All Pearls, New Wave, Lush Pop, No Swine

 

Don't fear the Reaper Neon! It might look like it, but this isn't a pure synth pop affair like Vol. 33 was. No, instead All Pearls, No Swine Vol. 44 is smuggling in a whole bunch of New Wave of all kinds and a whole lot of pop. It's all in the title, folks. Lovers of uptempo fare will be served here by a couple of bands that walk the thin line between punk rock and power pop - say hello to Australia's Mad Turks From Istanbul, Slaughter & The Dogs, the Bleeding Hearts and the Fascinators. The power pop hero for insiders is back - yup, its Jonathan Kupersmith. And if you think, that "Pauline" sounds vaguely familiar to the trained ear of the APNS veteran, you're also right! The issued version was featured way back on volume 13, the series' fourth trip to the 80s. This, however, is the demo version of the song, which is almost as worthwhile. And in absence of more Kupersmith material that i could unearth, it'll have to do. And it does. 

Another big part of this comp is some lush, sopphisticated pop by the likes of Aztec Camera, Crowded House, John Howard, Goanna or China Crisis. So, yeah, some of these names will be familiar, and maybe even their songs, so I tried to keep the 'hidden gem' part of the bargain, by including some songs in different mixes from the classic versions. And there is, as usual, a ton of little known artists to discover on here. Or, you know, a big name, but with a way less big song. Daryl Hall, with comrade Oates in tow, was of course a constant guest in the Top 40 throughout the 80s, but "Survive", the album closer here, is from the outlier in Hall's discography, the Robert Fripp produced artpop album Sacred Songs. 

One thing I've always found fascinating in music - and the sheer number of alternate albums on One Buck Records will attest to that - is the 'what if's'. One of these 'what if's' is present here on All Pearls, No Swine Vol. 44. When Giorgio Moroder was tasked with creating a love song for Top Gun, he and his former car mechanic Tom Whitlock came up with "Take My Breath Away", which they first gave to New Wave/power pop band The Motels. But Moroder wasn't happy with their versionn, and then approached Berlin, or rather lead singer Terri Nunn, as no other Berlin members play on the hit version, which unfortunately and infamously caused the band to immediately break up after their biggest hit. Here's the original Motels version of the song, quite close to the Berlin/Nunn version, so I'm not sure what Moroder was bothered by. 

A compilation that has place for both 60's icon Ronnie Spector and Irish pych punk misfits The Golden Horde? Yup, here it is. So I hope you enjoy the pop songs from a wide range of styles that make up All Pearls, No Swine Vol. 44.