Not of This Earth (The Damned album)
Encyclopedia
Not of This Earth is the eighth studio album
by The Damned. It is often (perhaps more correctly) called I'm Alright Jack & The Beanstalk.
The album has a convoluted history. Following the Final Damnation
concerts in 1988, the original line-up of the band (singer Dave Vanian, guitarist Brian James, bass guitarist Captain Sensible
and drummer Rat Scabies
) had briefly collaborated to record the track "Prokofiev
", which had a low-key USA-only release on the independent Skinnies Cut label. Over the following months, Scabies continued to collaborate with James and Kris Dollimore, guitarist with The Godfathers
, on demos.
Initial attempts to persuade Vanian to join the project were unsuccessful, so James and Dollimore moved on. Scabies later dug out the material, and began working on it with Alan Lee Shaw (who had previously played guitar for The Rings, The Maniacs, The Physicals and Brian James' band Brains). This time the work progressed further, and Dollimore rejoined the project. Bass player Moose
(real name Jason Harris; formerly with New Model Army
) also came onboard. Vanian was contacted again, and was impressed this time, and completed the band as singer. At this point the decision was taken to perform under The Damned banner.
The new line-up performed a BBC Radio 1
session in November 1993, and then toured the UK, U.S. and Japan. The group's recordings had built a cult following in Japan, and following excellent reception of the new material at the gigs there, Toshiba
offered the group the funding to record it as an album.
Recording took place in the UK. As well as the Scabies/Dollimore material (as a side-note, Scabies is listed under his real name of Chris Millar in the writing credits), "Prokofiev
" was remixed. James Taylor of James Taylor Quartet
fame added Hammond organ to some tracks, while ex-Sex Pistols
bass player Glen Matlock
played on "Tailspin" and "Never Could Believe".
The results were issued by Toshiba as Not of This Earth in Japan in November 1995, with "Prokofiev" as an unlisted 'hidden' track. In April 1996, the Marble Orchard label issued the album in the UK, now titled I'm Alright Jack & the Beanstalk (inspired by a phrase used by an acquaintance of Scabies'). This had apparently been the planned title of the album all along, but had been considered too much of a mouthful for the Japanese market. The cover was a 3D lenticular
design, using the Japanese artwork as a background for a risqué animation. This version of the album was also issued in Germany and Sweden. The album also saw a release in the USA in 1996, but this release, on the Cleopatra
label, was titled Not of This Earth once again, and featured totally different cover artwork.
By this time, the new line-up was breaking up. Vanian wanted to return to his Phantom Chords project, and also argued with Scabies over writing credits from the album. The band would split once again, and by August 1996 would be reforming once more – this time with Vanian accompanied by Captain Sensible instead of Scabies.
The Vanian/Scabies/Shaw/Dollimore/Moose line-up have featured on two other Damned releases – the remix EP Testify
and the live album Molten Lager
.
Much confusion has sprung up about the Not of This Earth/I'm Alright Jack & the Beanstalk album. The Damned's official site formerly carried the unhelpful message "Not intended for release in this form" on its discography page on the album, and the music press often referred to 2001's Grave Disorder
as the group's first release since Anything
in 1986. Several sources list it as a compilation album.
To further the confusion about the album's name, Castle Music reissued it as I'm Alright Jack & the Beanstalk in the USA in 2002, with Imperial doing the same in Japan. Recently, thanks to the ease of importing CDs and the rise of internet shopping, copies of the US release of Not of This Earth can be easily found in Europe, with Cleopatra also reissuing the album in The Damned Box Set in 1999 (with the Testify
remix EP, and compilation The Chaos Years).
The Castle release (also reissued in the UK in 2002) featured a non-lenticular sleeve based on the original Japanese artwork, and also included the four tracks cut at the 29 November 1993 Radio 1 session as bonus tracks.
NB: Alan Lee Shaw is credited with "Theme Guitar" - a typically off-the-cuff way of saying "rhythm guitar".
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 Damned. It is often (perhaps more correctly) called I'm Alright Jack & The Beanstalk.
The album has a convoluted history. Following the Final Damnation
Final Damnation
Final Damnation is a live album by The Damned. The album was recorded at The Town & Country Club in London on June 13, 1988. It was originally released in August 1989, and was later re-released on DVD....
concerts in 1988, the original line-up of the band (singer Dave Vanian, guitarist Brian James, bass guitarist Captain Sensible
Captain Sensible
Captain Sensible is a singer, songwriter, guitarist who grew up in Croydon, England, and co-founded the punk rock band The Damned in 1976. After leaving the band, he reinvented himself as an alternative pop singer with a rebellious, self-conscious image...
and drummer Rat Scabies
Rat Scabies
Christopher Millar , better known by his stage name Rat Scabies, is a musician best known for his tenure as the drummer for The Damned....
) had briefly collaborated to record the track "Prokofiev
Prokofiev (song)
"Prokofiev" was a single released by The Damned in 1991.The song was recorded in June 1990 in Rat Scabies home studio, consisting of a loop of The Stooges song "Gimme Danger", over which Brian James improvised on guitar and sound effects...
