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Pink Flag Flies Again: Wire to Expand First Three Albums

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English band Wire, influential in both the punk and post-punk scenes, has announced the reissue of their first three, often experimental albums: 1977's Pink Flag, 1978's Chairs Missing, and 1979's 154.  These reissues, due on May 18 from the band's own Pinkflag label, are 2- or 3-CD sets housed within 80-page hardcover books about the size of a 7-inch single (though much thicker!).

Bruce Gilbert, Robert Gotobed (real name: Robert Grey), Graham Lewis, and Colin Newman debuted Wire with Pink Flag on the Harvest label.  The dark, raw, and edgy "punk suite," as some deemed it, was influential to not only hardcore but post-punk and even Britpop.  The quartet returned in 1978 with Chairs Missing, expanding upon the earlier album's minimalism with more clearly defined song structures inspired by progressive and art rock; it even yielded a minor hit single in the U.K., "Outdoor Miner."  154, issued on Harvest in the U.K. and Warner Bros. in the U.S., was named for the number of concerts the band had played at the time of the album's release.  It peaked within the U.K. top 40, proving that time had caught up to the band's experimental tendencies; unfortunately, it would be the final Wire album until 1987.

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These sets are promised to be the definitive editions of Wire's early discography.  Pink Flag will be reissued in 2-CD format, while Chairs Missing and 154 both boast 3 CDs.  Writer Jon Savage (responsible for curating a recent series of year-by-year releases for Ace Records) provides an introduction to each book, while actor-author Graham Duff offers new liner notes including recording details and new interviews with band members.  Lyrics are also included, as well as rare images from the archive of Wire's official photographer at the time, Annette Green.  In each case, the original album is on CD 1, while CDs 2 and 3 offer a host of bonus tracks such as singles, B-sides, demos, and unreleased songs.

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On June 22, the original albums only - sans bonus tracks - will be available in remastered form on both CD and vinyl.  The LPs will replicate the original album packaging, minus the Harvest logo.  Note that the bonus tracks are exclusive to the 2- and 3-CD versions; they will not be made available digitally or in any other format.

Look for the three Wire deluxe CD editions on May 22, and single-disc vinyl and CD remasters on June 22.  You can peruse the track listings and pre-order links below!

Pink Flag: Special Edition (Pinkflag PF11-SE, 2018) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

Disc 1: Original album (released as Harvest SHSP 4076 (U.K.)/ST-11757 (U.S.), 1977)

  1. Reuters
  2. Field Day For The Sundays
  3. Three Girl Rhumba
  4. Ex Lion Tamer
  5. Lowdown
  6. Start To Move
  7. Brazil
  8. It's So Obvious
  9. Surgeon's Girl
  10. Pink Flag
  11. The Commercial
  12. Straight Line
  13. 106 Beats That
  14. Mr. Suit
  15. Strange
  16. Fragile
  17. Mannequin
  18. Different To Me
  19. Champs
  20. Feeling Called Love
  21. 12XU

Disc 2: Demos and alternative recordings

  1. The Commercial (First Demo Sessions)
  2. Mr Suit (First Demo Sessions)
  3. Pink Flag (First Demo Sessions)
  4. Surgeon's Girl (Second Demo Sessions)
  5. Field Day For The Sundays (Second Demo Sessions)
  6. 106 Beats That (Second Demo Sessions)
  7. Fragile (Second Demo Sessions)
  8. Reuters (Third Demo Sessions)
  9. Different To Me (Third Demo Sessions)
  10. Ex Lion Tamer (Third Demo Sessions)
  11. Mannequin (Third Demo Sessions)
  12. Champs (Third Demo Sessions)
  13. Start To Move (Third Demo Sessions)
  14. Ex Lion Tamer (Alt Mix)
  15. 12XU (Mono Mix)
  16. Mannequin (Mono Mix)
  17. It's So Obvious (Alt Mix)

Chairs Missing: Special Edition (Pinkflag PF12-SE, 2018) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

Disc 1: Original album (released as Harvest SHSP 4093 (U.K.), 1978)

  1. Practice Makes Perfect
  2. French Film Blurred
  3. Another The Letter
  4. Men 2nd
  5. Marooned
  6. Sand In My Joints
  7. Being Sucked In Again
  8. Heartbeat
  9. Mercy
  10. Outdoor Miner
  11. I Am The Fly
  12. I Feel Mysterious Today
  13. From The Nursery
  14. Used To
  15. Too Late

Disc 2: Singles, B-sides and studio recordings

  1. I Am The Fly (Single Version)
  2. Dot Dash
  3. Options R
  4. Outdoor Miner (Single Version)
  5. Practice Makes Perfect (Single Version)
  6. Underwater Experiences (Advision Version)

