Category: ICA WORLD CUP

OK….he got some help from his two mates, but I couldn’t resist using this particular photo.

The lads from Woking defeated the Bard of Barking by 17-13 in a surprisingly low-scoring final in which both held the lead at various stages.  I didn’t think back at the Start!, given that The Jam ICA was comprised solely of album tracks, that would they could win the whole thing but the result does go to show just how well their songs have aged and that they still have a special place in the hearts and minds of many of you.

I can’t thank enough all of you for getting involved so much these past few months – the quality across the comments section has been astounding – and of course a very special shout-out to jimdoes who came up with the initial idea. I’m planning, all being well, to having a second ICA World Cup. most likely in 2020 and featuring teams whose ICAs are from #151 and onwards.

But…..and here’s where your voice will really matter, I’d like to run some sort of competition in 2019 along similar but different lines if that makes sense.

It’s an idea which has been mulling around my head for a few months and I have shared it with the likes of Aldo and Jacques, neither of whom were moved to talk me out of it.

Everything to do with the 2018 match-ups came via random selections amd with the use of a coin and a dice. Next time around, I’d like readers to be more involved.  I’m looking for folk to volunteer themselves as managers of a squad   Once I know how many folk are interested, I can start to flesh out the idea in more detail with those concerned.  If nobody is interested, I’ll quietly drop the idea….and wait till 2020 for the next tourney.

If it does go ahead there will a need for a lot of e-mails to kick back and forth and so I’m likely going to set up a separate account for it all as and when the time comes.

In the meantime, I’d be delighted if any of you wanted to give an indication, via the comments section, of your willingness to be a manager……

In the meantime, both of our finalists get to close things off:-

mp3 : Billy Bragg – That’s Entertainment
mp3 : The Jam – That’s Entertainment

JC

Yup…..The Jam pulled off an almighty shock last week and knocked out The Clash by 22-18. Here’s the roads that the two finalists have gone down in this tourney.

BILLY BRAGG

Round 1 – St Swithin’s Day : 33-10 v The Faces
Round 2 – Tank Park Salute : 23-12 v The Pixies
Round 3 – Greetings To The New Brunette : 26-15 v Prefab Sprout
Round 4 – Love Gets Dangerous : 25-12 v Half Man Half Biscuit
Round 5 – Levi Stubbs’ Tears : 26-12 v The Smiths
Semi Final – Between The Wars : 18-16 v Pulp

THE JAM

Round 1 – Happy Together : 34-10 v T.Rex
Round 2 – Billy Hunt : 37-6 v The Detroit Cobras
Round 3 – Thick As Thieves : 35-6 v Daft Punk
Round 4 – Saturday’s Kids : 23-4 v The Jesus and Mary Chain
Round 5 – Man In The Corner Shop : 23-11 v Lloyd Cole & The Commotions
Semi Final – To Be Someone (Didn’t We Have A Nice Time) : 22-18 v The Clash

Every tie thus far has seen the songs matched in randomly thanks to a combination of tossing a coin and rolling a dice. The advantage is very much with Billy as he had two ICAs (#36 and #37) and still has 14 tracks for selection: Northern Industrial Town; World Turned Upside Down; Deportees; Take Down The Union Jack; A New England; Cold and Bitter Tears; Walk Away Renee; Which Side Are You On?; The Space Race Is Over; The Saturday Boy; The Short Answer; Everywhere; Brickbat; Waiting For The Great Leap Forwards

The Jam had one ICA (#52) and therefore have much fewer options: Art School; Little Boy Soldiers; Boy About Town; The Gift, none of which really stand a chance if certain of Billy’s come through……

Please have a listen and cast your votes for one of the following songs:-

Brickbat v Little Boy Soldiers

Intriguing and fascinating, with Billy being represented by one of his love songs from the LP William Bloke, inspired by the changes in his life in settling down and becoming a dad while The Jam have the new-wave equivalent of Bohemian Rhapsody around which Paul Weller planned but didn’t quite pull off the idea of Setting Sons being an anti-war concept album.

Feel free to take your time on this one…..The closing date for voting is midnight on Sunday 22 July with the result being announced the following morning – the reason being that next weekend sees me on my annual pilgrimage to Westport in Ireland and I’m not taking the laptop with me.

JC

 

It appears that there is an actual football world cup causing much excitement across parts of the planet, but surely it isn’t anywhere near as important as the competition which has been dominating the Saturday pages of this little corner of t’internet these past few months……………it’s perhaps a pity that neither The Wannadies or The Cardigans had an ICA eligible to begin with…..just imagine the fun we could have had if they had been still standing at this stage and ready to play today against one of the titans of late 20th century contemporary England……

You all know from last week that The Clash and The Jam are going to square up for place in next week’s final….and I’ll get to that in just a moment. First of all, here’s the outcome of the first semi-final in which Babies was pitted against Between The Wars:-

Pulp 16  Billy Bragg 18

It was a titanic struggle. One in which nobody was ever more than three ahead at any time….and going by the responses, many of you had a real tough time with your eventual choice in a match-up that would have made a great final.

Dirk (aka Sexy Loser), not for the first time in this tournament, perfectlly captured the dilemma facing many of you:-

This sucks. And it’s a bit like when someone asks you “Would you like to have a glass of ice-cold beer, a German one, or one from Belgium – not a British one? Or would you like a glass of real good Shiraz from Australia instead”?

The point I’m trying to make is: you cannot compare the two drinks, can you really? Personally, I’d like to have BOTH of them, in exactly that sequence! Then again I say that about almost every alcoholic drink being offered to me … but, if I HAVE to choose, at the end of the day, the decision would depend on the mood I’m in, I think.

The very same is true for the two songs in question. Let’s say Bragg = beer and Cocker = Shiraz. And as it’s already 30 degrees Celsius in this bloody office (and it’s not even 11 AM my time!), I’d currently favour the cold beer …

Follow that Joe/Mick/Paul/Topper/Paul/Bruce and Rick……..

