Albums · Studio album

A Little Man and a House and the Whole World Window

Cardiacs

Release date21 March 1988

Year1988

LabelAlphabet Business Concern / Torso

Formats & catalogue

CDALPH CD007

LPALPH LP007

CassetteALPH MC007

CDTORSO CD060

Overview

A Little Man and a House and the Whole World Window is Cardiacs’ first proper studio album and the record on which the band’s classic language fully came into focus. Its dense arrangements combine punk urgency, theatrical pop, brass and woodwind writing, fairground melodies and abrupt structural changes, while still allowing moments of unusual warmth and grandeur. The album introduced a wider audience to Cardiacs and remains one of the clearest entry points into their strange, meticulously constructed world.

Tracklist

44:47

01
A Little Man and a House5:05
Side AWritten by Tim Smith
02
In a City Lining5:52
Side AWritten by Tim Smith
03
Is This the Life?5:37
Side AWritten by Tim Smith
04
Interlude0:47
Side AWritten by Tim SmithWritten by Tim Smith when he was around thirteen.
05
Dive4:09
Side AWritten by Tim Smith
06
The Icing on the World4:02
Side BWritten by Tim Smith
07
The Breakfast Line4:55
Side BWritten by Tim Smith
08
Victory Egg3:08
Side BWritten by Tim Smith
09
R.E.S.5:16
Side BWritten by Tim Smith
10
The Whole World Window5:56
Side BWritten by Tim Smith, William D. Drake

Line-up

12 credited

Tim Smith

lead vocals · guitar · flutes · recorders

Jim Smith

bass guitar · vocals

Sarah Smith

saxophones · clarinets · recorders · vocals

William D. Drake

keyboards · vocals

Tim Quy

marimba · percussion · synthesiser

Dominic Luckman

drums

Ashley Slater

tenor trombone · bass trombone

Phil Cesar

trumpet · flugelhorn · soprano trumpet

Elaine Herman

violins

The Consultant

voice

Miss Swift

voice

Mark Walmesley

voice

Archive notes

The album was released in the United Kingdom by the Alphabet Business Concern and in the Netherlands by Torso Records.
‘Is This the Life?’ was released as the album’s official single in March 1988 and remains Cardiacs’ best-known song.
The original LP and cassette contained ten tracks. The Torso CD added five bonus tracks: ‘Goosegash’, ‘Loosefish Scapegrace’, ‘I'm Eating in Bed’, ‘There's Too Many Irons in the Fire’ and ‘All Spectacular’.
The 1995 CD reissue removed the other Torso bonus tracks but reinstated ‘I'm Eating in Bed’ as track three, in accordance with the band’s wishes. Later standard CD editions retained that eleven-track sequence.
The daisy silhouette on the front cover was selected by Tim Smith simply because he found it visually pleasing.
The album’s concept developed from the Seaside Treats film, with the Consultant and Miss Swift presented as representatives of the tyrannical Alphabet Business Concern.
A 35th-anniversary four-disc edition was released in 2023, remastered under Tim Smith’s supervision before his death in 2020.
The album was added to Cardiacs’ Bandcamp page on 6 March 2018 and later appeared on other streaming services.

Recording & credits

Recording

Recorded at: The Workhouse, London
Recording dates: 1985–1987

Production

Produced by: Tim Smith
Executive producer: Pete Hammond
Engineered by: Graham Simmonds, Pete Hammond, Roger Tebbutt, Spencer Henderson, Stuart Barry
Mastered by: Tim Smith
Plating: Maxwell Anandappa

Artwork

Photography: David Oliver