After The Fire - Der Kommissar, The CBS Recordings (2CD) (2005)

Artist: After The Fire
Album: Der Kommissar: The CBS Recordings
Label: Edsel Records – MEDCD 757
Country: UK
Released: 2005
Genre: Pop Rock, Power Pop, New Wave
Audio codec: FLAC | lossless
Total Time 158:39

First thing to say - this isn't a prog album. After The Fire's first album, Signs of Change, was prog, but after that they morphed into a New Wave band.

Second thing to say - this is a pretty good compilation. Comprising the three albums released in the late 70s/early 80s, plus some B sides and tracks from a live EP. So pretty much everything they released at that time, except for one unfortunate omission, the single version of Life In The City which was significantly different from the album track to justify inclusion here. I presume there wasn't room to include it without omitting something else, but they could have lost one of the three versions of Starflight in my opinion.

The live versions of Take Me Higher (where they do give a hint to their prog roots) and Billy Billy are highlights of the collection for me. ATF were a band who deserved more chart success than they had.

Tracklist:
CD 1 (79:27)
- Laser Love:
1. Laser Love (3:28)
2. Joy (3:17)
3. Take Me Higher (4:30)
4. Life in the City (4:02)
5. Suspended Animation (4:21)
6. Like the Power of a Jet (3:07)
7. One Rule for You (3:24)
8. Time to Think (3:29)
9. Timestar (3:39)
10. Check It Out (3:21)
- Bonus tracks:
11. Your Love Is Alive (3:13)
12. Listen to Me (3:22)
- 80-F:
13. 1980-F (2:32)
14. Love Will Always Make You Cry (3:30)
15. Can You Face It? (3:18)
16. Who's Gonna Love You (When You're Old and Fat and Ugly)? (4:09)
17. Starflight (4:17)
18. Wild West Show (3:34)
19. Billy, Billy (4:35)
20. It's High Fashion (3:11)
21. Why Can't We Be Friends? (2:50)
22. Joanne (4:18)

CD 2 (79:12)
- Bonus track:
1. Every Mother's Sun (2:37)
- Batteries Not Included:
2. Short Change (3:19)
3. Frozen Rivers (3:30)
4. Sometimes (3:07)
5. Sailing Ship (3:54)
6. I Don't Understand Your Love (2:50)
7. The Stranger (3:43)
8. Rich Boys (3:01)
9. Carry Me Home (3:21)
10. Dancing in the Shadows (3:02)
11. Space Walking (3:11)
12. Gina (1:37)
13. Stuck in Paris (Nowhere to Go) (2:45)
14. Bright Lights (3:32)
- Bonus tracks:
15. Nobody Else but You (3:11)
16. Starflight (live) (4:51)
17. Take Me Higher (live) (7:47)
18. One Rule for You (live) (4:30)
19. Billy, Billy (live) (6:45)
20. Der Kommissar (4:08)
21. Starflight (re-worked) (4:31)

Line-up / Musicians:
- Andy Piercy / lead vocals, bass
- I.A.J. Twiddell / drums (1.1-1.12)
- Pete King / drums (1.13-2.21)
- John Russell / guitar, backing vocals
- Memory Banks / synthesizer, backing vocals