I remember buying David Sylvian’s first solo album (after Japan had split up and gone their separate ways) with a great anticipation of what he would do next and I was not disappointed.
Along with ‘Red Guitar’ which was released as a single and ‘Nostalgia’ the album had some great songs and music of which ‘The Ink In The Well’ is my favourite track. I love the double bass and the twanging of the string instruments as well as the images that are conjured up including ‘Picasso painting the ships in the harbour’ and that ‘Nostalgia burns (even) in the hearts of the strongest.’
Looking back on this album some 25 years after I first heard it it still seems as fresh and exciting as it was the day I bought it and pointed the way to what would be coming which was ‘The Secrets Of The Beehive’ which is my all time favourite album.
When CDs were introduced some time later I rushed out to buy this album on CD so I could hear it in greater clarity. In the early days the difference between the vinyl record and the CD played on the same stereo system seemed enormous and these days we no longer hear the differences but at that time it was bizarre to hear a singer take a breath before starting to sing or play a wind instrument on a CD which couldn’t usually be heard when playing the same track on a record.
‘The Ink In the Well’ also reminds me of being in the sixth form at Leicester Grammar School. This was one of the happiest times of my life as we had so much time off between lessons we could regularly be found having a coffee in Asquith’s, or tea at Blossoms or having lunch in Quentin Wong’s Chinese restaurant ‘Cathay Cantonese’ all against a backdrop of David Sylvian and ‘Brilliant Trees’….
Now listen to the song…..
No comments:
Post a Comment