James – Page 3 – THE NEW VINYL VILLAIN

THE JAMES SINGLES (4)

This is actually one of the James singles that I don’t have a copy of..and huge thanks to those of you who got in touch to offer mp3s of various b-sides to help me complete the mission. I might take you up on the offers in due course but it turns out I’m ok for So Many Ways from July 1986 as the two tracks on the 7″ were taken straight from the LP Stutter:-

mp3 : James – So Many Ways
mp3 : James – Withdrawn

The additional track on the 12″ was an extended and different version of a song also available on Stutter and I’ve been able to hunt down a copy of it:-

mp3 : James – Just Hipper

I say extended…but even then it is only 1:57 long as compared to the LP version which clocks in at 1:46.

This single was an even bigger flop than any of their previous releases was deleted by the record label not long after release. As a consequence, it is one of the more difficult bits of plastic to get a hold of nowadays but then again the lack of any new material, certainly on the 7″ means it really is one for completists.

Enjoy!

James

THE JAMES SINGLES (3)

A short while ago, someone asked, via the comments section, whether I could start a series that featured the various singles released by James over the years. I’m going to do my very best to comply with the request but there’s a few gaps in the collection that I might be unable to fill as the weeks and months go by.

Those of you wanting to go back to the very beginning will need to search the archives of T(n)VV and in particular the posting from 21 November 2013 featuring the songs that made up Village Fire, a 12″ EP from 1985 that brought together all the tracks recorded for Jimone and James II.

The band’s next release still causes a degree of confusion. Here’s wiki:-

“Chain Mail” is a single by Mancunian band James, released in March 1986 by Sire Records, the first after the band defected from Factory Records.

The record was released in two different versions, as 7″ single and 12″ EP, with different artworks by John Carroll and, confusingly, under different names. The 12″ version was released as “Sit Down, three songs by… James”, even though it did not contain the later James hit, “Sit Down”, which in 1986 had not been written yet.

The only difference between the two versions musically was the inclusion of the song “Uprising” on the 12″ version. Neither song made it onto James’s debut album, Stutter, although live versions of “Chain Mail” and “Hup-Springs” were later included in the live album One Man Clapping.

It received rotten reviews from the UK music press – “cold, turgid and morose” was the verdict delivered by Sounds, and it was completely ignored by mainstream radio. Not surprisingly it came nowhere near troubling the charts.

mp3 : James – Chain Mail
mp3 : James – Hup Springs
mp3 : James – Uprising

It can’t be denied that this was a very bizarre choice of single. It is whimsical and almost folk-like as indeed are the b-sides…..and yet, almost 28 years later it remains a hugely enjoyable listen……but even the most diehard of fans has to admit it would have been a miracle if it had made TOTP.

James

VILLAGE FIRE (Jimone and James II)

This was another bunch of tunes that always seemed to go down well whenever they were posted on the old blog.

Village Fire was released by Factory Records as a 12″ EP in 1985. It has the prefix of FAC 138. It brought together all the five tracks that James had recorded for Jimone (FAC 78, released in 1983) and James II (FAC 119, released in 1985).

mp3 : James – What’s The World

mp3 : James – Folklore

mp3 : James – Fire So Close

mp3 : James – If Things Were Perfect

mp3 : James – Hymn From A Village

Completely unrecognisable from the material that would turn the band into chart regulars a few years later, all these songs still sound marvellous the best part of 30 years later.

The Smiths did a live version of one of the songs, recorded live at the Barrowland Ballroom in Glasgow. I was in the audience roaring my approval:-

mp3 : The Smiths – What’s The World (live)

Enjoy!!

Carter USM, James, Triffids

COVER VERSIONS AND B-SIDES : TRIFFIDS, CARTER USM & JAMES

(I’M CLEARLY STILL NAVIGATING MY WAY ROUND WORDPRESS……I HAVE NO IDEA WHY THE POST AS WRITTEN BELOW DIDN’T GO UP AS PLANNED AT 6AM THIS MORNING…..)

I mentioned yesterday that the one of the hopes in starting the blog was to give folks the opportunity to listen to some cracking b-sides that were difficult to find in a digital format. That and to offer up some unusual cover versions as that’s a genre I’m a bit of a sucker for.

Today’s posting is another that draws on the September/October 2006 TVV archives, offering said b-sides and covers as well as being what was asked for by a couple of folk who left behind comments as this is a place where the public gets what the public wants…..

As I said all those years ago, an awful lot of bands (and singer/songwriters) are fond of recording songs made famous by other people. Most of the times, there is a distinct failure to improve on the original version, or even more sadly, the cover version is pretty much indistinguishable from the original version.

Of course, it’s all subjective. You could be a huge fan of someone and regard any attempt at a cover version as sacrilege. But I prefer to try and be open-minded about it.

I’ll willingly admit to being a fan of the Pet Shop Boys. They have consistently put out fantastic records over the past three decades – and have often been at the cutting-edge of change, whether on vinyl or CD or in the visual aspects of being a pop star.

But there’s a few great versions of their songs that have been recorded….including these two versions of Rent.

The Triffids were from Australia. They formed in 1979 but were unheralded outside their native land for quite a few years. A handful of singles and EPs pre-dated their first LP in 1983. They soon moved to Europe, and throughout the 80s released critically lauded record after critically lauded record without ever gaining any commercial success. The band broke up in 1989 and the music industry was a sadder place. It got even sadder in 1999 when the band’s lead singer and creative force, David McComb, died just three years after undergoing a heart transplant.

Their cover version was recorded in September 1988 for a BBC Radio 1 session and made available as the b-side to the single Bury Me Deep In Love:-

mp3 : The Triffids – Rent

Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine burst onto the scene at the end of the 80s, and for maybe four years could do no wrong. Their first three records sold well and concert tours sold-out pretty quickly. But as the band’s lyrics got a bit darker and the tunes less radio-friendly, the fans, and to a certain extent the critical acclaim, faded away. Jim Bob and Fruitbat finally called it a day in 1997. As when The Triffids broke up, the music business was a far sadder place.*

*since the original 2006 post, the boys have had the occasional get together again and while the music business is still a sad fucked-up place, Carter gigs do help make things seem better.

Their cover version was a b-side ob the 12″ of the 1990 single Rubbish:-

mp3 : Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine – Rent

While I’m on the subject of b-sides, this was the very first song ever featured on TVV:-

mp3 : James – Fire Away

We’ve all got our favourites….great songs that were only ever recorded as B-sides. This particular offering is more wasted than some. It was put on the reverse of a mix of a single at a time when record companies issued multi-formats in an effort to boost the chart placing. If you ever see a copy of Come Home (Extended Flood Mix) in a purple sleeve, you’ll find Fire Away as the b-side. It’s a pulsating effort that’s difficult note to dance to. I should also mention that the mp3 made available with this posting is one made earlier today and I’ve eliminated the skips and jumps from the previous recording (I’ve a better turntable than I had in 2006).

Just a few weeks later, another James b-side was featured, and this was a cover (and some!)

It came from the single Lose Control in 1990 and I particularly love how Tim Booth throws in loads of Velvet Underground song titles as the tune reaches a crescendo. Fabulous.

mp3 : James – Sunday Morning

I thought I’d finish with something that wasn’t part of the posts back in 2006 and that’s the other track The Triffids recorded for the BBC Radio 1 session.

mp3 : The Triffids – Int0 The Groove

And you can dance…..for inspiration.

ENJOY!!