The Firstborn Is Dead (Reissue)

This deluxe double-disc collector's edition contains the remastered stereo album, the new surround mix, a specially commissioned short film made by acclaimed UK artists Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard plus the B-sides from the singles and exclusive sleeve notes.

The Firstborn Is Dead is an album rich with references to the blues and bluesmen, the American South, and especially to Elvis Presley. Recorded in late 1984, but not released until June 1985, the title is a nod to Jesse Garon Presley, Elvis' stillborn identical twin.

The Firstborn Is Dead is an album that helped to define Cave's new role, his niche on the map as fire-and-brimstone preacher and post-modern ironist, as a wizard with words, as a master of the heartfelt howl that's tinted with a twisted smile. Much of his work since has taken the blues as a basis, before spiraling off into exhilarating new sparks and shards.