'And' and 'Under Attack' are the legendary brace of tracks which initially were only released on the 'Anywhere' cassette. (Trivia time: the sticker on the cassette erroneously proclaimed 'Guitars' and 'And' as the two bonus tracks).
I remember standing in Woolworths cogitating on whether to buy the vinyl or the cassette. I could only afford one, and I think the cassette was more expensive, and (primarily) I disliked cassette. It was poor enough in the context of personal use where you could quality control the tape you used, and record real-time. Change those factors to whatever tape the manufacturer could make the highest margin on, and spin it through at the fastest speed possible, and it was a recipe for lo-fi. But I digress.
Anyway, vinyl it was. Soon the cassette availability faded and despite years of looking I never could find it in a "bargain bin" (I wonder how many were made?). "And" and "Under Attack" became a bit of a Holy Grail. Two (presumably) fully formed New Musik tracks I hadn't heard! I tried to carry on with life as best I could. Got a job, got married, brought up a clutch of kids. But still, there was a gnawing feeling of unfulfilment.
So, would the dawn of CD bring hope? Yes! 'Anywhere' was released on CD! With bonus tracks! Ah, but life sometimes isn't so easy. Mixed into the elation of finally hearing the tremendous 'Anywhere' in all its digital glory, was the realisation that 'And' and 'Under Attack' were not included with the bonus tracks. That was it then. A decision made in Woolworths all those years ago would indeed blight my life to the grave.
Many years passed. But then came rumours from the East. Sketchy at first, but the power of Google started to shed some light. The Japanese releases had even more bonus tracks! And, 'Warp' was available on CD too! Out came the credit card, and despite the wallet-busting price I ordered all 3 albums. Days of fasting and sleepless nights followed. Could it really be?
So, the big day came as a package with Japanese markings thudded through the letterbox. I sat there in the corner of a darkened room, looking at the package. Should I open it? It could be a life changing moment. In a moment of panic I tore at the packaging in a frenzy. Heart pounding, I peered through the sweat beads at the bonus tracks listing on the obi slip on 'Anywhere'. But it was in Japanese! The rear sleeve? It was a reproduction of the original cover - no bonus tracks listed at all. There was nothing else for it, I had to go for the cellophane. I don't know about you, but I always find that in moments of maximum anxiety cellophane takes on titanium-steel strength. And, despite knowing there are a dozen pairs of scissors in the house, not one can be found despite forensic searching.
Finally the seal was broken and I opened the clam-shell jewel. I eagerly scanned the tracks on the CD and a knot started to tighten in the pit of my stomach. THE TRACKS WEREN'T THERE! My life flashed before me.
How do you recover from such disappointment? I spotted 'Warp' in the remains of the shredded packaging. 'Warp' on CD for the first time was another Holy Grail and perhaps why my brain was still functioning instead of blowing a fuse brought on by depression. I clutched at the CD and 'From A to B', almost forgotten in the moment, came to my grasp too. I put 'Warp' on the player and perused both listings. 'From A to B' had an impressive 7 bonus tracks. I ran down the list and my eyes twinkled. THERE THEY WERE!
16. UNDER ATTACK (4:07)
17. AND (4:39)
They'd included them on 'A to B', not 'Anywhere'!!
Hands shaking in anticipation, I actually stopped 'Warp' and replaced it with the hallowed disc. This was it. The actual moment I'd waited over 20 years for. Two new tracks, doubtless to be the added to the hall of fame occupied by the likes of 'From the Village' and 'Guitars'.
So I listened to them and, erm...
(Graham G)