Tenement Symphony (Marc Almond album)

Tenement Symphony
Tenement Symphony
Studio album by Marc Almond
Released	14 October 1991
Recorded	1991
Studio	Maison Rouge; Sarm West (London); Fishermans Room (Berlin); CTS; Berwick St; RAK; Pacific;
Genre	Synthpop; art pop;
Length	47:54
Label	WEA; Some Bizzare; Sire Records;
Producer	Marc Almond; Trevor Horn; Billy McGee; Nigel Hine; The Grid;
Marc Almond chronology
Singles from Tenement Symphony
	"Jacky" b/w "Deep Night"; Released: September 1991; "My Hand Over My Heart" b/w "Deadly Serenade"; Released: January 1992; "The Days of Pearly Spencer" b/w "Bruises"; Released: April 1992;

Tenement Symphony (subtitled Kies und Glanz • Grit and Glitter • Grès et Paillettes) is the seventh studio album by English singer-songwriter Marc Almond. It was released in October 1991 and reached number 39 on the UK Albums Chart.^[1] Tenement Symphony includes three UK top 40 hit singles: "Jacky", "My Hand Over My Heart" and "The Days of Pearly Spencer" (which would become Almond's last UK top 10 hit to date).

Background

Working with former La Magia and Willing Sinners member Billy McGee, and his former Soft Cell bandmate David Ball as well as various studio musicians, Almond recorded the album at Maison Rouge, Sarm West Studios, Fishermans Room, Berlin, CTS Studios, Berwick St Studios, RAK and Pacific Studios.

Composition

The album is divided into two sections: 'Grit' and 'Glitter'. The first five songs constituted the 'Grit' and were produced by Almond, Billy McGee, Nigel Hine, and The Grid. The 'Glitter' side (the Tenement Symphony) was produced by Trevor Horn. The artwork was designed by Green Ink with a cover photograph by Klanger and Boink. The album cover mimics the style of German record label Deutsche Grammophon's classical records.

Almond wrote in his autobiography that the album's concept was largely down to Rob Dickins and that he did not feel the album truly reflected his artistic direction at that time, though he was pleased to have had the opportunity to work with Trevor Horn.

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[2]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music	^[3]
NME	6/10^[4]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Marc Almond, except where indicated

Side one
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Meet Me in My Dream"	Almond David Ball	4:24
2.	"Beautiful Brutal Thing"		5:02
3.	"I've Never Seen Your Face"	Almond Ball	5:02
4.	"Vaudeville and Burlesque"		6:52
5.	"Champagne"		5:47

Side two (*Tenement Symphony*)
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
6.	"i. Prelude"	Ball	0:23
7.	"ii. Jacky"	Jacques Brel Gérard Jouannest	4:49
8.	"iii. What Is Love?"	Bruce Woolley Trevor Horn	5:04
9.	"iv. Trois Chansons de Bilitis – Extract"	Claude Debussy	0:54
10.	"v. The Days of Pearly Spencer"	David McWilliams Almond (additional lyrics)	4:22
11.	"vi. My Hand Over My Heart"	Almond Ball	5:15

Personnel

Marc Almond – vocals, keyboards, arranger
David Ball – synthesizer, programming
Anne Dudley – keyboards, arranger, orchestration
J.J. Belle – guitar
Sally Bradshaw – vocals
Betsy Cook – vocals
Mitch Dalton – guitar
Andy Duncan – drums, percussion, percussion programming
Trevor Horn – bass on "What Is Love?", organ
Billy McGee – keyboards, arranger
Julian Mendelsohn – mixing
Richard Norris – percussion programming
Nick Plytas – piano on "I've Never Seen Your Face"
Lynda Richardson – choir master
Richard Riley – guitar
Philip Todd – soprano and tenor saxophone
Tim Weidner – bass
Bruce Woolley – keyboards, vocals
Gavyn Wright – string conductor
Nigel Hine – programming
Julian Stringle – clarinet
Steve Rapport – artwork
Inga Humpe – programming, vocals
Eric Caudieux – guitar, keyboards, programming
Max Loderbauer – programming

Charts

Chart (1991)	Peak position
UK Albums (OCC)^[5]	48

Chart (1992)	Peak position
UK Albums (OCC)^[6]	39

Chart performance for *Tenement Symphony (reissue)*
Chart (2023)	Peak position
Scottish Albums (OCC)^[7]	50
UK Independent Albums (OCC)^[8]	18

References

^ "The Official Charts Company - Marc Almond". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 20 August 2008.
^ Allmusic review
^ Larkin, Colin (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Omnibus Press. ISBN 9780857125958. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
^ Page, Betty (19 October 1991). "Long Play". New Musical Express. p. 36.
^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 October 2023.
^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 October 2023.
^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 October 2023.
^ "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 October 2023.

[chartstats-1] "The Official Charts Company - Marc Almond". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 20 August 2008.

[2] Allmusic review

[3] Larkin, Colin (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Omnibus Press. ISBN 9780857125958. Retrieved 1 May 2019.

[4] Page, Betty (19 October 1991). "Long Play". New Musical Express. p. 36.

[ac_UK2_Marc_Almond-5] "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 October 2023.

[ac_UK2_-6] "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 October 2023.

[ac_Scotland_Marc_Almond-7] "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 October 2023.

[ac_UKIndependent_-8] "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 October 2023.

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