Golden Age of Wireless

Personnel: Thomas Dolby (vocals, piano, synthesizer, programming, wave computer, electronic percussion); Kevin Armstrong, Dave Birch (guitar); Simon House (violin); Simon Lloyd (flute, brass); Andy Partridge (harmonica); Daniel Miller (synthesizer); Matthew Seligman, Mark Heyward-Chaplin (bass); Justin Hildreth (drums); Bruce Woolley, Lene Lovich, Lesley Fairbairn, James Allen, Judy Evans, Les Chappell, Akiko Yono, Mutt Lange, Miriam Stockley (background vocals).
One of the most satisfying examples of the genre of early-80s British synthpop. Thomas Dolby's debut is surprisingly warm, human, and at times nostalgic, qualities not usually associated with synthesized music.
Ballads like "Airwaves," "Weightless," and the enveloping, operatic "Cloudburst At Shingle Street," are thoughtful and direct, and the more upbeat songs, like "Radio Silence" and the manic "Europa and the Pirate Twins" (featuring harmonica by XTC's Andy Partridge), are as fun and catchy as anything released in 1982. Purists may feel that the original version of the album, featuring two early tracks dropped off this second US edition, is superior, but in either incarnation THE GOLDEN AGE OF WIRELESS is a synthpop classic.