Madonna, Maradona, Maverick And Movies

"Gangway, Heroes!" Today brings a bespoke collection of covers of songs from 1986. 

Last night I stumbled across Scanner aka Robin Rimbaud's unexpected and delightful cover of Word Up! by Cameo. Originally recorded for WFMU Radio in New Jersey back in February, it was officially released a couple of days ago. If you're more familiar with Scanner’s 1990s music, it's quite the departure.

Similarly inspired, I trawled through my music collection and pulled a shortlist of 1986 songs, reworked and reimagined by other artists. I had over 40 to choose from and settled for a dozen, which meant some tough decisions, but I hope you'll enjoy my selection.

As the post title suggests, there is a Madonna cover - Live To Tell - albeit right at the end, courtesy of Catherine Anne Davies (The Anchoress) and Bernard Butler (Suede and a gazillion other things). Don't tell Ms. Ciccone, but it's better than the original.

1986 was chock full of singles that appeared in movie soundtracks. Live To Tell appeared in At Close Range, starring her then-husband Sean Penn and Christopher Walken. I must have seen it at the time, but I have little recollection of the film now.

But Not Tonight started as a Depeche Mode B-side, but an appearance in the film Modern Girls (starring Daphne Zuniga and Virginia Madsen) prompted their US label Sire to flip the single, relegated Stripped to side 2 and promoting But Not Tonight instead. Nearly two decades later, Jimmy Somerville gave it the high-pitched, Hi-NRG treatment.

And of course there was the memorable soundtrack to Pretty In Pink, not just the The Psychedelic Furs song that inspired the movie, but If You Leave, which proved to be a smash hit for OMD and still features in their live set today. Here, Angel Olsen ups the heartache in her own inimitable style.

The mention of Maverick, Tom Cruise's character in Top Gun, is a red herring and I apologise. Take My Breath Away by Berlin seemed to be #1 in the UK for an eternity (actually, only 4 weeks throughout November 1986). I have a couple of covers of the song, by Sharleen Spiteri and The Flying Pickets, but neither of them made the final cut.

There are a couple of side projects and aliases going on, which I need to shed some light on. The man behind The 6ths is Stephen Merritt, better known to the world as the genius behind The Magnetic Fields. Stephen got his old mucker Lloyd Cole on board to sing for his contribution to a tribute to The Human League. 

The Hot Rats are Gaz and Danny from Supergrass in disguise, whose 2010 covers album Turn Ons featured their takes on artists including Roxy Music, Elvis Costello & The Attractions, Pet Shop Boys, The Cure and my pick today, Beastie Boys. Well worth tracking down.

If you have an urge to scan the track listing before subjecting yourself to my rambling "sleeve notes", you will have spotted the inclusion of First We Take Manhattan, recorded by R.E.M. and credited as a cover of a Jennifer Warnes song. Yes, R.E.M.'s version appeared on I'm Your Fan: The Songs Of Leonard Cohen in 1991, but Laughing Len gifted it to Jennifer first, her recording released in October 1986, Cohen's version following in January 1988. Personally, I think Stipe, Berry, Buck and Mills smash it.

And another red herring (or was it the hand of God?) with the reference to Maradona and, by association, that fateful 1986 World Cup. New Order didn't realise their own World Cup song until 4 years later, but 1986 saw one of their finest singles in Bizarre Love Triangle. Often covered since, I've gone for a relatively obscure version by Charlotte Martin, which I like very much.

As for the rest of this selection, you can enjoy The Smiths as covered by Carter The Unstoppable Sex Machine, sounding as potent in 1992 and it did six years previously. Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie show some solidarity with fellow Scots, with a wonderful cover of Somewhere In China by Shop Assistants. 

Last but certainly not least, one from my hometown heroes, The Blue Aeroplanes covering Paul Simon's Top 30 hit The Boy In The Bubble. Sadly, history didn't repeat in 1991, though it should have done.

