When considering everything the Go-Go’s accomplished in their all-too-short initial run in the 1980s, it’s hard to believe that they did it all behind just three albums. However, listening back through the trio of releases – Beauty and the Beat, Vacation, and Talk Show – especially in back-to-back fashion, it’s crystal clear to see (or, more specifically, hear) just how strong the foundation is that established the group’s impressive musical legacy. With this year’s expanded catalog reissues of all three studio albums from Edsel Records, that feat is easily accomplished and highly recommended. Between the original tracklistings, the bonus songs, and the comprehensive liner notes from new interviews written by Paul Myers, these reissues are definitely must-haves for any Go-Go’s fans.
Beauty
And The Beat (1981): Just a few short years after forming as an
all-girl answer to L.A.’s burgeoning punk scene in the late 1970s, the Go-Go’s
released their debut album Beauty and the
Beat on I.R.S. Records in 1981. On the back of hit singles (and heavy
rotations videos for) “Our Lips Are Sealed” and “We Got The Beat,” Beauty and the Beat hit #1 on the Billboard 200 and eventually went 2x Platinum
in the U.S. alone. Album tracks like “This Town,” “Lust to Love,” and “How Much
More” proved that there was much more to the Go-Go’s than just a couple of hit
singles and helped propel Beauty and the
Beat to be viewed as one of the landmark examples of early 80s New Wave.
Along with
Paul Myers’ enthralling liner notes containing new interviews with the band
members and a fascinating narrative of the Go-Go’s origin story, Edsel’s deluxe
reissue includes a wonderful treasure trove of b-sides, demos, rehearsal takes,
and live tracks. Disc One rounds out the original album’s tracklisting with
“Surfing and Spying” (the b-side to the “Our Lips Are Sealed” single), the
single mix of “We Got The Beat,” and a variety of early pre-album Go-Go’s songs
like “Fun With Ropes,” “Blades,” and “Screaming.”
Disc Two
features a 1981 Go-Go’s concert at The Metro Club in Boston recorded just one
month after the release of Beauty and the
Beat. The 17-track live show exquisitely captures the band in all its raw,
fun, and talented glory, with the youthful exuberance of Belinda Carlisle’s
vocals and the sunshine vibe of Charlotte Caffey and Jane Wiedlin’s guitars
crafting a playful foil to Gina Schock’s thundering drums and Kathy Valentine’s
locked-in bass lines. Throughout the show, the band plays through the entirety
of Beauty and the Beat, sprinkling in
a few coy covers (“Cool Jerk,” “Let’s Have A Party,” and “(Remember) Walking in
the Sand”) and a few new tracks from their yet-to-be-recorded sophomore
follow-up, Vacation.
Vacation
(1982): After the smash success of Beauty
and the Beat and a rigorous touring schedule, the Go-Go’s turned right
around and started working on their next record, Vacation. While some of the songs that would define Vacation were already in the Go-Go’s
setlists around the release of their debut album (as evidenced by Disc Two of Beauty and the Beat), many others were
written during hectic, tension-fueled sessions at Malibu’s Indigo Ranch Studio,
as the band was temporarily relocated away from their L.A. stomping grounds to
try and help alleviate some of the in-fighting and drug and alcohol use. The
band pulled it together for another successful release, with Vacation peaking at #8 on the Billboard 200 and the title track single
garnering them another Top 10 hit with accompanying MTV heavy airplay.
Edsel’s
reissue again includes an insightful Paul Myers’ narrative/oral history from
new interviews with the band, as well as another batch of standout bonus gems.
The seven bonus tracks include: “Speeding” from the Fast Times at Ridgemont High soundtrack, an early demo of their
cover of The Capitols’ “Cool Jerk,” four live tracks from a 1981 performance at
Palos Verdes High School (including a lovely pass at early track “London
Boys”), and a live version of “We Don’t Get Along” recorded a couple of months
before Vacation’s release.
Talk
Show (1984): While an impromptu post-Vacation Go-Go’s-only road trip to Palm Springs helped bring the
band a little closer together during the splintering that occurred in midst of
their whirlwind successes, the writing was still pretty much on the wall when
the band traveled to England to record their third album. There traveled to the
U.K. to work with producer Martin Rushent, hot off his work on Human League’s
3x Platinum Dare album. Rushent’s
studio was outfitted with many instruments – specifically electronic drums,
synthesizers, and samplers – that had previously not been a part of the Go-Go’s
sound. While some band members were excited to try out the new sonic
possibilities, others – namely drummer Gina Schock – were not. The resulting
album still turned out a hit single (“Head Over Heels”), but overall it barely
cracked the Top 20 and sold just shy of Gold status. By the next year, Jane
Wiedlin had departed for a solo career and the Go-Go’s had officially broken
up.
Much like
Edsel’s reissue of Vacation, Talk Show contains another entry in Paul
Myers’ liner notes and a slew of tasty bonus tracks. In fact, there are as many
bonus cuts as original songs on this one, coming in at 10 each. For the bonus
tracks, there’s another single-only b-side (“Good for Gone” from the “Head Over
Heels” single), a single mix of an album track (“Yes or No,” the last single
released by the 80s-era Go-Go’s), three live cuts from a concert at The Greek
captured just five months after the album’s release, two tracks from the band’s
1990 reunion, and the three new songs they wrote and recorded for their second
reunion in 1994 that originally appeared on the compilation album Return to the Valley of the Go-Go’s.
While these three stellar reissues are U.K.-only releases, they can be ordered directly from Edsel or Amazon pretty easily. As far as reissues go, Edsel really delivered on the necessities (interesting liner notes and notable bonus tracks) and I can’t recommend enough that Go-Go’s fans go out and purchase these gorgeous pieces.
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