Fundamental (Mental As Anything album)
1985 studio album by Mental As Anything
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Fundamental or Fundamental As Anything is the fifth studio album released by Australian rock/pop group, Mental As Anything.[2][3] The album was produced by Richard Gottehrer and was released on Regular Records in March 1985.[2][3][4] It peaked at No. 3 on the Australian Kent Music Report albums charts.
| Fundamental (As Anything) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1 March 1985 | |||
| Recorded | 1984 | |||
| Studio | Rhinoceros Studios, Sydney, Australia | |||
| Genre | Pop, new wave | |||
| Length | 39:24 | |||
| Label | Regular Records | |||
| Producer | Richard Gottehrer | |||
| Mental As Anything chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Fundamental | ||||
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Recording
The band had intended to use Gary Langan as producer as they admired his work with Art of Noise and were happy with the "wild" album he had planned. O'Doherty said, "He took on too much at the time and he got zonked out at all the stress and he pulled out something like five days before he was meant to be on the plane." The replacement was Richard Gottehrer, but they had to wait for a gap in his schedule, delaying the recording. O'Doherty said, "It’s too long because we’ve got four songwriters in the band and we ended up with over 30 songs demoed for Fundamental, more than enough for two albums."[5]
Gottehrer thought "Live it Up" was the strongest single, adding, "It was pretty obvious. I loved that song. "You're So Strong" and "Date with Destiny" I thought were also singles." All three songs were written by Smith, and other writers in the band felt their songs received less attention.[6]
Reception
Cash Box magazine said "Another strong album from this powerhouse Australian band. Variety is the key here, as the music runs the gamut from the gritty sensualism of "Hold On" to the depth and richness of "Date with Destiny"'."[7]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "You're So Strong" | Andrew "Greedy" Smith[8] | 3:29 |
| 2. | "Big Wheel" | Martin Plaza[9] | 4:46 |
| 3. | "Live It Up" | Smith[10] | 4:14 |
| 4. | "Surf & Mull & Sex & Fun" | Peter O'Doherty[11] | 3:39 |
| 5. | "Good Friday" | Plaza[12] | 4:29 |
| 6. | "Date with Destiny" | Smith[13] | 3:04 |
| 7. | "Hold On" | O'Doherty[14] | 3:02 |
| 8. | "Stones of the Heart" | Reg Mombassa[15] | 3:22 |
| 9. | "I Just Wanna Be Happy" | Mombassa[16] | 3:28 |
| 10. | "Splashing" | Mombassa[17] | 3:20 |
| 11. | "Bus Ride" | Plaza[18] | 3:02 |
Personnel
Musicians
- Martin Plaza — lead vocals, guitar
- Greedy Smith — lead vocals, keyboards, harmonica
- Reg Mombassa — guitar, vocals
- Peter O'Doherty — bass, guitar, vocals
- Wayne de Lisle — drums
Additional personnel
- Martin Armiger — guitar
- Mary Bradfield-Taylor — vocals
- Rick Chadwick — keyboards
- Sandi Chick — vocals
- Andrew Farriss — keyboards
- Mark Kennedy — percussion
Recording details
- Producer — Richard Gottehrer
- Engineer, mixing — Thom Panunzio
- Assistant — Allan Wright
Art work
- Art direction — Jana Hartig, Ken Smith, Sue Woollard
- Design — Martin Plaza, Greedy Smith (and cover design)
- Photography — Paula Clarke (cover photo), Paul Clarke, Hugh Hamilton, Frank Lindner (and sleeve photo), Francine McDougall
Charts
Weekly chart
| Chart (1985) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian (Kent Music Report)[19] | 3 |
| New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[20] | 22 |
Year-end chart
| Chart (1985) | Rank |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[21] | 11 |
Certifications and sales
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[22] | 2× Platinum | 140,000^ |
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^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||