I’ll open with an apology to all the wonderful people whose blogs are listed on T(n)VV, either on the right-hand side if you’re using a laptop, or down at the foot if you’re on a mobile device.
I’ve not visited anyone for around six weeks. I could make some legitimate excuses, but that’s not really the point. No matter how busy I am, or how absolutely rundown and listless I’m ever feeling, I really should make some time, even if it’s only a few minutes a day, to take a glance.
It’ll take me days to get through everything, especially given my habit of offering up comments on posts that are weeks old…..but, just like the Four Tops (and Orange Juice), I Can’t Help Myself. Today, I’ve spent time reading what Walter, Jez, Adam and Stevie have been saying. Khayem is next on the list, and indeed I should be knocking on his door right now instead of doing this bonus post.
The thing is, I’m taken by a couple of the new series that Stevie is pulling together over at Charity Chic Music, and in particular the songs featuring ‘Jesus’ in the title. I thought, ‘that would make for a great ICA’, and decided to act on it immediately.
SIDE ONE
1. Even Jesus Couldn’t Love You – Lord Cut Glass
The opening track from the album Lord Cut Glass by Lord Cut Glass, released in 2009. This was the alter-ego of Alun Woodward (now back in the business as a fully fledged Delgado) – it’s a wonderfully eccentric and playful album, described accurately on the Chemikal Underground website as one of a kind and quite brilliant.
2. Jesus Hates Faggots – John Grant
I’ve got this one courtesy of Jacques the Kipper including it on a compilation CD more than a decade ago, and it comes from John Grant‘s debut album, The Queen of Denmark, released on Bella Union Records back in 2010. Musically, it’s a perfect follow-up to Lord Cut Glass, and lyrically it’s a wonderful put-down of all those followers of Jesus whose beliefs are more about hatred and anger.
3. Teenage Jesus Superstar – The Vaselines
Ah….the dilemma. Originally released in 1988 as Teenage Superstars on the Dying For It EP, it was then made available on the 1992 anthology All The Stuff and More…. with the title Teenage Jesus Superstar. And as a purchase of the latter became the first time I owned a copy of the song, then I’m inclined to include it.
4. Jesus Hairdo – The Charlatans
The third single lifted from the third album, Up To Our Hips, this reached #48 in the charts in July 1994. It’s always, in my opinion, been one of the most underrated songs by The Charlatans.
5. Jesus Of The Moon – Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
Lifted from Dig, Lazarus Dig!! (2008) the fourteenth studio album from Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, but what turned out to be the last to feature Mick Harvey who had more or less been Cave’s sidekick going way back to the days of The Boys Next Door, who would later morph into The Birthday Party. This kind of slowly swings along and is a wonderful demonstration of just how adept the Bad Seeds are/were at taking on any kind of musical arrangement.
SIDE TWO
1. Jesus Loves Amerika (Fundamental) – The Shamen
“I’m sick and tired of hearing about all of the radicals, and the perverts, and the liberals, and the leftists, and the communists coming out of the closet. It’s time for God’s people to come out of the closet, out of the churches, and change America. We must do it!”
From 1990’s In Gorbachev We Trust. Not much has really changed has it, Governor DeSantis?
2. Personal Jesus – Depeche Mode
The lack of DM songs on this blog over the years will give you an indication that I’ve never been a huge fan of their material, but this one from 1989 is a bit of an exception. Was a toss-up to go with this or Johnny Cash‘s later cover version as found on America IV : The Man Comes Around (2002)
3. Jesus Saves, I Spend – St. Vincent
I’m off to Toronto again soon, flying out a couple of days after I turn 60. My connection to the city began in 2007 thanks to a secondment opportunity that lasted five months. The first gig I went to while living there was at the legendary Horseshoe Tavern, and was a show by St. Vincent in support of the debut album, Marry Me, from which this track is taken. Little did anyone in the small audience realise that superstardom and mainstream acceptance was just a few years away.
4. Jesus Walking On The Water – Violent Femmes
It would be disingenuous not to have the ICA include a song that was written from a Christian perspective. From the Violent Femmes second album, Hallowed Ground (1984), it’s a demonstration of the Baptist faith professed by lyricist Gordon Gano, one that wasn’t shared by the other band members who nevertheless considered that playing songs with religious themes to their fans was a punk thing to do in the mid-80s.
5. Jump Sweet Jesus Jump – The Kingfishers
The Kingfishers lasted about twelve months in 1982/83. The members were drawn from two ‘nearly made it’ bands – Douglas MacIntyre and Ewan MacLennan from Article 58 and Kenny Blythe and Robert McCormick from Restricted Code. All four were barely out of their teens and were part of a Glasgow/Lanarkshire-based ‘scene’ (for want of a better word) who were attracting a bit of industry attention. Songs were recorded in demo form and shows in support of bands such as Aztec Camera and Prefab Sprout were played, but a lack of confidence among the members of The Kingfishers saw them split up before anything serious could develop.
