THE 11 SINGLES BY HIS OTHER LESSER-KNOWN BAND (Part 4)

OK. You should all know the script by now. David Gedge disbanded The Wedding Present for a while back in 1998 and instead fronted a band called Cinerama. The idea being that his songs could move away from the restrictions of rock/pop music and become more lush and orchestral. But crucially, the songs themselves continued to be about love, lust, heartbreak and infidelity in that way that no other songwriter in modern times has come close to matching in style and quality.

Sadly, the world wasn't ready for the charms of Cinerama, and after three studio LPs, a handful of compilations, 11 singles and not to mention the painful break-up of a long-standing relationship with a band member, David Gedge brought TWP back into being.

The band's fifth single was released in late 2000 and takes it title from the very famous Italian actress. It's a tale of lust more than anything else, although the hushed tone of the vocal delivery makes it a fair bet that there's a bit of infidelity involved as well. The arrangement on this track, as indeed with almost everything recorded by Cinerama, is truly special.

mp3 : Cinerama - Lollobrigida

There were two other songs released on this CD single, both of which are well worth a listen. See Thru has a tune that is as near to that of TWP as anything recorded by Cinerama, while Sly Curl is a hugely unusual number as much of the closing 70 seconds or so it features a spoken word section narrated by the comedian Sean Hughes.

mp3 : Cinerama - See Thru
mp3 : Cinerama - Sly Curl

The band recorded two wonderful versions of these songs for a John Peel session that was broadcast on 19 September 2000. The difference being that Lollobrigida was sung in French, while in place of Sean Hughes, the narration was delivered by a lady called Ilka Paetz. In German....

mp3 : Cinerama - Lollobrigida (Peel Session)
mp3 : Cinerama - Sly Curl (Peel Session)

Sheer Genius. I dare you argue otherwise.