Ghost Nation (album)

Ghost Nation is the sixth studio album by Australian rock band, Hunters & Collectors. It was co-produced by the band with Clive Martin and issued on White/Mushroom Records on 27 November 1989. It reached No. 10 on the ARIA Albums Chart, No. 29 in New Zealand and No. 31 in Sweden.

Ghost Nation
Studio album by
Hunters & Collectors
Released27 November 1989 (1989-11-27)
RecordedMay−September 1989
StudioPlatinum Studios, Melbourne
GenreRock
Length43:20
LabelWhite/Mushroom
ProducerClive Martin, Hunters & Collectors
Hunters & Collectors chronology
What's a Few Men?
(1987)		 Ghost Nation
(1989)		 Cut
(1993)
Singles from Ghost Nation
  1. "When the River Runs Dry"
    Released: 25 September 1989
  2. "Turn a Blind Eye" aka "Blind Eye"
    Released: 8 January 1990
  3. "The Way You Live"
    Released: 23 April 1990
  4. "Love All Over Again"
    Released: August 1990

The album helped Hunters & Collectors win the award of Australian Band of the Year (1990) by Rolling Stone Australia. The band were nominated for six awards at the Fourth Annual ARIA Music Awards in 1990, but they won just one category – Best Cover Art for Ghost Nation by Robert Miles.

Background

Hunters & Collectors line up in 1987 was John Archer on bass guitar, Doug Falconer on drums, Jack Howard on trumpet, Robert Miles on live sound, Mark Seymour on lead vocals and guitar, Jeremy Smith on French horn, and Michael Waters on keyboards and trombone.[1][2][3] Early in 1988 Barry Palmer (also a member of Harem Scarem, ex-Stephen Cummings Band) joined the group on guitar.[1][2] Ghost Nation, their sixth studio album, was co-produced by the band with Clive Martin.[2] It was released in November 1989 on White Label/Mushroom in Australia and New Zealand and Atlantic in Europe and North America, and was their second Australian Top Ten appearance on the ARIA Albums Chart, peaking at No 10 in February 1990.[4] In New Zealand it reached the top 30 and also charted in Sweden reaching No. 31 on the Sverigetopplistan.[5][6] It provided four singles, beginning with "When the River Runs Dry", appearing in September and peaking at No. 23 in Australia in December and No. 5 on Billboard Modern Rock Tracks in 1990.[4][7] The album also includes a cover version of Eric Gradman: Man and Machine's 1979 single, "Crime of Passion".[8]

The album was remastered and re-issued by Liberation Records on 7 July 2003.

Reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[9]

Australian musicologist, Ian McFarlane, enthused "[it] was perhaps the band's finest album to date".[1] However Allmusic's Mike DeGagne declared that it was "one of this Australian band's weakest attempts, [it] suffers greatly from bland lyrics and gray instrumental work through the entirety of the album".[9] Ed St John in Rolling Stone Australia states "The first thing that strikes me about Ghost Nation is its sound. The band plays with impressive spirit, the grooves flowing with a spontaneous grace that far surpasses much of their earlier work. Moreover the music is beautifully recorded and intelligently, thoughtfully mixed."[10]

The album helped Hunters & Collectors win the award of Australian Band of the Year (1990) by Rolling Stone Australia.[1] The band were nominated for six awards at the ARIA Music Awards of 1990, but won just one category – Best Cover Art for Ghost Nation by Miles.[11]

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Mark Seymour; all music is composed by John Archer, Doug Falconer, Jack Howard, Robert Miles, Barry Palmer, Seymour, Jeremy Smith, Michael Waters;[12][13] unless otherwise indicated

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."When The River Runs Dry" 5:02
2."Blind Eye" aka "Turn a Blind Eye" 4:29
3."Love All Over Again" 3:55
4."Crime of Passion"Eric Gradman, Elizabeth Reed5:22
5."You Stole My Thunder" 3:27
6."Ghost Nation" 4:11
7."The Way You Live" 3:48
8."Gut Feeling" 4:25
9."Lazy Summer Day" 3:38
10."Running Water" 5:05

Charts
Chart (1989/90) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[14] 10
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[15] 29
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[16] 21

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[17] Platinum 70,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Personnel

Credited to:[2][18]

Production details
  • Producer – Hunters & Collectors, Clive Martin
  • Engineer – Clive Martin
    • Assistant engineers – Peter Edwards, Tony Salter (Platinum Studios); Joe Pirrera (Hit Factory)
  • Mixing – Eric Thorngren
  • Studio – Platinum Studios, Melbourne (recording); The Hit Factory, New York (mixing)
  • Mastering - Rick O'Neil Festival Records
  • Cover art – Robert Miles

References
  1. McFarlane, Ian (1999). "Encyclopedia entry for 'Hunters & Collectors'". Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop. Allen & Unwin. ISBN 1-86448-768-2.
  2. Holmgren, Magnus; Warnqvist, Stefan; Bamford, Alan. "Hunters and Collectors". Australian Rock Database. Passagen.se (Magnus Holmgren). Archived from the original on 12 June 2012. Retrieved 13 April 2014.
  3. Nimmervoll, Ed. "Hunters and Collectors". HowlSpace – The Living History of Our Music. Archived from the original on 26 July 2012. Retrieved 13 April 2014.
  4. Hung, Stefan. "Hunters & Collectors discography". Australian Charts Portal (Hung Medien). Retrieved 13 April 2014.
  5. Hung, Stefan. "Hunters & Collectors discography". New Zealand Charts Portal (Hung Medien). Retrieved 13 April 2014.
  6. Hung, Stefan. "Hunters & Collectors discography". Swedish Charts Portal (Hung Medien). Retrieved 13 April 2014.
  7. "Hunters & Collectors | Charts & Awards | Billboard singles". Allmusic. Retrieved 13 April 2014.
  8. McFarlane, Ian (1999). "Encyclopedia entry for 'The Bleeding Hearts'". Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop. Allen & Unwin. ISBN 1-86448-768-2.
  9. DeGagne, Mike. "Ghost Nation – Hunters & Collectors". Allmusic. Retrieved 13 April 2014.
  10. St John, Ed (January 1990). "Hunters & Collectors - Ghost Nation". Rolling Stone Australia #440. Front Publishers. ISSN 1320-0615.
  11. "Winners by Year 1990". Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Archived from the original on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 13 April 2014.
  12. "'When the Rivers Run Dry' at APRA search engine". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). Retrieved 13 April 2014. Note: User may have to click 'Search again' and provide details at 'Enter a title:' e.g When the Rivers Run Dry; or at 'Performer:' Hunters & Collectors
  13. "ACE Title Search". American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP). Archived from the original on 6 March 2013. Retrieved 13 April 2014. Note: User may have to enter details e.g. at 'Titles' enter When the Rivers Run Dry; or at 'Performers' enter Hunters and Collectors
  14. "Australiancharts.com – Hunters and Collectors – Ghost Nation". Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  15. "Charts.nz – Hunters and Collectors – Ghost Nation". Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  16. "Swedishcharts.com – Hunters and Collectors – Ghost Nation". Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  17. Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010. Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
  18. Relph, John (26 October 2013). "Hunters and Collectors Discography: Hunters & Collectors". Idiot-Dog.com. Archived from the original on 28 March 2014. Retrieved 13 April 2014.
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