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Move (The Move album)

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Move
Studio album by
The Move
ReleasedApril 1968[1]
RecordedJanuary 1967 − 4 February 1968
StudioAdvision, De Lane Lea and Olympic Studios, London
GenrePsychedelic pop, freakbeat, psychedelic rock
Length42:12
LabelRegal Zonophone
ProducerDenny Cordell
The Move chronology
Move
(1968) 		Something Else from The Move
(1968)
Singles from Move
  1. "Flowers in the Rain"
    Released: 25 August 1967
  2. "Fire Brigade"
    Released: 26 January 1968

Move is the eponymous debut album by British rock group the Move, released in April 1968 through Regal Zonophone Records. The album features ten Roy Wood compositions, along with three covers which had been a prominent part of the group's live act. The album was sporadically recorded between January 1967 and February 1968 at Advision, De Lane Lea and Olympic Studios in London during gaps in their tight recording schedule when the group wasn't booked for any performances.

Delayed by missing master tapes, the album featured two previously released singles: "Flowers in the Rain" and "Fire Brigade", both of which reached the top-five in the UK Singles Chart. It was the only album by the Move to feature original bassist Chris "Ace" Kefford, who left the band shortly after the release in the spring of 1968. The album itself was also the only album by the Move to chart in the UK, reaching number fifteen on the charts during the early summer of that year.[2]

Background

The Move became a highly publicised band, signing to Deram Records in late 1966, and then released their debut single "Night of Fear" on 9 December 1966.[3] This became their first chart hit, reaching number two in the UK Singles Chart.[2] A band fanclub newsletter released during Christmas stated that they were set to release their debut album by February 1967, with a suggested title of Move Mass by their manager Tony Secunda.[4] However, Secunda decided during the last second that this release would be cancelled, and instead apted the band to continue to perform publicity stunts which would put the band in the newspapers.[4] A follow-up to "Night of Fear" came almost four months later, when "I Can Hear the Grass Grow" was released, reaching number five on the charts.[2][3]

The group hoped to release the album by Autumn of 1967, however, in April of that year, New Musical Express announced that the Move offered a £200 reward (equivalent to £4,600 in 2024)[5] to an individual who could potentially return the master tapes back to them.[6] These master tapes, containing ten songs were stolen from a car (presumably by a fan) which was parked on Denmark Street in the West End of London. The tapes were later discarded by the thief, and they were eventually found in a rubbish bin. The tapes however, were damaged beyond repair or use, and a new mix had to be performed by the engineers, further delaying the release date of the album by several months.[6] Producer Denny Cordell also managed to switch the band from Deram over to Regal Zonophone Records.[7]

During the Autumn of 1967, the Move had released another very successful single onto the British market, that being "Flowers in the Rain".[3] It charted at number two.[2] "Flowers in the Rain" also had the honour of becoming the first full record to be played on the newly launched BBC One, further adding to their popularity.[8] However, keeping up with this newfound popularity became hard, and the group had a tight performance schedule. As a response to this, Chris "Ace" Kefford was quoted saying "The pressure of being in the charts and having your clothes ripped and hair pulled out by fans in the streets - I had scissors stuck in my eye - but for the same money I got in The Vikings."[9]

Tying in with "Flowers in the Rain", Secunda performed yet another publicity stunt, by printing postcards depicting Labour Party leader, and at the time prime minister Harold Wilson in bed with his secretary Marcia Falkender, Baroness Falkender which prompted Wilson to sue the group, leading to all royalties going to a charity of Wilson's liking, to the loss of composer, singer and guitarist Roy Wood.[10][11] The scheduled follow up to "Flowers in the Rain" was "Cherry Blossom Clinic", which was backed by "Vote For Me", a satirical piece regarding corrupt politicians. This idea was shelved due to the court proceedings, as both the band and Regal Zonophone believed that it was unwise to release the potentially controversial, which was shelved.[12]

Recording

Early Sessions

The recording of Move marked the first time the band utilized Olympic Studios, Barnes, London

The first track recorded by the Move intended for an album release was a Wood composition, "Walk Upon the Water" which was taped in January 1967 at Advision Studios, London.[13] During presumably the same session, an additional two tracks were recorded: "Move Intro" and "Move" which acted as an unofficial theme song for the band.[1] These tracks, however, were not featured on the final album, and were left out. However, these were not the first attempts by the Move to record potential album or single tracks. Only a year earlier, they recorded "You're the One I Need", was recorded at Ladbroke Sound studios.[14] This song was also shelved, but gave Secunda an idea of how Wood composed songs, later stating "Roy showed me some poetry he'd written. I said 'You can do it! You can start writing'".[15]

