Wings of Joy
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| Wings of Joy | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 16 September 1991 | |||
| Studio | First Protocol (London) | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 44:09 | |||
| Label | Dedicated | |||
| Producer | Cranes | |||
| Cranes chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Wings of Joy | ||||
Wings of Joy is the debut studio album by English rock band Cranes.[6] The album was released on 16 September 1991 by Dedicated Records.[7] It followed the band's mini-album Self-Non-Self, released two years earlier.
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [8] |
| Chicago Tribune |  [9] |
| Los Angeles Times | [10] |
| NME | 7/10[11] |
| The Philadelphia Inquirer | [12] |
| Q | [13] |
| Rolling Stone | [14] |
| Select | 4/5[15] |
| Vox | 8/10[16] |
The Washington Post determined that "the Cranes' balladeering may be a little bland, and even irksome when A. Shaw's voice is at its most little-girlish, but it's actually more appealing than the group's harder side".[2]
Ned Raggett of AllMusic called Wings of Joy "a beautiful, if unsettling, piece of work" and found that in comparison to Cranes' earlier work, "the gripping, chilling atmosphere that Cranes dwell in hasn't moved an inch, but in terms of approach ... the quartet has continued to expand its palette."[8]
In 2026, Uncut ranked Wings of Joy at number 156 in their list of "The 200 Greatest Goth Albums", believing it to represent a key crossover for the "art-rock space" between goth and shoegaze, further describing the album as "crepuscular chamber minimalism in multi-dimensional sonics."[3]
Track listing
All lyrics are written by Alison Shaw; all music is composed by Jim Shaw.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Watersong" | 3:51 |
| 2. | "Thursday" | 4:23 |
| 3. | "Living and Breathing" | 3:30 |
| 4. | "Leaves of Summer" | 3:44 |
| 5. | "Starblood" | 3:35 |
| 6. | "Sixth of May" | 4:39 |
| 7. | "Wish" | 3:58 |
| 8. | "Tomorrow's Tears" | 3:59 |
| 9. | "Beautiful Sadness" | 4:04 |
| 10. | "Hopes Are High" | 2:59 |
| 11. | "Adoration" | 5:27 |
| Total length: | 44:09 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Inescapable" | 2:45 |
| 2. | "Dada 331" | 3:11 |
| 3. | "I Hope" | 4:00 |
| 4. | "E.G. Shining" | 3:46 |
| Total length: | 13:42 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Starblood" (remix) | 3:38 |
| 2. | "Fuse" (original version) | 3:32 |
| 3. | "Self Non Self" | 2:15 |
| Total length: | 9:25 | |
Personnel
Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.[17]
Cranes
- Matt Cope – guitar
- Mark Francombe – guitar
- Alison Shaw – vocals, bass
- Jim Shaw – drums, guitar, piano
Production
- Cranes – production
- Gail Lambourne – engineering
Design
- Robert Coleman – design
