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MARINA RECORDS

The Pearlfishers

Making Tapes For Girls

    After a hiatus of five years, The Pearlfishers, Glasgow’s finest, return with their ninth album for Marina – most probably their best and most immediate one so far.

    Driven by main man David Scott’s exceptional songwriting and sophisticated arrangements, Making Tapes For Girls is a goldmine of pop gems – full of witty & colourful lyrics about the affirmative & healing power of music and pop escapism. 

    The title track evokes memories of those days of compiling a C-30/60/90 for your loved one or secretly adored one: “I didn’t know how to say the right thing / So I left it to Joni and Paul...”. Those mix tapes that came straight from your heart & soul – “the nub of it, the truth of it, the ‘you’ of it.” It is another Pearlfishers classic in the vein of My Dad The Weatherfan and Even On A Sunday Afternoon and also David Scott’s nod to Terry Hall’s The Colour Field.

    All of these 12 new tracks could have made it easily onto such a tape. Kisses On The Window is a very personal and straightforward love song, with a beautiful string quartet arrangement. Hold Out For A Mystic, most definitely the only song in pop history which references Henri Matisse and Billy Childish in the same line (“The Fauve and the Stuckist man”), is built around a cosmic ELO acoustic guitar sound, while Put The Baby In The Milk channels Carole King jumping through some harmony hoops à la Laura Nyro. We experience more name dropping in The Word Evangeline, a rumination on all songs featuring that name, from The Cocteau Twins to Emmylou Harris to Matthew Sweet. Yellow & The Lovehearts is a wonderful two part suite that takes us from full-on shiny pop to a glacial Simon & Garfunkel soundscape. We are even visiting a Fleetwood Mac-ish vibe in Until I Knew Happy – listen to that great cosmic country banjo solo which creates a fantastic widescreen sound! The super poppy We’re Gonna Make A Hit Record, Boy features the great line: “And we’ll sing it out for Judee Sill and Tony Bourdain”.

    Oh yes. When The Sun Comes Back To The West Coast definitely lives up to its title – a return to the catchy Byrds harmonies of The Pearlfishers’ Marina debut The Strange Underworld Of The Tall Poppies.

    Most of the album was recorded at La Chunky Studios in Glasgow where everything is vintage – from an old Ludwig kit, old Wurlitzer electric piano and Fender Rhodes keyboards to tons of vintage microphones and compressors. It made a big stamp on the overall sound to an album which is most probably the best one by The Pearlfishers yet.


    TRACK LISTING

    01. Making Tapes For Girls
    02. Kisses On The Window
    03. Hold Out For A Mystic
    04. Put The Baby In The Milk
    05. Until I Knew Happy
    06. The Word Evangeline
    07. We’re Gonna Make A Hit Record, Boy
    08. Yellow & The Lovehearts
    09. The Wild Lives
    10. Protect The Heart That’s Beating
    11. When The Sun Comes Back To The West Coast
    12. Sweet Jenny Bluebelle

    Ashby

    Power Ballads (RSD24 EDITION)

      THIS IS A RECORD STORE DAY 2024 EXCLUSIVE AND WILL BE AVAILABLE INSTORE ON SATURDAY APRIL 20TH ON A FIRST COME FIRST SERVED BASIS, LIMITED TO ONE PER PERSON.

      IF THERE ARE ANY REMAINING COPIES THEY WILL BE MADE AVAILABLE ONLINE AT 8PM ON MONDAY APRIL 22ND.



      The Pearlfishers

      Sky Meadows (RSD23 EDITION)

        THIS IS A RECORD STORE DAY 2023 EXCLUSIVE AND WILL BE AVAILABLE INSTORE ON SATURDAY APRIL 22ND ON A FIRST COME FIRST SERVED BASIS, LIMITED TO ONE PER PERSON.



        IF THERE ARE ANY REMAINING COPIES THEY WILL BE MADE AVAILABLE ONLINE AT 8PM ON MONDAY APRIL 24TH).




        20th Anniversary Edition of the long-deleted fifth album by THE PEARLFISHERS from 2003.



