Quick Step & Side Kick [Original recording remastered]

Thompson Twins | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 12, 2004)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: Superfecta
• ASIN: B0002ZDW7G
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #308,924 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Love on Your Side

2. Lies

3. If You Were Here

4. Judy Do

5. Tears

6. Watching

7. We Are Detective

8. Kamikaze

9. Love Lies Bleeding

10. All Fall Out

11. Lucky Day

12. Love on Your Side (Rap Boy Rap)

13. Lies (Bigger & Better)

14. We Are Detective (More Clues)

Editorial Reviews

2008 deluxe two CD edition of the UK trio's hit release features the complete 1983 album plus all the remixes from the original cassette edition of the album as well as the extended mixes and the non-album b-sides, the majority of which appear on CD for the first time. Newly slimmed down to a trio from the seven-piece collective that had hit the charts in 1982, The Thompson Twins were set to conquer the world of Pop. With Island Records producer Alex Sadkin (Bob Marley, Grace Jones, Robert Palmer, Joe Cocker, Marianne Faithfull, Duran Duran, Foreigner, Simply Red etc) at Compass Point Studios in Nassau, they recorded Quick Step & Side Kick, which peaked at #2 in February 1983. Features the hits 'Lies', 'Love On Your Side', 'We Are Detective', 'Watching' and 'If You Were Here'. Edsel. --This text refers to an alternate Audio CD edition.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars 5 stars for the album, 1 for the reissue, November 7, 2004

By 

dmd - See all my reviews

This review is from: Quick Step & Side Kick (Audio CD)

I'm revisiting this review, because the album is just that important to me.

I know a bit more about Superfecta now, and I hope they'll take my lashes with some understanding. But wow -- I think this CD is even worse now than I originally rated it.

The guys (mostly Jason) at Superfecta meant well, I'm sure. But I really don't understand how you put out a release like this before consulting the fans.

Since I wrote this, I've forced myself to listen to the CD a little more, and it makes me angrier every time. The mastering on "Rap Boy Rap" is totally atrocious. Hear the compressor wheeze in and out, sounding like a teenager riding the volume knob to avoid waking up Mom and Dad in the next room.

And GIVE ME A BREAK on the art. I can't believe how amateurish it is. Couldn't the "designer" have even consulted the original logo? And seriously, what's with that "reproduction" of the original 12" back jacket? Look at the Japanese re-release for the proper way to have done this. No professional designer would have made such a rookie mistake.

Rumor has it BMG is planning on a big re-release campaign of all the TT catalog. I'll believe it when I see it, but I can't imagine they could mess up QS&SK worse than this disaster. Awful.

Do. Not. Buy.

---

Before I start out, this is my favorite album ever. It's the one I'd take with me to a desert island. I'd choose it over anything Bowie, the Beatles, Liz Phair, Led Zep, or the Ramones ever recorded. Yes, I like it that much. And I barely listen to any synthpop.

So I have to give the CD this: The audio quality is good here (with one really bizarre exception, noted below), and the album songs are in the correct sequence. Even Arista records didn't get that right in the US in 1983.

But Superfecta, seriously...HOW ON EARTH could you kludge the FOURTH CD reissue of this groundbreaking album? The Japanese 20-bit one from the late '90s still remains the definitive CD release of QS&SK. This one isn't even in the realm of the initial CD releases, which were made from the vinyl master tapes. THIS IS NOT THE ACTUAL ALBUM.

Particulars:

1. This album was originally released in the UK and in the US with a second cassette side of remixes: "Love Lies Fierce," "(Long) Beach Culture," "No Talkin'," "Rap Boy Rap," "Frozen in Time" and "Fallen Out." This was not a long album by modern standards. These remixes would have fit on the same CD, as the 10 original album tracks clock in at well under 40 minutes. This is the most important part: Superfecta IS NOT releasing the whole original album. Since this thing is mostly going to be sold to hard-core TTwins cultists, why in the world didn't they do their market research to find out what people want? Thompson Twins fans have been wanting the ORIGINAL ALBUM in its entirety forever. Big mistake to put three bonuses on this one that have already been released on CD.

2. "Love On Your Side" is some bizarro-world short edit that fades out almost immediately after the timbale break, but strangely includes the extra measures in the intro, which were missing from the single edit. Seriously, what are they thinking? This thing is 3:31, as opposed to the 3:58 of the real song. Those extra 27 seconds make a HUGE difference. The 3:31 fades out quicker than the single version (which was on the original CDs in the late '80s). Think I'm making a mountain out of a molehill? Uh no: This is a reissue of a cultist's document. You don't mess with things like that. Sheesh.

3. ACK, seriously, what's up with the artwork? The cover scan is WAY dark and everything's all orange. Suppose I should commend the interior yellow/orange/black/white color scheme. But hello, where did you ever see that much yellow or orange in the original Satori designs? The yellow disc background print is ridiculous.

4. Reiterating the most important problem with this re-release: Of the four bonus tracks on this thing, three have already been released on CD! The original cassette had six bonus tracks, most of which haven't been digitized yet! ARGH!!!

Superfecta, I think your mission is an excellent one: preserving synthpop classics. But you missed BIG on this. To me, this was the greatest album of the '80s, and it deserved first-class documentation. This is first rate in sound quality, but decidedly third-rate in sequencing and visual presentation. A goof of the highest order.

