Room to Live
Encyclopedia
Room to Live, subtitled Undilutable Slang Truth!, is the sixth studio album
by The Fall. First released September 27, 1982, it was recorded as a quick follow-up to Hex Enduction Hour
which had been released in March. It was to be Marc Riley
's last album with the group.
The group had originally entered the studio to record a single but Mark E. Smith
prevailed upon the group to record more songs, all of which were new to the band and had not previously been rehearsed or performed live. In accordance with this experimental approach, members were deliberately excluded from certain trackshttp://www.visi.com/fall/news/mbag.html. Smith also stated of the songs that "some of them are just me and Karl (Burns
, drummer/multi-instrumentalist) double-tracked" (as quoted in Daryl Easlea's sleevenote to the 2005 reissue). Whilst these remarks resulted in considerable conjecture amongst fans, the exact line-ups for each track have never been properly confirmed, with the only additional information coming from Riley, who, in 2008, confirmed via his BBC6 radio show that he did not appear on all trackshttp://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/mb6music/F1950406?thread=5327916&skip=20&show=20. Despite this exclusionary policy, there was still room for guests, one of whom, Ludus' Arthur Kadmon
(credited as "Cadman"), has a claim for having the shortest tenure as a Fall member - he was introduced to the group by Smith, recorded approximately 16 seconds of guitar on "Hard Life In Country" and was dismissed (as per Easlea).
The album was completed prior to the group's tour of Australia
and New Zealand
in July and August 1982 and thus songs from the record feature heavily on the live album Fall In a Hole
.
The German pressing of the album added their 1981 single "Lie Dream Of A Casino Soul" and its b-side, "Fantastic Life" to the end of side 2. This inclusion was repeated on the first UK CD edition of the album issued via Cog Sinister in 1998 (mastered from a particularly noisy German vinyl copy) but removed on the 2005 remaster (from the original master tape) since the two tracks had since been included on the Slates
reissue. Other contemporaneous bonus material was added in its place.
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
by The Fall. First released September 27, 1982, it was recorded as a quick follow-up to Hex Enduction Hour
Hex Enduction Hour
Hex Enduction Hour is a 1982 album by The Fall. It was the first album to feature both Karl Burns and Paul Hanley in a two-drummer lineup and was partly recorded in Iceland during the group's 1981 visit, with the remainder being completed in a disused cinema in Hitchin, England...
which had been released in March. It was to be Marc Riley
Marc Riley
Marc Riley is a British musician, alternative rock critic and radio DJ on BBC 6 Music. Formerly a member of The Fall, he had his own record label, In-Tape, and also worked as a record plugger...
's last album with the group.
The group had originally entered the studio to record a single but Mark E. Smith
Mark E. Smith
Mark Edward Smith is the lead singer, lyricist, frontman, and only constant member of the English post-punk band The Fall.-Early life:...
prevailed upon the group to record more songs, all of which were new to the band and had not previously been rehearsed or performed live. In accordance with this experimental approach, members were deliberately excluded from certain trackshttp://www.visi.com/fall/news/mbag.html. Smith also stated of the songs that "some of them are just me and Karl (Burns
Karl Burns
Karl Burns is a British musician best known as drummer for The Fall, featuring in many incarnations of the band between 1977 and 1998....
, drummer/multi-instrumentalist) double-tracked" (as quoted in Daryl Easlea's sleevenote to the 2005 reissue). Whilst these remarks resulted in considerable conjecture amongst fans, the exact line-ups for each track have never been properly confirmed, with the only additional information coming from Riley, who, in 2008, confirmed via his BBC6 radio show that he did not appear on all trackshttp://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/mb6music/F1950406?thread=5327916&skip=20&show=20. Despite this exclusionary policy, there was still room for guests, one of whom, Ludus' Arthur Kadmon
Arthur Kadmon
Arthur Kadmon was a guitarist who worked with different New Wave bands from Manchester, England, as Manicured Noise, Ludus, The Distractions and The Fall....
(credited as "Cadman"), has a claim for having the shortest tenure as a Fall member - he was introduced to the group by Smith, recorded approximately 16 seconds of guitar on "Hard Life In Country" and was dismissed (as per Easlea).
The album was completed prior to the group's tour of Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
in July and August 1982 and thus songs from the record feature heavily on the live album Fall In a Hole
Fall In a Hole
Fall In A Hole is a live album by The Fall, released in 1983 on the Flying Nun label of New Zealand.The album was recorded at the last show of the group's 1982 tour of Australia and New Zealand and was originally only released in those countries...
