THE NEW VINYL VILLAIN

THE JAMES SINGLES (5)

One of my favourite early James singles and the least favourite of the sleeves.

The latter half of 86, all of 87 and early 88 was a strange time to be a James fan. It was also a frustrating time to be in the band and I’m assuming even more frustrating to be part of the label to which the band had signed.

James were uncompromising in how they wanted to sound while Sire Records had made it clear that if they didn’t release material that was more commercial or radio-friendly then nothing would ever see the light of day. In early 1987, a new album was recorded but the label demanded a ‘better’ mix which just wasn’t forthcoming. It really did look for a while as if we had seen the last of the band.

The boys eventually relented and in return the label agreed that they would back a new single which was released in March 1988, a full 18 months after the previous release. It turned out to be a stunning record. Joyous, anthemic and completely radio-friendly. It was surely destined for the Top 10. It even had whistling on it!!

Except……….the record label felt it was still too indie-sounding to be deserving of a promotional push and so again it was left to the late night DJs to try and champion it….but the problem being that the band had been away for too long and nobody was really all that interested.

A crime for which lots of folk should be put in the dock and found guilty.

A 12″ copy of this single sits in the cupboard so here we go:-

mp3 : James – What For (Climax Mix)
mp3 : James – Island Swing
mp3 : James – Not There

Once again, the b-sides are well worth your attention. Island Swing perhaps suffers from having a wee bit too much in the way of harmonica and the second half of the song doesn’t match the opening minute or so which is quite tremendous but there can’t be many bands that have done something this jaunty as a dig at the British Empire and other forms of colonialism – while Not There is an alternative and better version of a song that would later appear on the LP Strip-Mine.

Product 2378

PRODUCT 2378

One of the worst album covers of all time and one of the most cheaply produced compilation LPs of all time as there was absolutely no information bar the name of the song, the artist and where it was lifted from.

Product 2378 was released in 1990 on Telstar Records which, according to wiki:-

… was founded in 1982 by Sean O’Brien and Neil Palmer with a government loan of £120,000. It was launched as a specialist compilation marketing label and had hits with a range of compilation franchises such as the Deep Heat, Kaos Theory and 100% ranges. As well as these brands, the company licensed a number of major artist recordings (for example ABBA and the Four Tops) to release telemarketed compilations.

In the mid-1990s it diversified its output into the singles market and long-term artist development with the launch of the Multiply Records and Wildstar Records subsidiaries. Until then, Telstar normally only released singles that were tele-marketed and associated products like The Chippendales or PJ and Duncan. Acts signed in this period included Conner Reeves, Sash!, Phats & Small and Basement Jaxx. Craig David had the label’s first UK number one single.

Other artists included Victoria Beckham (a sub-licence deal from 19 Records), Rosie Ribbons, Skream!, The Cheeky Girls and Mis-Teeq. In the late 1990s, Telstar became closely associated with BMG Records, especially with the Telstar TV compilation arm and The Hits Album releases.

Telstar Records went bankrupt in 2004, largely due to the company’s habit of giving large advances to artists such as Claire Sweeney, Victoria Beckham and Rosie Ribbons who failed to make them any money. In the media much of the blame for the label’s failure was placed on their most high-profile signing, Victoria Beckham. However, as most of Telstar’s artists were not directly signed to the label, instead being either sub-licensed or part of a number of joint ventures, BMG (soon to be merged with Sony) declined to buy the label’s assets outright.

It’s really quite astonishing to think that the same label was responsible for such an excellent and star-studded compilation as the full sixteen-song track listing demonstrates:-

mp3 : The Wonder Stuff – Who Wants To Be The Disco King?
mp3 : New Order – Vanishing Point
mp3 : The Jesus & Mary Chain – Head On
mp3 : The Wedding Present – Kennedy
mp3 : Pop Will Eat Itself – Can U Dig It?
mp3 : Happy Mondays – Mad Cyril
mp3 : New Model Army – Brave New World
mp3 : The Weather Prophets – Almost Prayed
mp3 : Morrissey – Last Of The Famous International Playboys
mp3 : Siouxsie & The Banshees – Peek-a-Boo
mp3 : Pixies – Monkey Gone To Heaven
mp3 : Inspiral Carpets – Joe
mp3 : Crazyhead – Baby Turpentine
mp3 : Throwing Muses – Dizzy
mp3 : All About Eve – December
mp3 : The Mission – Tower of Strength (Bombay edit)

I just can’t begin to imagine how Product 2378 came about given the daily dross (for the most part) that Telstar Records inflicted on us. Was it down to some indie-kid on work experience for a week who somehow managed to sneak it out without his bosses noticing? As I said, the cheap artwork for the cover and the lack of any relevant and meaningful info within the packaging would indicate it wasn’t much of a priority for the label.

File under bizarre but enjoyable….

CHVRCHES, Flaming Lips, Frank Sidebottom, Lightspeed Champion, Mum

LISTENING TO ADVICE FROM READERS….

