Duel

Description

Duel is the third and final solo album by the British singer and songwriter Iva Twydell of After The Fire fame, independently released in the UK on Redsky Records in 1982, and on Tunesmith ‎Records in Canada the same year, manufactured and distributed by Praise Industries Corp. The album was recorded and mixed during the spring of 1982 at Engelwood Recording Studio and Alvic Sound Studios in London, England; with Nick Battle producing (formerly of After The Fire and Writz, and a future member of Jump the Nile), assisted by Anthony Phillips of Genesis fame. All songs written by Iva Twydell except “Final Fuse” and “Get It Right” co-written with Nick Battle.

The album features lead vocals by Iva Twydell with backing vocals provided by Colin Blunstone (a founding member of The Zombies, known as one of the greatest rock bands in the UK during the 1960s) as well as Annie McCaig and Mo Turner, both of Nutshell fame. The British multi-instrumentalist Anthony Phillips, known as the original guitarist of the progressive rock band Genesis, plays synthesizer and keyboards, as well as acoustic and electric guitars and bass. The Roland drum machine was programmed by Richard Scott. Duel clearly bears Anthony Phillips’ signature and can be compared with Invisible Men, the album Phillips would release a year later. (As Richard Scott actually programmed the drum computers for both albums, the style is quite similar, too.)

An interesting obscurity here, Iva (Ivor) Twydell was a member of After The Fire, best known for their cover of Falco’s «Der Kommissar» one of the most obnoxious and disturbingly memorable singles of the 1980’s. You would never guess After The Fire actually started life as a progressive rock band, releasing one incredibly rare album ‘Signs of Change’ in 1978 heavily influenced by both Barclay James Harvest and Genesis. Attempting to change with the times, After The Fire went full throttle new wave and pop, touring the world with ELO, Queen and Van Halen, but split at the peak of their career reportedly due to conflicts with their Christian ‘values’ and the rock n’ roll life style. In 1982, Twydell with former band mate Nick Battle released ‘Duel’ featuring none other than original Genesis guitarist Anthony Phillips, and if that wasn’t enough, Colin Blunstone on background vocals. Impressive, but does it measure up as a progressive rock album?

Not really. This is a quirky, synthesizer driven record much like After The Fire’s later work or Flock Of Seagulls and early Tears For Fears. Ant Phillips provides some flashy keyboard work which is probably the most interesting part of the record. Like most pop music of this era, the guitar takes a secondary place behind the overkill of electronics and percussion giving the album a very ‘dated’ sound, a term I dislike, but is very apropos here. There are similarities to Peter Gabriel in Twydell’s vocals on «Addicted» and the closing «Abdication Day», the most progressive song on the album and the one tune on ‘Duel’ that actually shows Phillips influence, although the outcome is more IQ, than Genesis. [Eric, Christian New Wave, April 1, 2007]

LP tracklist:

Side One
A1. “The Man Inside” – 3:37
A2. “The Warning” – 3:20
A3. “Teaching Me The Hard Way” – 3:43
A4. “See No, Hear No, Speak No Evil” – 3:58
A5. “Final Fuse” – 4:27

Side Two
B1. “Decline And Fall” – 4:17
B2. “Hear Me” – 3:36
B3. “Addicted” – 3:03
B4. “Get It Right” – 2:58
B5. “Abdication Day” – 4:06

Note: Simultaneously released on cassette and 12-inch vinyl LP by Tunesmith ‎Records.

---

Duel, Redsky Records (UK Edition)

---

Duel, Tunesmith ‎Records (Canadian Edition)

---

---

CREDITS. Produced by Nick Battle. Assisted by Anthony Phillips. Recorded and mixed Spring 1982 at Engelwood Recording Studio and Alvic Sound Studios, London, and engineered by Anthony Phillips, Richard Scott and Simon Serille Phillips. Drums arranged by Iva Twydell and Richard Scott. All songs written by Iva Twydell except “Final Fuse” and “Get It Right” co-written with Nick Battle. Sleeve design by Steve Bamford. Front cover photography by Stuart Rowen. Back cover photography by Trevor von Trilsback.

Musicians: Iva Twydell (Vocals, Synthesizer, Electric Guitar, Percussion), Anthony Phillips (Synthesizer, Keyboards, Acoustic & Electric Guitars, Bass), Nick Battle (Electric Guitar, Bass), Richard Scott (Roland Drum Machine Programming). Backing Vocals: Annie McCaig, Colin Blunstone, Mo Turner.