The Fall and Castle Face Records will release a new vinyl-only album, Live at St. Helens Technical College, ’81, on Feb. 19.
The record features a soundboard recording from 1981 that was previously a bootleg. But the label worked with all parties involved: "every surviving member of the band, the sound person, the bootlegger who recorded it and the photographer and received their blessings & help piecing it all together," says label head John Dwyer.
Fifty percent of profits will be donated to a homeless organization in Manchester.
Marc Riley of The Fall shares his perspective on the record below:
I stumbled upon the link to the recording of the St Helens Technical College gig on Twitter. I started to listen and recognised it as one of the better sound-board recordings I’d ever heard. Knowing John (Dwyer - of Osees and Castleface Records) was into The Fall I sent him the link just for him to enjoy. He got back and said it was one of the best live Fall sets he’d ever heard and asked if we were cool with him releasing it. So I contacted Steve and Paul Hanley…. then Paul got in touch with Craig Scanlan - and within the space of a week we’d given Castleface the ‘OK' from four of the five Fall members on recording. The fifth of course being Mark E Smith who is no longer with us. I believe (from a mate who is armed with a functioning memory and was there on the night) the gig was poorly attended. So much so that the Promoter attempted to pull our fee…which resulted in him being pushed to the floor by our manager Kay Carrol. Sounds about right.
Live at St. Helens Technical College, ’81 track listing:
Blob ’59
Prole Art Threat
Jawbone and the Air Rifle
Middle Mass
Rowche Rumble
An Older Lover
City Hobgoblins
Leave the Capitol
The NWRA
Gramme Friday
Fit and Working Again
Muzorewi’s Daughter
Slates, Slags, Etc