1) Word Up! (Cover of Cameo): Scanner (2026)

2) Human (Cover of The Human League): The 6ths ft. Lloyd Cole (2000)

3) But Not Tonight (Cover of Depeche Mode): Jimmy Somerville (2004)

4) Bizarre Love Triangle (Cover of New Order): Charlotte Martin (2007)

5) Panic (Cover of The Smiths): Carter The Unstoppable Sex Machine (1992)

6) Somewhere In China (Cover of Shop Assistants): Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie (1989)

7) The Boy In The Bubble (Cover of Paul Simon): The Blue Aeroplanes (1991)

8) First We Take Manhattan (Cover of Jennifer Warnes): R.E.M. (1991)

9) If You Leave (Cover of O.M.D.): Angel Olsen (2021)

10) Absolute Beginners (Cover of David Bowie): Saint Etienne (1993)

11) (You Gotta) Fight For Your Right (To Party!) (Cover of Beastie Boys): The Hot Rats (2010)

12) Live To Tell (Cover of Madonna): Catherine Anne Davies & Bernard Butler (2020)

1989: Fish Heads And Tails: 6

1991: I'm Your Fan: The Songs Of Leonard Cohen: 8

1991: The Boy In The Bubble EP: 7

1992: The Only Living Boy In New Cross EP: 5

2000: Reproductions: Songs Of The Human League: 2

2004: Home Again: 3

2007: Reproductions: 4

2008: Boxette (#4: Eric Random): 10

2010: Turn Ons: 11

2020: In Memory Of My Feelings: 12

2021: Aisles EP: 9

2026: Word Up! EP: 1

Madonna, Maradona, Maverick And Movies (47:25) (GD) (M)

The Original Bee, Bee And Gee (But No Bee Gees, If You Know What I Mean)

One of the highlights in a year of great albums has been the debut by Butler, Blake & Grant.

Their debut as a trio perhaps, but these are legends in their own right: 

Bernard Butler, Suede, McAlmont & Butler, über producer

Norman Blake, Teenage Fanclub, BMX Bandits

James Grant, Love And Money, Friends Again

...as well as numerous solo ventures and collaborations over the decades.

I'll come back to Butler, Blake & Grant as a recording and performing threesome another time. Today's selection plucks four gems from each artist's extensive catalogue to present 47 minutes of deep cuts and should-have-been smash hits.

What a talented trio. And lovely blokes, too. But that's a story for another time.

1) Let's Go Away: Bernard Butler (1999)

2) Groovy Good Luck Friend (Janice Long Session): BMX Bandits (1986)

3) Winter '89: Love And Money (1989)

4) A Change Of Heart (Single Version): Bernard Butler (1998)

5) God Knows It's True: Teenage Fanclub (1990)

6) State Of Art (The Spiral Tribe Edition): Friends Again (1995)

7) The Patron Saint Of The Lost Cause (Album Version): Catherine Anne Davies & Bernard Butler (2020)

8) Baby Lee: Teenage Fanclub (2010)

9) Hubcap To Blue Town: Love And Money (1991)

10) My Dark Star: Suede (1994)

11) Golden Shower: The Boy Hairdressers (1987)

12) Wanderlust II: Love And Money (1988)

1986: Janice Long Session, BBC Radio 1, 8th June 1986: 2

1987: Golden Shower EP: 11

1988: Halleluiah Man EP: 12

1990: God Knows It's True EP: 5

1991: Winter EP: 3

1991: Wishing Waters EP: 9

1994: Stay Together EP: 10

1995: Spiral Tribe Volume 1: 6

1998: A Change Of Heart EP: 4

1999: Friends And Lovers: 1

2010: Shadows: 8

2020: In Memory Of My Feelings: 7

The Original Bee, Bee And Gee (But No Bee Gees, If You Know What I Mean) (47:15) (Mega)

What You Already Know

Forty five minutes of Bernard Butler and friends to usher in the weekend.  

 

Bernard's playing at the Bristol Beacon tonight (8th) and there were about 30 tickets left when I looked, if you're quick. I won't be there but I have had the pleasure of seeing a couple of his gigs in the past, neither with Suede and neither performing his solo material.