The band did not return to the studio for several weeks due to them being busy touring, but they returned to Advision in March, and on the 23rd they taped three songs: the two Wood originals "Kilroy Was Here" and "(Here We Go Round) the Lemon Tree" and an Eddie Cochran track, "Weekend", which was the first cover to get recorded for the album.[13] These three tracks were the final to get recorded before their second single "I Can Hear the Grass Grow" was released the following week, on the 31st of March. The tracks recorded on 23 March marked the end for the Move's early recording sessions, being the final the band undertook before the master tapes got stolen from their agent's car on Denmark Street.[6] The group then quit recording altogether for an additional four months, continuing their hectic, frantic performance schedule. This time, the band left the UK to perform on the West German television show Beat! Beat! Beat! on 26 June 1967.[16]

Later sessions

The band returned to Advision on 6 July to record a new Wood composition, "Flowers in the Rain" which was also the only track recorded during this session.[13] The next sessions occurred in August, when the group recorded "Cherry Blossom Clinic" along with "Vote For Me" at Advision on 25 August.[1][13] However, the group was not satisfied with their arrangement of "Cherry Blossom Clinic", and it was discarded. After appearing on BBC's radio show Easy Beat performing "Morning Dew", "Stephanie Knows Who", "Flowers in the Rain" and "So You Want to Be a Rock 'n' Roll Star" in September 1967, the group for the first time entered Olympic Studios, with Glyn Johns engineering, to record "Yellow Rainbow" the following month. This was due to the fact that Olympic had better equipment compared to Advision studios, who didn't install an 8-track tape device until 1968.

"Cherry Blossom Clinic" was once again revisited on 1 November, where the group finally got their definitive edition of it, along with a string and horn arrangement.[13] During this session, they also recorded an alternative version of "Vote For Me" which was later discarded.[13] "Fire Brigade" and "The Girl Outside" were also first attempted at Olympic on 16 November of that year, but were not finalized.[17] The group returned to Olympic the following month, and on 19 December they recorded "Mist on a Monday Morning".[13] Four days later, they finalized both "Fire Brigade" and "The Girl Outside" at De Lane Lea Studios.[13] The final session for the album was held on 4 February 1968, where "Useless Information" and "Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart" both were recorded at Advision.[13] It is unclear on which date "Hey Grandma" was recorded, but it is thought to be in 1967.

Musical content

Because the album was recorded over a span of approximately fourteen months, the musical style and direction greatly varies. Most songs from the earlier sessions could be classified as psychedelic pop, most notably "Walk Upon the Water" which acts as an anti drink-driving song, with somewhat dark lyrics over an upbeat melody.[18] However, other songs, such as "Kilroy Was Here" (which references the World War II phenomenon Kilroy was here) could be classified as a combo of psychedelic pop and folk rock.[19] The album also makes attempts at Baroque pop on both "The Girl Outside" and "Mist on A Monday Morning.", the latter which was Wood's and Secunda's first attempt at writing something like the Beatles "Eleanor Rigby".[19] The two most psychedelic tracks on the album are the opening song "Yellow Rainbow", which heavily features reverb on both the guitars and drums, along with "Cherry Blossom Clinic" which features prevalent use of a Wah-wah pedal.[14]

"Cherry Blossom Clinic" was about a nuthouse, basically, but a nice one. That was one of my early songs. When I left art-school it was one of my ambitions to write a children's book for adults – fairy stories with strange twists in them. I had a lot of ideas written down and I used them in my songs.

— Roy Wood, in Clinton Heylin, All the Madmen: Barrett, Bowie, Drake, the Floyd, The Kinks, The Who and the Journey to the Dark Side of English Rock

The three covers which are present are also vastly different from one another, and don't seem to share characteristics. "Weekend", written by Bill and Doree Post was originally recorded by Eddie Cochran in 1959, and largely revolves around the genres of rock and roll and rockabilly, which originated from that era.[20] "Hey Grandma", written by Jerry Miller and Don Stevenson was first recorded by American psychedelic rock band Moby Grape and initially appeared as the opening track to their eponymous debut album on 6 June 1967.[21] The third and final cover was "Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart" written by James F. Hanley in 1934. However, their rendition of the Broadway song was derived from a later cover by the Coasters, which introduced tempo changes, and a four part harmony by them, including two falsetto vocals.[22]

