#Colours Top 20 (First Shade)

So, I've been participating in another (E)x-Twitter 'countdown' these past couple of weeks, songs, artists or lyrics featuring a colour.

I've played this one straight and stuck with song titles (goodness knows there are plenty of them) and today's Dubhed selection coincides with my 10th or 20 choices, which seemed like a good point to round things up. It also comes in at just under 41 minutes, which is handy.

I didn't bother with the whole 'countdown' thing so no, I don't consider Yellow Balloon by Jan & Dean to be better than Soldier Blue by Julian Cope (as if!) or a My Life Story B-side superior to one of Madness' finest songs committed to 7" vinyl. 

 

There was a little bit of method, though: in a very cack-handed way, I did try to think about the subsequent colour complementing the one that had preceded it; the fact that I managed to then find songs that (I think) didn't jar when placed in sequence was a happy accident.

Possibly the only compilation today that will take you from The Arch Drude and Lenny Bruce to Roni Size by way of Lawrence and his Mozart Estate and the Icelandic-Bulgarian-Russian triptych of GusGus, Metodi Hristov and Maksim Dark aka Maxim Surzhik. 

 

Oh, and check out the video for Ruby Red by Marc "Mohican" Almond for a reminder of the good old days when his songs and visuals were routinely banned, to the disappointment of his chart-hungry record label(s).

 

1) Soldier Blue (Album Version): Julian Cope ft. Lenny Bruce (1991)

2) Indigo Eyes (USA Single Edit): Peter Murphy (1988)

3) Yellow Balloon: Jan & Dean (1966)

4) Grey Day (Album Version): Madness (1981)

5) Pink And The Purple: Mozart Estate (2023)

6) Orange Trees (Claptone Extended Remix By Christoph Göttsch & Daniel Brems): Marina (2019)

7) Magenta (Maksim Dark Remix By Maxim Surzhik): GusGus & Metodi Hristov (2018)

8) The Return Of Emerald Green: My Life Story (1997) *

9) Ruby Red (Album Version): Marc Almond ft. The Willing Sinners (1987)

10) Brown Paper Bag (Full Vocal Mix): Roni Size Reprazent ft. Dynamite MC (1998)

 

1966: Save For A Rainy Day: 3 

1981: 7: 4

1987: Mother Fist And Her Five Daughters: 9

1988: Indigo Eyes EP: 2

1991: Peggy Suicide: 1 

1997: Strumpet EP: 8 

1998: Brown Paper Bag EP: 10

2018: Magenta EP: 7

2019: Orange Trees EP: 6

2023: Pop-Up! Ker-Ching! And The Possibilities Of Modern Shopping: 5

First Shade (40:48) (KF) (Mega)

 

* I tweeted the original version of Emerald Green (B-side to 1997 single Sparkle) but I didn't have a digital copy to hand for this selection. To the best of my knowledge, there have been at least 4 other variations/sequels which appeared on various B-sides between 1997 and 1999, namely The Return Of Emerald Green, Emerald Green Strikes Back, Paint It Emerald Green and Emerald Green Blah Blah Blah. I've gone for the first one as it segued nicely into the next song.