It'll End in Tears: Difference between revisions

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{{Short description|1984 debut album by This Mortal Coil}}
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{{Use British English|date=June 2012}}
{{Use British English|date=June 2012}}
{{Infobox album
{{Infobox album
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| artist      = [[This Mortal Coil]]
| artist      = [[This Mortal Coil]]
| cover        = ItllEndinTearsalbumcover.png
| cover        = ItllEndinTearsalbumcover.png
| alt          =  
| alt          = Black and white out-of-focus photograph of a person with closed eyes and hair pulled back
| released    = {{start date|1984|10|8|df=y}}<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1984/Music-Week-1984-10-06.pdf|title=Music Week|page=51}}</ref>
| released    = {{start date|1984|10|8|df=y}}<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1984/Music-Week-1984-10-06.pdf |title=Music Week |page=51 |access-date=27 June 2015}}</ref>
| recorded    =  
| recorded    =
| venue        =  
| venue        =
| studio      = [[Blackwing Studios|Blackwing]] (London)
| studio      = [[Blackwing Studios|Blackwing]] (London)
| genre        = {{flatlist|
| genre        = {{flatlist|
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| label        = [[4AD]]
| label        = [[4AD]]
| producer    = [[John Fryer (producer)|John Fryer]] and [[Ivo Watts-Russell]]
| producer    = [[John Fryer (producer)|John Fryer]] and [[Ivo Watts-Russell]]
| prev_title  = [[Sixteen Days/Gathering Dust]]
| prev_title  = [[Sixteen Days/Gathering Dust]] [EP]{{sfn|Aston|2013|pp=126, 127}}
| prev_year    = 1983
| prev_year    = 1983
| next_title  = [[Filigree & Shadow]]
| next_title  = [[Filigree & Shadow]]
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}}
}}


'''''It'll End in Tears''''' is the first album released by [[4AD]] collective [[This Mortal Coil]], a loose grouping of artists brought together by label boss [[Ivo Watts-Russell]], released on 8 October 1984. The album features many of the artists on the label's roster, including [[Cocteau Twins]], [[Cindytalk]], [[Dead Can Dance]] and [[Colourbox]].
'''''It'll End in Tears''''' is the first album released by the [[4AD]] collective [[This Mortal Coil]], a loose grouping of artists brought together by label boss [[Ivo Watts-Russell]], released on 8 October 1984. The album features many of the artists on the label's roster, including [[Cocteau Twins]], [[Cindytalk]], [[Dead Can Dance]] and [[Colourbox]]. While side one mostly cover's selected by Watts-Russell's favourite song's, side two is more focused on original tracks. 


[[Howard Devoto]] of [[Magazine (band)|Magazine]] sang "Holocaust", one of two covers of songs from [[Big Star]]'s 1978 album ''[[Third/Sister Lovers]]''; the other Big Star cover, album opener "Kangaroo" was released as a single and both helped to re-popularized the then forgotten band. Two key songs were performed by [[Elizabeth Fraser]] of the [[Cocteau Twins]], including a cover of [[Tim Buckley]]'s "[[Song to the Siren (Tim Buckley song)|Song to the Siren]]", released as This Mortal Coil's debut single a year before the album.  
[[Howard Devoto]] of [[Magazine (band)|Magazine]] sang "Holocaust", one of two covers of songs from [[Big Star]]'s 1978 album ''[[Third/Sister Lovers]]''; the other Big Star cover, album opener "Kangaroo" was released as a single and both helped to re-popularised the then-forgotten band. Two of the cover songs are performed by [[Elizabeth Fraser]] of the [[Cocteau Twins]]: [[Roy Harper (singer)|Roy Harper]]'s  "[[Another Day (Roy Harper song)|Another Day]]" and a cover of [[Tim Buckley]]'s "[[Song to the Siren (Tim Buckley song)|Song to the Siren]]", released as This Mortal Coil's debut single a year before the album. Gordon Sharp of Cindytalk sings on three tracks: "Kangaroo", "Fond Affections" and "A Single Wish".


4AD recorded two further This Mortal Coil albums: ''[[Filigree & Shadow]]'' (1986) and ''[[Blood (This Mortal Coil album)|Blood]]'' (1991), although neither were met with the same critical acclaim, sales numbers or cult status.
4AD recorded two further This Mortal Coil albums: ''[[Filigree & Shadow]]'' (1986) and ''[[Blood (This Mortal Coil album)|Blood]]'' (1991), although neither were met with the same critical acclaim, sales numbers or cult status.


==Conception==
==Conception==
The album was intended by [[4AD]] label boss [[Ivo Watts-Russell]] as a collection of cover versions of his favourite songs performed by artists on his label. Although conceived as a project by Watts-Russell with the help of the producer [[John Fryer (producer)|John Fryer]], [[Simon Raymonde]] of the [[Cocteau Twins]] took on a far larger and more important role than was initially planned.
The album was intended by [[4AD]] label boss [[Ivo Watts-Russell]] as a collection of cover versions of his favourite songs performed by artists on his label. `The project was conceived by Watts-Russell with the help of long-term 4AD producer [[John Fryer (producer)|John Fryer]].<ref name="vu">O'Neal, Sean. "[https://www.vulture.com/2018/12/how-a-bunch-of-romantic-goths-changed-music-as-we-know-it.html How a Bunch of Romantic Goths Changed Music As We Know It]". ''[[Vulture (website)|Vulture]]'', 10 December 2018. Retrieved 24 June 2025</ref> 
 
[[Simon Raymonde]] of the [[Cocteau Twins]] took on a far larger and more important role than was initially planned. Raymonde somewhat modestly wrote in his 2024 biography that he was just a "gun for hire...playing under direction". However he was not neither paid a flat-fee nor given a royalty percentage for his work.{{sfn|Raymonde|2024|p=102}} However,  across the three This Mortal Coil, he played on twelve different including on several of his own origional compositions.{{sfn|Raymonde|2024|p=163}}


This Mortal Coil never played together live, although the Cocteau Twins did perform "Song to the Siren" a number of times in the mid-1980s.
This Mortal Coil never played together live, although the Cocteau Twins did perform "Song to the Siren" a number of times in the mid-1980s.


