NICK CAVE And The Bad Seeds "THE FIRSTBORN IS DEAD" LP VG+/VG+ 1985 MUTE US
$
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AllMusic Review by Mark Deming [-] The blues had long been a potent undercurrent in the Birthday Party's music, so it wasn't all that surprising that Nick Cave embraced the sound and feeling of rural blues on his second album with the Bad Seeds, The Firstborn Is Dead. What was startling was how well Cave and his bandmates -- Barry Adamson, Mick Harvey, and Blixa Bargeld -- were able to absorb and honor the influences of artists like Skip James and Charley Patton while creating a sound that was unmistakably their own. The moody obsessions of rural blues -- trains, floods, imprisonment, sin, fear, and death -- seemed made to order for Cave, and he was able to tap into the doomy iconography of this music with potent emotional force; on "Tupelo," he makes a sweeping and disturbing epic of the rain-swept night when Elvis Presley was born, and "Knocking on Joe" is a tale of life on the work gang that communicates the pain of the spirit as clearly as the ache of the body. Also, the blues helped transform Cave's music as well as his lyrics; the brutal sonic pummel of the Birthday Party here gave way to a more subtle and dynamic approach that still made effective use of dissonance and bare-wired electric guitar noise while proving the balance of loud and soft only made each side deeper and more resonant. (The stark, barely there guitar and drums of "Blind Lemon Jefferson" are as startling and malignantly fascinating as anything in the Birthday Party's catalog.) The Firstborn Is Dead proved Nick Cave's musical palate was significantly broader than his debut album suggested and pointed to a path (channeling the sounds and emotions of American roots music) he would return to on many of his albums that followed.
Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds* ?– The Firstborn Is Dead Label: Mute ?– STUMM 21 Format: Vinyl, LP, Album Country: US Released: 03 Jun 1985 Genre: Rock Style: Blues Rock, New Wave TracklistHide Credits A1 Tupelo Music By – Adamson*, Harvey* Words By – Cave* A2 Say Goodbye To The Little Girl Tree Music By – Harvey* Words By – Cave* A3 Train Long-Suffering Words By, Music By – Cave* A4 Black Crow King Music By – Bargeld*, Cave* Words By – Cave* B1 Knockin' On Joe Words By, Music By – Cave* B2 Wanted Man Words By, Music By – Bob Dylan B3 Blind Lemon Jefferson Music By – Adamson*, Bargeld*, Harvey*, Cave* Words By – Cave* Companies, etc. Phonographic Copyright (p) – Mute Records Copyright (c) – Mute Records Published By – Dying Art Ltd. Published By – Sonet Ltd. Published By – Warner Bros. Music Ltd. Recorded At – Hansa Tonstudios Lacquer Cut At – CBS Studios, London Pressed By – MPO Credits Bass, Guitar, Organ, Drums, Backing Vocals – Barry Adamson Drums, Piano, Guitar, Organ, Bass, Backing Vocals – Mick Harvey Engineer – Flood Engineer [Assistant] – George (9) Guitar, Slide Guitar, Backing Vocals – Blixa Bargeld Lacquer Cut By – TimTom* Lyrics By [All] – Nick Cave Management [Personal Representation] – Loud And Clear Management Photography By [Front/Back Photographs] – Jutta Henglein Producer – Flood, The Bad Seeds* Vocals, Harmonica – Nick Cave Notes Issued with black & white inner-sleeve that includes credits and a continuation of the back-cover text.
Recorded: November-December, 1984, Hansa, Ton-Studios, West Berlin.
? & © 1985 Mute Records All songs published by Dying Art Ltd/Sonet Ltd. except "Wanted Man" by Warner Bros. Music Ltd.
"Wanted Man" evolved from a song written by Bob Dylan and recorded by Johnny Cash.
GOLDMINE GRADING
MINT ---- It should appear to be perfect. No scuffs or scratches, blotches or stains, labels or writing, tears or splits. Mint means perfect.
NEAR MINT ---- Otherwise mint but has one or two tiny inconsequential flaws that do not affect play. Covers should be close to perfect with minor signs of wear or age just becoming evident: slight ring-wear, minor denting to a corner, or writing on the cover should all be noted properly.
VERY GOOD PLUS ---- The record has been handled and played infrequently or very carefully. Not too far from perfect. On a disc, there may be light paper scuffs from sliding in and out of a sleeve or the vinyl or some of the original luster may be lost. A slight scratch that did not affect play would be acceptably VG+ for most collectors.
VERY GOOD ---- Record displays visible signs of handling and playing, such as loss of vinyl luster, light surface scratches, groove wear and spindle trails. Some audible surface noise, but should not overwhelm the musical experience. Usually a cover is VG when one or two of these problems are evident: ring wear, seam splits, bent corners, loss of gloss, stains, etc.
GOOD ---- Well played with little luster and significant surface noise. Despite defects, record should still play all the way through without skipping. Several cover flaws will be apparent, but should not obliterate the artwork.
POOR ---- Any record or cover that does not qualify for the above "Good" grading should be seen as Poor. Several cover flaws.
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