Sheep Farming in Barnet

Sheep Farming in Barnet is the debut studio album by the English new wave band Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox. It was originally released in 1979 as a 6-track extended EP, dubbed an 'Alternate Play' record (AP) by Safari Records, and was expanded into full-album status the following year. The album was later reissued on CD, cassette and white vinyl by Great Expectations in 1990 (As PIPCD 014), and again on CD by Safari themselves in 2002, digitally remastered and coupled with the band's second album, The Blue Meaning (1980).

Sheep Farming in Barnet
Studio album by
Toyah
ReleasedAP: 3 August 1979
LP: 22 February 1980
GenreNew wave, punk rock
Length21:11 (AP), 40:30 (LP)
LabelSafari
ProducerSteve James, Keith Hale
Toyah chronology
Sheep Farming in Barnet
(1980)		 The Blue Meaning
(1980)
Toyah chronology
Victims of the Riddle
(1979)		 Sheep Farming in Barnet EP
(1979)		 Bird In Flight/Tribal Look
(1980)
EP cover
Singles from Sheep Farming in Barnet
  1. "Victims of the Riddle" / "Victims of the Riddle (Vivisection)"
    Released: 27 July 1979
  2. "Neon Womb" / "Waiting"
    Released: 1979 (Germany only)
  3. "Computer" / "Danced"
    Released: 1980 (Yugoslavia only)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
New Musical Express[1]

The album was produced by Steve James and future band member Keith Hale and was released as an AP on 3 August 1979, with the album version following in February 1980. The album was originally compiled by the band's German record label, EMI Electrola, but the importation of the disc was so widespread, Safari decided to cash in and follow suit. The tracks added included several songs which did not make the original track listing and the début single "Victims of the Riddle" (originally released in July 1979), plus its B-side "Victims of the Riddle (Vivisection)".

The album's title refers to sheep being seen in a field in Finchley just off Regent's Park Road. According to John Craig of Safari, the cover featured Toyah at the RAF Fylingdales radar station near Whitby in Yorkshire, "a shoot achieved with considerable difficulty as, quite predictably, guards chased Toyah and the crew from the high-security site".[2]

Several tracks from the album became firm live favourites, and featured on two later live albums. Toyah Willcox still performs the tracks "Danced" and "Neon Womb" in her live sets.

In 2020 Cherry Red Records released the album in an Expanded Deluxe edition, consisting of 2 CDs and a DVD including unreleased materials and rarities.

Track listing

All songs by Toyah Willcox, Joel Bogen and Peter Bush, except where indicated

Original EP
Side one
  1. "Neon Womb" - 4:24
  2. "Indecision" (Willcox, Bogen, Bush, Mark Henry) - 2:44
  3. "Waiting" (Willcox, Steve Bray) - 3:17
Side two
  1. "Our Movie" - 3:04
  2. "Danced" - 4:42 *
  3. "Last Goodbye" - 3:00

* The EP version of this track has an edited intro; this edited version does not appear on any other release.

LP Version
Side one
  1. "Neon Womb" - 4:24
  2. "Indecision" (Willcox, Bogen, Bush, Henry) - 2:44
  3. "Waiting" (Willcox, Bray) - 3:17
  4. "Computer" - 3:06
  5. "Victims of the Riddle" (Willcox, Keith Hale, Steve James, Bogen, Bush) - 3:38
  6. "Elusive Stranger" - 4:55
Side two
  1. "Our Movie" - 3:04
  2. "Danced" - 5:13
  3. "Last Goodbye" - 3:00
  4. "Victims of the Riddle (Vivisection)" (Willcox, Hale, James, Bogen, Bush) - 3:52
  5. "Race Through Space" - 3:17

2002 reissue bonus tracks
  1. "Bird in Flight" (Willcox, Bogen, Bush, Francis, Bray) - 3:56
  2. "Tribal Look" (Willcox, Bogen, Bush, Francis, Bray) - 3:25

2020 Expanded Deluxe Edition
CD One
  1. "Neon Womb"
  2. "Indecision"
  3. "Waiting"
  4. "Computer"
  5. "Victims of the riddle"
  6. "Elusive stranger"
  7. "Our movie"
  8. "Danced"
  9. "Last goodbye"
  10. "Victims of the riddle (Vivisection)"
  11. "Race through space"
  12. "Gaoler"
  13. "Bird in flight"
  14. "Tribal look"
  15. "Love me (Dangerfield Session)"
  16. "Tribal look (Alternative Mix)"
  17. "Our movie (Shoestring Version)"
  18. "Waiting (Shoestring Version)"
  19. "Neon womb (Shoestring Version)"
  20. "Danced (Shoestring Version)"
CD Two
  1. "Computers (Demo)"
  2. "Little boy (Demo)"
  3. "Close encounters (Demo)"
  4. "Watch me sane (Demo)"
  5. "Jailer (Demo)"
  6. "Race through space (Demo)"
  7. "Elusive stranger (Demo)"
  8. "Problem child (Demo)"
  9. "Israel (Demo)"
  10. "Christmas carol (Demo)"
  11. "Race through space (Alternate Mix)"
  12. "Neon womb (No Saxophone)"
  13. "Our movie (Alternate Mix)"
  14. "Waiting (Alternate Vocal Mix)"
  15. "Indecision (Alternate Vocal Mix)"
  16. "Computer (Alternate Vocal Mix)"
  17. "Vivisection (Improvisation)"
  18. "Love me (Demo)"
  19. "Tribal look (Demo)"
  20. "Guilty (Demo)"
  21. "Three-sided face (Demo)"
DVD
  1. "The story behind the album, 2020"
  2. "Track by track album commentary, 2020"
  3. "Computer acoustic, 2020"
  4. "Neon womb acoustic, 2020"
  5. "Bird in flight acoustic, 2020"
  6. "Race through space on What's On, 1979"
  7. "Toyah interview on What's On, 1979"
  8. "Danced at the Old Grey Whistle test, 1980"
  9. "Indecision at the Old Grey Whistle test, 1980"

Personnel
  • Toyah Willcox – vocals
  • Joel Bogen – guitar
  • Peter Bush – keyboards
  • Keith Hale – keyboards on "Victims of the Riddle" and "Victims of the Riddle (Vivisection)"
  • Mark Henry – bass
  • Steve Bray – drums
Production
  • Steve James, Keith Hale - producers, engineers

References
  1. Nicholls, Mike (1980). "New Age Hippy". NME. Retrieved 2017-11-19.
  2. Craig, John (January 2014). "Safari Records: Our History". Safari Records. Retrieved 2017-11-19.
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