''Under the Sun'' is the second album by Australian

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 ...

group Paul Kelly & The Coloured Girls and was originally released in December 1987 by

Mushroom Records Mushroom Records was an Australian flagship record label, founded in 1972 in Melbourne. It published and distributed many successful Australian artists and expanded internationally, until it was merged with Festival Records in 1998. Festival Mu ...

. In the North American and European markets, it was released by

A&M Records A&M Records was an American record label founded as an independent company by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss in 1962. Due to the success of the discography A&M released, the label garnered interest and was acquired by PolyGram in 1989 and began distr ...

in 1988 with the band credited as Paul Kelly & The Messengers, with a different track order and listing. On the Australian albums charts it peaked at #19 with the single "

To Her Door "To Her Door" is a song by Paul Kelly and the Coloured Girls, released as a single ahead of their second album, '' Under the Sun'' (released in North America and Europe as by Paul Kelly and the Messengers). The single was released in September ...

" peaking at #14. Another single, "Dumb Things" peaked at #36 in early 1989, on the

Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) is a trade association representing the Australian recording industry which was established in the 1970s by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing th ...

(ARIA) singles charts; it reached #16 on the ''Billboard'' Modern Rock chart. The song was included in the soundtrack for the 1988

Yahoo Serious Yahoo Serious (born Greg Gomez Pead; 27 July 1953) is an Australian film actor, director, and score composer. His films include the comedy films ''Young Einstein'' (1988), ''Reckless Kelly'' (1993), and '' Mr. Accident'' (2000). Serious writes, ...

film ''

Young Einstein ''Young Einstein'' is a 1988 Australian comedy film written, produced, directed by and starring Yahoo Serious. It is a fantasized account of the life of Albert Einstein which alters all people, places and circumstances of his life, including r ...

''. "To Her Door" won an

ARIA Award The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (commonly known informally as ARIA Music Awards, ARIA Awards, or simply the ARIAs) is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Austr ...

in 1988 for 'Best Video' directed by Claudia Castle. In 2001, the

Australasian Performing Right Association APRA AMCOS consists of Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) and Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS), both copyright management organisations or copyright collectives which jointly represent over 100,000 songwr ...

(APRA) listed the Top 30 Australian songs of all time, including "To Her Door" written by Kelly. Note: requires user to input song title e.g. DUMB THINGS

Background

After relocating from

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

in 1985, Paul Kelly began to play and record with a full-time band, which included

Michael Armiger Michael William Armiger is an English-born Australian guitarist and teacher. He has been a member of various groups including Paul Kelly Band (1983–84), Paul Kelly and the Coloured Girls (1985–86), John Kennedy's Love Gone Wrong (1987– ...

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 ...

, Michael Barclay on

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 ...

, Steve Connolly on guitar, eventually bassist Jon Schofield, and

keyboardist A keyboardist or keyboard player is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instr ...

Peter Bull joined. Through a joke based on

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. ...

's song " Walk on the Wild Side", the band became known as Paul Kelly and the Coloured Girls. In September 1986 the band released their debut double LP ''Gossip''. Due to possible racist connotations the band changed its name, for international releases, to Paul Kelly and the Messengers. They made an American tour, initially supporting

Crowded House Crowded House are a rock band, formed in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, in 1985. Its founding members were New Zealander Neil Finn (vocalist, guitarist, primary songwriter) and Australians Paul Hester (drums) and Nick Seymour (bass). Later ban ...

and then head-lining, travelling across the United States by bus. Jon Schofield replaced Armiger on bass guitar, Chris Coyne on

tenor saxophone The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (while th ...

and Chris Wilson on

harmonica The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica inclu ...

On the Australian albums charts it peaked at #19 with the single "To Her Door" peaking at #14. First single from the album, "Bradman" had been released in January 1987 as a double-A side with " Leaps and Bounds" from ''Gossip'' but had little chart success. The third and fourth singles, "Forty Miles to Saturday Night" and "Don't Stand So Close to the Window" also had little chart success. Another single, "Dumb Things" peaked at #36 in early 1989, on the

(ARIA) singles charts; it reached #16 on the ''Billboard'' Modern Rock chart. The song was included in the soundtrack for the 1988

film ''

''. In 1988, "To Her Door" won an

for 'Best Video' directed by Claudia Castle. In 2001, the

(APRA) listed the Top 30 Australian songs of all time, including "To Her Door" written by Kelly. "Desdemona" was featured in an episode of the Australian TV show ''

Packed To The Rafters ''Packed to the Rafters'' was an Australian family-oriented comedy drama television program which premiered on the Seven Network on Tuesday 26 August 2008 at 8:30 pm. The show continued on Tuesdays in this timeslot for its entire run. The d ...

