Fire of Love
Fire of Love | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | August 31, 1981 | |||
Studio | Studio America, Pasadena, California; Quad Teck, Los Angeles, California | |||
Genre | Punk blues, psychobilly, punk rock, post-punk | |||
Length | 40:03 | |||
Label | Ruby | |||
Producer | Chris D., Tito Larriva | |||
The Gun Club chronology | ||||
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Fire of Love is the debut album of the American punk band the Gun Club, released in 1981 on Ruby Records.[1]
Production[]
The Flesh Eaters' singer Chris D. produced five tracks on the album ("Sex Beat", "Preaching the Blues", "Fire Spirit", "Ghost on the Highway" and "Jack on Fire") at Quad Teck with Pat Burnette engineering. Tito Larriva produced the album's other six tracks at Studio America with Noah Shark engineering. Chris D. was also credited with the cover design for the original release. Judith Bell was responsible for the bottle label illustrations on the rear of the cover.
Reception[]
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Encyclopedia of Popular Music | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Pitchfork | 9.1/10[4] |
PopMatters | 8/10[5] |
Spin Alternative Record Guide | 8/10[6] |
Uncut | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Village Voice | B[8] |
The album is considered groundbreaking in being the first of its kind to combine the hard, stripped-down sound of punk rock with American roots music.[9] In turn, this innovation helped to create the punk blues style as well as inspiring countless garage rock musicians. Several musicians have cited Fire of Love as an influence.
The album was also included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.[10]
In media[]
In 2006, "Sex Beat" appeared on the soundtrack to the video game Scarface: The World Is Yours.
Track listing[]
All songs composed by Jeffrey Lee Pierce; except where indicated
- Side A
- "Sex Beat" - 2:45
- "Preaching the Blues" (Robert Johnson; arranged by Jeffrey Lee Pierce) - 3:58
- "Promise Me" - 2:35
- "She's Like Heroin to Me" - 2:33
- "For the Love of Ivy" (Jeffrey Lee Pierce, Kid Congo Powers) - 5:31
- "Fire Spirit" - 2:52
- Side B
- "Ghost on the Highway" - 2:43
- "Jack on Fire" - 4:40
- "Black Train" - 2:11
- "Cool Drink of Water" (Tommy Johnson; traditional, arranged by Jeffrey Lee Pierce) - 6:10
- "Goodbye Johnny" - 3:41
Personnel[]
- The Gun Club
- Jeffrey Lee Pierce - vocals, slide guitar, backing vocals on "Jack on Fire"
- Ward Dotson - guitar, slide guitar, backing vocals on "Jack on Fire"
- Rob Ritter - bass
- Terry Graham - drums
- Additional musicians
- Tito Larriva - producer, violin on "Promise Me"
- Chris D. - producer, backing vocals on "Jack on Fire"
- Lois Graham - backing vocals on "Jack on Fire"
- Technical
- Pat Burnette, Noah Shark - engineers
- Chris D. - cover design
- Judith Bell - bottle label drawings
Covers[]
- In 1998, 16 Horsepower recorded a cover of "Fire Spirit" for their 1998 EP The Partisan.
- In 2003, Enon covered the song "Sex Beat".
- Juliana Hatfield's band Some Girls also covered "Sex Beat" for their 2003 album Feel It.
- Japandroids recorded a cover of "For the Love of Ivy" on their 2012 album Celebration Rock.
- In 2013, Kim Salmon and Spencer P. Jones recorded a cover of "Jack on Fire" for their album Runaways.
References[]
- ^ Green, Jim; Sprague, David (2007). "Gun Club". Trouser Press. Retrieved May 4, 2013.
- ^ Jurek, Thom. "Fire of Love – The Gun Club". AllMusic. Retrieved March 30, 2018.
- ^ Larkin, Colin, ed. (2011). "Gun Club". The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-85712-595-8.
- ^ Berman, Stuart (August 15, 2021). "The Gun Club: Fire of Love". Pitchfork. Retrieved August 15, 2021.
- ^ Murphy, John L. (August 26, 2014). "The Gun Club: Fire of Love". PopMatters. Archived from the original on April 22, 2019. Retrieved August 15, 2021.
- ^ Anderson, Steve (1995). "Gun Club". In Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig (eds.). Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. pp. 172–73. ISBN 0-679-75574-8.
- ^ "LA Influential". Uncut. No. 86. July 2004. p. 122.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (July 6, 1982). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved May 4, 2013.
- ^ http://www.americanrootsuk.com/chapter-10.html Note: – 1981.
- ^ Robert Dimery; Michael Lydon (7 February 2006). 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die: Revised and Updated Edition. Universe. ISBN 0-7893-1371-5.
External links[]
- Fire Of Love at Discogs (list of releases)
- Fire of Love (Adobe Flash) at Radio3Net (streamed copy where licensed)
- 1981 debut albums
- The Gun Club albums
- Ruby Records albums
- Rhino Records albums
- Beggars Banquet Records albums