A cassette I originally uploaded onto this site with a host of other Crass goodies (more rehearsal tapes, a Peel session and some interviews concerning the Reagan – Thatcher tape) during November 2007 with the permission of two of the members, Penny Rimbaud and Pete Wright.
I have bought this particular November 2007 post forward to this current date in 2009 because the performance on both sides of this cassette is well worth listening to, and I noticed no comments were left on the original posting. The lack of comments is common to a fair amount of older posts that were being uploaded when KYPP was just finding it’s feet in blogland during the first three or four months of going online…I will endeavor to continue to bring some of these posts forward to the present day to gain a ‘new audience’ and further interest.
This cassette was recorded at Dial House during April 1981, and the listener gets to hear Crass performing in a very low key and relaxed fashion with Iggs almost whispering the vocals (no doubt sitting sprawled out on the floor) whilst the rest of the members attempt re-starts after false starts and generally try out new guitar lines and drum patterns.
A great listen to those who are interested in Crass. This is indeed a very rare tape of material that hopefully folk interested in Crass will find immensely appealing.
The text below, written about the finished version of Christ The Album LP box set is ripped from wikki, and the review is from a 1982 issue of Punk Lives magazine written by KYPP’s Al.
‘Christ – The Album’ is Crass’ fourth album, released in 1982. It was released as a boxed set double vinyl LP package, including one disk of new studio material and another, entitled ‘Well Forked.. but not dead’, featuring a live recording of their June 1981 gig at the 100 Club in London along with other studio tracks, demos and tape fragments.
The album also included a book, ‘A Series Of Shock Slogans and Mindless Token Tantrums’ (which featured Penny Rimbaud’s essay ‘The Last of the Hippies’, telling the story of the suspicious death of his friend Wally Hope) and a large size poster painted by Gee Vaucher.
The album took over a year to record, produce and mix, during which time the Falklands War had taken place. This caused Crass to fundamentally question their approach to making records, for as a group whose very reason for existing was to comment upon political issues, they felt they had been overtaken and made to appear redundant by real world events.
Subsequent releases, including the singles ‘How does it Feel to Be the Mother of A Thousand Dead’ and ‘Sheep Farming in the Falklands’ and the album ‘Yes Sir, I Will’ saw the band strip their sound ‘back to basics’ and were issued as ‘tactical responses’ to political situations.
Bigger version HERE
Another session from around the same time may be heard HERE
Also remember that any donations are still welcome for the up keep of Dial House, a worthy investment for the future of this beautiful cultural centre.
Cheques can by made out to: Penny Rimbaud, Dial House, Ongar Park Hall, North Weald, Epping, Essex CM16 6AE.
kperry
March 21, 2009 at 5:51 amit is always great to see Crass posts,you have made me quite happy as i havent heard these before many many thanks
brings back memories when i was the only one in this area that listened to and loved Crass.
great web site keep out the amazing work and posts
cheers
Ju
March 21, 2009 at 9:32 amThanks for uploading this – “Christ The Album” is the best Crass LP in my opinion, so this makes interesting listening. It’s difficult to convey now, in 2009, how controvertial & innovative Crass were back then. Just the name of this LP and even its code (Bollox2u2) caused letters of complaint to be written to the press. Difficult to imagine in a world only seemingly shocked by game show participants & soundbites.
Stu
March 22, 2009 at 6:58 pmA great post. I also love Christ the Album – especially Reality Whitewash, which is a song I’ve always wanted to learn to play, but always had a hard time deconstructing what was going on musically in the song. This version MAY help! Thanks!
alistairliv
March 23, 2009 at 9:04 pmHah! Just noticed the review (from Punk Lives) of Christ the Album above…
“The Crass crew are human too, not some unreal bunch of anarchist super heroes out to save the world… the whole idea is become your own Crass, INVENT YOUR OWN EPPPING. Shatter a few illusions”
Made me laugh. But then I wrote it.
Pete
March 27, 2009 at 7:01 amThanks for putting this up.
I’d grabbed a copy from one of the many ‘blogspot’ sites putting releases up. I guess they got it from here – so cheers!
It’s a fantastic LP and one of the best live LPs to go with it, I think.
Penguin • Post Author •
March 27, 2009 at 9:29 amYeah, they would have got it from here Pete, as I have these tapes.
chris
March 27, 2009 at 7:02 pmMickey, back at my old dear’s at present and have just spent the past hour going through a load of unmarked old tapes. One you may be interested in is a live tape of Blood & Roses, which also features on the other side (sadly interrupted by the 1983 top 40 run down that my sister must have taped. Grrrr) some band with a female singer doing that song that goes “she’s a nazi baby/a nasty baby/domination is your fascination” (etc) which is really bugging me as i can’t remember for the life of me who it is. Any ideas will put me out of my torment. 🙂
luggy
March 27, 2009 at 7:35 pmFaction had a song called ‘Nazi Baby’ although I can only remember the title & not the song.