==Recording==
==Recording==
The album was preceded by the 1983 single "Song to the Siren".  
The album was preceded by the 1983 single "Song to the Siren".


[[File:Simon Raymonde 1986.jpg|thumb|upright=0.7|Simon Raymonde in 1986]]
[[File:Simon Raymonde 1986.jpg|thumb|upright=0.7|alt=Man with dark hair wearing dark clothing against a plain background|Simon Raymonde in 1986]]
''It'll End in Tears'' was recorded in 1984 at [[Eric Radcliffe]]'s [[Blackwing Studios]] in [[Waterloo, London|Waterloo]], [[South East (London sub region)|south-east London]]. Blackwing is located inside a [[Deconsecration|deconsecrated]] building that was formerly All Hallows Church, and is best known for recording many of the early 1980s [[Mute Records]] bands such as [[Depeche Mode]] and [[Yazoo (band)|Yazoo]].<ref> Both the Cocteau Twins and Dead Can Dance's debut albums, "[[Garlands (album)|Garlands]]" (1982) and "[[Dead Can Dance (album)|Dead Can Dance]] (1984) were recorded at Blackwing.</ref> The location was chosen in part because Fryer had worked there on Depeche Mode's 1981 debut album ''[[Speak & Spell (album)|Speak & Spell]]'', and as a non-musician Watts-Russell was depending on the producer to realise his abstract ideas into actual music.<ref name="r95">Raymonde (2024), p. 95</ref>
''It'll End in Tears'' was recorded in 1984 at [[Eric Radcliffe]]'s [[Blackwing Studios]] in [[Waterloo, London|Waterloo]], [[South East (London sub region)|south-east London]]. Blackwing is located inside a [[Deconsecration|deconsecrated]] building that was formerly All Hallows Church, and is best known for recording many of the early 1980s [[Mute Records]] bands such as [[Depeche Mode]] and [[Yazoo (band)|Yazoo]].{{efn|Both the Cocteau Twins and Dead Can Dance's debut albums, ''[[Garlands (album)|Garlands]]'' (1982) and ''[[Dead Can Dance (album)|Dead Can Dance]]'' (1984) were recorded at Blackwing.}} The location was chosen in part because Fryer had worked there on Depeche Mode's 1981 debut album ''[[Speak & Spell (album)|Speak & Spell]]'', and as a non-musician Watts-Russell was depending on the producer to realise his abstract ideas into actual music.{{sfn|Raymonde|2024|p=95}}


When called into the studio, the musicians were typically unaware of what tracks they would be interpreting, and were given vague instructions. Raymonde recalls arriving on his first day and being asked to listen to [[Big Star]]'s 1974 song "Kangaroo" and provide a "minimalist take" with the bass guitar as the main instrument. Similarly with "The Last Wish", Raymonde was given a simple drum pattern and asked to come up with a bass line within around a half an hour. When he did so, Watts-Russell said it sounded good and "let's record it". Soon after Guthrie entered the studio, according to Raymonde "for an hour or so", and recorded his guitar part. However, after the early parts were laid down, the musicians were allowed to add additional [[Multitrack recording|layering and instrumentation]].<ref name="r95" />
When called into the studio, the musicians were typically unaware of what tracks they would be interpreting, and were given vague instructions. Raymonde recalls arriving on his first day and being asked to listen to [[Big Star]]'s 1974 song "Kangaroo" and provide a "minimalist take" with the bass guitar as the main instrument. Similarly with "The Last Wish", Raymonde was given a simple drum pattern and asked to come up with a bass line within around a half an hour. When he did so, Watts-Russell said it sounded good and "let's record it". Soon after Guthrie entered the studio, according to Raymonde "for an hour or so", and recorded his guitar part. However, after the early parts were laid down, the musicians were allowed to add additional [[Multitrack recording|layering and instrumentation]].{{sfn|Raymonde|2024|p=95}}


==Music and lyrics==
==Music and lyrics==


===Side one===
===Side one===
[[File:Big Star at Hyde Park 11.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|[[Alex Chilton]] c. 2009]]
[[File:Cindytalk (cropped).jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|[[Cindytalk|Gordon Sharp]] (aka Cindy Sharp or Cinder) performing in 2009. Sharpe sings three songs on the album: "Kangaroo", "Fond Affections" and "A Single Wish".]]
The album opens with ''Kanga Roo'', the first of two covers from Big Star's third album "[[Sister Lovers]]" (recorded in 1974, released in 1978). In a press release for the 4AD album, Watts-Russell spoke of his admiration for Big Star' singer and songwriter [[Alex Chilton]] who by the early 1980s was recovering from a failed career and alcohol and drug addiction. The success of the 4AD project renewed interest in Chilton's music.<ref name="a155">Aston (2013), p. 155</ref> The track was a long term favourite of Watts-Russell's who described it as "a cross between the [[Velvet Underground]] and [[Syd Barrett]] on heroin".<ref name="a156">Aston (2013), p. 156</ref>
The album opens with "Kangaroo", the first of two covers from Big Star's third album ''[[Sister Lovers]]'' (recorded in 1974, released in 1978). In a press release for the 4AD album, Watts-Russell spoke of his admiration for Big Star's singer and songwriter [[Alex Chilton]] who by the early 1980s was little known and recovering from alcohol and drug addiction. The success of the 4AD project renewed interest in Chilton's music.{{sfn|Aston|2013|p=155}} The track was a long-term favourite of Watts-Russell's who described it as "a cross between the [[Velvet Underground]] and [[Syd Barrett]] on heroin".{{sfn|Aston|2013|p=156}} The track was sung by Cinder Sharp of [[Cindytalk]] and [[arrangement|arranged]] by Raymonde, who stripped its melody down to a dominant and strummed{{cn|date=June 2025}} bass line.<ref name="ko">{{cite web |first=Scott |last=Rowley |url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/the-story-of-Kangaroo-by-this-mortal-coil |title=Big Star Wrote It, Jamie T Sampled It, and It Was One of Jeff Buckley's Favourite Songs. The Story of the Sleazy Song That Was Re-imagined to Capture "the Beauty of Despair" |work=[[Metal Hammer|Louder]] |date=20 December 2024 |access-date=8 June 2025}}</ref>
 
