The Hour of Two Lights

The Hour of Two Lights
Studio album by
Terry Hall and Mushtaq
Released12 August 2003 (2003-08-12)
GenreElectronic
Length57:13
LabelHonest Jon's, EMI (Europe), Astralwerks (US)
Producer
Terry Hall chronology
Laugh
(1997) 		The Hour of Two Lights
(2003)
Mushtaq chronology
The Hour of Two Lights
(2003)

The Hour of Two Lights is a one-off collaborative album between British solo-artist Terry Hall, formerly of the 2 Tone and ska revival band the Specials, and Mushtaq, a member of British-based multi-ethnic hip-hop–ethno-techno–world fusion music group Fun-Da-Mental.

Composition and release

The album was written and produced by the duo, with the exception of "Ten Eleven" which was written with Oujdi and Hall's regular collaborator and label-boss of Honest Jon's, Damon Albarn. Receiving good reviews, the album was released on CD and double-LP by Albarn's Honest Jon's label in Europe (distributed by EMI) and the US (distributed by Astralwerks) in August 2003.[1]

It was Hall's last release of new material, after which he rejoined the Specials as a regular member for live performances, until the release of the Specials' album Encore in 2019.

Critical response

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic
BBC Music(Positive)
The Guardian
PopMatters(Positive)
Uncut

Robin Denselow of The Guardian rated it 4/5 and said of The Hour of Two Lights, "Two of the pioneers of multicultural British pop are back with a daring, thoughtful set..."[2] Ollie Davies of BBC Music said, "It's a political and musical recording of racial minorities and cultures by two of today's pioneers of modern popular music."[3] Sean Westergaard of AllMusic rated One and One Is One 3/5 and thought "Terry Hall took quite a chance on this one, doing something unlike anything in his catalog and pulling it off without a hitch. Well done."[4]

Jeff Brown of CMJ New Music Monthly called it "...a fantastic mélange of East and West, traditional and modernmusic."[5] Uncut rated it 4/5 and called it "...a fantastic record of banging global grooves..."[6] PopMatters of Will Harris thought "The Hour of Two Lights can expand one's musical horizons considerably."[1]

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Terry Hall and Mushtaq except where indicated; all music is composed by Terry Hall and Mushtaq except where indicated

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Grow" 5:53
2."A Gathering Storm" 5:05
3."Ten Eleven"Damon Albarn, Mushtaq, Oujdi, Hall4:59
4."Sticks and Stones" 4:13
5."The Silent Wail" 7:08
6."A Tale of Woe" 4:22
7."The Hour of Two Lights" 5:55
8."This and That" 4:34
9."They Gotta Quit Kicking My Dog Around" 5:06
10."Stand Together" 4:46
11."Epilogue" 5:10

Personnel

References

  1. ^ a b Harris, Will (8 January 2004). "Terry Hall & Mushtaq: The Hour of Two Lights". PopMatters. Retrieved 13 July 2014.
  2. ^ Denselow, Robin (18 July 2003). "Terry Hall and Mushtaq: The Hour of Two Lights". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 July 2014.
  3. ^ Davies, Ollie (21 July 2003). "Terry Hall and Mushtaq The Hour Of Two Lights Review". BBC Music. Retrieved 13 July 2014.
  4. ^ Westergaard, Sean. "AllMusic Review by Sean Westergaard". AllMusic. Retrieved 13 July 2014.
  5. ^ Brown, Jeff (September 2003). "Terry Hall & Mushtaq". CMJ New Music Monthly. p. 50.
  6. ^ "Terry Hall & Mushtaq – The Hour Of Two Lights". Uncut. 1 September 2003. Retrieved 13 July 2014.