Big Big Train have released thirteen studio albums including the critically acclaimed Folklore, and their hidden gem debut Goodbye to the Age of Steam.
Big Big Train was formed in 1990. A demo cassette tape of the band's first songs, recorded on 8-track, was released in October 1991 and was followed by a handful of live performances. The demo tape 'From the River to the Sea' was re-recorded and released as a self-financed CD in May 1992, following which BBT played some higher profile gigs in England.
In January 1993, a second demo tape, 'The Infant Hercules' was released, and the band then spent the next six months writing the music for its first proper album, 'Goodbye to the Age of Steam'. This was recorded in a two week period in July 1993. Soon afterwards, BBT signed to the progressive rock label GEP, where they found themselves as label mates of IQ.
'Goodbye to the Age of Steam' was a big leap forward for the band, both in terms of songwriting and recording quality. The response to the album was very positive, culminating in a licensing deal in Japan where the CD was re-released in 1995, with a bonus track.
In the meantime, Ian Cooper had left the band (for family rather than musical reasons) and live performances were put on hold while a replacement was sought and a new album written.
Recording of the new album commenced in July of 1995 that year (with Greg filling in on keyboards) and continued, sporadically, until completion 18 months later. During the sessions, a new keyboard player, Tony Müller was recruited. Some of the songs from the new album were debuted at the band's only show from this period at the Astoria, London. 'English Boy Wonders' was finally released in autumn 1997, although in an incomplete state as the band had run out of money to complete the project. English Boy Wonders combined progressive rock (Genesis, Van Der Graaf Generator) with indie-pop influences (XTC, The Cure.)
Steve Hughes left Big Big Train in September 1998 and went on to join THE ENID. He was replaced by Pete Hibbit. After a few more live performances, the band's momentum seemed all but spent and Greg and Andy retreated back to their studio without the rest of the band, to work on some new songs.
In February 2002, after three years of irregular writing and recording, a new album 'Bard' was released. At the same time, the Enid went into hibernation and Steve Hughes rejoined BBT. A new vocalist, Sean Filkins was recruited to replace original vocalist Martin Read and a new CD, 'Gathering Speed', was released in March 2004. Gathering Speed was a concept album which told the story of a fighter pilot in the summer of 1940. It marked a change in direction for BIG BIG TRAIN with the band exploring classic prog-rock territory with the addition of some post-rock influences (Sigur Ros, Mogwai.)
The Difference Machine album was released in September 2007 and significantly raised the band's profile. The Difference Machine features extensive performances from Pete Trewavas (Marillion), Dave Meros (Spock's Beard) and Nick D'Virgilio (Spock's Beard, Genesis, Tears For Fears.)
In 2008, Big Big Train re-released English Boy Wonders (an updated and completed version of the album which was partly re-recorded by BBT and fully re-mixed by Rob Aubrey).
In February 2009, songwriter Gregory Spawton announced that Sean Filkins and Steve Hughes had left BBT to be replaced by David Longdon and Nick D'Virgilio.
David Longdon was signed to Rondor Music and recorded for Epic records in the 1990's. His band The Gifthorse supported Kirsty MacColl, Blur and The Pogues amongst others. In the final days of The Gifthorse, Longdon was invited to audition as a potential replacement for Phil Collins as lead singer in Genesis. He worked with Tony Banks, Mike Rutherford and producer Nick Davis from May to November 1996 on recordings that would become the Calling All Stations album. Genesis also worked with Stiltskin vocalist Ray Wilson at the same time and eventually he was preferred over Longdon.
In 2008 Martin Orford (IQ) invited Longdon to sing on his swan-song album The Old Road which was also recorded by Rob Aubrey. Shortly afterwards, Longdon joined Big Big Train in time to commence work on their sixth album, The Underfall Yard, which was released on December 15th 2009. The Underfall Yard is the band's best-selling album and received significant critical acclaim.
A 41 minute EP ( Far Skies Deep Time) was released in December 2010.
In September 2012, the band released the first part of a double album called English Electric. Part two was released on March 4, 2013.
Two new studio albums followed: Folklore in 2016 and Grimspound in 2017. A companion album called The Second Brightest Star which featured unreleased songs from the Folklore and Grimspound writing sessions was also released in 2017.
In August 2018, the Merchants of Light live album was released, entering the official UK rock album charts at number two.
The Grand Tour album was released in May 2019 and was the band’s first album to reach the top 40 of the Official UK Album Chart. Big Big Train’s first UK tour took place in the autumn of 2019 and was followed up by a live Blu-Ray called Empire which was filmed at the sold-out show at the Hackney Empire.
