These Here Are Crazy Times! is the second studio album by Australian rock group Boom Crash Opera, released in October 1989. The album was the breakthrough album to the lucrative U.S. Market for the band & was released in the United States by Giant records. This release had 2 new reworked versions of the songs "Talk About It" and "The Best Thing". Both songs were re-recorded with producer Jimmy Iovine of U2 fame, after Bono from U2 became a fan of the band during the U2 Love Town tour of Australia in 1989.
Recording
The album was produced by Pete Smith, but the band were unhappy with his mixing. Farnan said, "He kept trying and he wasn't getting anywhere." It was suggested that mixing be done by Nick Launay, which the band had been hesitant to use due to comparisons to INXS. Farnan said, "We used to obsess over the drum sounds he created on The Pleasure of Your Company and The Swing. He mixed our second record and saved our bacon." Richard Pleasance was less happy with Smith's production and the cost to fly him to Australia, saying, "We didn't really click with him. We sacked him. Maz put him in a car and took him back to the airport."[1]
Track listings
Australia
- "Onion Skin" – 3:28
- "Where There's A Will" – 3:59
- "The Best Thing" – 4:13
- "Piece Of The Pie" – 4:54
- "Forever" – 3:56
- "Get Out of the House!" – 3:18
- "Talk About It" – 4:02
- "End Up Where I Started" – 3:13
- "Dancing in the Storm" – 4:12
- "Mountain Of Strength" – 4:09
- "Axe To Grind" – 3:03
- "Superheroes" – 4:43
United States
- "Onion Skin"
- "Talk About It?!"
- "The Best Thing"
- "Piece Of The Pie"
- "Get Out Of The House"
- "Mountain Of Strength"
- "Dancing In The Storm"
- "Forever"
- "Axe To Grind"
- "Where There's A Will"
Personnel
- Dale Ryder — lead vocals
- Peter Farnan — guitars, backing vocals, bass
- Richard Pleasance — guitars, backing vocals, bass
- Greg O'Connor — keyboards
- Peter Maslen — drums, backing vocals
- Additional personnel
- Chris Wilson — harp on "End Up Where I Started" and "Axe To Grind"
- Brasstards — horns on "End Up Where I Started"
Charts
Weekly charts
| Chart (1989/90) | Position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA)[2] | 10 |
Year-end charts
| Chart (1989) | Position |
|---|---|
| ARIA Albums Chart[3] | 97 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[4] | 2× Platinum | 140,000^ |
|
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
References
- ^ Jane Gazzo (2024). I Hear Motion. Melbourne Books. p. 28. ISBN 9781922779267.
- ^ "Australiancharts.com – Boom Crash Opera – These Here Are Crazy Times". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 June 2017.
- ^ "The ARIA Australian Top 100 Albums Chart – 1989 (61–100)". imgur.com. Retrieved 28 April 2016. N.B. The triangle symbol indicates platinum certification.
- ^ "Absolute 80s" (PDF). www.popshop.com.au. Retrieved 24 July 2021.
