Listen (A Flock of Seagulls album)

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Listen
Flockofseagulls listen.jpg
Studio album by
A Flock of Seagulls
Released29 April 1983
Recorded1982–1983
StudioConny Plank's Studio, Neunkirchen, West Germany
GenreNew wave, synth-pop, dark wave
Length42:02
LabelZomba Records
ProducerMike Howlett, Bill Nelson
A Flock of Seagulls chronology
A Flock of Seagulls
(1982) 		Listen
(1983) 		The Story of a Young Heart
(1984)
Singles from Listen
  1. "Wishing (If I Had a Photograph of You)"
    Released: 20 October 1982
  2. "Nightmares"
    Released: 1 April 1983
  3. "Transfer Affection"
    Released: 2 June 1983
  4. "(It's Not Me) Talking"
    Released: 12 August 1983
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic2.5/5 stars[1]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music3/5 stars[2]
Smash Hits3/10[5]
Spin Alternative Record Guide8/10[3]
The Village VoiceB+[4]

Listen is the second album release by the new wave band A Flock of Seagulls, released on 29 April 1983. It once again teamed the group with record producer Mike Howlett–who produced their debut album–except on the single release "(It's Not Me) Talking", which was produced by Bill Nelson. The record included the UK Top 10 hit "Wishing (If I Had a Photograph of You)". Other singles released from the album include "Nightmares" and "Transfer Affection". The face on the cover is of the band's drummer, Ali Score.

Reception[]

Listen received generally positive reviews. While Tom Demalon of AllMusic retrospectively felt the album was "sterile" and inconsistent, he found the hit "Wishing (If I Had a Photograph of You) to be "multilayered [and] hypnotic" while also praising the "Nightmares" and "Transfer Affection"[6]

Robert Cristgau joked that the album's "aural pleasure" of "whooshes and zooms...and computerized ostinatos" could make Mr. Spock dance. He gave the album a B+ rating.[7]

Re-issues[]

Listen has been released with varying track listings on at least three separate occasions. The original 1983 release, the 1992 CD Beehive label release, 2004 Superfecta Recordings release and the 2010 Cherry Red release.

The cassette version and the 1992 CD version (on the Beehive label) have the original LP tracks in a slightly different order, with the additional tracks "Rosenmontag", "Quicksand", and "The Last Flight of Yuri Gagarin" interspersed (although the track listing for the CD edition, printed on the inserts and the disc itself, incorrectly follows the LP track listing above rather than reflecting the disc's actual contents).

The 2004 CD version has the ten LP tracks in the order, followed by the three additional tracks "Committed", "Quicksand", and a live rendition of their hit "I Ran (So Far Away)". "(It's Not Me) Talking" was released in 1981, two years before Listen was released on Bill Nelson's Cocteau label. The version of the song used on Listen is a re-recorded version; as a consequence, the Cocteau version has yet to see a CD release.[8]

The 2010 Cherry Red release has the ten LP tracks in the order, followed by the B-sides "Committed", "Quicksand" and "Tanglimara" and the remixes of "Wishing (If I Had a Photograph of You)" and "Nightmares".

Track listing[]

All tracks written by Mike Score, Ali Score, Frank Maudsley and Paul Reynolds.

Original LP[]

No.TitleLength
1."Wishing (If I Had a Photograph of You)"5:30
2."Nightmares"4:39
3."Transfer Affection"5:21
4."What Am I Supposed to Do"4:13
5."Electrics"3:36
6."The Traveller"3:27
7."2:30"1:00
8."Over the Border"5:04
9."The Fall"4:29
10."(It's Not Me) Talking"5:00
Total length:42:02

CD re-issue bonus tracks (2004, Superfecta Recordings)

No.TitleLength
11."Committed (Extended Version)"5:33
12."Quicksand"4:41
13."I Ran (Recorded Live In Concert, London, 1983)"5:14

CD re-issue bonus tracks (2010, Cherry Red)

No.TitleLength
11."Wishing (If I Had A Photograph Of You) (Extended Version)"9:36
12."Committed"5:37
13."Nightmares (12" Version)"5:05
14."Quicksand"4:43
15."Tanglimara"4:30

Cassette[]

Side One

No.TitleLength
1."Wishing (If I Had a Photograph of You)"5:31
2."Nightmares"4:37
3."Transfer Affection"5:21
4."What Am I Supposed to Do"4:13
5."The Fall"4:30
6."Rosenmontag"4:03

Side Two

No.TitleLength
7."Electrics"3:33
8."The Traveller"3:26
9."2:30"0:59
10."Over the Border"5:04
11."(It's Not Me) Talking"5:00
12."Quicksand"4:44
13."The Last Flight Of Yuri Gagarin"6:06

This track listing was also used for the 1992 Beehive Trading Ltd. CD re-issue.

Chart performance[]

Chart (1983) Peak
position
Canada Albums Chart[9] 12
German Albums Chart[10] 14
New Zealand Albums Chart[11] 5
Swedish Albums Chart[12] 44
UK Albums Chart[13] 16
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[6] 16

Personnel[]

References[]

  1. ^ Demalon, Tom. "Listen – A Flock of Seagulls". AllMusic. Retrieved 14 April 2011.
  2. ^ The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Omnibus Press. 27 May 2011. ISBN 9780857125958. Retrieved 10 December 2019.
  3. ^ Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig, eds. (1995). Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. ISBN 0-679-75574-8.
  4. ^ Christgau, Robert (26 July 1983). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved 14 April 2011.
  5. ^ de Lisle, Tim. "Smash Hits, April 28, 1983 - p.43". Smash Hits. Retrieved 11 April 2019.
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b "AllMusic". AllMusic. 2 January 2012. Retrieved 7 January 2012.
  7. ^ Christgau, Robert (26 July 1983). "A Flock of Seagulls". Robert Christgau. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
  8. ^ The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Rock History: The Video Generation, 1981-1990 MA Janosik – 2006 – Greenwood Press
  9. ^ "Bienvenue au site Web BIBLIOTHÈQUE ET ARCHIVES CANADA | Welcome to the LIBRARY AND ARCHIVES CANADA website". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 7 January 2012.
  10. ^ "Charts-Surfer". Charts-surfer.de. Retrieved 7 January 2012.
  11. ^ Steffen Hung. "New Zealand charts portal". charts.nz. Retrieved 7 January 2012.
  12. ^ Steffen Hung. "Swedish Charts Portal". swedishcharts.com. Archived from the original on 16 May 2016. Retrieved 7 January 2012.
  13. ^ "UK Singles & Albums Official Charts Company". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 7 January 2012.
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