Westlake (album)
Encyclopedia
Westlake is the first album by British singer and songwriter David Westlake
. The record was released in 1987 on Creation Records
. Luke Haines
describes it as "a minor classic".
recorded 18-19 April 1987 at Greenhouse Studios in Islington
, London
by Paul Gadd (son of Gary Glitter
) and Steve Nunn. The record was Luke Haines
's first release. The Triffids
' rhythm section plays on the record.
Alternative versions of three of the songs on Westlake ("The Word Around Town", "Dream Come True" and "Everlasting") feature in a BBC Radio One
session recorded in January 1987 for Janice Long
by David Westlake
with Robert Forster
, Robert Vickers and Amanda Brown
of The Go-Betweens
.
Between 1985 and 1991 David Westlake
was in British indie band The Servants
.
issued the original vinyl album
in November 1987. The album was reissued on CD
in 1993 after Sony Music Entertainment
bought Creation Records
. The record is presently unavailable
. Its opening track, "The Word Around Town", is available on Doing God's Work - A Creation Compilation
.
.
David Westlake
David Westlake is a British singer/songwriter. What few people who know and love Westlake and his tiny catologue of terrific tunes usually come from one of three associations...
. The record was released in 1987 on Creation Records
Creation Records
Creation Records was a British independent record label headed by Alan McGee. Along with Dick Green and Joe Foster, McGee founded Creation in 1983. The label lasted until its demise in 1999. The name came from the 1960s band The Creation , whom McGee greatly admired. McGee, Green and Foster were...
. Luke Haines
Luke Haines
Luke Haines is an English musician, songwriter and author, who has recorded music under various names and with various bands, including The Auteurs, Baader Meinhof and Black Box Recorder.-'New Wave':...
describes it as "a minor classic".
Context
Westlake is a mini-albumMini-LP
A Mini-LP or Mini-album is a short album, usually retailing at a lower price than an album that would be considered "full-length".-History:...
recorded 18-19 April 1987 at Greenhouse Studios in Islington
Islington
Islington is a neighbourhood in Greater London, England and forms the central district of the London Borough of Islington. It is a district of Inner London, spanning from Islington High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the area around the busy Upper Street...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
by Paul Gadd (son of Gary Glitter
Gary Glitter
Gary Glitter is an English former glam rock singer-songwriter and musician.Glitter first came to prominence in the glam rock era of the early 1970s...
) and Steve Nunn. The record was Luke Haines
Luke Haines
Luke Haines is an English musician, songwriter and author, who has recorded music under various names and with various bands, including The Auteurs, Baader Meinhof and Black Box Recorder.-'New Wave':...
's first release. The Triffids
The Triffids
The Triffids were a seminal Australian alternative rock and pop band formed in Perth, Western Australia, in May 1978 with charismatic, David McComb as singer-songwriter, guitarist, bass guitarist and keyboardist. They achieved negligible success in Australia, but greater success in the U.K...
' rhythm section plays on the record.
Alternative versions of three of the songs on Westlake ("The Word Around Town", "Dream Come True" and "Everlasting") feature in a BBC Radio One
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
session recorded in January 1987 for Janice Long
Janice Long
Janice Long is an English radio broadcaster currently working on BBC Radio 2. Her show is on Sunday to Thursday nights from midnight to 02:00. She is the older sister of TV and radio personality Keith Chegwin.-Early career:...
by David Westlake
David Westlake
David Westlake is a British singer/songwriter. What few people who know and love Westlake and his tiny catologue of terrific tunes usually come from one of three associations...
with Robert Forster
Robert Forster (musician)
Robert Forster is an Australian singer-songwriter, best known for his work with songwriting partner Grant McLennan, with whom he co-founded The Go-Betweens.Forster grew up in Brisbane, Australia attending Brisbane Grammar School...