Lyrically, the album is very eclectic, deriving inspiration from various sources, but in style with Wood's earlier songwriting and compositions, many song revolve the mental state of the narrator.[23] The most notable examples of this are "Cherry Blossom Clinic" and "Walk Upon the Water", both of which revolve around the declining mental state of the narrator, though in two different scenarios, with "Walk Upon the Water" alluding to the narrator's friends drowning, while "Cherry Blossom Clinic" describes the further mental decline of an psychiatric hospital patient.[18][23] Other themes includes loneliness, displayed on "(Here We Go Round) The Lemon Tree", "Flowers in the Rain" and "Mist on a Monday Morning", all of which portrays loneliness in vastly different ways, including sorrow, sadness and peace of mind.

Unlike all previously released singles by the Move, lead singer Carl Wayne's duty is minimized, singing only lead vocals on "Walk Upon the Water", "Flowers in the Rain" and "Useless Information".[24] He does, however sing harmony vocals on "Hey Grandma" and "Fire Brigade".[24] Rhythm guitarist Trevor Burton has had his role as a lead singer expanded, compared to previously and he sings lead on "Yellow Rainbow", "Weekend" and "The Girl Outside", while also contributing harmony vocals on "Kilroy Was Here", "(Here We Go Round) the Lemon Tree", "Walk Upon the Water", and "Cherry Blossom Clinic".[24] Wood's role has also been maximized, singing lead on "Mist on a Monday Morning", while contributing harmony vocals to virtually every other track present.[24] Although heavily present as a singer during live performances, bassist Ace Kefford's role as a singer is confined to "Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart", which he sings with drummer Bev Bevan, in one of only two lead vocals the latter sang with the Move.[25]

Release and reception

Release

The final master track of the album occurred on 20 February 1968 at Maximum Sound Studios, which was compiled by Denny Cordell and engineer Dave Hadfield.[1] The final production of the master tape occurred on 7 March 1968 by engineer Ron Pender at EMI Studios, London.[1] Four tracks were released from the album as singles along with their respective B-sides. These were "Flowers in the Rain" along with "(Here We Go Round) the Lemon Tree", which first was released on 25 August 1967, and reached number two on the British charts.[2] The second single was "Fire Brigade", backed by "Walk Upon the Water", which was released on 26 January 1968 and reached number three.[2] The intended release of "Cherry Blossom Clinic" was eventually cancelled and the song was instead to appear on the album, with the B-side "Vote For Me" being discluded, and first appeared on compilation albums throughout the 1990s.[26]

With a psychedelic album cover design by the collective The Fool (who previously worked together with the Beatles),[27] Move was first issued in April 1968 by Regal Zonophone with the catalogue number of LRZ 100.[28] Largely fueled by the success of recent singles, Move first reached the UK charts on 13 April 1968, at a position of 26. The following week, it reached its peak of 15, before ascending to 16 on the 27th of April. The following week, it was once again back at number 15 and by 11 May it started dropping off the chart, at a position of 17. On 18 May it was at number 30, before climbing to number 34 the following week. On the 1st of June, it was at number 40, a position it held for two weeks, before it dropped of the chart.[29] In total, the album spent 9 weeks on the chart, of which 4 were in the top-20 and 6 in the top-30.[29]

Move became the only album by the group to chart, as Shazam, Looking On and Message from the Country all failed to do so. The album was the only to feature bassist Ace Kefford, who due to a mental breakdown caused by heavy usage of LSD left the group shortly after their package tour with Jimi Hendrix Experience, but also after an appearance on Top of the Pops where the group performed "Fire Brigade".[30] He later regret doing drugs, stating "Me and Trev did loads of acid... it screwed up my life man. Devastated me completely."[31] Upon his departure, he attempted to record a solo album which ultimately failed, and would eventually form his own band, The Ace Kefford Stand, who released one single in 1969 before breaking up.[32] Following his departure, Burton switched to bass before leaving himself in 1969, getting replaced by Rick Price.[33]

Reception

Upon release, the album received primarily positive reviews. Bob Dawbarn of Melody Maker thought that there wasn't "one poor track" on it, positively noting the inclusion of the singles "Flowers in the Rain" and "Fire Brigade".[34] He ended by stating that it was a "first album that should make everybody concerned very happy."[34] It was ranked Melody Maker's top album of the month.[34]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[35]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[36]

In a retrospective review for the album, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic states that the album sounds like the work of multiple musical musical ensembles, due to the fact that the songs all feature different lead vocalists. He states that with Move, they combined Pete Townshend-esque art rock with older Rockabilly three-chord song, but states that they were doing so in order not to fit in with any particular musical category, a fate which happened to multiple artists, including the Who and the Small Faces. He writes that they were almost as heavy as the Who at the time, but were at the same time more psychedelic than them and the Kinks. He writes that the album is a combination of contrasting genres which tend to "Ping-pong" back and forth.[37]

Track listing

All songs written by Roy Wood, except where noted.

