- Label: 'Think Like A Key Music'
- Genre: 'Seventies'
- Release Date: '22.5.26.'- Catalogue No: 'TLAK1235'
Our Rating:
Clowns is the only solo album by Ed Welch who maybe better known as a member of The Wurzels, or for writing songs for Francoise Hardy, this album was co-written in an Air-Mail collaboration with Tom Paxton and was recorded at Central Sound Studios and produced by Michael Du Albuquerque and engineered by Paul Holland. his backing band are Cozy Powell, Alan Gorrie, Michael Du Alberquerque, Joe Meek, Frank Aiello, Maria Popkievitch and the orchestra led by David Katz.
The album opens with the title song Clowns that has a rather widescreen production, stings and piccolos dance across the room with you, through a string led breakdown the piano seems to mark time, while they celebrate those clowns.
Maybe It's Today that you give in and fall in love with him, like he is the next Gilbert O'Sullivan and irresistible to you, if only his prayers were answered. I Couldn't Wait To Tell You is an orchestral love song that is in the New Seekers meets Peter Sarstedt vein, he makes clear you belong in a great love song like this.
Smile Like A Movie Star has the most upfront riff on the album, they get going claiming the object of his desire has A Smile Like A Movie Star on a song that could almost be on the soundtrack to Paper Moon. The piano when it gets going has an Albert Ammons influence to the strides it takes leading to the full orchestral interlude.
It's Another Beautiful Day is pretty as a picture, full on glorious orchestral pop with velvety vocals, a cool recorder part and a wondrous sense of calm for how you expect to spend your time, however bereft you feel because you are alone. The percussive breakdown could easily be sampled as a break beat and put into any number of dance records.
It's All Down To You he wants you to do what you can to keep his love on this Elton John style piano ballad full of yearning. What Did I Do That Was Wrong apart from being a bit too mellow and laid back, he wants to know why you said goodbye, he hasn't quite got the hang of the late 60's and early 70's free love scene evidently.
Down In The City is a morning after song of love and graceful strings and harps, he pleads to go Down In The City with you, where he will show you all the love he has, on this song that Cilla Black recorded the best-known version of.
Show Me The Way To Your Heart asks in a very straight forward style what it will take to make you go out with Ed, he'll even shave his tache off, he'll even rein in the string section if he has too. The Bird Song is a slow piano led evocation to the birds he gazes at in his garden, this has a pastoral feel, with the swelling strings and multi voiced backing singers. We Can Make It is rather downbeat and forlorn, with hopes they might make it as long as the morning before it all goes wrong, no amount of strings can keep the flame alive.
The bonus material of two single opens with It Ain't Easy (But I'll Try) (Single A-Side) it's not the most famous song of this title, this is a slow song full of pleas for trying to get things right, just once, will that heavy load keep him down, or will he be able to find his way back to you.
Fridays (Single B-Side) is a rather wistful song for the start of the weekend, like you are expecting a quiet one, the strings cocoon you while the piano tinkles gently away. I Should Have Been A Lady (Single A-side) is a chamber pop song that seems to be pleading for a sex change in some remarkably soft rock ways, it would have been astonishing if this had been a hit in 1971.
The album closes with All The Way To Richmond (Single B-Side) it would be an easy journey on the North london Line from here, whether I would be able to find you any more easily than Ed can is another matter entirely, the strings sweep in as he talks of Georgia and the pains of the parting that he still regrets. Can he ever put that fire out in the midst of those battles in the American Civil war that this references.
Find Out More at https://www.thinklikeakey.com/format/1913357-clowns-2026-remaster https://thinklikeakey.bandcamp.com/album/clowns-2026-remaster
