THE BOOMTOWN RATS – A TONIC FOR THE TROOPS LP – Nr MINT 1Y2 UK PUNK BOB GELDOF

The Boomtown Rats – A Tonic For The Troops
(Ensign Records  1978  ENVY3)
Matrix No’s: 1Y2/2Y1 – UK Pressing

Sleeve in Nr MINT condition
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)

The Boomtown Rats are an Irish rock band that had a series of Irish and UK hits between 1977 and 1985. The group is led by vocalist Bob Geldof. The other members of the original line-up were Garry Roberts (lead guitar), Johnnie Fingers (keyboard), Pete Briquette (bass), Gerry Cott (rhythm guitar) and Simon Crowe (drums). The Boomtown Rats broke up in 1986, but reformed in 2013, without Johnnie Fingers or Gerry Cott.

A Tonic for the Troops is The Boomtown Rats’ second album which was released in 1978, and included the hit singles “She’s So Modern”, “Like Clockwork” and “Rat Trap”. The album peaked at No. 8 in the UK Albums Chart in 1978.

The album featured dark themes in an often upbeat, pop-punk style. One of the album’s tracks, “(I Never Loved) Eva Braun” was described by one critic as “the happiest, cheeriest, best upbeat song about Hitler ever written.” Other tracks featured subject matter including suicide (“Living in an Island”) and euthanasia (“Can’t Stop”).

“She’s So Modern” reached number 12 on the UK Singles Chart. The album’s title was taken from a line in this song: “And Charlie ain’t no Nazi/ she likes to wear her leather boots/ ‘cuz it’s exciting for the veterans and/ it’s a tonic for the troops.”

The most commercially successful track on the album is “Rat Trap,” which made it to Number 1 on the UK Singles Chart. “Rat Trap” was the final cut on the UK version of the album but the opening track on the US version.

Track listing

All songs written by Bob Geldof except where indicated.

LP

SIDE 1

1. “Like Clockwork” (Bob Geldof, Pete Briquette, Simon Crowe)
2. “Blind Date”
3. “(I Never Loved) Eva Braun”
4. “Living in an Island”
5. “Don’t Believe What You Read”

SIDE 2

1. “She’s So Modern” (Geldof, Johnny Fingers)
2. “Me and Howard Hughes”
3. “Can’t Stop”
4. “(Watch Out For) The Normal People”
5. “Rat Trap”

Personnel

• Bob Geldof – vocals, saxophone
• Pete Briquette – bass, vocals
• Gerry Cott – guitar
• Johnnie Fingers – keyboards, vocals
• Simon Crowe – drums, vocals
• Garry Roberts – guitar, vocals