Argybargy
	Produced by John Wood and Squeeze
	Released on February 1980
	UK CHART POSITION #32 . . . US CHART POSITION #71
	Find it at GEMM
SP-4802 cover [high resolution scan]

A fter Argybargy, you knew they were something special. “Pulling Mussels (From the Shell),” “Another Nail in My Heart,” “If I Didn’t Love You.” Not since The Beatles (and imagine me crossing myself) had pop music sounded this perfect. The rest of the record is a little rough by comparison. “Separate Beds,” “Wrong Side of the Moon” and “Misadventure” are charmers, but tracks like “Farfisa Beat” and “Here Comes That Feeling” are a few boobies short of a clever trap. A lot of Argybargy’s success simply comes from track placement. I’ve said it before and I’ll keep saying it: put the pretty songs up front (in this case, at the beginning of sides one and two). Squeeze followed the same formula with East Side Story (their magnum opus) and didn’t with Sweets (“Out of Touch” indeed). Argybargy also introduced bassist John Bentley, the first of many lineup changes to come (oddly, Bentley was always the “separate head” in photo shots). The real difference (argybargy’s bite) is its contagious energy. Cats had some of it, this album spills over with it. When I heard “Pulling Mussels” on the radio, it floored me like nothing since “Accidents Will Happen.” Both songs were just embarrassingly brilliant; “embarrassing” because they made every other pop song on the radio sound flat. I would never stick Squeeze with the label of the next Beatles, but they did seem like the second coming of Elvis Costello & The Attractions. Praying to the gods of pop had yielded mostly little “s” stars, and the Squeeze of Argybargy was a sign with a capital “S” that the gods had been listening. Improbably, the gods had even more wonders in store, but that’s another Story.

SP-4802 back cover	SP-4802 lyric sleeve

TRACK LISTING

1. PULLING MUSSELS (FROM THE SHELL)    4:00
2. ANOTHER NAIL IN MY HEART    2:55
3. SEPARATE BEDS    3:20
4. MISADVENTURE    2:54
5. I THINK I'M GO GO    4:16
6. IF I DIDN'T LOVE YOU    4:10
7. FARFISA BEAT    2:56
8. HERE COMES THAT FEELING    2:05
9. VICKY VERKY    3:11
10. WRONG SIDE OF THE MOON    (Jools Holland/Chris Difford)    2:36
11. THERE AT THE TOP    3:48
    
    CD reissue bonus tracks
    
12. FUNNY HOW IT GOES
13. GO
    
    All selections written by Glenn Tilbrook and Chris Difford unless noted

CREDITS

JOHN BENTLEY -- bass
CHRIS DIFFORD -- rhythm guitar, vocals
JOOLS HOLLAND -- keyboards, vocals
GILSON LAVIS -- drums
GLENN TILBROOK -- lead guitar, keyboards, vocals
Del Newman -- string arrangements
John Wood and Squeeze -- mixing
Andy Lumm -- engineer
Michael Ross -- design & art direction
Mike Laye -- front cover photography
self portraits on back cover photos

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