The Classic 1982 compilation re-issued on vinyl for the first time to celebrate its 40th anniversary. Featuring early 80s Cherry Red figureheads Tracey Thorn, Thomas Leer, Felt, Marine Girls, Monochrome Set, Ben Watt, Eyeless in Gaza, Attila the Stockbroker and more.
Originally conceived as a simple label sampler by Cherry Red A&R man Mike Alway, Pillows And Prayers quickly became both an iconic compilation and a must-have artefact of early 80s Thatcherite Britain.
Famously retailing at “No more than 99p”, the album provided an accessible gateway to both the Cherry Red label and the independent scene it was a part of. Ultimately, over 100,000 people took up the offer, found a pound fromm somewhere and became a part of something that resonated perfectly with its own time and place.
From the hesitant lo-fi of Marine Girls, through the ranting verse of Attila The Stockbroker and the delicate spoken word of Quentin Crisp to The Passage’s state-of-the-art synth pop, Pillows And Prayers remains a fascinatingly eclectic brew, and something of a membership card to that world, standing alongside the NME’s C86 cassette as an 80s indie time capsule which remains relevant and in demand today.
Reissued on vinyl for the first time, Pillows And Prayers continues to endure, and to invite new listeners.
Tracklisting:
1. Portrait - Five or Six
2. Eine Symphonie Des Grauens - The Monochrome Set
3. All About You - Thomas Leer
4. Plain Sailing - Tracey Thorn
5. Some Things Don't Matter - Ben Watt
6. Love in Your Heart - Kevin Coyne
7. Modi 2 (Extract) - Piero Milesi
8. Compulsion - Joe Crow
9. Lazy Ways - Marine Girls
10. My Face is on Fire - Felt
11. No Noise - Eyeless in Gaza
12. XOYO - The Passage
13. On my Mind - Everything but the Girl
14. A Bang and a Wimpey - Attila the Stockbroker
15. I Unseen - The Misunderstood
16. Don't Blink - The Nightingales
17. Stop the Music for a Minute - Quentin Crisp