Achtung Bono

2005 studio album by Half Man Half Biscuit
Achtung Bono
Studio album by
Released12 September 2005
RecordedFrog Studios, Warrington [1]
GenrePost-punk
Length40:34
LabelProbe Plus Probe 57
ProducerCarl Wark
Half Man Half Biscuit chronology
Saucy Haulage Ballads
(2003) 		Achtung Bono
(2005) 		CSI:Ambleside
(2008)
Dedicated to the memory of John Peel
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic [2]
Stylus MagazineA− [3]

Achtung Bono is the tenth album by UK indie rock band Half Man Half Biscuit, released in 2005.[4]

In 2010, a Facebook campaign was mounted with the aim of saving BBC 6 Music from threatened closure and, as a sign of protest, to get "Joy Division Oven Gloves" from Achtung Bono to No. 6 in the UK Singles Chart on 12 April 2010.[5][6] In the event, it entered the Singles Chart that week at No. 56 and the Independent Singles Chart at No. 3.[7][8] Whether or not the campaign was influential, BBC 6 Music was saved.

Critical reception

Reviews were generally favourable:

  • Stewart Mason, Allmusic: "One of their finest albums".[2]
  • Roger Holland, PopMatters: "Achtung Bono is a worthy addition to the HMHB canon".[9]
  • Ben Granger, Spike Magazine: "This is probably not one of Half Man Half Biscuit’s best albums. And yet its [sic] still fantastic".[10]
  • Dom Passantino, Stylus Magazine: "UK album of the year, by a landslide".[3]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."Restless Legs"1:53
2."Corgi Registered Friends"3:39
3."For What Is Chatteris..."2:05
4."Shit Arm, Bad Tattoo"2:41
5."Surging Out of Convalescence"3:38
6."Upon Westminster Bridge"2:45
7."Joy Division Oven Gloves"3:10
8."Mate of the Bloke"3:37
9."Asparagus Next Left"2:55
10."Depressed Beyond Tablets"3:00
11."Bogus Official"1:22
12."Letters Sent"2:38
13."Twydale's Lament"3:31
14."We Built This Village on a Trad. Arr. Tune"3:48

Notes

  • The album title is a satirical reference to the title of the 1991 album Achtung Baby by Irish rock band U2 and to its singer Bono.
  • Restless legs syndrome is a poorly understood neurological disorder.
  • Until 1 April 2009, gas fitters in the UK had to be "Corgi registered" to practise their trade. Corgi stands for the Council for Registered Gas Installers; since replaced by Gas Safe.
  • Chatteris is a small town in Cambridgeshire.
  • "Shit Arm, Bad Tattoo" has been suggested to refer to the cover of the eponymous second album by the Libertines, released 2004.[2][3][10] Nigel Blackwell of Half Man Half Biscuit has, however, denied such a connection.[9][11]
  • Upon Westminster Bridge is an 1802 poem by William Wordsworth (1770–1850).
  • Westminster Bridge is a major bridge over the River Thames in central London.
  • Joy Division were an influential band from Manchester in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The song satirises band merchandising.
  • "Asparagus Next Left" is the sort of sign that can be seen on British country roads advertising farm products for sale at the farm gate.
  • "Depressed Beyond Tablets" is from a line in the "Crime" episode of Chris Morris's controversial TV comedy Brass Eye.
  • "Bogus Official" is asterisked on the album track listing as a 'Public information tune'.
  • Twydale is a fictional person.
  • The title "We Built This Village on a Trad. Arr. Tune" parodies that of the 1985 song "We Built This City" by Starship.
  • "Trad. Arr." is short for "traditional, arranged (by)", and is often attached to recordings of folk music.
  • Brenda Blethyn starred in "Outside Edge", a 1990s ITV sitcom about a village cricket team.

References

  1. ^ "Frog Recording Studios". Retrieved 25 February 2016.
  2. ^ a b c Mason, Stewart. Achtung Bono at AllMusic. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
  3. ^ a b c Passantino, Dom (21 September 2005). "Half Man Half Biscuit: Achtung Bono". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on 10 May 2012. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
  4. ^ Half Man Half Biscuit – Achtung Bono at Discogs
  5. ^ McCabe, Maisie (22 March 2010). "6 Music supporters push Half Man Half Biscuit song". mediaweek.co.uk. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
  6. ^ Plunkett, John (7 April 2010). "Campaign to save 6 Music takes the Biscuit". The Guardian. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
  7. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100: 11 April 2010–17 April 2010". Official Charts. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
  8. ^ "Official Independent Singles Chart Top 50: 11 April 2010–17 April 2010". Official Charts. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
  9. ^ a b Holland, Roger. "Kicking Against The Pricks! An Interview with Half Man Half Biscuit". PopMatters. Retrieved 26 February 2016. Date c. 2005.
  10. ^ a b Granger, Ben (1 November 2005). "Half Man Half Biscuit : Achtung Bono". Retrieved 27 February 2016.
  11. ^ Stewart, Michael (24 November 2014). "URGE FOR NIGEL: an interview with Nigel Blackwell of Half Man Half Biscuit". Retrieved 26 February 2016.

External links

  • "Achtung Bono". Retrieved 26 February 2016. The oldest-established Half Man Half Biscuit fansite.
  • "Achtung Bono". Retrieved 26 February 2016. The Half Man Half Biscuit Lyrics Project.
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  • MusicBrainz release group