"Let Them Drag My Soul Away: Singles, Demos, Sessions and Live Recordings 1979-1982" is a compilation album from the british band Dead or Alive that was released on July 21st, 2023 by Cherry Records.
This album consists of a compilation of songs from the band's early years in the early 80s and also from their predecessor band "Nightmares in Wax" in the late 70s. The photography for the album cover was taken by Francesco Mellina
Description[]
Having been ‘discovered’ working in Liverpool’s Probe Records during the punk rock explosion, Pete Burns found himself fronting his own band, Nightmares In Wax who mutated into the more familiar Dead Or Alive, eventually bringing Pete into the UK pop mainstream, and a star was born.
Bringing together early singles by both Nightmares In Wax and Dead Or Alive, Peel sessions and previously unheard demos and live recordings, ‘Let Them Drag My Soul Away’ shines a light on the pre-fame Burns and a revolving cast of bandmates and collaborators, many of whom were mainstays of both the Liverpool and broader British post-punk scene.
From the disco punk funk of ‘Black Leather’ through proto-Gothic singles ‘It’s Been Hours Now’ and ‘The Stranger’, and into early versions of hi-NRG tracks which would eventually find their way onto the band’s debut album, this is both an invigorating exploration of an emerging talent and a valuable time capsule of an important figure in both the 80s pop and gay club scenes. While so many pop stars hid their homosexuality for the sake of record sales and middle America, Burns stuck up two fingers and sang loudly about both his own inner world and his desire for large, leather clad boys!
Featuring sleeve notes by Electronic Sound magazine’s Mat Smith (with new interview contributions from Wayne Hussey, Joe Musker and Francesco Mellina), and a plethora of previously unheard recordings, this is a must for fans of Pete Burns, post-punk and pop enthusiasts and those with an interest in British pop culture in the aftermath of punk’s liberation.
The album will have its presentation in standard edition in vinyl format and a 3-disc presentation (with 16 previously unreleased tracks)
Track Listing:[]
LP Edition (Deep Red Vinyl):[]
Side A:[]
- It's Been Hours Now
- The Stranger
- Some of That
- Nowhere To Nowhere
- Whirlpool
Side B:[]
- Selfish Side (Demo)*
- Far Too Hard (Demo 2nd Mix)*
- Give It To Me (Demo)*
- What I Want (Demo)**
- Misty Circles (Demo)*
3xCD Set Edition:[]
CD 1 - The Singles:[]
- Black Leather
- Girls Song
- Shangri-La
- Girls Song (1985 Mix)
- Shangri-La (1985 Mix)
- I'm Falling
- Flowers
- Number Eleven
- Namegame (Live Version)
- It's Been Hours Now
- Whirlpool
- Nowhere To Nowhere
- It's Been Hours Now*²
- The Stranger
- Some of That
CD 2 - The Demos:[]
- Black Leather (4-Track Demo)*
- Girls Song (4-Track Demo)*
- I'll Turn Away (4-Track Demo)*
- Shangri-La (4-Track Demo)*
- Selfish Side (Demo)*
- Far Too Hard (Demo 2nd Mix)*
- Misty Circles (Demo)*
- What I Want (Demo)**
- Give It To Me (Demo)*
- Selfish Side (Alternative Early Mix)*
- Untitled Instrumental #1*
- Untitled Instrumental #2*
- Untitled Instrumental #3*
CD 3 - The Peel Sessions & Live Recordings:[]
- Nowhere To Nowhere (Peel Session)
- Running Wild (Peel Session)
- Number Eleven (Peel Session)
- Flowers (Peel Session)
- Number Twelve (Peel Session)
- The Stranger (Peel Session)
- Misty Circles Pt. 1 (Peel Session)
- Misty Circles Pt. 2 (Peel Session)
- Gilded Splinters (Live in Manchester)*
- Don't Tell Me (Live in Manchester)*
- Flowers (TV Version)*
*Previously Unreleased on CD
**Previously Released