Roxy Music 1974 – Island promo (fltr: Phil Manzanera, Andy Mackay, Bryan Ferry, Eddie Jobson, Paul Thompson)
Introduction
In 1974 Roxy Music released their fourth album. Country Life followed the second Bryan Ferry solo album, which was released earlier in 1974. The question many pondered was if Ferry’s solo career would stand in the way of Roxy Music.
Roxy Music
After the release of the fabulous debut album Roxy Music, the equally good successor For Your Pleasure and the first album without Brian Eno, Stranded, Roxy Music were viewed as the most important avant-garde exponent of art-rock. The band even started to make an impact in the US.
Midway through 1973 and 1974 Bryan Ferry had released two solo albums. The albums mostly consisted of songs written by others, that were processed by the Bryan Ferry musical spectrum. Both albums were a success and were also received very well by the press. However, there were some that started to wonder who the real Bryan Ferry was: the crooner who was able to live through experiences by others or the forerunner of avant-garde rock, who kept on pushing the boundaries of rock with Roxy Music?
Ad NME 10/05/1974
Of course, the answer was predictable and simple: both were true. Ferry had found an outlet for music he couldn’t do with Roxy Music, the band that was gaining more momentum by the day. The release of Stranded had raised the band’s confidence considerably. Against expectations, Brian Eno’s leaving hadn’t resulted in a downfall of success. Instead, the band was more popular than ever before. Even Eno himself thought Stranded was the best Roxy Music album to date.
When the band entered the studio in the summer of 1974 spirits were high and relationships were fine. Both Andy Mackay and Phil Manzanera offered musical ideas. Even drummer Paul Thompson brought in a song (Your Application’s Failed), which was placed on the first single’s B-side, the exciting All I Want Is You, released in October 1974.
Roxy Music – Country Life
Country Life
On November 15, 1974, Country Life was released. The album’s subtitle was The Fourth Roxy Music Album.
The new album seemed to be a culmination of everything that had come before. The first side of the vinyl records was aimed at arty, yet accessible, rock and pop, where the second side sounded more experimental than its predecessor. The album sold well and was quite popular. It was the first Roxy Music album that sent the band to the upper regions of the American charts. Maybe the album cover played a part in its popularity (see the next paragraph)? Bryan Ferry himself was very pleased:
[This album] is much better than the last album… but then I say that with every album. I think, though, that the playing has showed a marked improvement and we’ve got some interesting textural collages. I think too that it’s a more direct album than the last.
Bryan Ferry 1974/1975
By the way, it seems inconceivable these days, but Country Life was the fourth Roxy Music album in two years and four months’ time. The band worked hard, fast and was able to keep the high levels up. Next to recording and writing new music the band toured constantly and still Bryan Ferry found the time to record two solo albums!
Roxy Music – Country Life – Censored album covers
Album cover
While on a short break from recording, Bryan Ferry was in Portugal, where he was writing lyrics for the new songs. He already had an idea for the album title, Country Life, inspired by an English magazine that was aimed at the upper class of the bourgeoisie, living in rural areas, gardening, golf and racing. At the time each publication contained a picture of an aristocratic daughter. The combination of that image with a picture from Men Only, the British Playboy, inspired the cover photo.
When Ferry and company were having dinner, German Eveline Grunwald and Constanze Karoli, girlfriend and respective sister of Can guitarist Michael Karoli, walked into the restaurant. They were perfect for the idea Ferry had for the album cover. The photo shoot was held in the garden of the summer house owned by Grunwald’s parents. Car headlights were used as lighting. After developing the film the photos seemed to be lacking the glamour of prior album cover photos, even when compared the revealing album cover of Stranded.
Photographer Eric Boman: “I think there was a lack of the slickness that [Bryan Ferry] was used to, but gradually everyone realized that there was another quality, hard to put your finger on, of ambiguity and, as we now call it ‘rawness’ that worked.” Both women were asked whether they agreed with the use of their image, both gave their blessing.
Roxy Music – Album cover photo shoot – Portugal 1974
The album cover was censored in a couple of countries. The ‘in your face’ nudity was one of a kind, and some interpreted the photo as an image of two women masturbating (not true). Spain and South-Africa were the first countries to issue a different cover. The front and back side contained the zoomed in faces of the models. US record company Atco, which released the Roxy Music albums on the American market, demanded that the record was sold wrapped in green (detachable) foil, obscuring the original album cover. However, curious customers peeled the foil off, showing the wretched photo anyway. Many retailers refused to sell the record. So, the cover was altered, the hedge that was visible on the album’s back side, was placed on the front of the album cover for the American (and Canadian) markets (between 1975 and 1980).
Nowadays, the album cover has reached an iconic status, which has been copied numerous times. However, even today the album is censored. For instance, publishing the album cover on Meta websites/services leads to automatic removal because the image violates rules regarding ‘nudity and sexual activity’…
N.B.:
During their stay in Portugal both models sticked around Ferry and helped with the German translation/lyrics to Bitter-Sweet.
Roxy Music – Country Life – The Great Atco Cop-Out, 1975
Click on the picture above to enlarge.
Reception
The previous Roxy Music albums were received very well. Did that apply to Country Life as well? Yes, particularly in the UK and the US, but the Dutch reviews were remarkably critical of the album.
