Durutti

The partly autobiographical album was first commissioned for a performance in April 2011 at The Bridgewater Hall, Manchester. During this period, Vini and Poppy (his girlfriend of 9 years) parted company and it was a heartbroken Vini that went on to complete the production.

Despite the breakup, Poppy had agreed to perform on piano that evening for two of the songs that she had written with Vini accompanying on guitar. Over the following three years, the artist has battled serious illness and has not played a full show since. It was – and still is – a very difficult time physically, mentally and emotionally for Vini Reilly. The compositions reflect a particular stage in Vini’s recent life.

At the Bridgewater Hall show, a pre-release limited edition CD was available exclusively for that show, with a note by Vini explaining the background to the new work. Whilst Chronicle began as an autobiographical project, events in his life during recording the album brought a new twist to the project.

Chronicle 1 and LX: Chronicle 2 – The Music.
Bruce Mitchell (Drums and Percussion)  "So there are two versions of Chronicle. We did a special edition for the gig at the Bridgewater Hall, where people could get the album as part of a premium ticket deal. In 2011, we premiered the music there, with all Vini's photographs up on the screen.

That was the last gig really. The following day, Phil Cleaver from Kooky said he'd got back home to find his emails full of requests from the audience to buy one. So they all sold out, immediately. But soon afterwards Vin became really ill."  "It was a big, expensive recording, Chronicle. And Vin, despite being ill, did this further version, taking all aspects of musical life.

So there's Chronicle 1 and Chronicle 2. What I wanted Vini to do as a composer was something similar to Elgar’s Enigma Variations. A piece of music about certain people in a life. I wanted him to do this and link the music to photographs he'd taken over the years. Vin's a great photographer."  

However, Reilly remains the Durutti Column's indisputable leader, and had the last say. Bruce continues: "I didn't quite get what I wanted, because in the end, Vini wanted the album to be about his life at this point in time. We couldn't finish it for a while because Vin was in such a bad way. But now it's there. And we've got some very interesting, very powerful music on this. Vini doesn’t think show business. To him, it’s all about a musical imperative."

Chronicle LX - The Package This package continues the Durutti Column’s tradition of the innovative.

This special packaging contains personal images from the artist's camera and photographic collection. Continuing the autobiographical theme, the packaging will acknowledge previous releases through parts of its design and materials used herein. A foil blocked burgundy textured clamshell box will contain: A full colour saddle stitched booklet with an introduction by Bruce Mitchell and a collage of photographs from Vini’s own personal collection:

A map (randomly selected one of six designs) redrawn in ‘Obey the Time’ purple and yellow showing a place of importance to the artist.

A grey foil blocked certificate.

Two compact discs in wallets.

"an intoxicating snapshot" NME.

A limited edition vinyl re-issue of the album ‘Live at the Venue’ originally released in 1982.

Digitally re-mastered from vinyl all copies have a free compact disc rather than download codes packaged in new artwork and design from the mancunian direction of Trevor Johnson.

The show musically covers work from the then contemporary albums ‘return of...’ and ‘LC’ along with tracks later to appear on ‘Another Setting’ and ‘Without Mercy’.

At the time, the band were approached after the show by a well-known live recordings dealer, who was interested in putting out an album based on the desk mix he had ‘acquired’ without any knowledge of the band.

Intrigued, the group agreed to meet him at the venue of his choice, a Mayfair Hotel, where he arrived in his crème Rolls Royce. A deal was struck on a napkin to release only 4000 copies, with Vini having full control over the choice of the Mark Warner artwork.

It is the first in a series of vinyl and compact disc re-issues from the band on the imprint ‘DURUTTI’.

Three other albums of rare or previously unreleased material are planned over the next eighteen months. Trevor Johnson will have full artistic control of new art and design on all the albums.

Factory Manufactured CD's In Card Sleeves

Live At The Venue:

The show musically covers work from the then contemporary albums ‘return of...’ and ‘LC’ along with tracks later to appear on ‘Another Setting’ and ‘Without Mercy’.

At the time, the band were approached after the show by a well-known live recordings dealer, who was interested in putting out an album based on the desk mix he had ‘acquired’ without any knowledge of the band. Intrigued, the group agreed to meet him at the venue of his choice, a Mayfair Hotel, where he arrived in his crème Rolls Royce.

A deal was struck on a napkin to release only 4000 copies, with Vini having full control over the choice of the Mark Warner artwork.

Amigos Em Portugal:

"a beautiful insight from Reilly’s travels" Sounds.

Digitally re-mastered from vinyl, this is a limited re-release of the hard to find Import ‘AMIGOS EM PORTUGAL’.

‘Amigos’ released first time originally in 1983 is a pre-cursor to one of the great Durutti Column albums ‘ Without Mercy’.

Recorded in only a couple of days – such is always the case with Vini Reilly - the album allegedly was supposed to be a single or extended play but the newly formed Portuguese label had the tapes and different ideas! Vini was just enjoying the tape time, playing many of his current ‘work in progress’ pieces.

These sketches later became part of the Tony Wilson classical experiment made with Northern College Music degree students, ’Without Mercy’.

Most of the tracks here have a beautiful fragility whether just solo guitar instrumentals ‘Estoril a Noire’ or piano pieces such as ‘Wheels Turning’ or the piano loop from ‘Without Mercy ‘ ‘Favourite descending intervals’.

Yes…… the times when Vini played piano….. the years before he believed he was ‘an awful and discombobulated pianist’ in his own words ….