Sad Lovers & Giants
Album: Epic Garden Music
Release Date: 1982
UK
Garçe Allard talks about Things We Never Did
Things We Never Did was one of the first songs we wrote and it signposted a way forward from the more punk songs we had been doing up until that point.
We had just started playing London gigs and had been “talent spotted” by some music industry people. TWND In particular, caught their attention and they put us in to Surrey Sound Studios to record it. It was our first experience in a “proper“ 24 track recording studio.
Lots of pretty big bands at that time had recorded there and our all night session took place in between sessions by ex Sex Pistols, Steve Jones and Paul Cook who were recording The Professionals album. Our Tristan, was very excited to be playing through Steve Jones’ iconic guitar amp.
“Lots of pretty big bands at that time had recorded there and our all night session took place in between sessions by ex Sex Pistols, Steve Jones and Paul Cook who were recording The Professionals album.”
Garçe on studio days of TWND
We also recorded Colourless Dream and released both songs as our second single. It got played by John Peel and we were asked to do a four song Peel Session shortly afterwards. It was around this time that we were approached by Midnight Music Records and went on to record Epic Garden Music for them. That entered the UK indie chart and gained us some recognition in Europe. In many ways all our success came initially from Things We Never Did.
There’s a pretty good live version somewhere in the Midnight Music back catalogue and Tristan did an extended remixed/remastered version on the SL&G compilation box set, available on Cherry Red.
As I write this over 3.1 million people have played TWND on YouTube. It seems to have a timeless quality that I could never have understood when we wrote it. I was a 24 year old singer in a new band from Watford, just trying to get a few gigs; now I am much older but I haven’t forgotten the excitement of playing the song for the first time in rehearsal.
Lyrics: Things We Never Did
We would be ashes
We would be silent and old
We would be wisdom
We would be left in the cold
When we were dancing
I saw the look in your eyes
Now we are strangers
Lost in a sea full of sighs
We would be traitors
We would forget we were young
We would be helpless
We are the kingdom to come
Tracklist: Epic Garden Music
1. “Imagination”
2. “Landslide”
3. “When I See You”
4. “Colourless Dream”
5. “Things We Never Did”
6. “Lost In A Moment“
7. “The Tightrope Touch “
8. “Echoplay“
9. “Clocktower Lodge”
10. “Clint”
11. “Lope”
12. “Cloud 9”
13. “ART (By Me)”
14. “Alice (Isn’t Playing)”
15. “Far From The Sea”