", which had a low-key USA-only release on the independent Skinnies Cut label. Over the following months, Scabies continued to collaborate with James and Kris Dollimore, guitarist with The Godfathers
The Godfathers
The Godfathers are an alternative rock band from London, England.-Career:The Godfathers were formed by Peter and Chris Coyne from the ashes of The Sid Presley Experience in 1985. After independent single releases produced by Vic Maile, and collected on their debut album, Hit By Hit, they signed to...
, on demos.
Initial attempts to persuade Vanian to join the project were unsuccessful, so James and Dollimore moved on. Scabies later dug out the material, and began working on it with Alan Lee Shaw (who had previously played guitar for The Rings, The Maniacs, The Physicals and Brian James' band Brains). This time the work progressed further, and Dollimore rejoined the project. Bass player Moose
Moose Harris
Moose Harris , is a British bass guitarist, who was known as Jason James Harris until June 2001, when he legally changed his name to reflect his former nickname and adopted professional alias of "Moose". At the age of seventeen, he was recruited by New Model Army to replace original bass player...
(real name Jason Harris; formerly with New Model Army
New Model Army (band)
New Model Army are an English rock band, who were formed in Bradford, West Yorkshire in 1980. They have been variously classified by Allmusic as post-punk and alternative rock.-Overview:...
) also came onboard. Vanian was contacted again, and was impressed this time, and completed the band as singer. At this point the decision was taken to perform under The Damned banner.
The new line-up performed a BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
session in November 1993, and then toured the UK, U.S. and Japan. The group's recordings had built a cult following in Japan, and following excellent reception of the new material at the gigs there, Toshiba
Toshiba
is a multinational electronics and electrical equipment corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. It is a diversified manufacturer and marketer of electrical products, spanning information & communications equipment and systems, Internet-based solutions and services, electronic components and...
offered the group the funding to record it as an album.
Recording took place in the UK. As well as the Scabies/Dollimore material (as a side-note, Scabies is listed under his real name of Chris Millar in the writing credits), "Prokofiev
Prokofiev (song)
"Prokofiev" was a single released by The Damned in 1991.The song was recorded in June 1990 in Rat Scabies home studio, consisting of a loop of The Stooges song "Gimme Danger", over which Brian James improvised on guitar and sound effects...
" was remixed. James Taylor of James Taylor Quartet
James Taylor Quartet
The James Taylor Quartet are a British four-piece jazz funk band who have become renowned for their live performances. They were formed by Hammond organ player James Taylor following the break-up of his former band The Prisoners in the wake of Stiff Records' bankruptcy...
fame added Hammond organ to some tracks, while ex-Sex Pistols
Sex Pistols
The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band that formed in London in 1975. They were responsible for initiating the punk movement in the United Kingdom and inspiring many later punk and alternative rock musicians...
bass player Glen Matlock
Glen Matlock
Glen Matlock is an English bass guitarist most famous for being in the original line-up of the punk rock band the Sex Pistols. Drummer Paul Cook has said that Matlock came up with much of the music for the band's songs and most of the lyrics, while lead singer Johnny Rotten made some adjustments...
played on "Tailspin" and "Never Could Believe".
The results were issued by Toshiba as Not of This Earth in Japan in November 1995, with "Prokofiev" as an unlisted 'hidden' track. In April 1996, the Marble Orchard label issued the album in the UK, now titled I'm Alright Jack & the Beanstalk (inspired by a phrase used by an acquaintance of Scabies'). This had apparently been the planned title of the album all along, but had been considered too much of a mouthful for the Japanese market. The cover was a 3D lenticular
Lenticular printing
Lenticular printing is a technology in which a lenticular lens is used to produce images with an illusion of depth, or the ability to change or move as the image is viewed from different angles...
design, using the Japanese artwork as a background for a risqué animation. This version of the album was also issued in Germany and Sweden. The album also saw a release in the USA in 1996, but this release, on the Cleopatra
Cleopatra Records
Cleopatra Records is a Los Angeles-based independent record label.- History :Founded in 1992 by Brian Perera, it specializes in gothic rock, hard rock, heavy metal and reissues of out-of-print music...
label, was titled Not of This Earth once again, and featured totally different cover artwork.
By this time, the new line-up was breaking up. Vanian wanted to return to his Phantom Chords project, and also argued with Scabies over writing credits from the album. The band would split once again, and by August 1996 would be reforming once more – this time with Vanian accompanied by Captain Sensible instead of Scabies.
The Vanian/Scabies/Shaw/Dollimore/Moose line-up have featured on two other Damned releases – the remix EP Testify
Testify (EP)
Testify was a remix EP by The Damned, released by Cleopatra Records in 1997.It consisted of remixes of material from their 1996 album Not of This Earth. Among those contributing were the UK Subs , Birmingham 6 , Claus Larsen , Damien Deville , Matt Green and Romell Regulacion...
and the live album Molten Lager
Molten Lager
Molten Lager is a live album by The Damned that was recorded in Mulhouse, France on June 23, 1994.The line-up features the Not of This Earth personnel and showcases much of that album and other rare tracks by The Damned...
