Sleep of the Just, by Liberty Cage

Sleep of the Just

by Liberty Cage

supported by

sanrim Having been a fan of the Men They Couldn’t Hang since I was 13-14, more than 30 years ago now, my love for the music the Men make was reignited following my first ever live gig I managed to see after all this time (!) just over a year ago. In the year that followed I’ve come to learn that there’s lots more music related to the band besides what the TMTCH perform. The long history of the band has seen sabbaticals from the main affair, creating space for alternative band configurations and off-shoots of solo activity. One of my latest discoveries is Liberty Cage, a band Swill and Paul set up with Paul’s brother (?) Neil in 1991. I managed to get my hands on their 1994 CD Sleep of the Just.

This is fast becoming my new favourite. Versatile fusion of folk with lots of different influences from pop ballads to pure jazz (loved it!) to country and Irish folk to the riotous Mexican market place vibe of the Judgement day; sharp and insightful lyrics delivered in Swill’s full-bodied vocals. The trademark the guys carry seems to be heavy (=important) content wrapped in light hearted and catchy tunes (On Her Majesty's Service has stayed as my earworm all week...). It's probably the use of brass-instruments and flute that sets this apart from the other music produced by the members of TMTCH, they add a whole different vibe to the set.

It's sobering to notice that 25 years on from when this album was first released a lot of the themes are as, if not more, current today: far-right hatred, poverty, inequality, religious oppression, regional politics, lack of opportunity. The lyrics also have a lot of astute observations about love, relationships (Cat and Mouse affair) and life generally.

My favourites here were "Everything's different now" and "Throwing stones at the Sea" (or Sleep of the Just). The lyrics in the first one are genius, my favourite line being "I didn't realise a temporary caress / could bring me back to a permanent address". Boom!

The tune of the Throwing Stones at the Sea spoke to me most on this album. The story of the Fires Below is chilling as it dawns on you (the lyrics again are brilliant); Swimming against the Tide carves your heart out. The melodic One for the Road is probably the most beautiful, and different, drinking song I've ever come across. Contemplative and wise: “Someone said to me/ if we had an eye for an eye / it’ll make the whole world blind / something anyone can see”.
I felt surprised by the dark and menacing jazz-piece Murder in cell #9 (the fact that it was jazz – the guys should do more of that!), while the nonsense (can’t think of how else to describe it) hilly-billy potpourri CDC at the end of the album has fireworks popping, leaving a faint smell of sulphur in its wake…

I’d vote for the resurrection of Liberty Cage, or at least a fair airing of these gems on live gigs by Swill and Paul sooner rather than later!

more...

	/

Streaming + Download

Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

Purchasable with gift card

£8 GBP or more
SWILL'S MUSIC CLUB

Join now to receive all the new music Phil ‘Swill’ Odgers creates, including 7 back-catalog releases, delivered instantly to you via the Bandcamp app for iOS and Android. You’ll also get access to supporter-only exclusives. Learn more.

Join Now £5 GBP/month or more
Full Digital Discography

29

releases

Get all 29 Phil ‘Swill’ Odgers releases available on Bandcamp and save 65%.

Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Far Rockaway - The Songs of Phil Ochs, Christmas In Prison - Live From Swillville - December 2023, There But For Fortune, Questions, Answers & Songs, SWILL'S SURPRISE SESSION (JAN 20TH 2022), GHOSTS OF ROCK N ROLL, Folk at the Fortress, THE BEST OF SWILL'S SUNDAY SESSION VOLUME 2, and 21 more. , and , .
Excludes supporter-only releases.

Purchasable with gift card

£66.33 GBP or more (65% OFF)
Rare as rare can be!
Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album

SWILL'S MUSIC CLUB exclusive
Includes unlimited streaming of Sleep of the Just via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

Sold Out

1.	Everything's Different Now 03:28	info	buy track
2.	Fires Below 04:34	info	buy track
3.	Throwing Stones at the Sea 02:58	info	buy track
4.	On Her Majesty's Service 04:04	info	buy track
5.	Swimming Against the Tide 05:08	info	buy track
6.	One for the Road 03:59	info	buy track
7.	Judgement Day 03:41	info	buy track
8.	You Make My Mind Stand Still 03:56	info	buy track
9.	Mercy of the Guards 04:03	info	buy track
10.	Cat and Mouse Affair 02:59	info	buy track
11.	Murder in Cell #9 03:38	info	buy track
12.	CDC 04:33	info	buy track

about

Liberty Cage were formed as celebrated indie/roots band Men They Couldn’t Hang took a temporary break in 1991. From that group, songwriters Phil ‘Swill’ Odgers (vocals/guitar) and Paul Simmonds (guitar) recruited Paul’s brother Neil Simmonds (double bass) and ‘just decided to go into a studio in Brighton and see what happened’. After multi-instrumentalist Dave Kent and former Tender Trap drummer Simon Lomond joined, Liberty Cage quickly established a strong reputation for their live shows - an aptitude they shared with their former incarnation. In Paul Simmonds and Phil Odgers they similarly possessed two talented lyricists, capable of combining folky humanism with caustic political tracts. This was confirmed by the May 1994 release of Sleep Of The Just, a self-produced and financed album recorded during ‘studio down-time’. Though strong early demo material such as ‘This Side Of The Street’ had been jettisoned, new songs such as ‘Mercy Of The Guards’ and ‘Fire Below’ ably compensated. Though the songs were played with punk ferocity, the album indelibly cast Liberty Cage as a folk band, just as the Men They Couldn’t Hang had been before them. As Paul Simmonds conceded: ‘The best folk music will have something to say in 100 years when pop fads become sociologist’s footnotes and clothes to laugh at.’