THE CLASH v THE JAM

The home side have long been seen as the firm favourites for the overall tourney while the away side have, in some ways, defied incredible odds to get this far given that the ICA selections are restricting them only to album tracks as the 45s had been featured in their entirety in a separate series. However, the home side may have one weak spot in an otherwise stellar line-up of songs and it may be exploited in this semi-final.

Capital Radio 2 v To Be Someone (Didn’t We Have A Nice Time)

The Clash track was used to close the ICA. In doing so, I wanted to find a way to bring out the humorous side of the band and to demonstrate that the very best ICAs aren’t always the greatest or most admired 10 songs but the tracks which hang well in a particular sequence. Capital Radio 2 was the fourth and final track on The Cost Of Living EP. The original was something that I only had on tape….and it was a poorly recorded low-quality effort straight from the radio. I loved the idea of getting my hands on the new version which is why I was desperate to but the EP the day it hit the shops….indeed I played this track before any of the others.

As I said in ICA 12, the fact that it came with an outro that spoofed the sort of ads you could hear on the actual radio station was, to my ears, a stroke of genius. I spent a few hours back then wondering whether this or Train In Vain should close the ICA….if it had been the latter and it was your option today, then I think it could edge towards a landslide win. As it is, this is perhaps the one song which might not appeal to everyone, especially considering the opposition.

The Jam had to wait until ICA 52 but this was down to the fact that they had been appearing each week via a singles series. As I said at the time, it was self-indulgent to pull together an ICA without any of the songs that ever appeared on the 45s and extending that to excluding songs which had been live tracks on b-sides (thus no appearance for Away From The Numbers). The quality of the album tracks has been such, however, that the band has fairly coasted to this stage, albeit they have had a fairly kind draw….so you could say they are doing it the quintessential English way!

This track was slotted into the ICA following on from Saturday’s Kids and in advance of Man In The Corner Shop. It did seem strange to have it slightly out of context with it not being preceded by the title track of All Mod Cons, but it worked perfectly as far as I was concerned. I still find it incredible that this was written by someone who was barely out of his teens at the time with the world at his feet and not by some crinkly, ageing old has-been who was jealous of the new wave who were breaking through. I hung on every word Paul Weller was saying at that time….and if he was warning me that there was a huge downside to being famous and rich, then I was going to take heed.

So there you have it….two incredibly personal songs that I wanted to, needed to and ultimately did include in two early ICAs. Which one will take their performers into a match up with Billy?

JC

This has been fun hasn’t it?   But now we are getting into the really serious part of the competition.

The result of the final game in Round 5 was:-

The Jam 23 Lloyd Cole & The Commotions 11

The score doesn’t quite reflect how decent a contest this was and it really is quite amaxing that Weller, Foxton & Buckler are still going despite their ICA featuring just album tracks and no singles or b-sides.

Here’s who is still standing….Billy Bragg, The Clash, The Jam and Pulp.  Not too shabby a line-up and I’m thinking that many of you will have had initial thoughts that they could all go a long way depending on the vagaries of the draw…talking of which…..

Semi Final 1 : Pulp v Billy Bragg
Semi Final 2 : The Jam v The Clash

PULP v BILLY BRAGG

Babies v Between The Wars

Blimey……this offers a tough choice between two very different types of songs.

The Pulp ICA was compiled by Tim Badger

After about ten years the wilderness, Pulp emerged with this tale of teenage tea time obsession. It begins innocently enough with Jarvis talking about afternoons with girls in bedrooms – before he goes well a bit perverse and then delivering this withering punchline “I only went with her ‘cause she looked like you!”

and the track on offer from Billy was on an ICA stitched beautifully together by Walter.

With no backing band but his own electric guitar, Billy Bragg sang ‘Between the Wars’ as a first-person narrative of a miner hoping his hard work would be rewarded by care from the government his efforts helped support. Another song about the miners in the 80s and maybe one of his most emotional ones.

JC

As ever, we’ll start things off with the result of last week’s tie. The winners established an early 5 point lead which was then wiped out come Tuesday morning.  The winners, however, found a second wind as the week went on and held on despite a late onslaught from the Scousers.

Echo & The Bunnymen 19 The Clash 22

Three down; one to go..  Here’s jimdoes with this week’s tie.

THE JAM v LLOYD COLE & THE COMMOTIONS

jimdoes

If the score from last week’s result appears underneath, then I was thankfully able to update this draft using my phone while in a hotel room in Leeds.

The Housemartins 16 Pulp 20

That’s two off your semi-finalists sorted out.  Here’s jimdoes with this week’s tie.  It’s the pick of the bunch…..

ECHO AND THE BUNNYMEN v THE CLASH

Never Stop (Discotheque) v Clampdown

Written in biro on a desk at school. That was the first time I heard of Echo and The Bunnymen. All the cool kids at school were in to them – and I most certainly wasn’t one of the cool kids – I was only just looking beyond Top of the Pops to discover new music on my own. Maybe that’s why they’ve never been a favourite of mine – I like them but they were always too cool for me. I know the songs and I’ve seen them at festivals a few times but I never loved them. Having said all that – out of all the bands left in the ICA World Cup, they are the band that I listen to more than any other – only because Seven Seas is one of my favourite songs ever so I play it all the time.

(JC adds….just to provide some more words so that it is similar in length to the second contribution….here’s what Echorich said when I posted the 12″ version of Never Stop as the stand alone post “LAY DOWN THY RAINCOAT AND GROOOOOOVE…” back in October 2013…

A Pete De Frietas Tour De Force! The percussion, multilayered over a driving motorik beat, mixed with the strings was the first warning shot of what would come to full fruition by Ocean Rain.