In recent weeks, in response to what has been posted on T(n)VV, a number of readers have made suggestions about tracking down some songs. Here’s what I mean:-

“Heard CHVRCHES version of Bela Lugosi?” : from London Lee on 5 February

“On the other hand, Lightspeed Champion has made some pretty good records. I loved ‘Madame Van Damme’.” : from The Robster on 31 January

“Last year, Kylie sang vocals on a track called ‘Whistle’ by Icelandic electronica meisters Múm. It’s probably my favourite thing she’s ever done, even topping that Nick Cave duet and her Dr Who appearance. I very strongly urge you to check it out.” : from The Robster on 29 January

“The Flaming Lips have a pretty good version of I Can’t Get You Out of My Head” : from Brian on 29 January

“Frank Sidebottom did a tremendous Kylie tribute track which is worth tracking down” : from Charity Chic on 29 January

So as The Chemical Brothers once chanted on a hit single of theirs……HERE WE GO!!!!!

mp3 : CHVRCHES – Bela Lugosi’s Dead
mp3 : Lightspeed Champion – Madame Van Damme
mp3 : Mum – Whistle
mp3 : Flaming Lips – I Can’t Get You Out Of My Head
mp3 : Frank Sidebottom – I Should Be So Lucky

PS : Happy Birthday to my young bro Stevie over there in Florida. That’s him 48…..

Cooper Temple Clause, Puressence, Walkmen

FROM THE SOUTH-WEST CORRESPONDENT…SOME LOST CLASSICS

So the reason why the last weeks CD would not rip was not because of the CD. It is because the CD player in my machine is broken. It won’t even open now. I really think that shoving as many paper clips into as I could to stop ‘Spaceman’ by Babylon Zoo being played ever again – wasn’t a good idea.

So I am parking the Box thing, at least until I can get a portable CD drive – there are still 25 or so CDs in that box and no one wants to miss out on some more obscure indie acts from the mid 90s. Although this morning I picked out the genuinely fantastic ‘Revolution on Ice’ by seminal American indie rock band Gumball – and it’s a shame that I can’t post some of that. Honestly download ‘With a Little Rain’ from it – marvellous track.

A few weeks back JC started the Cult Classics series, of which I posted the tremendous Whipping Boy song ‘We Don’t Need Nobody Else’ – as part of that I went through my entire Ipod collection and set aside 30 or so songs which I consider a cult classic, a lost classic, or just a record that should have done better than it did (to be honest the list started with 284 and I whittled it down). So until the CD player is replaced I’ll go through these perhaps three at a time.

Firstly, I’d like to bring your attention (although I think you will already know and love it) to ‘The Rat’ by The Walkmen. If you Google (or use any other less evil search engine) The Walkmen you will almost certainly be met with the ‘The Rat’. It is by far their best and most well-known song, everyone loves it, yet for some reason it sold about twelve copies in the UK. For those in the dark about The Walkmen – they formed from the ashes of Jonathan Fire*Eater and the slightly less well-known band The Recoys in 2000. ‘The Rat’ featured on the second album ‘Bows + Arrows’and it peaked at Number 45 in the UK Singles Chart. That there were 44 records that sold more copies that week amazes me. There has not even been 44 better records made than this single. Everyone should own this.

mp3 : The Walkmen – The Rat

Sadly In 2013 the band announced that they were going on an ‘Extreme Hiatus’, their last two albums ‘Lisbon’ and ‘Heaven’ come highly recommended especially ‘Lisbon’.

OK next up – A few years back if you asked any hack or ne’er do well charmless indie Londonite what was the most seminal gig that ‘they have ever been to’ (read, didn’t really attend, but read about) they would have said Oasis at the Water Rats in 1993. Fast forward a few years, and ask the same question and they will give you this answer ‘The Cooper Temple Clause at the Purple Turtle, Reading 2000’.

In 2001 The Cooper Temple Clause released what for many should have been their breakthrough song ‘Let’s Kill Music’. It came with a slick brilliant video (the same theme/actors running across all of the videos for their debut album), it had radio play, it had press backing, yet it stalled at Number 41. It is an incredible song, it’s as infectious as bird flu, and even now playing makes me want to throw myself around the lounge. I saw the CTC at The Cavern Club, Exeter (capacity 200, in attendance roughly 65 people). I couldn’t hear for three days after, one of the best gigs I’ve ever been to.

mp3 : The Cooper Temple Clause – Let’s Kill Music

Finally, we come to a band that I to this day, wonder how they never become as big as some of their contemporaries, like, say Elbow, for instance. Ladies and Gents (gents mainly I think, but moving on…) I give you Puressence. A band for whom the phrase ‘Why aren’t you massive’ was invented for.

People – Puressence had something. Something very special. They had a sound that so stunning that at times it felt like nothing on earth. In their singer James Mudriczki they had a truly incredible voice that made you stop and wait until they hairs on the back of your neck had settled down again. Their eponymous debut album released in 1996 sounded like nothing else around at the time. It is truly a lost classic, buy it, download it illegally if you have to, just listen to it. You certainly won’t regret it. I listened to it yesterday on the way to work, and fell for this band all over again.

mp3 : Puressence – I Suppose

The lead single ‘I Suppose’ peaked at Number 190. I’ll repeat that Number 190. Criminally neglected. Puressence struggled on for a few more albums, and eventually split for ever last year and yet Mumford and Sons are still allowed to walk the streets without being pelted with rotting fruit.

