Flash and the Pan/Lights in the Night

Flash & The Pan | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 14, 1997)
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Renaissance
• ASIN: B000005NN7
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #238,721 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Hey, St. Peter

2. Man in the Middle

3. Walking in the Rain

4. The African Shuffle

5. California

6. Lady Killer

7. The Man Who Knew the Answer

8. Hole in the Middle

9. Down Among the Dead Men

10. First and Last

Disc: 2

1. Media Man

2. Headhunter

3. Restless

4. Welcome to the Universe

5. Make Your Own Cross

6. Lights in the Night

7. Captain Beware

8. Atlantis Calling

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Easybeats From Mars, August 26, 2001

By 

El Kabong - See all my reviews

This review is from: Flash and the Pan/Lights in the Night (Audio CD)

Flash and the Pan was the brainchild/alter ego of Harry Vanda & George Young, who, besides having been the Easybeats, achieved great success as a producing team specializing in no-nonsense hard rock, like for instance on the records George's kid brothers released as AC/DC. But certainly nobody could've anticipated this outfit, with a sound that embodies the term 'quirky'. A synth-driven outfit specializing in bizarre and even disturbing 'pop' songs that sorta shotgun-marries Van Der Graaf Generator, Electric Light Orchestra, synthpop & disco in a ceremony that equally soils all the attendants, these boys scratch an itch you may not know you have. Vanda's bizarre and compelling vocals are all lisped through filters - wait, I KNOW it's 2001 and that 'filtered-vocal' bit has been done to death, but this is one of its earliest, cleverest uses...and it works. Behind Vanda, the band (besides Young, Les Karski & Ray Arnott) create melodic soundscapes that run the gamut from sunny to surging to sinister, with the synth & keyboard work firmly upfront. This reissue twofer features the first two Flash releases. The first has shorter, punchier tunes like 'African Shuffle' & 'Man in the Middle', but it's the moments of odd, sleepy menace that shine here, such as 'California' & 'Walking in the Rain'. Fortunately, the album's darker patches proved irresistable to the band, so the followup LIGHTS IN THE NIGHT is packed with similar atmospheric swirl patterns: 'Atlantis Calling', 'Restless', 'Captain Beware' and the strange and wonderful title track. A recommended purchase to those of you in the mood for something dark, different & accessible - although the third album, HEADLINES, is better still but currently unavailable.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Strange Stuff..., April 8, 2000

By 

Rodney Meek (Austin, TX) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Flash and the Pan/Lights in the Night (Audio CD)

I stumbled across Flash and the Pan only because my older brother had bought their albums. Though I immediately loved the music, I used to think we were the only people in the nation that ever listened to this group. It's definitely not for your mainstream crowd.

Basically, at the first pass, the group sounds like a jumped-up garage band with artistic delusions and mid-range production values. If you're looking for churning guitar solos or showy instrumental virtuousity, you won't find it here. And you may be dismayed by the vocals, which are more spoken then sung and which seem to be filtered through a third-rate microphone.

But if you stop long enough to listen to the lyrics and to absorb the total experience, it somehow all comes together wonderfully. You'll find that the group, far from being sloppy and inept, has undertaken a very deliberate stylistic approach that's very unlike the vast majority of rock music today. Their themes may seem weird or esoteric (an ode to the Titanic--a couple of decades before the hit movie--and a strange meditation on Atlantis), but the music succeeds brilliantly in creating a somewhat dark and unsettled mood. And for variety, some of the pieces even ramp up to a rollicking finish, like "Welcome to the Universe".

By no means will this work for everyone. But if you want to experiment a bit or are looking for a challenge, check it out.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The band was aptly titled but this is still a great album, July 1, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Flash and the Pan/Lights in the Night (Audio CD)

I bought this album when it was released and haven't heard it in years but I can still recall several of the great songs in my head. I didn't do drugs in the '70s but I stil listened to the album over and over again. I just loved it and it certainly would make my personal top 100. I should mention that some of my friends absolutely hated this album and wouldn't even let me play it in their presence. We almost wrecked the car wrestling over the tape. Would that make Flash in the Pan a band to die for?