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LIGHTSHIPS
Electric Cables (reissue, 2012) GEOGRAPHIC 8/10
Now on vinyl, the 10-yearold, self-effacing solo venture from ex-Teenage Fanclub bassist.
By Alastair McKay
CAT STEVENS
WHEN it comes to putting himself forward, Gerard Love is – if not exactly backward – elliptical at least. For his first solo album, released in 2012 on The Pastels’ imprint Geographic, he chose not to issue the music under a recognisable brand. “I wasn’t comfortable with using my name,” he says. “If there was merchandise, somebody walking around with a T-shirt with my name on it would be weird. My name kinda belongs to my parents, it’s not my choice. Also I didn’t want to bring too much attention to myself.”
The other reason for Love’s coyness was that he didn’t want to undermine Teenage Fanclub, for whom he wrote such classics as “Sparky’s Dream” and “Ain’t That Enough”. But at that point the pace of the band had slowed, and when Love was offered an outlet for his extra-curricular urges it wasn’t clear when or whether they would emerge from hibernation.