Kite

by Kirsty MacColl

Overview

Only Kirsty MacColl's second solo album in the tenth year of her career (she took several years off to have children after marrying producer Steve Lillywhite), 1989's Kite is the pinnacle of her achievement. By far her best-sustained work, this lengthy 15-track album features some of the singer/songwriter's best work on both sides of the hyphen. Her always-terrific vocals -- MacColl was quite likely the best female singer of her generation -- are overdubbed several times on most tracks to create thick, lush harmonies, most notably on the gorgeous cover of the Kinks' "Days." Her songwriting is excellent as well, with some of her sharpest and cleverest words and most memorable melodies found here. The piercing "Innocence" and "Free World" are two of MacColl's most combative songs, while "What Do Pretty Girls Do?" and "Fifteen Minutes," for all their tart lines, are MacColl at her most sympathetic. Besides the excellent originals, another pair of terrific covers -- the Smiths' "You Just Haven't Earned It Yet, Baby" and Kate and Anna McGarrigle's "Complainte pour Ste. Catherine" (given a rather Cuban rearrangement that foreshadows her later experiments in Latin music) -- show both MacColl's widely varied influences and her immense interpretive powers. [In 2005 EMI reissued Kite with the bonus tracks "Happy," "Am I Right?," "El Paso," "Le Foret de Mimosas," "Complainte Pour Ste Catherine," as well as alternate mixes of "Freeworld," "Innocence," "No Victims [Guitar Heroes Mix]" and "End of a Perfect Day."] ~ Stewart Mason

Product Details

Release Date:	03/08/2024
Label:	Demon Records / Edsel
UPC:	5014797911031

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Kirsty MacColl   Primary Artist,Bass,Guitar,Vocals,Autoharp,Percussion
Robbie McIntosh   Guitar,Guitar
Steve Lillywhite   Bass
Ben Cruft   Violin
Louis MacColl   Vocals
David Palmer   Drums,Percussion
Stuart Brooks   Trumpet
Malcolm Griffiths   Trombone
Johnny Marr   Guitar,Harmonica
Pino Palladino   Bass
Mel Gaynor   Drums
Yves N'Djock   Guitar,Vocals
Guy Barker   Trumpet
Mark Berrow   Violin
David Gilmour   Guitar
Guy Pratt   Bass
Gavyn Wright   Violin
James Eller   Bass
Fiachra Trench   Strings
Jamie Talbot   Saxophone
Pete Glenister   Guitar
Wilf Gibson   Violin
Roy Gillard   Violin
Colin Stuart   Guitar
Steve Turner   Guitar
Paul Crowder   Percussion,Tambourine
Phil Todd   Clarinet
David Woodcock   Violin
Jamie Maccoll   Vocals

Technical Credits

Raymond Davies   Composer
Alan Douglas   Engineer,Recording
Steve Lillywhite   Producer
Kirsty MacColl   Composer,Producer
Johnny Marr   Composer,Producer
Mark Wallis   Mixing,Engineer,Mixing Engineer
Ray Davies   Composer
Anna McGarrigle   Composer
Morrissey   Composer
Gavin Povey   Composer
Steve Chase   Engineer,Recording
Chris Dickie   Engineer,Recording
Fiachra Trench   Arranger
Pete Glenister   Composer
Roy Spong   Engineer
Marty Robbins   Composer
Colin Stuart   Mixing,Engineer,Producer,Recording,Mixing Engineer
Philip Rambow   Composer
Joseph Morissey   Composer
Philippe Tatartcheff   Composer
Noel Harris   Engineer,Assistant
Allen Douglas   Engineer,Recording
Heidi Cannovo   Engineer