Calexico - Dustbowl Live 1998-2005

My introduction to Calexico came in the early 2000s via the wonderful resource that is the Live Music Archive. I'd heard very little by the band at this point so I initially picked a selection of songs then went back over time and downloaded full concerts. The quality of Live Music Archive material can be variable, but the Calexico concerts that I've got have generally been high quality soundboard recordings.

This selection is pretty much my initial download playlist, although I've rejigged the running order here to achieve a slightly less jarring jump between songs. The majority of songs come from Live Music Archive, with a few from Calexico's official website, back in the days when you'd get freebie downloads. There are picks from Calexico's second album, The Black Light (1998), through to the Convict Pool EP (2004), with a few cover versions and rare songs thrown in for good measure. I've still not heard studio recordings of a number of these songs - or seen Calexico live in person - so for me these remain the most familiar/definitive versions,

 

1) El Picador (Live @ Paradiso, Amsterdam, Netherlands, 15 February 2001)

2) Jesus And Tequila (Live @ The Backyard, Austin, Texas, 04 May 2005)

3) El Cascabel (Live @ KGNU, Boulder, Colorado, 05 May 2002) (ft. Mariachi Luz De Luna)

4) Gift X-Change (Live @ Rudolstadt Festival, Germany, 06 July 2001)

5) Minas De Cobre (Live @ White Stage, Roskilde Festival, Denmark, 01 July 2000)

6) Ballad Of Cable Hogue (Live @ Paradiso, Amsterdam, Netherlands, 15 February 2001) (ft. Kathleen Rahn) 

7) The Black Light (Live @ SPOKE, Tucson, Arizona, 10 June 2002)

8) Return Of The Manta Ray (Live @ Satyricon, Portland, Oregon, 14 June 1998)

9) I Started A Joke (Cover of Bee Gees) (Live @ Paradiso, Amsterdam, Netherlands, 15 February 2001) (ft. Shannon Wright) 

10) Alone Again Or (Cover of Love) (Live @ China Theatre, Stockholm, Sweden, 25 April 2003)

11) Tulsa Telephone Book (Cover of Tom T. Hall) (Live @ White Stage, Roskilde Festival, Denmark, 01 July 2000)

12) Stray (Live @ The Casbah, San Diego, California, 02 June 2001)

13) Not Even Stevie Nicks... (Live @ Rialto Theatre, Tucson, Arizona, 02 December 2006)

14) Crystal Frontier (Live @ Paradiso, Amsterdam, Netherlands, 15 February 2001)

15) Attack El Robot! Attack! (Live @ China Theatre, Stockholm, Sweden, 25 April 2003)

 

Dustbowl Live 1998-2005 (1:18:43)
 

Dub Revelutions

I woke up this morning to the extremely sad news that Lee 'Scratch' Perry died yesterday (29th). The BBC obituary doesn't even begin to do justice to the man's influence, as artist, producer, remixer, collaborator, eccentric and innovator, but how do you attempt to encapsulate a life and career that profoundly changed music and continues to inspire and influence right now? 

I have a deep love of reggae and dub so Perry's work features heavily in my music collection and whilst his output and quality control was less consistent in the 1990s and 2000s, his collaborations with Adrian Sherwood and The Orb in the last decade marked a creative high. I had never managed to see Lee 'Scratch' Perry in concert and planned to see him in Gloucester in November.

I don't have any standalone Lee 'Scratch' Perry mixtapes that I could post here today, so I've hastily cobbled together a tribute selection in the last hour and a half. Some obvious choices are omitted: nothing by Bob Marley & The Wailers or The Clash and no Police & Thieves (although Bad Weed uses the same riddim). I've included some of Perry's more unexpected remixes: Sign Your Name was a #2 hit in the UK in January 1988 and I wonder what TTD's mainstream fans made of the 'Scratch' remix 12", peppered with animal sounds and dub effects. NYC band Gang Gang Dance was also an unusual choice, but Perry toasts over the top and makes it his own. The selection spans his early singles in the late 1960s through to his 2019 album Rainford and last year's appearance on Denise Sherwood's debut solo album. It's only a flavour of the man's genius but given the haste in compiling the selection, I think it hangs together pretty well.

