My Beautiful England

My Beautiful England
Studio album by David Westlake
Released	14 October 2022 (2022-10-14)
Recorded	June 2021
Genre	Indie rock
Length	39:18
Language	English
Label	Tiny Global Productions
Producer	Des Lambert
David Westlake chronology
Play Dusty for Me (2002) My Beautiful England (2022)
Singles from My Beautiful England
"Bethnal Green Museum of Childhood" Released: 15 July 2022 "Mallory Kept Climbing the Mountain" Released: 16 September 2022

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Uncut	8/10[1]
Louder Than War	[2]

My Beautiful England is the third solo studio album by English singer/songwriter David Westlake, released through Tiny Global Productions on 14 October 2022.

Recording

My Beautiful England was produced by Des Lambert.

In his book Whatever Happened to the C86 Kids?, Nige Tassell notes that My Beautiful England is Westlake’s first all-new album since Play Dusty for Me twenty years ago, and that former Servants bandmate Luke Haines plays guitar on the recording.[3]

Reception

Writing for Uncut, Johnny Sharp rated the album eight-out-of-ten, calling it “a delight”. “Westlake retains great respect from [the C86] era’s cognoscenti”, he said, and My Beautiful England is “a Britpop concept album from a man who’d surely wince at either label”.[1]

In an in-depth review for Louder Than War, Neil Davenport gave the album a five-out-of-five rating, calling it “one of the most idiosyncratic, political and blazingly tuneful guitar pop albums [of 2022]”. “It’s an extraordinary record”, he says, “a contemporary update on George Orwell’s critiques of left intelligentsia found in ‘England Your England’.” “This is high level stuff”, says Davenport; “Not since Malcom Eden’s old band McCarthy (but in a completely different historical context) has there been an attempt to intelligently challenge received wisdom.” Musically, “My Beautiful England simply triumphs as a consistently great, 14-song guitar pop album. It’s packed with some of Westlake’s best songs.”[2]

Different shows on BBC Radio 6 Music and other BBC stations gave the album regular airplay for several months around its release.[4][5][6][7]

Track listing

Side one:

1. "My Beautiful England" – 4:24
2. "War Memorial" – 3:05
3. "The Modern Ruins of Old London Town" – 3:20
4. "Bethnal Green Museum of Childhood" – 3:23
5. "Mallory Kept Climbing the Mountain" – 2:25
6. "E is for the Empire" – 2:38

Side two:

1. "Hayes, Middlesex" – 1:59
2. "English Parish Churches" – 3:37
3. "Regency Terrace" – 2:24
4. "Marie Lloyd" – 2:20
5. "The Crusades" – 2:31
6. "The Age of Unenlightenment" – 2:17
7. "General Gordon’s Last Stand" – 2:38
8. "Au Contraire, Tony Blair" – 2:11

Personnel

• David Westlake – vocals and guitar
• Luke Haines – guitar
• Des Lambert – bass
• Rob Flanagan – drums
• Dwain Bedford – trumpet

Technical personnel

• Des Lambert – production
• Stuart Moxham – mastering
• Patsy Westlake – photography
• Del Sozou – artwork, design

References

1. Sharp, Johnny (October 2022). "Former Servant's first solo album in 20 years". Uncut. TI Media. Retrieved 8 May 2023.
2. Davenport, Neil (19 October 2022). "David Westlake 'My Beautiful England' : album review". Louder Than War. Retrieved 8 May 2023.
3. Tassell, Nige (2022). Whatever Happened to the C86 Kids?: An Indie Odyssey. London: Nine Eight Books. p. 286. ISBN 978-1788705585.
4. "Radcliffe & Maconie". BBC Radio 6 Music. BBC Radio. 24 July 2022. Retrieved 8 May 2023. [12] David Westlake: Bethnal Green Museum Of Childhood
5. "Gideon Coe". BBC Radio 6 Music. BBC Radio. 7 September 2022. Retrieved 8 May 2023. [28] David Westlake: The Modern Ruins Of Old London Town
6. "Steve Lamacq". BBC Radio 6 Music. BBC Radio. 28 July 2022. Retrieved 8 May 2023. [7] David Westlake: Bethnal Green Museum Of Childhood
7. "The Mickey Bradley Record Show". BBC Radio Ulster. BBC Radio. 23 September 2022. Retrieved 8 May 2023. [7] David Westlake: Mallory Kept Climbing The Mountain