The Track was sung by Cinder Sharp of [[Cindytalk]] and [[arrangement|arranged]] by Raymonde, who stripped its melody down to a dominant and strummed{{cn|date=June 2025}} bass line.<ref name="ko">Rowley. Scott. "[https://www.loudersound.com/features/the-story-of-Kangaroo-by-this-mortal-coil Big Star wrote it, Jamie T sampled it, and it was one of Jeff Buckley’s favourite songs. The story of the sleazy song that was re-imagined to capture "the beauty of despair"]". ''[[Metal Hammer|Louder]]'', 20 December 2024. Retrieved 8 June 2025</ref>


[[File:Cocteau Twins, The Moon and the Melodies 1986 (cropped).jpg|thumb|left|upright=0.6|[[Elizabeth Fraser]] in 1986]]
[[File:Cocteau Twins, The Moon and the Melodies 1986 (cropped).jpg|thumb|left|upright=0.6|alt=Woman with dark hair in partial profile|[[Elizabeth Fraser]] provides vocals for "[[Song to the Siren]]" and "[[Another Day (Roy Harper song)|Another Day]]" .]]
The album's best known track, "[[Song to the Siren (Tim Buckley song)|Song to the Siren]]" is a cover of a 1970 [[Tim Buckley]] song and was one of the first of the album's tracks to be recorded.<ref name="lb">Brazier, Lottie. "[https://thequietus.com/interviews/strange-world-of/strange-world-this-mortal-coil-4ad-reissues/ The Strange World Of… This Mortal Coil]". ''[[The Quietus]]'', 3 December 2018. Retrieved 14 June 2025</ref> It is sung by Cocteau Twins vocalist [[Elizabeth Fraser]] and arranged their lead guitarist and song-writer [[Robin Guthrie]]. The Cocteau Twins eventually became unhappy with the track's success, particularly because they were paid a flat rate for the recording, while Guthrie believed he was not given enough credit for his accompanying guitar.<ref name="lb" /> The song's popularity lead to tension within the band; Guthrie and Fraiser worried that Raymonde was dedicating too much of time on the record, and that the song's popularity was eclipsing their main band.
The album's best-known track, "[[Song to the Siren (Tim Buckley song)|Song to the Siren]]" is a cover of a 1970 [[Tim Buckley]] song and was one of the first of the album's tracks to be recorded.<ref name="lb">{{cite web |first=Lottie |last=Brazier |url=https://thequietus.com/interviews/strange-world-of/strange-world-this-mortal-coil-4ad-reissues/ |title=The Strange World Of... This Mortal Coil |work=[[The Quietus]] |date=3 December 2018 |access-date=14 June 2025}}</ref> It is sung by Cocteau Twins vocalist [[Elizabeth Fraser]] and arranged by their lead guitarist and songwriter [[Robin Guthrie]]. The Cocteau Twins eventually became unhappy with the track's success, particularly because they were paid a flat rate for the recording, while Guthrie believed he was not given enough credit for his accompanying guitar.<ref name="lb" /> The song's popularity led to tension within the band; Guthrie and Fraser worried that Raymonde was dedicating too much of his time to the record, and that the song's popularity was eclipsing their main band.


"Fond Affections" is a cover of a 1980 song by the short-lived 4AD band [[Rema-Rema]], written by [[Marco Pirroni]] (formerly of [[Adam and the Ants]]) and [[Gary Asquith]]. The dramatic and theatrical original is very different to the TMC cover, which is sung by Fraser to a sparse arrangement by Raymonde.<ref>Aston (2013), pp. 35, 51, 155</ref>
"Fond Affections" is a cover of a 1980 song by the short-lived 4AD band [[Rema-Rema]], written by [[Marco Pirroni]] (formerly of [[Adam and the Ants]]) and [[Gary Asquith]]. The dramatic and theatrical original is very different to the TMC cover, which is sung by Fraser to a sparse arrangement by Raymonde.{{sfn|Aston|2013|pp=35, 51, 155}}