It was a surprise (well, to me at least) that after a couple of albums on Creation at the end of the last century, Bernard's third solo album Good Grief arrived 25 years later, on 31st May. You can buy it here.

 

I've only heard/seen the single Living The Dream so far, but it's very good and immediately transports me back to the sounds of those previous albums, People Move On (1998) and Friends And Lovers (1999). 

 

Living The Dream is an apt title, as Bernard's been far from idle between solo albums, as a collaborator and a producer. But, it's good to see him step back up to the microphone and share new songs. Anyone who has - or will - catch Bernard on tour is undoubtedly in for a treat.

So, for this 10-song selection, I've intentionally avoided any songs by McAlmont & Butler; his partnership with David McAlmont deserves a selection in it's own right. 

 

And whilst I've plucked three songs from the album that Bernard recorded with Catherine Anne Davies aka The Anchoress, there's nothing from his more recent album with Jesse Buckley. A very straightforward reason for this: I own the former but not the latter.

I also couldn't resist featuring two of the three tracks from the EP that Bernard released with Edwyn Collins in 2001. I mean, why not?

Not an obvious choice to fire up the weekend, perhaps: some quite downtempo, reflective, 70s West Coast America (albeit in the shade) moments; hang on to the end though and you'll get the customary Butler guitar wig out to reward your patience.

And I've also been impressed by Bernard's barnet. Those locks are immaculate.

 

1) My Domain: Bernard Butler (1998)

2) You Light The Fire: Bernard Butler (1998)

3) In Memory Of My Feelings: Catherine Anne Davies & Bernard Butler (2020)

4) Everyone I Know Is Falling Apart: Bernard Butler (1999)

5) Live To Tell (Cover of Madonna): Catherine Anne Davies & Bernard Butler (2020)

6) Can't Do That (The Hoover): Bernard & Edwyn (2001)

7) Smile: Bernard Butler (1999)

8) Message For Jojo (Single Version): Bernard & Edwyn (2001)

9) The Breakdown: Catherine Anne Davies & Bernard Butler (2020)

10) Autograph: Bernard Butler (1998)

 

1998: A Change Of Heart EP: 1

1998: People Move On: 2, 10

1999: Friends And Lovers: 4, 7

2001: Message For Jojo EP: 6, 8

2020: In Memory Of My Feelings: 3, 5, 9  

 

What You Already Know (44:45) (KF) (Mega) 

 

 

Note: Today's cover star is Glenn Ford, in a scene from 1966 film Rage, directed by Gilberto Gazcón. Ford plays an alcoholic, widowed GP who has wound up in a small Mexican town. 

 

He's looking super sweaty and flushed because his character's just been bitten by a dog and rabies is beginning to kick in. Ably assisted by Stella Stevens, the film focuses on Ford's efforts to get medical help before it's too late. Oh, the irony.

 

Absolutely nothing to do with Bernard Butler, but I watched it the other night and was struck by this image and the lighting. 

The Only Way To Gain Approval Is By Exploiting The Very Thing That Cheapens Me

On Bandcamp Friday, The Anchoress released a cover version of This Is Yesterday, which originally appeared on Manic Street Preachers' 1994 album The Holy Bible. The timing is not insignificant: Richey Edwards went missing on 1st February 1995.

In the press release, Catherine Anne Davies wrote, 

"I thought I would return to the beginning of it all and the band that originally sparked my obsession with music, literature and all things cultural, who I’m lucky enough to have gone on and collaborated and worked with - the Manic Street Preachers.

It was a pretty tall order to choose a Manics song to reimagine but I settled on the majestic “This Is Yesterday” from The Holy Bible, reworked here in collaboration with the talented Charlie Cawood and my now overflowing collection of vintage synths. Of course you can’t improve upon the original, but I hope this version captures some of my own bittersweet nostalgia for the purity of childhood that, for me, the song effortlessly evokes."

 

Here's the original version:

...and a solo acoustic version performed by James Dean Bradfield in concert in 2011 (yes, that's Allen Toussaint and John Grant sitting on stage behind him):

 

The Anchoress follows a similar, plucked acoustic path to JDB but the addition of the synth tones underpins her beautifully poised vocals. 

