Big Wheel (album)
Encyclopedia
Big Wheel is a studio album by Australian rock
synthpop
band, Icehouse
, which was released by dIVA Records - founder Iva Davies
' own label - and Massive Records. It was recorded at Davies' home in Whale Beach
during 1993 with Davies on vocals, guitar
, bass guitar
and keyboards
, David Chapman on guitar, keyboards and backing vocals, and Paul Wheeler on drums
, percussion and backing vocals. Big Wheel peaked at #46 and was their first studio album not to reach the Top Ten on the Australian album charts. The album was digitally remastered by Davies and Ryan Scott with five bonus tracks added for the 2002 re-release by Warner Music Australia.
(featuring fellow guitarist Buckethead
) and General Dynamics (guitars by Jon Ingoldsby) as well as a demo version of the song and "Turn it Round".
(APRA).
(**) Only available on the Australian 2002 remastered version.
Icehouse members
Additional musicians
Recording details
Art work
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
synthpop
Synthpop
Synthpop is a genre of popular music that first became prominent in the 1980s, in which the synthesizer is the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s and early 1970s by the use of synthesizers in progressive rock, electronic art rock, disco and particularly the "Kraut rock" of...
band, Icehouse
Icehouse (band)
Icehouse is an Australian rock band, formed as Flowers in 1977 in Sydney. Initially known in Australia for their pub rock style, they later achieved mainstream success playing new wave and synthpop style music and attained Top Ten singles chart success in both Europe and the U.S...
, which was released by dIVA Records - founder Iva Davies
Iva Davies
Iva Davies , is the frontman for Australian electro/new wave/rock band Icehouse.-Biography:...
' own label - and Massive Records. It was recorded at Davies' home in Whale Beach
Whale Beach, New South Wales
Whale Beach is a northern beachside suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Whale Beach is located 40 kilometres north of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Pittwater Council, in the Northern Beaches region.At the northern end just off the...
during 1993 with Davies on vocals, guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, bass guitar
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
and keyboards
Keyboard instrument
A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
, David Chapman on guitar, keyboards and backing vocals, and Paul Wheeler on drums
Drum kit
A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, percussion and backing vocals. Big Wheel peaked at #46 and was their first studio album not to reach the Top Ten on the Australian album charts. The album was digitally remastered by Davies and Ryan Scott with five bonus tracks added for the 2002 re-release by Warner Music Australia.
Singles
"Satellite" and "Big Wheel" were released as singles in 1993, "Invisible People" followed in 1994. Of those three only "Satellite" reached the Australian charts, peaking at 83. The "Big Wheel" single featured remixes by Bill LaswellBill Laswell
Bill Laswell is an American bassist, producer and record label owner....
(featuring fellow guitarist Buckethead
Buckethead
Brian Carroll , better known by his stage name Buckethead, is a guitarist and multi instrumentalist who has worked within several genres of music. He has released 34 studio albums, four special releases and one EP. He has performed on over 50 more albums by other artists...
) and General Dynamics (guitars by Jon Ingoldsby) as well as a demo version of the song and "Turn it Round".
Track listing
Songwriters according to Australasian Performing Right AssociationAustralasian Performing Right Association
The Australasian Performing Right Association is a copyright collective representing New Zealand and Australian composers, lyricists and music publishers. The association's head offices located in Sydney Australia, and it has branch offices in Auckland, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth...
(APRA).
- "Big Wheel" (Iva DaviesIva DaviesIva Davies , is the frontman for Australian electro/new wave/rock band Icehouse.-Biography:...
, David Chapman) - 4:28 - "Satellite" (Davies, Chapman, Paul Wheeler) - 4:19
- "Goodbye, Valentine" (Davies, Simon Lloyd, Wheeler) - 4:07
- "Judas" (Davies, Chapman, Wheeler) - 5:20
- "Invisible People" (Davies, Chapman, Wheeler) - 6:10
- "Feed the Machine" (Davies, Chapman, Wheeler) - 5:33
- "Cadillac" (Davies, Chapman, Wheeler) - 4:05
- "Sam the Man" (Davies, Chapman, Wheeler) - 3:55
- "Stolen Guitar" (Davies, Chapman, Wheeler) - 4:24
- "The System" (Davies, Chapman, Wheeler) - 6:56
- "Orbital Line" (Davies, Chapman, Wheeler) - 4:39 **
- "Turn it Round" (Davies) - 2:55 **
- "Driving Me Backwards" (live) (Brian EnoBrian EnoBrian Peter George St. John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno , commonly known as Brian Eno or simply as Eno , is an English musician, composer, record producer, singer and visual artist, known as one of the principal innovators of ambient music.Eno studied at Colchester Institute art school in Essex,...
) - 5:54 ** - "Blank Frank" (live) (Eno, Robert FrippRobert FrippRobert Fripp is an English guitarist, composer and record producer. He was ranked 42nd on Rolling Stone magazine's 2003 list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" and #47 on Gibson.com’s "Top 50 Guitarists of All Time". Among rock guitarists, Fripp is a master of crosspicking, a technique...
) - 3:37 ** - "Satellite (The Ex-static Mix) (Davies, Chapman, Wheeler) - 5:27 **
(**) Only available on the Australian 2002 remastered version.
Personnel
Credited to:Icehouse members
- Iva DaviesIva DaviesIva Davies , is the frontman for Australian electro/new wave/rock band Icehouse.-Biography:...
— vocals, guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments... - David Chapman — guitar, keyboards, backing vocals
- Paul Wheeler — drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, percussion, backing vocals
Additional musicians
- Ben Nightingale — guitar on "Sam the Man"
Recording details
- Producer — Iva Davies
- Studio/s — dIVA Studios @ Whale Beach, Australia. Additional recordings by Simon Leadley @ Trackdown Studios assisted by James Cadsky, Richard Mould, Michelle Barry.
- Mix/Editing/Mastering — David Lord with Iva Davies, David Chapman, Paul Wheeler at Trackdown
- Mix/Editing/Mastering Engineered by — Simon Leadley at Trackdown
Art work
- Cover Concept — Iva Davies
- Artwork & Computer Graphics — Patti Gaines for Genki.
- Photography — Tony Mott