User:FacesSmall/The BBC Sessions

The BBC Sessions is a live album by Swedish rock group the Prelude. It was released on 14 October 1998 by the group's own record label, Stiff Records. Being previously unreleased (albeit heavily bootlegged), It was their first release of new material since Hollywood Bowl 1968, and overall first release of new material since Farewell in 1979.

Although the songs were recorded ahead of broadcast, allowing for retakes and occasional overdubbing, they are essentially "live in studio" performances. All songs except "In the Hall of the Mountain King", "If I Were a Carpenter" and "Every Little Bit Hurts" are original material, with songs recorded between 1965 and 1968, showcasing the group maturing in real time. Before the album's release, comprehensive collections of the Prelude' BBC performances had become available on bootlegs.

Background and content
Following the Prelude's first visit to the United Kingdom in late September 1965, with a top 20 hit on the UK Singles Chart, "Somebody Help Me", they were approached by the BBC in order to record sessions for a broadcast of Saturday Club, which they accepted. Following this, they became long-term stayers on the show, recording several sessions between 2 October 1965 and May 1967 when the show was cancelled for unknown reasons, following this, they recorded several other songs for Top Gear, along with Pop Profiles.

The songs recorded consisted of the group's singles, B-Sides and album tracks. With the exception of both "Early Morning, Cold Taxi", which was written by Mårten Forsén and was an outtake for The Prelude Sell Out in 1966, and "In the Hall of the Mountain King", which bizarrely was recorded during their penultimate session. The album features all previous members, namely William Hoang and Simon Hellström in 1965-1966. It was compiled by their long-term manager Tim Blomberg.

Reception
Upon release, it amassed mostly positive reviews by critics, and was well recieved. Richie Unterberger gave the album 4.5 stars on AllMusic, appreciating the humorous interviews, and the growth of a band in the making. "The Prelude are back with unreleased material. Unreleased if you're a law abiding citizen, that is. Most material here has been previously bootlegged, albeit with severely worse quality. However, on The BBC Sessions, it was completely remastered, with all tracks in as clear sound quality as a blue sky. It's amazing how many tracks survived the BBC's regular wipes. Outside of technical notes, the album represents a maturing group in their compositions. For example, "E Too D", which is the eight track on the album has a easier chord progression than "David Pink", the last track on the album. Anton Wihlborg's sharp voice dominates most tracks, especially on "Leaving Here". The interviews are a must-listen too, they are quite humorous! The first interview with Victor Friberg where Brian Matthew and Friberg discuss on how to avoid taxes is probably the most controversial, yet satirical piece of recording during 1966."

Track Listing
All tracks written by Anton Wihlborg and Victor Friberg unless noted. (Interviews are uncredited.)

1965

 * Tracks 1, 2, 3 and 4 recorded 2 October 1965 at the BBC Playhouse Theatre in London
 * Produced by Brian Willey and Jimmy Grant
 * Broadcast on Saturday Club, 4 October 1965
 * Tracks 5, 6 and 7 recorded 6 October 1965 at the BBC Playhouse Theatre
 * Produced by Brian Willey and Jimmy Grant
 * Broadcast on Saturday Club, 9 October 1965
 * Tracks 8 and 9 recorded 1 December 1965 at the Aeolian Hall in London
 * Produced by Bernie Andrews
 * Broadcast on Audrey Lane Show, 12 December 1965
 * Tracks 33 and 34 recorded 6 December 1965 at the BBC Playhouse Theatre in London
 * Produced by Brian Willey and Jimmy Grant
 * Broadcast on Saturday Club, 19 December 1965

1966

 * Tracks 10 and 11 recorded 1 March 1966 at the BBC Playhouse Theatre in London
 * Produced by Brian Willey and Jimmy Grant
 * Broadcast on Saturday Club, 5 March 1966 Tracks 29 and 30 recorded 4 March 1966 at the BBC Playhouse Theatre in London
 * Produced by Brian Willey and Jimmy Grant
 * Broadcast on Saturday Club, 12 March 1966
 * Tracks 12, 13, 14 and 15 recorded 7 June 1966 at the BBC Playhouse Theatre in London
 * Produced by Brian Willey and Jimmy Grant
 * Broadcast on Saturday Club, 11 June 1966 Tracks 10 and 11 recorded 12 June 1966 at the BBC Playhouse Theatre in London
 * Produced by Brian Willey and Jimmy Grant
 * Broadcast on Saturday Club, 18 June 1966
 * Tracks 16, 17, 18, 19 and 20 recorded 29 November 1966 at the BBC Playhouse Theatre in London
 * Produced by Brian Willey and Jimmy Grant
 * Broadcast on Saturday Club, 4 December 1966

1967

 * Tracks 21, 22, 23 and 24 recorded 25 January 1967 at the BBC Playhouse Theatre in London
 * Produced by Brian Willey and Jimmy Grant
 * Broadcast on Saturday Club, 28 January 1967
 * Tracks 25, 26, 27 and 28 recorded 8 June 1967 at the BBC Playhouse Theatre in London
 * Produced by Brian Willey and Jimmy Grant
 * Broadcast on Saturday Club, 10 June 1967

1968

 * Tracks 31 and 32 recorded 25 March 1968 at the Aeolian Hall 2 in London
 * Produced by Bernie Andrews
 * Broadcast on Top Gear, 28 March
 * Tracks 35 and 36 recorded 14 June 1968 at the Aeolian Hall 2 in London
 * Produced by Bernie Andrews
 * Broadcast on Top Gears, 20 June 1968