Thinking about the recent Thomas Dolby concert that I attended, my thoughts return to just how many different issues of his debut album, “Golden Age Of Wireless” have been issued over the last 30 years. There have been a plethora of versions for primarily the US and UK territories that have fluctuated wildly along with Dolby’s commercial fortunes. I own most of these variations, but there may be more that I am unaware of! Let’s begin, at the beginning, shall we?

Venice In Peril | UK | LP | 1982 | VIP1001

Thomas Dolby: Golden Age Of Wireless 1st UK LP [1982]

1. Flying North 3:50
2. Commercial Breakup 4:15
3. Weightless 3:45
4. Europa + The Pirate Twins 3:18
5. Windpower 4:20
6. The Wreck Of The Fairchild 3:30
7. Airwaves 5:12
8. Radio Silence 3:43
9. Cloudburst At Shingle Street 5:45

The original UK 1st pressing is something of a rarity. I only got a copy when I was tidying up the Thomas Dolby loose ends in my collection about eight years ago. I mail ordered my copy since I’ve never seen a copy in US record stores. The main difference between this issue, and all other LP/CDs until 2009, is that the original sequence/mix of the album was segued together for narrative “flow” and there is a song, “The Wreck Of The Fairchild,” that only appeared on this 1st UK pressing of the album. It also made an appearance in a slightly shorter 3:09 edit on the “Airwaves” UK 7″ single. I assume the lack of a segue to the next track accounts for the approximately 30 second shorter single version of this cut. For the record, “Radio Silence” is the brilliant single version. Heavy on the synths and a side order of PPG Wave Computer, please!

Harvest | US | LP | 1982 | ST-12203

Thomas Dolby: Golden Age Of Wireless 1st US LP [1982]

1. Europa + The Pirate Twins 3:18
2. Flying North 3:50
3. Weightless 3:45
4. Leipzig 3:52
5. Windpower 4:20
6. Commercial Breakup 4:15
7. Urges 3:39
8. Airwaves [7″] 3:35
9. Radio Silence [version] 4:32
10. Cloudburst At Shingle Street 5:45

This is the album I tried to find for almost a year after chancing to see the brilliant “Europa + The Pirate Twins” video on MTV in late 1982.  It sports a cover taken from the UK “Europa + The Pirate Twins” single instead of the “mad scientist” image that’s so familiar. I eventually got a copy in the mid 80s. The album has been resequenced from the UK edition and many track substitutions have occurred. The primary difference is the only inclusion of Dolby’s debut single, “Leipzig” b/w “Urges” into the album program. “The Wreck Of The Fairchild” was dropped, and the 7″ edit of “Airwaves” was used to allow for the longer program on vinyl. Finally, the bass-drums-guitar laden B-side version of “Radio Silence” makes its album debut as a sop to delicate Midwestern sensibilities.

Capitol Records | US | LP | 1983 | ST-12271

Thomas Dolby: Golden Age Of Wireless 2nd US LP [1983]

1. She Blinded Me With Science [ext.] 5:09
2. Radio Silence [version] 4:32
3. Airwaves [7″] 3:35
4. Flying North 3:50
5. Weightless 3:45
6. Europa + The Pirate Twins 3:18
7. Windpower 3:38
8. Commercial Breakup 4:15
9. One Of Our Submarines 5:11
10. Cloudburst At Shingle Street 5:45

What a difference eight months and a hit makes! Dolby was released on the lo-budget subsidiary of Capitol, Harvest Records, for his 1st pressing or “Wireless.” The same label subsequently brought out a five track EP, “Blinded By Science” that contained Dolby’s current, non-LP single of the titular name along with its B-side, “Submarines” – including three cuts from “Wireless” in extended forn. This gambit by Harvest worked with  breaking Duran Duran in the States with the similar “Carnival” EP, together with music video saturation and bingo – Dolby also had his hit.

Harvest deleted the EP and the mother label picked up Dolby’s option and they re-released his debut album with yet more meddling! Capitol were throwing album cuts like I Ching coins! How many different ways can they combine these tracks? The 12″ version of “Science” hits you straight away, and “One Of Our Submarines” appears on the album with it. “Windpower” had about 30 seconds shaved off of its running time to allow for the revised contents running a bit long. This makes for three, very different versions of the album, but wait… there’s more! Now how much would you pay?