Back to jimdoes……

I was too young for The Clash. And not having an older sibling to point me in the right direction, they kind of passed me by. In my house the 70s meant Joan Baez, The Manhattan Transfer and Terry Wogan’s Floral Dance. Punk certainly never happened for me. But I do remember seeing my first punks – on my way to my cousins in Romford around the time of the Queen’s Silver Jubilee – they seemed impossibly exotic and otherworldly to my young eyes. The first I knew of Mick Jones was E=MC2 – which I loved. By the time I went to art college I was a proper indie kid – The Wedding Present, The Smiths, Pixies, The Cure, and The Primitives were my band t-shirts of choice (in fact I’ve never owned a Clash t-shirt). This is where I met Julyan and Tristan – we’d go to the pub – they’d put The Clash on the jukebox; we’d carry on drinking at home – they’d play their battered Clash records; we’d go to parties – Julyan would always have a Clash tape on him (for emergencies) – it would be his favourite Clash songs but he’d re-record it almost weekly. I quickly knew all the words and acquired my own copies of the albums. None of us ever saw The Clash (They aren’t even the band I’d go back in time to see – that’s Prince and The Revolution on the Purple Rain tour) but we went to countless BAD shows and saw Joe Strummer a few times. I still listen to London Calling about once a month, so they are very much a part of me.

jimdoes

PS : That leaves the final quarter final as Lloyd Cole & The Commotions v The Jam.  You’ll need to wait seven days for the songs though…….

Memo to self……..if going out for what you know is going to be a long and drunken Friday evening….switch ICA deadline so you don’t fuck things up with the scheduled posting.

My head hurts.  This, by my muddled reckoning, was the final result from last week….

The Smiths 12 Billy Bragg 26

That’s the first of your semi-finalists sorted out.  Here’s jimdoes with this week’s tie.

THE HOUSEMARTINS v PULP

jimdoes

The final two ties of the last round were good ones

The Wedding Present 16  Pulp 19
Lightning Seeds 13 Lloyd Cole & The Commotions 23

That’s us down to the final eight teams, and from now on it’s just one match up per week so that you can have as much time as you like, or need, to deliberate.  I’m also pleased to say that jimdoes is taking over responsibility for penning the quarter final ties over the next four Saturdays.  I’ve kind of exhausted my ideas on how to present the match-ups and he’s come up with something a bit different…..

Before jimdoes turns his attention to the first tie, I want to announce that The Smiths have been reinstated.  The original decision wasn’t an easy one and it was made with a heavy heart, thinking that the chances of Marr, Rourke and Joyce would be ruined by the absence of the singer.  Morrissey has been absent from the past two ties, and in most football tournaments, it is a two match ban which is applied for misedemeanours, and so it feels right that the Mancs have a full squad restored.  They are likely to need it….and with that comment I’m handing over to jimdoes to guide you through this week’s match-up.

 

I’m going to try something a little different with the quarter finals – JC has been great at sharing routes to the quarter finals, so we all know what perilously difficult journeys our teams have faced. I’m not even going to make any more tenacious links to football – most of the bands left are old favourites that I’m sure everyone likes and has history with in some way – and that’s what I’m going to talk about for each of the match ups – my history with each band.

 

Match 1

The Smiths v Billy Bragg

Still Ill (from The Smiths, 1984) v Levi Stubbs’ Tears (from Talking With The Taxman About Poetry, 1986)

Happy deliberating.  Votes must be in by Friday 8 June at 10pm.

jimdoes

This will be the last of the half time reports as the ties from the quarter-finals will feature individual match-ups and it will be easy enough to keep track of the scores via the comments button….but having said that, I’m likely to give updates at the foot of some of the scheduled non World Cup posts.

Before turning to the HTs, I thought it would be worth looking back over all the games played thus far and see how often the outcome I was hoping for actually prevailed:-

Preliminary Round : 0/1
1st Round : Week 1 13/16
1st Round : Week 2 : 12/16
1st Round : Week 3 : 10/16
1st Round : Week 4 : 10/16
2nd Round : 1st Half : 10/16
2nd Round : 2nd Half : 13/16
3rd Round : 12/16
4th Round : 3/6…and based on the HT scores….likely to be 4/8.

Also worth mentioning that more than half of the teams still left in the competition would have been eliminated at some previous point if I wasn’t a democrat….

And finally….here are your half time scores.

The Wedding Present 12 v Pulp 16
(Dalliance v This Is Hardcore)

(NB….early on Pulp had a 10 point lead in this one….)

Lightning Seeds 11 v Lloyd Cole & The Commotions 19
(Lucky You v Brand New Friend)

Half time entertainment…from more than 50 years ago:-

 

and here’s a wonderful tune that I felt like playing today; no reason other than I think you’ll enjoy it:-

mp3 : Ballboy – Donald In The Bushes With A Bag Of Glue

Remember….if you haven’t voted yet, you have until 10pm this coming Friday.

JC

 

May as well deal with the formalities of last week’s embarrassingly one-sided ties :-.

Echo & The Bunnymen 23 Butcher Boy 4
The Jam 23 The Jesus and Mary Chain 4

Here’s the final two ties of this round after which it gets really serious.  After this, you’ll only have one tie per week to consider and vote on….all the way through to the final in late July.

Match 7

The Wedding Present v Pulp

Two northern powerhouses go toe-to-toe.  Gedge v Cocker is worthy of the final itself and it will be very interesting to see what you all make of it, especially as the two songs coming up today come from albums which have been known to divide fans as they deviated somewhat from the tried, tested and trusted.

Here’s the facts thus far.

The Wedding Present strolled through the first round with Always The Quiet One ensuring a comprehensive hammering of Deacon Blue, following which  they have arguably had the ties of the past two rounds against Magazine (Kennedy v Shot By Both Sides) and Orange Juice….indeed the latter had to go to a replay as Edwyn & co had fielded an ineligible songs and TWP made the most of the reprieve.  My Favourite Dress (live) had been soundly beaten by Felicity, but the studio version of the former romped home against Falling and Laughing.