        Deluxe 2-LP set in a beautiful gatefold sleeve with enhanced artwork and all lyrics. The album has been remastered and features four previously unreleased bonus tracks. Non-Returnable.



        Masterful, melody-laden classic pop music, driven by main man DAVID SCOTT’s exceptional songwriting which has often been compared to PAUL MCCARTNEY, BURT BACHARACH, JIMMY WEBB, TODD RUNDGREN and BRIAN WILSON.



        The Pearlfishers

        The Young Picnickers - 2022 Vinyl Reissue

          Marina proudly present the first ever vinyl issues of three classic albums by Glasgow’s finest, The Pearlfishers: “The Young Picnickers” (1999), “Across The Milky Way” (2001) and “Up With The Larks” (2007). 

          Three albums of masterful, classic pop music, driven by main man David Scott’s exceptional songwriting which was often compared to Paul McCartney, Burt Bacharach, Jimmy Webb, Todd Rundgren and Brian Wilson. The beautifully crafted arrangements include woodwinds, trumpet, flugel horns, banjo – and real strings! “David Scott’s compositions sound something like The Carpenters and Burt Bacharach – except much more poppy, upbeat, and current!” (Babysue).

          These albums also feature some of the finest Scottish musicians. Duglas T Stewart of BMX Bandits co-wrote two songs. Norman Blake of Teenage Fanclub contributed backing vocals on “The Young Picnickers” and co-produced four tracks on “Up With The Larks”. Mick Slaven, one of the most unique guitarists ever (Jazzateers, James Kirk, Paul Quinn & The Independent Group), plays on “Across The Milky Way”. So does trumpet maestro Colin Steele who later recorded an entire album of Pearlfishers songs in terrific jazz arrangements (“Diving For Pearls”, 2017).

          “The Young Picnickers” was selected ”Indie album of the month” in MOJO magazine. “Up With The Larks” was recently voted one of “Scotland’s favourite albums” in The Herald.
          “Save the world! Save the world! From this grotesque exhibition…



          TRACK LISTING

          A
          We’re Gonna Save The Summer
          An Ordinary Day Out In The Suburbs
          We’ll Get By
          Blue December
          B
          You Justify My Life
          Battersea Bardot
          The Young Picnickers
          Once There Was A Man
          C
          Over & Over
          Every Day I Read Your Stars
          Strawberries In The Snow
          Stella Painted Joy
          D Bonus Tracks
          Already There
          David Vs. Godzilla
          The Loneliest Bonfire
          Since You’ve Asked

          The Pearlfishers

          Across The Milky Way - 2022 Reissue

            Marina proudly present the first ever vinyl issues of three classic albums by Glasgow’s finest, The Pearlfishers: “The Young Picnickers” (1999), “Across The Milky Way” (2001) and “Up With The Larks” (2007). 

            Three albums of masterful, classic pop music, driven by main man David Scott’s exceptional songwriting which was often compared to Paul McCartney, Burt Bacharach, Jimmy Webb, Todd Rundgren and Brian Wilson. The beautifully crafted arrangements include woodwinds, trumpet, flugel horns, banjo – and real strings! “David Scott’s compositions sound something like The Carpenters and Burt Bacharach – except much more poppy, upbeat, and current!” (Babysue).

            These albums also feature some of the finest Scottish musicians. Duglas T Stewart of BMX Bandits co-wrote two songs. Norman Blake of Teenage Fanclub contributed backing vocals on “The Young Picnickers” and co-produced four tracks on “Up With The Larks”. Mick Slaven, one of the most unique guitarists ever (Jazzateers, James Kirk, Paul Quinn & The Independent Group), plays on “Across The Milky Way”. So does trumpet maestro Colin Steele who later recorded an entire album of Pearlfishers songs in terrific jazz arrangements (“Diving For Pearls”, 2017).


            TRACK LISTING

            A
            Across The Milky Way
            New Stars
            I Was A Cowboy
            Steady With You
            B
            Sweet William
            The Vampires Of Camelon
            We’ll Be The Summer
            Snow On The Pines
            Paint On A Smile
            C
            Everything Works Out
            Shine It Out
            When The Highway Ends
            Is It Any Wonder
            D Bonus Tracks
            Over The Headland
            Lust At Luss
            Wa Wa
            On The Waves

            The Pearlfishers

            Up With The Larks - 2022 Reissue

              Marina proudly present the first ever vinyl issues of three classic albums by Glasgow’s finest, The Pearlfishers: “The Young Picnickers” (1999), “Across The Milky Way” (2001) and “Up With The Larks” (2007). 

