Album · Aztec Camera
High Land, Hard Rain by Aztec Camera
High Land, Hard Rain is an album by Aztec Camera, released in 1983. 3 songs from it have charted on rock radio countdowns, with 33 countdown appearances in total. The biggest is “Oblivious”, on 28 lists with a best position of #29.
Aztec Camera's debut, High Land, Hard Rain, came out on Rough Trade in 1983, and it nearly didn't come out in this form at all. Roddy Frame had started the band in East Kilbride in 1980, got it signed to Glasgow's Postcard Records and put out a couple of singles there, but the album planned for that label, Green Jacket Grey, was shelved. So the group decamped to London, where Dave Ruffy of the Ruts took over the drum stool, Bernie Clarke came in on keyboards, and Campbell Owens stayed on bass.
What they made is jangle pop at its most open-hearted: bright, chiming guitars, wistful, winding melodies and Frame's voice leading the way as singer and songwriter. "Oblivious" was the breakthrough, "Pillar to Post" and "Walk Out To Winter" keep it company, and the album reached number 22 on the UK chart. Knife came next.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs from High Land, Hard Rain on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oblivious | 28 | #29 | – | 1983–2025 | |
| 2 | Walk Out To Winter | 3 | #405 | – | 1991–2022 | |
| 3 | Pillar to Post | 2 | #24 | – | 1982–2003 |
Only songs that appear on at least one countdown are listed. Release data from MusicBrainz.