| Satellites | |
| Type: | Album |
| Artist: | The Big Dish |
| Cover: | The Big Dish Satellites 1991 album cover.jpg |
| Released: | 11 February 1991[1] |
| Length: | 41:21 |
| Label: | East West |
| Producer: | Warne Livesey, The Big Dish |
| Prev Title: | Creeping Up on Jesus |
| Prev Year: | 1988 |
| Next Title: | Rich Man's Wardrobe – A Concise History of The Big Dish |
| Next Year: | 1994 |
Satellites is the third and final studio album from Scottish pop band The Big Dish, which was released by East West in 1991. The album peaked at No. 43 in the UK Albums Chart and remained in the Top 100 for two weeks.[2]
The album spawned three singles; "Miss America" reached No. 37 in the UK Singles Chart, providing the band with their only UK Top 75 entry. The follow-up, "Big Town", reached No. 94 and the third single, a remix of "25 Years", failed to chart.[2] After the disappointing sales of Satellites, "Big Town" and "25 Years", East West dropped the Big Dish in June 1991, and the band decided to split soon after.[3]
Speaking of the meaning behind the album's title, vocalist and guitarist Steven Lindsay stated, "People can be like satellites, congregating around other[s]. Some of the songs on [the album] are about lonely people and it has a nice ring to it. The record company didn't like the name, but we said 'too bad'!"[4]
On its release, Adam Sweeting of The Guardian commented, "The smooth, dreamy textures and Lindsay's perfectly polished tunes make this ideal late-night driving fodder." He felt the band's sound had moved towards "American-style FM radio" which was "conspicuously out of sync with the state of British music".[5] Peter Kinghorn of the Evening Chronicle praised the album as "thoughtful and well crafted" and considered Big Dish to have "matured and improved over the past three years like a good wine".[6]
Neil Hodgson of the Liverpool Echo described Satellites as a "slickly-produced effort" with "delicate compositions". He added, "It's refreshing to find a band like the Big Dish who aren't afraid to follow their instincts at a time when melody is considered by a lot of people to be a dirty word."[7] Dan Kening of the Chicago Tribune considered at least half of the album to be "made for American album-rock radio" and praised Lindsay's "crystalline" vocals which "highlight such hook-filled songs as 'Miss America,' '25 Years' and 'Big Town'."
Music & Media described the album as "delightful" and praised Lindsay as "one of the most gifted songwriters of the moment", with Satellites finding him "in very good shape".[8] Billboard considered it "gentle, alternative pop-rock in the Outfield mode" which "hypnotically soothes without ever slipping into dull or repetitive terrain". They singled out "Miss America" and "Give Me Some Time" as the best tracks on the album.[9]
Production
Other