              Three albums of masterful, classic pop music, driven by main man David Scott’s exceptional songwriting which was often compared to Paul McCartney, Burt Bacharach, Jimmy Webb, Todd Rundgren and Brian Wilson. The beautifully crafted arrangements include woodwinds, trumpet, flugel horns, banjo – and real strings! “David Scott’s compositions sound something like The Carpenters and Burt Bacharach – except much more poppy, upbeat, and current!” (Babysue).

              These albums also feature some of the finest Scottish musicians. Duglas T Stewart of BMX Bandits co-wrote two songs. Norman Blake of Teenage Fanclub contributed backing vocals on “The Young Picnickers” and co-produced four tracks on “Up With The Larks”. Mick Slaven, one of the most unique guitarists ever (Jazzateers, James Kirk, Paul Quinn & The Independent Group), plays on “Across The Milky Way”. So does trumpet maestro Colin Steele who later recorded an entire album of Pearlfishers songs in terrific jazz arrangements (“Diving For Pearls”, 2017).




              TRACK LISTING

              A
              Up With The Larks
              The Bluebells
              Send Me A Letter
              The Umbrellas Of Shibuya
              B
              Womack And Womack
              London’s In Love
              Eco Schools
              With You On My Mind
              C
              Fighting Fire With Flowers
              Blue Riders On The Range
              Ring The Bells For A Day
              I Just See The Rainbow
              D Bonus Tracks
              Always Running Away From The Pretty Things
              Clumsy
              Come Home Pretty Bird
              How Do You Start Again

              The Bathers

              Lagoon Blues

                Marina proudly present: The long-awaited reissues of all three classic Marina albums by The Bathers - “Lagoon Blues” (1993), “Sunpowder” (1995) and “Kelvingrove Baby” (1997). In new beautiful deluxe editions - all remastered plus enhanced artwork. And on vinyl for the first time ever!

                The Bathers (aka Chris Thomson) from Glasgow are somewhat of a Scottish national treasure. Listen to these albums, and you’ll know why. Enter a musical universe of intricate arrangements, lush orchestrations, swoony vocals and songs of deep emotional beauty. With nods to Van Morrison, Tom Waits, David Bowie, Tim Hardin and Leonard Cohen. Moody wurlitzers and mesmerising pianos are joined by violins, accordians and acoustic guitars to create a hypnotic, totally unique sound. Chamber pop at its very best.

                Liz Fraser of The Cocteau Twins contributes vocals on a couple of songs on “Sunpowder”. A match made in heaven with the music of Chris Thomson. James Grant of Love & Money - Thomson’s fellow musician in legendary 80s pop band Friends Again - supplies backing vocals and guitar on “Kelvingrove Baby”. Isobel Campbell from Belle & Sebastian plays cello on “Lagoon Blues” and “Kelvingrove Baby”.

                Turn the lights down low - turn up the volume - and get on a trip with these very special, truly cinematic and, yes, quite spectacular albums.

                The LP editions are limited to 690 copies each. 

                TRACK LISTING

                1. Lagoon Blues Pt. 1
                2. Venice Shoes
                3. Gracefruit
                4. Never Too Late
                5. Fermina Fair
                6. Easter – For Edda Van Heemstra
                7. Pissoir / The Ornella Mutiny
                8. Through The Old Holmwood
                9. Sweetheart Sessions
                10. Lolita
                11. Via D’Oro
                12. Ave The Leopards
                13. Carnival
                14. Easter Sorbonne
                15. Lagoon Blues Pt. 2

                The Bathers

                Sunpowder

                  Marina proudly present: The long-awaited reissues of all three classic Marina albums by The Bathers - “Lagoon Blues” (1993), “Sunpowder” (1995) and “Kelvingrove Baby” (1997). In new beautiful deluxe editions - all remastered plus enhanced artwork. And on vinyl for the first time ever!

