Posted on: August 15, 2013 Posted by: John B. Moore Comments: 0

Atlanta jangle pop rockers the Swimming Pool Q’s were part of the Athens / Atlanta, GA record label gold rush of the 80’s. And while they never quite achieved the status of scene mates like R.E.M., The B-52’s and Pylon, they were still highly influential to a generation of college radio listeners.

Thankfully Bar None has collected these songs for the first time ever on CD. The band only recorded two albums for A&M, 1984s self-titled effort and 1986’s Blue Tomorrow.  It’s rather pathetic that it took so long for these to finally surface on CD, especially when you consider that A&M put out everything from Atlantic Starr to Dishwalla on that format.

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These song are still just as memorable as they were in the 80’s and despite the fact that the band reformed and put out a great album in 2003, it’s tough to beat these songs that have been going hanging around for past 30 years.  While the band never really had any conventional hits from their A&M releases, there is no reason why songs like “The Bells Ring” and “Blue Tomorrow” couldn’t have been if the stars had aligned (with radio airplay, proper promotion, etc.).

Along with the two-CD set, Bar None is also putting out a 4-disc Deluxe Limited Edition collection that includes an exclusive disc of rare tracks and a DVD of rare footage. You’ve waited long enough to hear these songs on something other than a worn-out cassette tape. Go ahead and splurge for the four CDs.

Swimming Pool Q’s – The A&M Years/3 CDs and 1 DVD/Bar None Records/2013

 

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