Until next time

S-WC

Creation Records

INSPIRED BY YESTERDAY’S CULT CLASSIC

When I downloaded Son Of Mustang Ford for yesterday’s cult classic contribution e, I knew it was a song I’d heard before. Turns out it’s on a compilation tape given away with the April 1992 edition of the now defunct Select Magazine. It’s a tape featuring eleven acts who at the time were all signed to Creation Records, and by way of the magic of the internet I’ve been able to find a copy of the tape:-

mp3 : Boo Radleys – Lazy Day (version)
mp3 : Swervedriver – Son Of Mustang Ford (demo version)
mp3 : Teenage Fanclub – Kylie’s Got A Crush On Us
mp3 : Silverfish – Vitriola (demo version)
mp3 : Love Corporation – Gimme Some Love (remix)
mp3 : Ride – Time Of Her Life (live version)
mp3 : mk – Play The World (edit)
mp3 : The Telescopes – You Set My Soul
mp3 : Slowdive – Shine (edit)
mp3 : Sheer Taft – Atlantis (edit)
mp3 : Bill Drummond – The Manager’s Speech (edit)

It’s not a bad listen all the way through. Opening with 90 seconds of classic Boo Radleys and ending with a wee bit of tongue-in-cheek philosophy from Bill Drummond, it turns out to be a rare example of a free giveaway that is well worth holding onto.

My main reason for chasing it down in the first place was to get what was then an unreleased Teenage Fanclub song. Indeed, it would turn out to be the only place you could get their version of the song although it was released as a single the following year by BMX Bandits. This particular version was recorded at a sound check at Coventry Polytechnic in January 1992 – there’s even a bit of feedback featured.

Oh and I’ll just mention that I think the tape features a better version of the Swervedriver song than what was actually released and featured in yesterday’s posting….

Enjoy!!!

Swervedriver

CULT CLASSICS : SON OF MUSTANG FORD by SWERVEDRIVER

This week’s e-mail comes all the way from New Zealand…..from a long-time friend of the blog, Craig Neale.

Great idea for a series JC, hope you get some more contributions.

I’ve agonised over it for ages – (would’ve done ‘Revolutionary Spirit’ if you hadn’t – great choice) thought of some classic songs but found they weren’t released as singles, or weren’t the a-side, thought of others but couldn’t think of anything to write, so have gone with ‘Son of Mustang Ford’ by Swervedriver.

I really love this band, and this, their first single put out in 1990 is one of my ‘wow!’ songs… yes, I have a playlist on my ipod labelled ‘wow songs’, which as the name suggests are all songs that i thought “wow!” when i first heard them – my variation on the ‘desert island discs’-type lists people make… not necessarily my favourite songs of all time, or even my favourite track by that artist (i restricted it to one song per band) they just all knocked my socks off!

Anyway, the first time I heard this song was the classic cliche – browsing in a record shop, it came on (very loud), I ran up to the desk asking who is this? what’s it called, I’ll buy it, what else have they done? (which unfortunately at the time was nothing, but this kept me going till their next one ‘Rave Down’, which was also a ripper, came out) raced home to listen to it again and was rapt to find the b-sides were awesome too. these guys were doing exactly what my band at the time were trying to do (only much, much better) – they seemed to be a perfect blend of most of the influences we were trying to incorporate into our sound: my bloody valentine/sonic youth/dinosaur jr/cyberpunk/J G Ballard novels/road movies etc … great stuff!

Hailing from Oxford, they released 4 albums and various ep’s/singles (another of those bands noted for the quality of their b-sides), split up in 1999 and did solo/side projects, then reformed in 2008 and are still playing. a really good live band, I saw them with a friend who was only familiar with their first album ‘Raise’.

They played ‘Son of Mustang Ford’ as an encore, after which my friend said “How do they top that!”. They then launched into a scorching version of ‘Kill the Superheroes’, after which i said “That’s how!!!”

I hope at least some of you might enjoy these

Cheers, Craig

mp3 : Swervedriver – Son Of Mustang Ford
mp3 : Swervedriver – Volcano Trash
mp3 : Swervedriver – Kill The Superheroes
mp3 : Swervedriver – Juggernaut Rides

James Kirk, Memphis

SATURDAY’S SCOTTISH SINGLE (Part 80)

James Kirk wrote the finest single ever recorded by Orange Juice. In fact, as regular readers will know, it is my strongly-held view that Felicity is the finest single ever recorded by any Scottish band or singer.

In 1985, James Kirk rather surprisingly came out of his self-imposed retirement and, adopting the name Memphis, wrote and recorded what rather sadly turned out to be a one-off 45 for the Swamplands label that was being run by Alan Horne (ex Postcard).

mp3 : Memphis – You Supply The Roses
mp3 : Memphis – Apres Ski

Rather delightful and rather apt for the posting the day after Valentine’s.

In 2003, James Kirk released his one and only solo LP. Entitled You Can Make It If You Boogie, it really is a wonderful collection of tunes. Eleven of them were brand new – one of the the others saw his own fresh take on Felicity, while this took the tune from You Supply The Roses:-

mp3 : James Kirk – Krach Auf Wiedersehen

I’ll finish today with a request for a favour.

I’ve only got the 7″ of this single and so….if anyone has the 12″, would they be so kind and rip the instrumental track I’ll Supply The Wine from the b-side and send a copy to me. I’d be eternally grateful…..

Update on Sunday 16 Feb…….a huge thanks to Hugh for sending this all the way from France:-

mp3 : Memphis – I’ll Supply The Wine

I’ll raise a glass of Fleurie to your good health Hugh.

Cheers.

Aidan Moffat, Bill Wells & Aidan Moffat

LOVE IS IN THE AIR

Here’s what Scotland’s modern-day national bard wrote in a magazine article this time three years ago:-

Every couple of years or so around this time, my city likes to remind everyone that somewhere in Glasgow Cathedral lies a box with a few bones that used to be part of Saint Valentine. Of course, this almost certainly isn’t true – the Irish, among others, lay claim to the remains, and then there’s the fact that no-one can agree on exactly which one of the Saints named Valentine we’re supposed to be celebrating every February 14th. It’s really just an attempt to remind everyone to go out and spend money on hideous tat and splash out on restaurants they normally couldn’t afford in the ‘City Of Love’; the first attempt to boost the retail economy after the January clear-outs.

