DO YOU BELIEVE IN MAGIC? Official ILM poll results rollout #28 - Saint Etienne

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8005/7625264396_dce9364ec6.jpg

It's time for the results of number 28 in the series of 'official' ILM polls, this time the godly Saint Etienne.

A few stats, there were 19 ballots for the albums poll with 20(!) albums voted for. In the tracks poll there were 27 ballots with 127 tracks voted for. Thanks to all who voted.

I'll start with the top 10 albums today and then do the top 50 tracks starting tomorrow. The tracks will be spread over 3 or 4 days, depending how much time I have free.

10. Continental - 18 points, 4 votes

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8489/8196629730_8d17c8795c.jpg

Spotify link

I listened chronologically to what I could find and Continental was a bit of a revelation. I suppose before I'd had them pegged as honing their origins into a search for the perfect pop hit, to generally diminishing returns; this recast them as a balearic outfit who occasionally dabble in pop, and freed me from getting too hung up on e.g. weakish songwriting or character sketches. I like it.

9. Too Young To Die - 24 points, 3 votes, 2 number ones

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8338/8196628478_d4b5a81f46.jpg

8. Sound of Water - 28 points, 8 votes

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8070/8196628906_9119e3f564.jpg

Spotify link

7. Finisterre - 39 points, 9 votes, 1 number one

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8210/8196629514_2b88b17eb9.jpg

Spotify link

That was my no.1. For me it's the best realisation of what I consider to be their spiritual sound. It's a slick record and hangs together very well; only the rubbish spoken word links let it down.

i love those rubbish spoken word bits!
it was my #2; a few songs are outright unlistenable duds but overall i love it

6. Good Humor - 46 points, 8 votes, 1 number one

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8487/8196629214_ea6cd6a7d3.jpg

Spotify link

I was too lazy to vote but that woulda been my #1

The middle run is excellent but GH starts & ends quite weakly I feel

I listened to Good Humor again in prep for the poll and still don't like it more than mildly, except for isolated moments, like the lyrics to the first verse of "The Bad Photographer".

Sound of Water is better and Finisterre better still, IMO.

good humor was my #1

5. Tales From Turnpike House - 53 points, 10 votes, 2 number ones

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8199/8195535785_97e1d2acda.jpg

Spotify lin

One of those number ones was mine.

4. Words and Music by Saint Etienne - 54 points, 11 votes

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8198/8196628340_24e0a4e9a8.jpg

Spotify link

Good record. My feeling is that it tends in mood slightly too far towards defeat/resignation, and not enough towards rage or joy - sort of like the Manics when Nicky Wire took over lyric duties, if that makes any sense. But it's got some cracking tunes on there, I wouldn't fault it much.

pah, xposted by one second

I think their's plenty of joy in it, 'Sun in My Morning', 'A Good Thing'. I don't think there's a more joyful song in their career than 'Stars Above Us', though it's the wistfulness which makes it such an essential work for me.

Pleasantly surprised by the placing of WAM. I rate it highly, but didn't think that was a common viewpoint.

A bit of a leap in points coming up.

3. Tiger Bay - 82 points, 15 votes, 2 number ones

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8478/8195535667_db86c18c32.jpg

Spotify link

I really hate that sleeve.

Stars Above Us is fantastic, yes. The rest is wistful.

It's not great, no. Is it their faces shopped on?

That sleeve is amazing. Afaik it's not a photoshop, but based on another album cover and completely repainted.

And checking the deluxe edition booklet it's a band called Bakerloo

2. Foxbase Alpha - 108 points, 16 votes, 5 number ones

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8057/8195536375_45e27fd798.jpg

Spotify link

1. So Tough - 122 points, 15 votes, 6 number ones

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8350/8195536063_a93ae0199b.jpg

Spotify link

The top two were within a few points of each other throughout the poll, but So Tough pulled away with the last few ballots I received.

I posted at length about FBA and why I find it so interesting on the voting thread. ST didn't grab me at all, and never has; in fact I find it rather dull.

