The Psychedelic Furs - Psychedelic Furs/Talk Talk Talk/Forever Now (Expanded Editions) (2002)

This triple-pack is excellent value, featuring the first three (& best) albums by Psychedlic Furs: 1980s eponymous debut, 1981's Talk Talk Talk & 82's Forever Now.

The Psychedelic Furs is one of the fine debut albums of that era- up there with Crocodiles, The Affectionate Punch, Kilimanjaro, The Modern Dance & 3 Imaginary Boys. Here The Furs presented their original sound- Richard Butler's cracked Iggy Pop in hell vocals, minimal drumbeats, sinister sax, leftfield pop. It opens with the epic India- which builds up from a swirling post-punk equivalent of Led Zep (see also Echo & Bunnymen's Going UP) to a pulsing new wave rocker- a great sense of drama & the ultimate opening track (Richard Butler's almost trademark rap appearing). It gets better- the downbeat Imitation of Christ, the Mary Chain-influencing Fall & the classic We Love You (a relative of Endless Art & These Are The Things That Dreams Are Made of), which is very post-modern.
Wedding Song is almost a rap, but not in a silly Adam Ant style way; but it is Sister Europe that remains the highlight (even if we can kind of blame the existence of Sisters of Mercy on it). We're in similar territory lyrically to The Velvets Sister Ray, surreal imagery over a repetetive drumbeat, sinister guitars & Ornette Coleman-style sax. A great track...

Talk Talk Talk was an even better album, featuring the original version of Pretty in Pink (rather than the rerecorded version from 1986, for the JOhn Hughes film of the same name) & other great singles Dumb Waiters ("and have another cigarette/have another cigarette") and Mr Jones. Other highlights include the epic All of This & Nothing, the violent Into You Like a Train & the ballad She is Mine.

1982's Forever Now was produced by Todd Rundgren (Hall & Oates, New York Dolls, XTC) & saw the Furs expand their sound- President Gas being a highlight of their career. There's also the great single Love My Way, which was a major influence on Electronic's Getting Away with It (1989), & paved the way for the MTV sounds of Mirror Moves and Midnight to Midnight. The title track is a joyful song, moving away from the bleak territory of the earlier material & single Danger extends on the jazz-rap of Dumb Waiters and Wedding Song. No Easy Street is another great moment, though why the bonus track Shadow is not included is beyond me...

This box-set is great value, three of the key 1980s albums from a band who would never quite regain this status, despite bold attempts on albums such as Book of Days (1989) & World Outside (1991).