Perhaps that’s a little too cynical – I’m not entirely against some elements of Valentine’s Day. For instance, I think it can be great fun for kids, if also somewhat heartbreaking and emotionally scarring. I remember pulling a hat over my face in an attempt to anonymously post a romantic missive through Vivien Gilles’s front door when I was about 8 – but someone saw the whole thing, and I was consistently ridiculed for my secret desire until a class member was found doing something even more pathetic and the attention turned.

Anyway, the song below – and available for download for your listening pleasure – is called City Of Love. Half of it used to be a poem I wrote for a spoken word album, but then I added a couple of choruses so I could sing it live, and it all seemed to make sense.

Happy Valentine’s Day. Suckers.

CITY OF LOVE

Saturday night’s the night for fun,
but where’s the boy that made your make-up run?
The pubs emptied out, you pushed past on the street,
but where was the guy that made your green eyes greet?
Were your knee-high boots and tiny skirt
all for the boy that made your heart hurt?
Did the big hoop earrings and new hair-do above
have little effect on the boy that you love?

The streets are full of broken hearts,
of useless pricks and stupid tarts;
the city’s filled with love to save
as Saint Valentine spins in his grave.

Did he turn up late in your favourite place
and throw his last drink right in your face?
Could he tell something’s wrong, could he tell you were lying
before he decided there’s no point in trying?
Did you make a mistake, give in to your lust
and prove yet again you’re not someone to trust?
Did you think about begging, pleading and kneeling?
If so, i think i might know how you’re feeling.

Tonight we’ll both get our own way –
there’s no-one else to have their say.
In filthy sheets we both shall lie,
and do our best to let love die.

mp3 : Aidan John Moffat – City Of Love

And while I’m here:-

mp3 : Bill Wells & Aidan Moffat – The Powers and The Glory of Love

It’s a track with a difference. I think most of you will hate it for one reason or another. It came about after some drunken exchanges on twitter in which Aidan was challenged to create a medley of three different 80s songs he proclaimed his affecrion for. Each of the songs is entitled The Power of Love and were originally recorded by Frankie Goes To Hollywood, Jennifer Rush and Huey Lewis & The News. To top it all off, there’s a fourth song thrown in – The Glory Of Love by Peter Cetera (which I admit I had to look up and learn that it was a huge hit in 1986 – I genuinely can’t recall the song) with some crazy backing vocals and harmonies from Norman Blake of Teenage Fanclub.

Happy Valentine’s Day y’all.

Aztec Camera, Go-Betweens, Postcard Records

THEY WERE ON POSTCARD RECORDS (3) & (4)

Two of the finest musical acts that have ever graced the planet. One features a teenage boy wonder from a town just outside of Glasgow while the other lot come from Brisbane which is in the land down under.

mp3 : The Go-Betweens – I Need Two Heads
mp3 : The Go-Betweens – Stop Before You Say It
(Postcard 80-4 : November 1980)

mp3 : Aztec Camera – Just Like Gold
mp3 : Aztec Camera – We Could Send Letters
(Postcard 81-3 : April 1981)

mp3 : Aztec Camera – Mattress Of Wire
mp3 : Aztec Camera – Lost Outside The Tunnel
(Postcard 81-8 : August 1981)

The b-sides to the Aztec Camera singles were later re-recorded for High Land, Hard Rain. The Postcard versions are way superior IMHO….

And now…..the moment I’ve been dreading….the Top 11 rundown.

The great thing was listening to all 11 records over and over and over again. The bad thing was agonising over which song should be #1 – all of the Top 4 were very serious contenders – but in the end, I went for the song that today still fills me with joy every time I hear it….and which even now, more than 30 years on, still has the ability to have me lose it completely on the dance floor whenever it gets aired at one of the Little League nights.

11. Poor Old Soul
10. I Need Two Heads
9. Chance Meeting
8. Mattress Of Wire
7. Radio Drill Time
6. Sorry For Laughing
5. Simply Thrilled Honey
4. It’s Kinda Funny
3. Just Like Gold
2. Falling and Laughing
1. Blue Boy

I’ve got it all wrong, haven’t I????

Josef K, Postcard Records

THEY WERE ON POSTCARD RECORDS (2)

It may have been based in Glasgow and is probably best known for Orange Juice. But the band which released the most material on Postcard actually came from Edinburgh:-

mp3 : Josef K – Radio Drill Time
mp3 : Josef K – Crazy To Exist
(Postcard 80-3 : September 1980)

mp3 : Josef K – It’s Kinda Funny
mp3 : Josef K – Final Request
(Postcard 80-5 : December 1980)

mp3 : Josef K – Sorry For Laughing
mp3 : Josef K – Revelation
(Released on Crepuscule under license
TWI023/Postcard 81-4 : April 1981)

mp3 : Josef K – Chance Meeting
mp3 : Josef K – Pictures (of Cindy)
(Postcard 81-5 : May 1981)

And of course, Josef K were the only act who ever had an LP released via the original Postcard label when The Only Fun In Town hit the shops in July 1981 with the catalogue number 81-7.

Uncategorized

THIS IS A PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT….WITH GUITARS!!!!!

