Spiral Staircase is British folk musician Ralph McTell's second album."Spiral Staircase" LP sleeve, 1969. Produced by Gus Dudgeon and released in the UK in 1969, its opening track, "Streets of London", has become McTell's signature tune. "Rizraklaru" is an anagram of "Rural Karzi". The sleeve design was by Peter Thaine, a friend of McTell from Croydon Art College.
Track listing All titles by Ralph McTell except where stated.
Side one "Streets of London" - 4:06 "Mrs Adlam's Angels" - 2:43 "Wino and the Mouse" - 0:59 "England 1914" - 3:04 "Last Train and Ride" - 2:31 "The Fairground" - 4:07
Side two "Spiral Staircase" - 3:30 "Kind Hearted Woman Blues" (Robert Johnson) - 2:43 "Bright and Beautiful Things" - 1:53 "Daddy's Here" - 4:22 "Rizraklaru (Anag.)" - 1:44 "(My) Baby Keeps Staying Out all Night Long" (Buddy Moss) - 1:52 "Terminus" - 1:53
Personnel Ralph McTell - guitar, vocals Famous Jug Band on "Last Train and Ride" and "Spiral Staircase" Brian "Brock" Brocklehurst - double bass Mick "Henry VIII" Bartlett - jug "Whispering Mick" Bennett - washboard Peter Berryman - second guitar Mike Vickers - orchestral arrangements Brian Gascoigne - musical direction
Production credits Producer: Gus Dudgeon for Tuesday Productions Engineer: Tom Allom at Regent Sound Sleeve design: Peter Thaine Liner notes: Ben Klein
Awards and accolades McTell's song "Streets of London" won the Ivor Novello Award for songwriting in 1974.BBC. "Sold on Song: Streets of London". Accessed 9 May 2009. A re-recorded version of "Streets of London" became a world-wide hit single in 1975. During his 60th birthday concert at the Royal Festival Hall in November, 2004, McTell was presented with a Gold Disc of Spiral Staircase.Leola Music Ltd. “The London Show”, TPGDVD25, 2005.
Release history Country Date Label Format Catalogue Notes United Kingdom 1969 Transatlantic LP TRA177 France 1978 Transatlantic LP TRA89554/5 Record 2 of 2-LP set. Record 1 is Eight Frames a Second Australia 1980 Transatlantic/7 Records LP MLF227 Japan 1980 Transatlantic LP YS-7057-LA Israel Logo/Transatlantic LP TRA177 Germany 1988 Titan LPCD 577/3001-1577/3001-2 United Kingdom 1990 Ariola Express CD 295945 Released as The Streets of London United Kingdom 1996 Wooden Hill CD HILLCD5 United Kingdom 2007 Transatlantic CD TRRCD401 'Expanded Edition' with four bonus tracks taken from Revisited
Many of the tracks on this album also feature in the Spiral Staircase - Classic Songs compilation.
Track variations
The UK 2007 CD release includes four bonus tracks that were re-mixed or re-recorded in 1970 for "Revisited":"Spiral Staircase" CD inlay, 2007. 14. "Spiral Staircase" 15. "Last Train and Ride" 16. "The Fairground" 17. "Terminus"
References