In this edition of On Track, Alan Draper examines the thirteen original studio albums Neil Hannon released under The Divine Comedy banner between 1990 and 2022.

 

This overview includes analysis of additional recordings, including single releases and also takes in the pair of albums recorded by offshoot project: The Duckworth Lewis Method, on which Hannon combined forces with fellow Irishman Thomas Walsh. 

 

From Indie to Chamber Pop to full-on orchestral follies, The Divine Comedy remain one of Britain's finest bands of the last four decades.

 

 

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Alan Draper is a writer and musician living in Fareham, Hampshire, UK, with his wife Radiance. Starting his musical career as guitarist with The Alsatians in 1978, he wrote both sides of their 1980 single: ‘Teen Romance’/’Our Man In Marrakesh’. His song ‘Complications’ featured on the album Rocking With The Renees by The Gymslips, a top twenty hit on the independent chart in 1983. His first solo album Earth Magic appeared in 1989, followed by Ascension Day in 1999, both displaying folk, classical and progressive rock influences. His first book Stackridge On Track, was published by Sonicbond in 2022.