“Born to the strains of ‘Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep’, and with the hippies giving way to the glam rockers, a humble kid began his exploration of life with music in his blood, his head and his heart.

This is his story.”

That’s the synopsis of a brand new blog that comes VERY highly recommended on the basis of the first two posts alone. It’s a unique blog that begin with Lou Reed and then the following day gives you The Rubettes, The Bay City Rollers and The Wombles………..

But then again, The Robster is a unique blogger prepared to talk equally about the skeletons in his closet as about the cool music he’s enjoyed in a way that will be magnificently entertaining and educational.

Click here for the link and then bookmark the thing.

Four Tet, Iceage, Octopus, Radiohead, Suuns

FROM THE SOUTH-WEST CORRESPONDENT..WHAT’S IN YOUR BOX (20)

There is a tiny Scottish feeling to this weeks column.

Firstly, I have just read that every year more than 1000 people placed a bet this year that the football score East Fife 5 Forfar 4 will occur. This genuinely made my choke on my cereal. 5 -4 scorelines in football are rare – even rarer when two teams with names that sound slightly like the numbers play each other. If you ask me that is 1000 people with far too much time on their hands. Although I do imagine that if the scoreline does occur, the BBC would probably eat itself with excitement.

Secondly the CD of choice this week was from Octopus a band from Aberdeen who signed to Food Records (home of Blur and Jesus Jones) in the mid 90s.

They were a mid table indie band with a liking for big choruses. Sadly, when I put the CD in the machine it refused to play. Which is a shame because this is a belter of a record, I remember it well and always thought that it should have reached much higher in the charts than it did. When it came out, I had a guest reviewing the singles with me and after we listened to this, with its trumpet inspired chorus we had a small chat about the use of brass in singles and whether this was a good thing or not, we decided pretty much as long as they didn’t ruin the song it was ok (so you’d better but the bugle down down Mr Mumford). My guest reviewer loved this song (understandably) and described it memorably as ‘a brass blessed beauty rather than a trumpet troubled turd’. I gave him an extra pork pie for the wonder of his alliteration alone.

I’d loved to post this song but can’t post it, my only hope is that JC has it earmarked for his Scottish Single Series because your lives (well your ears at least) will be all the better for hearing it.

(JC adds…..I do have the track via one of those indie compilations that were all the rage in the Britpop era….and while S-WC is quick to sing its praises, I’m more inclined to say that it’s a very fine Oasis tribute.)

mp3 : Octopus – Your Smile

So instead of that I have done a random shuffle on my iPod (Classic 3rd Gen, 8830 songs) and will post the first three songs that come on. So first up we have: –

Oooh allow me a moment here ‘TUNE’ – ‘Arena’ – Suuns. Suuns are a Canadian band that sprang to our attention a few backs with their debut album ‘Zeroes QC’. This was to be was the standout track from that album. It has a kind of space rock feel to it as it whooshes along magically. ‘Zeroes QC’ comes highly recommended as well. They released a second album last year ‘Images du Futur’ which to be honest wasn’t as good.

mp3 : Suuns – Arena

Second song – my iPod is being kind to you all this morning ‘Coalition’ – Iceage. Iceage, are a Danish punk band, and they rock like bastards. Fiercely independent and with a strong fan based ethic they have released two albums quite quietly in the last couple of years, the second ‘You’re Nothing’ was an absolute treasure of a record, it’s all done and dusted in about 35 minutes but it leaves you breathless, great shouty, simple, spiky punk rock. They also sing occasionally in Danish which is a rare treat. If you like Iceage (and you should) I recommend you check out Metz (another great Canadian band) and Radkey who do similar things in a shouty manner.

mp3 : Iceage – Coalition

Finally, aah lovely, ‘Aerial’ – Four Tet – this is taken from last years ‘Beautiful Rewind’ album. I’ve said before that I love Four Tet and think that the brains behind it Kieron Hebden is a genius (NME people if you are reading – here is a Godlike Genius you should celebrate don’t waste your time with Blondie, you fools). Four Tet make beautiful music, rarely do they release a bad record. If you check out their website there are also regularly loads of free downloads of mixtapes (one just last week, an hour of free dance music) and other bits and pieces. If you are not familiar with Four Tet, the best place to start is ‘Rounds’ that is an album that deserves to sit in anyones Top 50 ever. Radiohead fans should check out their remix of Skttrbrain’ too.

mp3 : Four Tet – Aerial

See you next week hopefully with a CD that plays!

JC adds again……

That’s the first time any of those four bands have appeared on this or the previous blog, so thanks again to S-WC for broadening mine and maybe some of your horizons. I have previously featured that Radiohead remix that was mentioned:

mp3 : Radiohead – Skttrbrain (Four Text Remix)

Enjoy!!

Orange Juice, Postcard Records

THEY WERE ON POSTCARD RECORDS (1)

Postcard Records.

You might have heard of it. Founded at 185 West Princes Street, Glasgow by Alan Horne.

It had the motto ‘The Sound of Young Scotland’ while its logo was a cat banging a drum.

In April 1980, the first Postcard 45 was released. In August 1981, the eleventh and final Postcard 45 was released.

