By Norman Gervais & Axel Prunier – June 2023

As we embark on the release of the limited remaining original vinyl copies of 'Tumbling Down' in collaboration with Race's family, we wanted to offer a deeper insight into the artist's story and the journey that brought us here. Thank you for taking the time to read!

In 2019, Axel stumbled upon an intriguing eBay listing featuring an LP that piqued his curiosity. This enigmatic record, titled 'Tumbling Down', appeared to have been listed for a long time, and had apparently not sparked anyone’s attention before. It was obvious it had been forgotten for ages, with no trace of information on popular inventory websites like Discogs.

Yet – to his great surprise – Axel discovered that the entire album was already available on various digital music platforms. As he listened to one captivating track after another, he couldn't help but be astonished by the unique DIY, bluesy atmosphere. “How could such an extraordinary piece of music exist with virtually zero listeners on Spotify?”

A couple of weeks later, the record found its rightful place in Axel's collection. Thankfully, it played flawlessly, and Axel would give it a few spins on that summer, mainly to share the exciting discovery with a select group of friends.

Front cover of the LP

However, he set the record aside for two years, until a significant catch-up call with Norman in 2021 reignited the passion. During the casual conversation, Axel seized the opportunity to bring up the Race Knower topic, knowing it would tick all Norman’s boxes. And indeed, it did.

The idea of reaching out to the mastermind behind this elusive album began to take shape, as no other copies had surfaced online. A swift online search revealed that Race actually had an artist page on Facebook. Norm wasted no time in contacting him, and to our delight, Race responded promptly, expressing his willingness to discuss the recording process and generously offering a handful of remaining vinyl copies.

Excitement filled the air as we made arrangements with our trusted friend Ilan (aka Hypnotic Tango), who resides in London, to handle the logistics. Unfortunately, our initial enthusiasm soon turned to frustration as we entered a prolonged six-month period of complete silence.

It was only later that we received the heartbreaking news from Gerry, Race's wife, that he had recently succumbed to illness.

Shortly after this talk, Race's daughter, Georgia, initiated a conversation to understand our intentions with Race's music. We then had a one-hour call together with Gerry and Georgia, during which we had the opportunity to catch a glimpse of Race's life.

Race holding his beloved Ibanez guitar

Born in Sri Lanka (then known as Ceylon), Horace Knower moved to London in 1964. He worked in various sectors. He was once a motor vehicle assemble at Ford, but spent most of his life as a porter in a well established mansion block in Knightsbridge, London. All the while, he considered music as the cornerstone of his existence. This passion for music was passed down to his daughter, Georgia, who has now become a professional musician based in Basel, Switzerland. Race was a true jack of all trades, driven by the ambition to constantly expand his knowledge. In a DIY fashion, he tirelessly pursued mastery in music recording, photo editing, and graphic design, evident from the presence of late 1990s CD-ROM tutorials at his place.

‘Tumbling Down’ was entirely written and composed by Race. It was recorded in 1983/84 at the Rendez-Vous recording studio (London), with the assistance of John Cain and Robert Sheppley, two other talented musicians. Race showcased here his multifaceted talents by handling the album's sleeve design, font selection, and photography. Gerry shared one of her many anecdotes, revealing that Race initially had doubts about using the photo she had captured for the front cover. However, after some deliberation, he eventually agreed to its usage. Today, we greatly appreciate his decision as the cover has become truly iconic for us.

Regrettably, the vinyl records encountered pressing defects, hindering Race from releasing them commercially. Engaged in a dispute with his label, he made the difficult decision to invest a significant portion of his savings to acquire full rights to the album and the remaining vinyl copies, which then languished his basement for decades. Paying meticulous attention to detail, Race had affixed colored stickers on each copy, methodically categorizing them according to their condition.

Only a few copies were not damaged

Artwork draft, designed by Race himself

Race had dedicated his entire life to recording music, spanning various mediums. In 2009, when he was diagnosed with cancer, he digitized his whole discography and made it available on streaming platforms, with the aim of making them accessible to a wider audience on the World Wide Web. This visionary move – streaming platforms were in their very early days back then! – eventually found an echo when Axel listened to the music ten years after: the circle was complete.