Laughing Stock is the fifth and final studio album by English band Talk Talk, released in 1991. Following their previous release Spirit of Eden, bassist Paul Webb left the group, which reduced Talk Talk to the duo of singer/multi-instrumentalist Mark Hollis and drummer Lee Harris.

Tracklist:

Myrrhman (5:12)
Ascension Day (6:02)
After The Flood (9:38)
Taphead (7:29)
New Grass (9:39)
Runeii (4:52)

Laughing Stock is the fifth and final studio album by Talk Talk. Released in 1991, it was the only album the band released on the jazz-based Verve Records, after acrimoniously leaving EMI. Virtually ignored upon it’s initial release, Laughing Stock continues to grow in stature and influence by leaps and bounds. Picking up where Spirit of Eden left off, the album operates outside of the accepted sphere of rock to create music which is both delicate and intense; recorded with a large classical ensemble, it defies easy categorisation, conforming to very few structural precedents. Like it’s predecessor, Spirit of Eden, the album featured improvised instrumentation from a large ensemble of musicians, including as many as seven violists on occasion, and the lyrical themes are often religious.

TRACKLIST

SIDE A
Myrrhman
Ascension Day
After the Flood

SIDE B
Taphead
New Grass
Runeii

Release Date: 2016 (Reissue)

Originally released on16 September 1991