Big Country - Wonderland (Phonogram)

'Take my hand and we will be in wonderland' sings Stuart Adamson in booming, butch tones. This is Big Country's answer to the film Gone With The Wind - bags of romance, riding off into deep red sunsets and never letting on how upset you really are. It needs to be played at great volume to capture the sound and the sweep. (Ian Birch, Smash Hits, January 5, 1984)

The band who put OK into rock, or just another guitar group? Vital questions for some people, meaningless to others. But however you feel about them, Stuart Adamson and co. aren't about to abandon their axes now they've made them respectable. 'Wonderland' is archetypal Big Country - broad, sweeping and majestic - and proves once again that they can make rock sound fresh. There's less of a Celtic feel too, so I promise not to mention bagpipes (oops). (Karen Swayne, No 1, January 14, 1984)

Very good. I like them. Nice time signature. Jolly clever use of fuzz tone oboe. They seem to be a good, consistent, useful band. Brian (Robbo) likes them. Chorus of "see you, see me," etc. (Lemmy [Motorhead], Record Mirror, January 14, 1984)