I eat in Mario's Cafe pretty much every week and have done for the best part of 20 years. He's a lovely man. If he's out of Diet Coke he lets me pop round to the shop and buy a can to drink in his cafe.

Did Foxbase Beta get any votes, as a matter of interest?

There was a combined Alpha/Beta vote, but points went to Alpha.

Didn't end up throwing in points for albums, but if I had, the German/Euro release of Tiger Bay not only has a superior tracklisting, but a much better cover:

http://www.isdal.dk/images/CD_covers/S/SE_Tigerbay.jpg

I kinda wish all of their covers were photos of girls

Been LOVING 'Words and Music', thanks for forcing me to listen ILM.

Yeah, been listening via spotify (I have a real copy), and listened to it as a whole.

(as opposed to one track, etc)

Yeah when I was listening through all their albums before voting I was really happy with how Words & Music stood up against the older albums. I still think Turnpike is a little stronger but it was a great return. Hope it does well in the end of year albums poll.

Also, can't really argue with So Tough being number one, it's a perfect album.

So Tough is my favourite of their 'proper' albums. On some level I recognize that privileging Tiger Bay on the basis of the German edition is vaguely unfair.

I have the UK promo with "Hate Your Drug" on it.

There are a number of great songs on So Tough but, for me, as an album it's rather less than the sum of its parts. The spoken word interludes are also a bit annoying (in a way that they weren't on the contemporaneous 12" singles / EPs).

I was the other #1 vote for TFTH - as far as I'm concerned, this is their masterpiece.

The spoken word interludes are also a bit annoying the heart of the album

Here's the full album results to be going on with:

1 So Tough 122 15 6
2 Foxbase Alpha 108 16 5
3 Tiger Bay 82 15 2
4 Words and Music 54 11 0
5 Tales From Turnpike House 53 10 2
6 Good Humor 46 8 1
7 Finisterre 39 9 1
8 Sound of Water 28 8 0
9 Too Young To Die 24 3 2
10 Continental 18 4 0
11 You Need A Mess Of Help 12 2 0
12 Casino/club Classics 10 3 0
13 Built on Sand 6 1 0
14= Interlude 4 1 0
14= Smash the System 4 1 0
14= Fairfax High 4 1 0
17= I Love To Paint 3 1 0
18= Up The Wooden Hills 2 1 0
18= Lipslide 2 1 0
18= A Glimpse of Stocking 2 1 0

good humor was i think my #5 but nostalgia-wise it's my #1 probably. love it.

Tracks starting shortly...

sooo pleased by the W&M love.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8348/8200879622_7940bdaba7_b.jpg

http://youtu.be/R1WF-AEZzIg

Huh, so this was the non-"Avenue" track left - had no idea that this was so popular, was wondering if there were a mass of votes for "Cool Kids Of Death" tbh.

I was the other #1 vote for "He's On The Phone", but I have a lot of time for "Like A Motorway" and where it sits on Tiger Bay - it tries for something big and v.nearly succeeds.

http://i1088.photobucket.com/albums/i329/yorkshiresky/avenue1.gif

1. Avenue (1993, So Tough, 641 points, 21 votes, 6 number ones)

http://youtu.be/yjVroDPC6Aw

http://open.spotify.com/track/78lhLRj8bR7NK2zCcBDWug

Woo! Not my favourite anymore, but it was once, so.... But mostly I'm amazed that Nothing Can Stop Us came as a surprise!

..oh the poll's no good!

(not really)

"Bob:
It's everyone's favourite. But I can't believe we put it out as a single - as if they were going to play it on the radio! We were so bloody cocky! We were so full of ourselves! We'd got to Number Twenty-One and thought "Right! Top Ten here we come", and then put that out! ... Those muffled voices in the background are actually me and Pete discussing Manic Street Preachers, left on the track really quietly.
Pete:
But you can't make out the proper words either.
Bob:
That line at the end? It's "Oh, the clown's no good."
Pete:
It was our advice to McDonald's, regarding their current advertising campaign."