===Side two===
===Side two===
[[File:RoyHarper Widnes 2001.jpg|thumb|upright=0.7|[[Roy Harper (singer)|Roy Harper]] performing in 2001.]]
[[File:RoyHarper Widnes 2001.jpg|thumb|upright=0.7|alt=Middle-aged man with beard playing acoustic guitar on stage|[[Roy Harper (singer)|Roy Harper]] performing in 2001]]
Side two opens with a cover of [[Roy Harper (singer)|Roy Harper]]'s nostalgic 1970 song "[[Another Day (Roy Harper song)|Another Day]]", and is also sung by Fraser. The origination was described by the critic Peter Beaumont as a "story of a recollected affair in the domestic setting of his past lover's home...prefiguring the idea that whatever happens the time for second chances has long past; that there can be no magic in this encounter."<ref name="roy">Beaumont, Peter. [https://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2012/jun/28/roy-harper-another-day Old music: Roy Harper – Another Day]". ''[[The Guardian]]'',  28 June 2012. Retrieved 8 June 2025</ref> Guthrie was against the song's inclusion as he viewed it as hippie "[[Progressive rock]]" sung by a "bearded old man".{{cn|date=June 2025}} While the cover lead to renewed interest in Harper's career, the critical consensus is that Fraser's vocals elevated the original, and assessment that Harper agrees with.<ref name="a155" /> During this period Fraser was transitioning from her early "[[Gothic rock|Goth]]" vocal style to the emotive and expansive vocals for which she is best known, and so was experimenting. Watts-Russell claims to have considering editing out some of what he described as "[[Kate Bush]]-isms from final track.<ref name="a155" />
Side two opens with a cover of [[Roy Harper (singer)|Roy Harper]]'s nostalgic 1970 song "[[Another Day (Roy Harper song)|Another Day]]", and is also sung by Fraser. The original was described by the critic Peter Beaumont as a "story of a recollected affair in the domestic setting of his past lover's home...prefiguring the idea that whatever happens the time for second chances has long past; that there can be no magic in this encounter."<ref name="roy">{{cite web |first=Peter |last=Beaumont |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2012/jun/28/roy-harper-another-day |title=Old Music: Roy Harper – Another Day |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=28 June 2012 |access-date=8 June 2025}}</ref> Guthrie was against the song's inclusion as he viewed it as hippie "[[Progressive rock]]" sung by a "bearded old man".{{cn|date=June 2025}} While the cover led to renewed interest in Harper's career, the critical consensus is that Fraser's vocals elevated the original, an assessment that Harper agrees with.{{sfn|Aston|2013|p=155}} During this period Fraser was transitioning from her early "[[Gothic rock|Goth]]" vocal style to the emotive and expansive vocals for which she is best known, and so was experimenting. Watts-Russell claims to have considered editing out some of what he described as "[[Kate Bush]]-isms" from the final track.{{sfn|Aston|2013|p=155}}


[[File:Brendan Perry&Lisa Gerrard.jpg|left|thumb|upright=0.8|[[Brendan Perry]] and [[Lisa Gerrard]] of [[Dead can Dance]], 1989]]
[[File:Brendan Perry&Lisa Gerrard.jpg|left|thumb|upright=0.8|alt=Man and woman with dark hair, both in dark clothing against plain background|[[Brendan Perry]] and [[Lisa Gerrard]] of [[Dead Can Dance]], 1989]]
The tracks "Waves Become Wings" and "Dreams Made Flesh" were written and sung [[Lisa Gerrard]] of [[Dead Can Dance]]. Watts-Russell had intended for her to provide vocals for a cover, but she disliked the idea and asked if she and fellow band member [[Brendan Perry]] could write an original track. Although Watts-Russell was stilled married to the idea that the album would only contain cover versions, he was impressed by their recording, which was eventually split into the songs "Waves Become Wings" and "Dreams Made Flesh".<ref name="a154">Aston (2013), p. 154</ref>
The tracks "Waves Become Wings" and "Dreams Made Flesh" were written and sung by [[Lisa Gerrard]] of [[Dead Can Dance]]. Watts-Russell had intended for her to provide vocals for a cover, but she disliked the idea and asked if she and fellow band member [[Brendan Perry]] could write an original track. Although Watts-Russell was still married to the idea that the album would only contain cover versions, he was impressed by their recording, which was eventually split into the songs "Waves Become Wings" and "Dreams Made Flesh".{{sfn|Aston|2013|p=154}}


"Barramundi" was composed and arranged by Raymonde who plays guitars and a [[Yamaha DX7]] synthesizer.<ref name="r96">Raymonde (2024), p. 96</ref>
"Barramundi" was composed and arranged by Raymonde, who plays guitars and a [[Yamaha DX7]] synthesizer.{{sfn|Raymonde|2024|p=96}}


The rhythm parts for the second Gerrard track "Dreams Made Flesh" were provided by Perry.<ref name="a154" />
The rhythm parts for the second Gerrard track "Dreams Made Flesh" were provided by Perry.{{sfn|Aston|2013|p=154}}


"Not Me" is a cover of a solo track by [[Colin Newman]] of the [[post-punk]] band [[Wire (band)|Wire]], from his 1980 album [[A–Z (album)|A–Z]]. It is sung by Robbie Grey of [[Modern English (band)|Modern English]].<ref name="sm">"[https://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/26110/This-Mortal-Coil-Itll-End-in-Tears/ This Mortal Coil: It'll End in Tears]". ''[[Sputnikmusic]]'', 26 June 2008. Retrieved 14 June 2025</ref>
"Not Me" is a cover of a solo track by [[Colin Newman]] of the [[post-punk]] band [[Wire (band)|Wire]], from his 1980 album ''[[A–Z (album)|A–Z]]''. It is sung by Robbie Grey of [[Modern English (band)|Modern English]].<ref name="sm">{{cite web |url=https://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/26110/This-Mortal-Coil-Itll-End-in-Tears/ |title=This Mortal Coil: It'll End in Tears |work=[[Sputnikmusic]] |date=26 June 2008 |access-date=14 June 2025}}</ref>