Pulp had a tough assignment in the first round but Pink Glove proved to be resilient enough to see off Kathleen by Tindersticks – my own thoughts being in that instance that many voted for the band rather than the song.  Next time out, Common People was aired leading to a ritual slaughtering of Lambchop.  The Fear was aired last time out and proved to strike that emotion into the heart of Pavement who ended up lying dazed and confused by the side of the road.

Dalliance (from Seamonsters, 1991) v This Is Hardcore (from This Is Hardcore, 1998)

From ICA #7….

A stunning and unexpected wall of sound that took the band to a whole new level in terms of fanbase and out of the realms of mere indie-pop. David Gedge doesn’t write 3 minute pop or rock songs; instead we often get mini soap-operas set to magical tunes. This is a real tear-jerker. Listen to it drunk and think about someone who once broke your heart. I dare you not to think of them and then say you weren’t fighting back the tears, whether of anger or sadness.

From ICA #32…courtesy of Tim Badger….

Clocking in at over six minutes, this is a sordid tale of secrets buried in PVC raincoats. Its sounds indescribably sinister. It s adopts a late night vibe and a raft of distorted guitar riffs that eventually gives way to strings and sounds so utterly dejected. One of the saddest Pulp songs around and probably the closest thing that geeks have to ‘Sexual Healing’.

Match 8

Lightning Seeds v Lloyd Cole & The Commotions

Two masters of the three-minute pop singles go toe-to-toe.  And, as it turns out, songs which were released as 45s are being fielded – one got to #15 at the second time of asking in 1995 while the other had reached #19 a decade previously

Here’s the facts thus far.

Lightning Seeds have avoided all the big guns to this stage, with Gemma Ray, Big Audio Dynamite and Saint Etienne all being seen off, albeit the winning margins have been gradually decreasing.  The original ICA was packed with singles and thus far You Showed Me, Pure and The Life of Riley have been aired.  Will this round be too big a step up?

Lloyd Cole & The Commotions have had a similar type of run early on with The Pipettes and Arab Strap being seen off but last time out there was a tough looking tie against Edwyn Collins but the result proved to be fairly decisive.  Forest Fire, Mister Malcontent and Are You Ready To Be Heartbroken have already been used, so it will be a test of the depth of the squad as we get to these latter stages.

Lucky You (single and from Jollification, 1995) v Brand New Friend (long version) (single and from Easy Pieces, 1985)

I penned both ICAs. This was #11:-

There were many who ridiculed Lloyd for the amount of aforementioned name dropping on the debut album and I’m convinced that the introduction of Jesus into the opening line of the first track off the second LP was him thumbing his nose or flicking the Vs at said critics. This is such a wonderful piece of pop music and it has aged as beautifully and smoothly as a classic malt whisky. This version is taken from the 12″ single release.

And from #135

Ian Broudie had enjoyed working with Terry Hall over an extended period of time, going back to producing The Colourfield as far back as 1984. In the early 90s, they co-wrote a number of songs for the Sense LP, including the title track, that was purloined for Home, the first solo album Terry Hall released under his own name in 1994. An album that was produced by…..yup…..Ian Broudie and which featured songs co-written with the likes of Craig Gannon, Andy Partridge, Nick Heyward and Damon Albarn.

And while they were in the studio making this solo LP, Broudie and Hall found time to compose this classic Lightning Seeds single, the one that would be the first lifted from Jollification that took the band back into the Top 20 for the first time since the debut single. (editor’s note…..not quite true as it had only reached #43 on first release….)

Happy deliberating.  Votes must be in by Friday 1 June at 10pm.

JC

Here’s a song with a title that captures perfectly the Bunnymen over Butcher Boy:-

mp3 : The Popguns – Landslide

Here’s a song with a title that captures perfectly The Jam over the Mary Chain:-

mp3 : Dead Hope – Landslide

Both ties, even at this early stage, are forgeone conclusions.  I think, however, that at least one of next week’s match-ups will be tasty.  Tune in on Saturday to learn what I’m talking about.

In the meantime, tomorrow sees the start of a three-day guest mini-series which may well fascinate a number of you.

JC

PS : Both of the above tunes come very highly recommended.

PPS : For some reason or other, a comment….nay, it’s more akin to a desperate plea from the heart….. ended up in the Spam box rather than being published last week.  I found it while doing a bit of clearing up last night.  It’s from Adam in the Bagging Area, and he offered this up on Thursday 16 May:-

“Can The Robster please note never to compare The Clash to Man City ever again please.

Thank you”

 

Bit of a non-event this week…..but again, huge thanks those of you who took the time to vote and to comment.  Micky’s usual e-mail vote contained this gem re BB v HMHB….

This is like asking if I prefer a bag of crisps with a pint in the pub or a pie & Bovril at a football match.  How do you compare?

He, in the end, went for the whimsical and witty musings of the blokes from Birkenhead, but he’ll be left disappointed that it is the singular bloke from Barking who has prevailed.

The Smiths 24  The Police 7
Billy Bragg 25 Half Man Half Biscuit 12

They now join The Housemartins and The Clash in the quarter-finals.  I can also reveal that The Smiths are the subject of an appeal in that their frontman, having now served a two-game suspension , should be allowed to rejoin the squad.   The organising committee will deliberate over the coming days and the verdict announced at the time the QF draw is revealed.

Here’s what now awaits your deliberations this week.  Couple of crackers IMHO.

Match 5

Echo & The Bunnymen v Butcher Boy

While many might have made a safe prediction that the Scousers would have progressed to this stage, it would have been a brave person to tip that the Scottish posters would have been their opponents, still in the competition when so many huge names have fallen by the wayside.  But that’s the nature of an unseeded and totally random knockout competition for you.

The Cutter, Zimbo and The Killing Moon have been fielded by Mac & co. to see off the differing challenges of Leonard Cohen, Everything But The Girl and The Durutti Column.  The first and third of those songs scored very heavily, evidence that this is free-scoring side more than capable of lifting the trophy as long as they don’t get too cocky.

