Oranges and Lemons, the 11th studio album from XTC, was released February 27, 1989. It was the second double album released by the English band and was their highest charting album in the both the US and UK.
"Mayor of Simpleton", written by Andy Partridge, was released as the first single the album. It became the band's best-performing single in the United States.
Sadly, I never did get to see XTC perform live. My Louisville, Kentucky record store ear X-tacy was named in-part after the band. I had originally wanted to name it EAR XTC, but wanted to avoid a potential lawsuit.
Three years after the store had been open, I had a telephone conversation with Andy Partridge, one of the prizes the store received after winning a display contest for their Oranges and Lemons release. I told him about my reluctance to use the original name and he replied, “It’s a good thing you fancy us as a band, John. ‘Ear Herman’s Hermits’ doesn’t have quite the same ring to it.” Agreed.
-John Timmons
