The Stretford End

 

Easterhouse - Waiting For The Redbird [ROUGH 124 UK 1989 24-Bit 176.4kHz FLAC]

Musicians don't write many protest songs these days, and it seems politics has been eradicated from popular music. I'm not too sure why, but during my youth it was prevalent.

Somewhere there is the unpublished history of protest rock from Dylan to Chumbawumba via the seventies & eighties cocktail of Dead Kennedys, The Clash & Red Wedge - Bragg, Weller and The Redskins etc. Maybe Chumbawamba hitting the top ten in 1997 was to signal the death of the political rock, maybe people lost interest, maybe we grew older and less angry. These days kids are too busy with TikTok and music is deletable - perhaps we were more literate back then?  Bono hasn't waved his white flag in anger since 1983 and Weller has chilled somewhat with age.

Manchester's Easterhouse (named after the infamous Glasgow housing estate) were a political rock band and one of four Manchester bands following in the vapour trails of The Smiths - all of whom were supposed to be the next big thing, James were snapped up by Sire, The Railway Children went to Virgin, MCA snapped up The Bodines and London Records signed Easterhouse. I don't think London Records realised what they had signed - they certainly not done their research. Easterhouse were not your standard jingle jangle baggy jumper affair and they were dropped after just one single.

Easterhouse were to go on and release their finest work on Rough Trade Records. The single Inspiration was a tribute to IRA hunger striker Bobby Sands, with the flip-side playing homage to sectarian marching bands. Their debut album, Contenders follows that vein, courting controversy at every corner. The album is bold, brash, high quality indie-rock with balls for The Smiths Generation who had shunned the pomp of U2 and The Alarm. I will work on a new rip of Contenders soon, however for now here is the second Easterhouse album.

Original guitarist Ivor Perry had moved on to work with the post-Marr embers of The Smiths and eventually formed The Cradle. The change resulted in a mellowing of the band's direction with a more radio friendly sound. The politics were still there, but more subtle and less obvious to the casual listener. The title track, Waiting for the Redbird, the single Come Out Fighting, and the sad yet poignant, Stay With Me were the most commercial pieces ever to be recorded by the band. There is no doubt that Andy Perry's powerful voice carried the new songs very well, and the improved production opened Easterhouse up to American radio play after a deal with Columbia Records.

A1 Waiting For The Redbird

A2 You're Gonna Miss It (When It's Gone)

A3 Stay With Me (Death On The Dole)

A4 Come Out Fighting

B1 America

B2 Hope And Glory

B3 Say Yes

B4 This Country

B5 Sweatshop