Laugh? I Nearly Bought One! is the first major compilation album by English post-punk band Killing Joke, released in September 1992 by Caroline Records in the U.S. and in October by Virgin Records in the U.K. and Europe.[1]
| Laugh? I Nearly Bought One! | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Compilation album by | ||||
| Released | 18 September 1992 | |||
| Recorded | 1979–1990 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 79:19 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Producer | Killing Joke, Conny Plank, Chris Kimsey, Martin Rex | |||
| Killing Joke compilation album chronology | ||||
| ||||
Content edit
Every studio album up to the time of release is represented, except Fire Dances and Outside the Gate. Three non-album tracks are also included, along with the original Chris Kimsey mix of "Wintergardens" from Brighter than a Thousand Suns, which was previously unreleased at the time.
The album's cover image of a priest blessing Nazi soldiers was previously used by the band for a concert poster in the early 1980s. Because of its theme, it caused quite a stir and the band were banned from playing a concert in Glasgow, Scotland.[2][3] Contrary to popular belief, the priest in the picture was not Pope Pius XII, but German Nazi abbot Alban Schachleiter.[4]
Reception edit
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [5] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music |  [6] |
| MusicHound Rock | [7] |
| Select | [8] |
Ned Raggett of AllMusic wrote, "not the best compilation that could have been assembled [...] Laugh? is still a reasonable overview of the first decade of Killing Joke and its checkered but still important history".[5] Trouser Press called the album "commendable", but "a few obscure tracks take the place of more essential choices".[9]
Track listing edit
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Turn to Red" (from Turn to Red) | Jaz Coleman, Kevin "Geordie" Walker, Martin "Youth" Glover, Paul Ferguson | 4:01 |
| 2. | "Pssyche (Live)" (from Ha!) | Coleman, Walker, Glover, Ferguson | 4:44 |
| 3. | "Requiem" (from Killing Joke) | Coleman, Walker, Glover, Ferguson | 3:43 |
| 4. | "Wardance" (from Killing Joke) | Coleman, Walker, Glover, Ferguson | 3:45 |
| 5. | "Follow the Leaders" (from What's THIS For...!) | Coleman, Walker, Glover, Ferguson | 4:54 |
| 6. | "Unspeakable" (from What's THIS For...!) | Coleman, Walker, Glover, Ferguson | 5:18 |
| 7. | "Butcher" (from What's THIS For...!) | Coleman, Walker, Glover, Ferguson | 6:10 |
| 8. | "Exit" (from What's THIS For...!) | Coleman, Walker, Glover, Ferguson | 3:39 |
| 9. | "The Hum" (from Revelations) | Coleman, Walker, Glover, Ferguson | 4:56 |
| 10. | "Empire Song" (from Revelations) | Coleman, Walker, Glover, Ferguson | 3:17 |
| 11. | "Chop-Chop" (from Revelations) | Coleman, Walker, Glover, Ferguson | 4:17 |
| 12. | "Sun Goes Down" (from Birds of a Feather EP) | Coleman, Walker, Paul Raven, Ferguson | 4:17 |
| 13. | "Eighties" (from Night Time) | Coleman, Walker, Raven, Ferguson | 3:49 |
| 14. | "Darkness Before Dawn" (from Night Time) | Coleman, Walker, Raven, Ferguson | 5:18 |
| 15. | "Love Like Blood" (from Night Time) | Coleman, Walker, Raven, Ferguson | 4:23 |
| 16. | "Wintergardens (Previously Unreleased Mix)" (original version from Brighter than a Thousand Suns) | Coleman, Walker, Raven, Ferguson | 4:47 |
| 17. | "Age of Greed" (from Extremities, Dirt and Various Repressed Emotions) | Coleman, Walker, Martin Atkins | 7:26 |
Personnel edit
- Jaz Coleman – vocals, synthesizer
- Kevin "Geordie" Walker – guitar
- Martin "Youth" Glover – bass guitar on tracks 1 and 3–11
- Paul Raven – bass guitar on tracks 2 and 12–17
- Paul Ferguson – drums, vocals on tracks 1–16
- Martin Atkins – drums, vocals on track 17
- Mike Coles - cover design
References edit
- ^ "Laugh? I Nearly Bought One!". Discogs. Retrieved 21 August 2019.
- ^ George-Warren, Holly; Romanowski, Patricia; Pareles, Jon, eds. (2001). The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll (Revised and updated for the 21st century ed.). New York: Fireside. p. 524. ISBN 0-7432-0120-5 – via the Internet Archive.
Killing Joke was banned from performing a Glasgow, Scotland, gig after a 1980 concert poster depicted Pope Pius XII appearing to bless two columns of Nazi brownshirts.
- ^ Larkin, Colin (27 May 2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Omnibus Press. ISBN 9780857125958 – via Google Books.
- ^ MacKenzie, Iain; Francis, Fred; Giappone, Krista Bonello Rutter (13 March 2018). Comedy and Critical Thought: Laughter as Resistance. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 9781786604088 – via Google Books.
- ^ a b Raggett, Ned. "Laugh? I Nearly Bought One! – Killing Joke | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 26 February 2015.
- ^ Larkin, Colin (2007). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (4th ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0195313734.
- ^ Holtje, Steve (1999). "Killing Joke". In Graff, Gary; Durchholz, Daniel (eds.). MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide (loan required). Detroit: Visible Ink Press. pp. 629–630. ISBN 978-1-57859-061-2 – via the Internet Archive.
- ^ Scott, Danny (October 1992). "Killing Joke: Laugh? I Nearly Bought One". Select. p. 90.
- ^ Grant, Steven; Sheridan, David; Fasolino, Greg; Robbins, Ira. "TrouserPress.com :: Killing Joke". Trouser Press. Retrieved 26 February 2015.