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The Thorn
EP by Siouxsie and the Banshees
Released	19 October 1984
Recorded	August–September 1984
Genre	Post-punk
Label	Polydor, Wonderland
Producer	Siouxsie and the Banshees, Mike Hedges
Siouxsie and the Banshees chronology
Hyæna (1984) The Thorn (1984) Tinderbox (1986)

The Thorn is an EP recorded by English rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees. It was released in late 1984 by Polydor and remastered in 2004 to be included on the Downside Up box set.

Background, content and recording

The purpose of the EP was three-fold: Siouxsie stated that she wanted to induct new guitarist John Valentine Carruthers into the Banshees, to try out some string arrangements, and to simply re-record tracks that had evolved on tour. Some of the strings were played by musicians of the London Symphonic Orchestra (LSO), a 27-piece orchestra called the "Chandos Players".

The Thorn features four of the band's tracks recorded with orchestral instrumentation: "Overground" originally appeared on the Banshees' debut album The Scream; "Placebo Effect" was a song from their second album Join Hands, while "Voices" and "Red Over White" were previously released as B-sides from the singles "Hong Kong Garden" and "Israel", respectively. The recording took place in Bavaria, in Germany.

Release

The Thorn was released on 19 October 1984 by record label Polydor. The songs from the EP were later included on the fourth disc of Downside Up, a collection of the band's B-sides.

Track listing

Personnel

Siouxsie and the Banshees

• Siouxsie Sioux – vocals
• Steven Severin – bass
• Budgie – drums
• John Valentine Carruthers – guitar

Additional personnel

• The Chandos Players – orchestration
• Sam Artiss – conduction
• Gini Ball – strings on "Red Over White"
• Anne Stephenson – strings on "Red Over White"
• Martin McCarrick – string arrangements
• Bill McGee – string arrangements
• Gini Ball – string arrangements
• Anne Stephenson – string arrangements

References

1. ^ Downside Up (Media notes). Siouxsie and the Banshees. Universal. 2004.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
2. Johns, Brian. Entranced : the Siouxsie and the Banshees story. Omnibus Press, 1989. ISBN 978-0-7119-1773-6

• 1984 EPs
• Siouxsie and the Banshees EPs
• Polydor Records EPs