vision, yet by 1980 the prolific artist had shed the band's memory like a bad suit, left out for the dustman. He wanted to remain relevant. But for a brief spell in the mid-70s glossy little epics like ''Maid In Heaven'' and ''Kiss Of Light'' welded pop perfection to blistering technique. And we all dreamt... --Chris Jones
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Masterful,
By
This review is from: Postcards from the Future: Introducing Be-Bop Deluxe (Audio CD)
This expertly sequenced compilation demonstrates such an exhuberant creativity that it's almost impossible to believe that Be Bop didn't seem to leave much of an imprint on the consciousness of rock music as a whole. "Postcards from the Future' is such an apt title, because echoes of the future are indeed heard in every single one of these tracks - maybe this set will redress that balance. Sublime. If you are new to Be Bop, start here, open your mind, and let the genius in.
5.0 out of 5 stars
BRILLIANT,
By
This review is from: Postcards from the Future: Introducing Be-Bop Deluxe (Audio CD)
ONE OF THE MOST INTERESTING BANDS OF THE 70 S.WORTH IT FOR MAID IN HEAVEN AND YORKSHIRE LANDSCAPE ALONE,BILL NELSON IS ALSO ONE OF ROCKS NICE GUYS WHO COULD HAVE BEEN MASSIVE BUT BELIEVES IN INTEGRITY AND DOING THINGS HIS OWN WAY
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
4.4 out of 5 stars (8 customer reviews) 10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
This Guitar Doesn't Lie,
By Tim Brough "author and music buff" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Postcards from the Future: Introducing Be-Bop Deluxe (Audio CD)
So said Bill Nelson in the song "Stage Whispers." Unfortunately, not that many people got to hear that guitar in America. Bill Nelson and Be Bop Deluxe were a hot item in their native England, but never quite figured out how to crack the American market. It might have been the band's artiness, or their bizarre futuristic fixations, or the fact that they sounded like David Bowie with a louder guitar. (Imagine if Bowie could play guitar like Mick Ronson, and then stayed in the Ziggy persona for a few more albums.) With great records burdened with titles like "Futurama" or "Modern Music," BBD often seemed victims of their own pretensions.
Too bad for us Americans. Bill Nelson is an extraordinary guitarist, and his leads on the songs "Fair Exchange," "Axe Victim" and "Life In The Air Age" put most of the seventies art rockers of the period to shame. They were not quite art rock and not quite glam, but at their best, Be Bop Deluxe tightrope walked the twin genres like few others save Roxy Music. "Post Cards From The Future" is an apt title for a band that seemed to be incapable of sounding of the moment when they were new. Oddly enough, the main drawback to "Postcards" is that some of the songs sound dated in an arty sort of way. (The Bowie comparison sneaks in just a little too often.) What you do gain from listening to Be Bop Deluxe some 30 years on ("Axe Victim" first appeared in 1974) is just how much young bands of the eighties, like Ultravox or Duran Duran, were influenced by their copies of "Modern Music" or "Drastic Plastic." Since those CDs and the rest of the Be Bop Deluxe library remain in expensive import only editions, dropping yourself "Postcards From The Future" is a solid message for lovers of glam and English art rock pre-MTV generation. 11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Sublime Guitar Work with a Mediocre Backing,
By WalterDigsTunes - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Postcards from the Future: Introducing Be-Bop Deluxe (Audio CD)
I'd heard the track "Sound Track" (off their album Futurama) on one of the free CDs that comes along with Mojo magazines. I rather liked the track, as it seemed like a good mix of prog and proto-punk glam. Going off on the hunch that the rest of their material would be similar, I decided to purchase the compilation.
Listening to it, I came upon two conclusions. First, the guitarist is bloody great. Effortlessly, he can shred and rock with the purest sort of rough-edge glee. Fantastic. The rest of the band, however, has a tempo problem. They're so darn slow! Here you've got a top-notch guitarist that can rip it up, and yet the rhythm section lags! Oh, how frustrating that is! Overall, however, some tracks manage to get it right. Many others, however, are caught between the paradox of virtuosity and lethargy. Oh, and the keyboard player adds some good proggyness to the equation. If I had a time machine, I'd go back to the mid-70s, tell Be Bop Deluxe to turn up the tempo and I swear that would make them the gods to punks and proggers alike. 6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
+ 1/2 stars...Not As Complete As AIR AGE ANTHOLOGY,
By Steve Vrana - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Postcards from the Future: Introducing Be-Bop Deluxe (Audio CD)
During the 1970's, Bill Nelson established himself as one of the most exciting guitarists of the period. Unfortunately, very few people were listening--especially in the United States--and that's too bad. Be-Bop Deluxe recorded five studio albums and one live album before calling it quits in 1979. POSTCARDS FROM THE FUTURE does a nice job of cherry-picking highlights from those albums and gives listeners an opportunity to experience one of the era's unsung guitar slingers. [Note: 1997's 2-disc AIR AGE ANTHOLOGY (which duplicates much of POSTCARDS) is still in print and does an even better job of covering this band's career.] HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
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