''Swamp Thing'' is the third album by

Malcolm McLaren Malcolm Robert Andrew McLaren (22 January 1946 – 8 April 2010) was an English impresario, visual artist, singer, songwriter, musician, clothes designer and boutique owner, notable for combining these activities in an inventive and provoc ...

, released in 1985. It is composed of out-takes recorded between 1982 and 1984. The tracks were often built upon material previously recorded - for example, "Eiffel Tower" repurposed lyrics from the

Bow Wow Wow Bow Wow Wow are an English new wave band, created by manager Malcolm McLaren in 1980. McLaren recruited members of Adam and the Ants to form the band behind 13-year-old Annabella Lwin on vocals. They released their debut EP '' Your Cassette ...

song "Sexy Eiffel Towers" with the rhythm track of "Punk it Up" from McLaren's album ''

Duck Rock ''Duck Rock'' is an album released by British impresario Malcolm McLaren. It was originally issued in 1983 by Charisma Records, Virgin Records, and Chrysalis Records, and later re-released on CD in 1987. The album mixes up styles from South Afr ...

'', while another track from that album, "Soweto," found its instrumental hook reused in the track "Boom Boom Baby." The album was released to fulfill a contractual obligation with his record label. "Duck Rock Cheer" was the sole single released to promote the album. Neither the album nor the single met with commercial or critical success, though "Eiffel Tower" had earlier been featured on the soundtrack to the 1984

Jerry Schatzberg Jerry Schatzberg (born June 26, 1927) is an American photographer and film director. Career Schatzberg was born to a Jewish family of furriers and grew up in the Bronx. He photographed for magazines such as ''Vogue (magazine), Vogue'', ''Esquire ...

film ''

No Small Affair ''No Small Affair'' is a 1984 American comedy-drama film directed by Jerry Schatzberg and starring Jon Cryer and Demi Moore. Cryer, Jennifer Tilly, Tim Robbins and Tate Donovan make their film debuts. Plot The 16-year-old amateur photographer Ch ...

''.

Critical reception

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

'' wrote that the album "plays listlessly end to end," and but that there are "four goodies out of eight." ''

Trouser Press ''Trouser Press'' was a rock and roll magazine started in New York in 1974 as a mimeographed fanzine by editor/publisher Ira Robbins, fellow fan of the Who Dave Schulps and Karen Rose under the name "Trans-Oceanic Trouser Press" (a reference to ...

'' wrote that "the title track perverts 'Wild Thing' into a nightmarish but enjoyable mess." ''

The Rolling Stone Album Guide ''The Rolling Stone Album Guide'', previously known as ''The Rolling Stone Record Guide'', is a book that contains professional music reviews written and edited by staff members from ''Rolling Stone'' magazine. Its first edition was published in 1 ...

'' called ''Swamp Thing'' "a hellishly self-referential mess."

Track listing

Bonus tracks

# "Duck Rock Cheer - 12" Version (Cheerleader Version)" # "Duck Rock Cheer - 7" Vocal Edit" # "First Couple Out" # "First Couple Out - Extended Version" # "First Couple Out - Long fade" # "B.1. Bikki - (New Mix, 2019)"

Personnel

Stephen Hague Stephen Hague (born 1960) is an American record producer most active with various British acts since the 1980s. Early life Hague was born in Portland, Maine in 1960. Early career Hague started his musical career in the mid-1970s as a session k ...

- Production (tracks 2 and 5) *

Trevor Horn Trevor Charles Horn (born 15 July 1949) is an English music producer, label and recording studio owner, musician and composer. He is best known for his production work in the 1980s, and for being one half of the new wave band The Buggles (wit ...

- Production (tracks 2 and 8) *

- Production (all tracks except 2 and 5) *

Nick Egan Nick Egan (born 4 July 1957 in London, England) is a visual design artist and director of music videos, commercials and film. He graduated from the Watford College of Art and Design with a DGA in 1976. While attending college, he created cover ...

- Cover Design * Michael Halsband - Photography *

Bob Gruen Bob Gruen (born October 23, 1945) is an American author and photographer known for his rock 'n' roll photographs. By the mid 1970s Gruen was already regarded as one of the foremost photographers in music working with major artist such as John Len ...

- Background Photography

References

Malcolm McLaren albums Albums produced by Stephen Hague Albums produced by Trevor Horn 1985 compilation albums Charisma Records compilation albums Island Records compilation albums {{1980s-album-stub