On a personal note, I’m thrilled for John & co. to be given the chance to take on the really big guns. They had an easy win in Round 1 against The Magnetic Fields, since when they have squeaked through against Martin Stephenson and Wire by just two and three points respectively.  Can they now deliver a result of giant-killing proportions?

There Is No One Who Can Tell Where You’ve Been (from Profit In Your Poetry, 2007) v A Promise (from Heaven Up Here, 1981)

It was ICA #17 for Butcher Boy and here’s what I wrote at the time:-

A tune that is played more than any other within Villain Towers as I’ve taken its first thirty seconds and turned them into a customised ringtone for my mobile phone. All those influences that the early reviewers pinpointed (The Smiths, Tindersticks, Felt, Belle & Sebastian, R.E.M. and Go-Betweens )  can be heard in its perfect two and a half minutes. It’s also evidence that John is a fine singer although he personally considers that he is merely OK….but what it does highlight is just how talented he is as a musical arranger.

ICA #41 for Echo & The Bunnymen, with these words typed at 35,000 feet as I winged by way towards Toronto:-

If Postcard could claim to be the Sound of Young Scotland then those who came to prominence through Zoo Records are entitled to claim the same crown for Young Liverpool. This particular single could easily have been written and recorded by Wylie, Cope or The Wild Swans and it would have been equally majestic. Will Sargeant teased a ridiculous amount of stunning sounds from his guitar over these damn near perfect four minutes.

Interesting that I used the word ‘perfect’ on each occasion.

Match 6

The Jam v The Jesus & Mary Chain

Two more sides who are capable, on their day, of fielding a song which would defeat any opponent. This is a very tasty tie to savour but it is worth remembering that the home side are completely reliant on album tracks as the ICA deliberately precluded any singles or b-sides as they had all just been featured in a long-running series.

Here’s the facts thus far.

Happy Together saw a 34-10 result against T.Rex
Billy Hunt delivered a 37-6 thumping to The Detroit Cobras
Thick As Thieves brought a 35-6 win over Daft Punk.

The results demonstrate that The Jam have been in glorious free-scoring form, but there’s something of a case that the sides thay have faced have been of lower-division standard.

Turning to their opponents….

Reverence resulted in a 33-11 triumph over The Wondermints
Boyfriend’s Dead was far too good for Rod Stewart, with a 30-6 outcome.
Never Understand proved more than enough for a 25-16 win over The The

The first two games showed they were just as free scoring, but again there’s an argument to be had about the quality of their opponents.  They showed no mercy last time out, winning much easier than some had imagined when the draw came out.

Saturday’s Kids (from Setting Sons, 1979) v Guitarman (from Speed of Sound, 1994)

I wrote ICA #52 for the home side:-

A paean to growing up in a working-class household.

At 16, I had no idea what the line ‘stains on the seats – in the back of course’ was all about. Nor did I know who smoked Capstan Non-Filters (Embassy Regal? yup….that was my dad’s choice of habit) and for Selsey Bill and Bracklesam Bay you would have had to substitute places a little nearer home or insert Blackpool which around half of Glasgow seemed to migrate to in the last two weeks in July back in the mid-70s. Otherwise it was a song that resonated with me and even now I can recite every single word of the lyric. But I do accept that, with its descriptions of things that aren’t part of modern society then it’s a lyric very much of its time and so probably won’t resonate much with today’s kids….except perhaps the bit about hating the system. Some things just never change.

It was SWC who put together ICA #94 with the most wonderfully funny pre-amble (you should click on it the link over on the right hand side and remind yourself of it):-

I wanted to include a cover version, simply because the Marychain did a few, mainly old Blues rock numbers from the 60s, and this I think was the best one. I also recommend their version of ‘Little Red Rooster’ because the absolutely crush it, but for me the bit where Reid goes ‘Show ‘em sonnnn’ is bloody marvellous.

Happy listening.  Votes must be in by Friday 25 May at 10pm.

JC

Feels a bit like after the Lord Mayor’s show this week

I thought that was a very astute comment from Friend of Rachel Worth having to deliberate on two matches which don’t really come close to that  offered via last week’s titanic battle between New Order and The Clash…and yes, there does seem to be an inevitablity about the latter’s march to glory which is reminiscent of German football sides in World Cups.  But they still have three games they have to win if they are to take the title and there are some very tricky opponents that are lying in wait….

It’s also astute in that the scoring at half-time is lower than any other week that the tournament has been running, which indicates a bit of readership fatigue and/or a lack of interest in these particular match-ups which are seemingly leaning to particular outcomes in that:-

(a) Sting and his crew are almost certainly bowing out, thus forcing me to be imaginative again when the Smiths-lite crew take to the field in the quarter-finals: and

(b) the bard of Barking is nosing it at the moment.

Half time scores

MarrRourkeJoyce 16 v The Police 2
Hippychick v Next To You (live)

Billy Bragg 16 v Half Man Half Biscuit 5
Love Gets Dangerous (Peel Session) v Totness Bickering Fair

Here’s your half-time entertainment courtesy of the fans of Celtic FC:-

mp3 : Depeche Mode – Just Can’t Get Enough

JC

I’m not mucking about this week……I’ll just say that the second of the ties swung back and forth a fair bit.

OMD 9  The Housemartins 32
New Order 20 The Clash 23

I think The Clash must now be overwhelming favourities to the lift the trophy….

So that’s two sides into the the last eight….six more to join them over the next three weeks, with two more ties now put before you for consideration.

Match 3

MarrJoyceRourke v The Police

I groaned when this match-up was revealed….in the knowledge that the brickbats will fly no matter the outcome.

Here’s the facts thus far.

MarrJoyceRourke have, technically, only had one win in the tournament, with a win over Ride having gotten them their place in the last 32 after The Smiths had seen off Mission of Burma and Husker Du.

