Bill Nelson:
Getting The Holy Ghost Across:
Cocteau/Cherry Red:
Out Now:
★★★★★
It's been a long time coming but finally, after a mid-'80s issue on LP and cassette and a reissue in 2006 on its creator's own Sonoluxe imprint, Bill Nelson's under-stated and under-rated foray into wholesome electro radio pop has been re-re-packaged back into its original form and in its entirety. Crikey, it sounds good.
Incredibly and almost echoing reactions to The Beatles and XTC's previous treatment from U.S. extremists, Nelson's seemingly innocent major-label exercise ended with America practically disowning the guitarist's work on the grounds that it was a party to 'occult symbolism'. Their loss.
After a string of influential '70s releases as Be Bop Deluxe's lynchpin, Bill Nelson opted to go it alone during the tough '80s, only to be usurped by the likes of (ho hum) other electro-pop artists such as Howard Jones, Nik Kershaw and Marc Almond and get tagged alongside mis-fits like Paul Haig, David Sylvian (with whom Nelson guested with in future years, alongside Japan chum Mick Karn) and Gary Numan. Nowadays, performers from this crankiest of decades get lumped in together.
So, from the opening ambience of 'Suvasini', into the epic nine-minute sprawl of 'Contemplation' and through the exotic soundscapes of both 'Theology' and single 'Wildest Dreams', it's apparent that Nelson hit creative paydirt. Or certainly should have done. How 'Wildest Dreams' flopped is an eternal mystery. You almost want to shake the collective neck of the British public, slap it with a wet fish and holler the immortal question, 'WHAT IN GOD'S NAME ARE YOU PLAYING AT?...'. Hey ho - us Brits can rule the musical world and shit on it with equal aplomb with our buying decisions.
Thing is, '...Holy Ghost...' is crammed full of hits. There's the aforementioned 'Contemplation' (OK, give it an edit, bob's your uncle), 'Age Of Reason', 'Rise Like a Fountain' and the extra tracks that formed the accompanying EP 'Living For The Spangled Moment'. Its title track is exemplary, 'Heart And Soul' another champion and 'Illusions Of You' might well have ridden the then-hip wave of world-music experimentation given half the chance. Equally, fans of ethereal ambience will revel in tracks like 'Suvasini', 'Feast Of Lanterns', 'Nightbirds' and 'Pansophia', all candidates for a Cafe Del Mar come-down.
Perhaps across two discs '..Holy Ghost..' might have been cited as pompous and punching above its weight in the mid-'80s when hits, hits and more hits were the done thing and the sartorial requirement of major-labels. In reality, Nelson's oeuvre was at a pinnacle, yet few bothered to take notice. It's 2013. It's time you DID take notice. 'Getting The Holy Ghost Across' is a cracking album and the equal of his Mercury era pop phase or the later Venture Records release 'Blue Moons and Laughing Guitars'.
Getting The Holy Ghost Across:
Cocteau/Cherry Red:
Out Now:
★★★★★
Incredibly and almost echoing reactions to The Beatles and XTC's previous treatment from U.S. extremists, Nelson's seemingly innocent major-label exercise ended with America practically disowning the guitarist's work on the grounds that it was a party to 'occult symbolism'. Their loss.
After a string of influential '70s releases as Be Bop Deluxe's lynchpin, Bill Nelson opted to go it alone during the tough '80s, only to be usurped by the likes of (ho hum) other electro-pop artists such as Howard Jones, Nik Kershaw and Marc Almond and get tagged alongside mis-fits like Paul Haig, David Sylvian (with whom Nelson guested with in future years, alongside Japan chum Mick Karn) and Gary Numan. Nowadays, performers from this crankiest of decades get lumped in together.
So, from the opening ambience of 'Suvasini', into the epic nine-minute sprawl of 'Contemplation' and through the exotic soundscapes of both 'Theology' and single 'Wildest Dreams', it's apparent that Nelson hit creative paydirt. Or certainly should have done. How 'Wildest Dreams' flopped is an eternal mystery. You almost want to shake the collective neck of the British public, slap it with a wet fish and holler the immortal question, 'WHAT IN GOD'S NAME ARE YOU PLAYING AT?...'. Hey ho - us Brits can rule the musical world and shit on it with equal aplomb with our buying decisions.
Thing is, '...Holy Ghost...' is crammed full of hits. There's the aforementioned 'Contemplation' (OK, give it an edit, bob's your uncle), 'Age Of Reason', 'Rise Like a Fountain' and the extra tracks that formed the accompanying EP 'Living For The Spangled Moment'. Its title track is exemplary, 'Heart And Soul' another champion and 'Illusions Of You' might well have ridden the then-hip wave of world-music experimentation given half the chance. Equally, fans of ethereal ambience will revel in tracks like 'Suvasini', 'Feast Of Lanterns', 'Nightbirds' and 'Pansophia', all candidates for a Cafe Del Mar come-down.
Perhaps across two discs '..Holy Ghost..' might have been cited as pompous and punching above its weight in the mid-'80s when hits, hits and more hits were the done thing and the sartorial requirement of major-labels. In reality, Nelson's oeuvre was at a pinnacle, yet few bothered to take notice. It's 2013. It's time you DID take notice. 'Getting The Holy Ghost Across' is a cracking album and the equal of his Mercury era pop phase or the later Venture Records release 'Blue Moons and Laughing Guitars'.