Disc 3: Studio demos

  1. Practice Makes Perfect (Fourth Demo Sessions)
  2. Oh No Not So (Fourth Demo Sessions)
  3. Culture Vultures (Fourth Demo Sessions)
  4. It's The Motive (Fourth Demo Sessions)
  5. Love Ain't Polite (Fourth Demo Sessions)
  6. French Film Blurred (Fourth Demo Sessions)
  7. Sand In My Joints (Fourth Demo Sessions)
  8. Too Late (Fourth Demo Sessions)
  9. I Am The Fly (Fourth Demo Sessions)
  10. Heartbeat (Fourth Demo Sessions)
  11. Underwater Experiences (Fourth Demo Sessions)
  12. Stalemate (Fourth Demo Sessions)
  13. I Feel Mysterious Today (Fourth Demo Sessions)
  14. Dot Dash (Fifth Demo Sessions)
  15. French Film Blurred (Fifth Demo Sessions)
  16. Options R (Fifth Demo Sessions)
  17. Finistaire (Mercy) (Fifth Demo Sessions)
  18. Marooned (Fifth Demo Sessions)
  19. From The Nursery (Fifth Demo Sessions)
  20. Indirect Enquiries (Fifth Demo Sessions)
  21. Outdoor Miner (Fifth Demo Sessions)
  22. Chairs Missing (Used To) (Fifth Demo Sessions)
  23. Being Sucked In Again (Fifth Demo Sessions)
  24. Men 2nd (Fifth Demo Sessions)
  25. Another The Letter (Fifth Demo Sessions)
  26. No Romans (Fifth Demo Sessions)

154: Special Edition (Pinkflag PF13-SE, 2018) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

Disc 1: Original album (released as Harvest SHSP 4105 (U.K.)/Warner Bros. Records BSK 3398 (U.S.), 1979)

  1. I Should Have Known Better
  2. Two People In a Room
  3. The 15th
  4. The Other Window
  5. Single K.O.
  6. A Touching Display
  7. On Returning
  8. A Mutual Friend
  9. Blessed State
  10. Once Is Enough
  11. Map Ref. 41°N 93°W
  12. Indirect Enquiries
  13. 40 Versions

Disc 2: Singles, B-sides and studio recordings

  1. A Question Of Degree
  2. Former Airline
  3. Go Ahead
  4. Our Swimmer
  5. Midnight Bahnhof Cafe
  6. Our Swimmer (2nd Length)
  7. Catapult 30
  8. Song 1
  9. Get Down 1 + 2
  10. Let's Panic Later
  11. Small Electric Piece

Disc 3: Studio demos

  1. 40 Versions (Sixth Demo Sessions)
  2. Ignorance No Plea (I Should Have Known Better) (Sixth Demo Sessions)
  3. Blessed State (Sixth Demo Sessions)
  4. A Touching Display (Sixth Demo Sessions)
  5. The 15th (Sixth Demo Sessions)
  6. A Mutual Friend (Sixth Demo Sessions)
  7. Once Is Enough (Sixth Demo Sessions)
  8. The Other Window (Sixth Demo Sessions)
  9. Stepping Off Too Quick (Sixth Demo Sessions)
  10. Indirect Enquiries (Sixth Demo Sessions)
  11. Map Ref. 41°N 93°W (Sixth Demo Sessions)
  12. Single K.O. (Sixth Demo Sessions)
  13. On Returning (Sixth Demo Sessions)
  14. A Question Of Degree (Sixth Demo Sessions)
  15. Former Airline (Sixth Demo Sessions)
  16. Two People In a Room (Sixth Demo Sessions)
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Joe Marchese

JOE MARCHESE (Editor) joined The Second Disc shortly after its launch in early 2010, and has since penned daily news and reviews about classic music of all genres. In 2015, Joe formed the Second Disc Records label. Celebrating the great songwriters, producers and artists who created the sound of American popular song, Second Disc Records, in conjunction with Real Gone Music, has released newly-curated collections produced by Joe from iconic artists such as Johnny Mathis, Bobby Darin, Laura Nyro, Melissa Manchester, Chet Atkins, and many others. He has contributed liner notes to reissues from a diverse array of artists, among them Nat "King" Cole, Paul Williams, Lesley Gore, Dusty Springfield, B.J. Thomas, The 5th Dimension, Burt Bacharach, The Mamas and the Papas, Carpenters, Perry Como, Rod McKuen, Doris Day, Jackie DeShannon, and Andy Williams, and has compiled releases for talents including Robert Goulet and Keith Allison of Paul Revere and the Raiders. Over the past two decades, Joe has also worked in a variety of capacities on and off Broadway as well as at some of the premier theatres in the U.S., including Lincoln Center Theater, George Street Playhouse, Paper Mill Playhouse, Long Wharf Theatre, and the York Theatre Company. He has felt privileged to work on productions alongside artists such as the late Jack Klugman, Eli Wallach, Arthur Laurents, Betty Comden and Adolph Green. In 2009, Joe began contributing theatre and music reviews to the print publication The Sondheim Review, and in 2012, he joined the staff of The Digital Bits as a regular contributor writing about film and television on DVD and Blu-ray. Joe currently resides in the suburbs of New York City.

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