Rec.1978 / Reissue / Jewel Case

Having already successfully turned the spotlight on Bristol's lost reggae heritage, Bristol Archive Record's new sister label Reggae Archive Records launches with similar ambitions for other UK towns and cities. We begin that mission with some long lost music from legendary Birmingham band Eclipse.

Friends and contemporaries of fellow Handsworth band Steel Pulse, Eclipse never achieved the same level of commercial success. Back in the seventies the two bands vied with each other to be acclaimed as Handsworth's best, as the area bubbled with musical creativity. Eclipse were together for ten years, from 1975 until 1985. In that time they managed to release just one album and three 7” singles, a small, but powerful legacy and one that deserves to be recognised by a wider audience.

The bulk of this CD features Eclipse's lone album release, known as “Eclipsed.” The British pressing is now very scarce and was repressed as “Inner Reggae Rhythm for a Canadian release. The album includes these eight tracks plus both sides of the bands final single and a brace of previously unreleased tracks. Unlike previous reissues this project has been completed with the full cooperation of the original band members. They have provided their recollections of the band's history for the sleeve notes as well as supplying precious archive photographs.

Although written and recorded over thirty years ago we couldn't believe how relevant many of the songs still are today. We therefore felt that the best title for this collection would be “Corrupted Society”, a song of protest that starts the CD off in a classic UK roots vein. Things carry on in similar fashion with songs dealing with repatriation, “Immigration” and “Come Me Brethren”. Then political violence, “Six Dead”, the triumph of the righteous, “Blood Fi Dem” and “Visions”, as well as faith with “.......
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