While no doubt encouraged by the swathe of positive reviews greeting their 1970 debut album ‘Nicely Out of Tune‘, English folk-rock outfit Lindisfarne would at the same time been disappointed, disheartened even that such a commendable record made no commercial impact.
Taking their name from the island off the coast of Northumberland, Lindisfarne had emerged through Tyneside-based bands The Downtown Sect and Brethren, in which Ray Laidlaw (drums), Simon Cowe (guitar), Rod Clements (bass/violin) and Ray Jackson (harmonica/mandolin) had cut their musical teeth – the aggregation extended to a quintet when folk-singer solo act Alan Hull (guitar) completed the line-up that were signed to Charisma records in late 1969.
If distinct harmony vocals and tendency for loose, yet engaging performances had been likeable components of ‘Nicely Out of Tune‘ its true strength lay in the generally outstanding songwriting of Hull who contributed eight of the eleven tracks. Indeed, such was the wit and originality of his compositions one commentator declared him ‘the most important songwriter since Dylan‘ – a claim not so outlandish as it may sound.
Despite a complete lack of chart activity, Charisma maintained belief in the group and for the follow-up took control panel duties away from John Anthony and enlisted heavyweight American producer Bob Johnston, who had earned renown for his work with, among others, Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash and The Byrds.
Having quickly built a strong following on the U.K. college circuit due to the camaraderie of their performances, (throughout a long career and many personnel changes Lindisfarne would remain a first class live act), the requirement now was a stellar, yet successful album to justify faith shown by the label in affirming the first had been no one-off wonder.
With ‘FOG ON THE TYNE‘ (October 1971) Lindisfarne succeeded on both counts – the LP receiving another round of plaudits from the critics before spending four weeks at Number One in the U.K. album charts during the spring of 1972.
Hull once again accounts for over half the material, his name attached to six of the ten cuts. Although coming in seventeen minutes shorter than its predecessor, the blueprint is followed with two tracks written by Clements, inclusion of a song by Scottish folk artist Rab Noakes, while guitarist Cowe makes his writing bow with the charming ‘Uncle Sam.’
For the most part ‘Fog on the Tyne‘ is a genial, heart-warming collection, the bonhomie of their concerts evident in any number of songs. The set is bookended by the two best known examples of their signature sociability, the ball set rolling with the uplifting ‘Meet Me on the Corner‘ before coming to a close with the anthemic title-track that serves as a whimsical love letter to their city of origin, Newcastle-upon-Tyne.
By way of irony, for all the memorable pieces Hull had already written their first hit single came from the pen of Clements, ‘Meet Me on the Corner‘ a delightful folk-pop number that reached number five on U.K. listings during February 1972. Jackson excels on harmonica and in the role of lead vocalist, the end of the street drug-deal connotations seen by some in the lyrics not detracting from a song that works purely on the basis of making the listener feel good by the simple fact of its existence – the second verse allowing plenty of room of personal interpretation:
‘Lay down your bundles of rags and reminders/And spread your wares on the ground/Well I’ve got time, if you deal in rhyme/I’m just hanging around.’
Such was the sudden and massive success of the album, Charisma put renewed weight into making a hit of ‘Nicely Out of Tune‘ their efforts rewarded when it made a belated appearance in the U.K. top ten. The album was aided in climbing the charts by the success of Hull-composed ‘Lady Eleanor‘ that was lifted from the debut to reach number three on the British singles chart in the summer of 1972.
Hull announces his arrival to ‘Fog on the Tyne‘ with ‘Alright on the Night‘, a witty take on the right to be different, the writer using this uptempo folk track to defend nonconformity:
‘I can tell what you think by the look on your face/The look on your face is so mean/Can you tell me exactly what/It is about me that’s so unclean?/I only ever wanted to be your friend/And I never wanted to be your slave/So take me as I appear before you/Come and live with me in a cave.’