                  The Bathers (aka Chris Thomson) from Glasgow are somewhat of a Scottish national treasure. Listen to these albums, and you’ll know why. Enter a musical universe of intricate arrangements, lush orchestrations, swoony vocals and songs of deep emotional beauty. With nods to Van Morrison, Tom Waits, David Bowie, Tim Hardin and Leonard Cohen. Moody wurlitzers and mesmerising pianos are joined by violins, accordians and acoustic guitars to create a hypnotic, totally unique sound. Chamber pop at its very best.

                  Liz Fraser of The Cocteau Twins contributes vocals on a couple of songs on “Sunpowder”. A match made in heaven with the music of Chris Thomson. James Grant of Love & Money - Thomson’s fellow musician in legendary 80s pop band Friends Again - supplies backing vocals and guitar on “Kelvingrove Baby”. Isobel Campbell from Belle & Sebastian plays cello on “Lagoon Blues” and “Kelvingrove Baby”.

                  Turn the lights down low - turn up the volume - and get on a trip with these very special, truly cinematic and, yes, quite spectacular albums.

                  The LP editions are limited to 690 copies each. 

                  TRACK LISTING

                  Danger In Love
                  The Angel On Ruskin
                  Delft
                  Faithless
                  For Saskia
                  Weem Rock Muse
                  The Night Is Young
                  Send Me Your Halo
                  She’s Gone Forever
                  The Dutch Venus
                  Sunpowder

                  The Pearlfishers

                  Love & Other Hopeless Things

                    They’re back – and they’re back with a bang! Five years after their last album Open Up Your Colouring Book, Glasgow’s magnificent Pearlfishers return with a brand new album. It’s their eighth on Marina Records – a superb comeback full of masterful, classic pop music, driven by main man David Scott’s exceptional songwriting and arrangements.

                    The album kickstarts with its beautiful title track – a song in the tradition of British songwriters like Paddy McAloon and Michael Head – about ordinary people dreaming and drowning in the big city. “Another foggy Monday morning / Sail the ferry to town / And think of all the people’s dreams...”. The song is led by a Bacharach-like flugel horn motif played by Colin Steele who recorded an entire album of Pearlfishers songs in terrific jazz arrangements: Diving For Pearls (Marina, 2017). Love & Other Hopeless Things also features a beautiful string quartet which recalls the graceful understatement of George Martin’s classic pop arrangements.

                    Could Be A Street Could Be A Saint is a celebration of life during the pre-Christmas days on Glasgow’s Sauchiehall Street: “People are beautiful...”. You can hear the influence of Scottish popsters Pilot whose stacked acoustics and harmonies defined pop sheen in the 70s. The track finds its counterpoint in A Walk Into The Blue Night where you enter a magical world of “sainted streets“ where songs start to flow – with an Ennio Morricone-like combination of minor key harmonies and orchestration.

                    You Can Take Me There proves that you can create captivating soundscapes with just piano, vocals and a tiny bit of guitar. The track flows on a sublime Gilbert O’Sullivan groove – also reminiscent of Laura Nyro, one of Scott’s heroes.

                    A long-lasting Pearlfishers tradition continues with the inclusion of a quirky instrumental: A Woman On The Verge Of Becoming A Cyclist (talking about quirky!) sounds a lost 70s movie theme – culminating in a brass band fanfare.

                    Love & Other Hopeless Things also features two splendid songwriting-collaborations. Once I Lived In London was written with Bill DeMain – Nashville broadcaster, Grammy-nominated author and member of US duo Swan Dive. The beautiful piece of chamber pop recalls London in the 80s: “I sang Spandau Ballet’s ‘True’ / Jobim, Yazz, The Plastic People too...”. Sometimes It Rains In Glasgow was written and performed with Joni Mitchell/Carole King-influenced Becci Wallace. Fab!
                    The wistful ballad Another Sunflower closes the album on an emotional note. Revisiting the Pearlfishers’ seasonal album A Sunflower At Christmas (2004), this New Year’s Eve song is augmented by a stunning string arrangement and some simple advice: Don’t make resolutions and promises, just keep moving through the wildwood...