''.

Track listing

All tracks written by Paul Kelly unless otherwise indicated. Original Australian LP/ MC release # "

Dumb Things "Dumb Things" or "I've Done all the Dumb Things" is a song by Australian rock group Paul Kelly and the Coloured Girls, released as the fourth single from their second album, '' Under the Sun''. It was released by Mushroom Records imprint White L ...

" (aka "I've Done all the Dumb Things) – 2:31 # "Same Old Walk" – 4:08 # "Big Heart" – 3:22 # "Don't Stand So Close to the Window" (Paul Kelly, A McGregor) – 2:35 # "Forty Miles to Saturday Night" – 3:11 # "I Don't Remember a Thing" – 2:04 # "Know Your Friends" – 3:37 # "

" – 3:18 # "Under the Sun" – 4:18 # "Untouchable" – 2:04 # "Desdemona" – 3:46 # "Happy Slave" – 2:30 # "Crosstown" – 2:23 # "Bicentennial" – 3:04 Bonus tracks for Australian CD release #

"Bradman" – 7:26 # "Pastures of Plenty" (

Woody Guthrie Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (; July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967) was an American singer-songwriter, one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American socialism and anti-fascism. He has inspired ...

) – 2:26 North American/European release # "Dumb Things" – 2:31 ^^ # "Same Old Walk" – 4:08 # "Big Heart" – 3:22 # "Don't Stand So Close to the Window" (Paul Kelly, A McGregor) – 2:35 # "Forty Miles to Saturday Night" – 3:11 ^^ # "Untouchable" – 2:04 # "Know Your Friends" – 3:37 # "To Her Door" – 3:18 ^^ # "Under the Sun" – 4:18 # "Desdemona" – 2:07 # "Happy Slave" – 3:46 # "Crosstown" – 2:30 # "Little Decisions" – 2:25 # "Bicentennial" – 3:04 (^^) The European release featured slightly different mixes of these tracks.

Personnel

Paul Kelly and the Coloured Girls * Paul Kelly —

acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...

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 ...

* Michael Barclay —

, vocals * Peter Bull —

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 ...

* Steve Connolly — guitar (

electric Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described by ...

), vocals * Chris Coyne —

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to pr ...

(

tenor A tenor is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The lo ...

) *

Jon Schofield Jon Schofield is an Australian musician (bass guitar, guitar and vocals) who has played in a range of bands from indie rock 1960s inspired band, Grooveyard, to The Coloured Girls (a.k.a. The Messengers) of Paul Kelly & the Coloured Girls.Spence ...

—

* Chris Wilson —

, vocals, saxophone (

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...

) Additional musicians * Jessica Kenny — vocals *

Joe Camilleri Joseph Vincent Camilleri, (born 21 May 1948) aka Jo Jo Zep or Joey Vincent, is a Maltese Australian singer-songwriter and musician. Camilleri has recorded as a solo artist and as a member of Jo Jo Zep & The Falcons and The Black Sorrows. Jo Jo ...

— saxophone (tenor) * Steve Miller —

whistle A whistle is an instrument which produces sound from a stream of gas, most commonly air. It may be mouth-operated, or powered by air pressure, steam, or other means. Whistles vary in size from a small slide whistle or nose flute type to a larg ...

(

human Humans (''Homo sapiens'') are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, culture, ...

) *

Lucky Oceans Lucky Oceans (born Reuben Gosfield, 21 April 1951) is an American pedal steel guitarist and a former member of country and Western swing band Asleep at the Wheel. From 1995 to 2017 he was a broadcaster in Perth, Western Australia with the Austr ...

— guitar (

steel Steel is an alloy made up of iron with added carbon to improve its strength and fracture resistance compared to other forms of iron. Many other elements may be present or added. Stainless steels that are corrosion- and oxidation-resistant ty ...

) * Ian Simpson —

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and usually made of plastic, or occasionally animal skin. Early forms of the instrument were fashi ...

Recording details * Producer — Alan Thorne and Paul Kelly except "Dumb Things", produced by Martin Armiger and Paul Kelly * Engineer — Alan Thorne ** Assistant engineer — Kathy Naunton * Recording & mixing studio — Alberts and Trafalgar Studios Art work *Design — Melanie Nissen *Photography — Francine McDougall (cover photo), Isabel Snyder

Charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Under The Sun (Paul Kelly Album) 1987 albums Paul Kelly (Australian musician) albums Mushroom Records albums