Customer Reviews

Between Today & Yesterday

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"Between Today and Yesterday is like a Million Years, and the only truth for man he's seen was standing there in tears." So goes one of the verses in the title track.

I've been thinking about this album for the past 20 years. I picked up my first copy at a record wholesaler that sold only "cut-outs" and in the stacks was a copy of "Between Today and Yesterday." Since I knew and loved his soundtrack to "O'Lucky Man", I picked it up and have had it ever since.

The "A" side of the LP was titled "Yesterday" and the other "B" side "Today." The title track appears on both sides, the "Yesterday" side had the acoustic piano only version, while the version with the full band is on the "Today" side. With the CD reissue, those distinctions aren't made obvious, but it does help to place the sequence of the songs in context.

The sound quality on this reissue is for the most part wonderful, although the acoustic version of the Between Today and Yesterday is still quite noisy, although significantly improved over the LP release. The bonus tracks, include an updated version of the title track, urging world peace, but to me it only emphasizes the strength of the original lyrics, with their spare, minimalist, cryptic narrative. There is also the single version of the "Jarrow Song" and "Sell, Sell, Sell" from the O'Lucky Man soundtrack.

In listening to this CD after so many years, I'm struck how it mirrors and predicts the uneven output of Price's post "O'Lucky Man" career. The lack of continuity of this work is almost jarring. Even though the original packaging, sequencing, and album design, seem to point to a concept album, listening to the CD is like an excursion into a variety of rock and roll styles and genres, which is a bit of a mess from the standpoint of musical cohesiveness.

Curiously, the in-depth liner notes fail to discuss the title track, a strange omission, but the notes seem to be excerpted, so while it might explain the omission but does not excuse it. The "Jarrow Song" has always seemed to me an odd duck as well. Commemorating a march on London by the out of work in Jarrow, the song has a jaunty, music hall feel, which considering the subject matter is a bit of a contradiction, but no more so then the other songs on the CD.

Many folks think of this as Alan Price's masterwork, but I think it only reinforces the more uniform excellence of "O'Lucky Man." Despite the unevenness of this work, it's a vital part of any Alan Price library. The title track is a masterpiece, and while the rest of the album never quite hits that height, that in itself is quite an achievement. As usual with Price's work, the musicianship is first rate throughout, and the sound quality rich and open, with a hint of the compression prevalent at the time of the recording

Despite it's flaws, I'm still in love with this album.

Harris Fogel

Alan Price has always been among the most underappreciated artists to come out of the 60's. This release is long overdue, but good things are worth waiting for. His mastery of the keyboard was obvious way back with The Animals. When he went solo, he established himself as a great song-writer in the class of Ray Davies, Graham Nash, Van Morrison, and other British Invaders who were able to grow and keep moving. A perfect example is the title song. BT&Y moves me deeply. The Jarrow song is one of my all time faves. Price has never been a threat to the hit parade, as he remained unwilling to "Sell Sell Sell" Himself. He remains an inspiration to artists even today.
My only complaint is that other songs weren't added rather than alternate cuts of ones already listed. He has such a deep well to draw from. This one is worth it at any "price". Get It Now.

"He'll never see his mother's face or feel his father's hand". The area that Alan Price grew up in was a proud but badly abused working class area. The people first to volunteer and help, the first to be cast aside. Early mortality in industrial accidents, poverty related epidemics were not uncommon. Abuses and these events would lead to hard childhoods, children brought up by family members or friends. Alan Price captures on this album's "first side" (Yesterday) the mood of an epoch in Hebburn's past. My father wept when he heard the album.

This album is known as Price's masterpiece - but I think that label should be applied to O Lucky Man. Those who love the O Lucky Man soundtrack won't find much of the rock n roll on this album.

I'd recommend it to Alan Price fans, as there are some good tracks. But the music hall numbers may put off non-Price fans. As well as the slow quiet tunes. Overall it's a bit of a mixed bag.

This album still sounds great, more than 30 years after it was first released. Although there is a theme, or a concept, in that side one is "yesterday" and side two is "today", the songs stand up on their own and the hit single "Jarrow song" is not the strongest cut. Great arrangements, terrific guitar work from Colin Green.

The songs are catchy but the lyrics are meaningful and the album stands up as Alan Price's greatest work to date.