Peel Sessions 87-88

Wake me up before you go-go, ’cos I’m not planning on going solo...
Precious Recordings of London presents on 12-inch vinyl the two John Peel sessions recorded in 1988 and 1989 by former bIG*fLAME bassist and singer Alan Brown in his solo guise as The Great Leap Forward.

Formed by Brown following the disbandment of bIG*fLAME in 1986, The Great Leap Forward (TGLF) has over the years been a project in which Brown writes all songs and lyrics, and plays/programs all instruments on recordings. Peel was a great supporter of both bands, with Brown in his time recording nine sessions in total for the legendary BBC DJ (also with A Witness and Inca Babies).

Back in the late 1980s, with Brown looking to develop an identity that was musically a step away from his former band, these Peel sessions were recorded at the BBC’s Maida Vale studios in the space of eight months.

They provide an intriguing insight into Brown’s evolution from the short and spiky orthodoxy of Manchester’s finest jazz-f**ksters into a more considered and
accessible format as TGLF, but still retaining a socialist and humanist ethos manifesting itself in incisive political and social commentary layered over sharp yet melodic guitar pop – and with a touch of electro and ‘found sounds’ thrown in for good measure.
PRELP 17 features 12 songs, including all eight recorded for the two sessions – either different versions of already-released songs or prototypes for the forth- coming TGLF 1989 debut album and later EPs. The album also contains four bonus tracks – two remastered tracks from the 1987 TGLF debut EP and two more from the same period that have never before been released on vinyl.