.
Side one
- "Joker Hysterical Face" (Mark E. SmithMark E. SmithMark Edward Smith is the lead singer, lyricist, frontman, and only constant member of the English post-punk band The Fall.-Early life:...
, Steve HanleySteve Hanley (musician)Steve Hanley is an Irish-born English musician, based in Manchester. He is best known for playing bass guitar in The Fall from 1979 to 1998, and afterwards in The Lovers....
, Marc RileyMarc RileyMarc Riley is a British musician, alternative rock critic and radio DJ on BBC 6 Music. Formerly a member of The Fall, he had his own record label, In-Tape, and also worked as a record plugger...
) – 4:51 - "Marquis Cha-Cha" (Smith, Karl BurnsKarl BurnsKarl Burns is a British musician best known as drummer for The Fall, featuring in many incarnations of the band between 1977 and 1998....
) – 4:34 - "Hard Life in Country" (Smith, Arthur Cadman) – 6:16
- "Room to Live" (Smith, Craig ScanlonCraig ScanlonCraig Scanlon is a British guitarist, best known as a member of The Fall between 1979 and 1995. During this period he co-wrote over 120 of the group's songs; Mark E. Smith excepted, this tally is unmatched by any other musician to have passed through the group.-Career:Scanlon joined the band...
) – 4:16
Side two
- "Detective Instinct" (Smith, Hanley, Burns) – 5:45
- "Solicitor in Studio" (Smith, Burns, Scanlon) – 5:24
- "Papal Visit" (Smith) – 5:40
The German pressing of the album added their 1981 single "Lie Dream Of A Casino Soul" and its b-side, "Fantastic Life" to the end of side 2. This inclusion was repeated on the first UK CD edition of the album issued via Cog Sinister in 1998 (mastered from a particularly noisy German vinyl copy) but removed on the 2005 remaster (from the original master tape) since the two tracks had since been included on the Slates
Slates (album)
Slates is the fourth album by The Fall, first released on the 27th April 1981 on Rough Trade Records. Containing 6 tracks and pressed onto 10" vinyl, it was eligible for neither the single nor album charts, being too long for the former and too short for the latter. However, it was included in the...
reissue. Other contemporaneous bonus material was added in its place.
- Bonus material 2005 edition
- "Joker Hysterical Face" (live in Bury April 1982)
- "Medley: Town Called Crappy" (Smith/Burns/Scanlon)/"Solicitor In Studio" (live in London March 1982)
- "Hard Life in Country" (live in Wellington, New Zealand, August 1982)
- "Detective Instinct" (live in Manchester December 1982)
- "Room to Live" (live in Rotterdam February 1983)
- "Words of Expectation" (Hanley/Hanley/Smith/Burns/Scanlon - live in Toronto April 1983)
Personnel
- Mark E. SmithMark E. SmithMark Edward Smith is the lead singer, lyricist, frontman, and only constant member of the English post-punk band The Fall.-Early life:...
- vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
, violinViolinThe violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello.... - Paul HanleyPaul Hanley (musician)Paul Hanley is an English musician, based in Manchester. He is best known for playing drums in The Fall and The Lovers.-Career:...
- 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 .... - Craig ScanlonCraig ScanlonCraig Scanlon is a British guitarist, best known as a member of The Fall between 1979 and 1995. During this period he co-wrote over 120 of the group's songs; Mark E. Smith excepted, this tally is unmatched by any other musician to have passed through the group.-Career:Scanlon joined the band...
- 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... - Karl BurnsKarl BurnsKarl Burns is a British musician best known as drummer for The Fall, featuring in many incarnations of the band between 1977 and 1998....
- bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, 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 ....
, guitar - Steve HanleySteve Hanley (musician)Steve Hanley is an Irish-born English musician, based in Manchester. He is best known for playing bass guitar in The Fall from 1979 to 1998, and afterwards in The Lovers....
- bass guitar - Marc RileyMarc RileyMarc Riley is a British musician, alternative rock critic and radio DJ on BBC 6 Music. Formerly a member of The Fall, he had his own record label, In-Tape, and also worked as a record plugger...
- guitar, keyboardKeyboard 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... - Arthur Cadman - guitar on "Hard Life In Country"
- Adrian Niman - saxophoneSaxophoneThe saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
on "Room To Live"