Top two chopped and changed for much of the voting and were tied on the penultimate day, but Avenue pulled away with the last 3 ballots.

That's it for today, full results roll out tomorrow.

Thank you, you've been a lovely audience...

I didn't realise until last year that "Like a motorway" was based on the old folk tune "Silver dagger" until I saw a documentary on BBC4 about the folk revival in the 60s and there was someone singing "Silver dagger" and I was going "But...but...that's 'Like a motorway'" I've since read that "Tiger bay" was all about reworking folk songs in their style.

Very happy with the results. "Avenue" was my first St Et purchase, from the bargain bin in Woolworth in Penarth, late 92 and I was hooked from there. Loved it, and the b sides too, and worked backwards from there.

Thanks Billy!

Am I the only one for whom Tiger Bay remains a pleasant, innocuous listen -- aside from the three big tracks?

i just recently heard the song they based HotP on:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yS2H2cBNFn8

happy with that no.1

Somewhat predictable results. Avenue obviously deserved to win; it's officially my favourite track of the '90s. So well done, ILM.

I guess the biggest surprises for me were "Girl VII" placing so high (never imagined people here liked it that much) and "How We Used To Live" not placing at all! What does ILM think of it? I always thought the consensus was that it was at least the best track on SOW... i thought wrong. But seriously, if only for the middle section, it deserved to be here.

Awesome job and a big thank you to Billy! You've done my two favourite ILM polls so far!

I've always thought of "Like A Motorway" as Saint Etienne's "Being Boring".

...I admire it more than I like it.

I thought you were going to write, "When it's on I think it's their grandest achievement."

Am I the only one for whom Tiger Bay remains a pleasant, innocuous listen -- aside from the three big tracks?

― the little prince of inane false binary hype (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Wednesday, 21 November 2012 9:40 PM (32 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I assume by "the three big tracks" you mean "Like A Motorway", "Hug My Soul" and "Pale Movie"?

For me the slower, atmospheric sections of the album - "Former Lover", "Marble Lions", "Western Wind/Tankerville", "Boy Scouts of America" - are essential to the album's vibe, which I find enchanting and crystalline in a way that no other SE album goes for.

The addition of "I Buy American Records", "Grovely Road" and "Hate Your Drug" (all of which made my top twenty) only intensifies that mysterious, melancholy feel, to the album's benefit.

I know what you mean by "crystalline" -- for me their art consists of limning a mood or a place while remaining on the happy side of vague, for which the timbre of Cracknell's voice deserves enormous credit -- but it's an adjective more fit for So Tough and So Tough. Like Sound of Water (now there's an apt SE title), TE is on the vaporous side of things.

Am I the only one for whom Tiger Bay remains a pleasant, innocuous listen -- aside from the three big tracks?

― the little prince of inane false binary hype (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn)

Up until recently I would have agreed with this but it clicked with me big time. I never noticed how beautiful songs like Marble Lions and Urban Clearway were for some reason. It's probably their least instant album.

Very happy with the results. Thanks for all the effort Billy.

I ended up putting Avenue at number one but it was neck and neck with Mario's Cafe for a while. The top ten doesn't have any big surprises, I'm just a bit disappointed Like a Motorway is so high. It's a good song but I dont really understand how it's become one of their most popular singles.

Yeah, Avenue was always going to win, I thought. Sylvie was my number one. I thought that would poll higher but I guess I pulled it up. I always intended to put People Get Real as number one but on listening again I realised Sylvie meant so much more to me - for daft reasons that have little to do with the song apart from me replacing my niece's name in the chorus and it running through my head almost constantly for four years.

Also yay - Girl VII "Tufnell Park... Plumstead Common" is great - and one of the reasons I thought moving from one to the other might be acceptable. I was wrong.

I don't get that people don't love Like A Motorway.