Below the most important remarks from the English, American and Dutch reviews. For those who want to read the full reviews, see the sub article Roxy Music – Country Life – The reviews.
“Country Life” displays healthy growth in just about all regions for Roxy.
(New Musical Express, November 9, 1974)And make no mistake, “Country Life” is a great album.
(Melody Maker, November 16, 1974)Some pieces even seem downright edits (copies is a heavy term) of some classic rock material.
(Dutch newspaper Trouw, November 23, 1974)Ferry seems to have hit a dead end.
(Dutch newspaper Limburgs Dagblad, November 30, 1974)The sparkle of adding new ingredients to rock had clearly faded.
(Dutch newspaper Nieuwsblad van het Noorden, December 9, 1974)The music is undeniably songwriter and singer Bryan Ferry’s, but it is obvious that Roxy Music’s sound has lost some of its non-conformism.
(Dutch newspaper Het Parool, December 14, 1974)The Teutonic textures of this music are proof negative of Bryan Ferry’s deep-seated romanticism.
(Robert Christgau, 1974)Today Roxy Music creates nice music for (almost) all of the family.
(Dutch newspaper De Waarheid, February 1, 1975)Stranded and Country Life together mark the zenith of contemporary British art rock.
(Rolling Stone, February 27, 1975)
Roxy Music – Country Life – Tourbook Australia
Review
Earlier I wrote about other Roxy Music albums, and they are all equally dear to me. My definite favorite however is Viva! Roxy Music and Stranded is my favorite studio album. That opinion still hasn’t changed. That said, some of my favorite Roxy Music songs stem from Country Life.
The album opens exquisitely with The Thrill Of It All, that contains the closing line of Dorothy Parker’s poem Resume: “You might as well live”. In edited form issued as a single in the US in 1975. Three And Nine refers to the price of a movie ticket at the end of the 1950s: 3 shillings and 9 pence. For that amount you could be transported to an entirely different world.
All I Want Is You is a love song that was the first single off the album. It’s followed by the album’s definite highlight (and in Roxy Music’s body of work): Out Of The Blue. Production downright fantastic, Jobson’s violin put to genius use, great rhythm and highly original.
Then out of the blue
Love came rushing in
Out of the sky came the sun
Out of left field
Came a lucky day
Out of the blue, no more pain
See upcoming rock shows
Get tickets for your favorite artistsI don’t mind
If it’s only
A passing craze
Throwaway lines
Often ring true
If I were you
I would stay
For a little while
If you were me
Would you walk out in style?
The superb live version of this song starts off live album Viva! Roxy Music, the only Country Life song on that album.
Following the bluesy It It Takes All Night is Bitter-Sweet, a great song, that is marred by hoompa-hoompa intermezzo’s, with Ferry spouting off in German. Triptych is a 50/50 song, the idea is good, the lyrics about a cemetery beautiful, the religious icing works just fine, but the performance itself is a bit stale.
Roxy Music – Country Life – Ad Sounds 11/18/1974
On to highlight number 2 on Country Life. Casanova is a typical Roxy Music song that contains a dizzying amount of details. The Casanova character can’t find true love and is in search of a substitute. Drugs?
Innovator
It’s in your mind
And blood
I watch it simmer
I see you’re courting
More despair
No hope?
Not a glimmer
But now you’re nothing
But second hand
In glove
With second rate
Now you’re flirting
With heroin
Or is it cocaine?
It contains some fabulous guitar by Manzanera. A Really Good Time is a beautiful up-tempo ballad (if such a thing even exists). Prairie Rose is a tribute to the American state of Texas. Many believe the song was partly written for and about Jerry Hall, which is false, as Ferry first met her in early 1975.
Country Life extends the route Roxy Music took on the previous Stranded album: more accessible music with some experiments along the way. Unfortunately, the experiments fall behind a bit on this album, making it slightly less satisfying than its predecessor. Still, it’s a great album, which contains two of my all-time favorites with Out Of The Blue and Casanova.
Roxy Music – Country Life – Back cover (American pressing)
Songs
All songs written by Bryan Ferry, unless stated otherwise.
- The Thrill Of It All
- Three And Nine (Bryan Ferry, Andy Mackay)
- All I Want Is You
- Out Of The Blue (Bryan Ferry, Phil Manzanera)
- If It Takes All Night
- Bitter-Sweet (Bryan Ferry, Andy Mackay)
- Triptych
- Casanova
- A Really Good Time
- Prairie Rose (Bryan Ferry, Phil Manzanera)
Roxy Music – Country Life – Tourbook
Musicians
- Bryan Ferry – vocals, keyboards, harmonica
- Andy Mackay (Andrew Mackay) – oboe, saxophone
- Phil Manzanera – guitar
- Paul Thompson – drums
- Eddie Jobson (Edwin Jobson) – strings, synthesizer, keyboards
- John Gustafson – bass
Roxy Music – Country Life tour US – Ad Rolling Stone 02/27/1975
What came next
The Roxy Music bassist saga received another entry. On the album the bass was played by John Gustafson, but during the following (world) tour John Wetton fulfilled the bass duties. After that tour the band set out to work on album number five, Siren.
In closing
What’s your opinion on Country Life? Let me know!
Video/Spotify
This story contains an accompanying video. Click on the following link to see it: Video: The development of Roxy Music just continues: Country Life. The A Pop Life playlist on Spotify has been updated as well.
