
Previously unheard audio from one of the earliest shows the Fall ever played, 1977 (a DM premiere)
The Fall are the legendary British band led by the legendarily cantankerous vocalist, Mark E. Smith. Formed in 1976, the group made their live debut in May 1977. The audio from one of their earliest performances has recently surfaced and is about to be released on a new Fall boxset—and Dangerous Minds has a preview.
The Fall’s first gigs took place in the basement café of the North West Arts, a community arts center in Manchester. Decades later, an organizer of these shows, Dick Witts, set the scene.
[The venue was] like a fashionable restaurant in the late 70s, with everything white. It was done out like a small white cave. We just took the tables and chairs out. Mark and Martin [Bramah, guitarist], who were taller than the others, had to bend down because of the low ceiling. It wasn’t really public, the audience was just a group of other musicians sitting around listening.

The quote is taken from the extensive liner notes of 1970s, Cherry Red Record’s deep dive into the Fall’s early years.

Out this week, the twelve CD collection has everything the band put out in that decade: their first two albums and all their singles, plus outtakes, two Peel Sessions, and eight live performances from the period. One of the previously unreleased live recordings is of their May 23, 1977 gig at the North West Arts. Dangerous Minds has the premiere of a song from the show, the rarity, “You Don’t Turn Me On,” a sprightly number written by Mark E. Smith.
But first, check out a selection of the cool Fall flyers and advertisements featured in the pages of the boxset’s booklet.





Get 1970s via Cherry Red’s website or order it through Amazon.