In 2022, Douglas MacIntyre, by now a veteran of the Scottish music scene, put together a new version of The Kingfishers and went into a studio to record the debut album – 40 years after initially planned. ‘Reflections In Silver Sound’ has just been issued by Last Night From Glasgow, and it’s quite wonderful. Click here for more info and purchase options
So there you are. Churned out in just about two hours. I think it holds up well as a themed ICA.
Oh, and if you’re confused by the photo at the top…..he’s Jesus Sanjuan, a Spanish footballer who spent three seasons in Scotland at the end of his career in the early 00s, playing for Airdrie and Kilmarnock.
THE NEW VINYL VILLAIN 
No place for the brilliant I Must Be Jesus by Martin Rossiter?
That’s the problem with reading other people’s blogs… as well as having to dig back in your memory to come up with the appropriate tune to refer to as part of a comment, I often get sidetracked by either a) going down a rabbithole devoted to a featured band or artist; or b) thinking, “Ooh, I should write a post about that!”
I often think of getting a T-shirt made with “What would JC do?” on the front. It wouldn’t, of course, be referring to the guy upstairs.
Excellent stuff JC
I think I have only about three of these on my long list.
Here’s a vote for a disc that has two artists who are not favorites, to put it mildly. Ministry’s “Jesus Built My Hotrod!” A free-wheeling berserker of a track featuring Gibby Haynes from Butthole Surfers on lead ranting. It never fails to amuse, which is more than I can say for either band in their own.
Jesus by the Velvet Underground
Jesus Christ by Big Star
Tonight Matthew I’m Going To Be With Jesus by Half Man Half Biscuit
Three of my favourite Jesus songs. And does the Grandaddy song Jeez Louise count…???
2nd vote for Jesus by the Velvets and the HMHB song too. If it wasn’t for the increasingly unsavoury news about BG I might have suggested Jesus by Primal Scream too.
+1 for ‘Jesus Built My Hotrod’ and a suggestion for the Nirvana version of ‘Jesus Doesn’t Want Me for a Sunbeam’
No Jesus Calling by the Triffids. Tut, tut. The Mary Chain surely had a song with Jesus in the title…
Not arguing against any of the suggestions, which simply proves just how many songs there are out there with the word ‘Jesus’ in the title.
A few of the suggestions were glanced at and considered, but in the end, I went for the particular 10 so as to look to offer up an ICA that would work well as a stand-alone album.
Great bonus post JC. Some others that came back to mind as a bonus release..
Emmy the Great and Tim Wheeler – Jesus the Reindeer, an alt.Christmas classic.
JAMC – Bo Diddley is Jesus (from my well played April Skies 2×7” single),
Primal Scream – Jesus (b-side of Star)
Nirvana, solving a possible artist duplication, with the magnificent Jesus doesn’t want me for a Sunbeam.
As your heavy metal grunge and greebo correspondent may I add donds for the already mentioned Jesus Built My Hotrod by Ministy, Jesus Loves You But I Don’t by Irelands Motörhead babies The Almighty and Plastic Jesus by The Levellers. All from roughly the same 2-3 year patch in the early 90’s. Tom Waits Chocolate Jesus is also worthy of note even if it’s just to push Mule Variations back into conversation
Another great ICA, JC. As you said, there are a lot of more songs worth to be featured and I agree to Adam adding The Velvets and HMHB to it. For me Ry Cooder’s Jesus on the mainline would also fit to it.
Excellent ICA, JC. I’m surprised you haven’t done a ‘Jesus’ selection before… I mean, what with sharing the same initials and all. Well worth the wait, though, particularly good to hear the St. Vincent song again. And, as a first-time LNFG, I can say that The Kingfishers album is a highlight among highlights. Beautifully packaged and the songs are just great.
Not sure it would have fit on here but a special mention for the song title alone for Thank You Jack White (For The Fiber-Optic Jesus That You Gave Me) by The Flaming Lips.
And please don’t feel bad about your frequency of visits to and comments on my and other blogs. You’re not alone. Whilst I’ve managed to drop by and read posts often, it’s often when I have an ad-hoc 5-10 mins so I have struggled to leave comments as well. I make up for it where I can, but it doesn’t mean that I haven’t read and enjoyed the others too. As you’ve probably noticed, I also greatly struggle to leave a few words, often because the post is so inspiring…!
Speaking of which, I’ve just visited my blog and see that you’ve come knocking on my door since this post. Thanks for your comments!