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
1."Yellow Rainbow" Ace Kefford2:35
2."Kilroy Was Here" Roy Wood with Trevor Burton2:43
3."(Here We Go Round) The Lemon Tree" Wood2:59
4."Weekend"
  • Bill Post
  • Doree Post
Burton1:46
5."Walk Upon the Water" Carl Wayne with Wood and Burton3:22
6."Flowers in the Rain" Wayne with Wood2:29
7."Hey Grandma"
Wayne and Burton3:11
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
8."Useless Information" Wayne and Wood2:56
9."Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart"James F. HanleyBev Bevan and Kefford2:49
10."The Girl Outside" Burton2:53
11."Fire Brigade" Wood with Wayne2:22
12."Mist on a Monday Morning" Wood2:30
13."Cherry Blossom Clinic" Burton with Wood2:30

Reissues

It was later reissued on CD with additional tracks in 1998. It was then reissued in a deluxe two disc package in 2007 by Salvo.[38] The latest re-issues arrived in April 2016 from Esoteric Records, a label of Cherry Red Records. Two versions of the album are involved, a 3CD remastered and expanded deluxe edition (Catalog ID: ECLEC32536) and a remastered and expanded edition (Catalog ID: ECLEC2537). According to Esoteric, these newly re-mastered editions focus on the mono mix of the album, and includes five bonus tracks on the single CD version, this increasing to 52 for the 3-CD set, five of these previously unreleased.[39][40]

Track listing

All songs written by Roy Wood unless noted

Bonus tracks (2007 reissue)
No.TitleLead vocalsLength
14."Vote for Me"Burton with Wood2:48
15."Disturbance"Wayne and Wood with Kefford2:48
16."Night of Fear"Wayne with Kefford2:14
17."Wave the Flag and Stop the Train"Wayne with Wood2:56
18."I Can Hear the Grass Grow"Wayne with Wood and Kefford3:05
Disc 2 – New Movement (previously unreleased stereo)
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
1."Move Intro" Wayne, Wood, Burton, Kefford and Bevan0:25
2."Move" Wayne2:02
3."Cherry Blossom Clinic" Burton with Wood2:41
4."Fire Brigade" Wood with Wayne2:20
5."Kilroy Was Here" Wood with Burton2:43
6."(Here We Go Round) The Lemon Tree" Wood3:17
7."Weekend"
  • Bill Post
  • Doree Post
Burton1:55
8."Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart"James F. HanleyBevan and Kefford2:46
9."Don't Throw Stones at Me" Kefford2:41
10."Mist on a Monday Morning" Wood2:28
11."Vote for Me (alternate version)" Burton with Wood2:49
12."Night of Fear" Wayne with Kefford2:21
13."The Girl Outside (alternate take)" Burton2:53
14."Walk Upon the Water" Wayne with Wood and Burton3:22
15."Useless Information" Wayne and Wood2:55
16."Flowers in the Rain" Wayne with Wood2:41

Personnel

The Move
Additional Personnel

Charts

Album

Chart Year Peak

position

UK Albums Chart 1968 15[2]

Singles

Year Song B-side Chart positions
UK Singles Chart[2]
1967 "Flowers in the Rain" "(Here We Go Round) the Lemon Tree" 2
1968 "Fire Brigade" "Walk Upon the Water" 3