.
Much confusion has sprung up about the Not of This Earth/I'm Alright Jack & the Beanstalk album. The Damned's official site formerly carried the unhelpful message "Not intended for release in this form" on its discography page on the album, and the music press often referred to 2001's Grave Disorder
Grave Disorder
Grave Disorder is an album from the punk rock band The Damned, released in August 2001.It was their first release since signing to Nitro Records. The album is musically similar to Dave Vanian and Captain Sensible's previous Damned collaboration, Strawberries...
as the group's first release since Anything
Anything (The Damned album)
Anything was The Damned's seventh studio album, released in 1986. Between July and August 1985 the band and producer Jon Kelly decamped to Puk Recording Studios in Gjerlev, Denmark to record their follow-up. In contrast to the straightforward sessions for their previous album, recording was rife...
in 1986. Several sources list it as a compilation album.
To further the confusion about the album's name, Castle Music reissued it as I'm Alright Jack & the Beanstalk in the USA in 2002, with Imperial doing the same in Japan. Recently, thanks to the ease of importing CDs and the rise of internet shopping, copies of the US release of Not of This Earth can be easily found in Europe, with Cleopatra also reissuing the album in The Damned Box Set in 1999 (with the Testify
Testify (EP)
Testify was a remix EP by The Damned, released by Cleopatra Records in 1997.It consisted of remixes of material from their 1996 album Not of This Earth. Among those contributing were the UK Subs , Birmingham 6 , Claus Larsen , Damien Deville , Matt Green and Romell Regulacion...
remix EP, and compilation The Chaos Years).
The Castle release (also reissued in the UK in 2002) featured a non-lenticular sleeve based on the original Japanese artwork, and also included the four tracks cut at the 29 November 1993 Radio 1 session as bonus tracks.
Track listing
- "I Need a Life" (Alan Lee Shaw, Rat ScabiesRat ScabiesChristopher Millar , better known by his stage name Rat Scabies, is a musician best known for his tenure as the drummer for The Damned....
) – 3:20 - "Testify" (Shaw, Scabies) – 2:56
- "Shut ItShut It"Shut It" is a song by The Damned, released as a single in 1996.The song was released to promote the Not of This Earth album, recorded by a new line-up which featured long-term members Dave Vanian and Rat Scabies, and new members Kris Dollimore , Allan Lee Shaw , and Moose .The single was released...
" (Shaw, Scabies) – 2:48 - "Tailspin" (Shaw, Scabies) – 4:13
- "Not of This Earth" (Shaw, Scabies) – 2:55
- "Running Man" (Shaw, Scabies) – 5:06
- "My Desire" (Shaw, Scabies) – 2:48
- "Never Could Believe" (Shaw, Scabies) – 4:57
- "Heaven Can Take Your Lies" (Shaw, Scabies) – 3:49
- "Shadow to Fall" (Shaw, Scabies) – 3:02
- "No More Tears" (Shaw, Scabies) – 5:14
- "Prokofiev" (Scabies, Brian James) – 3:24
Personnel
- ProducerRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
:- David M Allen
- MusicianMusicianA musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
s:- Dave Vanian: Vocals
- Kris DollimoreThe GodfathersThe Godfathers are an alternative rock band from London, England.-Career:The Godfathers were formed by Peter and Chris Coyne from the ashes of The Sid Presley Experience in 1985. After independent single releases produced by Vic Maile, and collected on their debut album, Hit By Hit, they signed to...
: 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... - Alan Lee Shaw: Theme 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...
, Backing vocals - Rat ScabiesRat ScabiesChristopher Millar , better known by his stage name Rat Scabies, is a musician best known for his tenure as the drummer for The Damned....
: DrumDrumThe drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...
s - Jason "Moose" HarrisMoose HarrisMoose Harris , is a British bass guitarist, who was known as Jason James Harris until June 2001, when he legally changed his name to reflect his former nickname and adopted professional alias of "Moose". At the age of seventeen, he was recruited by New Model Army to replace original bass player...
: BassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
NB: Alan Lee Shaw is credited with "Theme Guitar" - a typically off-the-cuff way of saying "rhythm guitar".
- Guest MusiciansMusicianA musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
- James TaylorJames Taylor QuartetThe James Taylor Quartet are a British four-piece jazz funk band who have become renowned for their live performances. They were formed by Hammond organ player James Taylor following the break-up of his former band The Prisoners in the wake of Stiff Records' bankruptcy...
: Hammond OrganHammond organThe Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond in 1934 and manufactured by the Hammond Organ Company. While the Hammond organ was originally sold to churches as a lower-cost alternative to the wind-driven pipe organ, in the 1960s and 1970s it became a standard keyboard... - Glen MatlockGlen MatlockGlen Matlock is an English bass guitarist most famous for being in the original line-up of the punk rock band the Sex Pistols. Drummer Paul Cook has said that Matlock came up with much of the music for the band's songs and most of the lyrics, while lead singer Johnny Rotten made some adjustments...
: Bass GuitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
on "Tailspin" and "Never Could Believe"
- James Taylor