I bought a second-hand CD a long time ago, specifically for the purposes of having a bit of fun on the blog, and I’ve decided to use the normally quiet festive period, when the traffic and number of visitors drops quite dramatically, to go with it.
The CD was issued in 1996. It is called Beat On The Brass, and it was recorded by The Nutley Brass, the brains of whom belong to New York musician Sam Elwitt.
The concept behind the album is simple. Take one bona-fide punk/post-punk/new wave classic and give it the easy listening treatment.
There are 18 tracks on the CD all told. Some have to be heard to be believed.
Strap yourselves in.
mp3: The Nutley Brass – Into The Valley
And, just so you can appreciate the magnificence (or otherwise) of the renditions, you’ll also be able to listen to the original versions as we make our way through the CD in random order.
mp3: The Skids – Into The Valley
A top ten hit in March 1979.
THE NEW VINYL VILLAIN 
Happy New Year to you both, JC, I hope you had a great NYE and an even better 2023 awaits.
The Nutley Brass selections so far have largely left me speechless. I have visions of being trapped in a broken down lift and this album piping through for hours on end.
Thank goodness you included the originals… 😉
Happy New Year, and ta for this sequence of posts. Don’t care what the others say, this is absolutely brilliant stuff, especially with the originals included. I was expecting, at first, because of the punny “Beat on the Brass/Beat on the Brat” project name that we were going to be treated to Big Band versions of the songs, instead we got something similar to what DEVO did back in the day where they created E-Z Listening versions of a bunch of their songs, many unrecognizable from the source material, that they would play before and after their concerts. Rather bizarre, and some oddly appealing. The ones presented so far, easily identifiable, and definitely would be at home in any elevator one might find themselves in in Punkopolis. And despite brass instruments being less prevalent than expected after that first post, I’m loving it!
I can’t help but picture the “Old Punks’ Home” with a bunch of toothless old punks dressed a la Vivienne Westwood in wheelchairs complaining about their meds and joints and how the grandkids never visit with this playing over the intercom system.