The Left Banke “There’s Gonna Be A Storm”
Noted as one of the trailblazers of baroque pop, the Left Banke, known for their huge hit ‘Walk Away Renee’ were original twee. Think of a classical Zombies, harpsichord instead of wurli with dramatic classically-influenced arrangements.
‘Pretty Ballerina’ is their lesser but still well-known hit, and the singing is drop dead gorgeous. Steve Martin (not that Steve Martin) was one of the most under appreciated rock vocalists of his generation and his tender delivery, combined with the delicate string arrangements assured ‘Ballerina.’ Michael Brown wrote great melodies, lyrics tuned to the woe of teenage heartbreak.
Key tracks include ‘Shadows Breaking Over My Head,’ ‘She May Call You Up Tonight,’ ‘I Haven’t Got The Nerve,’ ‘Barterers And Their Wives,’ ‘There’s Gonna Be A Storm’ etc. The 2nd half of this collection covers the material surrounding the Left Banke’s unfortunate demise.
Only a country-rocker falls flat on a completely solid album that many people call baroque pop. Their second album Too, is respectable but lacks the fire of the debut and does not benefit from Michael Brown’s absence. Essential stuff!!
For the complete recordings of the Left Banke in one package, get this.
‘Desiree’ plus ‘Men Are Building Sand’ would be part of the excellent follow up record, Montage.
“I’ve Got Something On My Mind”
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This song is great. I’m pretty sure that the band is mentioned in the book, “The Rotters Club” by Daniel Coe. If you haven’t read it, you should. Look for it on Amazon and read the blurb. It’s one of my favorites and I think it might be right up your alley.
Hey I made a new layout. See if this one is fruity enough for you. Thanks for the plug!
I believe the first few notes are the same ones used in Jens Lekman’s song Black Cab. I too love the Left Banke sound, thanks for the lead.
Some comments on the Left Banke’s debut album: This record really is as good as people will lead you to believe. Steve Martin was definitely one of the most underappreciated rock vocalists of his generation and Michael Brown wrote great melodies with a strong sense of teenage heartbreak. Only a country-rocker falls flat on a completely solid album that many people call “baroque pop.” The way I see it, She May Call You Up Tonite is everything power pop can be, and people forget how great the haunting Pretty Ballerina is. If they had released 1 or 2 other great albums people would be referring to the Left Banke as the American Zombies. Their second album Too, is respectable but lacks the fire of the debut and does not benefit from Michael Brown’s absence. Essential stuff!!
“For the complete recordings of the Left Banke in one package, get this.”
Not quite complete! The song Waterfall appeared on both the Rhino best of LP and the Bam Caruso ‘And Suddenly’ anthology LP+CD. Apparently this dates from the Pedestal/Myrah session. I assume space prevented it’s inclusion.
There’s a couple of interesting bootlegs: “Leftbankisms Volume 1 & 2”. The first contains Waterfall, a whole bunch of radio adverts, Steve Martin’s solo 45 (which has Michael Brown on it) and some outtakes. The second has tracks by the Beckies, Yvonne Vitalle and Mike Brown & Steve Martin.