Editing XTC (section)

===''White Music'' and ''Go 2''===
In August 1977, XTC made their first commercially released studio recordings with producer [[John Leckie]] at [[Abbey Road Studios|Abbey Road]], which appeared on their debut release ''[[3D EP]]'' in October.<ref name="Mojo1999"/> Their first full-length record, ''[[White Music]]'', was then recorded in less than two weeks, and released for January 1978. Partridge characterized the album as "[[Captain Beefheart]] meets [[the Archies]]" shrouded in 1950s-style [[retrofuturism]]. He reflected that the album was the sum of everything the band enjoyed, including the Beatles, [[Sun Ra]], and [[Atomic Rooster]],<ref name="Mojo1999"/> but dismissed the contents as premature songs "built around this electric wordplay stuff".<ref name="agony1992">{{cite journal |last1=Friedman |first1=Roger |title=The Agony of XTC |journal=Guitar |date=October 1992}}</ref> ''White Music'' reached number 38 on the [[UK Albums Chart]].<ref name="OCC" /> Although the album was well received by the press (''Melody Maker'', ''NME'', ''Sounds'', and ''Record Mirror'' all gave positive reviews{{sfn|Twomey|1992|p=74}}), none of its singles managed to chart.<ref name="Mojo1999"/><ref name="XTCAMbio"/> They rerecorded "[[This Is Pop]]" as a lead single. Its follow-up, "[[Statue of Liberty (song)|Statue of Liberty]]", was banned on [[BBC Radio]] due to the lyric "I sail beneath her skirt".<ref name="Mojo1999"/> With each member placed on a £25 weekly salary,<ref name="Mojo1999"/> the band toured for the next five years.<ref name="Dom2000">{{cite news |last1=Dominic |first1=Serene |title=XTC: Stupidly Happy Ever After |url=http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/music/xtc-stupidly-happy-ever-after-6417095 |newspaper=[[Phoenix New Times]]|date=11 May 2000}}</ref> The group also made appearances on the children's television shows ''[[Tiswas]]'' and ''[[Magpie (TV series)|Magpie]]'',<ref name="Mojo1999"/> which meant they would occasionally play for under-16 crowds on these early tours.{{sfn|Twomey|1992|pp=75–76}} Partridge enjoyed these early shows, but would later resent touring as the band's audience numbers grew and the performing experience became more impersonal.<ref name="Milano84" />

By August 1978, XTC were prepared to record their next album.{{sfn|DeRogatis|2003|p=341}} The band had contacted [[Brian Eno]] to produce after they learned that he was a fan, but he declined, telling them that they were good enough to produce themselves.<ref name="Mojo1999"/> Virgin rejected Eno's advice, and the group instead returned to Abbey Road with Leckie. Andrews appeared at the sessions with several original songs, but Partridge did not feel they were right for the band. He began taking Moulding and Chambers out for drinks without inviting Partridge, allegedly in an attempt to take over the group. After most of Andrews' songs were dropped from the final track list, the keyboardist told journalists that he foresaw the band "explod[ing] pretty soon".<ref name="Mojo1999"/> ''[[Go 2]]'', a more experimental venture, was released in October to positive reviews and a number 21 chart peak.<ref name="Mojo1999"/> Like ''White Music'', it was given praise in ''Sounds'', ''Melody Maker'', and the ''NME''.{{sfn|Twomey|1992|p=79}} One of the tracks, "Battery Brides (Andy Paints Brian)", was written in tribute to Eno.{{sfn|DeRogatis|2003|p=341}} The album also included a bonus EP, ''Go+'', which consisted of five dub remixes of XTC songs.<ref name="Mojo1999"/>

Andrews left the band in December 1978, while they were on their first American tour,<ref name="Mojo1999"/> and went on to form [[The League of Gentlemen (band)|the League of Gentlemen]] with [[Robert Fripp]] of [[King Crimson]].<ref name="XTCAMbio"/> Partridge said: "He enjoyed undermining what little authority I had in the band. We were bickering quite a lot. But when he left I thought, Oh shit, that's the sound of the band gone, this space-cream over everything. And I did enjoy his brain power, the verbal and mental fencing."<ref name="Mojo1999"/> XTC went through a "silly half-hearted" process of auditioning another keyboardist.<ref name="Contrast1990" /> Although [[Thomas Dolby]] was rumoured as a replacement, Partridge said that Dolby was never actually considered.<ref>{{cite tweet |user=xtcfans |last=Partridge |first=Andy |author-link=Andy Partridge |number=1090243249112076288|title=WC- Regarding auditioning others after Barry's departure..."Thomas Dolby was in the running, but he was rejected" No, this is a myth, Thomas was not considered. He had his own future to look after.|date=29 January 2019}}</ref>

[[File:XTC live.jpg|thumb|left|XTC performing live (pictured from left: Gregory and Partridge)]]

Rather than hiring a replacement keyboardist, Dave Gregory of the covers band Dean Gabber and His Gaberdines was invited to join as a second guitarist. Partridge remembered holding a "pretend audition" where Gregory was asked to play "This Is Pop", only for Gregory to inquire whether they wanted the album version or the single version: "We thought, 'Bloody oh, a real musician.' But he was in the band before he even knew."<ref name="Contrast1990" /> Gregory was anxious of whether the fans would accept him as a member, characterizing himself as "the archetypal [[Pub rock (United Kingdom)|pub-rocker]] in jeans and long hair. But the fans weren't bothered. Nobody was fashionable in XTC, ever."<ref name="Mojo1999"/> He grew more comfortable with the group after playing a few shows, he said, "and things got better and better".<ref name="Mojo1999"/>