‘Deep’ was very much Peter Murphy’s breakthrough solo album and perhaps it was in no small part due to the promotional push of the record company machinery of the era, still some years away from the MP3 meltdown and subsequent diminished times. This cassette is one of those curious promo-only releases of the era picked up along the way, a reminder of those times.
^ Peter Murphy ‘4 Cuts Deep’ Canadian Promo-only Cassette EP – front pack design
Three albums in to Peter Murphy’s solo career, 1989’s ‘Deep’ brought the ex-Bauhaus frontman a high degree of well-earned success in the US, having put in the stateside touring miles the year before and with the new LP a strong piece of work. Success to such an extent that a series of single releases in addition to the pre-album single ‘Cuts You Up’ saw light of day in the US. These were of high appeal to a fan and collector such as I, on the other side of the Atlantic, where ‘Deep’ wouldn’t even receive a UK release until 1990, and would merit only the one accompanying single release, such were the disparity in fortunes for Murphy between homeland and the US.
^ Peter Murphy – A Strange Kind Of Love US promo insert front cover design
There are quite a number of different versions out there for ‘Whistling For His Love’, one of Danielle’s uniquely odd and wonderful tales set to a sweetly electronic, sequencer-driven backing. The original version was first released on the Japanese only album ‘The Chemical Wedding’, which I focussed on a few posts back – while the second, most commonly available version, was first released on the ‘Dark Adapted Eye’ album and subsequently on the flip side of the UK single, ‘White Knuckle Ride’*in 1989 – and also the ‘Comatose Non-Reaction’ compilation album from 1995.
As well as those two, four other mixes are to be found on this promo-only 12” EP from Sire Records…
^ Danielle Dax – ‘Whistling For His Love’ US 12″ Promo front
For no reason other than on my travels over the years I have come across these and I do love a nice little enamel lapel pin, here are a few record company logo badges. The most unusual is probably the Genetic Records badge – Martin Rushent’s label back in the day. The Capitol and Parlophone ones came via an early Record Store Day goodie bag courtesy of London’s fine Sister Ray records on Berwick Street.
Brian Eno’s ‘Music for Films’ has a complicated history and in this post I’ll do my best to unravel the differences between the original 1976 promo-only release, its 1978 wider commercial release and how the stray tracks have reappeared on CD in later years.
^ Brian Eno ‘Music for Films’ original 1976 promotional ‘Director’s Edition’ – front cover