"between today and tomorrow"
The Midnight Music label operated for about ten years from the early '80s to its untimely demise at the hands of its bankers in the early ‘90s - the men in suits wanted it to make money (which it didn't), but all we wanted to make was music (which we did, lots of it). They killed the company but couldn't kill the music, which lives on - juiced by regular Cherry Red and Anagram "best of' compilation releases of individual artists.
However, this collection paints a broader picture, with contributions from artists across the Midnight Music spectrum, eclectic but accessible and (save for a handful of notable omissions for contractual reasons) representative of what the label was about.
Appropriately, "Nocturnal" is introduced by Sad Lovers And Giants, the label's first signing. They came to our attention via two singles released on their own Last Movement label, "cle" and "Colourless Dream"; "Things We Never Did" was the b-side of the latter. After two albums, the original SLAGs (the name was devised to give the acronym SLAG) disintegrated and guitarist Tristan Garel-Funk formed The Snake Corps, represented here by "Science Kills", their first single.
Another early signing was The Essence, from Rotterdam. The moody "Like Christ" is my favourite track of theirs, but "A Mirage" was probably the most successful, especially in Spain, where a Spanish version was also released.
Many of the label's bands toured extensively in Europe, especially in France, Spain and Holland, often sharing the same bill. When Sad Lovers And Giants and The Essence were scheduled for two weeks in France and were both in the studio a few months before, they couldn’t resist the idea of re-working one of each of their songs together for a special single -"Sleep" is included here.
When fellow-independent September Records ran into difficulties, it was absorbed into Midnight Music and the label acquired the talents of McCarthy and The Wolfhounds -"Keep An Open Mind Or Else" and "Rent Act" are among their strongest tracks respectively.
At around the same time, Midnight Music opened an office in Paris and began to license from other labels for releases in France, including albums by The Wedding Present, Billy Bragg and The Corn Dollies; the latter from the Medium Cool label, which became part of Midnight Music soon after. Along with The Corn Dollies, whose "Nothing Of You" was originally a Medium Cool single (on Midnight in France) came The Waltones and Brighton's Popguns. "Someone You Love" was the ‘Guns' second single for Midnight and "Gesture" is taken from the later "Crazy" single. The Waltones changed their name to Candlestick Park (anyone know the significance of the name?), recorded a superb, as yet unreleased album, and the "All The Time In The World" single.
The Midnight French connection also brought Sun And The Moon the label. Originally intending only to license the "Alive, Not Dead" EP(which included "Adam's Song") for France, the deal was extended and worldwide rights were acquired with Mark Burgess starting work on a solo album.
Shortly before this, the indefatigable Blyth Power had come to the label, bringing their brand of very electric modern folk-rock with them, distinguished by Josef Porta's unique lyrics and vocal harmonies to die for. "Better To Bat" was a single culled from their very fine "Alnwick & Tyne" album. Also in the folk-rock genre, but, growing out of the pub-rock tradition, a million miles away from the style of Blyth Power was earlier signing Hackney Five-O, whose "Catalogue" is a modern tale of woe in the blues tradition.
Other earlier signings were Western Promise, Sheriff Jack, The Invisible and Sudden Afternoon. "Promised Land" was recorded by the original Western Promise line-up on their first release, the "Justice" EP and Sheriff Jack's "Everybody Twist" is the saner side of his very quirky output. The Invisible, a pure pop group featuring lush harmonies put together by Lester Square from The Monochrome Set, recorded just the "Dystopia" album which "Love St." was taken from. Sudden Afternoon, one-time favourites of DJ Andy Kershaw, managed an EP as well as the "Dancing Shadows" album and the "Acid Rain" single which was taken from it.
Two of the last artists to record for the label were Ever and Fuel, both of whom completed albums, although only the "Virginize" and "Songs In The Key Of E" EPs (which included "Virgin Eyes" and "Honey Comes Softly" respectively) were released before the label's demise.
It gives me great pleasure to see this collection come out along with the other re-release compilations on Anagram and Cherry Red. This music was recorded to be heard, not to languish in the vaults gathering dust - hopefully there'll be more. Until then...