Yet even then rebellion, such as it is, comes with a feeling of joviality and in the already established Lindisfarne manner there is nothing that cannot be resolved over a drop of something convivial, (‘And it’ll be all right/We’ll have a drink on a Friday night‘), Hull imploring those not comfortable with the different among society to show more tolerance – or better still embrace the alternative:
‘So take all your fancy clothes to the ragman/Put on your old blue jeans/nd take off that stupid look on your face/Everything I say I mean.‘
At the heart of ‘Uncle Sam‘ are those facing conscription to the armed forces, Cowe writing a gently lilting piece objecting to militarism, the song distinguished by a nice change of pace in the middle:
‘The word of mouth has reached my ears/We just became volunteers/I can’t picture you in uniform/Your heart is much too frail/You’re better off in jail.’
When the group announce their presence at the midpoint, the narrator, in this case Jackson who does the lead vocal honours, makes it clear he will not be heeding any call-up for combat:
‘Well, I’m going across the border/Watch what happens to me/Well, I’m going across the border/Watch what happens to me/With my name on the blacklist/I can find a new place to be/And if they still come looking/On the road is where I’ll be.’
After doing a fine job with ‘Turn a Deaf Ear‘ on the debut album, the band put their indelible mark on another excellent Noakes composition, a more joyous song than ‘Together Forever‘ hard to think of.
The couple of pals who feature in this ode to friendship are depicted travelling around or just watching time pass from the seat of a bus or park bench. Over ringing guitars and decorative harmonica theirs is a story of companionship, where being carefree is all that truly matters. In other words watching the world go by without any desire or compunction to join the fray:
‘You and me sitting on a bus/On the front seat at the top/Watching the people who don’t look like us/
And going way past our stop/Travelling everywhere/We got no money but what do we care?/You and me sitting on a bus/On the front seat at the top.’
In contrast, the equally magnificent ‘January Song‘ that closes side one finds Hull writing with eloquent self-despair in taking stock of the world around him – troubled also by the direction his own life is taking on seeing a reflection of himself ‘on a mirrored wall.’
‘Useless it is to question/Things concerning the past/Seems so very obvious/That nothing at all can last/And just as sure as tomorrow/Will soon be yesterday/The love you thought to occupy/Will surely drift away.’
What begins as a Hull solo performance on acoustic guitar evolves into a brilliant ensemble effort where bass and mandolin make their mark. The perspective of the lyric also broadens to encompass the hope and emotional sustenance we can give one another, something the writer captures vividly in the refrain of, ‘I need you to help me carry on/You need me need you need him need everyone.’
The second side unfolds with three songs from Hull that demonstrate the breadth of his lyricism, ranging from abstract imagery through sharp observation to imaginative word play.
Opener ‘Peter Brophy Don’t Care‘ is an enigmatic piece he performs solo on acoustic guitar. While on occasion the meaning of some couplets is hard to pin down, most striking is the vision of a man having a pipe for a nose, (‘Your nose is in your pipe but you don’t care’) not least as Hull would return to such an image for the cover of his outstanding 1973 solo album ‘Pipedream.’
Less opaque and more rounded in construct, ‘City Song‘ is a studious, at times disconcerting portrait of urban existence. Built on a platform of guitars and mandolin in establishing the folk-rock overtones, Hull feels no empathy with the scene before him, (‘City lights don’t shine/They glare/And your music doesn’t speak/It swears’), this effort could not be more representative of Lindisfarne in their fledgling days, pertinent words heard over a strong, yet sympathetic melody.
The shortest track on the album at barely two and a half minutes, there are moments in ‘Passing Ghosts‘ when Hull is the lone instrument and voice, his Lennon-like phrasing evident in a song that warns of losing identity (‘You don’t have to touch the rain/And you don’t have to talk about the weather/’Cos it’s only passing time‘), as life speeds by. When the drums, bass and additional guitars arrive to bolster the tune it takes flight, the appealing back and forth (no pun intended on the title of their 1978 album) nature of the vocals and music combine to make them sound a Geordie-version of The Band, which in 1971 was no mean feat.
Similar in style to ‘No Time to Lose‘ from the previous LP, ‘Train in G Major‘ is an upbeat folk-blues offering from Clements, fattened up by some bold piano and wailing harmonica.
It shuffles by in likeable if not attention-grabbing fashion, included perhaps in the interests of group democracy given another first-rate Hull composition in ‘No Time to Lose‘ was recorded at the same sessions, this far superior cut used as the B-side of ‘Meet Me on the Corner.’