Capitol Records | US | CD | 1984 | CDP 7 46009 2

Thomas Dolby: Golden Age Of Wireless 1st US CD [1984]

1. She Blinded Me With Science 3:43
2. Radio Silence 3:48
3. Airwaves 5:16
4. Flying North 3:53
5. Weightless 3:47
6. Europa + The Pirate Twins 3:20
7. Windpower 4:20
8. Commercial Breakup 4:18
9. One Of Our Submarines 5:14
10. Cloudburst At Shingle Street 5:45

A new year, a new format, and yet another release bought the first US CD of this title to market in 1984. The differences from the 2nd US LP are subtle. The 7″ mix of “Science” was used but in a whiplash inducing switch, the 7″/UK LP mix of “Radio Silence” makes its US debut. I imagine that by 1984, we hayseed Americans had matured sufficiently to begin to understand synthesizers. Finally, “Windpower” regained the 30 seconds it lost on the LP format due to groove cramming. The UK pressing of the CD replicates this version. But this is not the US CD of “Wireless” that I have.

Capitol Records | US | CD | 1984 | CDP 7 46009 2

Thomas Dolby: Golden Age Of Wireless 2nd US CD [1984]

1. She Blinded Me With Science [ext.] 5:09
2. Radio Silence 3:45
3. Airwaves [7″] 3:35
4. Flying North 3:50
5. Weightless 3:43
6. Europa + The Pirate Twins 3:17
7. Windpower 3:51
8. Commercial Breakup 4:17
9. One Of Our Submarines 5:11
10. Cloudburst At Shingle Street 5:43

Instead, I have this alternate CD pressing, with the same catalog number but the extended “Science,” the 7″ version of “Airwaves” and the US LP edit of “Windpower” for some inexplicable reason. With the running time of CDs this makes no sense at all. Why didn’t saner heard take stock of the many, many variations and attempt to use the CD format wisely enough to serve up the ultimate version of “The Golden Age Of Wireless?” Well, they did… it just took 25 years to happen!

EMI | GER | CD/DVD | 2009 | 50999 2 67915 2 4

Thomas Dolby: Golden Age Of Wireless DLX GER. CD/DVD RM [2009]

CD

1. Flying North 3:50
2. Commercial Breakup 4:15
3. Weightless 3:45
4. Europa + The Pirate Twins 3:18
5. Windpower 4:20
6. The Wreck Of The Fairchild 3:30
7. Airwaves 5:12
8. Radio Silence 3:43
9. Cloudburst At Shingle Street 5:45
10. One Of Our Submarines 5:11
11. She Blinded Me With Science 3:42
12. Radio Silence [version] 4:32
13. Urges 3:39
14. Leipzig 3:52
15. Urban Tribal 3:45
16. Therapy/Growth 4:05
17. Airwaves [demo] 5:20
18. Sale Of The Century [demo] 2:52
19. Pedestrian Walkway [demo] 1:27

DVD – Live Wireless

1. Introduction
2. Europa + The Pirate Twins
3. Windpower
4. One Of Our Submarines
5. Radio Silence
6. New Toy
7. Urban Tribal
8. Flying North
9. Jungle Line
10. Puppet Theatre
11. Samson + Delilah
12. She Blinded Me With Science
13. Airwaves

It staggers the mind, but the quintessential, original UK LP sequence of “The Golden Age Of Wireless” didn’t make it to CD format until 2009! EMI finally hit the Thomas Dolby discography with some deluxe remaster love and “Wireless” was once more restored to its former glory with the songs segued together to form a cohesive whole. Many [but not all] peripheral rarities also were added to the CD as bonus tracks.  Finally, the “Live Wireless” home video/MTV concert has been added as a bonus region 0/NTSC DVD, hence the obtrusive German DVD ratings snipe added to the front cover. I had bought the UK 1st pressing of “Wireless” last decade when I found out that it was a segued mix, but EMI have saved me hours and hours of mastering – all I need to do now is purchase this, my fifth copy of “The Golden Age Of Wireless,” and I can go to my grave, finally satisfied.

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