I know what you mean by "crystalline" -- for me their art consists of limning a mood or a place while remaining on the happy side of vague, for which the timbre of Cracknell's voice deserves enormous credit -- but it's an adjective more fit for So Tough and So Tough. Like Sound of Water (now there's an apt SE title), TE is on the vaporous side of things.

― the little prince of inane false binary hype (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Wednesday, 21 November 2012 10:27 PM (7 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

So Tough is my second favourite for the same reasons, it doesn't really seem like an either/or issue for me.

I do think Tiger Bay contains Sarah's best ever singing though: the mixture of control/reserve and emotion and/or allusiveness on stuff like "Former Lover" and "Marble Lions" and "Boy Scouts of America" is pretty jawdropping IMO. Which is supported by how carefully judged the arrangements are, simultaneously expansive and spartan, which push her forward rather than envelop her.

A big difference with Sound of Water for me (excepting "Sycamore" which it seems only I love) is that Sarah's vocals simply don't attain that same level of power (leaving aside moments of actual not-very-goodness, like on "Don't Back Down" where she frequently sounds flat) - perhaps because the arrangements are, yes, vaporous, but also cluttered, which unsuprisingly results in murkiness a lot of the time.

i still remember the first time i heard a saint etienne song. it was off 'good humor', on a listening station at a borders in rockford IL. it took me about five seconds into 'woodcabin' to fall hard. i probably listened to that more than any other album i owned (save perhaps 'second toughest in the infants') over the next few years. i was out of the saint etienne loop until 'finisterre' and then dug back deep into their catalog. i thought for a time they were one of those bands (like the the with 'dusk' or catherine wheel with 'chrome') where i would only get into one of their albums and nothing else, but eventually i grew to enjoy everything they put out, whether it was on a more minor level like 'sound of water' or to the point where i thought it was one of the greatest albums of all time, like the first three. i decided to go to a saint etienne show in 2006 and met my wife there. weeks before i married her i wrote them and told them all of this in more corny terms and the three band members wrote back with rather emotional congratulations and well-wishes. there i days i feel i owe everything to them.

I'm another who rates "Sycamore" FWIW. (#4 on my ballot, no less.) Seems I'm otherwise Mr Consensus, sort of: the top 2 are my own top 2, in the opposite order. Followed by "People Get Real".

And nice work Billy!

Yes excellent work Billy.

Nag I'll be interested to see your ballot.

Mine was:

1. He's on the Phone
2. Avenue
3. London Belongs To Me
4. Former Lover
5. Marble Lions
6. Calico
7. Shower Scene
8. Sycamore
9. Hobart Paving
10. People Get Real
11. We're in the City
12. Join Our Club
13. Like A Motorway
14. Nothing Can Stop Us
15. B92
16. Hate Your Drug
17. I Buy American Records
18. Conchita Martinez
19. Grovely Road
20. Only Love Can Break Your Heart

1) Spring
2) Hobart Paving
3) Nothing Can Stop Us
4) You're In a Bad Way
5) Mario's Cafe
6) Been So Long
7) Like a Motorway
8) Former Lover
9) Slow Down at the Castle
10) Marble Lions
11) Tonight
12) Mr. Donut
13) Stop and Think It Over
14) Burnt Out Car (Balearico Mix)
15) Filthy
16) Angel (Alternate Mix)
17) I Was Born on Christmas Day
18) When I Was Seventeen
19) A Good Thing
20) DJ

My remaining selections were:

Finisterre, Mario's Cafe, Hug My Soul, The Way We Live Now, Goodnight Jack, Like A Motorway, Action, Railway Jam, New Thing, Angel, You're In a Bad Way, Carnt Sleep, Flight To Tashkent, Sun in My Morning, Northwestern

May've been quite different if I'd spent more quality time with Tiger Bay and Good Humor over the years. Only had a tape dub (!) of the short version of the former back in the day, for instance, but these threads have convinced me to get a copy of that Euro TB disc just now, for remedial study.

