Bram Tchaikovsky - Strange Man, Changed Man

Return of a British power-pop nugget… on an American label

First thought: shock, horror – why reissue an album and give it a sleevenote-less single-sheet insert? Second thought: Maybe Hip-O Select have got this right, as Bram’s first solo effort from 1979 after leaving the shelter of Airport hitmakers The Motors is pretty much aural chewing gum.

Chewing gum is fun until all the flavour runs out. The flavour here is mainly contained in a couple of tracks, Sarah Smiles and Girl Of My Dreams, while after nearly 30 years, RC could sing along from memory to catchy single B-side Turn Out The Light. Elsewhere, this is very much a re-run of The Motors’ first album – unthreatening new wave as the Americans liked it, played by rockers (the ex-Heavy Metal Kids rhythm section) who jumped the punk bandwagon. The giveaway is a Quo’d-up version of The Monkees’ I’m A Believer, which has little in common with the Pistols’ Stepping Stone, bar the idea.

The sleeve, by Rocking Russian, is one of the era’s best, so enjoy a chew on a disposable gem and hang on to the pretty wrapping.

Hip-O Select | B 0010216-02

Reviewed by Michael Heatley
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