My Beautiful England Explained

My Beautiful England
Type:	studio
Artist:	David Westlake
Border:	yes
Recorded:	June 2021
Genre:	Indie rock
Length:	39:18
Language:	English
Label:	Tiny Global Productions
Producer:	Des Lambert
Prev Title:	Play Dusty for Me
Prev Year:	2002

My Beautiful England is the third solo studio album by English singer/songwriter David Westlake, released through Tiny Global Productions on 14 October 2022.

Recording

My Beautiful England was produced by Des Lambert.

In his book Whatever Happened to the C86 Kids?, Nige Tassell notes that My Beautiful England is Westlake’s first all-new album since Play Dusty for Me twenty years ago, and that former Servants bandmate Luke Haines plays guitar on the recording.^[1]

Reception

Writing for Uncut, Johnny Sharp rated the album eight-out-of-ten, calling it “a delight”. “Westlake retains great respect from [the ''[[C86]]] era’s cognoscenti”, he said, and My Beautiful England is “a Britpop concept album from a man who’d surely wince at either label”.

In an in-depth review for Louder Than War, Neil Davenport gave the album a five-out-of-five rating, calling it “one of the most idiosyncratic, political and blazingly tuneful guitar pop albums [of 2022]”. “It’s an extraordinary record”, he says, “a contemporary update on George Orwell’s critiques of left intelligentsia found in ‘England Your England’.” “This is high level stuff”, says Davenport; “Not since Malcom Eden’s old band McCarthy (but in a completely different historical context) has there been an attempt to intelligently challenge received wisdom.” Musically, “My Beautiful England simply triumphs as a consistently great, 14-song guitar pop album. It’s packed with some of Westlake’s best songs.”

Different shows on BBC Radio 6 Music and other BBC stations gave the album regular airplay for several months around its release.^{[2] [3] [4] [5]}

Track listing

Side one:

1. "My Beautiful England" – 4:24
2. "War Memorial" – 3:05
3. "The Modern Ruins of Old London Town" – 3:20
4. "Bethnal Green Museum of Childhood" – 3:23
5. "Mallory Kept Climbing the Mountain" – 2:25
6. "E is for the Empire" – 2:38

Side two:

1. "Hayes, Middlesex" – 1:59
2. "English Parish Churches" – 3:37
3. "Regency Terrace" – 2:24
4. "Marie Lloyd" – 2:20
5. "The Crusades" – 2:31
6. "The Age of Unenlightenment" – 2:17
7. "General Gordon’s Last Stand" – 2:38
8. "Au Contraire, Tony Blair" – 2:11

Personnel

• David Westlake – vocals and guitar
• Luke Haines – guitar
• Des Lambert – bass
• Rob Flanagan – drums
• Dwain Bedford – trumpet

Technical personnel

• Des Lambert – production
• Stuart Moxham – mastering
• Patsy Westlake – photography
• Del Sozou – artwork, design

Notes and References

1. Book: Tassell, Nige. 2022. Whatever Happened to the C86 Kids?: An Indie Odyssey. London. Nine Eight Books. 286. 978-1788705585.
2. Web site: Radcliffe & Maconie. . 24 July 2022. BBC Radio 6 Music. BBC Radio. 8 May 2023. [12] David Westlake: Bethnal Green Museum Of Childhood.
3. Web site: Gideon Coe. . 7 September 2022. BBC Radio 6 Music. BBC Radio. 8 May 2023. [28] David Westlake: The Modern Ruins Of Old London Town.
4. Web site: Steve Lamacq. . 28 July 2022. BBC Radio 6 Music. BBC Radio. 8 May 2023. [7] David Westlake: Bethnal Green Museum Of Childhood.
5. Web site: The Mickey Bradley Record Show. . 23 September 2022. BBC Radio Ulster. BBC Radio. 8 May 2023. [7] David Westlake: Mallory Kept Climbing The Mountain.