Let The Day Begin...Let The Day Start!: Day 268 - The Psychedelic Furs

Forever Now - The Psychedelic Furs

CBS

Produced by Todd Rundgren

Released September 1982

UK Chart #20

US Chart #61

Forever Now (UK Version)

 UK Tracklist

A1 President Gas   
A2 Love My Way    
A3 Run And Run    
A4 Merry-Go-Round  
A5 Sleep Comes Down
B1 Forever Now    
B2 Danger
B3 Only You and I     
B4 Goodbye
B5 No Easy Street

Personnel
The Psychedelic Furs
    Richard Butler – vocals
    John Ashton – guitars
    Tim Butler – bass guitar
    Vince Ely – drums

Additional personnel
    Todd Rundgren – keyboards; saxophone; marimba
    Gary Windo – horns
    Donn Adams – horns
    Ann Sheldon – cello
    Flo & Eddie (Mark Volman and Howard Kaylan) – backing vocals

(US Cover)

Forever Now (US Version)

There was different Track Listing on the American Release

A1 Forever Now    
A2 Love My Way    
A3 Goodbye    
A4 Only You And I    
A5 Sleep Comes Down
B1 President Gas    
B2 Run And Run
B3 Danger    
B4 No Easy Street
B5 Yes I Do

Singles from Forever Now

Love My Way / Aeroplane (Dance Mix)

July 1982

UK Chart #42

US Chart #44

Danger / I Don't Want To Be Your Shadow

October 1982

Did Not Chart

Run and Run / President Gas (Live)

May 1983
Did Not Chart

******************

After an absolutely pulsating debut album and then a tricky second album (Talk Talk Talk) Forever Now, their third Studio album in as many years was always going to be a challenge.

The challenge came from within as Sax player Duncan Kilburn and Guitarist Roger Morris left the band under a bit of a storm cloud! Steve Lilywhite was unavailable to produce after overseeing the duties on the first two albums and the band had been forced into the situation as a four piece, though there were also questions regarding the commitment of Drummer Vince Ely that forced the remaining three - John Ashton, Tim and Richard Butler - into creating some new music without the use of drums! I don't know the full extent of the issues regarding Ely but he's on the album but did depart the band after the recording had been completed.

Bringing Todd Rundgren on board as Producer was an interesting move and he added some new elements to their sound as well as bringing in Flo and Eddie to do backing vocals. The band were not too keen at first on this move but it's interesting to see that besides their work with The Turtles in the sixties, Frank Zappa and The Mothers of Invention in the early seventies, they had sung back up on an interesting array of projects with the likes of T-Rex, Ray Manzarek, Roger McGuinn, David Cassidy (!), Keith Moon, Stephen Stills, Alice Cooper, Blondie and they had also sung backing on Hungry Heart by Springsteen!

Love My Way is probably the track that most people know of from the album and whilst it charted it was not a real smash hit, which is a shame really because in its essence it is an outstanding pop song.

Personally my favourite track on it is President Gas, it sounds more like the Furs that I know and love from the first couple of albums.

Tim Butler has said that Forever Now is his favourite album, I wouldn't go that far myself. It's good but the album that was to follow eight months later would be way much better (Mirror Moves).

A point about the difference between the UK and US editions of the album. Personally I don't understand this. Richard Butler says that when he first saw the replacement cover, he "actually burst into tears" and rightly so because it looks terrible and exceedingly drab in comparison with the explosion of colour of the UK release created by the late great Barney Bubbles (I must at some point do a post dedicated to the great Artwork of BB). Record Executives at Columbia clearly had no sense! Given the choice I would rather put the UK artwork on my wall because at least it actually looks like a piece of art!

The changes to tracklisting and sequence as well were uncalled for as that rush of sound with President Gas, Love My Way, and Run and Run on the UK edition is (I think) a much better way to kick off the album than Forever Now, Love My Way and Goodbye! Maybe you can make your own mind up by listening to them both above!

Let The Day Begin...Let The Day Start!