Dear Catastrophe Waitress [20th Anniversary] [LP]

by Belle and Sebastian

Overview

After the near-disaster of forced democracy on Fold Your Hands Child, You Walk Like a Peasant and the stultifying holding pattern of the Storytelling soundtrack, where Todd Solondz brought out their worst tendencies, it seemed that Belle & Sebastian were disappearing into their own preciousness, but then something unexpected happened: they returned to form with 2003's Dear Catastrophe Waitress. This was unexpected not just because their last efforts suggested that B&S no longer could produce a consistently engaging work, but because their savior came in the guise of Trevor Horn, the man who successfully helped Yes turn new wave, the man best known for his synth-heavy productions of ABC and Frankie Goes to Hollywood, the man who was last heard producing everybody's favorite Russian teen lesbian duo, Tatu. That diverse resume suggests that Horn knows how to play to a band's strengths, and he certainly helps Belle & Sebastian regain their focus and vision, turning Dear Catastrophe Waitress into one of the group's best albums. One of the reasons that album works so well is that the notion that the band has no leader has been discarded, with Stuart Murdoch thankfully serving as the lead singer and songwriter throughout the record. Murdoch's songs are firmly within the patented Belle & Sebastian style, and while it may be true that he's not stretching himself much as a writer, that doesn't matter because he sounds assured and confident, turning out a set of songs that are finely crafted and tuneful. It's among his catchiest work, if not quite his cleverest, since the words occasionally offer an overdose of whimsy that leads to queasiness. And that's where Horn comes in -- by keeping the focus on the tunes and subtly varying the production, he's made Dear Catastrophe Waitress the richest musical offering yet from Belle & Sebastian. If it doesn't quite have the timeless feel of If You're Feeling Sinister, so be it, since this is their first record since that defining album to offer a similarly rich listen, and that's quite a comeback for a band that only an album ago seemed to peak too early. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	10/07/2014
Label:	Matador
UPC:	0744861106586

Tracks

1. Step Into My Office, Baby
2. Dear Catastrophe Waitress
3. If She Wants Me
4. Piazza, New York Catcher
5. Asleep on a Sunbeam
6. I'm a Cuckoo
7. You Don't Send Me
8. Wrapped Up in Books
9. Lord Anthony
10. If You Find Yourself Caught in Love
11. Roy Walker
12. Stay Loose

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Belle and Sebastian   Primary Artist
Peter Lale   Viola
Mike Lovatt   Trumpet
Martin Loveday   Cello
Helen Keen   Flute
Everton Nelson   Violin
Patrick Kiernan   Violin
Kathleen Stevenson   Flute,Piccolo
Chris Davis   Sax (Tenor)
Nick Ingman   Conductor
Nigel Black   French Horn
Derek Watkins   Trumpet
Stan Sulzmann   Sax (Alto)
Philip Todd   Sax (Alto),Sax (Tenor)
Jeff Daly   Sax (Baritone)
Julian Leaper   Violin
Perry Mason   Violin
Warren Zielinski   Violin
Katherine Shave   Violin
John Barclay   Trumpet
Bruce White   Viola
Noel Langley   Trumpet
Darren Allison   Horn Engineer
Gavyn Wright   Violin
Boguslav Kostecki   Violin
Gustav Clarkson   Viola
David Daniels   Cello
Jackie Shave   Violin
Chris Cowie   Oboe
Frank Ricotti   Percussion
Jamie Talbot   Sax (Alto)
Richard Edwards   Trombone (Bass)
Anthony Pleeth   Cello
Richard Berry   French Horn
Mary Scully   Double Bass
Barnaby Dickinson   Trombone (Tenor)
David Lee Daniels   Cello
Susan Bohling   Cor Anglais
Jeremy Price   Trombone (Tenor)
Julian Nicholas   Saxophone
Chris Dean   Trombone (Tenor)
David Woodcock   Violin
Christopher Tombling   Violin
Robert Smissen   Viola
Will Rumfitt   Trombone
Julia Nicholas   Saxophone

Technical Credits

Tony Doogan   Mixing
Trevor Horn   Producer,Brass Arrangement,Orchestral Arrangements
Nick Ingman   Orchestral Score
Belle and Sebastian   Brass Arrangement,Orchestral Arrangements
Robert Orton   Mixing
Julian Mendelsohn   Mixing,Engineer
Isobel Griffiths   Orchestra Contractor
Darren Allison   Engineer
Gavyn Wright   Leader
Mat Bartram   Assistant
Frank Arkwright   Mastering
Charlotte Trinder   Assistant
Dan Vickers   Mixing,Engineer
Phil Tyreman   Engineer,Assistant Engineer
Steve Price   Engineer
Michael Bannister   Assistant,Mixing Assistant
Tim Lambert   Engineer