Carved in Sand

Carved in Sand is the fourth studio album by The Mission, released in 1990. It reached #7 in the UK Albums Chart, making it the second of two top ten albums and overall best-selling album in the band's career. Four singles were released from the album: "Butterfly on a Wheel" (#12, January 1990), "Deliverance", "Into the Blue" (#32, June 1990), "Hands Across the Ocean"/"Amelia" (#28, November 1990). The band had invited members of its fan club to help select the tracks for the album. Although the album sold well, it was released into a newly-changed musical landscape dominated by the Madchester scene and consequently lacked the impact of previous releases. A "companion" album with outtakes that were not included on Carved in Sand, entitled Grains of Sand, was released in November the same year. A deluxe two disc edition of the album was released in February 2008. It included outtakes, the Grains of Sand album and some live cover songs from the 1970s, performed under the name The Metal Gurus (a reference to the T. Rex song of the same name which is one of the tracks covered).