I’ve never been stopped and surveyed on my favourite ever movie scene. If I was, there’s every chance I’d go for something from ‘High Fidelity’
You know the one…when Rob (played by John Cusack) and Barry (played by Jack Black) have a bet based on how many customers in the store will buy ‘Dry The Rain’ by The Beta Band when it gets played in the shop.
Well……….earlier today I was in Fopp in Glasgow city centre, idly passing away a spare 30 minutes. I was enjoying the sounds coming out of the speakers, but hadn’t a clue who it was. I was determined not to fall into the trap of asking the bloke behind the counter – I’m terrified I’m going to be a victim of some spectacular piss-take by someone who is lucky enough to have a job in a good record shop.
As it is, Fopp is one of those stores that displays what is being played at any point in time – so I didn’t have to ask. And it turned out, much to my surprise, to be the debut record of Albert Hammond Jr that was released just today. And I bought it. And I don’t care if me doing so resulted in Fopp’s equivalent of Rob winning his bet from Fopp’s equivalent of Barry.
Why was I surprised? For one, it sounds nothing like The Strokes. For two, Albert has a voice that can hold a tune (I don’t think he supplies backing vocals when his band play live). For three, it is consistently very good – unlike his band’s last two offerings. And for four – there’s whistling on one of the songs!
I’ve now played the album right the way through a couple of times at home, and it is every bit as enjoyable as it was in the shop a few hours ago.
Hard to Live In The City – Albert Hammond Jr *
Albert’s old man – who unsurprisingly is Albert Hammond Snr – is a famous musician and singer/songwriter in his own right (but you all probably knew that already). However, he even pre-dates an old codger like me, and I can’t post any of his tunes for your enjoyment.
But I can offer this from 1986:-
Albert Hammond Bootleg – Half Man Half Biscuit
Oh and for the hell of it:-
Dry The Rain – The Beta Band
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Did you see the TV series ? I was highly dubious but really enjoyed it – canceled way too soon FORW
I’m afraid I didn’t. It was broadcast on one of those channels that wasn’t part of any subscription here in Villain Towers.