First And Last And Always (album)

First And Last And Always - Album Cover (Front)

First And Last And Always was the first studio album by The Sisters Of Mercy.
It reached number 14 in the UK charts.

The album as generally available on CD and was first released as a remixed version in 1992.

At the time, many fans felt that the 1992 CD remix is inferior to the original.

The album was re-released in late 2006 on the Rhino Records

(together with re-release of Floodland and Vision Thing (album),

featuring the original vinyl mixes, b-sides and a demo version of Some Kind Of Stranger.

Release Notes

• Vinyl: Merciful Release MR 337 L Mar 1985
• Tape Cassette: Merciful Release MR 337 C Mar 1985
• CD (original version) WEA 2292-40616-2 1988
• CD (Digitally Remastered in 1992): EastWest 9031-77379-2 1992
• CD Rhino UK 5101-17579-2 2006

Remarks

• The song Amphetamine Logic (song) is listed as Logic on the sleeve.
  

• For some comprehnsive insight into the production and the various releases, recordings, mixes and pressings of First And Last And Always (album),
  we strongly recommend the Heavy Leather Blog research review All I Know For Sure: The Making of First And Last And Always by Robert Cowlin!!!

• See also First And Last And Always @discogs

This page is Work in Progress and going to be extended as soon as ever possible

Track List

First And Last And Always - UK gatefold cover (front)

• Black Planet
• Walk Away
• No Time To Cry
• A Rock And A Hard Place
• Marian (Version)
• First And Last And Always
• Possession
• Nine While Nine
• Amphetamine Logic
• Some Kind Of Stranger
  

2006 Extra Tracks

• Poison Door
• On The Wire
• Blood Money
• Bury Me Deep
• Long Train
• Some Kind Of Stranger (Early)

Band/Recording Personnel

as credited on the inner sleeve of the gatefold LP:

• Wayne Hussey - Guitars
• Craig Adams - Bass
• Andrew Eldritch - Voices
• Gary Marx - Guitars
• Doktor Avalanche - Drums

Production Notes

• Production by Dave Allen for Palace Productions Limited
• Sleeve Designs by Andrew Eldritch
• Layouts by Mick Lowe
• Photographs by Jill Furmanovsky and Ruth Polsky
• Additional Photograph on Gatefold Vinyl and CD version by Tom Sheehan
• Mixed by Andrew Eldritch and Dave Allen

Difference between the original and the 1992 remastered First and Last and Always CDs

Additional Notes on the Release

First and Last and Always probably has the most variations in terms of mixes of all the Sisters' releases.

The vinyl LP was originally released on gatefold vinyl, subsequent releases have standard sleeves. The Japanese release is sought after as it has different song mixes to other vinyl pressings.

The CD version was first released in 1988 and contains mixes from the Japanese and normal vinyl releases. It was reported that this was because the master tapes had been lost. 1992 saw a digitally remastered release which again had slightly different mixes. Besides the standard jewel case release the CD was also released in long box format.

The 2006 release was the first time that Poison Door, On The Wire and Bury Me Deep were available on CD. Blood Money appeared on the Tour Thing 91 promo CD and Long Train was featured as the B-Side to Lucretia in 1988. Some Kind Of Stranger (Early) is pretty much a demo of the song, with slightly different lyrics and a much rawer sound.

Some more information can be found here in another Wiki as well as here (in German), quite comprehensive and offering a hell lot of very interesting references to original sources.