Anyway (album)
Anyway is the fourth album by the British progressive rock band Family. Side one was recorded at a concert at Fairfield Halls in Croydon, south London; side two is a collection of new studio recordings.[1]
| Anyway | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album / Live album by | ||||
| Released | November 1970 | |||
| Recorded | July 26, 1970 live tracks | |||
| Venue | Fairfield Halls, Croydon | |||
| Studio | Olympic Sound Studios, London | |||
| Genre | Progressive rock, hard rock, psychedelic rock | |||
| Length | 40:18 | |||
| Label | Reprise (UK), United Artists (U.S.) | |||
| Producer | Family for Bradgate Bush, Ltd. | |||
| Family chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Christgau's Record Guide | C+[2] |
Background
Anyway is Family's follow-up album to their Top 5 UK charting album, A Song for Me. It peaked at No. 7 on the UK Albums Chart, and remained on the charts for eight weeks.[3]
Production credit for the album was attributed to Family (for their company Bradgate Bush Ltd) and Tony Gourvish (manager) was credited as 'Co-ordination'. Gourvish is credited between live tracks by singer Roger Chapman as 'shining in his new Kings Road suit'.
The album was released on the Reprise label (RSX 9005) as a stereo pressing. Editions are known to have been released in France (gatefold card sleeve, no bag SRV 6120 and later in a stouter card sleeve with a greyer coloured illustration) and Canada and the US (single-pocket card sleeve with "In My Own Time" - a later single, - added as first track on the studio side with the track "Normans" severely edited to make room). The band was moving from US Reprise to US United Artists, and the album was not issued in the US initially. When it did get issued, it initially had the same tracks as the UK album did, but was quickly replaced with "In My Own Time" and "Normans" being edited. The Canadian edition was released on the United Artists label after Family had delivered Bandstand the following album, and had an explanatory sticker on the shrink-wrap.
The UK edition of the album came housed in a plastic see-through sleeve with a gatefold non-pocket inner card design by Hamish and Gustav. The outer illustration was licensed from Biblioteca Ambrosiana, Milan and was titled 'Mortars With Explosive Projectiles' by Leonardo da Vinci. No track listing was printed on the outside of the sleeve.
The track "Normans" was named after a light-hearted band name for people who were deemed idiotic. Radio One disc jockey John Peel rated "Lives And Ladies" as one of the most powerful anti-war songs he had ever heard, and he was known to play the track long after 1970.
Track listing
All tracks written by John "Charlie" Whitney and Roger Chapman, except where noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Good News - Bad News" | 7:48 | |
| 2. | "Willow Tree" | 4:48 | |
| 3. | "Holding the Compass" | 4:15 | |
| 4. | "Strange Band" | Whitney, Chapman, Jim Williamson[5] | 4:12 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Part of the Load" | 4:38 | |
| 2. | "Anyway" | 3:40 | |
| 3. | "Normans" | Palmer, Whitney, Weider | 4:28 |
| 4. | "Lives and Ladies" | 6:29 |
- Note: timings on the LP label side 1 (live side) do not include applause and song introductions. The above timings are correct breaks when the applause ends and Roger Chapman's spoken song intro commences.
Personnel
Musicians
- Roger Chapman – vocals (instrumental vocals on track 7), percussion (track 5)
- Charlie Whitney – electric guitars (tracks 1, 4-8), amplified acoustic guitar (track 3), bass (tracks 2, 6)
- John Weider – bass (tracks 1, 4-5, 7-8), violin (tracks 2, 4, 7), amplified acoustic guitar (track 3), percussion (track 6)
- Poli Palmer - percussion (tracks 3, 6), vibraphone (tracks 1, 4-6), electric piano (track 4), piano (tracks 2, 5, 7-8), flute (track 7), drums (track 5)
- Rob Townsend – drums (tracks 1-2, 4-5, 7-8), percussion (tracks 3, 6)
Technical
- Family – producer
- George Chkiantz – engineer
Chart positions
- Highest chart position (UK) - No. 7
References
- DeGagne, Mike (2011). "Anyway - Family". AllMusic. Retrieved 25 June 2011.
- Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: F". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved 24 February 2019.
{{cite book}}:|website=ignored (help) - "anyway | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. Retrieved 16 May 2021.
- "Family – Anyway (1970, Vinyl)". Discogs.com. November 1970. Retrieved 16 May 2021.
- Liner notes of album's CD reissue 2015, p.7