Pelican West Explained

Pelican West
Type:studio
Artist:Haircut One Hundred
Cover:Pelican_West.jpg
Released:[1]
Recorded:1981–82
Studio:Roundhouse (London)
Genre:New wave
Length:45:36
Label:Arista
Producer:Bob Sargeant
Next Title:Paint and Paint
Next Year:1984

Pelican West is the debut studio album by the British new wave band Haircut One Hundred, released on 26 February 1982 by Arista Records. It peaked at No. 2 on the UK Albums Chart and No. 31 on the Billboard 200, and was certified platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI).

The album featured three hit singles: "Love Plus One", "Favourite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl)" and "Fantastic Day". It was reissued on CD in 1992, retitled as Pelican West Plus and including five bonus tracks.

Pelican West was included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die (2006).[2]

Heyward later said, "It was a team effort. Everyone had their roles. My job was like the Paul McCartney one in film. The rest of the guys looked to me for direction, and I had to push them to turn these glorified jam sessions into three-minute pop songs."[3]

Track listing

Double CD reissue (1998, 2016)

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.[4]

Haircut One Hundred

Additional musicians

Production

Charts

Year-end charts

Singles

YearSongChartPosition
1981"Favourite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl)"UK Singles Chart4
1982"Love Plus One"UK Singles Chart3
1982"Fantastic Day"UK Singles Chart9
1982"Love Plus One"US Billboard Hot 10037
1981"Favourite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl)"US Billboard Disco/Dance41
1982"Love Plus One"US Billboard Disco/Dance8
1982"Ski Club of Great Britain"US Billboard Disco/Dance21

Cultural references

In the 1983 Central TV science fiction series Luna - first series episode two "The Clunkman Cometh" - the villainous Clunkman accepts a copy of the album as payment for alien pet Jazzmine - he reckons the album will be valuable although he himself dislikes "classical music".

Notes and References

  1. 20 February 1982. Haircuts in Hammersmith. Record Mirror. 2. 20 August 2022.
  2. Book: Dimery. Robert. 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. Universe Publishing. revised and updated. 2006. 0-7893-1371-5.
  3. . I Didn't Know How to Deal with Being a Frontman. Adrian Thrills. 57 . 1 May 2023.
  4. Pelican West. Haircut One Hundred. Arista Records. 1982. HCC 100. liner notes.
  5. Book: Kent, David. David Kent (historian). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. Australian Chart Book. St Ives, N.S.W.. illustrated. 1993. 0-646-11917-6. 131.
  6. Web site: Top Selling Albums of 1982 — The Official New Zealand Music Chart. Recorded Music New Zealand. 1 February 2022.