credits

released January 2, 1994

Recorded at Vons Studios London March / July 1993
Produced by Liberty Cage / Alan Adiri

Phil Odgers - Vocals and Acoustic Guitar
Paul Simmonds - 6 string and 12 string Guitar and Mandolin
Neil Simmonds - Double Bass, Saxophone, Bass, Guitar
Dave Kent - Vocals, Whistle, Harmonica, Trumpet

Guest Musicians
Nick Muir - Piano, Accordion, Organ
Bobby Valentino - Violin
John the Coat - Acoustic Guitar on CDC (which he wrote)
Julia Walters - backing vocals on Throwing Stones at the Sea)

Album Photos by Andy Booth
Artwork designed by Mark Thompson

Song Writing Credits
Dave Kent (tracks 8, 12)
John Bishop (track 11)
Neil Simmonds (tracks: 3, 6)
Paul Simmonds (tracks: 1, 2, 4, 9, 10, 11)
Philip Odgers (tracks: 5, 7)
Barcode and Other Identifiers
Barcode: 4 023290 129363
Label Code: 6155

license

about

Phil ‘Swill’ Odgers London, UK

Phil ‘Swill’ Odgers is singer and a songwriter with legendary UK folk rebel rockers The Men They Couldn’t Hang. He is also a solo artist in his own right.

Audiences around the world from Cairo to Reykjavik, Brisbane to Vancouver and Berlin to London have submitted to his effervescent and heartfelt vocal style in stadium, theatre, hall and after hours lock in. ... more

Recommendations

contact / help

Contact Phil ‘Swill’ Odgers

Streaming and
Download help

Shipping and returns

Redeem code

Report this album or account

Phil ‘Swill’ Odgers recommends:

Ring The Blues EP
by The Men They Couldn't Hang

The 3rd in a rolling series of digital EP’s from The Men They Couldn't Hang! Track List: Ring The Blues One More Whiskey Ring The Blues Demo Telegram Sam All proceeds go to the TMTCH album fund. Phil ‘Swill’ Odgers
go to album
Campfire Songs
by Naomi Bedford, Paul Simmonds and the Campfire Ensemble

Paul Simmonds from The Men They Couldn't Hang and his partner Naomi Bedford making modern and traditional folk music together Phil ‘Swill’ Odgers
go to album
Back in the Day
by Mick Thomas

Australia's very own Mick Thomas - always a sure thing! Phil ‘Swill’ Odgers
go to album

If you like Sleep of the Just, you may also like:

Shun Fame
by The Men They Couldn't Hang

supported by 78 fans who also own “Sleep of the Just”

What a tribute, I haven’t the words to say how this group have been the soundtrack to my life, through good and bad. Anything that helps is the least I can do, missed dearly. Joe Zux
go to album
Broadway Melodies (A collection of B Sides and Unreleased Tracks
by The Men They Couldn't Hang

supported by 52 fans who also own “Sleep of the Just”

Another great collection of tunes from the evergreen TMTCH, I'm sure a few will be rolled out over the course of next year's 40th anniversary celebrations. Great to hear Paul taking lead on a couple of tunes, Swill's songs as superb as ever and to round it off with Cush's most vitriol-filled song - and a stonewall classic at that - is just perfect. richardw27
go to album
The Edge of the Land
by Katie Spencer

Spencer's indie folk sophomore album was recorded live in the studio over the course of two days. Bandcamp New & Notable May 6, 2022
go to album

Bandcamp Daily your guide to the world of Bandcamp

On Bandcamp Radio

Beans joins the show to discuss his album release, "ZWAARD".

listen now

Sleep of the Just

by Liberty Cage

Streaming + Download

£8 GBP or more

SWILL'S MUSIC CLUB

Join Now £5 GBP/month or more

Full Digital Discography

£66.33 GBP or more (65% OFF)

Rare as rare can be!
Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album

SWILL'S MUSIC CLUB exclusive

Sold Out

about

credits

license

tags

Tags

about

discography

contact / help

Sleep of the Just

by Liberty Cage

Digital Album Streaming + Download

Buy Digital Album £8 GBP or more

Send as Gift

SWILL'S MUSIC CLUB

Join Now £5 GBP/month or more

Full Digital Discography

Buy Digital Discography £66.33 GBP or more (65% OFF)

Send as Gift

Rare as rare can be! Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album SWILL'S MUSIC CLUB exclusive

Sold Out

Share / Embed

about

credits

license

tags

Tags

about

discography

contact / help

Streaming + Download

£8 GBP or more

£66.33 GBP or more (65% OFF)

Rare as rare can be!
Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album

SWILL'S MUSIC CLUB exclusive