The album closes with "A Single Wish", which is built on a piano part by Steven Young of [[Colourbox]], with additional instrumentation and arrangement by Raymonde. Sharp wrote the lyrics and provided vocals which appear after the long instrumental into.<ref name="r96" /> The [[cello]] sound was achieved by Raymonde's use of a [[The Gizmo|Gizmotron]], a mechanical [[Effects unit|effects device]] that emulates [[Bow (music)|bowing]] and has a rapid natural [[Envelope (music)|attack]]. Because the Gizmotron is a particularly difficult device to control, the recording proved very difficult.<ref name="r97">Raymonde (2024), p. 97</ref>
The album closes with "A Single Wish", which is built on a piano part by Steven Young of [[Colourbox]], with additional instrumentation and arrangement by Raymonde. Sharp wrote the lyrics and provided vocals, which appear after the long instrumental intro.{{sfn|Raymonde|2024|p=96}} The [[cello]] sound was achieved by Raymonde's use of a [[The Gizmo|Gizmotron]], a mechanical [[Effects unit|effects device]] that emulates [[Bow (music)|bowing]] and has a rapid natural [[Envelope (music)|attack]]. Because the Gizmotron is a particularly difficult device to control, the recording proved very difficult.{{sfn|Raymonde|2024|p=97}}


==Cover art==
==Cover art==
The cover art features a black and white and out of focus photograph by Nigel Grierson, a member of 4AD's in-house design team [[23 Envelope]].<ref>Oliver (2000), pp. 48, 51</ref><ref>"[https://toothandnail.gallery/nigel-grierson Nigel Grierson: Tooth and Nail Gallery London]". Tooth and Nail Gallery, London. Retrieved 14 June 2025</ref> The image shows the visual artist Yvette (also known as "Pallas Citroen"). Grierson describes the artwork as an attempt to "create an intriguing image, influenced by both the subconscious, and scenes from [[David Lynch]]'s [[Eraserhead]] and [[Luis Buñuel]]'s "[[Los Olvidados]]" - eyes closed, hair pulled back."<ref name="a157">Aston (2013), p. 157</ref>
The cover art was designed by Vaughan Oliver{{sfn|Raymonde|2024|p=303}} and features a black and white and out-of-focus photograph by Nigel Grierson. Both Oliver and Grierson were long-time member of 4AD's in-house design team [[23 Envelope]].{{sfn|Oliver|Poynor|2000|pp=48, 51}}<ref>{{cite web |url=https://toothandnail.gallery/nigel-grierson |title=Nigel Grierson: Tooth and Nail Gallery London |website=Tooth and Nail Gallery, London |access-date=14 June 2025}}</ref> The photograph image shows the visual artist Yvette (also known as "Pallas Citroen"). Grierson describes the artwork as an attempt to "create an intriguing image, influenced by both the subconscious, and scenes from [[David Lynch]]'s ''[[Eraserhead]]'' and [[Luis Buñuel]]'s ''[[Los Olvidados]]'' - eyes closed, hair pulled back."{{sfn|Aston|2013|p=157}}


==Reception==
==Reception==
The album was net with universal praise on release.  
The album was met with universal praise on release.
 
In 2018, ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]'' ranked ''It'll End in Tears'' at number eight on its list of "The 30 Best Dream Pop Albums".<ref name="pitchfork">{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/the-30-best-dream-pop-albums/?page=3 |title=The 30 Best Dream Pop Albums |work=[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]] |date=16 April 2018 |access-date=14 June 2025}}</ref>


In 2018, ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]'' ranked ''It'll End in Tears'' at number eight on its list of "The 30 Best Dream Pop Albums".<ref name="pitchfork">"[https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/the-30-best-dream-pop-albums/?page=3 The 30 Best Dream Pop Albums]". ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]'', 16 April 2018. Retrieved 14 June 2025</ref>
Writing for ''[[The Guardian]]'', the critic Dorian Lynskey listed the group's version of "Song to the Siren" as number 7 in their 2006 list of "Covers that are better than the original songs", writing that "by turning Tim Buckley's 'Song to the Siren' into a tremulous ambient hymn...the original version seem like a mere sketch."<ref>{{cite web |first=Dorian |last=Lynskey |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/readersrecommend/story/0,,1929644,00.html |title=Readers Recommend: Covers That Are Better Than the Original Songs |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=13 January 2006 |access-date=14 June 2025}}</ref>


Writng for ''[[The Guardian]]'', the critic Dorian Lynskey listed the group's version of "Song to the Siren" as nr. 7 in their 2006 list of "Covers that are better than the original songs", writing that "by turning Tim Buckley's "Song to the Siren" into a tremulous ambient hymn, This Mortal Coil and Elizabeth Fraser made the original version seem like a mere sketch."<ref>Lynskey, Dorian. "[https://www.theguardian.com/music/readersrecommend/story/0,,1929644,00.html Readers recommend: covers that are better than the original songs]". ''[[The Guardian]]'', 13 January 2006. Retrieved 14 June 2025</ref>  
==Influence==
The album's atmospheric and melancholic sound has been hugely influential, and is cited by numerous bands, including [[Bat for Lashes]], [[Perfume Genius]] and [[Amen Dunes]], as influencing their own music.<ref name="vu" /> Both [[Anohni]] and [[Beach House]] have cited "Song to the Siren" as specifically important, and many other artists and bands have covered This Mortal Ceoil's cover versions  (described by the critic Sean O'Neal as "covers of covers").<ref name="vu" />