They are all going to feature this week and at the end I am going to try the impossible by ranking them in preference on the quality of just the A side of the single. Wish me luck.

mp3 : Orange Juice – Falling and Laughing
mp3 : Orange Juice – Moscow
mp3 : Orange Juice – Moscow Olympics
(Postcard 80-1 : released April 1980)

mp3 : Orange Juice – Blue Boy
mp3 : Orange Juice – Love Sick
(Postcard 80-2 : released September 1980)

mp3 : Orange Juice – Simply Thrilled Honey
mp3 : Orange Juice – Breakfast Time
(Postcard 80-6 : released December 1980)

mp3 : Orange Juice – Poor Old Soul
mp3 : Orange Juice – Poor Old Soul (pt2)
(Postcard 81-2 : released March 1981)

Note for trivia fans. Wan Light was given a catalogue number of 81-6 and scheduled for a June 1981 release. But it never happened.

June Brides

CULT CLASSICS : IN THE RAIN and EVERY CONVERSATION by THE JUNE BRIDES

This is a last-minute change of cult classic. I had something else lined-up but it’s now going to have to wait a few weeks. Blame it on the demands of the customer base…and specifically that of Jacke from Stockholm who just 48 hours ago asked for some June Brides in the next post.

I’ll confess that I initially missed out on The June Brides. They formed in 1983 and by the following year had released two singles on The Pink Label. This was an era when I was listening to a lot of music and I can only guess that the reason that TJB passed me by was that I was too busy getting lost in the music of The Smiths, New Order, Lloyd Cole & The Commotions, Friends Again, Orange Juice, Go-Betweens, etc to pick up on everything. It wasn’t till the early 90s, some five years after TJB had broken-up, that I became aware of some of the songs they had recorded and released in their all too brief a career.

More fool me.

I think it’s best therefore, to allow someone who did fall in love with them right away to express what it is that makes this band so special. I’m pinching the following words from a great piece put together by Andy Wood in a piece he posted on the great blog Manic Pop Thrills:-

I was still at school, struggling along and trying to find some kind of identity for myself. A friend gave me a cassette of sessions that he’d taped recently from the John Peel show and there was a session by The June Brides which really struck a chord with me and that was it, I was hooked. The four songs on that session really stuck out for me, there was a sense of beauty and lovely melodies, there was the mix between that loveliness and a sense of regret, even worldly-weariness but also a sense of the possibility of change and a defiance that things could be better, no matter how small the change. The words and music became very special to me. I began to get quite interested in the sounds being produced by independent bands and labels and discovered a whole world which influenced me and this got me into playing, putting on live gigs and producing fanzines as part of a D.I.Y. culture that seemed so vibrant and interesting and diametrically opposed to the world of the polished, dull mainstream.

I tracked down everything I could find by the band and looked forward to new records and the possibility of seeing them live. Alas, although they played Dundee once I had no chance of being admitted to a strictly over 18’s only show in Fat Sams. I hated being young, I couldn’t wait to grow up, I was impatient to taste this world of gigs and music, to be free from the strictures of school and my parents but I was stuck, as The June Brides suggested, simply waiting for a change.

Fate is a cruel thing. Despite having seemed to have been on an unstoppable rise, releasing an album and several great singles and touring incessantly – including with The Smiths (on an Irish tour) – the band called it a day. Those who added the lush viola and trumpet to the June Brides sound would go on to play sessions with a number of bands including while frontman Phil Wilson signed to Creation as a solo artist.

The influence of the band remained though, at times noticeable and at other points less so. I think it can be heard in the music of a number of bands, not necessarily in an obvious way but it’s there. Belle and Sebastian would be one band I’d say shared my love for The June Brides. Their Peel session was issued in 1987 which finally allowed me to replace my hissy second generation cassette. A best of followed a few years later then there was an album of covers put out. Cherry Red issued the double CD “Every Conversation. The Story of The June Brides and Phil Wilson” which collected everything the band and Wilson had ever recorded. It’s an essential album for anyone I think…..

And it’s thanks to that Cherry Red compilation that I really discovered just how good the June Brides had been and indeed how equally rich the Phil Wilson solo material was in quality. It is, without question, as Andy says, an essential compilation. It also led me to get a hold of a vinyl copy of their one proper studio LP, There Are Eight Million Stories…. which was scheduled for a posting on this blog in a couple of weeks time, but Jacke’s prompting has brought things forward.

With this being the cult singles series, I’m going back to 1984 to the earliest material. I really couldn’t make my mind up which of the two singles from that year to select, so I’m cheating and featuring both.

mp3 : The June Brides – In The Rain
mp3 : The June Brides – Sunday To Saturday

(catalogue # Pinky1, released March 1984)

mp3 : The June Brides – Every Conversation
mp3 : The June Brides – Disneyland

(catalogue # Pinky 2, released September 1984)

The b-sides are also from the top drawer.

30 years on and the band have reformed and are playing live. They came to Glasgow in late November 2013, but alas I was out of the country on holiday. I hope they come back again soon….

Everything you want to know can be found at www.junebridesmusic.com

Enjoy!!!!

Meat Whiplash

SATURDAY’S SCOTTISH SINGLE (Part 79)

From wiki:-

Meat Whiplash was an alternative rock band from East Kilbride, Scotland, that were amongst the first to be signed to Creation Records.

The line-up was Paul McDermott (vox), Stephen McLean (guitar), Edward Connelly (bass guitar) and Michael Kerr (drums). They took their name from a B-side track by The Fire Engines. They then became The Motorcycle Boy when female singer Alex Taylor (of The Shop Assistants) joined the group in 1987.

They only had one record released, Don’t Slip Up, which spent 19 weeks in the UK’s independent music chart, where it reached the No. 3 position following its release on 14 September 1985 as a 7″ single, (which had a sleeve featuring actor Robert Vaughn, printed up by Bobby Gillespie and hand-folded by their record label’s owner, Alan McGee).

