The Pastels are from Glasgow. They formed in 1981 and are still very much on the go today, having gone through numerous line-up changes, but always having Stephen McRobbie (aka Stephen Pastel) at the helm and as the band’s guiding force. There have been five albums and twenty-one singles on various labels over the years, as well as collaborative EPs/albums with each of Jad Fair, Tenniscoats and Sonic Youth.
As you can see from the reverse side of the above picture sleeve, this was initially released as a b-side, in 1984, of Million Tears, which was their fourth-ever single and their second (of three) on the London-based Creation Records.
Track 24, Disc 2 of CD86.
Baby Honey is an absolute beast of a song, coming in at just under seven minutes in length. A re-recorded version would later be included on their debut album, Up For A Bit With The Pastels, released on Glass Records in 1987.
There’s a lot been said and written about the band, and in particular Stephen, over the years. I think our dear friend flimflamfan summarised things best when he put together a fabulous ICA back in September 2022.
“My experience of The Pastels as people (I’m talking Stephen and Katrina as I’ve not had much contact with other group members) is one of warmth, generosity, graciousness, unaffectedness, supportiveness and kindness.
As musicians they: inspired so many (aspiring musicians and fans alike), inadvertently spawned ‘scenes’ and developed outstanding collaborations with musicians and other artists while remaining unfettered by music business limitations.
The Pastels are still very much at the beating heart of music in Glasgow and beyond. That’s quite a feat for a group now enjoying its fourth decade.”
The Pastels will be back later in the series.
Age of Chance were from Leeds and were active between 1983 and 1981. Their initial releases came out on their own label, Riot Bible, with some later material appearing on the Sheffield-based Fon Records (Fon being short for ‘Fuck Off Nazis’). It was on the latter label that they enjoyed a surprise hit with their take on Kiss by Prince, which in due course led to one of the majors, Virgin Records, dangling a contract in front of them, which was duly signed in 1987.
mp3: Bible Of The Beats – Age Of Chance
Track 9, Disc 2 of CD86.
Bible of The Beats was actually their second single, released on Riot Bible in 1986, and it reached #3 on the Indie Chart. It was this success that led to them being asked to contribute a track to the original C86 cassette, despite their mixture of punk, hip hop, rock and Northern soul having little in common with the indie/twee nature of much of the rest of that release. And, because they were on the cassette, they will be back later on in this series.
The Mackenzies, from Glasgow, were initially active only in 1986/87, but just last year emerged from a very long hibernation. The band, whose angular and abrasive sound is, again, unlike most of the other acts across this series, were on Ron Johnson Records, which was based in Long Eaton in the English Midlands. There had already been one 7″ single, New Breed, prior to them appearing on the C86 cassette:-
mp3 : Big Jim (There’s No Pubs In Heaven) – The Mackenzies
Track 6 on side 2 of the cassette; Track 17, Disc One of C86 The Deluxe 3CD Edition.
This song was only ever made available on the C86 cassette (and subsequent vinyl and CD re-releases)
There would be just two further singles, as well as two John Peel Sessions, before they called it a day, with band members moving onto other projects. However, they played some live shows in Glasgow last year with another scheduled for the end of this current month. It may very well be that some new material will emerge in due course.
North of Cornwallis don’t appear to ever have released any singles, EPs or albums, with just a couple of tracks making it into compilations back in the day or retrospectively.
mp3: Billy Liar – North Of Cornwallis
Track 16, Disc Three of C86 The Deluxe 3CD Edition
As mentioned before on the blog, info is hard to come by. The song was written by Lester Noel and Robert Adamson. The former was previously part of Grab Grab The Haddock, a band that had been formed by Jane and Alice Fox following the disbanding of Marine Girls (the first band in which Tracey Thorn was ever involved). Lester Noel later joined Beats International, the dance group formed by Norman Cook and who enjoyed a #1 hit with Dub Be Good To Me in 1990.
A previous solitary appearance on TVV in December 2023 did solicit some great bits of info from readers, namely that there had been a six-song tape of unreleased material and that in 1987 they had supported The Housemartins during a UK tour.
THE NEW VINYL VILLAIN 