Cunning Stunts (Caravan album)

Cunning Stunts
Studio album by Caravan
Released	July 25, 1975
Recorded	September 1974 - May 1975
Genre	Progressive rock, Canterbury scene
Length	41:47
Label	Decca
Producer	David Hitchcock
Caravan chronology
Caravan and the New Symphonia (1974)Caravan and the New Symphonia1974 Cunning Stunts (1975) Blind Dog at St. Dunstans (1976)Blind Dog at St. Dunstans1976

Cunning Stunts is the sixth studio album by the progressive rock band Caravan, released in 1975. It was their first album with the bass guitarist, vocalist and songwriter Mike Wedgwood. The title of the album is a spoonerism for 'Stunning Cunts', which is typical of their cheeky use of language. Two previous Caravan albums with titles that are also sexual plays on words are If I Could Do It All Over Again, I'd Do It All Over You and For Girls Who Grow Plump in the Night.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic

Allmusic described it as "a solid, varied, and interesting album with plenty of character."

Track listing

Side one

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"The Show of Our Lives"	John Murphy, Dave Sinclair	5:47
2.	"Stuck in a Hole"	Pye Hastings	3:09
3.	"Lover"	Mike Wedgwood	5:06
4.	"No Backstage Pass"	Pye Hastings	4:34
5.	"Welcome the Day"	Mike Wedgwood	4:01

Side two

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"The Dabsong Conshirtoe" a)  "The Mad Dabsong" b)  "Ben Karratt Rides Again" c)  "Pro's and Con's" d)  "Wraiks and Ladders" e)  "Sneaking out the Bare Quare" f)  "All Sorts of Unmentionable Things"	John Murphy, Dave Sinclair	18:00 2:15 2:42 2:29 0:58 4:25 5:11
2.	"Fear and Loathing in Tollington Park Rag"	Geoffrey Richardson	1:10

Bonus tracks

Track listing
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Stuck in a Hole"	Pye Hastings	3:10
2.	"Keeping Back My Love"	Pye Hastings	5:14
3.	"For Richard"	Richard Coughlan, Hastings, Sinclair, Richard Sinclair	18:34

Personnel

• Pye Hastings – electric guitar and acoustic guitars, vocals, lead vocals on "Stuck in a Hole", "No Backstage Pass", "The Mad Dabsong" and "Ben Karratt Rides Again"(2nd vocal)
• Richard Coughlan – drums
• Dave Sinclair – keyboards, string co-arrangement on "No Backstage Pass", brass co-arrangement on "Ben Karratt Rides Again" and "Sneaking out the Bare "Quare"
• Mike Wedgwood – bass guitar, congas, vocals, moog brass on "Stuck in a Hole", string arrangement on "Lover" and "No Backstage Pass", lead vocals on "The Show of Our Lives", "Lover", "Welcome the Day", "Ben Karratt Rides Again"(1st vocal) and "Pro's and Con's"
• Geoffery Richardson – viola, electric guitar, Western concert flute, flute, night-shift whistle

Additional personnel

• Jimmy Hastings – brass arrangement on "Ben Karratt Rides Again" and "Sneaking out the Bare "Quare"
• David Hitchcock – producer

Chart performance

In the USA, the album peaked #124 in the Billboard 200 album charts in 1975.