They are notorious for being the opening band at The Jesus and Mary Chain‘s infamous “riot gig” at the North London Polytechnic on 15 March 1985, where they threw a wine bottle into the crowd and were, according to The Jasmine Minks, the next band set to play, then beaten-up on-stage by members of the audience who later rioted when the controversial main act performed. They also had a session in the Maida Vale studios for John Peel’s show on BBC Radio 1 on 15 October that same year.

“Meat Whiplash” was also the name of a mid-80s independent record store in Plymouth, Devon, run by Jeff Barrett, who later worked as a press officer for Creation Records and then founded Heavenly Records. After a concert in the city by the Jesus and Mary Chain, the store acquired a second sign and also became known as “Bobby Gillespie’s.”

mp3 : Meat Whiplash – Don’t Slip Up
mp3 : Meat Whiplash – Here It Comes

Enjoy!

Chesterfields, Orange Juice, Vic Godard & Subway Sect

THE BEST SONG TO PEAK AT #4 IN THE INDIE CHART?

A lot of the stuff from the C86 movement hasn’t aged well. In many cases, this will be down to poor production which nowadays grates on the ear while all too often the off-key singing which in its day seemed to be part of the charm now sounds annoying.

But there are still some songs that, almost 30 years on, deserve to be thought of as absolute classics. It’s a crying shame that so many of the small indie labels weren’t able to give the records the push they needed to crossover into the conscious of mainstream listeners. All too often, the label and indeed the band seemed happy enough to settle for a few playings on the John Peel Show, a positive review in the NME and then an appearance somewhere in the indie Top 10. I’m not saying that was the case with today’s tune, but there is seemingly something seriously wrong when a song as brilliant as this has to settle for #4 on the Indie Chart:-

mp3 : The Chesterfields – Ask Johnny Dee

They were in existence from 84-89 during which time there were two studio LPs and eight singles/EPs. They toured extensively (I saw them once as support act to Edwyn Collins on one of his earliest solo tours) and like so many bands picked up a decent sized hardcore following. many of whom (according to wiki) referred to them as “The Chesterf!elds”, with an exclamation mark replacing the “i”, following the example of the band’s logo.

Tragically, lead singer and main songwriter Dave Goldsworthy died in November 2003, at the age of 40, from head injuries sustained in a hit & run incident in Oxford.

One thing to mention is that The Chesterfields, like Orange Juice, did a cover of a great Vic Godway track. I thought it would be an idea to post all three versions:-

mp3 : Vic Goddard & The Subway Sect – Holiday Hymn
mp3 : Orange Juice – Holiday Hymn
mp3 : The Chesterfields – Holiday Hymn

Enjoy!!

Hole

BLUE JEANS AND CHINOS; COKE, PEPSI AND OREOS (Part 6)

I got thinking about putting a posting together about Hole the other week when I did the back-to-back pieces on Cope, McCulloch and Wylie. I had forgotten that Courtney Love, as a teenage tearaway, had lived in Liverpool for a spell during which she became very friendly with Julian. I believe him when he says they never fucked…

I don’t actually own all that many bits of music by Hole but then again they didn’t really release all that much material. They formed in the late 80s but took ages to get a settled line up – the other constant member was Eric Erlandson. The debut LP, Pretty On The Inside, was released on small indie labels in 1991 on both sides of the Atlantic and its rough and ready production combined with the lead singer’s confrontational approach to life and to performing got them plenty of attention and in very soon they were signed on a fat and lengthy contract to Geffen Records, one of the biggest labels in the world.

It took a while to get the material for the next LP together but that was completely secondary to the circus that was Courtney Love’s life….she had only gone and married the world’s biggest rock star and had his baby daughter.

But amidst the chaos surrounding Mr & Mrs Cobain, Hole (which had once again gone through further changes with seemingly nobody capable of working with Courtney & Eric for any extended period of time) announced that their debut for a major was set for release in the spring of 1994.

On 8 April 1994, Kurt Cobain shot himself. Four days later, the very unfortunately named Live Through This was released with an eerie cover of a beauty queen, similar in looks to Love, with mascara running down her cheeks as the result of her crying. You couldn’t make it up……….

It was known that Cobain had worked with his wife on the LP and critics and fans alike poured over it to see if the record contained any clues to his suicide. None were forthcoming, but what they found however, was an incredibly impressive record – one that showed Courtney Love and her band had talent to burn – with a very fine combination of rock and pop that was incredibly radio friendly. Or to put it another way…it sounded the way that the industry had hoped Nirvana would go on the back of Nevermind when in fact they had gone much heavier on In Utero.

It took another four years for the next Hole record to be released and in the intervening period the band had lost its bass player to a drugs overdose, the lead singer had starred in a Hollywood movie for which she and received a Golden Globe nomination for her performance while the other band members did side projects. All the while the spectre of Kurt Cobain hung over everything.

Celebrity Skin again caught folk out being very friendly rock that was soon on heavy rotation on radio stations all across the States. Courtney had shown, as a singer-songwriter/performer that she was no one-horse pony. The album is estimated to have sold over 2 million copies worldwide, of which some 75% found homes in the USA.

On the road though, things didn’t work out well.

In the winter of 1998–99, Hole planned a tour to promote Celebrity Skin jointly headlining with Marilyn Manson, but after just nine dates they quit, partly due to the poor reception they were receiving from Manson’s fans who made up the majority of the live audiences.

