Recording The Album
For the recording of the album, Numan retained drummer Cedric Sharpley, keyboardist Chris Payne, and guitarist Rrussell Bell, all of whom had played on Numan's albums and tours since 1979. Pino Palladino, the bassist on Numan's previous album I, Assassin (1982), was unable to return for Warriors. At Palladino's suggestion, Numan recruited Joe Hubbard as a replacement. Bill Nelson worked tremendously hard on guitars during the recording of Warriors, giving them more depth than they had been allowed on I, Assassin. Numan asked Dick Morrissey to be the saxophone player on the album, as he admired his work on the Blade Runner film score. Numan later described Morrissey as "brilliant, a musical genius. First take, perfect, not a single note wrong." Ultimately, Morrissey would contribute to five Numan albums, from 1983 to 1991. Female backing vocals were also introduced to the Numan sound on Warriors. Tracey Ackerman provided backing vocals on Warriors.
Unfortunately, Numan and Bill Nelson quarrelled during the Warriors recording sessions; both men had different ideas as to how the album should sound, and shared differing philosophies on music in general. Numan later recalled:
| “ | It seemed as though our reasons for even breathing were completely opposed to one another. At one point we were talking about why we were in the business... told me that all creative people pick up beams of inspiration from across the cosmos and we channel it into creative art and we do what we do for the people. I said, 'That's complete bollocks,' and it all went downhill from then on really, as we began to grate on each other quite badly. | ” |
The relationship between Numan and Nelson deteriorated to the point that Numan "would go out and play pool" while Nelson worked in the studio. Numan ultimately disliked Nelson's mix of Warriors (finding it "too tinny"), and so he remixed the album and made changes to the track listing: both parts of "My Car Slides" and "Poetry and Power" were relegated to B-side status (their place on the album being taken by other tracks), and "Sister Surprise" and "The Tick Tock Man" were almost completely re-recorded. Nelson asked not to be credited on the final album. Despite Nelson's falling out with Numan, his influence on the finished version of Warriors is still distinct; his dream-like guitar-work added to the album's warm and distinctly jazzy feel. The overall sound of Warriors is epic, dreamy, and energetic, filled with fast rhythms, aggressive guitars and vibrant melodies. The album's song styles range from melodic rock and pop ("Warriors", "Sister Surprise", "This Prison Moon") to heartfelt ballads ("The Iceman Comes", "Love is like Clock Law") and jazzy numbers ("I Am Render", "The Rhythm of the Evening"). Some dubbed the general sound of the album "jazz electro". Numan later conceded that Nelson "did a lot of very inventive things on which, because of our differences, I failed to fully appreciate at the time. To be with him in a room when he was playing guitar was an honour. I would just sit back and listen and all my antagonism would float away."
Numan floated prospective titles for the new album amongst his fanbase. Fans were given the opportunity to vote for one of three potential album titles - This Prison Moon, Poetry and Power, and Glasshouse. Numan ultimately overruled the fans' preference of This Prison Moon and chose Warriors as the album's title. Numan's image for the Warriors album, singles, and live tour (consisting of black leather costume with weapon accessories, set against a post-apocalyptic backdrop) was influenced by the film Mad Max 2 (1981). Many parts of the actual costume came from a sex shop in Soho, London.
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