In a limited edition of 250, a hand-numbered and signed book of thirteen new and unreleased lyrics, including a 7” single with a brand new song for 2020.
At the start of the year, exciting plans were afoot for the making of my next record! And then…lockdown. Of all the albums I ever had it in mind to make, this happened to be the one that shouldn’t be made remotely and distantly during isolation. The reason for that will become clear: plans are still in place.
For this record, for the first time ever, I’d written only the lyrics which I sent to David Nagler, who supplied the melodies and arrangements. I then sang the vocals on the demos. These were almost good enough to release as a stopgap new album, but the last thing the world needs now is more unfinished, hurriedly released art. So I decided to wait until we could make the record, in person, with people, for you.
The delay left me with the lyrics, some of which were topical (as you’ll see - they might have to be updated by the time we finally record). When they'd left my desk, they were ready on the page: more like poems since I hadn’t supplied any melodies for them, only the melody of rhythm and scansion. And I wanted you to have them before it was too late. Here they are.
One track, however, was an outlier. I'd recorded "Can’t Read the Signs” with Pete Donnelly last year, and therefore, though I intended to include it in some version on the record, it wasn’t one of the Stace/Nagler collaborations. Yet it’s very much one of this set of lyrics. So I gussied that recording up, married it with another song (an extra track from the Sound of His Own Voice sessions, never previously on vinyl) that I thought would be a good b-side at 45 RPM, and made a single to go with the book.
I am disappointed not to have got to make the record yet, but we’ve all had to put things aside. I am however delighted to present you with these lyrics in advance of the album, and also the unique single, the first on WOW Records, that accompanies it. With a large hole, for your jukebox, of course.
The forthcoming record has the working title “Late Style”, so that was the obvious name for the book. 250 copies total. And I am happy to personalize these for you, by request.
The purchase also includes a digital download of the single: Can’t Read the Signs b/w The Harding Defense.