El Trepador de Medianoche
7" & 12" Singles & EPs (click on the catalog numbers for the pictures)
DING 1 SAD LOVERS AND GIANTS Lost In A Moment/The Tightrope Touch
DING 2 ROBYN HITCHCOCK & THE EGYPTIANS Eaten By Her Own Dinner/Listening To The Higsons/Dr. Sticky
DING 3 THE TIME DANCE Picture/You See
DING 4 THE SOFT BOYS He's A Reptile/Song No.4
DING 5 SAD LOVERS AND GIANTS Man Of Straw/Cowboys (Version)/Close To The Sea
DING 6 THE S-HATERS Solitary Habit/In Death/Necromancer
DING 7 THE FLOOD Cold Cold World/Cold Cold World (Version)/Two Shots Of Jealousy
DONG 8 ROBYN HITCHCOCK The Bells Of Rhymney/ Falling Leaves/ Winter Love/The Bones In The Ground
DONG 9 VITAL SINES Collage/ Hype/ Ice Statue/ Rhythm In Dark
DONG 10 THE S-HATERS White Noise/Stranger Than Strange Girl/Bishop Of The Diocese
DONG 11 WESTERN PROMISE Promised Land/Justice/All Souls Day/Uncle Joe
DONG 12 ROBYN HITCHCOCK & THE EGYPTIANS Heaven/Dwarfbeat/Some Body
DONG 13 THE SNAKE CORPS Science Kills/ Party's Over/ In Flux
DONG 14 THE ESSENCE Endless Lakes/From My Mouth/The Swaying Wind
DONG 15 HEARTS ON FIRE You May Not Know/Four Corners/Persuade You Again/Love On Trial
DONG 16 SUDDEN AFTERNOON New Age/Apollo
DONG 17 ROBYN HITCHCOCK Brenda's Iron Sledge/Only The Stones Remain/The Pit Of Souls: I. The Plateau, II. The Descent, III. The Spiral Dance, IV. The Flight Of The Iron Lung
DONG 18 WESTERN PROMISE My War/I'll Tell You Something (Part 1)/Stay Hungry/England Hot
DONG 19 THE SNAKE CORPS Victory Parade/Always Be The Same/Painted Ocean
DONG 20 SHERIFF JACK Let's Be Non-Chalant Buy Everybody A Cake/ We're Gonna Be In Love/ Whatcha Gonna Do?/ Buttered Slice Of Democracy
DONG 21 HACKNEY FIVE 0 Catalogue (Of Trouble And The Blues)/Gorilla/Dalston (express version)/I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry
DONG 22 MINISTRY OF LOVE Brothers & Sisters/Johnny/Nuh Blame Rasta/Burnin' And Lootin'
DONG 23 THE UNDERLINGS That Little Girl/Lemon Drops/King Leech/Resolutions Crack
DONG 24 THE ESSENCE The Cat (remix)/Confusion/The Happiness/The Cat (extended version)
DONG 25 HEARTS ON FIRE You Promised Me A Camera/Starting Line/Heaven/Because You Care
DONG 26 THE POPULAR FRONT Did The Earth Move...?/A Listening/A Buffet Of Forbidden Fruit/La Position Soixante
DONG 27 SUDDEN AFTERNOON Acid Rain/Red Sun/City Of Night Dreams/Die Neue Ahnung
DONG 28 THE INVISIBLE Love Street/Sunday/The Twilight Zone
DONG 29 SHERIFF JACK Everybody Twist/Something Cold/Bold 3/Values For Your Culture
DONG 30 THE SNAKE CORPS Testament/Hit The Cat/Goodbye Forever
DONG 31 SAD LOVERS AND GIANTS Seven Kinds Of Sin/The Outsider/Ours To Kill
DONG 32 POPULAR FRONT Falling Out/Dancing With Dmitri/Falling Out (extended version)/Scratching The Air
DONG 33 THE ESSENCE A Mirage (extended version)/Lollipop/A Mirage (remix)/Tricked/Un Espejismo
DONG 34 SAD LOVERS AND GIANTS White Russians/A Map Of My World/Life Under Glass
DONG 35 THE UNDERLINGS Centurion/Life Under Gold/Rusted Lips
DONG 36 SAD LOVERS AND GIANTS Cowboys/Lost In A Moment/The Best Film He Ever Made/Things We Never Did
DONG 37 BLYTH POWER Up From The Country/A Tale Of A Cock And A Bull/Blow The Man Down
DONG 38 BLYTH POWER Goodbye To All That
DONG 39 THE WEDDING PRESENT Why Are You Being So Reasonable Now?/Not From Where I'm Standing/Getting Better/Give My Love To Kevin (acoustic)/Pourquoi Es Tu Devenue Si Raisonnable?
DONG 40 SAD LOVERS AND GIANTS/THE ESSENCE Sleep (is for everyone)/A Reflected Dream
DONG 41 THE ESSENCE Only For You/Angelic/Jump And Fall
DONG 42 WESTERN PROMISE Star Of Bethlehem/Heaven/Letters From Abroad
DONG 43 THE WOLFHOUNDS Rent Act/Everybody/Died The Small Death/Recycle
DONG 44 THE SUN AND THE MOON Adam's Song/C'est La Vie/Arabs & Americans/Elected
DONG 45 McCARTHY Keep An Open Mind Or Else/Two Criminal Points Of View/The New Left Review #1
DONG 46 THE WOLFHOUNDS Happy Shopper/No Soap In A Dirty War/Red Tape Red Light/Natural Disasters
DONG 47 ?
