Learning to Cope with Cowardice

Learning to Cope With Cowardice is the debut album of vocalist Mark Stewart, released in 1983 by On-U Sound Records. It was released on CD in 1991 with bonus tracks, as a Director's Cut CD in 2006 by EMI with other bonus tracks and versions, and then in 2019 by Mute as a 2LP/2CD set, combining the original album with the bonus album The Lost Tapes.

Learning to Cope With Cowardice
Studio album by Mark Stewart and The Maffia
Released	May 1983
Recorded	1981 – 1983
Studio	Various Berry Street Studio (London, England) Southern Studios (London, England)
Genre	Post-punk, dub, experimental[1]
Length	40:34
Label	On-U Sound
Producer	Adrian Sherwood and Mark Stewart
Mark Stewart chronology
Jerusalem (1982) Learning to Cope With Cowardice (1983) As the Veneer of Democracy Starts to Fade (1985)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Mojo	[2]
Pitchfork	7.0/10[3]
PopMatters	8/10[4]
Q	[5]
Spin Alternative Record Guide	9/10[6]

Accolades

The information regarding accolades attributed to Learning to Cope With Cowardice is taken from Acclaimed Music.[7]

Year	Publication	Country	Accolade	Rank
1998	The Wire	United Kingdom	"100 (+30) Records That Set the World on Fire"	*
2005	Blow Up	Italy	"600 Essential Albums"	*
2005	WOEBOT	United States	"The 100 Greatest Records Ever"	88
"*" denotes an unordered list.

Track listing

All tracks are written by Mark Stewart, except where noted.

Side One

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Learning to Cope with Cowardice"	6:12
2.	"Liberty City"	5:36
3.	"Blessed are Those Who Struggle"	5:13
4.	"None Dare Call It Conspiracy" (5:41 on the Director's Cut edition)	5:24

Side Two

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Don't You Ever Lay Down Your Arms" (4:58 on the Director's Cut edition)	Wes Brooks	5:11
2.	"The Paranoia of Power"		5:37
3.	"To Have the Vision"		3:34
4.	"Jerusalem"	William Blake	3:44

1991 CD bonus tracks

No.	Title	Length
9.	"The Wrong Name and the Wrong Number" (Original Version)	12:00
10.	"High Ideals and Crazy Dreams"	3:08

2006 Director's Cut CD bonus tracks

No.	Title	Length
9.	"The Wrong Name and the Wrong Number" (DJ Battle)	5:04
10.	"High Ideals and Crazy Dreams"	3:08
11.	"High Ideals" (Live)	4:22
12.	"Live Paranoia"	6:47

2019 bonus album The Lost Tapes

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Intro"		0:31
2.	"May I"		5:51
3.	"Conspiracy"		4:35
4.	"Jerusalem" (Prototype)	William Blake	2:23
5.	"Paranoia"		5:42
6.	"Liberty Dub"		4:17
7.	"Vision"		4:38
8.	"Cowardice Dub"		8:23
9.	"High Ideals and Crazy Dub"		4:10
10.	"The Weight"		5:40

Personnel

Musicians

• The Maffia
  • Desmond 'Fatfingers' Coke – keyboards
  • Eskimo Fox – drums
  • Evar Wellington – bass guitar
• Mark Stewart – vocals, production, art direction

Additional musicians and production

• Anna Hurl – art direction
• George Oban – bass guitar on "Liberty City" and "Jerusalem"
• Nick Plytas – keyboards on "Liberty City" and "None Dare Call It Conspiracy"
• Dan Sheals – drums on "Blessed Are Those Who Struggle"
• Adrian Sherwood – production
• Crucial Tony – bass guitar on "Blessed Are Those Who Struggle"

References

1. Neate, Wilson. "Learning to Cope with Cowardice – Mark Stewart / Mark Stewart and the Maffia". AllMusic. Retrieved 12 January 2016.
2. "Mark Stewart + Maffia: Learning to Cope with Cowardice". Mojo: 118. 2007. As a convergence of political and musical radicalism, this record's still out on its own.
3. Harvell, Jess (19 June 2007). "Mark Stewart: Learning to Cope with Cowardice". Pitchfork. Retrieved 12 January 2016.
4. Buchan, Phillip (11 July 2007). "Mark Stewart and The Maffia: Learning to Cope with Cowardice". PopMatters. Retrieved 12 January 2016.
5. McEwen, Simon (April 2019). "Mark Stewart & Maffia: Learning to Cope with Cowardice". Q (396): 121.
6. Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig, eds. (1995). Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. ISBN 0-679-75574-8.
7. "Acclaimed Music – Learning to Cope with Cowardice". Acclaimed Music. Retrieved 12 November 2012.

External links

• Learning To Cope With Cowardice at Discogs (list of releases)