a guest series, courtesy of a very friendly lawyer
BLUE PERIOD
Blue Chair – Elvis Costello & The Attractions
Here we are at FF16 and Elvis and the boys have barely featured. Let’s rectify that right now, with a standout track from the last great EC&tA album, Blood and Chocolate, released 40 years ago!
This New Zealand outfit are in the one-and-done category, having released Electric Hawaii in 2012 as their only album. Fortunately, the Nielson brothers, Kody and Ruban, reconnected and are still going strong in Unknown Mortal Orchestra.
Tonight wasn’t much of an album, at least not by the standards of the thin white duke. At least we got this killer single off it, featuring some of Tower of Power‘s horns.
Orange Juice‘s single of the same title no doubt has seen some airplay here at JC’s place, so here’s Vernor Winfield McBriare Smith IV, aka McBriare Samuel Lanyon DeMarco. From his second album Salad Days (2014), recorded alone in his Brooklyn apartment.
Lead single from the duo’s fifth studio LP, 2005’s Get Behind Me Satan, when the band could do no wrong.
A pretty track from Songs and Other Things. The album came out in 2006, and so did Verlaine‘s swan song, the instrumental album Around. It’s a shame that that’s all we got from the NYC legend.
BoH is pretty much Ben Bridwell with a rotating cast of musicians. He/they have been going since 2004 and have released 6LPs. This song is from the band’s third one, Infinite Arms. Young Sam and I saw them tour the album at Coachella 2012 and they were fantastic.
When he’s not recording with everyone you ever heard of (see FF13), Beck is releasing his own interesting albums. This is from his 12th studio LP, Morning Phase, and features our man playing a charango.
This tune was written by cult band Slapp Happy back in 1972. I don’t know too much about that Slap Happy, apart from the fact that Peter Blegvad was in it. Pale Saints released a nice version of this song on their 1992 EP Throwing Back the Apple, but no one tops the marvellous Hope Sandoval. From the debut album, She Hangs Brightly (1990).
JC and I argue about the relative merits of New Order (him for, me against, and I usually lose). Despite that ongoing battle there’s no denying the awesomeness of the band’s 1983 single.
Bonus track: The Blues are Still Blue – Belle & Sebastian
This set is restricted to songs titled ‘Blue [something]’ and it was a job getting it down to only 10 songs. But I love you so as a bonus here’s the tremendous second single from The Life Pursuit, released 20 years ago!
Jonny
JC adds…..
That completes a full week of guest contributions and a series of posts featuring ‘various artists’, including a number across what I still refer to as mix tapes. The usual Saturday and Sunday series are scheduled over the weekend, and then it will be back to something approaching ‘normal service’, including, in my opinion, one of the very best guest ICAs ever offered.
Thanks, as always for your continued support for TVV.
THE NEW VINYL VILLAIN 
It’s been a good week. There’s some blue brilliance here. The bonus track is my go to happy song
On seeing the title Blue Period, I fully expected to see the majestic ‘Blue Period’ by the Smithereens.
And ‘Blue Moon’ by the Cowboy Junkies would be a natural fit.
I know we’re not allowing the plural but definitely a post where Blues Run The Game (Jackson Frank, Simon & Garfunkel, Counting Crows. Sandy Denny, Nick Drake and tons of others, popular song to cover, pity Jackson never lived to see the royalties).
Joni Mitchell also wants a word about a certain LP title track.