''The Marshall Suite'' is a 1999 album by the Fall, their 20th. The album builds on the techno-influenced beats of its predecessor ''

Levitate Levitation (from Latin ''levitas'' "lightness") is the process by which an object is held aloft in a stable position, without mechanical support via any physical contact. Levitation is accomplished by providing an upward force that counteracts ...

'' (1997), while also returning to a more

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western music ...

-influenced sound reminiscent of earlier Fall lineups with songs such as the catchy "Touch Sensitive" and the strange, complex, thumping

jungle A jungle is land covered with dense forest and tangled vegetation, usually in tropical climates. Application of the term has varied greatly during the past recent century. Etymology The word ''jungle'' originates from the Sanskrit word ''jaṅ ...

beats of "The Crying Marshal". The album was long out of print, but a new three-disc edition was released in the summer of 2011.

Background

''The Marshall Suite'' was made immediately after an American tour during which

Mark E. Smith Mark Edward Smith (5 March 1957 – 24 January 2018) was an English singer, who was the lead singer, lyricist and only constant member of the post-punk group the Fall. Smith formed the band after attending the June 1976 Sex Pistols gig at the ...

had an onstage fight with members of the band and was arrested following ongoing altercations at the hotel at which the group were staying. While the remaining band members quit and returned to England, leaving Smith in a cell in Manhattan,

Julia Nagle Julia Adamson (also known as Julia Nagle from 1988 to 2006) (born September 30, 1960 in Peterborough, Ontario) is a Canadian composer, musician and current label manager of Invisiblegirl Records.Simpson, Dave (2009) ''The Fallen'', Canongate Book ...

chose to stay in the band, helping to assemble the group's new lineup. During the recording of the album, this new lineup was still taking shape; the group shed a drummer before recording could even begin, and the album features two different bassists. For these reasons, it is something of a patchwork: of 13 tracks, "On My Own" is a reworking of the previous album's "Everybody But Myself", three tracks are covers, two are sound collages, and "The Crying Marshal" is a remix by producer Steven Hitchcock of a Smith collaboration with the Filthy Three ("Real Life of the Crying Marshal"). Two songs use some of the same lyrics (a 14th track, "Tom Raggazzi", a reggae-tinged reprise of "Anecdotes...", was included on the vinyl version). Nevertheless, the album was well-received. Around the time of the album's release, rumours circulated that ''The Marshall Suite'' was a

concept album A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...

about the "Crying Marshal" character. Smith stopped short of denying this, telling ''

The Wire ''The Wire'' is an American Crime film, crime drama Television show, television series created and primarily written by author and former police reporter David Simon. The series was broadcast by the cable network HBO in the United States. ''The ...

'' that "I thought it would be good to do it as the story of his life, a themed LP, with a thread running through it. It's such an unhip thing to do." An unpublished section of the interview, later placed on the magazine's website, suggested that Smith was not yet finished with his creation: "I do want to continue the Marshall theme, develop it. Maybe a five-sided thing next, the return of the Marshall". However, he does not appear to have returned to the theme on any subsequent Fall album. The first of the album's three covers, "F-'Oldin' Money", which Smith described as "half a cover ... based on a piece of

," is a 1959 track by American rockabilly singer

Tommy Blake Tommy Earl Blake, Jr. (born January 15, 1985) is a former American football defensive end who played college football at Texas Christian University. Early life Blake grew up in a tiny town in Texas. At just 10 months old his mother died of pn ...

. "Bound" is originally a 1974

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

instrumental by The Audio Arts Strings titled "Love Bound", to which Smith added lyrics. The third cover, "

This Perfect Day ''This Perfect Day'' is a science fiction novel by American writer Ira Levin, about a Technocracy, technocratic dystopia.David Pringle,''The Ultimate Guide To Science Fiction''. New York: Pharos Books: St. Martins Press, 1990. (p.318). Levin ...

", was first released by Australian

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 the Saints in 1977. An edit of the album's opening track "Touch Sensitive" was used in the UK as a soundtrack to an advert for the

Vauxhall Vauxhall ( ) is a district in South West London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. Vauxhall was part of Surrey until 1889 when the County of London was created. Named after a medieval manor, "Fox Hall", it became well known for ...

Corsa.

Track listing

CD version

Vinyl version

*Note: writing credits as per original vinyl edition.

2011 reissue

;Disc 1 :1-13: ''as per original CD'' ;Disc 2 ;Note * "Antidote" is the same track as "(Jung Nev's) Antidotes" on ''The Marshall Suite'' album. ;Disc 3 ''(Live show for

XFM Radio X is a British National commercial radio station focused on alternative music, primarily indie rock, and owned by Global. Radio X launched in 1989 as a pirate radio station, a licensed London-wide station in 1997 and nationally in 2015 ...

Radio, 14 April 1999)''

Personnel

The Fall *

–

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

on "Tom Ragazzi (Finale)" *

– keyboards, guitar, programming * Neville Wilding – guitar, vocals * Adam Helal – bass guitar * Karen Leatham – bass guitar * Tom Head –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

Additional personnel * Steve Hitchcock - string arrangements * Steve Hanley - bass on Peel session #21 *

Karl Burns Karl Burns (born Carl Birtles,1958 in Manchester, England) is a British musician best known as the drummer for the Fall, featuring in many incarnations of the band between 1977 and 1998. Although several musicians have rejoined the Fall havi ...

- drums on Peel session #21 * John Rolleson - backing vocals on Peel session #21 * Speth Hughes - special effects on Peel session #22 Technical * Mark E. Smith –

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

* Steve Hitchcock - production * Elspeth Hughes - engineering * Jim Brumby - engineering * Richard Flack - engineering * Pascal Le Gras - photography * Warne/Trustam - design * Mike Robinson - production on Peel session #21 * Nick Scripps - engineering on Peel session #21 * Mike Engles - production on Peel session #¤22 * Kevin Rumble - engineering on Peel session #22 * Andy Pierce - remastering (2011 reissue)

Notes

References

External links

* A web page with photos, relating to the album ''The Marshall Suite'' fro
Invisiblegirl.co.uk

Lyrics
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marshall Suite 1999 albums The Fall (band) albums