My record collection
[369] Pearls Before Swine - Constructive Melancholy (CD)

In 1997 Tom Rapp was lured back to music at the first Terrastock festival and this was followed in 1999 by a new album, A Journal of the Plague Year and by this compilation album.

Pearls Before Swine - Constructive Melancholy

For the most part Constructive Melancholy was a collection of Pearls Before Swine songs that had previously been released on the band’s Reprise albums between 1969 and 1973. Obviously if that was all this was it wouldn’t warrant a place in my record collection but as well as those Reprise recordings there were two more recent additions that both feature Damon and Naomi and were produced by Damon.

The album opens with I Saw The World/Another Time which starts with the I Saw The World segment that has Naomi and Tom chanting with a harmonium and finger cymbal accompaniment before going into a reworking of the beautiful Another Time that had previously been released on One Nation Underground in 1967.

The other new track turns up midway through the album and is a short Gregorian chant update of Miss Morse (called Miss Morse Update).

When Tom came out of retirement in 1997 I knew nothing at all about him or Pearls Before Swine so Bob, from The Galaxie 500 Mailing List, sent me two cassettes to fill me in. I’ve only just noticed that Bob gets a credit on Constructive Melancholy.

The CD has a quite lengthy essay written by Byron Coley (who has also written sleeve notes for Galaxie 500). The tiny brown text on a greeny-brown background means I’ve only skimmed it. My poor old eyes just aren’t up to CD-sized sleeve notes any more!

I sadly missed the opportunity to see Tom live at Terrastock London when scheduling changes, and childcare responsibilities meant I arrived after his set (and only just in time for Damon & Naomi’s performance) - I was however lucky enough to chat to him after the show and stayed in sporadic email touch with him.

• Catalogue Number: AHFOW 10/095
• Artist: Pearls Before Swine
• Title: Constructive Melancholy
• Format: CD

Previously in my record collection:

• [231] Tom Rapp - A Journal of the Plague Year (CD)
• [324] Tom Rapp - A Journal of the Plague Year (LP)