Split Enz 'True Colours' Given A 40th Anniversary Comeback - Noise11.com
Split Enz True Colours

Split Enz ‘True Colours’ Given A 40th Anniversary Comeback

by Noise11.com on March 9, 2020

in News

Split Enz iconic 1980 breakthrough ‘True Colours is coming back as a 40th anniversary edition.

Split Enz member Eddie Rayner is horrified by the current streaming version of the album. He said, “I have both the original stereo masters from the 1979 mixing sessions, and the versions currently held in repositories such as Spotify….and they are radically different, sonically. The original masters are mixed, but unmastered, and the Spotify versions have been brutally, and probably repeatedly remastered… by whom, when, where and why, nobody will ever know. So for me, remixing to both restore and improve the currently-available mix AND the overall sound, for this 40th anniversary release, was a good idea.”

Rayner remixed the new version. “I certainly didn’t undertake the remix lightly. This was our ‘iconic’ album – it’s always had a unique sound – and to depart from that too much, or to do radically new mixes, would surely incur the wrath of fans and band members alike. So I approached the project with caution and some trepidation, with the maxim ‘the same, but better’. So, after convincing Warners it was a good idea, I did the remix, and then told the band. Thus far, I’m uninjured.”

True Colours was recorded in Melbourne’s Armstrong Studio in late 1979 and featured the band line-up of Tim Finn (vocals), Neil Finn (guitar and vocals), Eddie Rayner (keyboards), Noel Crombie (percussion), Nigel Griggs (bass) and Malcolm Green (drums). Produced by 20-year-old British producer David Tickle (Blondie, The Knack, Divinyls), True Colours features timeless Split Enz songs including “Poor Boy”, “I Hope I Never” and “I Got You”.

The album recording sessions at AAV Studios in Melbourne were recorded ‘pretty much live’, with Dave Tickle being the first producer who had insisted on being in the studio with them while recording the tracks. “He became our audience, and we responded by giving him the best performances we had. Hence the band feel and spirit in the tracks”, the new remixes have bought out the spirit of the studio sound Dave witnessed while recording them as Eddie says, “Tim’s daughter remarked when she heard these new mixes that ‘it sounded just like a band playing in a room’. As a critique, that makes me happy.”

Tim Finn agreed with his daughters sentiments, “Listen to Eddie Rayner’s re-mixes and feel the intensity. Tickle came out on the floor with us while we were cutting tracks..fist pumping and urging the rhythm section on. The band were owning their parts. We felt fearless and powerful.”

“True Colours was one album in the midst of a body of work. There were albums before it that contained a few gems. And ones that came after. But I think we all feel that it’s a cohesive and uniformly strong record. From the desperation and soul searching that preceded it (as well as a huge amount of laughter) came songs like Missing Person, I Hope I Never, Poor Boy and I Got You. And there was even room for a couple of instrumentals. All a pleasure to play on stage and all coming from a very real place. Play it loud!”‘- SPLIT ENZ

TRUE COLOURS – 40TH ANNIVERSARY MIX VINYL

Side A
1. Shark Attack
2. I Got You
3. What’s The Matter With You
4. Double Happy
5. I Wouldn’t Dream Of It
6. I Hope I Never

Side B
1. Nobody Takes Me Seriously
2. Missing Person
3. Poor Boy
4. How Can I Resist Her
5. The Choral Sea

Split Enz ‘True Colours’ will be reissued in June 2020.

Noise11 on Instagram

You’ll discover music news first following Noise11 on Twitter

Comment on the news of the day, join Noise11 on Facebook

Noise11.com

Related Posts

Angus Young AC/DC Etihad Stadium, Rock Or Bust World Tour. Photo by Ros O'Gorman
AC/DC Angus Young is Only The Schoolboy on Stage, at Home He is Told to ‘Wipe His Feet’

The public persona and private life of Angus Young of AC/DC are total opposites.

3 hours ago
The Doobie Brothers Tom Johnston at Deni Blues and Roots Festival on Sunday 20 April 2014.
The Doobie Brothers’ Tom Johnston Has No Plans For A Third Solo Album

It has been 54 years since The Doobie Brothers released their debut album. Between then and now, co-founder, singer, guitarist and songwriter has only released two solo albums and they were 46 and 44 years ago. To find out why there has never been a third Tom Johnston solo album, Noise11 asked Tom.

4 hours ago
Dolly Parton in concert photo by Ros O'Gorman
Dolly Parton To Play Vegas Residency

Dolly Parton, who hasn't toured regularly in nearly a decade, has announced a six-concert run at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.

5 hours ago
Mick Ralphs of Bad Company
Bad Company and Mott The Hoople Mike Ralphs Dead at 81

Guitarist Mick Ralphs, a founding member of both Mott The Hoople and Bad Company, has died at the age of 81.

6 hours ago
Amyl and the Sniffers photo by John Angus Stewart
Amyl & The Sniffers Next Australian Shows Will Be With AC/DC

Amyl & The Sniffers’ next Australian shows will be with AC/DC in November.

1 day ago
Angus Young AC/DC performing at Etihad Stadium in Melbourne on Sunday 6 December 2015. They are in Australia on the final leg of their Rock Or Bust World Tour. photo by Ros O'Gorman
AC/DC Power Up Tour Is Coming To Australia in November

AC/DC will play their first Australian dates since 2015 in November 2025. All is set for two shows in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Perth and one for Adelaide.

2 days ago
Angus Young of AC/DC. photo by Ros O'Gorman, Noise11, photo
AC/DC Drop The Biggest Hint Yet of The World’s Worst Kept Secret The 2025 Australian Tour

The news AC/DC fans have been waiting for is about to drop. The Australian tour announcement is imminent with even AC/DC now spreading the gossip on their socials with the iconic Thunderbolt symbol prominently on display along one of Melbourne’s busiest streets, Punt Road in Cremorne.

2 days ago