The original title of Prefab Sprout's 2nd album was Steve McQueen as it was released in the UK in 1985. For the U.S. release, the Steve McQueen estate threatened to sue, thus the title was changed to Two Wheels Good. In 1986 my friend Casey gave me a cassette tape with Vitamin Z on one side and Prefab Sprout on the other. I still have this cassette, but the metal spacer that kept the tape against the playback head has been replaced so many times it sounds garbled. From 1986 to 1999 the only copy of this album I had was this mediocre recording. In '99 I did get a copy of Two Wheels Good on CD. It was not until I got Two Wheels Good on vinyl in 2003 (an original pressing purchased at Everyday Records in Seattle) that I began to remember the importance of source, pressing, and generation. I shouldn't use the word remember, because I didn't know about those things, but I did know that there was something special about that tape and where it came from. The tape I had gotten from Casey had been recorded from vinyl likely on a fairly good turntable. So the tape I'd listened to/rewound over and over was a 2nd generation, but from a pretty good source. The pressing of that particular album I'll never know as to the run or quality, etc. The CD that I'd purchased in 1999 was good, clean, no scratches, but for some reason didn't make me want to play it over and over again like the tape. Probably a combination of an okay quality CD and a bad quality CD player. Listening to the first vinyl copy that I purchased on increasingly better quality turntables, reminded me why this album is so special. This Thomas Dolby produced album takes the best of Gershwin, the best of Sinatra, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ry Cooder, and Elvis Costello as seen through the lens of falling autumn leaves on a crisp morning. Is that too much? I don't think so. This LP shivers slanted jazz guitar chords, female harmonies, and suggestive cutting lyrics. Their U.S. radio hit When Love Breaks Down, unlike many one hit wonders from the 80s like Nena and Haircut 100, weaves seamlessly into the rest of the album resulting in one organic concept. These days, I buy this LP whenever I see it. I usually have about 20 copies under both titles depending on how many I give to friends. Not everyone will fall in love with this album at first. It's an investment in time meditating with Paddy McAloon (Prefab Sprout singer/songwriter/guitarist) just like it's an investment reading Ulysses by James Joyce. The rewards come not in finishing it, but in continuing to mine it for the rest of your life. -GHA