Altered Images

[Silvina Hernandez]

The first time I heard stuff by Altered Images was 2 years ago while listening to an online radio station that played 80s New Wave. The first song of theirs I heard was Dead Pop Stars, which I didn't like because it was a bit too dark for my tastes. But then a few days later I heard Happy Birthday and I Could Be Happy on the same station. These songs showed me another side of the band, fun and poppier (something I could see in their videos too) and I got hooked. I immediatly downloaded both songs.
And then, soon afterwards, and on the same station I think, I heard Don't Talk To Me About Love, which I immediatly loved. My next discoveries were Pinky Blue and See Those Eyes. I included all these songs on a "Best Of The 80's" compilation I made.
The following March I downloaded Love And Kisses.
It wasn't until September of that year that I dowloaded Bring Me Closer and Change OF Heart. I tried to download their other singles and album tracks using the site Ares but even when I found them, for some strange reason couldn't download them.
After loosing all hopes of finding the rest of their songs, I made a "Best Of" compilation, I including just those 8 songs, which in the following months I heard on a regular basis.
My latetest download using the Ares site was the extended mix of Don't Talk To Me About Love.
But then I became member of this forum and, after a fellow member recommended me SoulSeek, I downloaded the extended mixes of I Could Be Happy (which I searched for for ages), Pinky Blue and Bring Me Closer.
And finally, and without listening to the songs previuously, I dowloaded the Pinky Blue album, which I always wanted to have, on the basis of the greatness of its singles. With just one listen I fell in love with it. It's a perfect album but I think the best part of it is Clare's singing. And I'd recommend it to anyone who's feeeling blue. My favourite songs are I Could Be Happy, Think That It Might, Forgotten, Pinky Blue and Jump Jump but the other songs are great too.
Now that I heard more of their songs, I could say that I Could Be Happy (which as someone wrote, is light yet memorable) and Dont' Talk To Me About Love (majestic) reamin my favourite but I haven't heard a bad song yet.

[hypnohighball]

I've always loved AI as well. Living in the USA I didn't really hear them until I heard the extended 12" mix of "See Those Eyes" on a flexi-disc that came with Trouser Press magazine, to which I subscribed to at the time. I wore that little flexi-disc out!
Since then, I've got most of the cds that they have released, many of them the "best of" cds that have come out. All of them are different in some way, but none of them having all the best songs and 12" mixes I want on one single cd.
I think a lot of their appeal for me was the genius of producer Martin Rushent, especially those early extended 12" mixes.
I agree with you that "Pinky Blue" is probably their best album, especially the cd reissue from a few years back that had all the bonus tracks added, including my fave, the "See Those Eyes" 12" mix. That one seems to be missing from most, if not all, of the various "best of" cds out there.
It's nice to see people discovering Altered Images even today, some 30 years <!!!> after they were around making their unique brand of dance-pop. - John

[obs]

I love See Those Eyes. It's too bad they didn't do a mix that was just an extension of the 7". The instrumental, 12" version sucks.

[hypnohighball]

[quote][i]Originally posted by obs[/i]
<br>I love See Those Eyes. It's too bad they didn't do a mix that was just an extension of the 7". The instrumental, 12" version sucks.
[/quote]

I totally disagree, but to each his own. [:)]

[Silvina Hernandez]

[quote][i]Originally posted by obs[/i]
<br>I love See Those Eyes. It's too bad they didn't do a mix that was just an extension of the 7". The instrumental, 12" version sucks.
[/quote]
See Those Eyes is my least favourite song on the Pinky Blue album (and probably my least favourite song of those songs of theirs I've heard), which doesn't mean it's a bad song. It's fun, but not as "soulful" as the rest of the songs on the album.

[Frank_Chickens]

Like 'Dead Pop Stars' which is a good track which was unfortunately released at a bad time. Shame most of the album sound like Souixsie and the Banshee studio rejects which wasn't surprising considering who produced it.

Then they went vapid and I lost interest in them.

