Skids "The Saints Are Coming - The Best of the Skids" (2007)

The Saints Are Coming - The Best of the Skids (compilation)
release date: Feb. 26, 2007
format: cd
[album rate: 4 / 5]
producer: various
label: EMI / Virgin - nationality: Scotland, UK

Compilation album by Skids. Like the live album Masquerade Masquerade (2007) this was released after the U2 and Green Day tribute single "The Saints Are Coming" (2006) when these two bands released their collaboration cover single. I used to have Skids' first compilation album Fanfare (1982) on cassette, however, this is an even better best of album. The '82 album consists of 12 great tracks, and this one not only include all tracks from that album but it contains 21 tracks of which only two are not really great, and in a fine way shows the band's potential.

Skids "Masquerade Masquerade - The Skids Live" (2007) (live)

Masquerade Masquerade - The Skids Live (live)
release date: Feb. 2007
format: digital
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,58]
label: EMI / Virgin - nationality: Scotland, UK

Live compilation album by Skids released shortly after the U2 and Green Day tribute single in 2006 when these two bands released their collaboration cover single "The Saints Are Coming" after their live concert in the aftermath of the damages by the hurricane Katrina (Aug. 2006) supporting the victims of New Orleans. This album was released simultaneously with the compilation album The Saints Are Coming - The Best of the Skids. This consists of 22 tracks recorded Live at Hammersmith Odeon Oct. 21, 1980 (tracks 1-16) and at Glasgow Apollo Jun. 16, 1979 (tracks 17-22). For a fan of Skids this is great but if one isn't that familiar with the band I would recommend the best of compilation album with studio production sound.

Skids "Fanfare" (1982)

Fanfare (compilation)
release date: May 1982
format: digital
[album rate: 4 / 5]
producer: Mick Glossop, Bill Nelson, David Batchelor
label: Virgin Records - nationality: Scotland, UK

Compilation album by Skids released after the band's disbandment. The album contains 12 great tracks - a few ones missing, but generally just a great conclusion to a short-lived band. The compilation album The Saints Are Coming - The Best of the Skids released in 2007 contains all tracks (in a new order) from this original album and nine additional more songs by Skids.
[ allmusic.com 4 / 5 stars ]

Skids "Joy" (1981)

Joy
release date: Dec. 1981
format: digital (17 x File, MP3) (2009 reissue)
[album rate: 2,5 / 5] [2,48]
producer: Russell Webb
label: Virgin Records - nationality: Scotland, UK

Track highlights: 1. "Blood and Soil" - 5. "Iona" - 7. "Brothers" - 11. "Fields"

4th and final studio album by Skids. After releasing The Absolute Game (1980), the band was reduced to a duo with only Richard Jobson left as founding member. Stuart Adamson had been the band's backbone as primary musical composer, and with only Jobson handling lead vocal and Webb as bassist, the two made use of a large number of additional musicians to finalise the album. Among these were prominent artists like Mike Oldfield (playing keyboards), and Alan Rankine (guitar) and Billy Mackenzie of The Associates (vocals). As a consequence of the band's situation, the style is very different from the first three albums. The original vinyl issue counts eleven tracks (tracks #1-11 in digital format). The album has been released in various versions, some of which has alternate tracklisting, but the 2009 extended reissue comes with the normalised track order in addition to six bonus tracks (all alternate versions of album songs).
The album isn't all bad, but as a homogeneous collection of songs, it's basically more strange than good. It has interesting aspects and ideas, some have industrial currents, but as a musical contribution to Scottish new wave it basically fails flat. Furthermore, to call this an album by Skids is in a way to extend the conception of the band with one founding member remaining. Mostly, it has been reduced to nothing more than Jobson's prolonged project. At the point of the release, Stuart Adamson had joined a new act called Big Country.
Jobson and Webb would eventually dissolve Skids in 1982, and later that year the two formed the band The Armoury Show.
In 2007 Jobson managed to reassemble Skids with various musicians to play a scheduled three gigs in memory of Stuart Adamson. The new formation of Skids played again in 2009 and 2010, so it seems Jobson likes touring with Skids again playing the old songs.
[ allmusic.com 2 / 5 stars ]

Skids "The Absolute Game" (1980)