I think I could have included almost anything off Tiger Bay - "Cool Kids Of Death" (& the Underworld mix) never used to be a favourite, but jumped out at me on re-listen prior to the ballot; "Fake 88" was something I hadn't heard until the nominations thread but took a shine to. Looking forward to getting to grips with their new album as well as their post-TB output.

01. He's On The Phone
02. Only Love Can Break Your Heart
03. London Belongs To Me
04. We're In The City
05. Avenue
06. I Buy American Records
07. Girl VII
08. Heart Failed (In The Back Of A Taxi)
09. You're In A Bad Way
10. Like A Motorway
11. Former Lover
12. Choc Stock (Live In Sheffield)
13. Boy Scouts Of America
14. Who Do You Think You Are?
15. Golden - Anglo American
16. Cool Kids Of Death
17. Fake 88
18. I Was Born On Christmas Day
19. Kiss & Make Up
20. 6ths ft Sarah Cracknell - Kissing Things

Great story Omar! Mine:

1. This Is Radio Etienne
2. Only Love Can Break Your Heart
3. Shower Scene
4. Popular
5. Girl VII
6. The Sea (PFM Mix early fade)
7. Stars Above Us
8. Nothing Can Stop Us
9. Lose That Girl
10. Goodnight

11. Marble Lions
12. Side Streets
13. Goodnight Jack
14. Spring
15. Avenue
16. B92
17. When I Was Seventeen
18. The Process
19. Urban Clearway
20. Tankerville/Western Wind

and albums...

1. Finisterre
2. Continental
3. Foxbase Alpha
4. Words and Music
5. Tales From Turnpike House
6. Tiger Bay

Tracks

01 Nothing Can Stop Us
02 Milk Bottle Symphony
03 Urban Clearway
04 Hug My Soul
05 Who Do You Think You Are?
06 Teenage Winter
07 Avenue
08 London Belongs To Me
09 Sun In My Morning
10 Woodcabin
11 Hobart Paving
12 Like A Motorway
13 Side Streets
14 Split Screen
15 You Can Count On Me
16 Like The Swallow
17 I'm Too Sexy
18 You're In A Bad Way
19 B92
20 Kiss And Make Up

('Only Love...' is amazing of course, but I knew it wouldn't need my help. I'm still (!) on the fence about 'He's On The Phone', but again I knew it would do well regardless.)

Albums

1. Tales From Turnpike House
2. Foxbase Alpha
3. Good Humor
4. Too Young To Die <-- technically, the VHS edition!
5. Tiger Bay
6. Up the Wooden Hills

tracks

1. Avenue
2. Heart Failed (In The Back Of A Taxi)
3. Stoned To Say The Least
4. Like The Swallow
5. Like A Motorway
6. Studio Kinda Filthy
7. Spring
8. Hate Your Drug
9. Nothing Can Stop Us
10. Fake 88
11. Girl VII
12. Calico
13. Leafhound
14. Goodnight Jack
15. Cool Kids Of Death
16. Who Do You Think You Are
17. Railway Jam
18. Saturday
19. Archway People
20. Urban Clearway

1. Avenue
2. Like a Motorway
3. Mario’s Café
4. Nothing Can Stop Us
5. Hobart Paving
6. Only Love Can Break Your Heart (Weatherall Remix)
7. He’s on the Phone
8. Ready or Not (Cracknell solo)
9. London Belongs to Me
10. Teenage Winter
11. People Get Real
12. I Was Born on Christmas Day
13. 4:35 in the Morning (Kid Loco Mix)
14. Marble Lions
15. Girl VII
16. Mr Donut
17. Lightning Strikes Twice
18. Filthy
19. I Buy American Records
20. Heart Failed (in the Back of a Taxi)

But there's nothing in this top 50 that I don't like.