Farewell then to Lee 'Scratch' Perry, Alien Starman and Dub Revolutionary.

 

1) Cloak & Dagger: Lee 'Scratch' Perry & The Upsetters ft. Tommy McCook (1973)

2) Rockhead: Lee 'Scratch' Perry (2008)

3) Bad Weed (Discomix By Lee 'Scratch' Perry): Junior Murvin (1977)

4) Return Of Django: The Upsetters (1969)

5) Chase The Devil (Adrian Sherwood Dub): Dubblestandart ft. Lee 'Scratch' Perry, Coshiva & Emch (2014) 

6) Sign Your Name (Lee 'Scratch' Perry Remix): Terence Trent D'Arby (1988)

7) Doctor On The Go: Lee Perry & The Upsetters (1975)

8) Last Train To Doomsville: Dub Syndicate ft. Lee 'Scratch' Perry (1988)

9) MindKilla (Lee 'Scratch' Perry Remix): Gang Gang Dance (2011)

10) I Am The Upsetter: Lee King Perry (1968)

11) Run Evil Spirit (Album Version By Lee 'Scratch' Perry & Adrian Sherwood): Lee 'Scratch' Perry (2019)

12) Ball Of Fire: The Orb ft. Lee 'Scratch' Perry (2012)

13) Music Shall Live (Album Version By Adrian Sherwood & Vital Elements): Denise Sherwood ft. Lee 'Scratch' Perry (2020) 

14) Dr. Lee, PhD (Album Version By Beastie Boys & Mario Caldato Jr.): Beastie Boys ft. Lee 'Scratch' Perry & Money Mark (1998)

15) Allergic To Lies (Album Version By Adrian Sherwood & Lee 'Scratch' Perry): Lee 'Scratch' Perry & Dub Syndicate (1987)

16) Dub Revelutions: Lee Perry & The Upsetters (1975) 

 

Dub Revelutions (A Tribute To Lee 'Scratch' Perry) (1:15:08) 

How Can I Learn If I Don't Understand What I See

Arguably the greatest band that I never saw live, Talk Talk's London 1986 live album is a taster of what I missed. I taped the BBC Live In Concert show off the radio when it was originally broadcast and I finally got an extract of the previous night's show when it was eventually released on CD in 1999. I'd also seen the Live At Montreux concert on TV and I snapped up the 2008 DVD version. All are arguably definitive documents of Talk Talk's final live performances, but Plaza Mayor, Salamanca, Spain on 13 September 1986 is another gig that I wish I'd made it to. Unfortunately, as a 15 year old, I'd only just started going to gigs in my hometown and The Colour Of Spring tour didn't get anywhere near Bristol, but Jeez, wouldn't it have been something...?

 

1) Talk Talk

2) Dum Dum Girl

3) Call In The Night Boy

4) Tomorrow Started

5) My Foolish Friend

6) Life's What You Make It

7) Mirror Man / Does Caroline Know?

8) It's You

9) Chameleon Day

10) Living In Another World

11) Give It Up

12) It's My Life

13) Such A Shame (encore)

14) Renée (encore)

 

Live @ Plaza Mayor, Salamanca, Spain (13 Sep 1986) (2:00:38)*

* The concert ends at 1:24:58 - the remaining half an hour is an edit/medley of songs from earlier in the show.

Wise Up!

