Metro Music
1980 album by Martha and the Muffins
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic | |
| Christgau's Record Guide | B− |
| Record Mirror | |
| Smash Hits | 8/10 |
Metro Music is the debut album by Canadian new wave band Martha and the Muffins. It was released in 1980 on Dindisc, the first album release for the label, and contains the international hit single "Echo Beach".
The cover image design by Peter Saville is a map of Toronto, the band's hometown, and is based on a map from the National Topographic System of Canada.
The entire Metro Music album also formed the first part of Martha and the Muffins' 1987 compilation Far Away in Time.
01Release
The album's first single, "Echo Beach", became a hit in several countries, reaching number three in Canada, number one in Portugal, number five in Australia and number 10 in the United Kingdom in March 1980. It also reached number 37 in the United States on the Club Play Singles chart. A slightly different recording of "Saigon" was released as a follow-up single in the UK a few months later, but failed to chart. In Canada, the follow-up single was "Paint by Number Heart" , it climbed to number 69. The album itself was certified gold in Canada (50,000 units) on September 1, 1980; "Echo Beach" was certified gold there (5,000 units) on the following October 1.
02Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Echo Beach" | Mark Gane | 3:38 |
| 2. | "Paint by Number Heart" | Martha Johnson | 4:23 |
| 3. | "Saigon" | Johnson, David Millar | 4:23 |
| 4. | "Indecision" | Johnson | 4:25 |
| 5. | "Terminal Twilight" | Gane, Martha Ladly | 4:42 |
| 6. | "Hide and Seek" | Gane, Ladly | 3:57 |
| 7. | "Monotone" | Johnson | 2:46 |
| 8. | "Sinking Land" | Gane | 5:27 |
| 9. | "Revenge (Against the World)" | Gane | 3:31 |
| 10. | "Cheesies and Gum" | Gane, Ladly | 3:05 |
03Personnel
- Martha Johnson, keyboards, vocals
- Martha Ladly, keyboards, trombone, vocals
- Mark Gane, synthesizer, guitar
- Carl Finkle, bass
- Tim Gane, drums
- Andy Haas, saxophone
04Chart performance
Album
| Chart (1980) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (Kent Music Report) | 46 |
| UK Album Chart | 34 |
| U.S. Billboard 200 | 186 |
Singles
| Single | Chart (1980) | Position |
|---|---|---|
| "Echo Beach" | Canada | 3 |
| "Echo Beach" | Australia (Kent Music Report) | 5 |
| "Echo Beach" | UK Singles Chart | 10 |
| "Echo Beach/Paint by Number Heart" | Billboard Club Play Singles | 37 |
Sources and credits
This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Metro Music”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.
Images, from Wikimedia Commons:
- Martha And The Muffins - Metro Music album cover.jpg by Unknown author, Fair use
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