''Approved by the Motors'' is the second studio album by English

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band

the Motors The Motors were a British pub rock band formed in London in 1977 by former Ducks Deluxe members Nick Garvey and Andy McMaster together with guitarist Rob Hendry (who was replaced in May 1977 by Bram Tchaikovsky) and drummer Ricky Slaughter. Th ...

, originally released on 5 May 1978. The album only spent 1 week in the UK Albums Charts reaching number 60. Four singles came from the album, "

Airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surfa ...

", "Forget About You", "Today" and "Sensation". The former two were the only successful singles from the album.

Background and production

The Motors had just completed a 5-week tour of the US when they started recording the album on 1 February 1978. The album was produced by Peter Ker and the two main songwriters in the group, Nick Garvey and Andy McMaster. It was mostly recorded at

Pathway Studios Pathway Studios was an independent recording studio in North London. Founded in 1970, the studio became an early favorite of Stiff Records' Dave Robinson and Jake Riviera, and was the location for early recordings by The Damned, Madness, ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

and engineered by Andy Miller at IBC Studios and Pathway Studios, Basing Street Studios, Olympic Studios. This album used some material that had been written by McMaster and Garvey before the band had formed the year before. The album cover was designed by Cooke Key Associates.

Critical reception

In a contemporary review for ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'', Jim Farber praised ''Approved by the Motors'' as "a near-perfect LP of pure, pulverizing pop in the best

Sweet Sweetness is a basic taste most commonly perceived when eating foods rich in sugars. Sweet tastes are generally regarded as pleasurable. In addition to sugars like sucrose, many other chemical compounds are sweet, including aldehydes, ketone ...

Slade Slade are an English rock band formed in Wolverhampton in 1966. They rose to prominence during the glam rock era in the early 1970s, achieving 17 consecutive top 20 hits and six number ones on the UK Singles Chart. The ''British Hit Singles ...

, and

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tradition, cutting through the cuteness of that genre with Nick Garvey's and Andy McMaster's dynamic dual vocals… the band sings sweetly about S&M activities, disarming the entire subject in the same endearing manner as

Cheap Trick Cheap Trick is an American rock band from Rockford, Illinois, formed in 1973 by guitarist Rick Nielsen, bassist Tom Petersson, lead vocalist Robin Zander and drummer Bun E. Carlos. The current lineup of the band consists of Zander, Nielsen ...

joyously trivializes suicide." Robert Christgau of ''

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'' found the album to be "an enormous improvement" over the band's debut.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

critic Chris Woodstra retrospectively wrote that ''Approved by the Motors'' "shows a marked improvement over their debut, with a stronger melodic base and catchier songs". It has since been published by ''Rolling Stone'' as one of "20 Rock Albums ''Rolling Stone'' Loved in the 1970s That You Never Heard". ''

Record Collector ''Record Collector'' is a British monthly music magazine. It was founded in 1980 and distributes worldwide. History The early years The first standalone issue of ''Record Collector'' was published in March 1980, though its history stretches ba ...

'' magazine's Joe Geesin said of the album:

Track listing

Charts

Personnel

;The Motors *Nick Garvey - vocals, guitar, bass *Bram Tchaikovsky - vocals, guitar *Andy McMaster - vocals, bass, keyboards *Ricky Slaughter (Ricky Wernham) - drums

References

{{Authority control 1978 albums The Motors albums Virgin Records albums Albums recorded at IBC Studios Albums recorded at Olympic Sound Studios