                    TRACK LISTING

                    1. Love & Other Hopeless Things
                    2. Could Be A Street Could Be A Saint
                    3. You’ll Miss Her When She’s Gone
                    4. You Can Take Me There
                    5. Once I Lived In London
                    6. One For The Bairns
                    7. A Walk Into The Blue Night
                    8. A Woman On The Verge Of Becoming A Cyclist
                    9. Sometimes It Rains In Glasgow
                    10. I Couldn’t Stop The Tide
                    11. Another Sunflower

                    Various Artists

                    Goosebumps – 25 Years Of Marina Records

                      Congratulations! Yippie-Aye-Yay-Yay! Bang! Marina Records celebrates its 25th anniversary with the release of Goosebumps, a deluxe compilation featuring 40 stunning tracks on two groovy compact discs and 3LP.

                      Goosebumps, living up to its title, includes many unreleased cuts and exclusive contributions, as well as selected nuggets from the label catalogue. Includes tracks from SHACK, JAMES KIRK, THE PALE FOUNTAINS, MALCOLM ROSS, PAUL HAIG, THE PALE FISHERS, ALEX CHILTON and many more..

                      The splendid booklet features more than 100 photographs from the Marina archive. The strictly limited 3-LP edition comes with beautifully designed innersleeves and individually coloured wax. Orange - Yellow – Red.

                      Marina Records, founded by Stefan Kassel and Frank Lähnemann in Hamburg 25 years ago, is not only known for its distinctive sleeve design which has been praised in several cover art books, but also for its eclectic, unique artist roster and its devotion to classic pop songwriting. Their fabulous The In-Kraut compilation series even turned out to define a genre of its own.

                      Kickstarting with Brent Cash’s pop smash Digging The Fault Line, Goosebumps features artists as diverse as exceptional Glasgow funk sextet Gazelle and Chris Thomson’s beloved chamber pop outfit The Bathers from the early days of the label - to the lushly orchestrated Morricone-like soundscapes of Starless and jazz trumpeter Colin Steele, two recent signings. Steele gave the wonderful songs of The Pearlfishers the royal jazz treatment with exciting new arrangements. The Pearlfishers themselves recorded seven albums for Marina so far. Their songwriting has been compared to Paul McCartney, Jimmy Webb and Brian Wilson. They contribute the previously unreleased The Time Is Right. They also recorded a fantastic cover version of The Pale Fountains’ Southbound Excursion - under the nom de plume The Pale Fishers. Another exclusive on this compilation.

                      The Pale Fountains themselves are featured with The Norfolk Broads – a track from their Marina anthology Longshot For Your Love. Pale Fountains songwriter Michael Head makes a second appearance with Dragonfly from the Shack album Waterpistol. Released by Marina in 1995 - and rated by many critics as one of the best British albums of the 90s. In 2001 Marina effectively initiated the reformation of sunshine pop legends The Free Design. McCarran Airport hails from their comeback album Cosmic Peekaboo. Only With You by Norman Blake of Teenage Fanclub and I Wanna Pick You Up by Alex Chilton originate from Marina’s bestselling album Caroline Now! The Songs Of Brian Wilson & The Beach Boys (“Album of the month” in UNCUT).

                      Eccentric Orange Juice founding member James Kirk recorded his pop-tastic solo album You Can Make It If You Boogie for Marina in 2003. He joins Scottish super-group Port Sulphur on the groovy Orient Express. Felicity, one of his classic Orange Juice songs, is featured in a special, as yet unreleased “Party Mix“. Boogie! Two other Scottish music legends - both of Josef K fame - are featured on Goosebumps: Malcolm Ross and Paul Haig.

                      Goosebumps - 25 years of pure pop heaven. 


