Released today through Fire Records, Long March Through the Jazz Age arrives as the final recorded work of Chris Bailey and The Saints — a posthumous full stop to one of Australian rock’s quietly significant careers. Timed close to what would have been Bailey’s 69th birthday, the album functions less as a grand statement than a reflective closing chapter, shaped from late-2018 sessions at Church Street Studios in Sydney.
Bailey and longtime drummer Pete Wilkinson returned from Europe to work again with guitarist and engineer Sean Carey, joined by Davey Lane (You Am I) and a small group of younger horn, string and keyboard players. What began as a set of rough demos has been built into a slow-burning record that moves between sparseness and broader arrangements without overstating itself. The energy is measured, the performances considered.
Lead track “Empires (Sometimes We Fall)” sets the tone – western-streaked guitars, steady rhythm, and Bailey reflecting plainly: “Sometimes we rise, sometimes we fall.” The lyric feels like a summary of the album’s outlook: resigned but not defeated, aware of history without needing to rewrite it. The more expansive moments, including the title track, lean toward a Dylan-like looseness, with strings and trumpet widening the sound rather than dramatizing it.
“In my opinion, The Saints were Australia’s greatest band…. and Chris Bailey was my favourite singer” Nick Cave
Long March Through the Jazz Age is available today from Fire Records