The Ink in the Well

"The Ink in the Well"
Single by David Sylvian
from the album Brilliant Trees
B-side	"Weathered Wall" (Instrumental)
Released	6 August 1984 (1984-08-06)[1]
Recorded	1983–1984, London, Berlin
Genre	Art rock
Length	4:30
Label	Virgin
Songwriter(s)	David Sylvian
Producer(s)	Steve Nye David Sylvian
David Sylvian singles chronology
"Red Guitar" (1984) "The Ink in the Well" (1984) "Pulling Punches" (1984)
Music video
"The Ink in the Well" on YouTube

"The Ink in the Well" is a song by the English singer-songwriter David Sylvian. It was released in August 1984 as the second single from his debut solo album Brilliant Trees. The single peaked at No. 36 on the UK Singles Chart.^[2]

Reception

Reviewing the song for Record Mirror, Eden wrote "Mention David Sylvian and the adjectives that immediately spring to mind are sensitive, delicate, moody. 'Ink in the Well' lives up to David's reputation, it's accomplished with endearing lyrics and an interesting jazzy interlude occurs halfway through the song".^[3]

Personnel

On "The Ink in the Well":

• David Sylvian – vocals, synthesizers
• Phil Palmer – guitar
• Danny Thompson – double bass
• Kenny Wheeler – flugelhorn
• Steve Jansen – drums

On "Weathered Wall":

• David Sylvian – synthesizer
• Richard Barbieri – synthesizer
• Ryuichi Sakamoto – piano
• John Hassell – trumpet
• Holger Czukay – dictaphone
• Steve Jansen – drums, percussion

Technical:

• David Sylvian – cover design, remixing ("The Ink in the Well")
• Nigel Walker – remixing ("The Ink in the Well")
• Peter Williams – engineer
• Steve Nye – engineer, mixing
• Anton Corbijn – photography
• Yuka Fujii – photography

Chart positions

Chart (1984)	Peak position
Ireland (IRMA)[4]	28
UK Singles (OCC)[5]	36

References

1. "News". Record Mirror: 6. 4 August 1984. Retrieved 14 December 2020 – via flickr.com.
2. "THE INK IN THE WELL". Official Charts. 1984-08-18. Retrieved 2024-06-23.
3. "Singles". Record Mirror: 13. 11 August 1984. Retrieved 14 December 2020 – via flickr.com.
4. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Ink in the Well". Irish Singles Chart.
5. "David Sylvian: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company.

External links

• "The Ink in the Well" official music video on YouTube