Planned tours of Europe and North America in 2020 were cancelled due to the Covid pandemic and the band suffered the loss of Dave Gregory, Rachel Hall and Danny Manners. Despite the difficulties caused by the pandemic, Big Big Train returned to the studio in November 2020 and have since released Common Ground, studio album number thirteen, on July 30 2021.
Vocalist David Longdon died tragically in late 2021.
http://www.bigbigtrain.com/
Landfall
Big Big Train Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
That is what you say to yourselves
As you nibble away
At our rights, our freedoms,
Spending far too long in the dark
All alone
With your mandate for power,
For ruling, such as it is.
All we have is unreal.
Nothing so unwritten is safe
Insecurity and power
Is a force to be feared.
Seems it's an impossible thing
To be open
And cover your backs
From those who put you there
In the place that is your home.
To scorn our deepest fears
And take it on themselves
To take it all and do it in our names.
This land is so afraid.
For in the fading light
This land, in time may fall.
Plant some reality here.
Here into the front of my home
If they take you apart
Have to fight for yourselves.
Funny how it's always the same
It don't matter who's holding
The key to the garden.
The limit of my understanding is reached.
Ten years on from the day they broke down the line,
Red man Arthur was proved right all along.
Loose your big train of thought
Take it to a wall with some writing:
"question authority"
And then it says "why?"
What we have to say to ourselves
As we marvel at all of the facts
And the figures at the fingertips
Of the men in power.
The lyrics to "Landfall" by Big Big Train are a commentary on the state of society and politics, calling out those who seek power and control at the expense of the rights and freedoms of the people. The opening lines--"People don't understand / That is what you say to yourselves"--show that those in power have a distorted view of those they govern, and that they are willing to sacrifice the wellbeing of the masses for their own gain. The lyrics continue to criticize the idea of insecurity and power being a force to be feared, highlighting how this fear leads to closed-mindedness and the inability to be open about one's deepest fears. The refrain of "This land, in time may fall" emphasizes the fragility of our society, and how easily it could crumble under the weight of power-hungry individuals.
Overall, the song is a call to action for people to question authority and demand change. It speaks to the importance of standing up for one's rights and fighting against those who seek to control and oppress. The final lines--"Loose your big train of thought / Take it to a wall with some writing: 'question authority' / And then it says 'why?'"--encourage listeners to challenge the status quo and demand explanations for the actions of those in power.
Line by Line Meaning
People don't understand,
You believe that others don't comprehend the situation
That is what you say to yourselves
This is a thought you keep repeating to yourselves
As you nibble away
You break off bits of our rights and freedoms
At our rights, our freedoms,
These are the things that are being chipped away
Spending far too long in the dark
The situation has gone on for too long without resolution
All alone
No one else seems to be aware of the problem
With your mandate for power,
Your desire to hold onto power and control
For ruling, such as it is.
Your leadership is flawed and potentially harmful
It's enough for ruin.
This situation has the potential to be disastrous
All we have is unreal.
Our current state is uncertain and unstable
Nothing so unwritten is safe
Unofficial agreements can be easily broken
Insecurity and power
These two things are a dangerous combination
Is a force to be feared.
The consequences of this combination are scary
Seems it's an impossible thing
The situation is difficult to resolve
To be open
To share your thoughts and feelings
And cover your backs
To protect yourself from those who would cause harm
From those who put you there
The people who are responsible for this situation
In the place that is your home.
This place used to be a safe haven
To scorn our deepest fears
To mock and belittle our concerns
And take it on themselves
To assume responsibility for our worries
To take it all and do it in our names.
To take action without our consent
This land is so afraid.
Fear is pervasive in this area
For in the fading light
As the situation worsens
This land, in time may fall.
The situation may lead to disaster
Plant some reality here.
Introduce a dose of realism into the situation
Here into the front of my home
Right here, in front of me, where I live
If they take you apart
If those in power try to break you down
Have to fight for yourselves.
You must defend yourselves and your beliefs
Funny how it's always the same
This situation is familiar and predictable
It don't matter who's holding
The person in control is irrelevant
The key to the garden.
The source of power doesn't matter
The limit of my understanding is reached.
You are struggling to comprehend the situation completely
Ten years on from the day they broke down the line,
A decade has passed since an event that caused a disruption
Red man Arthur was proved right all along.
Someone who warned of danger was ultimately proven correct
Loose your big train of thought
Let go of preconceived notions and ideas
Take it to a wall with some writing:
Write it down and make it clear
"question authority"
Challenge those in power
And then it says "why?"
Ask for a reason or explanation
What we have to say to ourselves
The message we need to internalize
As we marvel at all of the facts
As we are awed by the information presented to us
And the figures at the fingertips
The numbers that can be easily accessed
Of the men in power.
Those who hold control over the situation
Contributed by Addison P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.