''Extricate'' is the 12th album by

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-r ...

band the Fall. It was made immediately after bandleader Mark E. Smith divorced guitarist

Brix Smith Brix Smith (born Laura Elisse Salenger) is an American singer and guitarist, best known as the lead guitarist and a major songwriter for the English post-punk band The Fall during two stints in the band (1983-1989, and 1994-1996). Acknowledging ...

. Brix's departure helped define the sound of this album: her background vocals and relatively pop-oriented guitar, which had become mainstays of The Fall, are noticeably absent in this release. In one of the more unusual events in the group's career, she was replaced by founding former member

Martin Bramah Martin Beddington (born 18 September 1957 in Manchester),The Fall online – biography

, who had previously left the group in 1979 to form his own group

Blue Orchids Blue Orchids are an English post-punk band formed in Manchester in 1979, when Martin Bramah left the Fall, after playing on the band's debut album '' Live at the Witch Trials''. Christened by Salford-based punk poet John Cooper Clarke the ban ...

. Lead-off single "

Telephone Thing "Telephone Thing" is a song by British post-punk band The Fall (band), the Fall, written by Mark E. Smith with Coldcut members Matt Black (DJ), Matt Black and Jonathan More. Produced and mixed by Coldcut, it was released as a single in January 19 ...

" could have been seen as a nod to the

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...

scene of the time as the sound is quite similar to the dance-influenced music that was being released by

Happy Mondays Happy Mondays are an English rock band formed in Salford in 1980. The original line-up was Shaun Ryder (vocals), his brother Paul Ryder (bass), Gary Whelan (drums), Paul Davis (keyboard), and Mark Day (guitar). Mark "Bez" Berry later joine ...

and

The Stone Roses The Stone Roses were an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1983. One of the pioneering groups of the Madchester movement in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the band's classic and most prominent lineup consisted of vocalist Ian Brown, ...

in 1989. However, its origins were in Smith's previous collaboration with

Coldcut Coldcut are an English electronic music duo composed of Matt Black and Jonathan More. Credited as pioneers for pop sampling in the 1980s, Coldcut are also considered the first stars of UK electronic dance music due to their innovative style, ...

on their track "I'm in Deep", which, in turn, led to Coldcut producing the track and "Black Monk Theme Part II", one of two tracks by 60s garage band The Monks to be covered on the album (the other being "Black Monk Theme" – The Fall retitled both tracks). Elsewhere, Bramah, appearing on his first Fall album since '' Live at the Witch Trials'' adds a distinctly raw, even rockabilly sound to some of the songs. However, the album's best-known track was one of the least typical of the group's catalogue: "Bill Is Dead", a slow-paced tender love song which topped

John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey (DJ) and radio presenter. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly fr ...

Festive Fifty The Festive Fifty was originally an annual list of the year's 50 (though the exact figure varied above and below this number) best songs compiled at the end of the year and voted for by listeners to John Peel's BBC Radio 1 show. It was usually do ...

that year, the only occasion in the DJ's lifetime when his favourite band would do so. Although originally conceived by Smith and Craig Scanlon as a parody of

The Smiths The Smiths were an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1982. They comprised the singer Morrissey, the guitarist Johnny Marr, the bassist Andy Rourke and the drummer Mike Joyce. They are regarded as one of the most important acts to em ...

, Smith changed lyrical tack when he decided Scanlon's music deserved better, delivering a highly personal lyric. However, at Smith's insistence, it was not released as a single. The critical reception to ''Extricate'' was largely positive, with ''

Melody Maker ''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. It was founded in 1926, largely as a magazine for dance band musicians, by Leicester-born ...

'' suggesting that it was "possibly their finest yet" and '' NME'' giving the album a full 10/10. During the Australian leg of the tour accompanying the album, both Martin Bramah and Marcia Schofield were sacked from the group. The album was re-released in an expanded and re-mastered edition by Universal in May 2007.

Track listing

Original UK LP

CD and cassette editions

*Of the four extra tracks added, "Arms Control Poseur" and "Black Monk Theme, Part II" were released as B-sides to "Popcorn Double Feature", the former in an alternate version. "British People in Hot Weather" was released as the B-side to "Telephone Thing".

2007 reissue

Disc 1

* ''as per original UK LP''

Personnel

;The Fall * Mark E. Smith – vocals *

Martin Bramah Martin Beddington (born 18 September 1957 in Manchester),The Fall online – biography

– guitar, backing vocals * Craig Scanlon – guitar * Steve Hanley – bass guitar *Marcia Schofield – keyboards, percussion, backing vocals * Simon Wolstencroft – drums ;Additional personnel *Kenny Brady – fiddle *Charlotte Bill – flute,

oboe The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range. ...

*Mike Edwards ''(of Jesus Jones)'' – guitar on "Popcorn Double Feature" * Craig Leon – backing vocals, organ *

Cassell Webb Cassell Webb is a British–American musician and producer, whose musical career has incorporated psychedelia, country music, folk rock, and progressive rock. Biography Born in Llano, Texas, United States, in the late 1940s, Webb began play ...

''(wife of Craig Leon; credited as "Castle")'' – backing vocals, organ ;Technical * Craig Leon – production, mixing *

Adrian Sherwood Adrian Maxwell Sherwood (born 20 January 1958, London, England) is an English record producer specialising in the genre of dub music. He has created a distinctive production style based on the application of dub effects and dub mixing techniqu ...

– production, mixing *

– production, mixing *Mark E. Smith – production, mixing *Alaistar – engineering * George Shilling – engineering *Ian Gillespie – engineering *"A bunch of guys in ponytails" – engineering * Anthony Frost – front cover painting *Bob Berry – front cover painting photograph *Pointblanc – artwork *Paul Cox – band photography

References

{{Authority control 1990 albums The Fall (band) albums Albums produced by Craig Leon Albums produced by Adrian Sherwood Fontana Records albums