You have Mike to thank for today's Julian Cope selection.
A long time ago, in fact so long ago that I can no longer track the reference, Mike asked in response to a post whether I'd considered sequencing Peggy Suicide, The Arch Drude's 1991 magnum opus, as a 45-minute single album.
"No" was essentially my response.
But the seed had been planted.
It resurfaced again and instead of pushing it back again, as I have typically done, I let it bubble away. A lot has changed since Mike originally made the suggestion, not least the common use of AI.
I've used AI infrequently, and it's probably evident from the cobbled together nature of this blog, it's not a staple here. Yet, on this occasion, I thought it would be a useful tool as a launchpad for today's selection.
I can't remember the exact wording I offered up, but I asked for a single album, ten tracks, roughly 45 minutes, drawing on the 19-track double. I also included B-sides from the related singles and any tracks from the Floored Genius compilations thst dated from 1989 to 1991.
The results were mixed: it completely ignored the latter request and suggested two alleged B-sides from Beautiful Love, which were anything but: Umpteenth Unnatural Blues (from the World Shut Your Mouth EP, 1986) and The Tower (from 1992's follow up album, Jehovahkill).
However, there was enough there to work with, and I started dismantling the AI recommended tracklist, moving tracks from side 2 to side 1 and vice versa, cutting some, adding others, until I arrived at the final version, presented here.
AI suggested Pristeen as the opening song and I didn't argue - could it be anything else? I also decided that the closing song also had to match the original, so Las Vegas Basement was added to the mix. And there could no other way of wrapping up the first side than the epic Safesurfer, complete with the brief reprise that was cut for space reasons from the CD.
Uptight was also cut from the CD, but it's one of my favourites so that snuck into side 2, at the expense of Hanging Out & Hung Up On The Line. Leperskin was an AI recommendation and wouldn't have been an immediate choice for me, but I like it's placement between Drive, She Said and Uptight.
Putting two of the three singles next to each other was an AI choice which I stuck with. In this imaginary universe, it's Drive, She Said and not Head that was released as the third single, albeit with a similar lack of chart success in the UK.
Although I often had to cut down and reorder albums to fit them onto one side of a cassette, back in 1991 I went the other way with Peggy Suicide, expanding it with B-sides to fill both sides of a C90.
Peggy Suicide absolutely had to be a double album and I will also choose that over anything else, but nevertheless I hope that you enjoy today's "what if?" selection.
Thanks, Mike!
Peggy Suicide (Downwards At 45 Degrees Edition)
Phase One1) Pristeen3) East Easy Rider3) Beautiful Love4) You…5) Safesurfer
Phase Two1) Double Vegetation2) Drive, She Said3) Leperskin4) Uptight5) Las Vegas Basement
You have Mike to thank for today's Julian Cope selection.
A long time ago, in fact so long ago that I can no longer track the reference, Mike asked in response to a post whether I'd considered sequencing Peggy Suicide, The Arch Drude's 1991 magnum opus, as a 45-minute single album.
"No" was essentially my response.
But the seed had been planted.
It resurfaced again and instead of pushing it back again, as I have typically done, I let it bubble away. A lot has changed since Mike originally made the suggestion, not least the common use of AI.
I've used AI infrequently, and it's probably evident from the cobbled together nature of this blog, it's not a staple here. Yet, on this occasion, I thought it would be a useful tool as a launchpad for today's selection.
I can't remember the exact wording I offered up, but I asked for a single album, ten tracks, roughly 45 minutes, drawing on the 19-track double. I also included B-sides from the related singles and any tracks from the Floored Genius compilations thst dated from 1989 to 1991.
The results were mixed: it completely ignored the latter request and suggested two alleged B-sides from Beautiful Love, which were anything but: Umpteenth Unnatural Blues (from the World Shut Your Mouth EP, 1986) and The Tower (from 1992's follow up album, Jehovahkill).
However, there was enough there to work with, and I started dismantling the AI recommended tracklist, moving tracks from side 2 to side 1 and vice versa, cutting some, adding others, until I arrived at the final version, presented here.
AI suggested Pristeen as the opening song and I didn't argue - could it be anything else? I also decided that the closing song also had to match the original, so Las Vegas Basement was added to the mix. And there could no other way of wrapping up the first side than the epic Safesurfer, complete with the brief reprise that was cut for space reasons from the CD.
Uptight was also cut from the CD, but it's one of my favourites so that snuck into side 2, at the expense of Hanging Out & Hung Up On The Line. Leperskin was an AI recommendation and wouldn't have been an immediate choice for me, but I like it's placement between Drive, She Said and Uptight.
Putting two of the three singles next to each other was an AI choice which I stuck with. In this imaginary universe, it's Drive, She Said and not Head that was released as the third single, albeit with a similar lack of chart success in the UK.
Although I often had to cut down and reorder albums to fit them onto one side of a cassette, back in 1991 I went the other way with Peggy Suicide, expanding it with B-sides to fill both sides of a C90.
Peggy Suicide absolutely had to be a double album and I will also choose that over anything else, but nevertheless I hope that you enjoy today's "what if?" selection.
Thanks, Mike!
Peggy Suicide (Downwards At 45 Degrees Edition)
Phase One
1) Pristeen
3) East Easy Rider
3) Beautiful Love
4) You…
5) Safesurfer
Phase Two
1) Double Vegetation
2) Drive, She Said
3) Leperskin
4) Uptight
5) Las Vegas Basement
Brilliant! What a great single album that would have been. It would have been like 'the black hit of space' as The Human League would have described and gone into minus figures.. bigger than the Beatles!!
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