{{Album ratings
{{Album ratings
| rev1 = [[AllMusic]]
| rev1 = [[AllMusic]]
| rev1Score = {{Rating|4.5|5}}<ref name="AMG">Stewart, Mason. "[http://www.allmusic.com/album/itll-end-in-tears-mw0000192173 It'll End in Tears – This Mortal Coil]".  [[AllMusic]]. Retrieved 15 June 2025</ref>
| rev1Score = {{Rating|4.5|5}}<ref name="AMG">{{cite web |first=Stewart |last=Mason |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/itll-end-in-tears-mw0000192173 |title=It'll End in Tears – This Mortal Coil |publisher=[[AllMusic]] |access-date=15 June 2025}}</ref>
| rev2 = ''[[Mojo (magazine)|Mojo]]''
| rev2 = ''[[Mojo (magazine)|Mojo]]''
| rev2Score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref name="Mojo">Martin, Aston. "This Mortal Coil: It'll End in Tears". ''[[Mojo (magazine)|Mojo]]'', issue 301, December 2018. p. 104</ref>
| rev2Score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref name="Mojo">{{cite journal |first=Martin |last=Aston |title=This Mortal Coil: It'll End in Tears |journal=[[Mojo (magazine)|Mojo]] |issue=301 |date=December 2018 |page=104}}</ref>
| rev3 = ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]''
| rev3 = ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]''
| rev3Score = 9.0/10<ref name="PM">Raggett, Ned. "[https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/16115-this-mortal-coil/ This Mortal Coil: HDCD Box Set]". ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]'', 8 December 2011. 15 June 2025</ref>
| rev3Score = 9.0/10<ref name="PM">{{cite web |first=Ned |last=Raggett |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/16115-this-mortal-coil/ |title=This Mortal Coil: HDCD Box Set |work=[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]] |date=8 December 2011 |access-date=15 June 2025}}</ref>
}}
}}


==Track listing==
==Track listing==
{{tracklist
{{tracklist
| headline      =  
| headline      =
| extra_column  = Arranged by
| extra_column  = Arranged by
| title1        = Kangaroo
| title1        = Kangaroo
Line 116: Line 119:
| length3      = 3:38
| length3      = 3:38
| title4        = Fyt
| title4        = Fyt
| writer4      = [[Ivo Watts-Russell]], [[John Fryer (music)|John Fryer]]
| writer4      = [[Ivo Watts-Russell]], [[John Fryer (producer)|John Fryer]]
| extra4        =  
| extra4        =
| length4      = 4:23
| length4      = 4:23
| title5        = Fond Affections
| title5        = Fond Affections
Line 151: Line 154:
| extra12      = Sharp
| extra12      = Sharp
| length12      = 2:26
| length12      = 2:26
| all_writing  =  
| all_writing  =
| total_length  =  
| total_length  =
}}
}}


==Personnel==
==Personnel==
*[[Ivo Watts-Russell]] &ndash; conception, production
* [[Ivo Watts-Russell]] – conception, production
*[[Simon Raymonde]] &ndash; production, arrangements, guitar, bass, synthesizer
* [[John Fryer (producer)|John Fryer]] – multi-instruments, production
*[[Elizabeth Fraser]] &ndash; vocals
* [[Simon Raymonde]] – production, arrangements, guitar, bass, synthesizer
*[[Robin Guthrie]] &ndash; guitar
* [[Elizabeth Fraser]] – vocals
*[[Lisa Gerrard]] &ndash; vocals, [[yangqin]]
* [[Cinder (musician)|Gordon Sharp]] – vocals
*[[Brendan Perry]] &ndash; bass drone<ref name="sm" />
* [[Lisa Gerrard]] – vocals, [[yangqin]]
*[[John Fryer (producer)|John Fryer]] &ndash; multi-instruments, production
* Robbie Grey – vocals
*[[Cinder (musician)|Gordon Sharp]] &ndash; vocals
* [[Howard Devoto]] – vocals
*Robbie Grey &ndash; vocals
* [[Robin Guthrie]] – guitar
*[[Colourbox|Martyn Young]] &ndash; synthesizer, bass, guitar
* [[Brendan Perry]] – bass drone<ref name="sm" />
*[[The Wolfgang Press|Mark Cox]] &ndash; synthesizer
* [[Colourbox|Martyn Young]] – synthesizer, bass, guitar
*[[Colourbox|Steven Young]] &ndash; piano
* [[The Wolfgang Press|Mark Cox]] – synthesizer
*[[Xmal Deutschland|Manuela Rickers]] &ndash; guitar
* [[Colourbox|Steven Young]] – piano
*[[Martin McCarrick]] &ndash; cello
* [[Xmal Deutschland|Manuela Rickers]] – guitar
*Gini Ball &ndash; violin, viola
* [[Martin McCarrick]] – cello
*[[Howard Devoto]] &ndash; vocals
* Gini Ball – violin, viola


==Charts==
==Charts==
Line 190: Line 193:


===Singles===
===Singles===
*"[[Song to the Siren (Tim Buckley song)|Song to the Siren]]" &ndash; #66 [[UK Singles Chart]] (3 weeks), #3 [[UK Indie Chart]] (101 weeks), #8 [[Recording Industry Association of New Zealand|NZ]] (15 weeks), #39 NL (4 weeks); released September 1983. "Song to the Siren"'s 101 weeks on the [[UK Indie Chart]] was the 4th longest chart run.
* "[[Song to the Siren (Tim Buckley song)|Song to the Siren]]" – #66 [[UK Singles Chart]] (3 weeks), #3 [[UK Indie Chart]] (101 weeks), #8 [[Recording Industry Association of New Zealand|NZ]] (15 weeks), #39 NL (4 weeks); released September 1983. "Song to the Siren"'s 101 weeks on the [[UK Indie Chart]] was the 4th longest chart run.
*"Kangaroo" &ndash; #2 [[UK Indie Chart]] (20 weeks); released August 1984.
* "Kangaroo" – #2 [[UK Indie Chart]] (20 weeks); released August 1984.
 
