Description
Label Review.
2005 album with 12 bonus tracks.
Our Overview.
In the early 90s, two twentysomethings from the suburbs of London (Bob Stanley and Pete Wiggs) and one from the fringes of Windsor (Sarah Cracknell) set their sights on fulfilling pop music’s potential. They were fired up by the inclusive rush of rave culture, and the way that genres could now bubble together, thanks to cheap music technology. From day one, this involved blending club bass lines and indiepop with samples from 60s records, old reggae tunes, mid-century British films, decimalisation training records and French football commentary. (This essentially describes their debut album, ‘Fox Base Alpha’).
‘Tales From Turnpike House’ is the seventh studio album by Saint Etienne. It is a concept album in which the songs depict characters who all live in the eponymous block of flats in London. ‘Tales from Turnpike House’ arguably remains the band’s most domestic-sounding LP, and an underrated classic. It’s one of their most versatile records – there are excursions into pure Kylie-in-hotpants pop (‘Stars Above Us’, produced by the fine folks at Xenomania), sumptuous Beach Boys harmonies and even a return to Good Humored lounge pop on the sumptuous ‘Side Streets’ – but somehow it never sounds like anyone but Saint Etienne.
The album features two tracks co-written and produced by Xenomania (‘Lightning Strikes Twice’ and ‘Stars Above Us’) as well as a guest vocal from 1970s pop star David Essex on ‘Relocate’ (Essex had earlier appeared on the Saint Etienne album ‘So Tough’ via sampled dialogue from the 1973 film ‘That’ll Be The Day’).
This 2CD remastered deluxe edition features unreleased material and sleevenotes by Jeremy Deller.