 

This Is Yesterday is available as a digital purchase for a very limited time and whilst it may follow the trend of 2022's cover version EPs and eventually be included on a physical release, why wait? 

 

I'm seeing The Anchoress live in concert in May and I am really, really looking forward to it.

 

Your Worst Case Scenario

Catherine Anne Davies aka Catherine A.D. aka The Anchoress is a multi-instrumentalist and creative polymath, who has supported Manic Street Preachers, been a member of Simple Minds' touring band and been releasing music in her own right since 2010. 

My introduction came in 2020, during the UK lockdown, with In Memory Of My Feelings, a collaboration with Bernard Butler which had been recorded prior to her debut album as The Anchoress and was belatedly released on Pete Paphides' wonderful Needle Mythology label. In 2021, Catherine's second album as The Anchoress, The Art Of Losing, proved to be another highlight of the year and from there on I was completely hooked.

 

Much has been written about Catherine's approach to creating music and the lyrical content of her songs and I can't really add to or enhance that. Simply put, the songs resonate on so many levels, beautifully layered soundscapes, rich vocals and lyrics that do not shy away from grief, loss, abuse and prejudice. Yet, there's also something uplifting, cathartic and at times euphoric in these songs, which reward repeated listening and reading. 

 

An early release as Catherine A.D. collected a number of cover versions by a diverse range of artists from Fleetwood Mac to Bon Iver to The Crystals. Catherine's continued to revisit her inspirations with a series of limited release cover versions in the past couple of years to tie in with Bandcamp Friday, many of which have appeared in Dubhed selections. Four of these have been collected as Versions/EP 1, featuring Catherine's interpretations of Depeche Mode, Halsey, Nico and Nirvana. The latest blink-and-you'll-miss-it cover is an acoustic rework of Friday I'm In Love by The Cure, following a previous synth-heavy version released in June, and available for a few more days on Bandcamp.

 

So perhaps unsurprisingly today's selection is split into two sides. The first covers Catherine's own songs, including collaborations with Bernard Butler, Paul Draper and James Dean Bradfield. The flip side is all covers, avoiding ones which I've posted previously...I think! It's hard to keep track sometimes.

 

Catherine had to withdraw from a planned support slot with Manic Street Preachers and a solo tour last year for health reasons, and the latter is currently rescheduled for spring 2023. I'm planning to be there.

 

In the meantime, as well as shopping at The Anchoress' Bandcamp page, I'd also recommend a visit to her YouTube page, which is a treasure trove of live performances, videos and remixes.

Side One

1) All Farewells Should Be Sudden: The Anchoress (2021)

2) P.S. Fuck You: The Anchoress (2016)

3) Judas: Catherine Anne Davies & Bernard Butler (2020)

4) You And Only You: The Anchoress ft. Paul Draper (2016)

5) The Exchange: The Anchoress ft. James Dean Bradfield (2021)

6) The Patron Saint Of The Lost Cause (Album Version): Catherine Anne Davies & Bernard Butler (2020)

Side Two

1) The Book Of Love (Cover of The Magnetic Fields): Catherine A.D. (2010)

2) Bizarre Love Triangle (Cover of New Order): The Anchoress (2022)

3) Paris (Cover of Friendly Fires): Catherine A.D. (2012)

4) Pennyroyal Tea (Cover of Nirvana): The Anchoress (2022)

5) Live To Tell (Cover of Madonna): Catherine Anne Davies & Bernard Butler (2020)

6) I Have Never Loved Someone (Cover of My Brightest Diamond): Catherine A.D. (2012)

2010: Carry Your Heart EP: B1

2012: Reprise: The Covers Collection: B1, B3, B6

2016: Confessions Of A Romance Novelist: A2, A4

2020: In Memory Of My Feelings: A3, A6, B5

2021: The Art Of Losing: A1, A5

2022: Bizarre Love Triangle EP: B2

2022: Pennyroyal Tea EP: B4

Side One (22:41)

Side Two (22:48)

Live Your Life Filled With Joy And Thunder

Last Friday, The Anchoress aka Catherine Anne Davies released a cover of Sweetness Follows by R.E.M. I missed the first Bandcamp Friday of 2022 but my inbox as usual was chock full of emails informing me of the slew of releases and reissues to coincide. 