1 - Avenue
2 - Only Love Can Break Your Heart
3 - Nothing Can Stop Us
4 - Anglo-American (Golden)
5 - He's On The Phone
6 - Le Ballade De Saint Etienne
7 - How We Used To Live
8 - Keep Nothing
9 - Burnt Out Car
10 - She's The One
11 - Over The Border
12 - Spring
13 - We're In the City
14 - Mario's Cafe
15 - 7 Ways to Love (Cola Boy)
16 - Hate Your Drug
17 - DJ
18 - Method Of Modern Love
19 - Lover Plays the Bass
20 - The Way I Fell For You

With the caveat again that I don't know anywhere near their whole discography, I still feel compelled to comment on the absence of "Erica America" from a top 50. It's "a song another band's career could have been" etc. That it would not even make a top fifty is, I have to say, one of the most striking things I've ever seen in an ILM poll.

I could have easily submitted a top 100.

1. Avenue
2. Nothing Can Stop Us
3. Teenage Winter
4. Hobart Paving
5. Mario's Cafe
6. Former Lover
7. Sylvie
8. He's On The Phone
9. Ready Or Not
10. Tonight
11. Goodnight
12. Shoot Out the Lights
13. Stars Above Us
14. Urban Clearway
15. DJ
16. Marble Lions
17. Are We Gonna Be Alright
18. Like A Motorway
19. Lightning Strikes Twice
20. Heart Failed (In The Back of a Taxi)

