"Operating Theatre: The Early Years" - Operating Theatre
Compilation Album
U2 Related Content:
- "Queen of No Heart" (Single Version) - Operating Theatre (Produced by Bono) (03:51)
- "Spring is Coming With a Strawberry in the Mouth" (Single Version) - Operating Theatre (Produced by Bono) (04:24)
Full Track Listing:
Disc One:
- SIr Geoffrey (2:44)
- Positive Disintegration (3:18)
- Part of My Make-Up (3:30)
- Fingerdance Waltz / Hymn (7:56)
- Rampwalk (3:47)
- Satanasa (3:54)
- Ah Love, Ah Love (3:24)
- Clubmusic / Amene-Moi (6:01)
- No Come (2:21)
- Austrian (3:29)
- Dragon Path (3:27)
- The Confectioners (2:26)
- Miss Mauger (3:29)
Disc Two: - Blue Light and Alpha Waves (3:44)
- Belisa in the Garden (4:20)
- Don Perlimplin Has No Honour (2:20)
- The Tractor (2:26)
- Queen of No Heart (3:51)
- Syllable (2:46)
- Spring is Coming With a Strawberry in the Mouth (4:24)
- Before She Was Asked to Dance (2:29)
- Johnny’s Body At 002 – Pt. 1 (8:25)
- Johnny’s Body at 002 – Pt. 2 (7:40)
Background Information
The fourth single from U2’s label, Mother Records was a double A Side “Queen of No Heart” / “Spring is Coming with a Strawberry in the Mouth” by the Operating Theatre. Bono had worked on this single and was credited with production duties as Executive producer. The single was released in early 1986 in the UK on 7” and 12”. Operating Theatre was the brainchild of Roger Doyle and the actor / dancer Olwen Fouere. Operating Theatre was a musical theatre company first and a band second. They recorded a number of singles before being signed to Mother for this one-off release in 1986.
Those two tracks are included on this retrospective 2-CD collection of tracks from The Operating Theatre. These have been remastered by Roger Doyle, a founding member of Operating Theatre, and the compilation was first released in late 2006 in the program guide for the Dublin Electronic Arts Festival. The CDs were inserted into the program, and given free with the guide. The following year it was released by Incunabulum Records, and was initially planned to be a limited release of 500 copies. This CD release was in two plain black CD sleeves, with an exterior card that wrapped around the CDs and contained brief liner notes as well as the cover image. All fits into a plastic slipcase.
Liner Notes
“Queen of No Heart” and “Spring Is Coming With a Strawberry in the Mouth” were the result of an initial collaboration between singer / lyricist Elena Lopez and Roger Doyle and were released on Mother Records, the label set up by U2, as a single by Operating Theatre, with Lopez on main vocals and drummer Sean Devitt joining the band for this recording.
Roger Doyle: keyboards on all tracks. remastering of all tracks.
Olwen Fouere: backing vocals on “Spring is Coming…” and “Queen of No Heart”
Elena Lopez: lyrics and vocals on “Spring is Coming…” and “Queen of No Heart”
Sean Devitt: drums on “Spring is Coming…” and “Queen of No Heart”
Bono: Guitar on “Queen of No Heart” and production on “Spring is Coming…” and “Queen of No Heart”.
(Original credits from the vinyl single list Bono as Executive Producer, Kevin Moloney as Assistant Producer / Engineer, and thank Pat McCarthy).