The Radar sessions
The Soft Boys signed to the Radar label at the start of 1978, at which point they had just one previous EP release to their name (issued by Raw Records). The group appear to have undertaken three separate sessions at Radar, the last of which was to record their debut album, which never saw light of day.
Bootlegs circulate, with false claims that they contain unreleased Radar material, which confuse the situation considerably. But based on insider information we can be confident of the following details, much of which have never been fully published.
First session for Radar: March 1978
This was convened for the recording of a debut single. It resulted in takes of “Where are the Prawns?”, “(I Want To Be An) Anglepoise Lamp” and “Fatman's Son”.
The second and third of these titles were coupled up and issued on 45.
Second session: May 1978
Recordings included “The Pigworker” (sometimes named “Millstream Pigworker”, as it was recorded at Millstream studios in Somerset). Other details not known.
Third session for the album: July 1978
The following tracks were recorded:
Bootlegs circulate, with false claims that they contain unreleased Radar material, which confuse the situation considerably. But based on insider information we can be confident of the following details, much of which have never been fully published.
First session for Radar: March 1978
This was convened for the recording of a debut single. It resulted in takes of “Where are the Prawns?”, “(I Want To Be An) Anglepoise Lamp” and “Fatman's Son”.
The second and third of these titles were coupled up and issued on 45.
Second session: May 1978
Recordings included “The Pigworker” (sometimes named “Millstream Pigworker”, as it was recorded at Millstream studios in Somerset). Other details not known.
Third session for the album: July 1978
The following tracks were recorded:
- Face of Death, The
- Give It To The Soft Boys
- Hear My Brane
- It’s Not Just The Size Of A Walnut
- Look Into Your Mirror
- Pigworker, The [re-recording ?]
- Psychedelic Love
- Salamander
- The Return of the Sacred Crab
- Ugly Nora
- Wey Wey Hep Uh Hole
- Which Of Us Is Me
- Yodelling Hoover, The
WHAT HAPPENED NEXT?
In total, Radar had 16 tracks in the can. As noted above, “(I Want To Be An) Anglepoise Lamp” / “Fatman's Son” was issued, with the group’s preferred coupling of “Where are the Prawns?” / “Salamander” left unreleased.
In the event, nothing further emerged from Radar, the mysterious missing album becoming legendary among fans. (Robyn himself has stated it's "legendary only because it was too bad to release".)
Instead, Robyn set about creating a label of his own to get the Soft Boys’ material out (see A Can Of Bees) and several of the unreleased Radar tracks were re-recorded in the couple of years which followed.
The rumour mill…
In the event, nothing further emerged from Radar, the mysterious missing album becoming legendary among fans. (Robyn himself has stated it's "legendary only because it was too bad to release".)
Instead, Robyn set about creating a label of his own to get the Soft Boys’ material out (see A Can Of Bees) and several of the unreleased Radar tracks were re-recorded in the couple of years which followed.
The rumour mill…
Due to spurious claims made by bootleggers about these ‘legendary’ sessions, much mis-information has entered the public domain. Chief among the dodgy claims are those surrounding the bootleg LP, The Day They Ate Brick.
This record appeared in the 1980s and purported to include the missing recordings. However all was not as it seemed. At least eight of the 12 tracks had nothing to do with Radar, and at least one was an earlier home recording. The confusion this album caused runs deep, and many sources, including Robyn himself, state that some of the tracks on the Soft Boys' Invisible Hits are Radar recordings, despite the recording dates not matching. This myth seems to have grown out of the inclusion of Invisible Hits tracks as filler on The Day They Ate Brick. |
Further confusion has been sown by other bootlegs claiming to include Radar recordings of songs such as “(I Wanna) Appreciate You”, “Vegetable Girl” and “The Lonesome Death of Ian Penman”, none of which were ever recorded for Radar. (The last of these is, in fact, "Wang Dang Pig" from the Underwater Moonlight sessions, although there is apparently another, genuine song, going by the same title). Another track doing the rounds appears to be a demo of “Psychedelic Love”, but not the Radar version.
ACTUAL RADAR RECORDINGS IN CIRCULATION
Officially released either at the time, or on the retrospective, The Soft Boys 1976-81, are:
Other contenders are the following titles from The Day They Ate Brick (none of which match other known versions, and so could be Radar recordings as claimed):
And finally, a track from a bootleg EP called The Soft Boys, issued on the Black Snake label:
Whatever the true provenance of these five bootleg tracks, all compositions recorded for Radar may be heard in one form or another, recorded and released somewhere, somehow. Just not necessarily at Radar...
- Fatman's Son
- (I Want To Be An) Anglepoise Lamp
- Salamander
- Where are the Prawns?
Other contenders are the following titles from The Day They Ate Brick (none of which match other known versions, and so could be Radar recordings as claimed):
- Look Into Your Mirror [proper version]
- Millstream Pigworker
- Ugly Nora
- Wey Wey Hep Uh Hole
And finally, a track from a bootleg EP called The Soft Boys, issued on the Black Snake label:
- Which Of Us Is Me
Whatever the true provenance of these five bootleg tracks, all compositions recorded for Radar may be heard in one form or another, recorded and released somewhere, somehow. Just not necessarily at Radar...