Rank Title Total Count Average Number ones

1 Avenue 641 21 30.52 6
2 Nothing Can Stop Us Now 594 20 29.70 3
3 Like a Motorway 425 17 25.00 0
4 He's On The Phone 410 15 27.33 2
5 Mario's Cafe 396 15 26.40 1
6 Only Love Will Break Your Heart 374 13 28.77 1
7 Hobart Paving 362 15 24.13 0
8 Who Do You Think You Are 290 11 26.36 2
9 You're In A bad Way 284 13 21.85 0
10 Heart Failed (in the back of a taxi) 249 10 24.90 0
11 People Get Real 227 9 25.22 1
12 Spring 222 10 22.20 1
13 Girl VII 209 8 26.13 1
14 Marble Lions 206 9 22.89 1
15 Sylvie 188 7 26.86 1
16 Join Our Club 187 9 20.78 0
17 I Was Born On Christmas Day 173 9 19.22 0
18 Teenage Winter 171 6 28.50 1
19 Pale Movie 162 8 20.25 1
20 Former Lover 159 6 26.50 0
21 Hug My Soul 159 7 22.71 0
22 Hate Your Drug 152 6 25.33 1
23 Lightning Strikes Twice 146 7 20.86 0
24 Shower Scene 136 7 19.43 0
26 Finisterre 135 6 22.50 0
27 Filthy 135 6 22.50 0
25 Tonight 135 7 19.29 0
28 Burnt Out Car (remix) 134 7 19.14 0
29 Method Of Modern Love 133 7 19.00 0
30 Kiss And Make Up 132 8 16.50 0
31 Archway People 131 7 18.71 0
32 London Belongs to Me 129 5 25.80 0
33 Milk Bottle Symphony 115 5 23.00 0
34 Over the Border 111 5 22.20 0
35 A Good Thing 111 6 18.50 0
36 When I Was Seventeen 110 6 18.33 0
37 Mr Donut 109 6 18.17 0
38 Like the Swallow 102 5 20.40 0
39 Stars Above Us 100 4 25.00 0
40 Paper 99 4 24.75 0
42 Split Screen 96 4 24.00 1
41 Fake 88 96 5 19.20 0
43 Urban Clearway 92 5 18.40 0
45 Popular 90 3 30.00 1
44 Railway Jam 90 5 18.00 0
46 Carnt Sleep 87 4 21.75 0
47 We're In The City 86 4 21.50 0
48 Action 86 4 21.50 0
49 Goodnight Jack (Good Humour) 86 4 21.50 0
50 I Buy American Records 84 4 21.00 0
51 DJ 82 5 16.40 0
52 Calico 79 4 19.75 0
53 Seven Ways To Love 77 4 19.25 0
54 Ready or Not (SC) 73 3 24.33 0
55 Downey CA 72 3 24.00 0
56 Woodcabin 71 4 17.75 0
57 Leafhound 68 3 22.67 0
58 The Bad Photographer 67 4 16.75 0
59 Side Streets 64 3 21.33 0
60 Lose that girl 62 3 20.67 0
61 The Process 61 3 20.33 0
62 Angel 60 3 20.00 0
63 B92 60 4 15.00 0
64 Goodnight (Jack (Turnpike)) 55 3 18.33 0
65 Sycamore 54 2 27.00 0
66 Conchita Martinez 49 3 16.33 0
67 Anglo American (by Golden) 47 2 23.50 0
68 On the Shore 46 2 23.00 0
69 She's The One 44 2 22.00 0
70 Are We Gonna Be Alright 43 2 21.50 0
71 Boy Scouts of America 43 2 21.50 0
72 How We Used To Live 42 2 21.00 0
73 Boy is Crying 42 2 21.00 0
74 The Way We Live Now 41 2 20.50 0
75 This is Radio Etienne 40 1 40.00 1
76 4.35 In the Morning (Kid Loco mix) 39 2 19.50 0
77 Don't Back Down 39 2 19.50 0
78 Erica America 36 2 18.00 0
79 Sun in my Morning 36 2 18.00 0
80 Stop and think it over 35 2 17.50 0
81 California Snow Story 34 2 17.00 0
82 Amateur 33 1 33.00 0
83 Stoned to say the least 33 1 33.00 0
84 I'm Too Sexy 33 2 16.50 0
85 Cool Kids of Death 33 2 16.50 0
86 Dutch TV 32 2 16.00 0
87 Groveley Road 30 2 15.00 0
88 Star 29 2 14.50 0
89 Madeleine 28 1 28.00 0
90 Tell Me Why (The Riddle) 28 1 28.00 0
91 Junk the Morgue 28 1 28.00 0
92 Le Ballade du saint Etienne 26 1 26.00 0
93 Been So Long 26 1 26.00 0
94 The Sea (PFM mix) 26 1 26.00 0
95 Jack Lemmon 25 1 25.00 0
96 Tankerville/Western Wind 25 2 12.50 0
97 Keep Nothing 24 1 24.00 0
98 Haunted Jukebox 24 2 12.00 0
99 Desert Baby (SC) 23 1 23.00 0
100 Zipcode 23 1 23.00 0
101 Slow Down At The Castle 23 1 23.00 0
102 Fascination 22 1 22.00 0
103 Stormtrooper in Drag 22 1 22.00 0
104 Must Be More 22 1 22.00 0
105 Clark County Record Fair 22 1 22.00 0
106 Red Setter 20 1 20.00 0
107 Chock Stock (live in Sheffield) 20 1 20.00 0
108 Shoot out the lights 20 1 20.00 0
109 New Thing 19 1 19.00 0
110 Etienne Gonna Die 19 1 19.00 0
111 Wilson 18 1 18.00 0
112 Suburban Autumn Leiutenant 18 1 18.00 0
113 You Can Count On Me 17 1 17.00 0
114 This is Tomorrow 15 1 15.00 0
115 We're Coming In Loaded 15 1 15.00 0
116 Flight to Tashkent 14 1 14.00 0
117 Saturday (SC) 14 1 14.00 0
118 Anymore 14 1 14.00 0
119 Driving Home for Christmas 13 1 13.00 0
120 Lover Plays The Bass 13 1 13.00 0
121 Last Orders For Gary Stead 13 1 13.00 0
122 I've Got Your Music 13 1 13.00 0
123 The Way I Fell For You 12 1 12.00 0
124 Artieripp 12 1 12.00 0
125 Northwestern 12 1 12.00 0
126 Kissing Things 12 1 12.00 0
127 52 Pilot 12 1 12.00

Slight discrepancy between the raw data and the poll where ties occurred.

Big surprises for me; 'Who Do You Think Are'. making top 10, as discussed above. 'Seven Ways To Love' not doing a little better, such a great sugar rush of a record and 'How We Used To Live' only making number 72.