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Move (2007 remaster liner notes, page 13)
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 381. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  3. ^ a b c Kirkman, Jon (2018). Tales From The Rock Vaults Volume I. Lulu.com. p. 35. ISBN 1789261953.
  4. ^ a b Move (2007 remaster liner notes, page 6)
  5. ^ UK Retail Price Index inflation figures are based on data from Clark, Gregory (2017). "The Annual RPI and Average Earnings for Britain, 1209 to Present (New Series)". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved May 7, 2024.
  6. ^ a b c Tobler, John (1992). NME Rock 'N' Roll Years (1st ed.). London: Reed International Books Ltd. p. 171. CN 5585.
  7. ^ Paytress, Mark (2009). Marc Bolan: The Rise And Fall Of A 20th Century Superstar. Omnibus Press. ISBN 0857120239.
  8. ^ Savage, Mark (30 September 2017). "50 facts about Radio 1 & 2 as they turn 50". BBC News.
  9. ^ "The Move". www.brumbeat.net. Retrieved 2020-09-18.
  10. ^ Mark Paytress (2009). Marc Bolan: The Rise And Fall Of A 20th Century Superstar. Omnibus Press. p. 269. ISBN 9780857120236.
  11. ^ "Flower Power". BBC News. 24 August 2007. Retrieved 2020-09-18.
  12. ^ Strong, Martin C. (2000). The Great Rock Discography (5th ed.). Edinburgh: Mojo Books. pp. 673–675. ISBN 1-84195-017-3.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g h i Move (2007 remaster liner notes, page 14)
  14. ^ a b Lasserre, Vincent (2017). Camion Blanc: La saga de Roy Wood Brumbeat forever (The Move, Wizzard, ELO, etc.) (in French). Camion Blanc. ISBN 2357799897.
  15. ^ Move (2007 remaster liner notes, page 4)
  16. ^ "The Move Live In Germany – 1967 – Past Daily Soundbooth". Past Daily: News, History, Music And An Enormous Sound Archive. 2017-09-19. Retrieved 2020-09-18.
  17. ^ Anthology 1966–1972 (liner notes)
  18. ^ a b Larson, Michael; Luhrssen, David (2017). Encyclopedia of Classic Rock. ABC-Clio. p. 247. ISBN 1440835144.
  19. ^ a b Move (2007 remaster liner notes, page 11)
  20. ^ Craig Morrison (2013-11-21). "rockabilly (music) - Encyclopædia Britannica". Britannica.com. Retrieved 2014-05-22.
  21. ^ Pollock, Bruce (2014). Rock Song Index: The 7500 Most Important Songs for the Rock and Roll Era. Routledge. ISBN 1135463034.
  22. ^ Boyd, Joe (2010). White Bicycles: Making Music in the 1960s. Profile Books. p. 115. ISBN 1847652166.
  23. ^ a b Heylin, Clinton (2012). All the Madmen: Barrett, Bowie, Drake, Pink Floyd, The Kinks, The Who and the Journey to the Dark Side of English Rock. Hachette. ISBN 1780330782.
  24. ^ a b c d "Move CD Review". www.brumbeat.net. Retrieved 2020-09-19.
  25. ^ "THE PURPLE HAZE ARCHIVE presents SUPERSTAR DRUMMER of THE MOVE & ELO BEV BEVAN on PODCAST". 88.3 Southern FM. Retrieved 2020-10-14.
  26. ^ Tudor, Nancy; Tudor, Dean (1979). Contemporary Popular Music. Libraries Unlimited. p. 223. ISBN 0872871916.
  27. ^ Larson, Michael; Luhrssen, David (2017). Encyclopedia of Classic Rock. ABC-Clio. p. 137. ISBN 1440835144.
  28. ^ "The Move - Move". Discogs. Retrieved 2020-09-19.
  29. ^ a b "MOVE | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". www.officialcharts.com. Retrieved 2020-09-19.
  30. ^ "Interview with Chris "Ace" Kefford". Carlwayne.co.uk. 4 July 2002. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
  31. ^ "The Move". www.brumbeat.net. Retrieved 2020-09-19.
  32. ^ "Lost Ace Kefford recordings found!". Brumbeat.net. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
  33. ^ "None". Carlwayne.co.uk.
  34. ^ a b c Dawbarn, Bob. "A Very Happy Move" (PDF). Melody Maker (6 April 1968): 16.
  35. ^ Move at AllMusic
  36. ^ Larkin, Colin (2007). Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0857125958.
  37. ^ Move - The Move | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic, retrieved 2020-09-19
  38. ^ All the Mad Men - Page 1970 "... Wood — via his band of fellow Brummies, The Move — dispensed a series of singles detailing some very damaged individuals: in toto, 'Disturbance' (the B-side to debut 45, 'Night of Fear', and actually Wood's preferred choice for the A-side) ..."
  39. ^ "Move (The)". cherryred.co.uk. Retrieved 2016-04-20.
  40. ^ "Move". cherryred.co.uk. Retrieved 2016-04-20.
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