Side 2 of a mixtape, recorded December 1991 to January 1992. I'd clearly recently bought Keeping The Faith: A Creation Dance Compilation, as it features heavily on both sides. I'd also taken delivery of a box of stuff that I'd picked up during my short time living and working in Perth, which I'd packaged and shipped home via sea- and land-mail services at the end of my year in Australia. I think it took about three months to reach me but it was like an early Christmas, especially the small selection of vinyl that I'd bought over there. The Soft Cell and Cabaret Voltaire tracks definitely came from that shipment. The Julian Cope track was the third of a trilogy of Hugo Nicolson remixes, this one in a lovely picture disc in yellow packaging. A bastard to store without damaging, especially with the number of short-term rents and constant moves I had in the 1990s, it has to be said. Very few of these songs could be found on the college jukebox or were being played out in the clubs that I was going to at the time. I was probably going to the wrong clubs...

 

1) Philly (Jamorphous Mix): Fluke (1990)

2) Time Beats (Album Version): Cabaret Voltaire ft. Lorita Grahame (1990)

3) Acid Love (Original Mix By Adam & Eve): The Beloved (1988) 

4) Memorabilia (12" Version By Daniel Miller): Soft Cell (1981)

5) Hypnotonic (Promo 12" Version): Hypnotone ft. Carlos (2 Supreme) (1991)

6) Heed: Of Penetration And The City Dweller (Head Remix By Hugo Nicolson): Julian Cope (1991)

7) Repetition (Dub): Tackhead (1990)

8) W.F.L. (The Vince Clarke Mix): Happy Mondays (1989)

 

Side Two (45:49)

 

Forever Green

On 27th August 2020, I had the privilege of having my first guest posting on The Vinyl Villain, part of the long-running and always excellent Imaginary Compilation Album series. I chose to feature Scritti Politti aka Green Gartside, in my opinion one of the finest voices and songwriters there is. The ICA featured 10 songs, spanning 1979-2020, plus a bonus EP with 4 Green Gartside collaborations and guest spots. 

 

To celebrate - and in growing excitement at the prospect of seeing Scritti Politti live in concert at the Shepherd's Bush Empire in London in 5 weeks' time - here's both sides of a mixtape that I recorded on 24th April 2000. I'm pretty sure I did a previous version of this for a girlfriend in the early 1990s, with a fairly similar tracklist. The mixtape title is a play on Gartside's name but it would also have been inspired by the completely unrelated song by Finitribe. 

 

This selection focuses very squarely on the 'pop' period, covering the albums Songs To Remember (1982), Cupid & Psyche 85 (1985) and Provision (1988), plus a few 12" mixes thrown in for good measure. Several tracks have been taken from vinyl rips and earlier CD issues, so please excuse the variable quality across each side but turn up the volume and enjoy some perfect pop sounds for the next hour and a half.

Today's post is dedicated to JC, for his encouragement and positive feedback with each guest post, and The Vinyl Villain family, who have been a constant source of inspiration and motivation, particularly in the pandemic years, both on TVV and their own music blogs. Thank you!

 

Side One (46:23)

1) First Boy In This Town (Lovesick) (Extended Remix) (1988)

2) A Little Knowledge (Album Version ft. B.J. Nelson) (1985)

3) The 'Sweetest Girl' (Album Version ft. Robert Wyatt) (1982)

4) Sugar And Spice (1988)

5) Faithless (Triple Hep 'n' Blue) (Part I) (12" Edit) (1982)

6) Overnite (1988)

7) Philosophy Now (Album Version) (1988)

8) Perfect Way (Album Version) (1985)

9) Gettin', Havin' And Holdin' (1982)

Side Two (46:28)

1) Absolute (Version) (Remix By Gary Langan) (1984)

2) Best Thing Ever (Album Version) (1987)

3) Jacques Derrida (Extended Version) (1982)

4) Sex (1982)

5) Hypnotize (Long) (Remix By Gary Langan) (1984)

6) Asylums In Jerusalem (Album Version) (1982)

7) Wood Beez (Pray Like Aretha Franklin) (Album Version) (1985)

8) Boom! There She Was (Sonic Property Mix By Steve Thompson & Michael Barbiero) (UK Edit ft. Roger Troutman) (1988)

9) Oh Patti (Don't Feel Sorry For Loverboy) (12" Version ft. Miles Davis) (1988)

Side One (46:23)

Side Two (46:28)

If that's whetted your appetite for more Scritti Politti goodness, I posted another item in July, featuring a selection of radio sessions.