How Soon Is Now? was supposed to be getting used today, but will instead be represented by Hippychick, a hit single in 1990 by Soho, a pop act consisting of the sisters Jacqui and Pauline Cuff together with Timothy London. The song features a sample from The Smiths’ song sequenced over a Soul II Soul rhythm.

Their opponents have been fielding some great singles to see off Captain Beefheart, The Stranglers and Pete Wylie but seem to be taking gamble in this round with a live track which is a bit rough’n’ready.

Hippychick (single 1991) v Next To You (from Propaganda, 1987)

Here’s what I said in ICA#59 about The Police:-

The opening song on the band’s debut album was always one of their most popular; Sting would include it within his solo sets while it has also been given the cover version treatment by a number of other acts including Foo Fighters. It is that unusual beast from the new wave era – an unashamed love song. Such was my desire to get everything by the band back in the days that I bought an import LP called Propaganda in late 1979 as it contained two live tracks recorded earlier in the year at the Bottom Line club in New York. Next To You was the second of those tracks and quickly established itself as my favoured version.

Match 4

Billy Bragg (2) v Half Man Half Biscuit

I groaned when this match-up was revealed….in the knowledge that the brickbats will fly no matter the outcome….I think most of you would have been happier if these two had separately drawn the two above….

Here’s the facts thus far.

Billy Bragg has had a decidely mixed bag of opponents in The Faces, The Pixies and Prefab Sprout, coming through without really being tested much, albeit he’s taken no chances by fielding St Swithin’s Day, Tank Park Salute and Greetings to the New Brunette.  This tie, no matter what his opponents throw out there, is a whole new challenge for the Bard of Barking.

HMHB have the skills to go all the way and have already seen off tough oppostion in Elvis Costello & the Attractions, Trash Can Sinatras and XTC thanks to the use of 1966 And All That, National Shite Day and Joy Division Oven Gloves. Like today’s opponent, they have two separate ICAs from which songs can randomly be selected…. much is going to depend on the coin and dice combos.

Love Gets Dangerous (Peel Session, 1983) v Totnes Bickering Fair (from C.S.I. Ambleside, 2008)

It turned out that I was responsible for both ICAs. Here’s the double-skinny:-

The first time I saw Billy was on the street during the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in the days when he had the amp strapped to back so that he could set up when and where he liked busker style. He played four or five tunes and attracted a huge audience. This was one of the tunes that day and I’ve gone for the Peel version as it comes closest to catching that particular performance that day. Falling in love is indeed very very scary.

Twenty plus years on from the debut material and they still have the ability to make me laugh out loud with brilliant lyrics. New age mum has divorced ordinary bloke dad….but he will use the kids to get his revenge!! Not once…but twice!!!!   And the closing line of the song….while having nothing to do with the rest of the lyric…is just observational comedy of the highest quality..

Happy deliberating.  Votes must be in by Friday 18 May at 10pm.

JC

PS….I spent much of yesterday in a daze – as and indeed I had the the previous two days – from the initial disappearance and then the sad but expected confirmation that Scott Hutchison of Frightened Rabbit had taken his own life.  I have said a few initial words on Facebook and I do hope to expand on these in an expanded piece on this blog over the coming days.

It’s been very interesting thus far that the vast majority of folk have cast their votes early doors and very few of the half-time leads have been overturned. I wonder if anything will change now that we are down to two matches per weel.

The match-ups from now on have the potential to put folk in a dilemma, as typified by this from Swiss Adam:-

“how the fuck am I supposed to pick between my beloved New Order and one of their greatest moments and my equally beloved Clash, the greatest band to walk the face of planet Earth?”

In the end, he did make a pick….which is more than some have been able to do!!!….and went for Janie Jones.

Half time scores

OMD 5 v The Housemartins 22
Forever Live and Die v Build

New Order 13 v The Clash 17
True Faith v Janie Jones

Still all to play for in the second half??

Here’s your half-time entertainment courtesy of the fans of Motherwell FC:-

No mp3 today….well not of the above song anyway. Instead, here’s one that I aired every week as the teams took to the field during the past season in my role of matchday DJ/announcer at Raith Rovers….

mp3 : Bowie/Jagger – Dancing In The Streets

It’s a tradition……..although next season I’m intending to revert to the original version of the song.

Remember….if you haven’t vote yet, you have until 10pm this coming Friday.

JC

 

The incompetency of the bureaucrats (i.e me!!) meant five ties had to be decided before we knew the make-up of the final 16.

Orange Juice 10  The Wedding Present 22
The Smiths 25 Ride 14
The Jam 35 Daft Punk 6
Billy Bragg 26 Prefab Sprout 15
Edwyn Collins 16 Lloyd Cole & The Commotions 25

Gedge & co really made the most of their reprieve and it was double heartbreak for Edwyn as he was well beaten in the end in the final match of Round 3.

The draw has taken place for Round 4. It’s known only to myself and jimdoes and now that we are at the nitty-gritty part of the competition with just two matches per week being featured, we have rescheduled some of the ties away from the order they were drawn in so that each week features at least one potential mind-blowing blockbuster. TV companies the world over pick and choose their games, so why should we be different??

Match 1

OMD v The Housemartins

A tie which provides the opportunity for one of the perhaps less-fancied sides to progress to the quarter finals.

Here’s the facts thus far.

OMD have seen off Super Furry Animals, The Stone Roses and The Charlatans, but in doing so have already fielded two their best-known and popular tracks in Enola Gay and Messages.

The Housemartins have beaten Gene, Julian Cope and Talking Heads…they’ve fielded quality songs but some of their biggest and best-known hits are sitting in reserve,

Forever Live and Die (from The Pacific Age, 1986) v Build (from The People Who Grinned Themselves To Death, 1987)

rhetor was the composer of ICA #33 on OMD. He had this to say about the song appearing this time round…

One of my favourite OMD tracks, in fact, as for some reason I can’t get enough of the soaring vocals of the line in the chorus, with its sudden descent into the title, “I never know, I never know, I never know, I never know why…Forever Live and Die”. Maybe it’s just me…

I was responsible for OCA #111 on The Housemartins. I said this at the time:-

Some of the social messages could get lost amidst the jaunty upbeat tunes for which the band were most famed. Not so when they slowed things right down. New homes, new roads, new infrastructure right across green countryside at a time when traditional communities in poorer parts of the country were crying out for support and investment to recover. Environmental and economic madness.

