Marc Almond - Fantastic Star - New 2LP - RSD 23
Format: New & Sealed 2LP 180g Label: UMR Cat. No: 4885669 Barcode: 602448856692 Released: 22/04/2023
*** RECORD STORE DAY 2023 Available in the shop WHILE STOCKS LAST from 8am to 5.30pm on Saturday 22 April then Sunday 23 April 11am to 3pm and Monday 24 April 10am to 3pm
Remaining stock will be available to buy here ONLINE from 8pm UK Time on Monday 24 April 2023 *** LIMITED SALE 1 PER CUSTOMER *** Please note that stock is very limited and is only secured for you once you have completed check out. Full info on how we’re running RECORD STORE DAY 2023 can be found here: https://offthebeatentracks.co.uk/pages/record-store-day
For Record Store Day 2023 Universal Music Catalogue are making Marc Almond’s stunning 1995 solo album ‘Fantastic Star’ available on vinyl for the first time ever. Newly mastered for 180 gm vinyl at Abbey Road Studios, the original CD album has been completely reevaluated by Marc himself to bring fans this new ‘Artist’s Cut’ over this deluxe 2LP version.
Despite delivering some of the best-loved Marc Almond songs of the era – ‘Adored & Explored’, ‘The Idol’ and ‘Come In Sweet Assasin’and ‘We Need Jealousy’, for example - ‘Fantastic Star’ had a long and sometimes troubled gestation with recording sessions spanning two record companies and four big-name producers –original Soft Cell / Bronski Beat producer Mike Thorne, the legendary Cure / Banshees / Beautiful South collaborator Mike Hedges, house pioneers The Beatmasters and The Human League / Heaven 17’s Martyn Ware all made sonic contributions. The resulting album was a thrilling, sonically varied ride through all the genres Marc had already made his own – from grimy guitar-based rock ‘n roll to beautifully orchestrated ballads, and from cutting-edge electronica to out-and-out pop music.For this long-overdue vinyl release Marc has revisited the original running order and looked again at some of the tracks from the sessions that didn’t make the album but later appeared as singles B-sides. Making his own cuts, Marc has removed two songs from the CD format - the long version of ‘The Idol’ in favour of the punchier single version as well as ‘Shining Brightly’ which he feels never really belonged on ‘Fantastic Star’. In their place the Neal-X co-write and live favourite to this day ‘The User’ gets a promotion to LP2 as do two gorgeous ‘Child Star’ B-sides which close the album in a more satisfactory way - ‘Christmas In Vegas’ and ‘My Guardian Angel’. In a similar spirit Marc also selected his original choice of image for the album cover, selecting his favourite shot from 1995 sessions by legendary fashion photographer Zanna. ‘Fantastic Star – The Artist’s Cut’ comes with two fully annotated printed inner bags with lyrics and a new design by Philip Marshall.
1200 copies in the UK.
‘Fantastic Star – The Artist’s Cut’ LP Tracklisting
*Denotes new to this version of the album
Side A
A1. Caged 05:38
A2. Out There 05:37
A3. We Need Jealousy 04:07
A4. The Idol (Part 1) 03:43*
Side B
B1. Baby Night Eyes 03:40
B2. Adored And Explored (7” Edit) 03:53
B3. Child Star 04:04
B4. Looking For Love (In All The Wrong Places) 05:43
B5. Addicted 04;08
Side C
C1. The Edge Of Heartbreak 04:49
C2. Love To Die For 04:02
C3. The User 05:37*
C4. Betrayed 03:21
C5. Come In Sweet Assasin 04:59
Side D
D1. On The Prowl 03:54
D2. Brilliant Creatures 05:29
D3. Christmas In Vegas 04:36*
D4. My Guardian Angel 06:20*