 

Scritti Politti's official website lists the upcoming UK tour dates in September and October and available tickets and (as yet) nothing else. In November, Scritti Politti will be supporting O.M.D. on 6 dates of their Architecture & More UK tour

Sometimes Nothing Seems Unreal

The cat threw up with gusto on the stairs at 3am this morning, necessitating a sleepy, torch-lit mopping up task. I couldn't get back to sleep and got up at 5am for a cup of tea and to start on today's post. For the past couple of hours, there have been intermittent power cuts (a regular thing around here), which have meant I ran out of tea long before I completed the playlist. On the plus side, I've got the day off work so at least I can spend the rest of the day as one of the undead on my own time. As Howard Jones was wont to sing, things can only get better...

 

More cover versions today, the only real connection being that the original songs all came out in 1981. My starting point was last week's The The mixtape, featuring the Matt Johnson song Bugle Boy, which prompted me to dig out the recent (2017) cover version by his old mucker Colin Lloyd Tucker. From there to R.E.M., Echo & The Bunnymen, New Order and The Passions. As it's a day with a 'y' in it, inevitably Andrew Weatherall has to make an appearance, side-by-side with his brother Ian's project with Duncan Grey, IWDG. It may not be a great surprise that I left off Chumbawamba's version of The Birdie Song.

1) Systematic Death (Cover of Crass): Jeffrey Lewis ft. Helen Schreiner (2007) 

2) Physical (Cover of Olivia Newton-John): The Glimmers ft. Stéphane Misseghers & Tim Vanhamel (2009)

3) That's When I Reach For My Revolver (Album Version) (Cover of Mission Of Burma): Moby (1996)

4) Crazy (Cover of Pylon): R.E.M. (1985)

5) Sitting Still (Cover of R.E.M.): Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoffs (2013)

6) Heaven Up Here (Cover of Echo & The Bunnymen): Kelley Stoltz (2006)

7) Bugle Boy (Live) (Cover of Matt Johnson): Colin Lloyd Tucker (2017)

8) In A Lonely Place (David Holmes Rework) (Cover of New Order): IWDG (2021)

9) Sex Beat (Remix) (Cover of The Gun Club): Two Lone Swordsmen (2004)

10) I'm In Love With A German Film Star (Cover of The Passions): Dubstar (2010)

Sometimes Nothing Seems Unreal (36:47)

Like A Kiss On The Run

One of the few positive things to come from lockdown was discovering more 'new' artists and music. I was about five years behind the curve, but Kelsey Lu is one of the most exciting and challenging artists I've heard in a long time. 

They first appeared in my 2020 round up last December with their ambient soundscape Hydroharmonia (Part 1) and again in May, with their excellent collaboration with Boys Noize, Ride Or Die. I've been listening to the latter regularly since and the single version featured in my Raindrops Keep Falling mix earlier this month. Today's selection doesn't even begin to do justice to the vast range and spectrum of Kelsey Lu's talent and creativity, but it will fit snugly onto a side of an old school cassette tape, if you're so inclined.

 

I'd recommend either/both of their albums, Church (2016) and Blood (2019). It's also well worth your time looking up their videos and live shows on You Tube, for some stunning visuals, costumes and spellbinding performances.