Match 2

New Order v The Clash

A tie which will eliminate one of the favourites.

Here’s the facts thus far.

New Order have had a crazy run of matches against LCD Soundsystem, The Go-Betweens and The Fall. They have three ICAs to choose from which does offer an extensive number of songs but there are also a few unusual remixes capable of turning up. They may regret (pun intended) having already used up Age of Consent and Blue Monday….

The Clash have also had a tough set of match-ups in recent rounds; MGMT was reasonably straight-forward enough and didn’t really need White Man (In Hammersmith Palais) to overcome the opposition; R.E.M. and The Velvet Underground were tougher asks but the use of both sides of the London Calling single may have left them weak…

True Faith (single, 1987) v Janie Jones (from The Clash, 1977)

I’m responsible for both ICAs. Here’s the double-skinny:-

The sheer brilliance and crossover appeal of this record can be seen from the fact that it reached #4 in the UK when, other than Blue Monday and Confusion (both of which sold well with dance fans), the band had struggled to make much of impact sales wise in the single market. True Faith is an extraordinary record that admittedly benefits from the input of uber-producer Stephen Hague who had previously helped to refine the sounds of Pet Shop Boys in a way that maintained their credibility while making them huge pop stars. But there is evidence that the song itself is a belter as seen by the fact that it was given an extensive indie dance remix by Paul Oakenfold and Steve Osbourne in 1994 and that version of True Faith also went Top 10 in the UK.

There are so many great songs that are incredibly worthy of inclusion on this particular ten-track effort. I’ve changed my mind more than a few times about things but I’ve never dreamt of leaving off Janie Jones. It’s a two-minute burst of high-tempo energy which just never lets up and, in what is now approaching 40 years, has never once failed to get me singing along. I also love how the band didn’t try to hide the fact that, at this stage, Paul Simonon wasn’t the greatest of bass guitarists but somehow his one-note contribution helps make the chorus so memorable.

Happy deliberating.  Votes must be in by Friday 11 May at 10pm.

JC

As ever, some tremendous contributions via the comments section….delighted so many of you are still giving it 110% this far into the competition and I’m over the moon about it.

Micky has done his usual e-mail vote, and I thought I’d share it with everyone:-

First up, the re-match; I pretty much knew which way this would go before playing the tracks. But even then, more one sided than I expected. Of course I like Falling and Laughing but MFD had it at the first chord!

Hadn’t heard it for a while and was straining not to do air guitar in the office. Now to this week…

1. This is probably as big a surprise to me as it is to you, but yet again I am voting for ‘The Smiths’. Good tunes, horrible/terrible singer.

2. This is probably as big a surprise to me as it is to you, but I’ve always liked this Daft Punk track. It always reminds me of the golf because those opening bars remind me of the theme tune to BBC’s Open coverage. Sitting watching the Open as a wee boy is a very happy memory. Afterwards I’d run out and invent an 18 hole golf course on our back garden using all sorts of shrubs and bushes as natural impediments, and the different parts of the lawn would represent different greens. Whereas this Jam track is a wee bit run of the mill for them.

3. Very, very tricky. Billy by the width of the paint on the goalposts

4. Remember when I said this was fun? I suppose torture is fun for some people. OK Lloyd gets it by a bawhair. Strange one really as I own Girl Like You, but somehow not ‘Heartbroken!

Micky’s five votes have helped create this situation:-

Orange Juice 9 v The Wedding Present 19

The Smiths 20 v Ride 11
The Jam 29 v Daft Punk 4
Billy Bragg 21 v Prefab Sprout 12
Edwyn Collins 15 v Lloyd Cole & The Commotions 18

In case any of you are wondering why, having seemingly been eliminated last Saturday, The Wedding Present are being given a second chance….please read this.

Here’s your half-time entertainment….courtesy of the fans of Crystal Palace FC.

mp3 : The Dave Clark Five – Glad All Over

Remember….if you haven’t voted yet, you have until 10pm this coming Friday.

JC

 

I was sitting in front of the laptop tonight, pulling together some facts and stats in preparation for the draw for the last 16 of the ICA World Cup when I had a ‘FUCK……WHAT HAVE I DONE?’ moment.

Last week, I asked you to cast your votes for the merits of Felicity (Orange Juice) against a live version of My Favourite Dress (The Wedding Present). You shouldn’t have been asked that as Felicity had in fact already been fielded in Round 1 of the competition and the rules are that no song can appear twice. The fact that Edwyn & co won the match-up means the result is null and void.

Genuine error on my part….and so now the tie to be replayed.

The Wedding Present are being allowed to field the studio version of My Favourite Dress while Orange Juice are required to offer up a different song from their original ICA. So, if you don’t mind….let me have your thoughts on this match up:-

Falling And Laughing (single, 1980) v My Favourite Dress (from George Best, 1987)

I need the votes in by Friday 4 May at 10pm. So sorry for the mix-up and any undue stress this may have caused.

JC

Part 4, which should have been Part 3 and featured last week, has been penned by jimdoes, the founding father of this competition. Before then, there is the small matter of last week’s sensational match-ups….

Lightning Seeds 23 v Saint Etienne 17
Pulp 26 v Pavement 9
Wire (2) 17 v Butcher Boy 20
Orange Juice  v The Wedding Present  : VOID RESULT…..REPLAY REQUIRED (Click here for details)

Butcher Boy make history by being the first side in the competition to make a winning comeback from a 5+ deficit. I think it’s fair to say that they will be the minnows in the last 16….but given a reasonable draw, they could still progress even further.

