The Waterboys - Atlantic Rain: Lost Fisherman's - Import 3 CD

Credits:

The Waterboys

Description:

The Waterboys began rehearsals and recording sessions for fourth album Fishermans Blues in the spring of 1986. It was completed in 1988, after filling nearly 400 multitrack reel-to-reel tapes. The album, the best-selling entry in their catalog, ultimately netted several compilations from all the extant material, including the six-disc, 121-track Fishermans Box: The Complete Fishermans Blues Sessions. Even bandleader Mike Scott erroneously thought the closet had been cleaned. After Blue Raincoat Music acquired the copyright, Scott reviewed hours of unheard tapes labeled "untitled" or "jam" for over two years. He chose 25 "lost" tracks for this three-disc offering, all recorded during an extremely creative Waterboys era. The set includes loads of rare photos, Scotts liner essay, lyrics, and credits. Disc one, subtitled "Atlantic Rain," opens with the "Heaven (soul version)"; it appears in various versions on Fishermans Box, but this is the original. It ripples with Antos (multi-instrumentalist Anthony Thistlewaite) fingerpopping tenor sax, Scotts falsetto and pumping piano vamp, and the Ruts Dave Ruffys propulsive drumming. Its a prime example of Celtic soul thats followed by the nine-minute "Come Back to Galway," driven by Steve Wickhams fiddle and Antos horn. Trevor Hutchinsons thrumming bassline guides Scotts piano and singing. Drummer Jay Dee Daugherty of the Patti Smith Group guests on it, and on the gospelized Celtic pop-soul of "Let the Light Shine On Me." The band also delivers a fist-pumping abridged read of Woody Guthries anthem "This Land Is Your Land." Disc two, subtitled "Summer Rain," consists of (mostly) compelling covers. Pete Thomas of the Attractions plays drums on the Celtic-country-gospel version of the standard "I Cant Feel at Home in This World Anymore." Bob Dylans "Knockin On Heavens Door" offers entwined electric mandolin, saxophone, and fiddle. Theres a throwaway version of Hank Williams "Honky Tonkin" but a better, haunted version of his "Lost Highway." A tender read of the Rolling Stones "No Expectations" is followed by a wrenching take on Princes "When Doves Cry." Willie Nelsons bluesy "Angel Flying Too Close to the Ground" features jazz bassist John Patitucci and uber-drummer Jim Keltner adding New Orleans swing at the close. The burning, bass-throbbing live version of "We Will Not Be Lovers" is the only track from Fishermans Blues here. The best cut on "Fishermans Jam," disc three, is a rowdy, wooly version of the Wolfe Tones "Ship Sirius Full Sail" with a killer reel claiming its center. There are four interesting but unessential instrumentals before the set closes with two jam versions of "Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band" totaling 20 minutes -- Keltner and Patitucci appear on the latter. While it sounds like the band is having a ball, theyre not compelling. Hardcore fans and completists will delight in Atlantic Rain: The Lost Fisherman’s Blues Recordings. While it might have been more powerful as a double, the box adds heft and dimension to the creative reach and musical and cultural impact of the classic Fishermans Blues. ~ Thom Jurek

Tracklisting:

1.Too Close to Heaven [Soul Version]
2.Come Back to Galway
3.The Man With the Wind at His Heels
4.And Then the Gods
5.Light Shine on Me
6.Endless Store
7.This Land Is Your Land [Studio Version]
8.Saints and Angels [1988 Version]
1.I Can't Feel at Home in This World Anymore
2.Knockin' on Heaven's Door
3.Honky Tonkin'
4.No Expectations
5.When Doves Cry
6.Angel Flying Too Close to the Ground
7.Killing My Heart
8.Bob and Anto's Soundcheck
9.We Will Not Be Lovers [Live Take]
10.Lost Highway [Double Version]
1.The Good Ship Sirius/The Ship in Full Sail
2.Mister Saxman
3.The Waves
4.The Last Jam
5.Night Falls on Windmill Lane
6.Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
7.Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise)
8.[Reprise]