1) Empathy (2016)

2) Hydroharmonia (Episode 2) / Poor Fake (Omar-S Remix By Alex Smith) (2020)

3) Foreign Car (NAR x ADR Exhaust Diffusion Mix) (2019)

4) let all the poisons that lurk in the mud seep out (Live for Stephen Colbert's #PLAYATHOME, 02/06/21): Kelsey Lu ft. Kelly Moran (2021)

5) Shades Of Blue (Video Version) (2018)

6) Hydroharmonia (Episode 1) (6:20 Edit) (2020)

7) Blood (A COLORS Show, 18 April 2019)

8) Due West (Album Version By Kelsey Lu & Skrillex) (2019)

9) Ride Or Die (Extended Mix): Boys Noize ft. Kelsey Lu & Chilly Gonzales (2021)

 

Like A Kiss On The Run (45:48)

These Things Elevate Me Above Animals

A headlong rush from 1958-1998, 10 songs, all two minutes or less, lyrically brilliant.

 

1) Adda Lee: Frank Black (1993)

"And the lake sings and the dogs don't, they are quiet for Adda Lee"

2) Phasers On Stun (Single Version): Urusei Yatsura (1996)

"I went walking under the streetlights with my sneakers filled up with snow"

3) Being A Girl (Part One) (Single Version): Mansun (1998)

"I'm so boring my clothes wanna keep someone else warm"

4) My Beautiful Leah: PJ Harvey (1998)

"If I don't find it this time, then I'm better off dead"

5) The King Of Carrot Flowers, Pt. 1: Neutral Milk Hotel (1998)

"I sank into your soul, into that secret place where no one dares to go"

6) Summertime Blues: Eddie Cochran (1958)

"I'm gonna take my problem to the United Nations"

7) Talking In The Dark: Elvis Costello & The Attractions (1978)

"We can talk like we're in love or we can talk above it"

8) Breakdown: Buzzcocks (1977)

"I feel me brain like porridge coming out of me ears"

9) Windout (Outtake): R.E.M. (1984)

"Tick tock time to clock my band"

10) Unsolved Child Murder (Demo): The Auteurs (1996)

"Sod this town and people's pity, let's get on with the nitty gritty"

These Things Elevate Me Above Animals (19:36)

What Does God Think?

Side 1 of a mixtape, cut and pasted 30th January 1997 and featuring Paul and Phil Hartnoll aka Orbital. One of the best live acts I have ever experienced and way, way overdue for a spotlight post on this blog.

 

1)  Are We Here? (What Was That? Remix By Orbital) (ft. Alison Goldfrapp) (1994)

2) Lush (Salt Tank's Guitar Mix) (1993)*

3) Times Fly (Slow) (RemIx By Orbital) (1996)

4) The Naked And The Dead (Radiccio EP Version) (1992)

5) Semi-Detatched (Original Mix) (1993) **

6) Attached (Album Version Edit) (1994) **

1992: Radiccio EP: 4

1993: Trance Europe Express: 5

1994: Are We Here? EP: 1

1994: Totally Loved Up: 6

1996: Times Fly EP: 3

1998: Head Straight For The Salt Tank Mix (promo CD): 2

Side One (52:20) (Box) (Mega)

* The original mixtape featured the CJ Bolland remix (Lush 3-5), but I prefer this one. The Salt Tank mix dates from the same period, but was unreleased. It eventually appeared on the 'bootleg' CD-R Head Straight For The Salt Tank Mix, limited to 50 copies and available on the Salt Tank website in 2000. 

** The original mixtape also featured the John Peel session version of Semi-Detached/Attached. Again, I've swapped out for different studio versions, which has pushed up the running time of this side.

 

Contrasts

Side 2 of a mixtape, compiled 6th September 2002 and highlighting Smith & Mighty's three albums, Bass Is Maternal, Big World Small World and Life Is... Bass-heavy classics from one of Bristol's finest.