, Robert Vickers and Amanda Brown
Amanda Brown (musician)
Amanda Gabrielle Brown is an Australian composer, classically trained musician, singer and songwriter, renowned for her role as the violinist of the band The Go-Betweens and more recently a session musician and soundtrack composer....
of The Go-Betweens
The Go-Betweens
The Go-Betweens were an indie rock band formed in Brisbane, Australia in 1977 by singer-songwriters and guitarists, Robert Forster and Grant McLennan. They were later joined by Lindy Morrison on drums, Robert Vickers on bass guitar and Amanda Brown on violin, oboe, guitar, and backing vocals,...
.
Between 1985 and 1991 David Westlake
David Westlake
David Westlake is a British singer/songwriter. What few people who know and love Westlake and his tiny catologue of terrific tunes usually come from one of three associations...
was in British indie band The Servants
The Servants
The Servants was an indie band formed in 1985 in Hayes, Middlesex, England by singer and songwriter David Westlake. The Servants were on 1986’s NME-associated C86 compilation, and the greatly expanded 48-song reissue version in 2006. The Servants was the original home of Luke Haines...
.
Release history
Creation RecordsCreation Records
Creation Records was a British independent record label headed by Alan McGee. Along with Dick Green and Joe Foster, McGee founded Creation in 1983. The label lasted until its demise in 1999. The name came from the 1960s band The Creation , whom McGee greatly admired. McGee, Green and Foster were...
issued the original vinyl album
LP record
The LP, or long-playing microgroove record, is a format for phonograph records, an analog sound storage medium. Introduced by Columbia Records in 1948, it was soon adopted as a new standard by the entire record industry...
in November 1987. The album was reissued on CD
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
in 1993 after Sony Music Entertainment
Sony Music Entertainment
Sony Music Entertainment ' is the second-largest global recorded music company of the "big four" record companies and is controlled by Sony Corporation of America, the United States subsidiary of Japan's Sony Corporation....
bought Creation Records
Creation Records
Creation Records was a British independent record label headed by Alan McGee. Along with Dick Green and Joe Foster, McGee founded Creation in 1983. The label lasted until its demise in 1999. The name came from the 1960s band The Creation , whom McGee greatly admired. McGee, Green and Foster were...
. The record is presently unavailable
Deletion (music industry)
Deletion is a music industry term referring to the removal of a record or records from a label's official catalog, so that it is out of print, but usually at a record artist's request....
. Its opening track, "The Word Around Town", is available on Doing God's Work - A Creation Compilation
Doing God's Work - A Creation Compilation
Doing God's Work - A Creation Compilation is a various artists compilation album of British indie music released in 1987 by Creation Records...
.
Track listing
All tracks written by David WestlakeDavid Westlake
David Westlake is a British singer/songwriter. What few people who know and love Westlake and his tiny catologue of terrific tunes usually come from one of three associations...
.
- "The Word Around Town" – 3:35
- "Dream Come True" – 3:22
- "Rings On Her Fingers" – 4:39
- "Everlasting" – 4:18
- "She Grew And She Grew" – 3:33
- "Talk Like That" – 3:19
Personnel
- David WestlakeDavid WestlakeDavid Westlake is a British singer/songwriter. What few people who know and love Westlake and his tiny catologue of terrific tunes usually come from one of three associations...
– vocals and guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with... - Luke HainesLuke HainesLuke Haines is an English musician, songwriter and author, who has recorded music under various names and with various bands, including The Auteurs, Baader Meinhof and Black Box Recorder.-'New Wave':...
– guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
and pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal... - Martyn P. CaseyMartyn P. CaseyMartyn Paul Casey is an English-born Australian rock bass guitarist. He had been a member of The Triffids, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds and Grinderman. Casey plays either his Fender Precision Bass or Fender Jazz Bass.-Biography:...
– bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - Alsy MacDonaldAlsy MacDonaldAlan MacDonald is an Australian rock musician and lawyer, best known as the drummer of the 1980s band The Triffids, where he performed under his nickname 'Alsy'....
– drumsPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...