 

I gave it a miss this month as I have recently resumed digitising my CD collection. I have boxes and boxes and boxes of CD albums, singles and compilations, many of which haven't been played for years. In the hope of another house move in the near future, I can't face the prospect of moving lots of stuff from one attic to another, only to promise that I'll sort it out "soon".

The Anchoress has been issuing a new cover version every Bandcamp Friday for a while now, having previously released Reprise: The Covers Collection in 2012. I've become a big fan of Catherine Anne Davies' music since jumping in slightly belatedly with In Memory Of My Feelings, her collaboration with Bernard Butler in 2020, then buying the two albums as The Anchoress. However, I've tended to skip the recent covers, partly because of the higher price tag (£2.40 including VAT for a single song) and partly because I'm waiting in the hope that a dozen or so will be collected as a follow up to the Reprise album.

However, I couldn't ignore this one. R.E.M. debuted the song on 1992's Automatic For The People and it's a beautifully delivered song ending Side 1, Michael Stipe's vocal underpinned by Knox Chandler's cello. Davies opts for an even more pared back version, with shimmering organ notes and multi-tracked vocals. It's a moving take ond worth every penny.

Hurry up, though: these cover versions tend to only be up for a week before disappearing. 

 

Catherine Anne Davies is (hopefully) back on stage in the UK as The Anchoress from next month and it would be great to hear this performed live. By way of contrast, I've added a typically great live rendition by R.E.M., this one performed in Montreux, Switzerland on 6th July 1999.

 

Sweetness Follows (Cover of R.E.M.): The Anchoress (2022)

Sweetness Follows (Live @ Stravinski Auditorium, Montreux, Switzerland): R.E.M. (1999)

Faith In Possession Is Just This Week's New Obsession

Catherine Anne Davies has released two brilliant albums in as many years. Her collaboration with Bernard Butler, In Memory Of My Feelings, was one of my highlights of 2020 and her latest album as The Anchoress, The Art Of Losing, is already doing the same in 2021.

A number of singles/videos have been released from the album, but it's a fantastic listen from start to finish. The Exchange features a duet with James Dean Bradfield and The Anchoress will be supporting Manic Street Preachers on their UK tour later this year. I'm going to see them at Bath Forum in October - at this point in time, promising to be only my second gig this year - and to say I'm looking forward to it would be a massive understatement.

The Anchoress / Catherine Anne Davies on Bandcamp
 
The Exchange: The Anchoress ft. James Dean Bradfield (2021) (3:24)

Where Have You Been? You're My Violin

Martina Topley-Bird is back, with a new album Forever I Wait released in September and co-produced with Robert Del Naja aka 3D from Massive Attack. Lots of media interest, including NME, reporting that this is Martina's first album in over a decade. That particular album, Some Place Simple, mainly featured reworkings of songs from her first two albums, so it's actually her first album of new material since 2007's The Blue God.

Like most, I first heard Martina on Tricky's groundbreaking single Aftermath but I am also a huge fan of her solo material. Her first album Quixotic was a patchwork of styles and producers, the sound of an artist finding their identity. The Blue God, produced by Danger Mouse, is a cohesive and outstanding album that I keep coming back to. Some Place Simple, released on Damon Albarn's Honest Jon's Records in 2010, stripped back the songs to great effect.

The lead single from Forever I Wait is Pure Heart, with a rumbling, sinister bassline and guitar chords typical of latter day Massive Attack, but of course it's Martina's voice that carries the song. 

2021 is shaping up to be an great year, with excellent albums from Jane Weaver, The Anchoress (Catherine Anne Davies) and more to come from Dot Allison, Kelsey Lu (hopefully) and Martina Topley-Bird. 

Pure Heart: Martina Topley-Bird (You Tube) (4:12)