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| INTRODUCTION | DISCOGRAPHY | MP3'S | LIVE DATES | PICTURES | P.S. | |
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TN026 - IF YOU HAPPY WITH YOU NEED DO NOTHING Designed by Alfie & Claire Howard & Andy Votel (with help from Gary Website) Released 26th March 2001 While Alfie had decided upon the album's title way before even any decision about the possible tracks it would contain, the album sleeve was lost in uncertainty until only a few days before it needed to go to print. Plans and discussion began one evening mid January in The Crown and Anchor pub. Alfie were initially unsure about what would be an ideal image, and Andy Votel suggested going back to the idea of a room. The scene this time would be of the 'alfie mobile' hanging above a bed during daytime. The bed would be a mess of quilt and covers, with a man's arm dangling out from the side - an image of carefree laziness reflecting the attitude of album's title. Over the next few days a mock up using an 'action man', a wooden toy bed and a cardboard box room was photographed and a tracklisting added, but Alfie then became uncertain about whether or not this was what they wanted. In addition, the logistics of building a full size set and organising the photography in the time available was made all the more problematic by Alfie then being on the NME Brats tour. With time running out and a deadline approaching Ian and Lee Alfie, friend Dawn, producer Joe Robinson and his girlfriend Claire spent a long evening with a couple of bottles of wine attempting to create something. Ian Alfie decided that maybe they should continue the 'make and do session' feel of the Montevideo sleeve. Again it would be a landscape, but this time a night time scene with a tree and moon and clouds and - naturally - plenty of brown. Claire (a fashion designer who has a talent for making things out of material - especially quilt covers) ironed and sewed and stuck together bits they all rescued from of a pile of cloth pieces. At one point the tree was a 'snow flake' tree with it's foliage made out of a 'bits cut out of folded over paper' snowflake. This idea got dropped once they realised none of them could actually do a good 'snowflake'. The final collage ended up being a 12" square collection of material abstraction on dark brown cord. Initially the idea for the back sleeve was it to be a massive magnified 'Shreddie' alongside a small piece of brown and orange cloth. Then it was decided to make it a montage made from bits collected by Lee Alfie placed against another abstract patchwork of material. This then became the inner sleeve. Click here for a guide to what's what on the sleeve. Click here for a guide to things that almost made it on to the sleeve. Work was started on Friday February 9th and it was pretty much finished by Sunday February 11th. Lee Alfie and Ian Alfie and Gary Website scanned all the seperate parts and designed the inner sleeve montage. Andy Votel overlooked the project and once the above things were finished he set it all up ready for print. Hanging around and helping were Sam Alfie, Sean Alfie, Ian Mum&Dad;, Joe Mum&Dad;, Ray Chan and Lisa Paterson. Alfie EP 1 Bookends EP Montevideo EP  |