''Power in the Darkness'' is the debut

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

band Band or BAND may refer to: Places *Bánd, a village in Hungary *Band, Iran, a village in Urmia County, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran * Band, Mureș, a commune in Romania *Band-e Majid Khan, a village in Bukan County, West Azerbaijan Province, I ...

Tom Robinson Band Tom Robinson Band (TRB) are a British rock band, established in 1976 by singer, songwriter and bassist Tom Robinson. The band's debut single "2-4-6-8 Motorway" was a top five hit on the UK Singles Chart in 1977, and their third single, "Up Ag ...

, released in early 1978. The UK LP had ten tracks. It included inside the album cover a

stencil Stencilling produces an image or pattern on a surface, by applying pigment to a surface through an intermediate object, with designed holes in the intermediate object, to create a pattern or image on a surface, by allowing the pigment to reach ...

similar to the cover art, but with the album title replaced by "Tom Robinson Band"; it held the warning, "This stencil is not meant for spraying on public property!!!". The US release was packaged with a seven-track bonus LP. The

record sleeve A record sleeve is the outer covering of a vinyl record. Alternative terms are ''dust sleeve'', ''album liner'' and ''liner''. The term is also used to denominate the outermost cardboard covering of a record, i.e. the ''record jacket'' or ''album ...

of the bonus LP included the number to the

Gay & Lesbian Switchboard of New York The Gay & Lesbian Switchboard of New York is considered the "oldest operating GLBT hotline in the world". Initial planning began with 1971 meetings to establish the Gay Switchboard, led by eight individuals from Gay Activists Alliance, Beyond, an ...

. The 1993 CD re-release included all 17 tracks. Two more tracks were included on a 2004 re-release. After TRB guitarist

Danny Kustow Alexander Daniel Kustow (10 May 1955 – 11 March 2019) was an English rock guitarist, known for his dynamic performance style and work with the Tom Robinson Band in the 1970s and 1980s. Early life Kustow was born at Queen Charlotte's and Chel ...

's death in 2019, Robinson frequently dedicated "Too Good to Be True" to him.

Reception

Ralph Heibutzki of

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 databas ...

raved about ''Power in the Darkness'', calling the record's consistency "remarkable", and quipping, "Think music and politics don't mix? Listen to this album, and then decide."

Track listing

All tracks composed by

Tom Robinson Thomas Giles Robinson (born 1 June 1950) is a British singer, bassist, radio presenter and long-time LGBT rights activist, best known for the hits "Glad to Be Gay", "2-4-6-8 Motorway", and "Don't Take No for an Answer", with his Tom Robinson ...

; except where indicated ;Original vinyl release (UK) Side One # "Up Against the Wall" (Robinson, Roy Butterfield aka Anton Mauve) – 3:35 # "Grey Cortina" – 2:10 # "Too Good to Be True" (Robinson, Dolphin Taylor) – 3:35 # "Ain't Gonna Take It" (Robinson, Danny Kustow) – 2:53 # "Long Hot Summer" – 4:44 Side Two # "The Winter of '79" (Robinson, Mark Ambler, Taylor, Kustow) – 4:31 # "Man You Never Saw" (Robinson, Ambler) – 2:44 # "Better Decide Which Side You're On" – 2:50 # "You Gotta Survive" (Robinson, Ambler) – 3:15 # "Power in the Darkness" (Robinson, Ambler) – 4:55 ;Bonus tracks # "

2-4-6-8 Motorway "2-4-6-8 Motorway" is a song by Tom Robinson. It was released as a single in 1977 by British punk rock/ new wave group the Tom Robinson Band, and reached No. 5 in the UK Singles Chart. Song information The music and lyrics were written by Tom ...

" – 3:18 # "

I Shall Be Released "I Shall Be Released" is a 1967 song written by Bob Dylan. Dylan recorded two primary versions. The first recording was made in collaboration with the Band during the Basement Tapes sessions in 1967, and released on '' The Bootleg Series Volu ...

" (

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

) – 4:35 # " (Sing If You're) Glad to Be Gay" – 5:00 # "Don't Take No for an Answer" – 4:35 # "Martin" – 2:53 # "Right On Sister" (Robinson, Kustow, Butterfield, Taylor) – 3:25 # "I'm All Right Jack" (Robinson, Kustow) – 2:29 # " I'm Waiting for My Man"† (Live at the

London Lyceum The Lyceum Theatre ( ) is a West End theatre located in the City of Westminster, on Wellington Street, just off the Strand in central London. It has a seating capacity of 2,100. The origins of the theatre date to 1765. Managed by Samuel Arnold, ...

, 1977) (

Lou Reed Lewis Allan Reed (March 2, 1942October 27, 2013) was an American musician, songwriter, and poet. He was the guitarist, singer, and principal songwriter for the rock band the Velvet Underground and had a solo career that spanned five decades. ...

) – 4:25 # "Power in the Darkness"† (2004 Remix) – 3:23 † These two tracks were included in a digitally remastered,

Copy Control Copy Control was the generic name of a copy prevention system, used from 2001 until 2006 on several digital audio disc releases by EMI Group and Sony BMG Music Entertainment in several regions (Europe, Canada, United States, and Australia). It s ...

led 2004 re-release.

Charts

Personnel

;Tom Robinson Band *

– vocals, bass *

– guitar *

Mark Ambler Tom Robinson Band (TRB) are a British rock band, established in 1976 by singer, songwriter and bassist Tom Robinson. The band's debut single "2-4-6-8 Motorway" was a top five hit on the UK Singles Chart in 1977, and their third single, "Up Ag ...

– organ, piano *

Dolphin Taylor Brian "Dolphin" Taylor (born 10 November 1958) is a British former drummer. Tom Robinson Band Taylor's first band was Dragon's Playground, which earlier had had Annie Lennox as a vocalist. In 1976 Dragon's Playground appeared on ATV's ''New Fa ...

– drums ;Technical * Bill Price – engineer *Jerry Green – assistant engineer *Brian Palmer – art direction * Terry O'Neill, Peter Vernon – photography

Rock Against Racism

The sleeve notes of ''Power in the Darkness'' included the founding declaration of the

Rock Against Racism Rock Against Racism (RAR) was a political and cultural movement which emerged in 1976 in reaction to a rise in racist attacks on the streets of the United Kingdom and increasing support for the far-right National Front at the ballot box. Betwe ...

movement.

References

External links

* * * {{Authority control 1978 debut albums Albums produced by Chris Thomas (record producer) Albums produced by Vic Maile EMI Records albums Tom Robinson Band albums