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Deluxe 2-CD Reissue!, March 13, 2008

By 

Jason W. Bellenger (Byron Center, Michigan, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Quick Step & Side Kick (Audio CD)

(Edited March 19, 2008 in order to reflect a changed opinion on the sound quality).

Finally, a record label that invests some time and effort in order to correctly put out a reissued album ... well, almost. I'm talking about Edsel Records, a division of the independent U.K.-based Demon Music Group. Licensed from Arista head Sony BMG Music Entertainment, Demon-Edsel went the extra mile by compiling a 2-disc collection of the Thompson Twins' 'Quick Step & Side Kick' project with extensive liner notes and great packaging to top it off.

I must admit that I never thought I would add a Thompson Twins studio album to my collection. The list price and excellent b-sides, cassette remixes, and 12" remixes are the real incentives here, since I do not own the majority of this music in my collection. I was only a couple years old when this album was released, so I have no memory of the time of the release of this album. However, I grew up with the hits from this album on the radio, so I was curious about the album tracks and bonus tracks which I haven't heard.

The remastering here is okay, adding clarity to the recordings. I must admit that the remastering treatment is not among the best upgrades that I've heard. In fact, it is rather disappointing. Most of the tracks sound good, but personally I think that they could have benefited from a little extra kick and bass. The mastering volume is rather low by today's audio standards, which may or may not be positive, depending on your own music tastes. Personally, I'll go for the punchy, wide sound, but if you're looking for that kind of mastering here you will be let down. Furthermore, a few of the bonus tracks sound like they could have been pulled from vinyl sources, perhaps do to the original master tapes being lost. However, most of the 12" versions sound fine and don't appear to be pulled from vinyl. CD mastering credits go to Alchemy Soho.

(In order to test to see if much could be done about the sound I worked a few of the tracks in an audio editing program. I was able to give them the "lift" that they so deserved. Perhaps that's the problem here -- that is, most of the songs were simple transfers from the original master tapes without an actual professional "remastering" upgrade, hence why they sound limited in their sonic dimensions. It's worth noting, too, that this release fails to mention any remastering in either it's product description or on the outside of the package itself.)

With liner notes by Damian Thomas, the booklet extends to a fold out double-sided poster, highlighting the band's single sleeves, vinyl pressings, cassettes, and other memorabilia from the era. Album credits and the original single and promo releases from which the bonus tracks are pulled are stated as well. This isn't just a simple straight reissue but rather an enhanced version of the project.

Usually when I see these types of reissues the record companies tend to mess up something by leaving out an essential b-side or a hit 12" mix. Fans may then have to wait several more years before the missing tracks appear on yet another reissue. Some of the best material may remain in the vaults, for whatever reason, and never see the light of day on CD. For the very first time, all the mixes from the cassette and 12" singles are available on this deluxe 2-CD set.

Again, I'm not the biggest Thompson Twins fan, but I can see when a reissue is done right in terms of packaging and tracklisting. The sound quality, in my opinion, could have been much better, so that's my only complaint. Despite this problem, the bonus material is still too good to be true, so I hate to rate it fewer than 4 stars since the booklet and overall design is still fantastic. It's really a shame that Demon didn't bother with a professional mastering engineer in order to give this release the audio upgrade that it so deserved. If you are concerned that this release won't meet your audio quality standards you may wish to skip this purchase. However, the tracklisting itself may be too hard to resist!

P.S. The Into the Gap 2008 Edsel reissue is available as well.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thompson Twins MOST Innovative and Captivating Album !, October 26, 2004

By 

Armando M. Mesa (Chandler, AZ) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Quick Step & Side Kick (Audio CD)

This was the Twins' most innovative album. It also marked a very new and sharp artistic direction. Quickstep and Sidekick was miles away from their late 70's experimental material. Yet, this material was not yet considered mainstream or new wave/pop at this point in their careers. Using state of the art (for the time) synthesizer technology, heavy,heavy doses of percussion infused with exotic global rhythms and sometimes offbeat and humorous lyrics you could quickly identify their unique trademark sound!The Thompson Twins were/are original! This is the album that spawned a few club tracks as well as college radio, alternative(for 1983) rock album and even R&B favorites. Their music could not be strictly classified as New Wave for it lacked the cold and artificially intelligent sounds of say groups like the Human League or Kraftwerk (yet, the only thing remotely comparable to the League was Tom Bailey's dead panned monotone vocals akin to Phil Oakey's). If you listened carefully to some of the bass lines on a few tracks and creative danceable beats there was plenty of funk derivative ingredients as well which made this album easily playable on R&B, Soul and dance stations at the time. Glad they included the re-mixes on this expanded edition. The re-mixes are essential in fully understanding what I'm talking about in the previous statement about the funk derivative bass lines and percussion (Love On Your Side-Rap Boy Rap, Lies-Bigger and Better) !

As a previous reviewer mentioned, I too lament the fact that there is still quite a bit of material missing as bonus extended tracks released on the 1982 U.S. Arista cassette release (then titled Sidekicks for the American market)not included on the remaster. However, this is still an awesome title to own by one of the 80's most distinct and creative musical groups from Europe !