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Thunder, Lightning, Strike

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Thunder, Lightning, Strike
Studio album by
The Go! Team
Released13 September 2004 (2004-09-13)
Recorded2004
StudioJan and Ed's basement (Swansea, Wales)
Genre
Length35:46
LabelMemphis Industries
Producer
  • The Go! Team
  • Gareth Parton
The Go! Team chronology
Thunder, Lightning, Strike
(2004) 		Proof of Youth
(2007)
Singles from Thunder, Lightning, Strike
  1. "Junior Kickstart"
    Released: 26 May 2003 (2003-05-26)[2]
  2. "The Power Is On"
    Released: 19 July 2004 (2004-07-19)[3]
  3. "Ladyflash"
    Released: 22 November 2004 (2004-11-22)[4]
  4. "Bottle Rocket"
    Released: 26 September 2005 (2005-09-26)[5]

Thunder, Lightning, Strike is the debut studio album by English band The Go! Team. It was initially released on label Memphis Industries on 13 September 2004, but was reworked to avoid legal issues with samples, and re-released in October 2005.

Background

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The album was the project of founder member Ian Parton, who over the course of 2003 recorded demos and musical ideas after work onto many dozens of cassettes using a lo-fi 4-track recorder, and titled each tape with a potential song name idea.[6] Each track on the album was created by combining five or six different ideas from this large assortment of tapes,[7] trying out different chorus sections from one with the verse section of another, to give the music an overall feeling of constantly switching radio channels.[8][9] 'Get It Together' was the first track Parton created where he felt he'd got the juxtaposition of differing styles within one song right, giving him the template and direction for the rest of the album.[10]

Recording

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Recording took place in both the garage and kitchen of Parton's parents' house in Swansea while they were away on holiday,[11] with him playing all live instruments himself (as at that time there were no other members of the band).[12] The album was co-produced by his sound engineer brother Gareth Parton, who helped Ian set up the makeshift home recording facility in Wales, and later mixed the tracks at The Fortress Studios and Bluestone in London.[12][13]

'Legal' and 'Illegal' versions

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The original 2004 Memphis Industries release of the album (sometimes referred to as the 'Illegal version') had none of its many samples cleared, as Parton didn't expect the album to attract much attention.[14] However Thunder, Lightning, Strike received wide critical acclaim and was later nominated for the 2005 Mercury Music Prize. Thereupon a 'legally clean' version of the album was painstakingly recreated by the Parton brothers, containing only cleared or interpolated samples, and rewritten, resung lyrics, all under the guidance of a legal musicologist.[15][12] Junior Kickstart, Bottle Rocket and Ladyflash were among the most heavily reworked tracks, whilst Get It Together was one of a few tracks that remained untouched.[16] This revised 'legal' version of the album was re-released in the United Kingdom and the United States by Columbia Records in October 2005, with two additional bonus tracks. The album peaked at number 48 on the UK Albums Chart in February 2006, some 18 months after its original release.

Reception

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic86/100[17]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[18]
Blender[19]
Entertainment WeeklyA−[20]
Mojo[21]
NME9/10[22]
Pitchfork8.7/10[23]
Resident Advisor4.5/5[24]
Rolling Stone[25]
Slant Magazine[26]
The Village VoiceA−[27]

Reception to Thunder, Lightning, Strike was very positive. On review aggregator site Metacritic, the album has a score of 86, indicating "universal acclaim".[17]

Pitchfork placed Thunder, Lightning, Strike at number eight in their list of the top albums of 2004[28] and at number 171 on their list of the top 200 albums of the 2000s.[29]

Concluding the review for AllMusic, Tim Sendra claimed that, "The Go! Team is widescreen in a pan-and-scan world, a sparkling rejoinder to purists and spoilsports everywhere and more fun than recess on the last day of school. Cinematic, fantastic, and essential to all who want their music larger than life and rambunctious, Thunder, Lightning, Strike is the kind of record that makes you glad to be alive. What could be better than that?"[18]

Anniversary Release and Tour

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The band announced a reissue of the record and a Fall 2024 tour in the UK and US to celebrate the LP's 20th anniversary. The new album edition, due 13 September from Memphis Industries, includes a bonus disc of Parton's original CD-R versions of the songs.[30]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by The Go! Team, except where noted

Original release
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Panther Dash"
  • The Go! Team
  • Paul Cooksey
2:46
2."Ladyflash"
4:10
3."Feelgood by Numbers" 1:58
4."The Power Is On" 3:14
5."Get It Together" 3:25
6."Junior Kickstart"
3:35
7."Air Raid GTR" 0:38
8."Bottle Rocket"
3:43
9."Friendship Update" 4:00
10."Huddle Formation"
  • The Go! Team
  • Egenamba
3:12
11."Everyone's a V.I.P. to Someone"
4:58
Re-release
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Panther Dash"
  • The Go! Team
  • Cooksey
2:50
2."Ladyflash"
  • The Go! Team
  • Reeves
  • Dozier
  • B. Holland
  • E. Holland
  • Davis
  • Miner
  • Smith
  • Pinchback
  • B. Robinson
  • C. Robinson
4:16
3."Feelgood by Numbers" 1:56
4."The Power Is On" 3:14
5."Get It Together" 3:28
6."We Just Won't Be Defeated" 2:45
7."Junior Kickstart"
  • The Go! Team
  • MacDermot
  • Rado
  • Ragni
3:32
8."Air Raid GTR" 0:39
9."Bottle Rocket"
  • The Go! Team
  • Egenamba
  • Elliston
3:32
10."Friendship Update" 4:00
11."Hold Yr Terror Close" 2:18
12."Huddle Formation"
  • The Go! Team
  • Egenamba
3:11
13."Everyone's a V.I.P. to Someone"
  • The Go! Team
  • Neil
  • Nyro
5:08

