Pulled along by love (The Mutton Birds) (LP 4451 - 4452)

The Mutton Birds  Envy of Angels (CD, EMI Records, 1996) ****  

The Mutton Birds  Rain, Steam & Speed (CD, shhhh! Records, 1999) ****  

Genre: NZ Music, pop rock.

Places I remember: The Warehouse, JB Hi Fi

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Come Around (Envy of Angels)

Gear costume: April, She's Been Talking (Envy of Angels)

They loom large in his legend (The Album Collection playlists): Part 1; Part 2; Part 3; Part 4; Part 5; Part 6; Part 7

Active compensatory factors: I have only scratched the surface of The Muttom Birds by owning these two albums. Maybe weirdly, I have far more of Don McGlashan's other work, either with Front Lawn or solo. He's a singular NZ talent and I should get their other albums at some point.

The band on Envy of Angels (their third album) is made up of Don, Ross Burge (drums), Alan Gregg (bass), and David Long (guitar, keyboards). They recorded the album in Wales, as they had relocated to England just prior. Therefore, many of the songs deal with the sense of being away from home. Something I can relate to. It's an excellent album - not every song is a masterpiece, but it's close.

Rain, Steam & Speed was their fourth and final album (there are plenty of compilations out there). It's not as consistently strong as Envy of Angels but it is a cut above loads of other bands (NZ or otherwise).

Where do they all belong? As I said, I probably need those first two Mutton Bird albums.