Dirk Wears White Sox

Studio album by Adam and the Ants

Released

30 October 1979

Recorded

24–29 August 1979 at Sound Development Studios

Genre

Post-punk

Length

40:39

Label

Do It

Producer

Adam and the Ants chronology

Dirk Wears White Sox
(1979)

Kings of the Wild Frontier
(1980)

Alternative cover

1983 US re-release cover

Dirk Wears White Sox is the debut studio album by English new wave band Adam and the Ants. It was released on 30 October 1979 by record Do It. It holds the distinction of being the very first number one album on the UK Independent Albums Chart when the chart debuted in Record Week in 1980.^[1]

Background

The album was made with an early line-up of Adam and the Ants, which disbanded after the album was released. Guitarist Matthew Ashman and drummer David Barbarossa went on to form Bow Wow Wow with then-Ants bassist Leigh Gorman (who had only played one gig with the Ants and was not involved in any studio recordings). Original bassist Andy Warren had departed shortly after recording the album to join former Ants guitarist Lester Square in The Monochrome Set. Many of the songs, notably "Cleopatra" and "Never Trust a Man (With Egg on his Face)", remained a part of Adam Ant's live repertoire throughout his career, both with the Ants and later as a solo artist.

The "Dirk" of the title refers to classic British film icon Dirk Bogarde.^[2]

Release

Dirk Wears White Sox was released on 30 October 1979.

The album was re-released in 1983, featuring a different album cover taken from a December 1979 video for the song "Zerox". "Catholic Day" and "Day I Met God" were dropped and "Cartrouble" appears in its single version. This edition also adds three songs from the same era not on the original LP: a re-recording of "Kick!" (previously on the Antmusic EP, which contained completely different lyrics and featured Jon Moss on drums, who later went on to join Culture Club), "Zerox", and "Whip in My Valise." It was re-issued again in 1995 by Sony, featuring the original black-and-white album art in somewhat cropped form. The lettering on the sleeve was recreated in the style of the original and does not feature the stroke through the letter O in the word "Sox"; it also substitutes a letter "Z" in place of the zig-zagged "S" in the word "Ants" (previously a common practice among unofficial merchandisers around the time of the album's original release).

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[3]
Stylus	B−^[4]
Trouser Press	unfavourable^[5]

In his retrospective review, Chris Woodstra of AllMusic wrote "while the somewhat pretentious, overly arty lyrics and inexperienced playing are a drawback, the album offers a fascinating look at the Ants' formative years, capturing a raw energy that would be sacrificed for more polish on subsequent releases."^[3]

Musical style

Chris Woodstra of AllMusic described the album's style as a "sometimes-awkward fusion of punk, glam and minimalist post-punk with bizarre images and disturbing tales of alienation, sex and brutality."^[3] Peter Parrish of Stylus wrote "Dirk slips somewhere between The Banshee's [sic] Scream and Gang of Four's Entertainment; all stark, angular and brittle."^[4]

Track listings

All tracks written by Adam Ant.

Side A
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Cartrouble (Parts 1 & 2)"
2.	"Digital Tenderness"
3.	"Nine Plan Failed"
4.	"Day I Met God"
5.	"Tabletalk"

Side B
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Cleopatra"
2.	"Catholic Day"
3.	"Never Trust a Man (With Egg on His Face)"
4.	"Animals and Men"
5.	"Family of Noise"
6.	"The Idea"

1983 re-release

Side A
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Cartrouble"	3:23
2.	"Kick!"	2:05
3.	"Digital Tenderness"	3:03
4.	"Nine Plan Failed"	3:10
5.	"Family of Noise"	2:34
6.	"Tabletalk"	5:33

Side B
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Zerox"	3:45
2.	"Cleopatra"	3:15
3.	"Never Trust a Man (With Egg on His Face)"	3:13
4.	"Animals and Men"	3:16
5.	"The Idea"	3:24
6.	"Whip in My Valise"	3:58

