Graham Parker and The Rumour – The Up Escalator (1980) Review | Stranded on the Devil’s Sidewalk
Kronomyth 6.0: Shoot for the stairs.
Sparks fly again on The Up Escalator as Graham Parker inches closer to those angry young Englishmen, Elvis Costello and Joe Jackson. Without Bob Andrews, the arrangements are bit leaner, and producer Jimmy Iovine (Making Movies, Hard Promises) doesn’t pull any punches. Every song hits hard, none harder than Endless Night, which features longtime fan Bruce Springsteen on vocals. This was the album that should have fixed Parker’s rising star in the firmament. But no hit single was forthcoming. No Holding Back, “Endless Night,” Stupefaction, Love Without Greed, not one of them stuck. You had to wonder what Parker had to do to get arrested. Savvy listeners had already tuned into him, of course, and for them The Up Escalator marks a high point in his catalog. Maybe you prefer his last (Squeezing Out Sparks) or his next (Another Grey Area), but each from that trio of albums features the amply baited, barbed hooks that intelligent rock fans will find nigh irresistible. There isn’t a single misstep on The Up Escalator: Empty Lives, The Beating of Another Heart, Jolie Jolie and not an ounce of fat. And yet, in some ways this album was the one that broke the camel’s backing band. Bob Andrews had already left, and the rest of The Rumour would soon follow. It was a nice ride while it lasted and, if you’re feeling nostalgic, you could always pick up those albums by The Rumour that you’d been eyeing in the cutout bin. It was becoming clear that Arista didn’t know how to market Parker any better than Mercury and as for Stiff Records, well, it was a miracle they were still in business.
The Product
A1. No Holding Back (3:18)
A2. Devil’s Sidewalk (3:14)
A3. Stupefaction (3:30)
A4. Empty Lives (5:06)
A5. The Beating of Another Heart (4:20)
B1. Endless Night (3:35)
B2. Paralyzed (3:12)
B3. Maneuvers (3:28)
B4. Jolie Jolie (2:59)
B5. Love Without Greed (3:24)
All songs written by Graham Parker.
CD bonus track
11. Women in Charge
Expanded CD reissue bonus track
12. Hey Lord Don’t Ask Me Questions (live)
The Players
Graham Parker (vocals, rhythm & acoustic guitars), Martin Belmont (rhythm & acoustic guitars), Andrew Bodnar (bass), Stephen Goulding (drums & backing vocals), Brinsley Schwarz (lead guitars & backing vocals) with Danny Federici (organ), Nicky Hopkins (acoustic piano), Jimmy Maelen (percussion), Bruce Springsteen (backing vocals on B1), Peter Wood (synthesizer). Produced by Jimmy Iovine; engineered by Shelly Yakus; additional engineering by Dave Thoener, Jon Mathias.
The Pictures
Cover painting by Jack Drumond. Photography by Glenn M. Brown. Lettering by Richard Giglio.
The Plastic
Released on elpee and cassette in May 1980 in the UK (Stuff, SEEZ 23), the US and Canada (Arista, AL/ATC 9517), France (Barclay/Stiff, 940831), Germany (Stiff, 624355), Japan (Stiff, VIP-6730), New Zealand (Mercury, 6437 127), Portugal (Stiff, SEEZ 23 NP) and Yugoslavia (RTV Ljubljana, LL0635) with picture innersleeve. Reached #11 on the UK charts and #40 on the US charts.
- Re-issued on expanded compact disc and cassette in the US (Arista, ARCD/AC5 8093) with one bonus track.
- Re-issued on expanded compact disc in the US (Razor Edge, RE1980) with one bonus track.
- Re-issued on expanded compact disc in the UK and France (Demon, FIENDCD121) with one bonus track.
- Re-issued on expanded compact disc in 2001 in France (Diablo, 843) with one bonus track.
- Re-issued on expanded, remastered compact disc in 2003 in Europe (Cherry Red, CDLEM013) with 2 bonus tracks.
