RetroTrash

BALLADS


NOTES ON THE ABOVE
There aren't that many ballad albums worthy of inclusion here, which is why I've stuck the Irish Songs here. But I particularly like the take on Bonnie & Clyde. UA also released this album in America with exactly the same cover (thus not included here). It was worth including this one just because of the girl chomping on the cheroot. Great stuff. That, however, cannot be said for the following pair which are truly trashy. What the designers were thinking of at the time I wouldn't even hazard to guess, except maybe they were trying to inject some humour into an otherwise uninteresting couple of records. The Bawdy Barrack-Room Ballads is atrocious and matches the 'songs' on the record, but it is interesting to note the pin-ups on the wall behind the bed. Considering the women are naked, few nipples are actually on display. Was that by accident or design? The next album cover just doesn't make any sense. Taken in isolation, the photo features a girl covering up her shame behind a screen through which she is quite clearly visible, but hiding from who or what? And what was she doing before dashing behind the screen? As there's no one else visible in the shot, the picture makes no sense—outside of the designer's conception! Perhaps she was rolling around in bed with some guy and got caught in the act by somebody coming into the room suddenly. That's my guess, but you figure it out yourself. See if you can make sense of it. Most people will be relieved we don't have albums coming out like this anymore. I can only think this must have been a passing phase. And I can safely say we'll never see them again. Thank God. Penny Irving features on the Stag Party cover. She looks great. The only reason worth purchasing it, as the traditional songs are so badly sung, sounding like a bad joke. The record should really have been given away free with the sleeve. To view larger images use the Database
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