For the next six months, Hole toured the world in a combination of their own headline shows or as part of festivals and then were dealt a blow in late 1999 when again those members who weren’t named Love or Erlandson quit the band.

It took another three years before the band officially broke up. In 2010, Love announced Hole would be reforming but in reality it was just her with new backing musicians and the subsequent LP, Nobody’s Daughter, and the live shows that followed were a pale imitation of the goddess who had conquered all in the mid 90s.

Here’s some of the great singles from that era:-

mp3 : Hole – Miss World
mp3 : Hole – Violet
mp3 : Hole – Doll Parts
mp3 : Hole – Celebrity Skin
mp3 : Hole – Malibu

Enjoy.

James

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!

David Holmes, Secret Knowledge

FROM THE SOUTH-WEST CORRESPONDENT…WHAT’S IN YOUR BOX (19)

Banging Heads and Banging Tunes

From the South West Correspondent : Whats in Your Box Part 19

Various Artists – ‘The Science Behind the Circle’.

You know when you get on a bus and there is always one joker at the back (baseball cap, tracksuit, sovereign ring) whose music you can hear above the sound of the engine – and its always techno or ‘happy house’ blaring out. That’s what listening to this weeks CD(s) sounds like. For today, I embraced dance music big style. Out of the box came a double CD of techno and house music from 1996 called ‘The Science Behind the Circle’ which features tracks by Secret Knowledge, Carl Cox, David Holmes and Andrew Weatherall. I however have no idea about the idea behind the CD or if it was released to tie in with a club or something like that. Further knowledge is scarce on the Internet as well.

The only problem is that today I am poorly, I have man flu. As you can image at times its been touch and go and I drift in and out of consciousness and I have the ambulance folk on speed dial. This CD is what I would refer to a ‘Bangin’ but only because I’m too lazy to think of any other words to describe music that involves the use of a 303 (again, I have no idea what a 303 is, or whether or not, these tracks actually do use a 303). What this CD has taught me is though is that someone out there is releasing records as Vinyl Blair, which is a frankly marvellous name. I await DJ Noel Edphones releases with baited breath.

Dance music sounds weird when you are too tired to listen to things properly, you miss things, the little bleeps and bips become annoying and the euphoria of doesn’t quite work when strongest drugs you have ingested is Lemsip. Normally when I am poorly I listen to things with acoustic guitars or I dig out Four Tet and play it until I fall asleep. It is impossible to fall asleep listening to this, and I have to say my headache got slightly worse whilst this was on – not because its terrible but because it does just bleep, whoomp and dof a lot.

The standout tracks for me as ‘Drive Me Crazy’ by Secret Knowledge (Secret Knowledge is the band formed by ex-journalist Kris Needs and I recommend them) and ‘Grumpy Flutter’ by David Holmes – which was the only track on here I’d previously heard. The Second CD is a little more laid back than the first one – although its still pretty uplifting stuff. It’s a good album, its got Andrew Weatherall on it, so it can’t be bad at all, its just a shame that right now I’m not in a place to enjoy it.

mp3 : Secret Knowlege – Drive Me Crazy

mp3 : David Holmes – Grumpy Flutter

Pass the Strepsils, see you next week.

S-WC

Bauhaus

REMEMBERING BAUHAUS

Bauhaus are one of the many bands of the early 80s era who could lay claim to having a say in the ‘invention’ of goth rock. It’s fair to say that most folk will recall the name of only one member of the four-piece, that of singer Peter Murphy. And yet, the fact is he only became part of the band when the others approached him, not because of his vocal talents, but simply because he had the right look.

There’s no disputing that Murphy was one of those blokes who it was impossible for even the most hetro and red-blooded male to deny was good-looking. Certainly, there were plenty of us who tried hard to capture the image, be it the impeccably prepared hair, the sharp as a razor cheekbones, or the piercing eyes made all the more memorable by the clever application of make-up.

Bauhaus never quite made it the way so many expected them to. I was surprised to find out that of the 11 singles and 4 EPs released at their peak between 1980 and 1983, only two of them actually cracked the Top 40, and one of these was a cover of Ziggy Stardust (indeed, this was their biggest success hitting #15 in 1982).

There are, in my opinion, two tracks that have more than stood the test of time and I’ve dug the bits of vinyl out of the cupboard. Possibly the greatest nine-minute long single of all time:-

mp3 : Bauhaus – Bela Legosi’s Dead

I don’t have the original 1979 release but one from a couple of year later that has this fascinating little number on the b-side:-

mp3 : Bauhaus – Boys/Dark Entries (demo)

A close second in my personal Bauhaus chart is this:-

mp3 : Bauhaus – Kick In The Eye

The song had in fact been issued as a single in 1981 but had stalled at #59. On the back of the Ziggy success, the record label gave it a re-release on the Searching for Satori EP, but still public wouldn’t bite and it only reached a disappointing #45. And yet…..I could have sworn it was a huge hit…it was one of those songs that inevitably filled the floor of any student disco I was at. Here’s yer other tracks which by turn are surprising (ie not the sort of song you’d associate with miserable goths) and weird (ie unlistenable shite…..but feel free to differ)

mp3 : Bauhaus – Harry
mp3 : Bauhaus – Earwax

Oh and I forgot…..I’m also quite fond of giving this a listen every now and again, but I’ve only got a copy via a CD compilation:-

mp3 : Bauhaus – Lagartija Nick

Enjoy!!