THEME ONE / W

This version of "Theme One" is a different (and inferior) recording from the "original version" released on the 2005 Virgin/Charisma remaster of Pawn Hearts. (There's also a different version on the 2003 Virgin compilation The Best Prog Rock Album in the World ? Ever.) As far as I know, this is the only cover song in the band's 1969-1978 period, and I wonder whether that's why the band wanted to leave this nice little tune off the album. The song was written by Beatles producer George Martin as theme music for BBC Radio 1.

On the flip side, "W" is boilerplate Van der Graaf Generator, and I mean that in two ways: as a composition, it's kind of generic, as far as VdGG songs go; but it also feels a bit perfunctory, as if the band had to come up with something that sounded like themselves. Of course, a band could do much worse than sounding like early-1970s Van der Graaf Generator.

Since higher-quality versions of both of these songs are available on the Pawn Hearts remaster, I expect that only VdGG completionists will want a copy of "Theme One" / "W."

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