Talk:Big Country

One of my all-time favorite bands, but...YE GODS!
I actually wish that WP would just outlaw any entry pertaining to popular music! I have yet to come across a single WP entry for any band, album, pop song or genre that isn't filled with fan-boi maunderings, slobbering sentimentality and "he said-she said" claptrap that probably wouldn't pass muster for the editors of "Tiger Beat." This article is a case in point. Nothing even attempts to move in the direction of "NPOV," everything's about how someone "feels" about this and that. "Considered one of the best..." "generally acknowledged to be the low-point..." blah-blah-blah. Just pull the whole d*mn thing down and burn it! Sheesh! B. Polhemus (talk) 06:39, 30 March 2011 (UTC)

Please stop adding uncited/unreferenced O.R.
user: debbiereynolds completely ruined this page with her poorly written unsourced ramblings. I reverted the page, but such is this type of person - the know it all 'superfan' - that she will probably keep attempting to restore her nonsense. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 116.25.49.198 (talk) 02:16, 12 November 2010 (UTC)

Hello - definitely not a superfan... the whole page seems to be poorly written and badly sourced, with conjecture rather than fact. My contribution is first hand knowledge- I played in the band 1980-1981 so have first hand full inside reference as clear as day, accurate detail properly accounted for. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Debbiereynolds (talk • contribs) 21:25, 1 December 2010 (UTC)


 * With all due respect to you, and whilst not doubting your integrity or first hand involvement, this does not address the question of verifiability. All edits should follow the Wikipedia guidelines outlined at Third-party sources, Neutral point of view and No original research amongst others.  Unreferenced edits such as "Parker and The Wisharts joined forces to sue Big Country for plagiarism and their song contribution, but, Peter Wishart changed his mind at the last moment because of associations through Runrig and still resident in Dunfermline". simply do not comply to these doctrines.  Nor, to be completely accurate, make total grammatical sense.  Please reconsider your approach.  Thanks,


 * Derek R Bullamore (talk) 22:31, 1 December 2010 (UTC)

Thanks for the comments Derek. It is verifiable, the agreement was drawn up, and the 3 sacked members were about to sign. Peter pulled out - I still have the lawyers documents for the partnership and lawsuit. The grammar will get improved, as it will be part of a larger and more detailed contribution, which is also forming part of a book about the punk and post-punk era, and this Scottish scene. For the moment people can get the gist.. there's only so many hours in the day! thanks - Debs — Preceding unsigned comment added by Debbiereynolds (talk • contribs) 15:51, 8 December 2010 (UTC)


 * In which case, there should be a reliable source available to that effect. I will quote a sentence from Verifability that states - "The threshold for inclusion in Wikipedia is verifiability, not truth. That is, whether readers can check that material in Wikipedia has already been published by a reliable source, not whether editors think it is true". Secondly, there has to be a balance here across the article - it should not give undue importance to single events - please see Undue. In addition, particularly in view of your self-confessed past involvement, Conflict of interest may also apply.


 * Derek R Bullamore (talk) 16:14, 8 December 2010 (UTC)

Well then, most of the page needs to be taken down then, as I can't see what is verifiable by a reliable source. This is the music business from the 1980's, not a scientific report, so, unless one was there there at the time (personal involvement) there is little that can be substantiated. People talking about what the best record was, sales, and Stuart talking in a Scottish accent is hardly in-depth stuff is it?. Verifiable sources are authors, journals like music papers, journalists, so on, and they aren't reliable sources, most of them were stoned the time or have their own personal agenda - selective memory isn't reliable. It's better to have some interesting information about real people, real events, and get under the skin of what is was like. What exactly would the sources be, where are the stats??! The forming of the band in Scotland, and the inaugural events are crucial to the subsequent career and sound, and the final demise of Stuart, so its difficult to see what this 'single event' may be when one is discussing the early members of the group. The Skids are much more important, musically Big Country have little impact now, as Stuart chose to abandon his musical principles, and go for the easy option, a 'put together' British 80's pop group that haven't stood the test of time. The early days are pivotal in determining these ill-decisions, and the impact on the music and subsequent events. In conclusion, I can't see how anything is verifiable unless you were there. If you took your agruement, you would just have a list of band members, and the record releases, as well as some tour dates, it would take up about 1 paragraph. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Debbiereynolds (talk • contribs) 17:41, 9 December 2010 (UTC)


 * I'm not sure how to go about this but the image used for the band with the members listed is wrong. the person in the photograph listed as "Mark Brezicki" is NOT him but a session player who toured with the band in 1991. Could somebody please correct this image? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.163.177.185 (talk) 00:00, 3 February 2011 (UTC)


 * Removed erronious image. in info box —Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.163.177.185 (talk) 12:17, 3 February 2011 (UTC)

Wonderland
"Wonderland" one of Big Country's finest songs? I beg to differ and I'm sure many others would too. Listen to the "The Crossing" and "Steeltown" LP's and then "Wonderland". For me "Wonderland" is more like a Big Country pastiche. Sure, it has that unmistakable Big Country "sound" but as far as I can recall (sorry, it's been 20 years since I had these records) nearly every track on the two aforementioned albums has more going for it than "Wonderland".

