So Long Ago The Garden

LP releases

USA MGM SE-4942 (1973)

USA Phydeaux BONE 777-6 (1980)

USA Phydeaux ARF 777-6 (1984)

AUS Starstorm RH-020 (1979/80)

FRA MGM 2315 286 GU 33 (1973)

GER MGM ? (1973)?

NZ MGM 2315 286 (1973)

UK Myrrh MYR-1169 (1984)

CD releases

USA Solid Rock SRD-006 (1993, 2003, 2007?)

USA Solid Rock SRA-006 (2004)

USA Solid Rock SRDX-003 (2008)

Cassette releases

USA Phydeaux BON 7776C (1980)

USA Phydeaux ARF 777-6 (1984)

AUS Rhema RHC-020 (1979)

UK Myrrh MC-1169 (1984)

Single releases

USA MGM 14676 (promo): Its The Same Old Story

(mono) / (stereo) (1973)?

USA MGM 14676: Its The Same Old Story / Christmas Time

(1973)

USA MGM 14703: (promo) Baroquen Spirits

(mono) / (stereo) (1973)

USA MGM 14703: Baroquen Spirits / Nightmare

(1973)

FRA MGM 2006-385: Christmas Time / It's The Same Old Story

(1974) with PS

NZ MGM (?): Fly, Fly, Fly (1973?)?

Special release (LP and CD-R)

USA The Veterans Administration LP 110/Program No. 1429:

Larry Norman (1973)

USA Illegal Noise Series (no number) (2001) CD-R

Song listing original LP

Side 1 Meet Me At The Airport (Fly, Fly, Fly)

It's The Same Old Story

Lonely By Myself

Be Careful What You Sign

Baroquen Spirits

Side 2 Christmas Time

Written by Larry Norman and Randy Stonehill

She's A Dancer

Soul Survivor

Nightmare

Song listing Phydeaux LPs and cassettes

Side 1 Christmas Time

Intro, horns, different version, from the

Starstorm/Rhema LP "Larry Norman"

Fly Fly Fly

MGM version (not on ARF LP & CAS)

Soul Survivor

MGM version but a little shorter and not

that clear (not on BONE LP & CAS)

She's A Dancer

MGM version

The Same Old Story

Resung, whistling at end, from "Larry Norman"

Baroquen Spirits

MGM version

Side 2 Up In Canada

Be Careful What You Sign

MGM version

Lonely By Myself

MGM version

PeacePollutionRevolution

Nightmare

Resung

Song listing CD releases

Fly Fly Fly

MGM version

The Same Old Story

MGM version

Lonely By Myself

MGM version

Be Careful What You Sign

MGM version

Baroquen Spirits

Single version - no intro & shortened;

Larry Norman doesn't sail off the world here

Christmas Time

Starstorm/Phydeaux version without intro,

mixed a little differently

She's A Dancer

MGM version

Soul Survivor

MGM version but mixed a little differently

Nightmare '71

MGM version but there's some effect put

on LN's voice

Extra tracks on first CD release

If God Is My Father (Rough mix)

Up In Canada (1973 single)

Phydeaux version

Dear Malcolm, Dear Alwyn (demo)

Extra tracks on second CD release

Up In Canada (1973 single)

Phydeaux version

Soul Survivor

Alternate version, previously unreleased

Extra tracks on SRDX-003 CD release

Up In Canada

Butterfly

I Hope I'll See You In Heaven

Notes

♫ This album is part two of "The trilogy," also recorded in England (Air Studios, London). The original US album has a gatefold cover, all other releases haven't (there might also be US promotional copies with a single slip cover!?). "She's A Dancer" has been released before (see "People: Both Sides Of People"), but this is a new version. The original MGM album came with two small label variations; a gold & blue swirl label and a yellow & blue swirl label (there are also two different labels for the promo release of "Garden)."

♫ With all its variations, "So Long Ago the Garden" is a very confusing album. The differences that I noticed are shown in the song listings. See the Starstorm album "Larry Norman" for more differences.

♫ The re-released LP on Phydeaux BONE 777-6 features "PeacePollutionRevolution" (see also CD version of "Only Visiting This Planet") and "Up In Canada" and is without "Soul Survivor". "Nightmare" is resung and includes the five missing words! The back cover gives "Almost So Long Ago The Garden And The MGM Singles" as the album title. Some copies of BONE 777-6 came with a printed inner sleeve.

♫ The 1984 Phydeaux re-release has a blown up front cover photo and a different back cover (a lion instead of the snake boots & apple); this time it's a "Special edition release." For the rest it's almost the same album as BONE 777-6 (actually "BONE 777-6" is on the labels of ARF 777-6!); the only difference is that "Fly, Fly, Fly" has been replaced by "Soul Survivor."

♫ The UK album on Myrrh is a reissue of the original MGM album like the albums from New Zealand and Australia and so are probably the albums from France and Germany (if they really exist).

♫ "Christmas Time" was written by Larry Norman & Randy Stonehill (the song was first recorded for Randy Stonehill's "Born Twice" album, 1971). Another version of "Christmas Time" appeared on Solid Rock single 202 (see "In Another Land"

♫ MGM single 14703 features a shortened version of "Baroquen Spirits", it has been re-issued on the "So Long Ago The Garden" CDs.

♫ It's not very likely that a single with "Up In Canada" was ever released (see track listing of the CDs).

♫ The original "Dear Malcolm, Dear Alwyn" was released on the compilation LP "Jubilation" (Myrrh MST-6555) in 1975. This version might be from a later date. The CD track "If God Is My Father" might also be from a later date - it has an approach that is similar to the long version of "If God Is My Father" which was released on the Australian self-titled album (see "Larry Norman"). Both of these songs do not appear on the second CD release, which features an alternate version of "Soul Survivor" instead

♫ The Veterans Administration LP ("Here's To Veterans") is a mono 12 inch LP produced by the Veterans Administration and broadcast over Armed Forces Radio to get Larry Norman's album "So Long Ago The Garden" introduced to the audience. It was issued in a plain jacket and features "Meet Me At The Airport," "Lonely By Myself," "She's A Dancer," and "Soul Survivor." Larry Norman gives short introductions to the songs and there are two announcements about Sickle Cell Anemia. The A-side is by Judi Pulver (Program #1428).

♫ Larry Norman's CD-R release of "Here's To Veterans" was copied from a bootleg (eehh my bootleg).

♫ In a previous edition of this discography I made mention of a very rare Solid Rock LP version of "So Long Ago The Garden." It should feature the album exactly like Larry Norman wanted it to be. According to later information this might as well be a bootleg (!?)

♫ This album was number six in a series of fourteen albums, mentioned on the inner sleeve of "Something New Under The Son" (albums number nine through fourteen have not been released, see part II).

♫ A 3 LP boxed set containing albums #6, #7 & #8 and being titled "The Compleat Trilogy" (as mentioned on the insert of the Street Level reissue of "Only Visiting This Planet") has never been released. This boxed set should feature the trilogy as Larry Norman originally intended. The "So Long Ago The Garden" LP in this set should also contain the songs "If God Is My Father" (7 minute version), "Kulderachna," "Butterfly," and "I Hope I'll See You In Heaven" (information taken from two different OVTP inserts!). "If God Is My Father" can be found on "Larry Norman," "Kulderachna" and "Butterfly" were released on "Instigator - The Essential, volume 1" in 2003. "I Hope I'll See You In Heaven" can be found on "Down Under (But Not Out)."

All release information and notes courtesy of Robert Termorshuizen with updates by Jim Böthel.