==Notes==
{{notelist}}


==References==
==References==
Line 197: Line 203:


==Sources==
==Sources==
* Aston, Martin. ''Facing the Other Way: The Story of 4AD''. London: The Friday Project, 2013. {{isbn|978-0-0074-8961-9}}
* {{cite book |last=Aston |first=Martin |title=Facing the Other Way: The Story of 4AD |location=London |publisher=The Friday Project |year=2013 |isbn=978-0-00-748961-9}}
* Buckley, Peter. ''The Rough Guide to Rock''. London: Rough Guides, 2003. {{isbn|1-8582-8457-0}}
* {{cite book |last=Buckley |first=Peter |title=The Rough Guide to Rock |location=London |publisher=Rough Guides |year=2003 |isbn=1-85828-457-0}}
* Oliver, Vaughan; Poynor, Rick. ''Vaughan Oliver: Visceral Pleasures''. London: Booth-Clibborn Editions, 2000. {{isbn|1-8615-4072-8}}
* {{cite book |last1=Oliver |first1=Vaughan |last2=Poynor |first2=Rick |title=Vaughan Oliver: Visceral Pleasures |location=London |publisher=Booth-Clibborn Editions |year=2000 |isbn=1-86154-072-8}}
* [[Simon Raymonde|Raymonde, Simon]]. '' In One Ear: Cocteau Twins, Ivor Raymonde and Me''. London: Nine Eight Books, 2024. {{isbn|978-1-7887-0938-5}}
* {{cite book |last=Raymonde |first=Simon |author-link=Simon Raymonde |title=In One Ear: Cocteau Twins, Ivor Raymonde and Me |location=London |publisher=Nine Eight Books |year=2024 |isbn=978-1-78870-938-5}}


==External links==
==External links==
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zVfVU4l7jlo&list=PLvL3CyncF8kqCqYjejDPukssQLScfiGs_&index=23 Contemporary interview with Ivo Watts-Russell on the album sleeve]
* {{YouTube|id=zVfVU4l7jlo|title=Contemporary interview with Ivo Watts-Russell on the album sleeve}}
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3SiFY3W1Hw Roy Harper, "Another Day" live], 1972
* {{YouTube|id=D3SiFY3W1Hw|title=Roy Harper, "Another Day" live (1972)}}
 


{{Ivo Watts-Russell}}
{{Ivo Watts-Russell}}

Latest revision as of 01:13, 25 June 2025

Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:Use British English Script error: No such module "Unsubst-infobox".

It'll End in Tears is the first album released by the 4AD collective This Mortal Coil, a loose grouping of artists brought together by label boss Ivo Watts-Russell, released on 8 October 1984. The album features many of the artists on the label's roster, including Cocteau Twins, Cindytalk, Dead Can Dance and Colourbox. While side one mostly cover's selected by Watts-Russell's favourite song's, side two is more focused on original tracks.

Howard Devoto of Magazine sang "Holocaust", one of two covers of songs from Big Star's 1978 album Third/Sister Lovers; the other Big Star cover, album opener "Kangaroo" was released as a single and both helped to re-popularised the then-forgotten band. Two of the cover songs are performed by Elizabeth Fraser of the Cocteau Twins: Roy Harper's "Another Day" and a cover of Tim Buckley's "Song to the Siren", released as This Mortal Coil's debut single a year before the album. Gordon Sharp of Cindytalk sings on three tracks: "Kangaroo", "Fond Affections" and "A Single Wish".

4AD recorded two further This Mortal Coil albums: Filigree & Shadow (1986) and Blood (1991), although neither were met with the same critical acclaim, sales numbers or cult status.

Conception

The album was intended by 4AD label boss Ivo Watts-Russell as a collection of cover versions of his favourite songs performed by artists on his label. `The project was conceived by Watts-Russell with the help of long-term 4AD producer John Fryer.[1]

Simon Raymonde of the Cocteau Twins took on a far larger and more important role than was initially planned. Raymonde somewhat modestly wrote in his 2024 biography that he was just a "gun for hire...playing under direction". However he was not neither paid a flat-fee nor given a royalty percentage for his work.Template:Sfn However, across the three This Mortal Coil, he played on twelve different including on several of his own origional compositions.Template:Sfn

This Mortal Coil never played together live, although the Cocteau Twins did perform "Song to the Siren" a number of times in the mid-1980s.

Recording

The album was preceded by the 1983 single "Song to the Siren".

Man with dark hair wearing dark clothing against a plain background
Simon Raymonde in 1986

It'll End in Tears was recorded in 1984 at Eric Radcliffe's Blackwing Studios in Waterloo, south-east London. Blackwing is located inside a deconsecrated building that was formerly All Hallows Church, and is best known for recording many of the early 1980s Mute Records bands such as Depeche Mode and Yazoo.Template:Efn The location was chosen in part because Fryer had worked there on Depeche Mode's 1981 debut album Speak & Spell, and as a non-musician Watts-Russell was depending on the producer to realise his abstract ideas into actual music.Template:Sfn

When called into the studio, the musicians were typically unaware of what tracks they would be interpreting, and were given vague instructions. Raymonde recalls arriving on his first day and being asked to listen to Big Star's 1974 song "Kangaroo" and provide a "minimalist take" with the bass guitar as the main instrument. Similarly with "The Last Wish", Raymonde was given a simple drum pattern and asked to come up with a bass line within around a half an hour. When he did so, Watts-Russell said it sounded good and "let's record it". Soon after Guthrie entered the studio, according to Raymonde "for an hour or so", and recorded his guitar part. However, after the early parts were laid down, the musicians were allowed to add additional layering and instrumentation.Template:Sfn

Music and lyrics

Side one

File:Cindytalk (cropped).jpg
Gordon Sharp (aka Cindy Sharp or Cinder) performing in 2009. Sharpe sings three songs on the album: "Kangaroo", "Fond Affections" and "A Single Wish".

The album opens with "Kangaroo", the first of two covers from Big Star's third album Sister Lovers (recorded in 1974, released in 1978). In a press release for the 4AD album, Watts-Russell spoke of his admiration for Big Star's singer and songwriter Alex Chilton who by the early 1980s was little known and recovering from alcohol and drug addiction. The success of the 4AD project renewed interest in Chilton's music.Template:Sfn The track was a long-term favourite of Watts-Russell's who described it as "a cross between the Velvet Underground and Syd Barrett on heroin".Template:Sfn The track was sung by Cinder Sharp of Cindytalk and arranged by Raymonde, who stripped its melody down to a dominant and strummedScript error: No such module "Unsubst". bass line.[2]

Woman with dark hair in partial profile
Elizabeth Fraser provides vocals for "Song to the Siren" and "Another Day" .

