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The Astronauts were partly responsible for me to start helping out at All The Madmen Records back in 1985. Just one part of a mish-mash roster of bands that included Flowers In The Dustbin, Zos Kia, Blyth Power and of course The Mob.

This the debut album co-released by local record label, Bugle and JB's Genius Records, set up specifically for the release of this album... Bugle Records had previously released the first two Astronauts 7" singles.

The album itself has an eclectic range of musical styles pressed into the grooves, with a guest appearance from Nic Turner, taking a break from Inner City Unit, playing his saxophone with gusto on several of the tracks.

Mark Astronauts's well thought out lyrics are beautiful and impeccably delivered. Marks' lyrics are always written with feeling and care, and have been that way since the songs have been appearing on cassette tapes and eventually the singles and albums.

The All The Madmen released 'It's All Done By Mirrors' album that followed 'Peter Pan Hits The Suburbs' is equally an album of absolute quality.

Fast forward a few years and...

I once visited JB when he was staying in Chesterton Road, just off the Portobello Road in Ladbroke Grove, and he sold me all the 'Peter Pan' albums that he still had in a box under his bed. Around twenty five copies.

These were all placed into eager hands as cheaply as I could pass them all on for, and I kept a copy myself. So I still have a mint copy of this record, sitting alongside a copy from years before which is not so mint!

A Discog surf revealed that 'Peter Pan' reaches a huge price nowadays, such is the eagerness to have this record in the collections of the folk that would like to add it.

Such a great album.

Text below written by Robin Basak of Zero fanzine fame and ripped with love from his Acid Stings site.

Eternal long-haired losers who also have some of the best tunes this semi-legendary band has only released six albums in its long existence but each of them is a bonafide classic. The Astronauts second album ‘All Done By Mirrors’ judged by those who heard it as among the best albums of all time was a stunning collection of explosive pop songs and traditional folk ballads recorded at a time when all their gigs were with anarchist punk bands. Their fifth album ’In Defence Of Compassion’ experimented with ambient house music years before other conventional bands even thought of doing so...

Inspired by the UK punk explosion Mark Astronaut formed the band with a few friends in 1977 and began playing local gigs in their hometown of Welwyn Garden City. By 1979 The Astronauts were regularly appearing at free festivals and gigs in London organised by a hippy collective known as Fuck Off Records and from these began a close friendship with then London based punk bands Zounds and the Mob. That year the first Astronauts EP was released on local label Bugle Records and musically it reflected the hippie drug culture combined with the energy of punk. ‘All Night Party’ still sounds like the paranoid nightmare it did back then. The record established the Astronauts on the local gig scene among the non mainstream hippie/punk/biker crowd. Also in 1979 an EP was released under the assumed name of Restricted Hours on the Stevenage Rock Against Racism label. ‘Getting Things Done’ attacked the political apathy of small town life while ‘Still Living Out The Car Crash’ was musically a typically nightmarish theme.

By 1980 gigs throughout England with Zounds had won over an army of fans and the ‘Pranksters In Revolt’ EP sold all its copies within weeks. Musically the four songs were not as adventurous as the first EP although the lyrics were as incisive as ever. Like many great bands from the post punk era the Astronauts were completely ignored by the UK music press which then as now was only interested in anything trendy, fashionable or middle class. Local fanzine Zero began to champion the band as did the local newspapers.

‘Peter Pan Hits The Suburbs’ album was released in 1981 to widespread acclaim. Incredibly it received great reviews in virtually all the UK music press. The typical Astronauts audience at the time was largely hardcore punks attracted by the energetic gigs and a handful of hippies so the album was something of a surprise. Full of heartfelt folk ballads and featuring legendary saxophonist Nic Turner, the album was not what fans had expected but appealed to a different audience. The contradiction of heavy chaotic punk performances and structured melodic alternative pop/folk/ambient songs continues to this day.

Throughout 1982-1985 there were hundreds of gigs with the many anarcho punk bands of the era and ‘All Done By Mirrors’ was arguably the finest album to date. The ‘Soon’ album featured great songs but was let down by lifeless production while the ‘Seedy Side Of Paul’ album combined a scathing indictment of the 1980's attitudes of greed with some truly wonderful songs.