This Is Radio Etienne killing it in the averages

Incidentally I couldn't view the Avenue gif on my work's pc, so if anyone else can't see it this is what it looks like:

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8490/8208540813_1117d5886a_b.jpg

A few people on flickr kindly let me 'borrow' their images, Dexter_mixwith, PJMixer, scanner-fm and Simon Godley who supplied the opening image.

They're worth having a look at.

Foxbase Alpha 2134
So Tough 1997
Single 1685
Tiger Bay 1350
B-side 840
Tales from Turnpike House 834
Good Humor 798
Other 675
Words and Music.. 565
Finisterre 545
Sound of Water 498
Sarah solo 51

1 Teenage Winter
He's On The Phone
Stars Above Us
Over the Border
Fake 88
Mario's Cafe
Join Our Club
Tonight
A Good Thing
Lightning Strikes Twice
Avenue
Milk Bottle Symphony
Seven Ways To Love
You're In A bad Way
How We Used To Live
When I Was Seventeen
Railway Jam
Hobart Paving
Driving Home for Christmas
20 Nothing Can Stop Us Now

1 Tales From Turnpike House
So Tough
Words and Music
Foxbase Alpha
Sound of Water
6 A Glimpse of Stocking

a lot of so tough sounds kindof thin or too fey or s.thing 2 my ear; the only track off it in my top 20 is conchita martinez

'like a motorway' over 'he's on the phone' is...really weird to me

― GAY HIPSTER BATMAN ON HIS WAY TO A CIRCUIT PARTY (donna rouge), Wednesday, November 21, 2012 4:08 PM (2 days ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

completely agree

I recall So Tough striking me as kind of thin on first listen, but seemingly for different reasons. And mainly the second half. It was the first one I bought (marked down to a few dollars, a cheap way to fulfill my obligations to an old school mail-order record club!). In my case I didn't really know what to do with things like "Conchita Martinez" or "Junk the Morgue" at all. I must have wanted snappy poppy songs like the handful of singles I'd heard. Fey was okay, meandering and seemingly amelodic, not so much. In addition, tracks like "Leafhound" still seem tepid.

Of course, the first album had contained at least as much meandering abstraction between the pop songs, so caveat emptor etc. Curiously, after becoming accustomed to that, the more or less non-stop pop approach of Good Humor is probably the reason why I still tend to think of it as somewhat unexciting.

I mentioned it upthread, but ..

I guess here's ten more tracks you could have voted for,

http://saintetienne.greedbag.com/

These were available from 7.00pm last night, but their servers were massively overloaded for the first three hours or so.

Anyway, I got mine, and there's still some available now.

Not for long, I'd guess.

01. Solid Gold - previously unreleased
02. Your Valentine - previously unreleased
03. Jan Leeming - previously unreleased
04. Racing Car - previously unreleased
05. Landscape - previously unreleased
06. Manhattan - previously only available as the B-side of the 'Tonight' 7" single
07. You're Not Alone - previously unreleased
08. Just Friends - previously only available on Q magazine cd
09. Fairground Rock And Roll - previously unreleased
10. Lullaby - previously only available as the B-side of the 'I've Got Your Music' 7" single

heres my weirdo ballot btw; great job on this poll billy dods!

Tracks –

(most pts > least)

Split Screen
Finisterre
Amateur
He’s On the Phone
Are We Gonna Be Alright
Action
Jack Lemmon
Method of Modern Love
Desert Baby
Must Be More
The Bad Photographer
Popular
Kiss and Make Up
Sylvie
Mr. Donut
When I Was 17
A Good Thing
Lightning Strikes Twice
Conchita Martinez
Like A Motorway

Those CDs all gone now :(

Was pondering earlier that I'd have usually jumped at the opportunity of a Saint Etienne oddities disc but that Words & Music has put me off them a bit.

Loved What Are You Doing Today, Mervyn Day? and was even enjoying the demo of Western Wind earlier.

Come at me! I love these records.