DONG 48 McCARTHY At War Boy Meets Girl So What/All Your Questions Answered/The New Left Review #2/The Lion Will Lie Down With The Lamb
DONG 49 WESTERN PROMISE If You Tell Me You Love Me/Burning/Last Train To Katyn
DONG 50 THE SNAKE CORPS Calling You
DONG 51 LES ENFANTS TERRIBLES Paths Of Glory/39' Til Friday/My Reddened Face
DONG 52 THE CORN DOLLIES Nothing Of You/Polly West/Wrecked/Be Small Again (mix)
DONG 53 ?
DONG 54 BILL PRITCHARD Invisible State/La Ville/Déjeuner Sur l'Herbe/Pillow Talk
DONG 55 THE POPGUNS Waiting For The Winter/Because He Wanted To/Every Dream
DONG 56 THE WASP FACTORY Somewhere/Fags/Purple Red-neck Blues
DONG 57 KING OF THE SLUMS Once A Prefect/Idolator/Venerate Me Utterly
DONG 58 BLYTH POWER Better To Bat/When A Knight Won His Spurs/Execution Song
DONG 59 SAD LOVERS AND GIANTS Clocks Go Backwards - Colourless Dream/Return To Clocktower Lodge/Seven Kinds Of Sin/Three Lines
DONG 60 THE SNAKE CORPS Colder Than The Kiss (extended remix)/Possession/Colder Than The Kiss/When I See You
DONG 61 McCARTHY Get A Knife Between Your Teeth/Nobody Could Care Less About Your Private Life/With One Eye On Getting Their Pay/Can The Haves Use Their Brains?
DONG 62 THE POPGUNS Someone You Love/Those Other Things/Don't Smile
DONG 63 KING OF THE SLUMS It's Dead Smart/Boy's Honour/Ultra Dead Smart (club mix)/Schooley (remix)
DONG 64 THE ESSENCE Like Christ/Time/The World Collapsed/Un Espejismo
DONG 65 THE CORN DOLLIES Joyrider!/Slow Death/Happy/Kool
DONG 66 KING OF THE SLUMS Bear Wiv Me (Fluorescent mix)/Keeping It All Sweet/Big Sad Fat Lad
DONG 67 CANDLESTICK PARK All The Time In The World/Promised Land/Safe (instrumental)
DONG 68 THE POPGUNS Still A World Away/I'm Spoiling Everything/A Way To Convince You
DONG 69 THE ESSENCE Out Of Grace/In Your Heart/I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man/Ice
DONG 71 THE POPGUNS XXX EP Put Me Through It/Living In Sin/Can't Ignore The Train/Really Gone
DONG 72 EVER Virgin Eyes/SVG/Interstate/Schizo Virgin Girl
DONG 73 FUEL Songs In The Key Of E Honey Comes Softly/Love Drips And Gathers/My Cadence Breaking/Callin
DONG 74 ?
DONG 75 THE SNAKE CORPS Some Other Time/Silence/Ill Wind (Bellydance Mix)/Something Wrong
DONG 76 CINDYTALK Secrets And Falling
DONG 77 THE POPGUNS Crazy/Gesture/Over Your Head
Albums (click on the catalog numbers for the pictures)
CHIME 00.01 SAD LOVERS & GIANTS Epic Garden Music
CHIME 00.02 THE SOFT BOYS Invisible Hits
CHIME 00.03 SAD LOVERS & GIANTS Feeding The Flame
CHIME 00.04 THE S-HATERS Come
CHIME 00.05 ROBYN HITCHCOCK I Often Dream of Trains
CHIME 00.06 CINDYTALK Camouflage Heart
CHIME 00.07 SAD LOVERS & GIANTS In The Breeze
CHIME 00.08 ROBYN HITCHCOCK Fegmania!
