Critics Roundup 1984

The Annual appears at this end, thankfully, to have been one without any movements, bandwagons or charabancs, with Frankie carrying that can for everyone. This is a good thing. Reggae music has piped down but LKJ’s ‘Making History’ (Island) had a can big enough for all. A cool, lucid record, the man bashed the politics into a soul poetry.

Otherwise Rickie Lee Jones’ ‘The Magazine’ (Warner Bros) saw her recede even more into privacy. ‘The Orange Juice’ is Ed and Zeke on top form, but best of the cute cool school is Lloyd Cole whose ‘Rattlesnakes’ (Polydor) caused many a commotion ’round here.

For R.E.M. ‘Reckoning’ (IRS) was a fractured murmur bespeaking of itself in certain rainy terms. John Martyn’s ‘Sapphire’ (Island) saw the old frog back in his throat and his marbles in the right place. Womack and Womack are still fighting it out, thank goodness.

My three favourite records were, in reverse order, ‘A Walk Across The Rooftops’ (Linn) by The Blue Nile, the voice of love never sounded so good. ‘Swoon’ (Kitchenware) by Prefab Sprout a bitter record of great skill (incidentally Paddy McAloon gets my non-pop star award) and, favourite of all, ‘Climate Of Hunter’ (Virgin) by Scott Walker, a record so dark and deep it’s terrifying at times, oftentimes. A carat-cut pearl.

Sadly, a jazz-bereft year.