Notwithstanding my comments above, many thanks to the author of this article for taking the trouble to create it. I'm now looking forward to reading the rest of it.80.225.0.249 13:15, 21 August 2006 (UTC)


 * I've rewritten the sentence to indicate that "some critics" feel the song is one of their best, with citations. "Generally considered" is a weasel word phrase.  BTW, I completely disagree with you.  I think "Wonderland" is a great song and (the few) Big Country fans I've met have said they feel the same way.Hal Raglan 19:57, 22 August 2006 (UTC)


 * Cheers Hal, the Wonderland ep is one of our fave records of all time. The "Wonderland" song is one of the high points of the notorious live New Years video. On the EP, Mark B's drumming is always incredible, but on Angle Park, he's on fire more than his usual self. I speak for many friends, Dave Hayes of Very Small Records loves Wonderland. Hanz ofbyotch (talk) 19:05, 13 July 2010 (UTC)

Before this gets out of hand, can I remind everyone that this page is dedicated to discussing improvements, problems etc., with the main article, not as a drop-in chat line for proferring personal opinions as to which song is better than another. Thanks,

Derek R Bullamore (talk) 19:26, 13 July 2010 (UTC)

WikiProject class rating
This article was automatically assessed because at least one WikiProject had rated the article as start, and the rating on other projects was brought up to start class. BetacommandBot 05:08, 10 November 2007 (UTC)

WHY is this article all messed up with section titles being the names of BC's albums? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 220.213.112.37 (talk) 03:13, 17 February 2008 (UTC)

More seriously, why does the article contain highly subjective reviews of Big Country albums?Manormadman (talk) 00:53, 24 February 2008 (UTC)Manormadman

Why on earth does the article say "his trademark Scottish accent was genuine"? It wasn't his trademark, it was just the way he spoke. And did anyone ever say it was fake? Manormadman (talk) 05:00, 8 December 2008 (UTC)Manormadman

I've removed the unsourced and illogical statemtent "to that extent his (Adamson's) accent was genuine". No one ever suggested it was fake. Articles about other notable people - even those born in a different country from that which they grew up in - don't discuss whether their accents were fake unless there's some reason to suggest they were. John McEnroe was born in Germany, but no one needs to point out that his American accent is genuine.Manormadman (talk) 16:31, 21 March 2013 (UTC)

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Pete Wishart
I'm finding it very hard to find out when Pete Wishart was in Big Country. This article suggests only 1981, but I suspect it was longer. Was he ever in any of their recordings? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 217.44.130.135 (talk) 12:51, 25 March 2019 (UTC)


 * In 1982 - https://www.pressreader.com/uk/the-courier-advertiser-perth-and-perthshire-edition/20120627/281672547032400


 * Still in band in 1983 - http://www.stuart-adamson.co.uk/big-country-interviews-1984-1986/01/2012/ — Preceding unsigned comment added by 217.44.130.135 (talk) 15:14, 25 March 2019 (UTC)

Clive Parker appears to have left the band in 1983, far later than suggested by this article. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 217.44.130.135 (talk) 15:25, 25 March 2019 (UTC)

Keyboard Player
The lineup included a keyboard player at the Peace concert in East Berlin on June 18th 1988, unlisted in the article. 99% sure it’s not Pete Wishart. Can anyone shed light on this?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wrojVnpqdQ. 2.28.8.125 (talk) 16:03, 8 November 2022 (UTC)

Tommie Paxton
Could people please stop adding Paxton as a band member, when the only source so far provided quite deliberately avoids calling him a band member. If they wanted him to be a band member, they would introduce him as such. And he would also very likely step down from Restless Natives. The idea that he can simultaneously be a member of band, and in a tribute act of the band, is just ridiculous. So I don't think it unreasonable that we wait until a reliable source declares him a member, and preferably an official statement. Escape Orbit (Talk) 21:04, 7 July 2024 (UTC)