Songs To Remember [Remastered] - Scritti Politti > Reviews > Re-issue of a Lost Classic...

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Groundbreaking
Lyrics	Sublime
Quality and consistency of tracks	Flawless
How does it compare to the artist's other releases	Outstanding
Value for Money	Good

Advantages:	It's Green
Disadvantages:	None come to mind

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

I first came across the name Scritti Politti a.k.a. Green Garside" when one of his tracks that makes up this classic album was included on the first tape given away free with the N.M.E. called "Rough Trade C81", (which I still have) as you can probably gather it was a showcase for the acts that were signed to the Rough Trade record label at the time, the time being 1981.

Other acts that are on the tape are the likes of The Beat, Orange Juice, Josef K, and Subway Sect to name a few of the artists that appeared.

Side 1 of the tape started with what would turn out to be the last track on the album, yes the first track I heard was the "Dub" influenced song the "Sweetest Girl" this was enough of incentive for me to look for and buy the album when it became available, about 6 months would pass before "Songs to Remember" became available, if my memory serves me correctly I had to buy the album in an independent record store as the big shops like "Woolworth's" and the like didn't stock independent labels at the time.

I first heard songs such as the opening track "Asylums In Jerusalem" that has hints of 50's do-wop about it on the late night John Peel Radio 1 show, what a difference from the first track I heard, this song has more soul than dub, in fact all the tracks on the album are different to each other.

One of my personal favourites on this album is "Jacques Derrida" with its chorus of "I want it, I want it I want that too, B'baby it's up to you, To find out somethin' that you need to do, Because" it still sounds really funky even today, with the choppy sounding guitar playing of Green punching out the chorus.

The whole collection is superb but another stand out track for me is the song "Rock-A-Boy Blue" with the sound of the double bass vibrating from the speakers along with the saxophone played in the minor under-pinning the middle 8 part, this is one of the albums that made the 80's bearable this and ABC's "Lexicon of Love" these albums where a musical oasis in a desert of music, grab a copy before it disappears again...