Heaven Born and Ever Bright

Heaven Born and Ever Bright[lower-alpha 2] is the third studio album by British rock band Cardiacs. It was produced by Tim Smith, engineered by David Murder and mixed by both. Due to Rough Trade going bankrupt soon after the album's release, it was scarce until reissued in 1995 by the Alphabet Business Concern. This reissue was remastered and given new cover art.

Heaven Born and Ever Bright
Studio album by
Cardiacs
Released15 May 1992[1][lower-alpha 1]
Recorded1991
Studio
  • Boundary Row Studios, London
  • 811 Sound Studios, Cowford
Length45:03
Label
ProducerTim Smith
Cardiacs chronology
Songs for Ships and Irons
(1991)		 Heaven Born and Ever Bright
(1992)		 All That Glitters Is a Mares Nest
(1995)
Alternative cover
Cover art for the 1995 release and all subsequent versions
Singles from Heaven Born and Ever Bright
  1. "Day Is Gone"
    Released: 28 October 1991

Lineup changes

Heaven Born and Ever Bright was the first Cardiacs album since the departure of almost half the group. Percussionist Tim Quy left Cardiacs in 1990, and did not work with them again. Saxophonist Sarah Smith and keyboardist William D. Drake also stopped touring with the band, although they contributed to later recordings and made occasional guest appearances at concerts. Christian Hayes left Cardiacs during the making of the album, although it still features many of his guitar and vocal performances as well as a song he co-wrote. Heaven Born and Ever Bright is the first Cardiacs album featuring Jon Poole, but their last with Dominic Luckman. It is unclear how much Poole is actually featured on the record.

Reaction
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[4]
NME7/10[5]
Q[6]
Select4/5[7]
2/5[8]

In 2005, when asked what his favourite Cardiacs album is by Popular I Magazine, Tim Smith said "I like them all for their own reasons. Sorry. However, I will defend one of them as it wasn’t so well received when it popped out and that one is Heaven Born And Ever Bright. I think it came out exactly how it was intended to. A lot of people seem to think it was a bit of an accident."[9] Similarly, asked in 2001 if Sing to God was his favourite Cardiacs album, Smith said "No… I sort of like them all in one way or another….a funny thing is that the album our fans seem to dislike the most is one that I am very proud of…. the Heaven Born And Ever Bright album which we did back in 1991…it’s got a really weird sound to it…I reckon all our albums sound completely different to each other anyway…unless you hate the stuff and then I suppose they will all sound exactly the same….and shit…and there’s an awful lot of people who share that opinion."[10]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Tim Smith, except where noted. Vinyl releases have tracks 1–6 on Side One, and tracks 7–11 on Side Two.[11]

Heaven Born and Ever Bright track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."The Alphabet Business Concern (Home of Fadeless Splendour)"
3:58
2."She Is Hiding Behind the Shed" 4:19
3."March" 3:17
4."Goodbye Grace"
3:56
5."Anything I Can't Eat" 3:24
6."Helen and Heaven"
  • T. Smith
  • Hayes
3:08
7."Bodysbad" 4:06
8."For Good and All"
  • T. Smith
  • Hayes
4:42
9."Core" 2:31
10."Day Is Gone" 3:17
11."Snakes-a-Sleeping" 8:25
Total length:45:03

Notes

  • Hayes is credited as a writer of "Core" rather than "Goodbye Grace" on 1992 versions of the album.[11] "Helen and Heaven" and "For Good and All" are solely credited to Tim Smith on the CD digifile.[12]

Personnel

Cardiacs

Assisted by:

  • Sarah Smith – saxophone (tracks 1, 3, 4, 6, 7 and 8)
  • Christian Hayes – guitar and vocals
  • William D. Drake – Television Organ (track 6)
  • The Alphabet Business Concern – other keyboards and noises

Technical

  • Tim Smith – mixing, production
  • David Murder – mixing, engineering

Notes
  1. Deezer indicates a release date of 24 September 1991.[2]
  2. Written Heavenborn and Ever Bright in The Rough Guide to Rock[3]

References
  1. Cardiacs Museum Yousletter 5 (Newsletter). Archived from the original on 1 July 2009. Retrieved 26 March 2023 – via Cardiacs.org.
  2. "Cardiacs - Heaven Born And Ever Bright: lyrics and songs". Deezer. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
  3. Phillips, Lance (2003). "The Cardiacs". In Buckley, Peter (ed.). The Rough Guide to Rock (3rd ed.). London: Rough Guides. ISBN 978-1-85828-457-6.
  4. Larkin, Collin (2006). "Cardiacs". The Encyclopedia of Popular Music: Brown, Marion - Dilated Peoples. Muze. p. 182. ISBN 978-0-19-531373-4. Note: Search "Alphabet 1992" (with quotation marks).
  5. Dalton, Stephen. "Album Reviews - Heaven Born and Ever Bright". NME. Archived from the original on 9 May 2008. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  6. Beattie, Rob (March 1992). "Cardiacs - Heaven Born and Ever Bright". Q.
  7. Scott, Danny (April 1992). "Cardiacs - Heaven Born and Ever Bright". Select. p. 65.
  8. Morrison, Dave (August 1992). "Cardiacs - Heaven Born and Ever Bright". Select. p. 89.
  9. Diaz, Alberto (January 2005). "Interview: Tim Smith and Kavus Torabi". Popular 1 Magazine. Barcelona, Spain. Retrieved 7 September 2020 – via Cardiacs.net.
  10. Gonzalez, Luis (April 2001). "Interview: Tim Smith". Margen Magazine. Spain – via Cardiacs.net.
  11. Heaven Born and Ever Bright at Discogs (list of releases)
  12. "Heaven Born And Ever Bright". The Consultant’s Memorabilia Collection. Retrieved 7 April 2023.
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