Either Andy Partridge has way too much time on his hands or he’s simply too prolific to be reined in by the confines of XTC, the proto-punk band-turned-Beatles/Beach Boys disciples he founded nearly three decades back. It’s likely a bit of both; after all, it’s been practically 25 years since Partridge announced the group would cease playing live gigs and a good six years that have elapsed since their last formal outing, the unusually ambitious Wasp Star: Apple Venus Volume 2. It was shortly thereafter that this reticent genius released the first of what would eventually become eight installments of his Fuzzy Warbles series, lavishly anointed compilations of outtakes, demos and unreleased tracks from his personal archives, songs destined for XTC albums and either waylaid or retooled along the way. So while Partridge patrons have struggled to keep up – and to dole out import-inflated prices in the process – the task has been simplified with the release of a lavish box, The Fuzzy Warbles Collectors Album, a domestic offering that boasts all eight original albums and a bonus ninth disc containing nine tracks exclusive to this collection. Those already in possession of the imports may grouse about having to duplicate their previous purchases in order to obtain this final add-on, but anyone yet to make the plunge will find the wealth of music – over 100 tracks in all – a fascinating glimpse into a reticent genius that carries with it both excess and invention. As XTC devotees well know, his is a melodic sensibility that recalls Brian Wilson, Todd Rundgren and Jeff Lynne in his fastidious ingenuity and devotion to stunningly tuneful composition embossed with elaborate arrangements. So too, there’s always been an element that’s more than slightly awry about the Partridge pastiche, so its no surprise to find examples of the absurd (among them, “The Laugh Track,� which, true to its title, features its mastermind simply cracking up in hysterics, and “That Wag,� a studio rehearsal that finds him singing with a Dylanesque slur) colliding with more studious attempts (the persistent pop of “Dame Fortune� and “My Train Is Coming� along with insular takes on fan favorites like “The Man Who Sailed Around His Soul,� “Mermaid Smiled,� “Dear God,� and “25 O’Clock,� recorded under the aegis of their psychedelic alter-egos, the Dukes of Stratosphear). And lest anyone doubt a source of his inspiration, the set also includes a remarkably faithful read of “Strawberry Fields Forever.� Suffice to say, these volumes provide a bounty of brilliance to relish and enjoy.
~Lee Zimmerman
Release date: October 24, 2006
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