Some Friendly
Some Friendly is the debut album by British alternative rock band The Charlatans, released in 1990.
Recorded at The Windings near Wrexham, Wales in 1990, the sessions proved somewhat fraught - the band fell out with the owners of the studio; "it was one of those studio bust-ups ... Rob and Martin were up to their old tricks, smashing stuff up and that" said singer Tim Burgess later.
However, lack of songs proved to be the major problem. Having been together for less than a year, the band hadn't had the opportunity to stockpile songs. The album suffered as a result, featuring a few tracks that "had to go on there just to make up the numbers".
The band also felt that some songs were overproduced, with the bass being lost in the mix and that the whole album sounded rather 'thin'.
Both "The Only One I Know" and "Then" provided the Charlatans with hit singles, peaking at #9 and #12 respectively in the pop charts. In the UK the record went straight in at #1 in the album charts.
Track listing
The original vinyl release of Some Friendly did not include "The Only One I Know", as it was the band's wish to take only one single from each album.2010 Deluxe edition
A two-disc Remastered Deluxe Edition of the album was released on 17 May 2010. The track listing for this release included a remastered version of the original album as well as a disc of outtakes, radio sessions and B-sides.Note
- Tracks 1–3 on the bonus disc were originally released on the single The Only One I Know; Tracks 11–12 appeared on the single Then; Tracks 15, 16, 18 and a shorter version of Track 17 appeared on the EP Over Rising. "Opportunity Three" is a remix of "Opportunity" from the original album. "Some Friendly" is an early version of "You're Not Very Well".
- For contractual reasons, the digital release of this reissue omits the BBC session recordings: however, it adds four additional versions which were omitted from the CD at the band's request:
Personnel
- Tim Burgess – vocals, harmonica
- John Baker – guitars
- Rob Collins – Mellotron, organ, piano, backing vocals
- Martin Blunt – bass
- Jon Brookes – drums
Charts
| Chart | Peak position |
| Australian Albums Chart | 79 |
| UK Albums Chart | 1 |
| US Billboard 200 | 73 |
Single
| Year | Single | Chart | Peak position |
| 1990 | "The Only One I Know" | UK Singles Chart | 9 |
| 1990 | "Then" | Billboard Modern Rock Tracks | 4 |
| 1990 | "Then" | UK Singles Chart | 12 |
| 1990 | "The Only One I Know" | Billboard Modern Rock Tracks | 5 |
| 1991 | "Sproston Green" | Billboard Modern Rock Tracks | 25 |
| 1991 | "White Shirt" | Billboard Modern Rock Tracks | 18 |
| 1991 | "The Only One I Know" | Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks | 37 |