1995 re-release

Track listing
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Cartrouble (Parts 1 & 2)"	6.51
2.	"Kick!"	2:05
3.	"Digital Tenderness"	3:03
4.	"Nine Plan Failed"	3:10
5.	"Family of Noise"	2:34
6.	"Tabletalk"	5:33
7.	"Zerox"	3:45
8.	"Cleopatra"	3:15
9.	"Never Trust a Man (With Egg on His Face)"	3:13
10.	"Animals and Men"	3:16
11.	"The Idea"	3:24
12.	"Whip in My Valise"	3:58
13.	"Catholic Day"	3.08
14.	"Day I Met God"	2:58

2004 reissue

Track listing
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Cartrouble (Parts 1 & 2)"	6.51
2.	"Digital Tenderness"	3.03
3.	"Nine Plan Failed"	5.18
4.	"Day I Met God"	2:58
5.	"Tabletalk"	5.34
6.	"Cleopatra"	3.15
7.	"Catholic Day"	3.08
8.	"Never Trust a Man (With Egg on His Face)"	3.13
9.	"Animals and Men"	3.20
10.	"Family of Noise"	2.36
11.	"The Idea"	3.26
12.	"Zerøx"	3.48
13.	"Whip in My Valise"	4.00
14.	"Kick!"	1.36
15.	"Physical"	3.59
16.	"Cartrouble (Parts 1 & 2) (Hughes Mix)"	6.36
17.	"Friends"	2.40
18.	"Cartrouble (Single Version)"	3.24
19.	"Kick! (Single Version)"	2.06

Personnel

Adam and the Ants

Adam Ant – electric and acoustic guitars, vocals, piano, harmonica, bass (18, 19)
Dave Barbarossa (as Dave Barbe) – drums (1-17)
Matthew Ashman – guitar, piano
Andrew Warren – bass (1-17)
Marco Pirroni – guitar (18, 19)
Jon Moss – drums (18, 19)

References

↑ Katagiri, Charlie (29 September 2012). "Adam Ant". Encyclopedia.com.
↑ "Adam Ant: The King of Sexual Diversity | Ant Lib Ønline | Adam & the Ants Community Øutpost | Adam Ant News & Events". Ant Lib Ønline. 28 February 2010. Retrieved 24 December 2014.
1 2 3 Woodstra, Chris. "Dirk Wears White Sox – Adam and the Ants | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 24 December 2014.
1 2 Parrish, Peter (28 July 2004). "Adam & the Ants – Dirk Wears White Sox – Review – Stylus Magazine". Stylus. Retrieved 24 December 2014.
↑ Young, Jon; Lewis, Kate; Rompers, Terry. "TrouserPress.com :: Adam Ant". TrouserPress.com. Retrieved 28 August 2016.

External links

Dirk Wears White Sox at Discogs (list of releases)
"Dirk Wears White Sox" The official Adam Ant website

Adam Ant

Adam and the Ants albums	Dirk Wears White Sox (1979) Kings of the Wild Frontier (1980) Prince Charming (1981)

Solo albums	Friend or Foe (1982) Strip (1983) Vive Le Rock (1985) Manners & Physique (1990) Persuasion (1991, unreleased) Wonderful (1995) Adam Ant Is the Blueblack Hussar in Marrying the Gunner's Daughter (2013)

Compilations	Antics in the Forbidden Zone (1990) Antmusic: The Very Best of Adam Ant (1994) B-Side Babies (1994) Antbox (2000) Redux (2005)

Adam and the Ants singles	"Young Parisians" (1978) "Zerox" (1979) "Cartrouble" (1980) "Kings of the Wild Frontier" (1980) "Dog Eat Dog" (1980) "Antmusic" (1980) "Stand and Deliver" (1981) "Prince Charming" (1981) "Ant Rap" (1981) "Deutscher Girls" (1982) "Friends" (1982)

Solo singles	"Goody Two Shoes" (1982) "Friend or Foe" (1982) "Desperate But Not Serious" (1982) "Room at the Top" (1990)

Related	Discography Bazooka Joe Bow Wow Wow

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