I Was Born a Man was the first of five albums of home-made recordings, released by Stephen Jones

Stephen Jones (Baby Bird)

Stephen Jones is an English musician and novelist.- Lo-fi period :After studying at Nottingham Trent University, Jones became involved with an experimental theatre company, Dogs in Honey, in Sheffield in the late 1980s, writing songs for productions.By 1994, Jones had written over 400 songs and...

 under the name Baby Bird in 1995.

It was originally a limited edition release, but is now available as part of the 2002 CD box set The Original Lo-Fi

The Original Lo-Fi

The Original Lo-Fi is a CD box set compiling five albums of home-made recordings released by Stephen Jones under the name Baby Bird between 1995 and 1997, plus a sixth CD , consisting of additional material recorded during the 1990s.-CD one :#"Blow It To The Moon"#"Mans Tight Vest"#"Lemonade...

.

The album includes a version of the song "Cornershop", which was subsequently a hit single single for Jones' band Babybird

Babybird

Babybird are a British indie band formed in 1995. The band is fronted by Stephen Jones, who has also released records as a solo artist, using his own name.-Career:Jones had begun...

 (written as one word).

Track listing

1. "Blow It To The Moon"
2. "Mans Tight Vest"
3. "Lemonade Baby"
4. "C.F.C."
5. "Cornershop"
6. "Kiss Your Country"
7. "Hong Kong Blues"
8. "Dead Bird Sings"
9. "Baby Bird"
10. "Farmer"
11. "Invisible Tune"
12. "Alison"
13. "Love Love Love"

Reviews

"I'll just say that I Was Born A Man is the only record I've heard this year with lyrics worth remembering and music that's impossible to forget, because I'd rather you listen to it than me talking about it." - Melody Maker

Melody Maker

Melody Maker, published in the United Kingdom, was, according to its publisher IPC Media, the world's oldest weekly music newspaper. It was founded in 1926 as a magazine targeted at musicians; in 2000 it was merged into "long-standing rival" New Musical Express.-1950s–1960s:Originally the Melody...

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"...whatever ultra-naff low-fidelity keyboard tinklings he undertakes; he carries with him incredibly touching pieces like Dead Bird Sings that create, in the middle of this tank top

Tank top

Tank top may refer to:* a type of sleeveless shirt worn by men and women * a sleeveless sweater, also known as a sweater vest * the plating forming the inner bottom of a ship hull...

 of a record, an altogether different kind of sadness." - NME

NME

The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...