Disco de XTC: “Big Express [UK Bonus Tracks]”

I'm pretty sure this was the second album I purchased by XTC, after I found out that Oranges & Lemons was absolutely brilliant. I liked the cover of Big Express - it just looked interesting.

Now by most reviews, XTC fans have a hard time with this one (good thing I rarely listen to the fans either), because after I heard The Big Express, I had to own everything they ever put out, and I mean everything. I was absolutely caught, hook line and sinker. For one, its producer David Lord, produced one of my all time favourite 80's albums by one of my all time favourite artists, Peter Gabriel. So XTC had one thumbs up from me just on that. But more importantly, it was the songs that stood out on how very very good they were, how much they said and did in 4 or 5 minutes, and how it left you feeling. Like you discovered the band that should have been held up there like The Beatles, but never did. The Band That Time Forgot, XTC.

First off, I'm not saying Moulding and Partridge will suit everyone's tastes. Their singing style might turn some off, but after you get used to it, you realise they are actually perfectly suited for their own compositions. When other artists have covered them, it just doesn't sound right (except for Ruben Blades cover version of . . . . ), and probably the 'sweetest on the ear' is Moulding. And on Big Express he writes two fantastic songs, 'Wake Up' and 'I Remember The Sun'. (Ok, I'm a Moulding fan by proxy, but he's a great songwriter, no more no less than Partridge is). And on The Big Express, what Moulding started doing on Mummer starts picking up steam (sorry!). He starts changing his sound and song topic, each suiting eachother, never moreso than on 'I Remember The Sun'. It is an awesome piece of songwriting, and I think probably the best song on this album (if we're talking 'best' ????) 'I Remember The Sun' is worthy of any Beatles or Kinks album. In some instances, its much better.

The XTC comparisons to McCartney (though they cite him as a major influence) fall apart when you get to XTC lyrics. There is no possible way McCartney writes lyrics like Moulding or Partridge, their style suiting Ray Davies of the Kinks much better and closer. They are storytellers, and their songs are as visually precise as they are literally. The album is about hometown life and growing older, and they paint this picture much richer and with more emotion than 'Penny Lane' offers.

From Partridge you get tales of smalltowns and unspoken love. Of a world destroyed by human destruction, and the sad tale of why. About ex-managers and fame, and certain men who treat women in a way that will get them kicked. Each Partridge song lends itself to an illustration to accompany it, they are so visual in their characterisation of human foible and success.

Though this is a noisy album, and some songs get a little buried by the barrage of electronics, it still doesn't hide the actual song and what it has to say. On 'Train Running Low On Soul Coal' all those whistles and stops tell the tale just as much as the words, and though some may feel this could have been done just as easily without electronics and gadgets, The Big Express is what it is, and what it says it is. The small little grasshopper than can be found on the front cover (about to be rolled over by this big wheel) is just as much an accidental metaphor for what was happening to XTC at the time, and this album captures it in every sound, every groove, pretty much every note.

There are tons of songs left off of this album that Partridge's Fuzzy Warbles project is seeking to release, and one of my favourites has always been 'Work'. No one else in the band liked it, but I would have been pushing for that one had I been around to lend a hand.

The fact that this album ranks 11,565 on the Amazon list is a crime. Although the album has a couple of minor flaws, THE BIG EXPRESS is a snapshot of the band at their prime. The irony was, no one was listening, or buying their albums. This album bears the same relationship to SKYLARKING as RUBBER SOUL does to REVOLVER: the great building was complete, but here some of the scaffolding and tools were still visible.

Both Partridge and Moulding demonstrate a boundless creative ability on this disc. David Lord's production(finished by the band when the production schedule was exceeded)is nearly flawless. One of the few producers who understood the XTC universe(along with Lilywhite & Rundgren), Lord provides a solid classical anchor so that Partridge and Moulding can frolic in the musicial water without fear of losing sight of the boat.

Highly underrated and misunderstood, THE BIG EXPRESS captured the elements that made early XTC so stellar and became a roadmap for the band's excursions to other vistas.

Every bit the equal of the classic album that followed it, The Big Express is certainly one of XTC's finest accomplishments. This remaster puts the previously issued version to shame! The sound is crisp, sharp and has none of the analog artifacts that made the previous CD sound so poor. The albums original running order has been restored with the b side single bonus tracks added at the end of the CD. The location of the b sides in the middle of the previous CD never bothered me that much as this is one of the few albums where the b sides were for the most part every bit the equal of the album tracks.

The limited edition CD version of this album resembles the original vinyl right down to the round album cover. Although not the band's most accessible work (Skylarking and Oranges & Lemons both belong in that category), BE is one of the richest XTC albums the band produced. Coming after the uneven but interesting Mummer, BE was a fine return to form.

I am a bit disappointed that no demos are included on this CD (I suppose Virgin is saving those for their boxed set coming out later this year). Regardless, the sound quality alone makes this worth paying the extra money for. Drums & Wires, Black Sea, The Big Express and Skylarking all outclass the original CD releases in terms of sound quality and packaging.

how drastically my opinions about xtc clash with everyone elses. ive been a musician/composer for 12 years, maybe thats why. if youre a serious musician too maybe this will help you out. for one thing disregard 98% of the reviews above us here. in my opinion this is their best record. if not their best(which is a pretty ridiculous statement i guess)its as good as whatever your favorite is right now, be it skylarking, black sea, whatever. i detest drum machines and im telling you, you will not notice synthetic drums on this record unless you go out of your way to. it does not affect the brilliance of these songs at all(im having a hard time sympathizing with these people saying the drums 'swallow the songs whole'). as far as the bonus tunes, theyre the highlights for me. and just to make the old school fans really disregard my opinion-blue overall is the best song on the album. thats right. it rocks beyond belief, its odd meter, and andy screams alot. thats enough for me. i love the pretty stuff, but theres not enough straight up rocking on the next generation of albums(i.e. ugly underneath, no language in our lungs, etc.)and it abounds here. the perfect mix of kickass rock and the beautiful/strange stuff that xtc are masters of. also it opens with colins best song ever(well, tied with the world is full of angry young men). there you have it. if youre unable to choose between english settlement and this, make the smart decision and buy english settlement later.

I saw this album on the shelf in a store one day and it totally called to me and asked to be taken home. I hated it at first. It collected dust for a few months before finally finding its way back to the stereo. Now I put this disc in at least once a week and sing its entirety at the top of my lungs. The Big Express popped my XTC cherry and, lately, I can't get enough. All of the tracks are excellent, but as others have noted before, "This World Over" does tend to drag. Highly recommended!