1) Odd Tune For Piano (1995)

2) Sea (2002)

3) Rise (ft. Caroline) (2002)

4) That Woman (ft. Tammy Payne) (1999)

5) Hold On (Strange Mix By Smith & Mighty) (1995)

6) Drowning Dub (Cover of 'Drowning Man' by U2) (ft. Felix) (1995)

7) Flash Of Joy (ft. Tammy Payne) (2002)

8) Small World (ft. Alice Perera) (1999)

9) Evolve (Album Version) (1995)

10) Yow He Koh (1995)

 

1995: Bass Is Maternal: 1, 5, 6, 9, 10

1999: Big World Small World: 4, 8

2002: Life Is...: 2, 3, 7

Side Two (45:54)

I'll Keep On Forgiving If You'd Like To Show Me How

Side 2 of a 2001 mixtape, featuring Two Lone Swordsmen aka Andrew Weatherall and Keith Tenniswood. Again, the selection draws exclusively on the 1998-2001 period, covering the album Tiny Reminders, remix companion Further Reminders, and the two mini-albums/EPs, A Bag Of Blue Sparks and A Virus With Shoes. For the eagle-eyed amongst you, I got 1998's album Stay Down some years after this mixtape was compiled. In amongst the brilliant song names - Cloned Christ On A Hover Donkey (Be Thankful) a highlight - and glitchy (itchy?) electronica, there is a touching vocal from Nina Walsh, which gives today's post it's title.

 

Schismatic (Split Two) (50:30)

1) Palais Munich (1999)

2) Brother Foster Through The Phones (1999)

3) Black Commandments (1998)

4) Gay Spunk (1998)

5) Tiny Reminder No. 1 (C-Pij Remix Vocal By Nina Walsh) (2001)

6) Tiny Reminder No. 2 (2000)

7) Tiny Reminder No. 3 (Calexico Remix) (2001)

8) Electric 4 Bird (1998)

9) Very Futuristic (2000)

10) It Hits (1999)

11) Kist (1999)

12) Cloned Christ On A Hover Donkey (Be Thankful) (1999) 

 

Schismatic (Split Two) (50:30)

Find Schismatic (Split One) here 
 

Friday On My Mind

It's been a long week, so here are some songs with Friday in the title or artist name. Welcome to the weekend!
 
1) Friday On My Mind: The Easybeats (1966)
2) I (Friday Night): Dubstar (2000)
3) Ghostrider (Cover of Suicide): Gavin Friday & Dave Ball (2009)
4) Friday Night, Saturday Morning (Live @ Brixton Academy): The Specials (2009)
5) Window Shopping (Single Version By Jerry Dammers): The Friday Club (1985)
6) Tell Me Easter's On Friday: Associates (1981)
7) Fridays (Up-Person Mix): Vini Reilly (1991)
8) Friday's Child (Cover of Lee Hazlewood): Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie (1991)
9) Last Friday Night (Live Lounge Session, BBC Radio 1) (Cover of Katy Perry): The Vaccines (2011)
10) Friday I'm In Love (Cover of The Cure): Yo La Tengo (2015)
 
Friday On My Mind (34:27)

Your Life Will Surely Change

As a follow up to Sunday's post, more The The, this time a selection of their videos, which are all rather wonderful. I still have Infected "The Movie" on VHS tape, unfortunately our video player is long dead, so I haven't been able to watch it in years. I remember seeing the whole thing on Channel 4. I loved the album but the video experience just blew me away. It was a really powerful visual and aural statement in the midst of mid-80s MTV pap.

 

Side One


1) I've Been Waitin' for Tomorrow (All of My Life) (1983)


2) I Want 2 B U (2020)


3) Pillar Box Red (2002)


4) The Beat(en) Generation (1989)


5) Out Of The Blue (Into The Fire) (1986)


6) Kingdom Of Rain (1989)



 

Side Two


1) Infected
 (1986)

2) Dogs Of Lust
 (1993)

3) This Is The Day
 (1983)

4) Sweet Bird Of Truth
 (1986)

5) We Can't Stop What's Coming
 (2017)

6) Love Is Stronger Than Death
 (1993)

 

Kingdom Of Rain features vocals from Sinéad O'Connor, who unfortunately doesn't appear in the video itself. All of the videos are taken from The The's official YouTube page, with the exception of This Is The Day.

