Tales From Turnpike House

Release type:What's this?
studio album
First released:
Jun 13 2005

Overview Edit

Tales from Turnpike House is an album by British pop group Saint Etienne. It was released on Sanctuary Records and preceded by a single for "Side Streets" on . The album features two tracks co-written and producted by Xenomania ("Lightning Strikes Twice" and "Stars Above Us") as well as a guest vocal from 1970s pop star David Essex.

The album is a concept album about life in a block of flats in Islington, London.

In the United States, the album was released by Savoy Jazz.

Initial quantities of the UK release came with a bonus EP of children's music entitled Up the Wooden Hills. The band felt that music for young children under seven was fed into unexceptional pop music, and wanted to make music that children and parents could enjoy together.

2-disc editions of the U.S. release included instead the Savoy Nu Groove Sampler, containing six tracks from various Savoy Jazz releases, including "Side Streets" from the album itself.

The Overview appearing in this section is attributed to Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tales_from_Turnpike_House. Portions of this Overview may be available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, version 3.0 or any later version, available at: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/. Additional terms may apply. See Wikipedia Terms of Use for details.

This particular version Edit

Record label:
Catalog number:
SVY 17580
Release dates:
  • Jan 24 2006 in United States

Genres

Dance Pop. Vote on Genres

What do Amazon.com customers think?

5 stars Mellower. Mature. A Fabulous Work of Art.
Saint Etienne are in top form here. This is their best since "The Sound of Water," which I thought could not be surpassed. Yet in some respects it is very different. It's mellower and almost melancholic. The entire CD has a certain mood about it and if this is the direction the band is going, I'm thrilled with it.

The lead off track "Sun in my Morning" is so deliciously pleasant with Wilson-esque "Pet Sounds" era harmonies. "Milk Bottle Symphony" sounds like a missing track from "Good Humor," w…
Written by Jeffrey J. Lyons
3 stars Etienne Holds the Fort
Although St Etienne frontwoman Sarah Cracknell is well placed in the glamorous-blonde stakes, her band has never exploited that ruse.

This English trio has prospered so long that Cracknell, and sideman Pete Wiggs, have each found time to have a child. Hence the winsome offspring-oriented bonus CD, Up the Wooden Hills - my groovy eight year old loves it.

The main Etienne terrain, however, is still their deceptively sharp and poignant pop-music take on minor English lives and manners.

In this d…
Written by Stephen Saunders

Track listing Edit

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Other versions Edit

Tales From Turnpike House 12 tracks format: 1 x CD
record label: Sanctuary Records
catalog number: SANLP271
release dates: Jun 13 2005 in United Kingdom
view details
Tales From Turnpike House 12 tracks format: 1 x vinyl
record label: Sanctuary Records
catalog number: SANLP271
release dates: Jun 13 2005 in United Kingdom
view details
Tales From Turnpike House 12 tracks format: 1 x CD
record label: Sanctuary Records
catalog number: SANLP271
release dates: Jun 13 2005 in United Kingdom
view details
Tales From Turnpike House 18 tracks format: 1 x CD, 1 x unknown format
record label: Sanctuary Records
release dates: Jun 20 2005
view details
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