Hopes and Fears (Art Bears album)

Infobox Album | Name = Hopes and Fears
Type = Studio album
Artist = Art Bears


Released = 1978
Recorded = Switzerland, January 1978
London, March 1978
Genre = Avant-progressive rock
Length = 48:25
Label = Recommended (UK)
Producer = Art Bears
Etienne Conod
Reviews =
*Piero Scaruffi (7/10) [http://www.scaruffi.com/vol3/henrycow.html link]
*Review-Christgau|B|cgurl=http://www.robertchristgau.com/get_artist.php?name=Art+Bears| Last album = –
This album = "Hopes and Fears"
(1978)
Next album = "Winter Songs"
(1979)
Misc = Extra album cover
Upper caption = CD releases
Background = CadetBlue


Lower caption = CD cover based on the same artwork of the original LP, but with different texts and no figures.

"Hopes and Fears" is the first album by English avant-garde rock group Art Bears. It comprises tracks by Henry Cow, Art Bears' predecessor, recorded in Switzerland in January 1978, and tracks by Art Bears, recorded in London in March 1978.

"Hopes and Fears" began as a Henry Cow album, but after the first recording sessions in Switzerland, some of the members of the band were unhappy about the predominance of song-oriented material. As a compromise it was agreed that two albums would be made: the songs would be released under the name of a new group, Art Bears, and the instrumental compositions would be released later by Henry Cow. The newly formed Art Bears recorded four more tracks in London to complete "Hopes and Fears", which was released later in 1978. Henry Cow returned to Switzerland in July that year to record additional instrumental pieces for what became their last album, "Western Culture" (1979).

Description

Because of Henry Cow's presence on this album, "Hopes and Fears" is considered by some to be "the lost Henry Cow album". [ cite web |url=http://www.progweed.net/reviews/artbears/artbears-band.html |title=Art Bears, Hopes and Fears |work=Progweed |first=Alex |last=Temple |accessdate=2007-01-03 ] But the predominance of songs makes the album a bridge between Henry Cow and Art Bears, a move away from Henry Cow's usual intense compositions, and the beginnings of Art Bears' music, fully realised later on their next two albums. It also shows Fred Frith experimenting with folk and dance music ("Terrain", "Moeris Dancing", "The Dance"), which he explored further on some of his subsequent solo albums, particularly "Gravity" and "Speechless".

The longest track, "In Two Minds" is the closest Art Bears come to playing "conventional rock music". [ cite web |url=http://allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?P=amg&sql=10:w4he4j576wae |title=Hopes and Fears |work=All Music Guide |first=Stewart |last=Mason |accessdate=2007-01-03 ] The instrumental section in the song sounds like a homage to The Who, a fact that Chris Cutler does not deny, considering the influence the band had on him and others. [ cite web |url=http://www.cloudsandclocks.net/interviews/CC_AB_interview.html |title=An interview with Chris Cutler, February 8, 2004 |work=Clouds and Clocks |first=Beppe |last=Colli |accessdate=2007-01-03 ] Cutler's song texts for "Joan" caused unhappiness amongst the feminist faction of the group (then Henry Cow), but Dagmar Krause strongly defended the lyrics and they were retained. [ cite web |url=http://www.ccutler.com/ccutler/interviews/fiori.shtml |title=Chris Cutler interview |work=Chris Cutler homepage |accessdate=2007-11-15 ]

Track listing

;Side 1 (Áhá: Palace courtyard)
#"On Suicide" (Brecht, Eisler) – 1:26 ¹
#"The Dividing Line" (Cutler, Frith, Cooper) – 4:11 ¹
#"Joan" (Cutler, Frith) – 3:05 ¹
#"Maze" (Cutler, Frith) – 5:05 ¹
#"In Two Minds" (Cutler, Frith) – 8:45 ¹;Side 2 (Mer: Irrigated land)
#"Terrain" (Frith) – 3:49 ²
#"The Tube" (Cutler, Frith) – 3:05 ²
#"The Dance" (Cutler, Frith) – 5:09 ²
#"The Pirate Song" (Cutler, Hodgkinson) – 1:28 ¹
#"Labyrinth" (Cutler, Hodgkinson) – 2:15 ¹
#"Riddle" (Cutler, Frith) – 2:49 ¹
#"Moeris Dancing" (Frith) – 5:08 ¹
#"Piers" (Cutler, Frith) – 2:10 ²

Track notes

¹ Recorded by Henry Cow at Sunrise Studio, Kirchberg, Switzerland, 15–29 January, 1978
² Recorded by Art Bears at Kaleidophon, London, 15–18 March, 1978

Personnel

*Fred Frith – guitars, violin, viola, harmonium, xylophone, piano, bass guitar on "Terrain" and "The Tube"
*Chris Cutler – drums, percussion, noise
*Dagmar Krause – voice

Guests (from Henry Cow)

*Tim Hodgkinson – organ, clarinet, piano on "The Pirate Song"
*Lindsay Cooper – bassoon, oboe, soprano, recorder
*Georgie Born – bass guitar, cello, vocals on "Maze"

ound and art work

*Produced by Art Bears and Etienne Conod
*Cover art by E. M. Thomas, assisted by Graham Keatley, Charlotte Sainsbury, Doug Kierdorf and Jane Colling (figures on the original LP cover)

CD reissues

"Hopes and Fears" was reissued on CD in 1992 by Recommended Records with three extra tracks:
#"All Hail!" (Cutler, Frith) – 4:48 ³
#"Collapse" (Cutler, Frith) – 4:03 ⁴
#"Coda to Man and Boy" (Cutler, Frith) – 7:12 ⁵The album was also reissued in 2003 in "The Art Box", a 6xCD box set of all Art Bears releases with live and unreleased tracks, plus remixes by other musicians.

Track notes

³ from "Recommended Records Sampler" (1982) – recorded at Kaleidophon Studios, London, Winter 1979
⁴ from B-side of the Art Bears 7" single "Rats & Monkeys" (1979) – recorded at Kaleidophon Studios, London, Winter 1979
⁵ from 7" single given free to subscribers of "The World as It Is Today" (1981) – a coda to the Art Bears track "Man and Boy" from "Winter Songs", recorded live at Cantù, Italy, 30 May 1979

Additional personnel

*Peter Blegvad – bass guitar on "Coda to Man and Boy"
*Marc Hollander – piano on "Coda to Man and Boy"

Album title

"Hopes and Fears" derived its name from the following conversation between Charion and Hermes in "Satirical Sketches: Charon Sees Life" by Lucian of Samosata (quoted in the booklet accompanying the CD release of the album): [ cite web |url=http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=101541667 |title=Satirical Sketches: Charon Sees Life |work=Questia – The Online Library of Books and Journals |last=Lucian |accessdate=2006-12-28 ]

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References

External links

*amg | id = 10:w4he4j576wae | label = Hopes & Fears
* [http://artbears.findus.dhs.org/discography.html#albums_hopesandfears Art Bears – An unofficial reference] . "Hopes and Fears".
* [http://home.arcor.de/nyds-exp-discogs/frith.htm Fred Frith discography]