                      TRACK LISTING

                      Tracklist CD:
                      CD1
                      1. Brent Cash - Digging The Fault Line
                      2. Port Sulphur Feat. James Kirk - Orient Express
                      3. Malcolm Ross - Low Shot
                      4. Ashby - Already Won
                      5. The Aluminum Group - Star Wish
                      6. Shack - Dragonfly
                      7. Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich - Marina
                      8. The Secret Goldfish - Holiday Hymn
                      9. Crocker - Crocker At LAX
                      10. The Pearlfishers - The Time Is Right
                      11. Norman Blake - Only With You
                      12. The Pale Fountains - The Norfolk Broads
                      13. Colin Steele Quartet - You’ll Never Steal My Spirit
                      14. Friends Again - Sweet Jane
                      15. Andy Pawlak - Sunshine Girl
                      16. Starless - Starless (Sam Barker Axor Mix)
                      17. James Kirk - Felicity (Party Mix)
                      18. Gazelle - Fear
                      19. Skinner - Still Messed Up With You
                      20. Camping - Von Verpassten Gelegenheiten

                      CD2
                      1. Die Zimmermänner - Pampelmusen
                      2. Marina Unlimited Orchestra - Breezy (Marina’s In The Air)
                      3. The Pale Fishers - Southbound Excursion
                      4. Sarah Cracknell - Miles Apart
                      5. The Bathers - If Love Could Last Forever
                      6. Jazzateers - Up To My Eyes
                      7. June & The Exit Wounds - Hey Hey Hey
                      8. The Kingfishers - I Know You're Down (But I Don’t Really Care
                      ) 9. The Magic Circles - Meet Me In Milan
                      10. Daniel Dodds - Beautiful
                      11. The Free Design - McCarran Airport
                      12. Frank Schmiechen - Die Jungs Sind Zurück
                      13. Alex Chilton - I Wanna Pick You Up
                      14. Oscar In Venice - Go For A Walk In The Woods
                      15. Peter Thomas - Multi-Kolored Mini-Skirts
                      16. Paul Quinn & The Independent Group - You Have Been Seen
                      17. Mindstore - PC Streets (Radio Edit)
                      18. Sugartown - 25 Years
                      19. Paul Haig - Listen To Me
                      20. Cowboy Mouth - Goodbye (She Quietly Says)

                      Tracklist 3LP:

                      Side 1
                      1. Brent Cash - Digging The Fault Line
                      2. Port Sulphur Feat. James Kirk - Orient Express
                      3. Malcolm Ross - Low Shot
                      4. Ashby - Already Won
                      5. The Aluminum Group - Star Wish 6. Shack - Dragonfly

                      Side 2
                      1. Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich - Marina
                      2. The Secret Goldfish - Holiday Hymn
                      3. Crocker - Crocker At LAX
                      4. The Pearlfishers - The Time Is Right
                      5. Norman Blake - Only With You
                      6. The Pale Fountains - The Norfolk Broads
                      7. Colin Steele Quartet - You’ll Never Steal My Spirit

                      Side 3
                      1. Friends Again - Sweet Jane
                      2. Starless - Starless (Sam Barker Axor Mix)
                      3. James Kirk - Felicity (Party Mix)
                      4. Gazelle - Fear
                      5. Skinner - Still Messed Up With You
                      6. Camping - Von Verpassten Gelegenheiten

                      Side 4
                      1. Die Zimmermänner - Pampelmusen
                      2. Marina Unlimited Orchestra - Breezy (Marina’s In The Air)
                      3. The Pale Fishers - Southbound Excursion
                      4. Sarah Cracknell - Miles Apart
                      5. The Bathers - If Love Could Last Forever
                      6. Jazzateers - Up To My Eyes

                      Side 5
                      1. June & The Exit Wounds - Hey Hey Hey
                      2. The Kingfishers - I Know You're Down (But I Don’t Really Care)
                      3. The Magic Circles - Meet Me In Milan
                      4. Daniel Dodds - Beautiful
                      5. The Free Design –  McCarran Airport
                      6. Frank Schmiechen - Die Jungs Sind Zurück
                      7. Alex Chilton - I Wanna Pick You Up

                      Side 6
                      1. Oscar In Venice - Go For A Walk In The Woods
                      2. Peter Thomas - Multi-Kolored Mini-Skirts
                      3. Paul Quinn & The Independent Group - You Have Been Seen
                      4. Sugartown - 25 Years
                      5. Paul Haig - Listen To Me
                      6. Cowboy Mouth - Goodbye (She Quietly Says) 


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