CHIME 00.09 THE FLIPS Less Is More
CHIME 00.10 TULPA Mosaic Fish
CHIME 00.11 THE ESSENCE Purity
CHIME 00.12 HEARTS ON FIRE Dreams Of Leaving
CHIME 00.13 THE ONLY ALTERNATIVE As Fate Would Have It
CHIME 00.14 THE SNAKE CORPS Flesh On Flesh
CHIME 00.15 ROBYN HITCHCOCK Gotta Let This Hen Out'
CHIME 00.16 SUDDEN AFTERNOON Dancing Shadows
CHIME 00.17 VARIOUS Between Today and Tomorrow
CHIME 00.18 HACKNEY FIVE 0 Between The Floors
CHIME 00.19 ROBYN HITCHCOCK Groovy Decoy
CHIME 00.20 THE UNDERLINGS Fatal Purpose
CHIME 00.21 SHERIFF JACK Laugh Yourself Awake
CHIME 00.22 SAD LOVERS & GIANTS Total Sound
CHIME 00.23 THE POPULAR FRONT A Heartbeat Of Laughing
CHIME 00.24 THE INVISIBLE Dystopia
CHIME 00.25 THE BEYOND Episcence
CHIME 00.26 THE ESSENCE A Monument Of Trust
CHIME 00.27 CINDYTALK In This World
CHIME 00.28 CINDYTALK In This World (Summoning Loves Devils Again)
CHIME 00.29 HACKNEY FIVE 0 Three Foot To The Left
CHIME 00.30 SAD LOVERS & GIANTS The Mirror Test
CHIME 00.31 KARMAS COLECTIVOS The Last Dream
CHIME 00.32 CARMINA BURANA The Apocryphal Dances
CHIME 00.33 THE MYTH The Myth
CHIME 00.34 SHERIFF JACK What Lovely Melodies
CHIME 00.35 VARIOUS Diamonds In Darkness
CHIME 00.36 BLYTH POWER The Barman & Other Stories
CHIME 00.37 THE WEDDING PRESENT Tommy
CHIME 00.38 WOLFHOUNDS The Essential Wolfhounds
CHIME 00.39 THE ESSENCE Ecstasy
CHIME 00.40 SAD LOVERS & GIANTS Les Annees Vertes
CHIME 00.41 McCARTHY That's All Very Well But
CHIME 00.42 BLYTH POWER Pont Au Dessus De La Brue
CHIME 00.43 BRADFORD Bradford
CHIME 00.44 THE CORN DOLLIES The Corn Dollies
CHIME 00.45 McCARTHY I Am A Wallet
CHIME 00.46 MONOTONY COMMISSION One Hand Turns To Heaven
CHIME 00.47 McCARTHY The Enraged Will Inherit The Earth
CHIME 00.48 WOLFHOUNDS Bright And Guilty
CHIME 00.49 BILL PRITCHARD Three Months, Three Weeks & Two Days
CHIME 00.50 ?
CHIME 00.51 ?
CHIME 00.52 THE SNAKE CORPS Smother Earth
CHIME 00.53 BILL PRITCHARD S/T
CHIME 00.54 BILL PRITCHARD Half A Million
CHIME 00.55 BILLY BRAGG Workers Playtime
CHIME 00.56 LES ENFANTS TERRIBLES Another Country
CHIME 00.57 WOLFHOUNDS Blown Away
CHIME 00.58 WESTERN PROMISE Showdown With Fate
CHIME 00.59 THE CORN DOLLIES Wrecked
CHIME 01.00 VARIOUS The Clock Struck One
CHIME 01.01 ADRIAN BORLAND & THE CITIZENS Alexandria
CHIME 01.02 BLYTH POWER Alnwick & Tyne
CHIME 01.03 CINDYTALK The Wind is Strong
CHIME 01.04 KING OF THE SLUMS Dandelions
CHIME 01.05 McCARTHY Banking Violence and the Inner Life Today
CHIME 01.06 THE WASP FACTORY Pretty Quickly...Ugly Slowly
CHIME 01.07 WOLFHOUNDS Attitude
CHIME 01.08 THE POPGUNS Eugenie
CHIME 01.09 KING OF THE SLUMS Barbarous English Fayre
CHIME 01.10 SAD LOVERS & GIANTS Headland
CHIME 01.11 CANDLESTICK PARK Re-Invent the Wheel
CHIME 01.12 THE SNAKE CORPS More Than The Ocean
CHIME 01.13 ?
CHIME 01.14 THE ESSENCE Nothing Lasts Forever
CHIME 01.15 THE POPGUNS Snog
CHIME 01.16 BLYTH POWER The Guns Of Castle Carey
CHIME 01.17 ?
CHIME 01.18 ?
CHIME 01.19 ?
CHIME 01.20 SAD LOVERS AND GIANTS Treehouse Poetry
CLANG 1 THE SOFT BOYS Live At The Portland Arms CASSETTE
CLANG 2 V/A Pop Up The Volume
CLANG 4 V/A Alvin Lives In Leeds
CLARION 1 V/A Independent Clarion Promo CASSETTE
SARAH 3301CD THE FIELD MICE Snowball
SARAH 3302CD THE ORCHIDS Lyceum
april 2009
thanks to nkrynski
"between today and tomorrow" is maintained by bobsy
