Lloyd Cole and The Commotions – Rattlesnakes
(Polydor Records 1984 LCLP1)
Matrix No’s: A1/B1 – UK Pressing
Red Text on back cover, bottom left corner
Sleeve in Nr MINT- condition
– some wear to edges/corners
Inner Sleeve in Nr MINT condition
Vinyl in Nr MINT condition
(there are some surface marks visible on the vinyl when held up to the light but they don’t affect the sound quality)
Lloyd Cole and the Commotions were a British rock/pop band that formed in Glasgow, Scotland in 1982. Between 1984 and 1989, the band scored four Top 20 albums and five Top 40 singles in the UK. After they broke up in 1989, Cole embarked on a solo career but the band reformed briefly in 2004 to perform a 20th anniversary mini-tour of the UK and Ireland.
The band were formed whilst Cole (who was born in Derbyshire, England) was studying at the University of Glasgow. They signed to Polydor Records; their debut single “Perfect Skin” reaching number 26 in the UK chart in spring 1984, while the second single “Forest Fire” reached 41. Their first album, Rattlesnakes, was released in October 1984. Produced by Paul Hardiman and featuring string arrangements by Anne Dudley, it peaked at No. 13 in the UK and was certified Gold for sales over 100,000 copies. NME included it in its Top 100 Albums of All Time list, and the title track was later covered by the American singer Tori Amos. The Welsh band Manic Street Preachers included the album amongst their top ten list.
The band’s follow-up album, Easy Pieces, was produced by Clive Langer and Alan Winstanley (who had previously produced Madness, The Teardrop Explodes and Elvis Costello and the Attractions). Released in November 1985, the album was a quicker commercial success than its predecessor (entering the UK album chart at No. 5, and certified gold within a month). The singles “Brand New Friend” and “Lost Weekend” were the band’s first and only UK Top 20 hits (reaching No. 19 and No. 17 respectively).
Two years later, the band released their third album, their final one whilst together, Mainstream. Produced by Ian Stanley (former writer and keyboard player of Tears for Fears), the album peaked at No. 9 in the UK and was also certified gold, but contained only one UK Top 40 single, “Jennifer She Said” (No. 31). Its first single “My Bag”, and a later release, the From The Hip EP, failed to make the Top 40.
In 1989, the band decided to split up and released a “best of” compilation, 1984-1989, which was their fourth Top 20 album (UK No. 14) and fourth Gold certification. Following this, Cole embarked on a solo career with the release of his eponymous album in 1990.
On the first two Commotions albums, Cole was the band’s main songwriter (though he co-wrote several songs with various bandmembers). The third album is credited to the band as a whole, though Cole remained the sole lyricist. Particularly notable were Cole’s knowingly pretentious lyrics (he was studying philosophy at university when the band started) and namedropping the likes of Norman Mailer, Leonard Cohen, Arthur Lee, Grace Kelly, Truman Capote, Simone de Beauvoir, Nancy Sinatra, and Eva Marie Saint as well as referring to Sean Penn (somewhat sympathetically) as “Mr. Madonna”.
In 2006, Scottish band Camera Obscura released the song “Lloyd, I’m Ready to Be Heartbroken” as an answer song to the Commotions’ 1984 hit “(Are You) Ready to Be Heartbroken?”.
Rattlesnakes is the debut album by British group Lloyd Cole and the Commotions, released on 12 October 1984. The album reached number 13 in the UK Album Charts and included the hit singles “Perfect Skin” (#26 in UK), “Forest Fire” (#41 in UK) and “Rattlesnakes” (#65 in UK, #31 in the Netherlands).
Track listing
All lyrics by Lloyd Cole, all music composed by Cole except where noted.
Side one
- “Perfect Skin” – 3:13
- “Speedboat” – 4:37
- “Rattlesnakes” (Cole, Neil Clark) – 3:28
- “Down on Mission Street” – 3:49
- “Forest Fire” – 4:34
Side two
- “Charlotte Street” – 3:55
- “2cv” – 2:52
- “Four Flights Up” (Cole, Lawrence Donegan) – 2:37
- “Patience” (Cole, Blair Cowan) – 3:40
- “Are You Ready to Be Heartbroken?” (Cole, Clark) – 3:06
Personnel
Lloyd Cole and the Commotions:
- Neil Clark – guitar
- Lloyd Cole – vocals, guitar
- Blair Cowan – keyboards
- Lawrence Donegan – bass guitar
- Stephen Irvine – drums, tambourine
Production:
- Paul Hardiman – producer
- Ric Ocasek – remix on “Perfect Skin”, “Four Flights Up” and “Patience”
- Anne Dudley and the Commotions – string arrangements
- Derek MacKillop – management
Cover:
- Robert Farber – cover photo
- Da Gama – cover design
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