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Extricate

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Extricate
Studio album by
Released19 February 1990
RecordedMid-late 1989
Studio
Genre
Length40:51 (LP and 2007 CD reissue)
54:32 (MC and 1990 CD)
LabelFontana
Producer
The Fall chronology
Seminal Live
(1989)
Extricate
(1990)
Shift-Work
(1991)
Singles from Extricate
  1. "Telephone Thing"
    Released: 15 January 1990
  2. "Popcorn, Double Feature"
    Released: 12 March 1990
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Mojo[2]
NME10/10[3]
Pitchfork7.9/10[4]
Q[5]
Record Mirror4/5[6]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[7]
Sounds[8]
Spin Alternative Record Guide7/10[9]
Uncut[10]

Extricate is the 12th album by English post-punk band the Fall. It was made immediately after bandleader Mark E. Smith divorced guitarist Brix Smith. Brix's departure helped define the sound of this album: her background vocals and relatively pop-oriented guitar, which had become mainstays of The Fall, are noticeably absent in this release. In one of the more unusual events in the group's career, she was replaced by founding former member Martin Bramah, who had previously left the group in 1979 to form his own group Blue Orchids.

Lead-off single "Telephone Thing" could have been seen as a nod to the Manchester scene of the time as the sound is quite similar to the dance-influenced music that was being released by Happy Mondays and The Stone Roses in 1989. However, its origins were in Smith's previous collaboration with Coldcut on their track "I'm in Deep", which, in turn, led to Coldcut producing the track and "Black Monk Theme Part II", one of two tracks by 60s garage band The Monks to be covered on the album (the other being "Black Monk Theme" – The Fall retitled both tracks). Elsewhere, Bramah, appearing on his first Fall album since Live at the Witch Trials, adds a distinctly raw, even rockabilly sound to some of the songs. However, the album's best-known track was one of the least typical of the group's catalogue: "Bill Is Dead", a slow-paced tender love song which topped John Peel's Festive Fifty that year, the only occasion in the DJ's lifetime when his favourite band would do so. Although originally conceived by Smith and Craig Scanlon as a parody of The Smiths, Smith changed lyrical tack when he decided Scanlon's music deserved better, delivering a highly personal lyric. However, at Smith's insistence, it was not released as a single.[11]

The critical reception to Extricate was largely positive, with Melody Maker suggesting that it was "possibly their finest yet"[12] and NME giving the album a full 10/10.[3] During the Australian leg of the tour accompanying the album, both Martin Bramah and Marcia Schofield were sacked from the group.

The album was re-released in an expanded and re-mastered edition by Universal in May 2007. It would be reissued on vinyl in August 2023, for the first time since 1990, albeit omitting the CD-exclusive bonus tracks.

Track listing

[edit]

Original UK LP

[edit]
Side 1
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Sing! Harpy"Mark E. Smith, Martin Bramah (as "M. Beddington")Craig Leon5:24
2."I'm Frank"Smith, Craig ScanlonLeon3:21
3."Bill Is Dead"Smith, ScanlonLeon4:32
4."Black Monk Theme Part I" (originally titled "I Hate You")The Monks
  • Leon
  • Mark E. Smith
4:35
5."Popcorn, Double Feature"Scott English, Larry WeissLeon3:43
Side 2
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Telephone Thing"Smith, Matt Black, Jon MoreColdcut4:12
2."Hilary"SmithLeon2:30
3."Chicago, Now!"SmithLeon5:59
4."The Littlest Rebel"Smith, Scanlon, Steve Hanley, Simon WolstencroftAdrian Sherwood3:36
5."And Therein..."Smith, Bramah
  • Leon
  • Smith
2:53
Total length:40:51

CD and cassette editions

[edit]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Sing! Harpy"Smith, BramahLeon5:24
2."I'm Frank"Smith, ScanlonLeon3:22
3."Bill Is Dead"Smith, ScanlonLeon4:33
4."Black Monk Theme Part I"The Monks
  • Leon
  • Smith
4:35
5."Popcorn, Double Feature"English, WeissLeon3:44
6."Arms Control Poseur"Smith, Scanlon, WolstencroftSherwood4:44
7."Black Monk Theme Part II" (originally titled "Oh, How to Do Now")The MonksColdcut2:01
8."Telephone Thing"Smith, Black, MoreColdcut4:12
9."Hilary"SmithLeon2:30
10."Chicago, Now!"SmithLeon5:59
11."The Littlest Rebel"Smith, Scanlon, Hanley, WolstencroftSherwood3:37
12."British People in Hot Weather"Smith, Scanlon, Hanley, WolstencroftSherwood3:07
13."And Therein..."Smith, Bramah
  • Leon
  • Smith
2:54
14."Extricate"Smith, Scanlon, Hanley, Adrian SherwoodSherwood3:46
Total length:54:32
  • Of the four extra tracks added, "Arms Control Poseur" and "Black Monk Theme, Part II" were released as B-sides to "Popcorn Double Feature", the former in an alternate version. "British People in Hot Weather" was released as the B-side to "Telephone Thing".