The album's best-known track, "Song to the Siren" is a cover of a 1970 Tim Buckley song and was one of the first of the album's tracks to be recorded.[3] It is sung by Cocteau Twins vocalist Elizabeth Fraser and arranged by their lead guitarist and songwriter Robin Guthrie. The Cocteau Twins eventually became unhappy with the track's success, particularly because they were paid a flat rate for the recording, while Guthrie believed he was not given enough credit for his accompanying guitar.[3] The song's popularity led to tension within the band; Guthrie and Fraser worried that Raymonde was dedicating too much of his time to the record, and that the song's popularity was eclipsing their main band.

"Fond Affections" is a cover of a 1980 song by the short-lived 4AD band Rema-Rema, written by Marco Pirroni (formerly of Adam and the Ants) and Gary Asquith. The dramatic and theatrical original is very different to the TMC cover, which is sung by Fraser to a sparse arrangement by Raymonde.Template:Sfn

Side two

Middle-aged man with beard playing acoustic guitar on stage
Roy Harper performing in 2001

Side two opens with a cover of Roy Harper's nostalgic 1970 song "Another Day", and is also sung by Fraser. The original was described by the critic Peter Beaumont as a "story of a recollected affair in the domestic setting of his past lover's home...prefiguring the idea that whatever happens the time for second chances has long past; that there can be no magic in this encounter."[4] Guthrie was against the song's inclusion as he viewed it as hippie "Progressive rock" sung by a "bearded old man".Script error: No such module "Unsubst". While the cover led to renewed interest in Harper's career, the critical consensus is that Fraser's vocals elevated the original, an assessment that Harper agrees with.Template:Sfn During this period Fraser was transitioning from her early "Goth" vocal style to the emotive and expansive vocals for which she is best known, and so was experimenting. Watts-Russell claims to have considered editing out some of what he described as "Kate Bush-isms" from the final track.Template:Sfn

Man and woman with dark hair, both in dark clothing against plain background
Brendan Perry and Lisa Gerrard of Dead Can Dance, 1989

The tracks "Waves Become Wings" and "Dreams Made Flesh" were written and sung by Lisa Gerrard of Dead Can Dance. Watts-Russell had intended for her to provide vocals for a cover, but she disliked the idea and asked if she and fellow band member Brendan Perry could write an original track. Although Watts-Russell was still married to the idea that the album would only contain cover versions, he was impressed by their recording, which was eventually split into the songs "Waves Become Wings" and "Dreams Made Flesh".Template:Sfn

"Barramundi" was composed and arranged by Raymonde, who plays guitars and a Yamaha DX7 synthesizer.Template:Sfn

The rhythm parts for the second Gerrard track "Dreams Made Flesh" were provided by Perry.Template:Sfn

"Not Me" is a cover of a solo track by Colin Newman of the post-punk band Wire, from his 1980 album A–Z. It is sung by Robbie Grey of Modern English.[5]

The album closes with "A Single Wish", which is built on a piano part by Steven Young of Colourbox, with additional instrumentation and arrangement by Raymonde. Sharp wrote the lyrics and provided vocals, which appear after the long instrumental intro.Template:Sfn The cello sound was achieved by Raymonde's use of a Gizmotron, a mechanical effects device that emulates bowing and has a rapid natural attack. Because the Gizmotron is a particularly difficult device to control, the recording proved very difficult.Template:Sfn

Cover art

The cover art was designed by Vaughan OliverTemplate:Sfn and features a black and white and out-of-focus photograph by Nigel Grierson. Both Oliver and Grierson were long-time member of 4AD's in-house design team 23 Envelope.Template:Sfn[6] The photograph image shows the visual artist Yvette (also known as "Pallas Citroen"). Grierson describes the artwork as an attempt to "create an intriguing image, influenced by both the subconscious, and scenes from David Lynch's Eraserhead and Luis Buñuel's Los Olvidados - eyes closed, hair pulled back."Template:Sfn

Reception

The album was met with universal praise on release.

In 2018, Pitchfork ranked It'll End in Tears at number eight on its list of "The 30 Best Dream Pop Albums".[7]

Writing for The Guardian, the critic Dorian Lynskey listed the group's version of "Song to the Siren" as number 7 in their 2006 list of "Covers that are better than the original songs", writing that "by turning Tim Buckley's 'Song to the Siren' into a tremulous ambient hymn...the original version seem like a mere sketch."[8]

Influence

The album's atmospheric and melancholic sound has been hugely influential, and is cited by numerous bands, including Bat for Lashes, Perfume Genius and Amen Dunes, as influencing their own music.[1] Both Anohni and Beach House have cited "Song to the Siren" as specifically important, and many other artists and bands have covered This Mortal Ceoil's cover versions (described by the critic Sean O'Neal as "covers of covers").[1]

Template:Album ratings

Track listing

Template:Tracklist

Personnel

Charts

Chart (1984–85) Peak
position
New Zealand RIANZ Albums Chart 42
UK Albums Chart 38
UK Independent Albums Chart 1

Singles

Notes

Template:Notelist

References

Template:Reflist

Sources

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External links

Template:Ivo Watts-Russell Template:Authority control

  1. ↑ a b c O'Neal, Sean. "How a Bunch of Romantic Goths Changed Music As We Know It". Vulture, 10 December 2018. Retrieved 24 June 2025
  2. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  3. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  4. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  5. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  6. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  7. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  8. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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