Some buildings in the Northern Quarter have been pulled down recently, allowed to fall into a state of disrepair and then condemned. Cheaper than renovating them. The landlord can then demolish and sell the land (prime location, city centre land) and build something new and cheap. Cities always change, old being replaced by new, but it's hard to see the new ones they put up and not feel something is being lost.
The La's released one album and a few singles, all nearly 30 years ago. Since then their slim back catalogue has been fleshed out with all manner of demos, sessions, 'lost' recordings and live tracks. Their Scouse skiffle found a wide audience during the late 80s and early 90s, all the while Lee Mavers complaining that the songs didn't sound right, hadn't been recorded properly. The group had been going in different line ups for several years by that point. This version of Callin' All is a demo from around 1987 but sounds pretty finished to me and has exactly the kind of vibe and produciton I've always assumed he was looking for, Lee Mavers' vision of the '60s in the '80s already fully realised right in front of his nose.
Callin' All
Absolutely love these photos of dereliction and decay. I don't know why. It taps into something about life and death perhaps, gives the buildings themselves a kind of mortal presence. More please!
ReplyDeleteLike C, I find myself fascinated look at half demolished buildings, though I take your point about the cynicism behind allowing them to get into that state. Interesting comparison with The Las!
ReplyDeleteBig fan. I forked out the big bucks for the Callin’ All box set with no regrets. These ears always thought the album was just fine, but there are some other versions of those songs that are superior... at least marginally so.
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