Strawbs' 1978 effort arrived like a distress signal from a sinking ship, the band's progressive folk ambitions drowning in radio-friendly compromises. Dave Cousins and a stripped-down lineup attempted to modernise their literate songcraft for the new wave era, but tracks like Words of Wisdom and Sealed with a Traitor's Kiss split the difference between art rock credibility and chart desperation.

The album's commercial failure hastened the band's dissolution, making Deadlines less a creative statement than an awkward document of survival instincts gone awry.