Sample credits[13]

Personnel

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Credits for Thunder, Lightning, Strike adapted from album liner notes.[13]

  • The Go! Team – performance, production
  • Ceri Amphlett – sleeve design
  • Mike Palmer – mastering
  • Gareth Parton – production
  • Rob Winterson – scratching on "Get It Together"

Charts

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Chart (2005–06) Peak
position
Scottish Albums (OCC)[31] 40
UK Albums (OCC)[32] 48
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[33] 5

Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[34] Gold 100,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

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  1. ^ "The 200 Best Albums of the 2000s". Pitchfork. 2 October 2009. Retrieved 27 April 2023. At the end of the decade, lo-fi had become a fashionable option...[but] there is still allure and aesthetic purpose in giving music a grainy feel...See government exhibit labeled the Go! Team, whose 2004 debut used less than ideal recording conditions...
  2. ^ "Junior Kickstart by The Go! Team". United Kingdom: iTunes Store. 26 May 2003. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  3. ^ "The Power Is On – EP by The Go! Team". United Kingdom: iTunes Store. 19 July 2004. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  4. ^ "Ladyflash by The Go! Team". United Kingdom: Amazon. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  5. ^ "Bottle Rocket! by The Go! Team". United Kingdom: Amazon. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  6. ^ Ian Parton [@the_go_team] (25 April 2020). "After work I would fire up my sampler and work on really lofi four track demos. These tapes have got some pretty trippy titles: Disneyland Crack Ring/ makeshift dick/ little chico. If you look closely you can see the odd tape name that became a song title" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  7. ^ Ian Parton [@the_go_team] (25 April 2020). "Every song on Thunder Lighting Strike started life on these tapes..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  8. ^ Ian Parton [@the_go_team] (25 April 2020). "Theres lots of trial and error on my demo tapes there would be versions of say Bottle Rocket with the chorus of Ladyflash and vice versa" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  9. ^ Ian Parton [@the_go_team] (25 April 2020). "ladyflash started life as about 7 separate ideas on my demo tapes – I wanted it feel a bit like flipping radio channels between a spector girl group and roxanne shante" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  10. ^ Ian Parton [@the_go_team] (25 April 2020). "Get it together : this is the first song I wrote and felt "yeah this is what I want to sound like" as it was a weird hybrid of electro /jackson 5/ sonic youth harmonics/ country and kinda a kids tv theme" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  11. ^ Ian Parton [@the_go_team] (25 April 2020). "In 2003 when my folks were on holiday I filled up my car with drumkits and my sampler and went to their house in Wales to record. It was literally recorded in a garage" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  12. ^ a b c Doyle, Tom (November 2005). "The Go! Team: Recording Thunder, Lightning, Strike". Sound on Sound. Retrieved 11 November 2018.
  13. ^ a b c Thunder, Lightning, Strike (liner notes). The Go! Team. Memphis Industries. 2004. MI040CD.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  14. ^ Ian Parton [@the_go_team] (25 April 2020). "The original version of the album was totally illegal – uncleared samples. cos we figured – no hit – no writ. its a smalltime album no fuckers gonna sue us" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  15. ^ Ian Parton [@the_go_team] (25 April 2020). "Once I had a meeting with a musicologist – yeah that's a job – who would give advice about how much I had to change a sample – after the meeting I literally puked up" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  16. ^ Gareth Parton [@garethparton] (25 April 2020). "This [Get It Together] is one of the few tracks we didn't have to redo for the 2nd version of the record" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  17. ^ a b "Reviews for Thunder, Lightning, Strike by The Go! Team". Metacritic. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  18. ^ a b Sendra, Tim. "Thunder, Lightning, Strike – The Go! Team". AllMusic. Retrieved 3 February 2023.
  19. ^ "The Go! Team: Thunder, Lightning, Strike". Blender (31): 134. November 2005.
  20. ^ Endelman, Michael (3 October 2005). "Thunder, Lightning, Strike". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 15 October 2012. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  21. ^ "The Go! Team: Thunder, Lightning, Strike". Mojo: 98. Cunning juxtapositions such as the haunting harmonica that chisels blissful melodies from chest-beating samba horns on opener 'Panther Dash' seem more purposeful than perverse.
  22. ^ "The Go! Team: Thunder, Lightning, Strike". NME: 53. 11 September 2004.
  23. ^ Schreiber, Ryan (26 October 2004). "The Go! Team: Thunder, Lightning, Strike". Pitchfork. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  24. ^ Ojukwu, Chima (23 September 2004). "The Go! Team – Thunder, Lightning, Strike". Resident Advisor. Retrieved 16 October 2015.
  25. ^ Sheffield, Rob (20 October 2005). "Thunder, Lightning, Strike". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 25 June 2007. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  26. ^ Keefe, Jonathan (9 October 2005). "The Go! Team: Thunder, Lightning, Strike". Slant Magazine. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  27. ^ Christgau, Robert (14 February 2006). "Consumer Guide: Forever Young". The Village Voice. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  28. ^ Pitchfork staff (21 December 2010). "Top 50 Albums of 2004: 10–1". Pitchfork. p. 5. Archived from the original on 11 October 2011. Retrieved 31 December 2004.
  29. ^ Pitchfork staff (28 September 2009). "The Top 200 Albums of the 2000s". Pitchfork. p. 2. Retrieved 1 October 2009.
  30. ^ Corcoran, Nina (2 July 2024). "The Go! Team Announce Tour and Thunder, Lightning, Strike Reissue, Share Remix". Pitchfork. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
  31. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 8 November 2018.
  32. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 11 November 2018.
  33. ^ "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 11 November 2018.
  34. ^ "British album certifications – Go Team – Thunder, Lightning Strike". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 11 November 2018.
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