2007 reissue

[edit]

Disc 1

[edit]
  • as per original UK LP
Disc 2
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Telephone Thing" (extended mix) (from "Telephone Thing" 12" single)Smith, Black, MoreColdcut4:19
2."Telephone Dub" (from "Telephone Thing" 12" single)Smith, Black, MoreColdcut4:27
3."British People in Hot Weather" (from "Telephone Thing" single)Smith, Scanlon, Hanley, WolstencroftSherwood3:07
4."Butterflies 4 Brains" (from "Popcorn Double Feature" single)Smith, Scanlon, Hanley, WolstencroftSmith4:15
5."Arms Control Poseur" (single version) (from "Popcorn Double Feature" single)Smith, Scanlon, WolstencroftSherwood5:03
6."Arms Control Poseur" (from Extricate CD)Smith, Scanlon, WolstencroftSherwood4:46
7."Zandra" (from limited edition "Popcorn Double Feature" single)Smith, BramahSmith2:47
8."Black Monk Theme Part II" (from limited edition "Popcorn Double Feature" single)The MonksColdcut2:01
9."Extricate" (from Extricate CD)Smith, Scanlon, Hanley, SherwoodSherwood3:47
10."Theme From Error-Orrori" (from the various artist compilation album Home, 1990; originally credited to "Mark E. Smith/M. Beddington/S. Hanley/S. Wolstencroft")Smith, Bramah, Hanley, Wolstencroftuncredited4:11
11."Chicago Now!" (Peel Session, December 1989)SmithDale Griffin5:34
12."Black Monk Theme" (Peel Session, December 1989; this is "Part 1")The MonksGriffin4:07
13."Hilary" (Peel Session, December 1989)SmithGriffin2:23
14."Whizz Bang"" (Peel Session, December 1989; not originally broadcast, later reworked as "Butterflies 4 Brains")Smith, Scanlon, Hanley, WolstencroftGriffin3:01
Total length:54:02

Personnel

[edit]
The Fall
Additional personnel
Technical
  • Craig Leon – production, mixing
  • Adrian Sherwood – production, mixing
  • Coldcut – production, mixing
  • Mark E. Smith – production, mixing
  • Alaistar – engineering
  • George Shilling – engineering
  • Ian Gillespie – engineering
  • "A bunch of guys in ponytails" – engineering
  • Anthony Frost – front cover painting
  • Bob Berry – front cover painting photograph
  • Pointblanc – artwork
  • Paul Cox – band photography

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Dougan, John. "Extricate – The Fall". AllMusic. Retrieved 2 July 2013.
  2. ^ Harrison, Ian (October 2016). "Rebellious Jukebox". Mojo. No. 275. pp. 62–67.
  3. ^ a b Brown, James (17 February 1990). "Fall's Gold: Top Mark!". NME. p. 41. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 5 April 2007.
  4. ^ Tangari, Joe (12 July 2007). "The Fall: Extricate/Shift-Work/Code: Selfish". Pitchfork. Retrieved 19 July 2023.
  5. ^ Sandall, Robert (March 1990). "The Fall: Extricate". Q. No. 42.
  6. ^ George, Iestyn (24 February 1990). "The Fall: Extricate". Record Mirror. p. 19.
  7. ^ Gross, Joe (2004). "The Fall". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 292–295. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  8. ^ Robb, John (3 February 1990). "The Fall: Extricate". Sounds. p. 31.
  9. ^ Rubin, Mike (1995). "Fall". In Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig (eds.). Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. pp. 142–144. ISBN 0-679-75574-8.
  10. ^ Robinson, John (July 2007). "The Fall: Extricate / Shift-Work / Code: Selfish". Uncut. No. 122. p. 102.
  11. ^ Ford, Simon (2003). Hip Priest: The Story of Mark E. Smith and the Fall. Quartet Books. pp. 200–201. ISBN 0-7043-8167-2.
  12. ^ Wilde, Jon (17 February 1990). "The North's Circular". Melody Maker. p. 32. Archived from the original on 16 May 2008. Retrieved 5 April 2007.