Big Country - The Crossing
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On this episode, we dive kilt deep into The Crossing, the 1983 debut album by Big Country. Formed in Dunfermline, Scotland, the band’s journey to this critically acclaimed album wasn’t a straight line, and involved a drum machine, a member of the Jam, and a failed attempt by producer extraordinaire Chris Thomas, before Steve Lillywhite took the reigns to produce an LP that became an unabashed commercial success.
It's an album full of unusual guitar techniques and gadgetry, including the abundant uses of EBow and digital delays (relatively new guitar gadgets for the time) to emulate Celtic instruments (bagpipes in particular) and create an album of soaring anthems with a marshal beat, that embraced the band’s Celtic heritage with its music, lyrical imagery, and its overall tone.
THINGS WE DISCUSSED ON THIS EPISODE
Is this the original Scottish Hair band?
(From L to R) Mark Brzezicki, Stuart Adamson, Tony Butler, Bruce Watson
Listen to Stuart Adamson’s first band the Skids best known song “Into the Valley” from their Scared to Dance album. It reached number 10 on the UK Singles Chart.
See Mark Brzezicki and Tony Butler perfroming in the video for Pete Townshend’s “Slit Skirts.” The were both in a band with Pete Townshend’s brother, Simon Townshend prior to joining Big Country.
What’s this EBow we keep talking about? Why watch the video below to find out
In 2013 Big Country reformed with Mike Peters of the Alarm singin lead and even recorded an album, The Journey, in 2013. Listen to “Winter Fire” from that album below.
