As mentioned in a previous nostalgic post about the old Belle & Sebastian ‘Sinister’ mailing list, the prize for the most posts in the first month of the list going live was a tape of then rare and unreleased recordings and demos. Some of the recordings became part of official releases and others I am sure have long since entered the pubic domain as downloads. Here, however, is a selection of some of those recordings. Specifically the early Stuart Murdoch demos of ‘Hurley’s Having Dreams’, ‘Pocketbook Angel’, ‘Rhoda’ and ‘London Has Let me Down’. Also in the zipped up package are a couple of recordings of ‘The Loneliness Of A Middle Distance Runner’ that are quite wonderful.
Oooh, there's really something quite wonderful about these version of 'Middle distance runner' that's missing from the official recording. Damn early B&S magic, it still gets me from time to time, like nothing else.
Posted by: Dimitra | March 08, 2012 at 21:25
hi, your blog is great, and is fantastis to listen to this selection of demos
from one of my favourite bands, is any chance form you to share the rest of those demos,
that will be truly great.
Posted by: Joel Dantas | March 13, 2012 at 16:44
Looking at the track listing and bringing my admittedly fading memory to bear, I recall that the other recordings were actually ones that formed the '3,6,9 Seconds of Light' and 'Lazy Line Painter Jane' EPs. Hence they are no longer rarities! At the time I got the tape though neither of those records had been released, so I guess I was fortunate enough to have a sneak preview. If i ever get another tape deck and play the tape again and discover that they are in fact demos I will let you know :)
Posted by: alistair | March 16, 2012 at 10:00
Oh, and Dimitra, yes, totally agree about the Middle Distance Runner versions. I recall being utterly deflated when I heard the version that was finally released. It still sounds flat and lacking compared to these ones I feel.
Posted by: alistair | March 16, 2012 at 10:02