While we don’t normally upload compilation albums this one is obviously kind of a special case as it the origin of their biggest single Der Kommissar. Unfortunately as you probably know the band split in the fall of 82 while the single was climbing the charts. It was released in both the U.K./Europe and the U.S with some different tracks and different artwork. It was released in the U.S. and Canada using the name After The Fire – ATF as the band did not have a very big footprint in North America. Note that a subsequent pressing in Canada was retitled “Der Kommissar”. It was marketed in the North American market as a debut album which of course it wasn’t. Both versions had material from the band’s prior UK studio albums Laser Love, 80-F, and Batteries Not Included. It did not include anything from Their first album Signs Of Change as CBS/Epic/Sony did not have the rights to that album. That said they curated different songs to fit regional tastes. Unique to the UK Release were older UK synth-pop singles like “Love Signs” and “Joy”. Unique to the US Release they substituted those tracks with “Dancing in the Shadows” (which became the follow-up US single) and heavier synth-rock tracks like “Carry Me Home”, which better matched the American radio format. The U.K. version had the 7″ version of “Der Kommissar” while the U.S./Canada version had the extended 12″ album mix of “Der Kommissar”, which runs at 5:43 and includes extra synthesizer layers and instrumental loops to fit the US dance and club scene.
This release is the U.K version. It should be noted that some fans say that at some point in the pressings for the U.K. release they changed up the versions of Dancing in the Shadows, Starflight and One Rule For You. I can not confirm this but this is the only version I have of the U.K. release. Many fans also preferred the feel of the U.K. release as it obviously used different compression settings.
Tracklist
1 – Der Kommissar – 4:07
2 – Who’s Gonna Love You – 4:05
3 – Frozen Rivers – 3:36
4 – Joy – 3:17
5 – Dancing In The Shadows – 3:02
6 – Billy Billy – 4:40
7 – 1980-F – 2:32
8 – Rich Boys – 3:02
9 – Starflight – 4:13
10 – Laser Love – 3:28
11 – Love Will Always Make You Cry – 3:30
12 – One Rule For You – 3:24
13 – Sailing Ship – 3:57
