I first heard of The Fall about six months before this album – a university friend from Manchester, whose record collection made mine look puny, told us about this band his mate Karl played the drums for. He got this album when it came out and played it. I liked it, but didn’t rave about it, so was aware of this lo-fi classic for years before The Fall really clicked with me.
And once again, this is a band who have attracted the magnifying glass and pen of aspiring music writers, so I’m not sure what I can add. But, they will crop up frequently in this exercise, so add I must.
Another album which gets a regular outing, this debut is a far more democratic affair than subsequent releases would be, featuring Mark E Smith as vocalist rather than band leader/dictator, and this is reflected in the sound – Yvonne Pawlett’s cheap keyboard and Martin Bramah’s driving guitar on top of Karl Burns’ frantic drumming. And the songs still stand up today. The opener Frightened making Mark’s intent clear, before he lays out the manifesto “We are the Fall – white crap that talks back” on Crap Rap. Rebellious Jukebox sounds fresh forty years later, while the first half ends with the naïve/simple Industrial Estate (yeah, yeah). But, as so often with debut albums, the energy wanes on the third quarter, waking up for Futures And Pasts and Music Scene (cute callback to the guitar riff from Frightened at the end there!). That’s where the original LP ends, so technically that’s the end of Live At The Witch Trials. And it’s a fine debut, only slightly hinting at the wonders to come over the next four decades.
But as this is about my CD collection, I can’t ignore the gems which crop up as bonus tracks on the 2014 reissue including Bingo Master’s Breakout, Psycho Mafia, Repetition and the two tracks from the Short Circuit:Live At The Electric Circus from October 1977, The Fall’s recording debut, Stepping Out and Last Orders.
Wonderful! There’s also a bonus CD containing the first two Fall Peel Sessions (we’ll come to the Complete Peel Sessions in due course) and the live album Liverpool 78, which I’m not sure I’ve yet listened to!
4* - a fantastic debut. Not flawless, but an album I return to frequently
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