Place Without a Postcard Studio album by Midnight Oil Released November 1981 Recorded June–July 1981 Sussex Genre Alternative rock, college rock, post-punk Length 40:57 Label Sprint Music / CBS Producer Glyn Johns Place Without a Postcard is the third studio album by Australian alternative rockers, Midnight Oil, which was released in November 1981 under Sprint Music and the Columbia Records label. It peaked at No. 12 on the Kent Music Report albums chart and the related singles "Don’t Wanna be the One" and "Armistice Day" reached the associated Top 40 chart. The band's third LP Place Without a Postcard, released by CBS Records in November 1981, was recorded in Sussex with English producer Glyn Johns (The Rolling Stones, The Who) at a studio/barn on Johns' property.[1][2] Creative tensions between the band and Johns plagued the recording and the group were not totally happy with the outcome. Johns had an arrangement with A&M Records and they asked Midnight Oil to return to the studio to record material suitable for an American single release – the group refused and returned to Australia.[2] Place without a Postcard peaked at No. 12 on the albums charts and related singles "Don’t Wanna be the One" (No. 40) and "Armistice Day" reached the Top 40 in Australia.[3] Cover and other photography by Robert Butcher.
Don't wanna be the one You can hear a clash of two worlds in this song. You hear the rock of the band and a crossover attempt into a slight pop/rock, feel/sound. On this song it works pretty well, but again much better live. The band seemed to be striving for something they weren't sure of. On all their albums up to here you can hear the band reaching and all this reaching would eventually bring fruit on the next album. Lyrics I'm an innocent victim, I'm just like you We end up in home units with a brick wall view I can't believe the perfect families on my colour TV If I don't make it to the top it'll never bother me And I don't want to be the one I don't want to be the one I'm an innocent bystander caught in the path Waiting out the back while the corporate attack Assaults the senses with relentless scenes of passion and delight I cut up all the options and went running for my life
Brave Faces This song works really well. This is a well written song that has more in common with the songs from prior albums. Lyrics I've seen faces in the window I've seen faces in the street They walk and talk of nothing I've known many restless summers The sand dunes I imagine A place without a postcard Flower people were so beautiful But straight and loud's the way Good luck the beatnik spirit The talk of politicians The sentences of cynics Are the sentences of childhood They're all talking **** to me Out-talked by the mass media to pay the bills it lies And the lies we eat for breakfast Brave faces face the boardroom the oak stained walls fall silent They leave lined with defeat And they got those tears in their eyes Well it makes no sense to me Why don't they understand We're so ordinary too I saw the exits closing now Pain and passion's my point of view Well there's nothing like the truth I've seen men that have been marked out Ruled out by grim assassins They fell hard on instant replay And I'm never going there Well the place I see so much better 'cause it makes no sense to me I saw the exits closing now Burning mountains, burning paper Burning all around and later
Yes, it does help, thank you. Don't mean to hijack the thread but Soundphile is right. For anyone interested, there appears to be two early masterings of the album - The Good: 69.0 / 72.2 / 76.4 / 73.5 / 73.0 / 73.8 / 74.1 / 71.3 / 68.2 / 63.2 The Bad: 97.7 / 97.7 / 97.7 / 97.7 / 95.5 / 97.7 / 97.7 / 97.7 / 97.7 / 97.3 It looks like there may be some kind of hard limiting applied to mastering # 2.
Well if yourself and @soundphile want to let us know the best vinyl and cd pressings i am not going to have a hissy fit. I'm a song guy that likes good mastering, but wont refuse to listen to something with bad mastering. It seems that the music industry has this murderous wish to destroy albums with this hardline mastering. For the most part i am just running through songs for those who missed out on the band, or specific albums.
Watching oils on water and being reminded what a great show it is/was. It probably also explains my fondness for red sails in spite of some of its short comings.
Actually watching the capitol saturday night now .... i never used to like this as much as oils on water, and now i don't know why?
I didn't fully connect with A Place Without A Postcard until fairly recently, but these days it's my favorite Oils album on certain days. I love how it was recorded, really sounds like 5 guys playing live in a room. I think it's their first album with some truly great songs. I can see styles of rock that may have influenced them, but they really don't sound like anyone else.
Place without a Postcard is one of my Fav albums all the way back when I bought an Aussie pressing back when it can out in 1981. Musically it is wonderful, sonically it has always been a muddy mess. Imagine my surprise when on the recent vinyl box set, the sonic blanket has been lifted from the recording. Sounds superb and easily the best mastering of the box set vs original pressings. from start to the absolute stunning finish of Lucky Country - this vinyl mastering is the bomb. cheers
My thread surprise.... I have Jim Mogines 8 track demo's for this album on a cassette somewhere... They are surprisingly close to the album (from Memory and it's been a LONG time since I've played it)
Armistice Day A sparse, eerie feeling pervades most of this song. Toward the middle of the song a beat brings it together. An effective and effecting song. Lyrics You're watching people fighting, you're watching people losing On Armistice Day The watchers do the wincing, reporters so convincing But the TV never lies I went looking for a war, but the only guns I saw Never used in anger You're watching people fight, say they fight, oh say they lose On Armistice Day The fixers do the fixing, the locals do the lynching The papers deny I went looking for a headline, got talking to the backline They'd never seen the action
Someone else to blame A Pretty straight rock song for Midnight Oil and it comes across well. Lyrics Tell for yourself, watch me sweat, watch me crawl Stretch me on the table, up against the wall You can see for yourself, but you better not say You're working four more hours every other day See me suffer see me pain Must be someone else to blame See me suffer see me pain There's more trouble at the dockyard Party's shouting at the union Short fuses on their anger Workers in confusion Then there's the vandals of the right They stalk the streets at night Got someone else to fight Got someone else to blame See me suffer You can speak for yourself Before the moment is lost But I don't want to shout 'cause I' m counting the cost I'm counting the cost See me suffer
Can you check your originals deadwax - I think my Aussie copy sounds great, it could be a recut - with TML in the deadwax. The Mastering Lab = US metal parts
Aah, the memories come flooding back. I didn't really get into Midnight Oil until Diesel and Dust but I was regularly subjected to the earlier albums when the older kids got the school bus driver to play their cassettes on the way to and from high school. Place Without A Postcard got regular play on those trips. IMHO, Place Without A Postcard was the first album to have a strong, cohesive collection of songs but the production leaves a lot to be desired. Songs that are so powerful in a live setting lack potency and punch on the album. The opening trifecta of Don't Wanna Be The One, Brave Faces and Armistice Day are as strong an opening as anything on any other Oil's album but they need to be heard in a live context to really appreciate their power. A great album hampered by its production. Everything fell into place 12 months later.
Great thread - thanks Mark. One of my all time favourite bands, and had the pleasure of seeing them seven times last year. My first MO show was in 1993; would have loved to have seen them in Sydney in the early 80s.
Yeah, the remaster really does sound tons better. One of the biggest improvements I've ever heard from original to remaster.
