Waiting for a Miracle (album)

Waiting for a Miracle is the debut album by the Comsat Angels, released on 5 September 1980 on Polydor Records.

Waiting for a Miracle
Studio album by
The Comsat Angels
ReleasedSeptember 5, 1980
RecordedJanuary 1980
GenrePost-punk
Length37:31 (LP)
LabelPolydor, RPM Records, Renascent, Edsel Records
ProducerPeter Wilson, the Comsat Angels
The Comsat Angels chronology
Waiting for a Miracle
(1980)		 Sleep No More
(1981)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic [1]
Smash Hits7/10[2]
StylusA[3]

History

The entire album was recorded in 10 days. Frontman Stephen Fellows explained how they were able to accomplish this: "We were totally organised. Arrangements, tempos and all the lyrics were sorted out before we went in."[4] But he wasn't quite happy with everything, and in a 2002 interview, said, "The thing that bugs me most about the [early] records is my singing, particularly on the first album. I wish I'd sung more before we made that."[5] The cover photograph was taken by Martyn Goddard at Sheffield Parkway, Sheffield.[6]

Release

Although the album's sales were mediocre, it was well received by critics.[7]

Compact disc versions

The album was not issued on CD until 15 years after its initial vinyl release. It has been reissued on CD three times, in 1995 by RPM Records, in 2006 by Renascent and in 2015 by Edsel Records,[8] with different track listings (see below). Two singles were taken from Waiting for a Miracle: "Total War" and "Independence Day" (the latter released on July 4).[4]

Vinyl track listing (1980)
  1. "Missing in Action"
  2. "Baby"
  3. "Independence Day"
  4. "Waiting for a Miracle"
  5. "Total War"
  6. "On the Beach"
  7. "Monkey Pilot"
  8. "Real Story"
  9. "Map of the World"
  10. "Postcard"

CD track listing (1995)
  1. "Missing in Action"
  2. "Baby"
  3. "Independence Day"
  4. "Waiting for a Miracle"
  5. "Total War"
  6. "On the Beach"
  7. "Monkey Pilot"
  8. "Real Story"
  9. "Map of the World"
  10. "Postcard"
  11. "Home Is the Range"
  12. "We Were"
  13. "Ju Ju Money"

CD track listing (2006)
  1. "Missing in Action" – 4:01
  2. "Baby" – 2:58
  3. "Independence Day" – 3:46
  4. "Waiting for a Miracle" – 2:57
  5. "Total War" – 3:47
  6. "On the Beach" – 3:41
  7. "Monkey Pilot" – 4:24
  8. "Real Story" – 3:44
  9. "Map of the World" – 3:50
  10. "Postcard" – 4:08
  11. "Home Is the Range" (EP track) – 3:34
  12. "We Were" (B-side) – 4:12
  13. "Ju Ju Money" (outtake) – 4:15
  14. "Work" (outtake) – 4:07
  15. "Independence Day" (Demo) – 3:04
  16. "Real Story" (Demo) – 3:42
  17. "Target Talk" (Demo) – 3;40
  18. "Living In" (Demo) – 3:57

CD track listing (2015)

All tracks written by Fellows/Glaisher/Bacon/Peake

CD 1

  1. "Missing in Action"
  2. "Baby"
  3. "Independence Day"
  4. "Waiting for a Miracle"
  5. "Total War"
  6. "On the Beach"
  7. "Monkey Pilot"
  8. "Real Story"
  9. "Map of the World"
  10. "Postcard"

Bonus Tracks

  1. "Home is the Range"
  2. "We Were"
  3. "Ju Ju Money"
  4. "Work"

CD 2

  1. "Red Planet"
  2. "I Get Excited"
  3. "Specimen No.2"
  4. "Independence Day" (Demo)
  5. "Real Story" (Demo)
  6. "Target Talk" (Demo)
  7. "Living In" (Demo)

John Peel Sessions

  1. "Total War"
  2. "Independence Day"
  3. "Baby"
  4. "Ju Ju Money"
  5. "Real Story"
  6. "Monkey Pilot"
  7. "Waiting for a Miracle"
  8. "Home is the Range"

Personnel
The Comsat Angels

References
  1. https://www.allmusic.com/album/r33750
  2. Smash Hits, Mark Ellen, 2 October 1980, p.29
  3. Stylus review
  4. Sleeve notes from Renascent re-issue of Waiting for a Miracle
  5. Step Off, interviews, Stephen Fellows Q & A Session May 2002
  6. "Musical Maps".
  7. Trouser Press article: "Firm beats play against melancholy melodies and hushed vocals to create the impression of eavesdropping on someone's inner turmoil...." They went on to say that the album was "hailed in one UK paper as the greatest debut LP of all time, it remains a stunning masterwork...."
  8. Discogs.com entry for the Edsel edition of Waiting for a Miracle
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