''Vision Thing'' is the third studio album by English

gothic rock Gothic rock (also called goth rock or simply goth) is a style of rock music that emerged from post-punk in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. The first post-punk bands which shifted toward dark music with gothic overtones include Siouxsie a ...

band

the Sisters of Mercy The Sisters of Mercy is an English rock band, formed in 1980 in Leeds. After achieving early underground fame there, the band had their commercial breakthrough in the mid-1980s and sustained it until the early 1990s, when they stopped releasin ...

. It was released on 22 October 1990 through

Merciful Release Merciful Release is a record label started by Andrew Eldritch, frontman with Leeds band the Sisters of Mercy. As Eldritch stated in an early interview, he wanted to hear himself on the radio. He and Gary Marx (Mark Pairman) played and recorded o ...

and

East West Records East West Records (stylized as east''west'') is a record label formed in 1955, distributed and owned by Warner Music Group, headquartered in London, England. History Upon its creation in 1955 by Atlantic Records, the label had one hit with th ...

, with

Elektra Records Elektra Records (or Elektra Entertainment) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, founded in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickolt. It played an important role in the development of contemporary folk and rock music between the 1 ...

handling the US release.

Recording

Soon after the release of the band's previous album, '' Floodland'', Eldritch approached guitarist John Perry to join them on writing a new album. After Perry turned down the offer to become a full-time member, the band began to search for a new guitarist through their record label. Eventually, Eldritch was forwarded a demo tape by young and unknown Andreas Bruhn. Bruhn was called to audition a week after turning in his tape. As the band—now composed of Eldritch, Bruhn and bassist

Patricia Morrison Patricia Anne Rainone (born January 14, 1962), better known by her stage name Patricia Morrison, is an American bass guitarist, singer and songwriter. She has worked with Bags, The Gun Club, Fur Bible, The Sisters of Mercy, and the Damned. Bio ...

—was about to enter the studio, Morrison was abruptly replaced by the former

Sigue Sigue Sputnik Sigue Sigue Sputnik were a British new wave band formed in 1982 by former Generation X bassist Tony James. The band have had three UK top-40 hit singles, including " Love Missile F1-11" and " 21st Century Boy". The band's music, image and in ...

member Tony James. As Perry recalls, "When I first heard the ''Vision Thing'' material, Patricia was there; when I did the album, she wasn't." While details on Morrison parting ways with the band have never been fully disclosed, she herself was allegedly hired by Eldritch on the day her predecessor, Craig Adams, resigned. Morrison later confirmed to have worked with Eldritch up until December 1989. She would go on to say her resignation was linked to her monthly salary of £300, and that she had her doubts on the band's musical direction. "I wasn't too thrilled with the direction the record was going in. There were elements I didn't like that could have gone either way, and now that Tony James is in I want nothing to do with it. It seems obvious what's going on – it's scam time..." While Morrison's recording input on ''Floodland'' has been contested, Perry raised doubts whether either she or James play on ''Vision Thing''. "By the time of the recording, Tony James was in, but I'm not sure either e or Patriciaactually played any bass on the record – sounds sequenced to me." James has later admitted his parts took some twenty minutes in total to record. Ultimately, the band spent nine months in the Danish recording facilities, with guitarist

Tim Bricheno Tim Bricheno (born Timothy John Bricheno, 6 July 1963, Huddersfield, Yorkshire) is an English guitarist, songwriter and music teacher. He was a member of several notable English indie bands, including All About Eve, The Sisters of Mercy, XC-NN ( ...

recruited during the final two weeks. Then-manager Boyd Steemson followed suit at one point to observe the progress. "I remember flying out to the ukstudio when they were making Vision Thing, and Tony

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spoke to me and said: 'Well, I guess it's going to be a five-song album.' And I said, 'No, it will not be a five-song album.' Two days later they had seven-and-a-half songs. It was a very painful process." According to the official website of the band, the final mixes were not the ones worked on the most. "'Vision Thing' is a stripped-down affair. Half of the finished mixes for the album are shelved in favour of rough mixes from earlier stages of the recording session, 'monitor mixes' which retain the immediate feel of the songs."

Content

The album was designed by songwriter and singer

Andrew Eldritch Andrew Eldritch (born Andrew William Harvey Taylor, 15 May 1959) is an English singer, songwriter and musician. He is the frontman and only remaining original member of the Sisters of Mercy, a band that emerged from the British post-punk scene ...

as an attack on the policies of the

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushSince around 2000, he has been usually called George H. W. Bush, Bush Senior, Bush 41 or Bush the Elder to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president from 2001 to 2009; pr ...

administration (the title comes from an oft-cited quote by Bush).

Legacy

Described by Andrew Eldritch as "a fine album", it was included by '' Q'' magazine on their "Fifty Best Albums of 1990" list. In 1999, Ned Raggett ranked the album at number 69 on his list of "The Top 136 or So Albums of the Nineties".

Track listing

All songs produced by Eldritch, except "More", produced by Eldritch and

Jim Steinman James Richard Steinman (November 1, 1947 – April 19, 2021) was an American composer, lyricist and record producer. He also worked as an arranger, pianist, and singer. His work included songs in the adult contemporary, rock, dance, pop, mus ...

, and "When You Don't See Me", produced by

Chris Tsangarides Christopher Andrew Tsangarides (17 August 1956 – 6 January 2018) was a British Grammy-nominated record producer, sound engineer, and mixer of Greek Cypriot origin. He was best known for his work with many heavy metal artists, including G ...

2006 reissue

Along with the group's previous two releases, ''Vision Thing'' was reissued in November 2006 with bonus tracks.

Personnel

– vocals, guitars, keyboards *

– guitars *Andreas Bruhn – guitars * Tony James – bass *

Doktor Avalanche The Sisters of Mercy is an English rock band, formed in 1980 in Leeds. After achieving early underground fame there, the band had their commercial breakthrough in the mid-1980s and sustained it until the early 1990s, when they stopped releasin ...

(drum machine) –

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 ...

;Guest musicians * John Perry – guitars, slide guitar on "Detonation Boulevard" *

Maggie Reilly Maggie Reilly (born 15 September 1956) is a Scottish singer best known for her collaborations with the composer and instrumentalist Mike Oldfield. Most notably, she performed lead vocals on the Oldfield songs " Family Man", "Moonlight Shadow", ...

– backing vocals on "Vision Thing", "More", "Detonation Boulevard", "Something Fast" and "Doctor Jeep"

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{Authority control 1990 albums Albums produced by Andy Zax Albums produced by Chris Tsangarides Albums produced by Jim Steinman East West Records albums Merciful Release albums The Sisters of Mercy albums