HATTITUDE

Like "Hatwise Choice" released in January of 2005, "Hattitude" is a compilation of live tracks performed at the BBC Radio and beyond. This was released in 2006 and is a nice companion album to "Hatwise Choice". Again we get just the band with no Northettes or guest appearances. Pip Pyle picked and assembled the tracks for both compilations. The liner notes are invaluable by the way for being incredibly detailed, with each member giving their take on the band's history from their start in 1972. There are pages of this as they would take a period of the band's history, then they each comment on it in detail.

Pip admitted that there really wasn't enough quality material for a second compilation until Dave Stewart discovered in his storage until a box full of original reel-to-reel tapes recorded between 1973 and 1975. And they were in good shape as it turned out. Pip realized now that they had more than enough for a second release, and possibly even a third! Pip was at it again this time going through about 40 hours worth of music and culling the good stuff. A long job as it took Pyle about 2 months. When he could he would edit the songs into segued passages making these tracks blend into each other. He did this because when they played they would go from one song to the next without a break. Just like SOFT MACHINE before them.

Sadly, in the liner notes, the band relates "Our dear friend and colleague Pip Pyle died in Paris in the early hours of August 28th 2006. He was our founder member and the driving force of HATFIELD AND THE NORTH... this cd... is dedicated to his memory." They also mention absent friends like Mike Patto, Alan Gowen, Steve Miller, Peter Bardens, Pierre Moerlen, Elton Dean, Pip Pyle, and others who have gone on before. The one surprise for me in the thanks department is the one to Gavin Harrison. We get 21 tracks and under an hour of music this time.

I am so glad they included "Al Clark Presents", that final track. Live from 1975 and just over 2 minutes, we get Al Clark who at the time was Virgin Records Press Secretary, presenting the band with a lot of clever humour and complimentary words. It made me proud. By the way Dave Stewart may have been inspired by Pip's hard work and the results with these two compilation albums, as he would do the same for his previous band EGG, and release an archival album the following year to this, in 2007. He called it "The Metronomical Society" and it is incredible. Better than the two HATFIELD comps in my opinion. And no one writes better liner notes than Dave Stewart. So funny.

For HATFIELD AND THE NORTH fanboys both of these comps are nothing but essential. It shows the band in a different light than on their two studio albums.

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