The Sin of Pride

The Sin of Pride is the fourth and final album to be released by the original line-up of the Undertones. The album, which was produced by Mike Hedges, was recorded between the autumn of 1982 and the spring of 1983. Unlike the three previous albums released by the Undertones, which primarily consisted of guitar-oriented music, The Sin of Pride drew much inspiration from both Soul music and Motown.[2] The band's lead singer, Feargal Sharkey, has opined The Sin of Pride as being "the finest Undertones album."[3]

The Sin of Pride
Studio album by
The Undertones
Released13 March 1983
StudioPlayground Studios, Camden Town, London
Genre
Length38:53
LabelArdeck-EMI (UK)
Harvest (US)
Rykodisc (US CD reissue)
Sanctuary Records (UK CD reissue)
ProducerMike Hedges, The Undertones
The Undertones chronology
Positive Touch
(1981)		 The Sin of Pride
(1983)		 Get What You Need
(2003)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]

Released on 13 March 1983,[4] The Sin of Pride reached number 43 in the UK charts. Largely due to the commercial failure of The Sin of Pride, the Undertones disbanded just four months after the album's release.[5]

Three singles were taken from The Sin of Pride: "Got To Have You Back", "Chain of Love" and "The Love Parade".[n 1] However, none of the singles released reached the top 40 in the UK Singles Chart.

Background

Tensions between members of the band had increased in the year prior to the release of The Sin of Pride. Declining chart success had been a major factor behind this discord. Bassist Michael Bradley would reflect in 2009: "It would be untrue to say The Sin of Pride is the sound of the Undertones breaking up, but my memories of the recording sessions are not the happiest. The tensions between Feargal and the rest of the band—John especially—were beginning to become more noticeable. Of course, if Positive Touch had been a huge success, we could have worked around those tensions. But it didn't, and suddenly, when we looked below us, the wheels were starting to come off."[6]

Cover photography

The front cover of The Sin of Pride depicts the Undertones stood aside and sat upon a sofa covered with a white sheet with a stained glass image of Saint Columba projected across them. White sheeting is also draped across the wall behind them. The image itself was taken inside an 8-track demo studio the band had constructed in Abercorn Road, Derry, in 1982.[7] The rear cover depicts the same location minus the band or any form of illumination or projected imagery. The lyrics of each song upon The Sin of Pride are also printed upon the rear cover of the album.

Critical reception

Although The Sin of Pride received positive reviews in the music press, the album charted at number 43.[8] Nonetheless, the album has been described by Allmusic as "one of the great unsung albums of the early '80s."[9]

On the subject of the actual poor sales of this album, Feargal Sharkey would recollect in 1986: "People still wanted us to rewrite the first album, and we weren't prepared to do that."[10]

Track listing
Side one
No.TitleWritten byLength
1."Got To Have You Back"Ivy Jo Hunter, Leon Ware, Stephen Bowden*2:51
2."Valentine's Treatment"Damian O'Neill, Michael Bradley2:47
3."Luxury"J. J. O'Neill2:28
4."Love Before Romance"Damian O'Neill4:53
5."Untouchable"Damian O'Neill3:19
6."Bye Bye Baby Blue"J. J. O'Neill, Michael Bradley3:16
Side two
No.TitleWritten byLength
1."Conscious"Damian O'Neill3:14
2."Chain of Love"J. J. O'Neill2:59
3."Soul Seven"J. J. O'Neill2:33
4."The Love Parade"Damian O'Neill, Michael Bradley3:26
5."Save Me"William Robinson, Warren "Pete" Moore, Robert Rogers*2:31
6."The Sin of Pride"Damian O'Neill, Michael Bradley4:36
Bonus tracks (issued on CD and download releases only)
No.TitleWritten byLength
1."The Love Parade" (12" version)Damian O'Neill, Michael Bradley*5:07
2."Like That"J. J. O'Neill, Michael Bradley3:04
3."You're Welcome" (live version)J. J. O'Neill3:48
4."Crisis of Mine" (live version)J. J. O'Neill3:30
5."Family Entertainment" (live version)Damian O'Neill2:52
6."Turning Blue"J. J. O'Neill2:35
7."Bye Bye Baby Blue"J. J. O'Neill, Michael Bradley3:17
8."Window Shopping for New Clothes"J. J. O'Neill2:14
9."Bittersweet"J. J. O'Neill5:07
10."I Can Only Dream"J. J. O'Neill7:49
11."You Stand So Close (But You're Never There)"J. J. O'Neill, Damian O'Neill3:08

Personnel
The Undertones
Additional musicians
Production
  • Mike Hedges – engineering, mixing
  • Leo Peppas – engineering
  • Nigel Green – engineering
  • Andy Pierce – remastering (2009 Compact Disc re-release)

Notes
  1. Two single versions of "The Love Parade" were released; one version commercially available upon the LP and an extended 12-inch single version.

References
  1. Allmusic review
  2. "The Undertones / Hypnotised / Positive Touch / The Sin of Pride: Anthology". popmatters.com. 12 August 2010. Retrieved 30 April 2017.
  3. "Sharkey's 'In Better Heart' These Days". The Montreal Gazette. 9 April 1986. Retrieved 29 January 2021.
  4. Chart Stats.com 13 March - 19 March 1983
  5. The Rough Guide to Rock ISBN 978-1-85828457-6 p. 1121
  6. Sleeve notes for Positive Touch/The Sin of Pride 2009 CD reissue p. 4
  7. Teenage Kicks: My Life as an Undertone ISBN 978-1-78558-180-9 pp. 200-202
  8. Teenage Kicks: My Life as an Undertone ISBN 978-1-78558-180-9 p. 211
  9. "The Sin of Pride: Review by Thom Jurek". allmusic.com. 12 September 2013. Retrieved 30 April 2017.
  10. "Feargal Sharkey: Look Sharp!". rollingstone.com. 6 May 1986. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
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