| The Crossing is the debut album released by Scottish band Big Country in July 1983. The album reached #3 in the UK; overseas, it hit #4 in Canada on the RPM national Top Albums Chart and #18 in the US on the Billboard 200 in 1983. It went on to be certified platinum in the UK and Canada. It contains the song "In a Big Country" which is their only U.S. Top 40 hit single.
In May 1982, Big Country signed a recording contract with Phonogram and soon began recording what was supposed to be their debut album with producer Chris Thomas. However, the entire recording session would eventually be scrapped when Big Country felt Thomas wasn't fully committing to the band due to other production commitments. Three songs were salvaged from the sessions – "Harvest Home", "Balcony" and "Flag of Nations (Swimming)" – and released as the "Harvest Home" single in September 1982 through Phonogram's imprint Mercury Records, reaching #91 in the UK Singles Chart.
With new producer Steve Lillywhite, the band recorded the single "Fields of Fire" in early 1983, which became a UK Top Ten hit. In May, on the back of the single's success, Lillywhite and the band proceeded to record The Crossing, which would include a re-recorded "Harvest Home". Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply. |
