Document And Eyewitness (2LP)

Pink Flag re-issue the legendary 4th Wire album. Released originally on Rough Trade in 1980, the album was primarily recorded live at a 1979 show . Long unavailable on any format the re-issue features additional unreleased material on a double CD & double vinyl.

For those unfamiliar with Document and Eyewitness, it really doesn’t do it justice to describe it simply as a collection of live recordings from three turn-of-the-80s Wire gigs. What makes it more than that is the unorthodox nature of the main performance and the way it was presented on record. The centrepiece of the original vinyl release was a recording of the final gig of Wire’s 70s phase. Wire’s set was composed of largely new (and often under-rehearsed) work, accompanied by a series of artistic actions and interventions. The evening was memorable for the unusually hostile reaction from sections of the audience, which has perhaps elevated it beyond a simple passing moment. If the crowd was expecting a standard gig, the level of outrage, expressed in vociferous abuse suggested that the band’s intentions were lost on those in attendance, who were instead confounded by the apparent artistic pretensions on display. The approach was to couple selected live tracks with a spoken commentary on the proceedings by long-term Wire fans Adrian Garston and Russell Mills. Hence the title, Document and Eyewitness. For the album, the Electric Ballroom material was supplemented with recordings from a July 1979 show at the Notre Dame Hall (a straightforward band performance), along with one track from a 1979 gig in Montreux.

Packaged in a gatefold sleeve. Disc 1 is the same as the original vinyl, albeit remastered and re-edited. Disc 2 features the original selection from the Notre Dame Hall show on side one and the two singles and B-sides on side two.