Dunno if anyone else has a passion for this band on here.

Well, if you do - great news!ish...

I’ll definitely be getting these – they look definitive as far as I can tell. Hopefully better than the remasters that arrived in 2000. Still can’t understand why they’ve stopped at Sulk though and not carried on to Perhaps, that’s really annoying.

Amazon give a release date of 6th May, and there’s a vinyl reissue (isn’t there always?) of Sulk on the way as well

The track listings for the new deluxe editions:

The Affectionate Punch

CD1
1.The Affectionate Punch
2. Amused As Always
3. Logan Time
4. Paper House
5. Transport To Central
6. A Matter Of Gender
7. Even Dogs In The Wild
8. Would I…Bounce Back
9. Deeply Concerned
10. A

CD2
1. Boys Keep Swinging
2. Mona Property Girl `
3. Schmoltz*
4. Green For Grief
5. Geese
6. Saline Drips
7. Galaxy Of Memories
8. Double Hipness
9. Big Waltz (aka Paper House)
10. Janice (aka Deeply Concerned)
11. You Were Young
12. Bounce Back – Remix
13. A – Remix
14. Amused As Always – Remix
15. The Affectionate Punch – Remix
16. The End

Fourth Drawer Down

CD 1
1. White Car In Germany
2. A Girl Named Property
3. Kitchen Person
4. Q Quarters
5. Tell Me Easter’s On Friday
6. The Associate
7. Message Oblique Speech
8. An Even Whiter Car

CD 2
1. Straw Towels
2. Kissed
3. Fearless (It Takes A Full Moon)
4. Point Si
5. Blue Soap
6. The Tree That Never Sang
7. Straw Towels (Demo)
8. Q Quarters (Demo)

Sulk
CD1
1. Arrogance Gave Him Up
2. No
3. Bap De La Bap
4. Gloomy Sunday
5. Nude Spoons
6. Skipping
7. It’s Better This Way
8. Party Fears Two
9. Club Country
10. nothinginsomethingparticular

CD2
1. 18 Carat Love Affair
2. Love Hangover
3. Club Country 12”
4. Party Fears Two (Instrumental)
5. It’s Better This Way (Alt Version)
6. And Then I Read A Book
7. Ulcragyceptimol
8. Skipping (Alt Version)
9. Australia
10. Me, Myself And The Tragic Story
11. I Never Will (demo)
12. Club Country (Demo)
13. Grecian 2000

Certainly do, great news, a brilliant lost talent. And Alan Rankin was, and I take it still is, a musical genius.

Absolutely Craig.

More info on these releases - apparently they've gone back to the original 1/4" master tapes, and the booklets feature extensive liner notes, reproductions of original promotional material, previously unseen memorabilia and unpublished photos.

Sulk 2016 vinyl is currently on Amazon at nearly £30!

I spotted an RSD release yesterday:-

http://recordstoreday.co.uk/exclusive-releases/rsd-2016/associates-the/

Brian

Cheers Brian,

A bit of a superfluous release, but that's RSD!

Looking forward to these remasters. I was listening to Fourth Drawer Down this morning - it’s completely mental isn’t it?

It’s funny to think that we were so accepting of this stuff – not realising that – actually – they were completely batshit crazy. I listened to Fourth Drawer Down and then Sulk straight after – I felt quite dizzy!

The quality of madness has sadly diminished these days I fear.

Can't believe "Perhaps" hasn't been given the 2CD Deluxe treatment, the best Associates album for me.

Dunno if it's the best, but I'm happy with the 2CD set that featured The Glamour Chase, but considering how he felt about the album at the time (apparently he wasn't happy with it), so maybe there's not enough material in the vaults for a 2CD set.

Another weird thing about this Associates re-issue campaign is The new Very Best Of - half the singles are missing. A Matter Of Gender, Those First Impressions, Waiting For The Loveboat, Breakfast, Take Me To The Girl, Heart Of Glass, Country Boy etc etc. Can’t believe they missed off The Rhythm Divine as well - should've been put on Disc 2. Bizarrely Disc 2 has an instrumental version of Waiting for The Loveboat, but not the single itself;

Disc: 1
1. Boys Keep Swinging
2. The Affectionate Punch
3. Tell Me Easter's On Friday
4. Q Quarters
5. Kitchen Person
6. A
7. Message Oblique Speech
8. White Car In Germany
9. Kites
10. Party Fears Two
11. Club Country
12. 18 Carat Love Affair
13. Love Hangover

Disc: 2
1. Eloise
2. Jukebox Bucharest
3. Window Shopping (Instrumental)
4. Double Hipness
5. The Affectionate Punch (demo)
6. The Room We Sat In Before
7. Galaxy Of Memories
8. Gloomy Sunday (Live - ICA 1980)
9. Waiting for The Loveboat (Instrumental)
10. Stephen, You're Really Something
11. Fear Is My Bride
12. International Loner
13. Edge Of The World