[anorak]

There is an extended version of See Those Eyes that is just that, an extended version. The mix on the recently reissued CD is a 'dance mix' which is nowhere near as good.

The REAL extended version of Don't Talk To Me About Love is almost 8 and a half minutes long, but the version that is used on ALL cds is a 7 minute edit of that mix. When the compilation 'reflected images' was released in the UK, the track was edited to 7 minutes in order that the cd didn't exceed 80 minutes - since then all subsequent releases have used that master. Sad really.

IS THAT THE TWELVE INCH MIX ? Out late 2010 www.robgrillo.co.uk

[obs]

[i]> There is an extended version of See Those Eyes that is just that, an extended version. The mix on the recently reissued CD is a 'dance mix' which is nowhere near as good.[/i]

I have the CA 12", and it's the instrumental. From looking at discogs.com, the duration corresponds to the version found on the UK and EU 12"es.
http://www.discogs.com/master/81476

[anorak]

My UK extended version of 'See Those Eyes' is 5.43, as opposed to the dance mix, which is 5.33

I do hope the full length 12" of DTTMAL does see the light of day on CD sometime too.


IS THAT THE TWELVE INCH MIX ? Out late 2010 www.robgrillo.co.uk

[hypnohighball]

[quote][i]Originally posted by anorak[/i]
<br>
I do hope the full length 12" of DTTMAL does see the light of day on CD sometime too. [/quote]

It already is, on the expanded reissue of "Bite":

http://www.amazon.com/Bite-Altered-Imag ... +bite+plus

[Silvina Hernandez]

[quote][i]Originally posted by Frank_Chickens[/i]
<br>Like 'Dead Pop Stars' which is a good track which was unfortunately released at a bad time. Shame most of the album sound like Souixsie and the Banshee studio rejects which wasn't surprising considering who produced it.

Then they went vapid and I lost interest in them.
[/quote]
I haven't heard the first album yet as I've read reviews that decribe it as "dark" and "agressive" and I'm not intrested in that kind of music. I downloaded the Pinky Blue album as I love I Could Be Happy and Pinky Blue (which aren't dark at all) and becuase I had read that it's fun and I loved it since the frist listen. Now I've got to listen to Bite and,then, if I like it, download it.

[Rubellan]

The TRUE extended mix of 'See Those Eyes' is only available on the U.S. vinyl LP of Pinky Blue.

There was talk years ago with Cherry Red about doing a 2 CD set containing the few remaining omissions from the AI catalog, as well as remastered versions of hits and rarities. The idea was halted when an application to Sony was rejected because of the Edsel releases. I recently revisited the idea with Cherry Red but they felt that Edsel have sufficiently covered the AI catalog for now.

[hypnohighball]

[quote][i]Originally posted by Rubellan[/i]
<br>The TRUE extended mix of 'See Those Eyes' is only available on the U.S. vinyl LP of Pinky Blue.

There was talk years ago with Cherry Red about doing a 2 CD set containing the few remaining omissions from the AI catalog, as well as remastered versions of hits and rarities. The idea was halted when an application to Sony was rejected because of the Edsel releases. I recently revisited the idea with Cherry Red but they felt that Edsel have sufficiently covered the AI catalog for now.
[/quote]


Hmmm...I'd really like to hear that "true" 12" mix of See Those Eyes. I guess I'm one of the few here that actually likes Martin Rushent's tricked-out extended mix from the 12" and the bonus track on Pinky Blue.
Never heard this U.S. version.

As for the Edsel reissues, they are all out of print now and fetching good money on the used market. I wish I'd picked up Happy Birthday for competeness's sake, if nothing else. It had like 6 bonus tracks on it, too. I did gey Pinky Blue and Bite, though - whew!

[obs]

So one person says it is UK, and another person says it is only on the US LP. [:)]

I just hope it gets released on CD.

[anorak]

hypnohighball, the mix of Don't Talk To me About Love on the Pinky Blue remaster is sadly the edited version of the 12"

IS THAT THE TWELVE INCH MIX ? Out late 2010 www.robgrillo.co.uk