The Wonderful And Frightening World Of... Von Südenfed-ah

The Fall are the featured artist/band in The Vinyl Villain's latest Sunday series, delivering a fascinating and comprehensive look at (& listen to) the band, single by single, with the occasional and worthwhile detour into albums, mini-albums, EPs and other oddities. The series is currently at Part 10 and 1982, and every week it has been a compelling read with some great music, including some that I've heard for the first time.

Fast forward a quarter of a century to 2007 and I took a punt on a promo CD of Von Südenfed's debut (and only) album, Tromatic Reflexxions. I hadn't heard a single song by them, but the fact that Von Südenfed was a collaboration between Andi Toma and Jan St. Werner of Mouse On Mars and The Fall's Mark E. Smith was enough for me to shell out a few quid. It's a challenging and rewarding album, chock full of typically divergent MES references to German DJ Sven Väth, imaginary dialogue with long-gone friends, playing pool for £10 a day and boiling a chicken. Musically, the album veers from club cuts to songs that wouldn't seem too out of place on a Fall album.
 
There were two singles, both on 12" vinyl and promo CD, including a great B-side and mostly inessential remixes. And that was it. The same year, The Fall released their 25th album, Reformation! Post - TLC, with a new line-up following an acrimonious split (what else?) during a US tour the previous year. Von Südenfed might therefore be seen as a fun diversion from the headache of the day job, but it's so much more than that.

1) The Rhinohead (Album Version)
2) Flooded (Album Version)
3) Fledermaus Can't Get It (Album Version)
4) Slow Down Ronnie
5) Dearest Friends
6) Chicken Yiamas
7) The Rhinohead (Pilooski Edit) 
 
1,2,3,5,6 taken from Tromatic Reflexxions
4,7 taken from The Rhinohead 12" single

The Wonderful And Frightening World Of... Von Südenfed (31:48)

"...mash all of the pedals, turn all those knobs..."

Ride On (Fight On) (2 Meter Sessions, Dutch TV) (You Tube): Little Axe (1996)

 

Gospel dub blues from Skip McDonald. It was the Adrian Sherwood/ON-U Sound connection that originally drew me in, although it was 2002 before a Little Axe album was widely released on Sherwood's label. 1994's The Wolf That House Built had originally started life as a McDonald solo album, Blues Continually, issued as a white label on On-U back in 1993. Later that same year, it was re-sequenced with additional tracks and issued in Japan as a Little Axe album called Never Turn Back. It was then re-compiled and reissued in the UK as The Wolf That House Built.

 

The lead single was Ride On (Fight On), with a couple of excellent remixes by Fluke across the 10" & CD single releases. Sadly, the song - or album - didn't trouble the charts but Moby was possibly taking notes...

 

Little Axe performed Ride On (Fight On) as a live medley on Channel 4's White Room in 1995, but this version from Dutch TV the following year is much better, with pretty much the same line-up as on the album:

 

Skip McDonald: vocals & guitar

Saz Bell & Kevin Gibbs: vocals

Alan Glen: guitar & harmonica

Doug Wimbish: bass

Scott Firth: bass

Keith LeBlanc: drums

Adrian Sherwood: on the mix

 

Ride On (Fight On) (Fluke Mid-Fi Surprise) (You Tube): Little Axe (1994)

Always Asking Questions?

Why are the weekends so short? This and other pressing questions below, with absolutely no answers whatsoever.

