Deadlines - Expanded

Esoteric Recordings is pleased to announce the release of a re-mastered and expanded 3 Disc clamshell box edition of the 1977 album, Deadlines by Strawbs. Released in late 1977, this would be the band’s final album to be released in the 1970s. Recorded in Dublin and London by a line-up of Dave Cousins (vocals, acoustic guitars, banjo, guitar), Dave Lambert (vocals, lead guitar), Chas Cronk (bass, acoustic guitar, vocals) and Tony Fernandez (drums, percussion) with guest keyboard players John Mealing and Robert Kirby, Deadlines was the Strawbs only album for the Arista label. Often unfairly overlooked in the Strawbs canon and largely ignored by some quarters of the music press upon its release (at the height of Punk rock), Deadlines was a fine album featured some excellent tracks such as No Return, The Last Resort, Sealed With A Traitor’s Kiss, Time And Life, New Beginnings, Deadly Nightshade and Words of Wisdom.

To promote the album Strawbs made a memorable appearance on the BBC TV and Radio simulcast programme Sight and Sound in Concert in February 1978 (featuring recently recruited keyboard player Andy Richards in their ranks) where they performed a blistering 60 minute set of some material from Deadlines along with other classics such as Lay Down, Ghosts, Heartbreaker, Cut Like a Diamond, Round and Round and Hero and Heroine. This concert appears on both a CD and a DVD (NTSC / Region Free) in this set for the first time, re-mastered from the original BBC tapes, along with 11 bonus tracks comprising alternate takes and demos from the Deadlines sessions.