I remember returning back to my student digs and my flatmate was playing this album, I hadn’t heard it at that time, somehow the radio play had passed me by but this sound didn’t! The track playing was ‘The day we caught the train’ and I was an instant fan.
The band was Ocean Colour Scene
I challenge anyone with a decent taste in music to hear “Roll a number, write another song like Jimmy heard the day he caught the train” and not instantly want to hear it again, and again, and again.
Released on April 8th 1996, this day 28 years ago, Moseley Shores is an enduring timeless classic, released during the britpop era, it reached #2 in the UK charts, at a time when the album chart was definitely something you looked out for. It was released during the britpop era but to me it certainly wasn’t britpop, it was its own thing, yes it falls into the indie-rock genre of its time, but it had blues it had folk, maybe the Birmingham influence whatever that was just gave it something different to the London and Madchester Manchester sound of that time?
However you take it, Moseley Shoals and Ocean Colour Scene have earned their place in the twisting winding beast that is the British music scene.
- The Riverboat Song
- The Day We Caught the Train
- The Circle
- Lining Your Pockets
- Fleeting Mind
- 40 Past Midnight
- One for the Road
- It’s My Shadow
- Policemen & Pirates
- The Downstream
- You’ve Got It Bad
- Get Away
There were similarities drawn with Paul Weller on sound before Moseley Shoals. These comparisons with Paul Weller were not always a good thing for Ocean Colour Scene, why not just listen to Weller? Listen to this album for your answer!
When it comes to Moseley Shoals, you can hear Weller in these songs. Might have something to do with Brendan Lynch, Wellers producer at the time who heard them and offered his services. The combination of that producer and Fowlers songs and vocals, not to mention a band felling at the height of their powers, was a match made in music.