The Absolute Game
release date: Sep. 1980
format: 2 lp vinyl (first issue - V 2174)
[album rate: 4 / 5] [3,96]
producer: Mick Glossop
label: Virgin Records - nationality: Scotland, UK

Track highlights: A) 1. "Circus Games" (4 / 5) - 2. "Out of Town" (4 / 5) - 3. "Goodbye Civilian" - 4. "The Children Saw the Shame" (4 / 5) - 5. "A Woman in Winter" (4,5 / 5) (live) - - B) 2. "Happy to Be With You"
[ Live at 'Rock Goes to College' on BBC, 1981 ]

3rd studio album by Skids following one year after Days in Europa is a mighty fine improvement, and then it was originally released as a double album; or more precisely, it was released as a standard album with a free bonus album titled Strength Through Joy. In early 1980 founding member William Simpson was replaced by Russell Webb on bass, and before recording the album, Mike Baillie on drums made the band a quartet again. However, after the album's release Bailie left, and soon after, also the band's musical composer Stuart Adamson left the band due to controversies with Richard Jobson, basically leaving the band reduced to a duo consisting of Jobson and Webb, who would continue to record one last album as Skids, Joy (1981), before finally dissolving in 1982.
For the first couple of years I thought this was a best of album. Despite, Jobson and Webb's '81 release, this is really the final album by on of the most interesting and influential bands of the punk rock era, and this is almost an accomplishment on level with the band's great debut.
[ allmusic.com 3 / 5, Records Collector 4 / 5 stars ]

Skids "Circus Games" (1980) (single)

Circus Games, 7'' single

release date: Aug. 1980

format: vinyl (VS 359)

[single rate: 4 / 5] [3,88]

producer: Mick Glossop

label: Virgin Records - nationality: Scotland, UK

Tracklist: A) "Circus Games" (4 / 5) (TOTP performance) - - B) "One Decree"

Single release taken from the forthcoming third album by Skids The Absolute Game (Sep. 1980).

Also the B-side is from the album and both tracks are credited the band, although, they're undoubtedly Stuart Adamson compositions - giving the dominance of his guitar-arrangements. The title track peaked at number #32 on the UK singles chart as the best faring single of three taken from the album.

back cover

Skids "Working for the Yankee Dollar" (1979) (single)

Working for the Yankee Dollar, 7'' single

release date: Nov. 1979

format: vinyl (VS 306)

[single rate: 4 / 5] [3,84]

producer: Mick Glossop; Bill Nelson

label: Virgin Records - nationality: Scotland, UK

Tracklist: A) "Working for the Yankee Dollar" (4 / 5) - - B) "Vanguard's Crusade"

Second single release taken from Days in Europa (Oct. 1979) and following the release of Charade (Sep. '79). The A-side is a different single-version re-produced by Mick Glossop of the album track, which has Bill Nelson as producer - he also produced the B-side, an outtake from the album, and both tracks are credited songwriter Richard Jobson and composer Stuart Adamson. The title track peaked at number #20 on the singles chart.

back cover

Skids "Days in Europa" (1979)

Days in Europa
release date: Oct. 1979
format: vinyl / digital
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,62]
producer: Bill Nelson
label: Virgin Records - nationality: Scotland, UK

Tracklist: 1. "Animation" (4 / 5) (live) - 2. "Charade" (5 / 5) (TOTP '79) - 3. "Dulce et decorum est (pro patria mori)" - 4. "Pros & Cons" - 5. "Home of the Saved" (2 / 5) - 6. "Working for the Yankee Dollar" (4 / 5) - 7. "The Olympian" (3 / 5) - 8. "Thanatos" - 9. "A Day in Europa" - 10. "Peaceful Times" (2 / 5)
[ At the Old Grey Whistle Test '79 ]

