Photo by Joy Whalen
Paul Collins’ (from The Nerves, The Breakaways) two long lost EPs with his band The Beat from the early ’80s make it to Lolipop Records as the first re-issue on all formats in over 30 years, from the “king of power pop” himself.
To Beat Or Not To Beat was recorded in New York in 1983 at The Ranch with John Mathias (The Romantics) and Paul Collins/Steven Huff producing. It was released in the U.S. by Jem/Passport Records and then it was later released in Europe on Closer Records France and Dro Records Spain. The single “All Over The World” was featured regularly on KROQ in Los Angeles and got a lot of airplay in France and in Spain.
Steve and Paul toured in Europe off that record for several years until they wound up in London where they recorded their follow-up EP Long Time Gone, just before returning to the States. Long Time Gone was released in 1985 on Closer France and Dro Spain, and both records were released as a two-fer on Wounded Bird Records in 2004.
Paul Collins’ Beat’s Long Time Gone / To Beat Or Not To Beat will be released on vinyl, CD, cassette and digital formats April 28 via Lolipop Records (distributed by Cobraside Distribution).
Today, Ghettoblaster celebrates the reissues by sharing “Broken Hearted.” This is what Collins had to say about it:
“Steve [Huff] and I had been living in Madrid for quite awhile now it was around 1984 and we had been away from America for what seemed like years. We were starting to feel a bit like X-Pats. My brother Patrick was living with us too and we would tour up one side of Spain and down the other, there was no shortage of work to be had and it was all very crazy! Spain had just come out from underneath Franco’s rule of some forty years and the country was busting out. Rock n roll was just starting to take hold and the kids loved it!
We were out in the middle of it all far, far away from the world we knew. The news from back home was mainly that rock was changing and good ole songwriting was taking a back seat to the new big rock radio sound. That left us pretty much in the dust but we still could not resist a good hook with lots of great vocal harmonies…we were…Broken Hearted!”

(Visit Collins here:
Paul’s website: http://www.thepaulcollinsbeat.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Paul-Collins-Beat-46392812761
PAUL COLLINS 2017 TOUR DATES:
FRANCE
5/6 Clermont-Ferrand @ Bombshell
5/7 Marseille @ Le Jam
5/8 Toulouse @ Dispensary
5/10 Rouen @ 3 Pieces
5/11 Vannes @ Jam Session
5/12 Paris @ La Mecanique-Ondulatoire
 
ENGLAND
5/13 London @ The Finsbury
5/14 Adam Smith’s Black Wax Radio Live Show
 
BELGIUM
5/16 Kortrijk @ Den Trap
 
NETHERLANDS
5/17 Rotterdam @ V11
5/18 Haarlem (Amsterdam) @ Patronaat
 
GERMANY
5/19 Düsseldorf @ The Tube
5/20 Berlin @ Cortina Bob
5/21 Hamburg @ Monkeys Music Club
 
SWEDEN
5/23 Malmo @ Folk & Rock
5/24 Gothenburg @ Liseberg Amusement Park Power Pop Festival
5/25 Eskilstuna @ Ölkultur
5/26 Karlskoga @ Rockbar
5/27 Stockholm @ Pet Sounds record shop show!
 
SPAIN
5/30 Madrid @ Fun House
5/31 Burgos @ Matarile
6/1  Leon @ Chelsea Bar
6/2  Zarragoza @ Teatro Arbolé
6/8  Barcelona @ A Wamba Buluba
6/22 Elche @ Hotel Galicia
6/24 Fuengirola @ Fuengirola Pop Weekend with The Beach Boys
 
PORTUGAL
6/28 Algarve, TBC
6/29 Lisbon @ Popular Alvalade  
 
FRANCE
7/21 Tourville-Sur-Mer “Le Sable, Les Mouettes et Les Guitares Electriques” Festival)