Graham Burnett
March 28, 2009 at 3:35 amI used to have a tape by either The Apostles or Black Flag (not the Henry Rollins BF) which had a song called Nazi Baby and definately had Andy Martin (who sent it to me) singing on it, I’m pretty sure the lyrics were along the lines of what Chris outlines above. Unfortunately I no longer have the tape – it might have been part of the huge box of tapes I sent to John Why? a few years back if anybody is in contact with him?
Pete
March 28, 2009 at 8:22 amYou should also find Nazi Baby on the 5th Apostles LP, Equinox Screams
Penguin • Post Author •
March 28, 2009 at 10:39 amAndy Martin was enquiring after the Faction session he played guitar on, the other month. Asked if I had a copy. I did not. I asked Rob C and promptly forgot about it!
Sounds like you have the Faction session Chris (or maybe some tracks off it) that he is after.
As Pete and Graham suggest the song was re-recorded by The Apostles much later on.
margaret thatcher
March 28, 2009 at 11:28 pmHey, alright !! Muchas gracias.
I really loved the CHRIST-The-Album Record and the Penis Envy LP also.
In fact if I had to chuck all my old records, those would be the two I would want to keep. God, of course, intervened already, and a massive water/sewage leak in the basement (of the old apartment building I lived in, at Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn)really took care of a big part of my old record collection.
Thank you very much,
Peas and love
http://bill-oreilly-is-a-hideous-orangutang.blogspot.com
chris
March 29, 2009 at 3:46 pmYes, I seem to remember an Apostles track called ‘Nazi baby’ on one of the LPs but can’t confirm whether it was a cover or not as I don’t have it. I’m pretty sure this recording will be Faction as it’s a female singer and i’d have got this tape in 1982 or 83, and definitely NOT from Andy. Got a funny feeling I may have got it from Mick Slaughter of Obituary zine. Or perhaps even Nic or Miles? Will pass it on next time I see you, Pengy Ol’ bean.
Ian S
March 30, 2009 at 2:12 pmThe Vibrators had a song called ‘Nazi Baby’ on their second album, must have come out around 1978. The string section on it gets credited to the Berlin Symphony Orchestra iirc.
Nic
March 30, 2009 at 7:39 pmIt seems like it would almost certainly be Faction, Chris…
When Andy Martin played in the band, they played ‘Nazi Baby’ as well as ‘Hello Mark’ and ‘Tomorrow Belongs to Us’, all of which appeared later on Apostles records…
I seem to remember that Scum tapes released a live tape of Blood and Roses early on (I think it’s mentioned on the back of Issue 5 of Scum magazine) – maybe that’s the one you have?
chris
March 31, 2009 at 5:36 pmah, think you may be right chum 🙂
i got hold of all those original scum tapes but alas expect apart from this one turning up they’re well spaced (or taped over. Grrrrr…) by now.
Think there was a live one of Flack too (maybe from Southend?) that i’m pretty sure I got off you back in tha day? Unearthed the cover to that in the ‘anarcho punk treasure chest’ back in Stirling but alas no cassette.
Nic
March 31, 2009 at 5:56 pmI remember Rat and I had most of those Scum tapes: I can almost see the cover to the Blood and Roses tape in my minds eye… 🙂
Yes, I probably did you a copy of that Flack tape (from Southend): I had one from the Wapping Centre too – tracks like ‘London’, ‘1980s’, etc…
Long gone now though…
yan tree
April 2, 2009 at 11:03 amcan’t seem to upload / download anything! – which is annoying cos i wanna download almost everything! its weird cos when i digitize Here & Now – you’ve just done it too & like the same with X Ray Spex the day the world turned dayglo – it seemed like you’d digitized it too & i wondered which version had the most megabytes ha ha ha.
what a resource this is – but i can’t download stuff!!!! i am upset – is it my end or yours? cos i’ve d/loaded stuff before – its weird!
yan tree
April 2, 2009 at 11:26 amquell surprise just after posting last message I’m now able to d/load this – will try more ‘earlier stuff’
Penguin • Post Author •
April 2, 2009 at 9:38 pmDownload problems will be at your end yan tree, never uploaded that X Ray Spex tune, uploaded the debut 12″. glad you like the site. Fill your boots with the downloads.
yan tree
April 4, 2009 at 1:15 pmcheers penguin, yeah guess I meant the debut 12″
chris
April 10, 2009 at 4:00 pmyan tree, are you Jon by the way? I’ve been trying to get hold of you by email. Please send your contact details via Penguin at this site and i’ll be in touch. Chris
gaz
August 31, 2009 at 12:31 amjust downloaded 2 crass gigs but i can’t seem to find them on my comp,looked in documents and added to windows library but the 2 gigs don’t seem to be anywhere anyone help??
yan tree
September 23, 2010 at 12:44 pmhey chris, oops sorry haven’t looked here for a while, re: yr message on april 10th 2009!!!…I’m not Jon but i am Jan – which is similar…yeah penguin would you send chris my email (if he still wants it! ;- )
cheers then