 

1) How Does It Feel? (Cover of Spacemen 3): Piano Magic (1998)

2) Is That You Mo-Dean? (Interdimension Mix By Moby) (New Edit 2002): The B-52's (2002)

3) Why Theory? (Re-Recorded Version): Gang Of Four (2005)

4) What Was Her Name? (Original): Dave Clarke ft. Chicks On Speed (2004)

5) How Many Six Packs Does It Take To Screw In A Light?: American Music Club (1994)

6) Whatever Happened To?: Buzzcocks (1977)

7) Why Can't I Be You? (Album Version): The Cure (1987)

8) Are You Ready To Be Heartbroken? (Demo): Lloyd Cole & The Commotions (1983)

9) Where Do You Go? (Album Version By William Orbit): Beth Orton (1993)

10) Where Is My Mind? (Live @ Les Eurockéennes Festival, Belfort, France, 03 July 2004): Pixies (2004)

11) “Is it art or anti-art?”: The Times (1991)

Always Asking Questions? (36:41)

Testament To Reality

Happy 60th birthday, Matt Johnson. 

 

Sides 1 & 2 of a mixtape, recorded 21st October 1989. Cassette sleeve 'inspired' by the cover to the Gravitate To Me 12" single. Like many, Matt Johnson's albums, singles and B-sides were the soundtrack to my teenage years.

 

Side One (45:32)

1) Good Morning Beautiful (Album Version): The The (1989) 

2) The Sinking Feeling (The Original Version): The The (1982)

3) Sweet Bird Of Truth (12" Version) ('45 RPM' Album Edit): The The ft. Anna Domino (1986) 

4) Perfect (New Version): The The (1983)

5) The Nature Of Virtue (Version II): The The (1983)

6) Gravitate To Me (Little Version): The The (1989)

7) Giant (Album Version): The The ft. Thomas Leer, Jim Thirlwell, Zeke Manyika & Camelle Hinds (1983)

Side Two (46:03)

1) Harbour Lights (Single Version): The The (1986)

2) Heartland (Album Version): The The (1986)

3) Soul Mining (Album Version) (Edit): The The (1983)

4) Song Without An Ending! (Album Version): Matt Johnson (1981)

5) Bugle Boy (Album Version): Matt Johnson (1981)

6) Slow Train To Dawn (12" Version) (Edit): The The ft. Neneh Cherry (1986)

7) Infected (Album Remix) (Edit): The The (1986)

8) Flesh & Bones: The The ft. Jim Thirlwell (1985)

9) Uncertain Smile (Album Version): The The ft. Jools Holland & Camelle Hinds (1983)

10) Beyond Love (Album Version): The The (1989)

Side One (45:32) (KF) (Mega)

Side Two (46:03) (KF) (Mega)

These Are Dangerous Times For Love

I'm not a particular fan of Culture Club, but I love Boy George. As an artist, he's arguably got better with each passing decade and I've an especial love for his brief diversion as Jesus Loves You. The sole album, The Martyr Mantras, remains much loved at Casa Khayem, and creatively it remains a high water mark. Here are the JLY highlights, condensed into (just over) an hour of loved up lyrics and blissed out beats. Damn, was it really three decades ago?!

 

1) Too Much Love (L.P. Mix By Mark Brydon) (1990)

2) Generations Of Love (Love Dub Mix By Terry Farley & Pete Heller) (ft. MC Kinky) (1990)

3) Sweet Toxic Love (Hootenanny Mix) (1992)

4) Am I Losing Control (Dizzy Tequila Mix By Hans 'Hands On' Grøttheim) (1992)

5) Bow Down Mister (Floating In The Ganges - Grid Mix By Dave Ball & Richard Norris) (1991)

6) Love Hurts (Yes It Doz U Blighter Mix By Bruce Forest) (1991)

7) One On One (Massive Attack Mix) (1990)

8) Love's Gonna Let U Down (Popcorn Mix By Mark Brydon) (1990)

9) After The Love (Prophets Of Doom Mix) (1991)

10) Siempre Te Amare (Mark Brydon Remix) (1990)

11) I Specialize In Loneliness (Album Version By Boy George & John Themis) (1990)

 

These Are Dangerous Times For Love (1:03:51)