Entertainment Today
1995
An Excursion Into The Realm Of New CDs
Robyn Hitchcock
Black Snake Diamond Role
Gravy Deco (The Complete Groovy Decay/Decoy Sessions)
I Often Dream Of Trains
Rhino Records
by Greg Siegel
For those of you who think Robyn Hitchcock's career began in 1988 -- with his major-label debut Globe Of Frogs -- think again. Actually, as many in the eccentric singer-songwriter's cultish cognescenti will attest, Hitchcock -- with and without his band The Egyptians -- recorded some of his best work in the mid-'80s, when American audiences (save perhaps college-radio devotees) associated the name "Hitchcock" only with psychotic images of a knife and shower.
One of the reasons wide recognition eluded Hitchcock in his pre-A&M days was that, in The United States, his albums were only available on import only. At over 20 bucks a pop, it made collecting Hitchcock's entire catalogue maddeningly prohibitive.
No more. Rhino Records, with the authorizing hand of Hitchcock himself, has opened the vaults, reissuing and repackaging some of the '80s' best kept secrets -- complete with original artwork and new liner notes and photos.
The first batch of releases -- Black Snake Diamond Role, Gravy Deco (The complete Groovy Decay/Decoy Sessions) and I Often Dream Of Trains -- brings to light Hitchcock's early solo work, following the demise of his late-'70s band The Soft Boys. Taken together, these releases paint a picture of a gifted artist struggling to establish a niche for himself -- and, indeed, a vital and viable musical identity -- in an often bewildering Postpunk milieu.
It's no big surprise that on Black Snake Diamond Role, his first solo release, Hitchcock teamed up with various members of The Soft Boys -- including bassist/producer Matthew Seligman. The album finds Hitchcock in jolly spirits, matching his usual whimsical vignettes, surreal characters, and Byrdslike Jingle-Jangle with Seligman's defiantly lo-fi production. It's an exuberant record, especially evident in "Brenda's Iron Sledge", "Acid Bird", and the bonus track "Happy The Golden Prince" (a spoken-word narrative that evokes Lewis Carroll and medieval folklore in equal measure).
Then, Hitchcock made a move he sorely regretted. Groovy Decay paired Hitchcock with a seasoned producer -- Steve Hillage -- and a sizable recording budget. Flanked by a pack of professional session-men, and holed up in a sterile, unfamiliar studio, Hitchcock was far away from home. (By his own admission, Hitchcock cared more about the corner pub than the album.)
The dubious decision to substitute saxophone for guitar, coupled with Hitchcock's emotional problems at the time, led to an oddly listless album. Only "Young People Scream", a mordant take on the Punk ethos; "The Rain", with its thumping Bo Diddley beat; "America", an inspired Pop workout; and "St. Petersburg", a threnody that finally makes proper use of the album's ubiquitous saxophone make it worthwhile. (Gravy Deco assembles the Decay studio versions and the subsequently released Decoy demo versions on one disc.)
The Groovy debacle resulted in a three-year hiatus. In 1984, Hitchcock resurfaced with I Often Dream Of Trains, a huge step in the right direction -- even if it was basically a one-man project. With its spartan arrangements (guitar and piano), quirky song structures, and Beatlesque underpinnings Trains found Hitchcock in the midst of rediscovering his artistic voice. For any other artist, "Uncorrected Personality Traits" (which sets Pop Freudianisms to the harmonies of a barbershop quartert) and "Mellow Together" (a hilarious sendup of hippie cant) would be novelty songs. But for Hitchcock, they're just variations of his wacky weltanschauung.
While these albums aren't essential Hitchcock, they offer keen insight into the early creative mind of an unheraleded Pop great. What's more, they're an intriguing, if uneven, portal through which to enter Hitchcock's phantasmagoric wonderland.
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