CLASSIC RECORDS LP RTH 2817-1: GRAHAM PARKER - 12 Haunted Episodes 150gm 1995 SS

	C$		150
	$		109

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Background -

Graham Parker (born 18 November 1950, London, England) is a British rock singer and songwriter, who is best known as the lead singer of the popular British band Graham Parker & the Rumour.

In late 1972 Parker returned to England and lived with his parents, working at a petrol station around the corner from his childhood home in Deepcut. By now he was determined to pursue a career in music and worked steadily on improving his guitar playing and song writing. In late 1974 he placed an ad in Britain’s Melody Maker seeking like-minded backing musicians. One of the musicians who answered the ad was Noel Brown, a guitarist who lived in south London. Parker met with Brown who then introduced him to Paul “Bassman” Riley who had recently been a member of Chilli Willi and the Red Hot Peppers. (Brown also found Parker a gig at Southern Comfort, a tiny hamburger café on Seven Sisters Road in Finsbury Park, London where he played solo, performing a mixture of original songs and covers.) Riley thought Parker should meet Dave Robinson, the manager of the by now defunct Brinsley Schwarz band. Robinson had a small studio above the Hope & Anchor pub in Islington and began to record Parker, sometimes solo and sometimes with a few musicians behind him. One of the songs Parker recorded was “Between You And Me.” This demo version was the one that ended up on Parker’s first album, “Howlin’ Wind,” after the Rumour tried to record it but failed to achieve the natural feel of the demo. Another song, “Nothin’s Gonna Pull Us Apart” was played, in demo form, on the Charlie Gillett show “Honky Tonk” on BBC London 94.9. On hearing the song, Nigel Grainge from Phonogram Records called Gillett and asked who the new singer was. By now Robinson had become Parker’s manager and a deal with Phonogram was struck almost immediately. Robinson then went about recruiting the musicians that would become the Rumour, and recording for “Howlin’ Wind” began in the winter of 1975 with Nick Lowe producing. In 1975, he recorded a few demo tracks in London with Dave Robinson, who would shortly found Stiff Records and who connected Parker with his first backing band of note, The Rumour. Parker had one track, "Back to Schooldays", released on the compilation album, A Bunch of Stiff Records for Stiff Records.

In the summer of 1975, Parker joined forces with ex-members of three British pub-rock bands to form Graham Parker and the Rumour. The new group consisted of Parker (lead vocals, guitar) with Brinsley Schwarz (lead guitar) and Bob Andrews (keyboards) (both ex Brinsley Schwarz), Martin Belmont (rhythm guitar, ex Ducks Deluxe) and Andrew Bodnar (bass) and Steve Goulding (drums). They began in the British pub rock scene, often augmented at times by a four-man horn section known as The Rumour Horns: John "Irish" Earle (saxophone), Chris Gower (trombone), Dick Hanson (trumpet), and Ray Beavis (saxophone).

The band's first album, Howlin' Wind, was released to acclaim in April 1976 and was rapidly followed by the stylistically similar Heat Treatment.[1] A mixture of rock, ballads, and reggae-influenced numbers, these albums reflected Parker's early influences (Motown, The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Van Morrison) and contained the songs which formed the core of Parker's live shows – "Black Honey", "Soul Shoes", "Lady Doctor", "Fool's Gold", and his early signature tune "Hey Lord, Don't Ask Me Questions", which hit the Top 40 in the UK.

Parker and the Rumour built a reputation as incendiary live performers: the promotional album Live at Marble Arch was recorded at this time and shows off their raw onstage style. Like the pub rock scene he was loosely tied to, the singer's class-conscious lyrics and passionate vocals signalled a renewal of rock music as punk rock began to flower in Britain.

In terms of establishing a recording career in early 1976, Parker preceded two other new wave English singer-songwriters to whom he is often compared: Elvis Costello and Joe Jackson. (Costello's first single was released in 1977, and Jackson's first solo single was issued in late 1978).

12 Haunted Episodes, Graham Parker's first album recorded for an independent label, is appropriately intimate and warm, recalling the simplicity of Struck By Lightning, but with a gentler approach. Parker makes no concessions to commercial radio on the record, dispensing with the slick productions that tended to plague his albums for the past decade or so. That doesn't mean the record is raw -- it means that it's more personal and intimate. At its core, 12 Haunted Episodes is not that different than Parker's records since The Mona Lisa's Sister: most of the songs are love songs to his wife and daughter, or they're tales of an aging rebel, trying to keep his youthful fire alive as he grows older. However, the songs are measured and reflective, signaling that he's settling gracefully into his middle age. When Parker does get bitter -- such as his attack on capitalism, "Disney's America" -- it doesn't seem vengeful, it seems regretful, which helps make 12 Haunted Episodes his most mature album to date. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

• CLASSIC RECORDS / Rock The House LP item.

• Record Made in the USA

• Pressing is in STEREO

• Record Speed: 33 1/3 rpm

• Earliest (and best) version of this audiophile reissue by Classic Records - using 150-gram pure virgin vinyl, this title is long out of print.
  

• Record Made in: 1995 - original LP were issued in 1992 by Razor & Tie.
  

• Record Catalog Number: RTH 2817-1

Featured on this item:

Graham Parker

LP Title:

12 Haunted Episodes

Track Listing -

1. Partner For Life
2. Pollinate
3. Force of Nature
4. Disney's America
5. Haunted Episodes
6. Next Phase
7. Honest Work
8. Cruel Stage
9. See Yourself
10. Loverman
11. Fly
12. First Day of Spring
    

CONDITION Details:

LP JACKET:

• The LP jacket is in Mint condition - this item is FACTORY SEALED.

• The jacket has NO seam splits - it is completely intact.
  

• The jacket has NO drill holes or saw marks of any kind.
  

• The outer plastic cellophane (bag) wrap is perfect. The perforated seam is completely intact.

• There is NO hand writing on the front or back of the jacket.

• The cover has clean and sharp colors - see pictures with this listing for more detail. 

The LP (vinyl) itself:

• The LP is assumed to be in MINT condition as this item is FACTORY SEALED!

• This is the mint copy you have always wanted in your collection - any super picky audiophile would be happy with this one!

A Short Note About LP GRADING -

• Mint = Only used for sealed items.
• Near Mint = Virtually flawless in every way.
• Near Mint Minus = Item has some minor imperfections, some audible.
• Excellent = Item obviously played and enjoyed with some noise.
• Very Good Plus = Many more imperfections which are noticeable and obtrusive.

Don't let this rarity slip by!!!