2nd studio album by Skids released only eight months following the splendid debut. After drummer Thomas Kellichan left the band just prior to recording the album, Skids were now reduced to a trio. The album contains really great songs (tracks #1, #2, and #6) that all follow the original formula from Scared to Dance but some of the songs seem like mere fillers making this a less coherent album. Both "Charade" and "Working for the Yankee Dollar" were minor hits for the band but then the album also contains "Peaceful Times", a strange track with guitars, drums and bass played backwards [!], which is not as bad as one might expect it to be, but it's basically something entirely different and more of a musical experiment.
Generally, the album wasn't well-received as Richard Jobson was confronted with his historical interest in World War I and II, for his glorification of the Roman Empire (a thing he would bring forth on later albums) and subjects related to Nazi-Germany - e.g. the choice of a front cover that appears to glorify the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. Jobson and the band were subsequently accused of nazi-sympathy - which Jobson always denied. The label reacted by reissuing the album with a new cover in 1980 (still showcasing the original cover in small format), and with the inclusion of the new single (hit) "Masquerade" in exchange for track #4 and with a slightly changed running order. However, newer reissues from 2001 have once again been issued with the original 'Olympic' cover.
Days in Europa has a better production sound than the debut, and the arrangements are generally at a slower pace. It's by no means a poor album - it just turns out as somewhat incoherent, and as a difficult follow-up to an astounding debut.
Recommended.
[ allmusic.com 3 / 5, Smash Hits 4 / 5 stars ]

1980 cover

Skids "Charade" (1979) (single)

Charade, 7'' single

release date: Sep. 1979

format: vinyl (VS 288)

[single rate: 4 / 5] [3,92]

producer: Bill Nelson

label: Virgin Records - nationality: Scotland, UK

Tracklist: A) "Charade" (5 / 5) - - B) "Grey Parade"

Single release by Skids is the promo single taken from the band's forthcoming second album Days in Europa (Oct. 1979). The title track is credited songwriter and vocalist Richard Jobson and composer and guitarist Stuart Adamson. The B-side is credited Jobson / Adamson and producer Bill Nelson. "Charade" peaked at number #31 on the singles chart list and nevertheless stands as one of the band's great singles with the magic touch of guitarist Stuart Adamson and his unique sense for creating highly original melodic rock compositions.

back cover

Skids "Scared to Dance" (1979)

Scared to Dance [debut]

release date: Feb. 23, 1979
format: vinyl (US issue - VI 2116) / cd
[album rate: 4,5 / 5] [4,35]
producer: David Batchelor
label: Virgin Records - nationality: Scotland, UK

Track highlights*: A) 1. "The Saints Are Coming" (5 / 5) - 2. "Scared to Dance" (4 / 5) - 3. "Contusion" (4 / 5) - 4. "Into the Valley" (5 / 5) (official video) - 5. "Integral Plot" (4 / 5) - - B) 1. "Sweet Suburbia" (5 / 5) (Peel Session) - 2. "Charles" (4,5 / 5) - 3. "Melancholy Soldiers" (4 / 5) - 5. "Of One Skin" (5 / 5) (live) - 6. "Hope and Glory" - 7**. "T.V. Stars" (4,5 / 5)
*US issue - **Extra track, not listed

Studio album debut by Scottish band Skids is one of my absolute favourite albums of the punk rock era. I never understood why this band wasn't praised until U2 and Green Day decided to make a cover version of "The Saints Are Coming" in 2006. I think, it's one of the best and most original debut albums. Although, it was well-received, Skids is one of the most underrated bands of punk rock history. The album deserves at least the same amount of recognition as the debut by The Clash. The songs are equally as good, or: slightly better - the production is remarkably better and then only fans know of it! Musical composer, lead guitarist, and vocalist Stuart Adamson later on experienced bigger success with the band Big Country but before that he made another two great albums with Skids. The other main front figure is songwriter Richard Jobson on lead vocals, and together with William Simpson on bass, and Thomas Kellichan on drums these four were Skids at this early stage.
Various issues of the album have different track listing, and they are not equally good. I happen to own the first US issue of the album, which I also consider the best version, as it includes great tracks like "Contusion", "Sweet Surburbia", and "T.V. Stars" - three important tracks that somehow don't figure on the original UK release. After the album release, drummer Kellichan left the band and no new member was included, although, Rusty Egan became the band's preferred drummer for a time. I must have played this particular album a zillion times at maximum volume whenever I listened to "Of One Skin" or some of the other amazing tracks from this favourite of mine. The album doesn't figure as my year-best-release but 1979 gave the world three other absolute great albums: Unknown Pleasures by Joy Division, Setting Sons by The Jam, and London Calling by The Clash, and in that exquisite short list of rock's finest you also find Scared to Dance.
Stuart Adamson R.I.P. (1958-2001)
Essential, and highly recommended!
[ allmusic.com 4 / 5, Smash Hits 4,5 / 5 stars ]