Search - Andy Partridge :: Fuzzy Warbles V.2

Partridge warbles another fine set of demo gems

Wayne Klein | My Little Blue Window, USA | 02/15/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Fuzzy Warbles Volume Two gathers more gems from Andy Partridge's dusty hall closet. While not as immediately compelling as the first volume, #2 has a number of tracks that can hold their own with the best the XTC songwriter has written. The James & The Giant Peach demo Everything'll Be Alright proves that Disney was really acting Goofy when they elected to go with Randy Newman (the squable was over rights and money which is a pity as, despite Newman's great back catalog,Partridge's songs were clearly superior).The XTC charity release I Don't Want To Be Here is the hit single that never was. Recorded by Andy and Colin (Dave Gregory wasn't around), this terrific song has a lilting melody and strong performance. It's actually not really a demo but a complete recording with Andy & Colin playing all the instruments. The loopy It's Snowing Angels and Wasp Star outtake Ship Trapped in The Ice are nice obscurities that any hardcore XTC fan will need to add to their collection. Oh, and the studio banter recorded during the false starts for That Wave are funny as all get out. Andy does a killer impersonation of The Cure's Robert Smith and Bob Dylan. Now we finally know what an XTC tribute album including these artists would sound like."

Abject No Subsidiaries

Ratnik | Casper, Wyoming, United States | 12/21/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Less varied than Fuzzy the First, volume II kicks in with "I Don't Want To Be Here" (after an introductory warm-up serving of moog noodles), follows with "Young Marrieds," continues with a near perfect answering machine message...
I can't get these melodies out of my head, which is not uncommon for Andy or XTC. There is a great blend of never-before-released material and the obligatory completist demo tracks here, and the disc vacillates languidly betwixt and between the two.
Yes, the Dukes are well represented as well, albeit as alternate identities to the already alternate identity which identifies them already. (Got that?) Completists should have no complaints about the content here, and if future volumes ... offer notes (and coins) as appealing as these, that trend should continue. Unlike Fuzzy 1, however, the liner notes seem less interesting. Perhaps the novelty was wearing off; perhaps Andy got tired of writing; perhaps the real liner notes were confiscated by a former record label or manager, and these were hastily substituted only minutes prior to pressing. Who can say? Who will say?
My redheaded stepchild (no, really) is already singing "Everything'll Be Alright," which makes me want to pack up and move to Swindon, buy the house next door, and convince Mr. P to go ahead and take the less-than-generous deal those movie makers across the pond made (next time) and see what doors it might open down the road. (I feel I've mixed a metaphor there, but some things can't be helped.)
Get this disc for that brother-in-law whose CD collection spans the length of a city block and keep it for yourself. He'll wind up getting his own anyway, you know."