And now to ties 13-16…..and I’ve taken on the task of trying to come up with the right form of words to accompany the match-up that has caused a bit of chaos……

MarrRourkeJoyce v Ride

It does seem right not to exclude the songs of The Smiths from the competition and for this round at least it was easy enough as the tune which had come out for consideration is one that Johnny Marr has been known to include in his live sets. Some credit has to go to Ride who have sat patiently on the sidelines, at one point thinking they had been given a bye into the last 16 and then having to adjust the game plan and tactics for their new opponent.

Bigmouth Strikes Again (from Adrenalin Live, 2015) v In A Different Place (from Nowhere, 1990)

Over now to jimdoes…..

Anyway…

This week’s ties have been overshadowed by the controversy surrounding a certain Manchester singer’s utterances and have left the remaining teams in disarray and with an ‘anything can happen’ air to them. Whatever JC decides to do for the other tie I expect there will be ‘a bit of handbags’ in the comments as the Smiths have clearly lost the previously solid backing of many fans and the outcome could very well be an early bath. We are also now reaching the business end of the tournament with everything to play for – every game is akin to a cup final.

The Jam v Daft Punk

This tie has the kick and rush English coming up against Gallic flair. The Jam tend to play the long ball game – they have a solid backline that feeds the talents of their star man Paul Weller. They’re prone to entertainment and always give it 110%. On the other hand, Daft Punk appear to play in the wrong kit – with their helmets they’d be better suited to American Football. Even if they kept handling the ball I’m sure their technological links would make any VAR decisions go in their favour.

Thick As Thieves (from Setting Sons, 1979) v Digital Love (from Discovery, 2001)

Billy Bragg (2) v Prefab Sprout

Johnny Marr plays a part in this round whatever the outcome of the stewards’ enquiry in one of our other ties as he played guitar on this, my favourite song by Billy Bragg. But has Bragg hit this one too well? He’s a top, top player who’s got plenty more in his locker for the next few rounds so we shouldn’t expect any schoolboy defending from him. But this is the match where we will be asking can he do it on a wet Tuesday night in Atlantis? Prefab Sprout have found themselves in acres of space and they’ve really grown into the tournament. They are at home on any field and are a potential banana skin for any team. They’ll be sticking it in the mixer and hoping to put it in the onion bag.

Greetings to the New Brunette (from Talking With The Taxman About Poetry, 1986)  v Looking for Atlantis (from Jordan, The Comeback, 1990)

Edwyn Collins v Lloyd Cole & The Commotions

The magic of the cup eh? There’s always one – the tie that makes all the others seem like easy picks – the match that makes me go aaaaaaargh! The one that shows that there are no easy games at this level. And it’s this one – two absolute classics against each other. And a tenuous link to The Smiths here too – Sandie Shaw covered “Are You Ready To Be Heartbroken” and “Hand In Glove”, performing The Smiths Song on Top Of The Pops with Marr, Joyce and Rourke. Anyway, this is a real statement of intent from Edwyn Collins – he’s been taking it one game game at a time and is taking nothing for granted. Lloyd Cole has set his stall out early doors by sticking this one into the corridor of uncertainty by playing mind games with his choice of song. Cole is literally asking questions of Collins here in a match that is a great advert for the ICA World Cup.

A Girl Like You (from Gorgeous George, 1994) v Are You Ready To Be Heartbroken? (from Rattlesnakes, 1984)

Votes must be cast by Friday 4 May at 10pm.

Next week sees the first games in the round of 16; which of the four above will join this lot in the hat??

1. Echo & The Bunnymen
2. The Police
3. Half Man Half Biscuit
4. OMD
5. New Order
6. The Housemartins
7. The Clash
8. The Jesus and Mary Chain
9. Lightning Seeds
10. Pulp
11. Butcher Boy
12. Orange Juice or The Wedding Present

Happy Listening.

JC and jimdoes

Not sure how many of you are here to catch the half-time scores but instead want to hear the outcome of the deliberations on the possible expulsion of The Smiths. I’ll come to that in due course….but there’s four crucial ties being played against this backdrop…..

Lightning Seeds 16 v Saint Etienne 13
Pulp 18 v Pavement 6
Wire(2) 14 v Butcher Boy 12
Orange Juice 19 v The Wedding Present 9

Lightning Seeds exploded from the blocks and took a 9-1 lead, but then there was the mother of all comebacks as Saint Etienne went 11-10 ahead before the Scouser(s) got another six goals in a row.  Saint Etienne are fighting back again and there’s much to play for in what has been the most  topsy-turvy tie in the entire tourney.

The other possible historic comeback is in the Wire v Butcher Boy contest with the Scots really clawing their way  into things having been 10-2 behind early on.

I can’t thank enough all of you who offered thoughts, views and opinions on the frontman’s outburst and my intention to now remove The Smiths from the ICA World Cup. It became very clear, very quickly, that whatever decision was taken, it couldn’t please everyone. Some of you thought expulsion was fine, others were completely against the idea. There were suggestions of using instrumentals so that the singer alone was excluded which, although tempting, would have resulted in songs being included despite never having been on any ICA.

In the end, the decision I’ve taken is a bit of a fudge and may only, depending on how the voting goes, lead to a different dilemma further down the road.

The song which had come out for use by The Smiths was, aptly, Bigmouth Strikes Again. The song which will be aired in one of this coming weekend’s ties will be Bigmouth Strikes Again….as performed live by Johnny Marr. You’ll have to wait and see who he’s up against to decide whether he progresses…..

Turning to some stuff from the terraces for your half time entertainment….

I have no idea how the hell the fans of FC Koln adopted this monstrosity of a tune as their anthem!

I just can’t bring myself to post Runrig on the blog….so in honour of the Koln fans taking something bad and turning it into something good, here’s something from a hero of mine.

mp3 : Paul Haig – Something Good (10 inch mix)

Remember….if you haven’t voted yet this week, you have until 10pm on Friday.

JC