Things are brought to a close with the rousing title-track, Hull writing in celebratory fashion in part about the river running through his home town, but also the reassurance to be had from where you belong.
Many artists made their birthplace and local surroundings the theme of songs, yet few, if any had done so with such warmth and resonance, the composer, from the opening lines, finding solidarity in the most unlikely places:
‘Sittin’ in a sleazy snack-bar suckin’/Sickly sausage rolls/Slippin’ down slowly/Slippin’ down sideways/Think
I’ll sign off the dole.’
The singalong chorus, sprightly instrumental break, along with Hull, Jackson and Cowe each taking a turn on lead vocals accentuate the feeling of unity and while some of the cheeky rudeness of ‘wee-wee‘ and ‘wet on the wall‘ in the last verse has amused children for years (mine at least), it is the third verse where Hull captures the essence of his homespun affection:
‘Tell the truth tomorrow/Today will take it’s time to/Tell you what tonight will bring/Presently we’ll have a pint or two together/Everybody do their thing.
On the back of inspiring England to the semi-finals of the 1990 World Cup, a by-product of the current fame of Tyneside-born footballer Paul Gascoigne (by now playing for Tottenham Hotspur) was his raucous rendition of ‘Fog on the Tyne.’ In the accompanying video Lindisfarne join in the rave-up, the song inexplicably reaching number two in the U.K. singles chart as the year came to an end, although every nuance and ounce of charm had been squeezed from its existence.
But nineteen years earlier, Lindisfarne, like Gascoigne on the football field it has to be said, had positively oozed class, the overall excellence and undoubted majesty of its peaks turning ‘Fog on the Tyne‘ into the eighth best-selling U.K. album of 1972. In the process the band became a major concert draw and to all intents and purposes looked set to play a significant role in the development of British rock as the decade unfolded, having in Hull a writer blessed with remarkable turn of phrase.
Yet unbeknownst to themselves and a growing legion of followers, Lindisfarne had already reached their high water mark. The next album ‘Dingley Dell‘ (September 1972) received a mixed response from the critics who focused on a drop in standards of songwriting (Hull had written many of the songs for the first two albums prior to joining the band while working as a mental health nurse) and so unhappy were the group at how Johnston had mixed the record they did it again themselves.
With the band now suffering with internal conflicts, Lindisfarne split in early 1973. Hull and Jackson retained the name, recruited new members and released two passable albums, while Cowe, Laidlaw and Clements formed Jack the Lad who were not without admirers, although had little to show for it in terms of record sales.
In 1976 the original line-up reunited for a run of shows at Newcastle City Hall, frequently performing and recording together thereafter, their early ’70s dissolution often viewed as a perplexing episode in the history of U.K. music, the 1977 New Musical Express Encyclopedia of Rock taking the view:
‘The rapid rise and equally rapid fall of Lindisfarne remains one of the mysteries of British rock.’
That, however, is not to overlook the two shots, two goals effect of their first couple of albums, Lindisfarne a band worthy not only of celebration but admiration.
‘Fog on the Tyne‘ has long been a stalwart album of my collection and will always remain so – together forever so to speak………….
LINDISFARNE – FOG ON THE TYNE (Released October 8 1971):
Meet me on the Corner/Alright on the Night/Uncle Sam/Together Forever/January Song/Peter Brophy Don’t Care/City Song/Passing Ghosts/Train in G Major/Fog on the Tyne;
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A fine review of a fine album!
Reminds me of the album I always thought was just amazing yet never catapulted Sutherland Brothers and Quiver to huge fame; “Reach for the Sky”. Listen to the track “Dirty City” and tell me it’s not as good as almost any Eagles’ song. Maybe the bands’ uncatchy name didn’t help them go “Sailing” to superstardom.
Hello there – hope you are well.
Delighted to hear you enjoyed my review of ‘Fog of the Tyne’ and thanks for taking the time to comment. Much appreciated.
From memory I have a notion that Sutherland Brothers & Quiver were an opening act for the Faces at some point during 73/74 – it being a fair assumption Rod picked up on ‘Sailing’ then.
The recommendation is duly noted and will seek them out beyond ‘Arms of Mary.’
Best wishes
Neil
SAMTIMONIOUS.com