Del Amitri – del Amitri (1985)
Another Scottish band I am afraid – well, they are particularly good. Formed by Justin Currie who is the lead singer and main songwriter – they first came to my notice with their singles, the biggest of which was ‘Roll To Me’. But I suspected they were more than just a pop group and I was right. As is often the case, I worked backwards and only discovered this debut in the mid-nineties. Their songs are edgy and quirky and sometimes quite venomous – and occasionally joyous. They also achieved minor fame by recording the official anthem for Scotland’s World Cup final appearance in 1998 (the last time, so far). The song was great and somewhat ironic at the same time; ‘Don’t Come Home Too soon’ was prophetic, as they failed to get out of their group. Anyway, back to this debut – best songs are ‘Sticks and Stones, Girl’, ‘Crows In The Wheatfield’ (which I think references Van Gogh’s last painting – and ‘Keepers’, though all the songs are good. The band released 6 albums before Justin attempted a solo career. They reformed a few years ago, but I haven’t bought their latest. A very competent and interesting band.