Place without a Postcard
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Place Without a Postcard is the third studio album by Australian rock band Midnight Oil, released in November 1981 under Sprint Music and the Columbia Records label. It peaked at No. 12 on the Kent Music Report albums chart and the related singles "Don't Wanna Be the One" and "Armistice Day" reached the associated Top 40 chart.
Background
[edit]The band's third LP Place Without a Postcard, released by CBS Records in November 1981, was recorded in Sussex with English producer Glyn Johns (The Rolling Stones, The Who) at a studio/barn on Johns' property.<ref name="ARDb">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Howl">Template:Cite webTemplate:Cbignore</ref> Garrett said, "The main reason we travelled to Britain was that, at that time, the feeling was that the records sounded better."<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Creative tensions between the band and Johns plagued the recording and the group were not totally happy with the outcome. Johns had an arrangement with A&M Records and they asked Midnight Oil to return to the studio to record material suitable for an American single release – the group refused and returned to Australia.<ref name="Howl"/> Place without a Postcard peaked at No. 12 on the albums charts and related singles "Don't Wanna Be the One" (No. 40) and "Armistice Day" reached the Top 40 in Australia.<ref name="Kent">Template:Cite book</ref> Cover and other photography by Robert Butcher.
Critical reception
[edit]Template:Music ratings The Rolling Stone Album Guide praised the "fatter sound and more focused songs."<ref name=RS/> Trouser Press wrote that "the experimentation yielded valuable lessons, and James Moginie, the group's most prolific composer, also began to jell his distinctive guitar sound, as well as creatively exploring keyboards."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
AllMusic's William Ruhlmann wrote:
"The band was experiencing growing pains, trying to stretch musically, and, at least at first, this made for a dilution of their hard rock focus moving toward a pop style they hadn't fully developed. Place Without a Postcard had its share of powerfully performed songs, but its sound was light compared to the band's first two albums, the stylistic experiments were not yet bearing fruit, and, with an emphasis placed on the vocals, Peter Garrett sounded overly strident."<ref name=AM>Ruhlmann, William. Place without a Postcard review. AllMusic. Retrieved 15 September 2018.</ref>
Track listing
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Charts
[edit]| Chart (1981/82) | Position |
|---|---|
| Australian Kent Music Report<ref>Template:Cite book NOTE: Used for Australian Singles and Albums charting from 1970 until ARIA created their own charts in mid-1988.</ref> | 12 |
Certifications
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Personnel
[edit]- Midnight Oil
- Peter Garrett – lead vocals
- Peter Gifford – bass, vocals
- Rob Hirst – drums, vocals
- Jim Moginie – guitars, keyboards
- Martin Rotsey – guitars
- Production
- Glyn Johns – production, engineering
- Sean Fullen – assistant engineer
- Design
- Robert Butcher – design, album cover photo