I read the sad news on Sunday that Tom Verlaine passed at the age of 73, with some of my fellow bloggers posting tributes to him and, by default, Television and in particular Marquee Moon. In 1989, I don't think I had heard a single note of music by Television. In fact, it was probably 1993, when I sent a cheque in the post to Melody Maker and received by return a CD compilation, Rebellious Jukebox.
Commenting on C's wonderful Tom Verlaine tribute at Sun Dried Sparrows, Swiss Adam said that the title track of Marquee Moon "is one of those songs that when you hit play,
you're in for the duration, no way you're going to turn it off before
the full thing has unfolded".
I know what he means. Marquee Moon closes Rebellious Jukebox but it's not the original album version, a relatively brisk run through, stopping just shy of ten minutes. Oh no. This is a live version, clocking in at fourteen minutes and forty five seconds. Quite an introduction to the band, let me tell you.
Which makes the appearance in 1989 of Tom Verlaine's mug on the homemade (by me) sleeve to this cassette inexplicable. Verlaine - either solo or with Television - doesn't appear on the compilation at all! I guess I'd taken a cutting from a music rag and decided that Tom looked "Reg" enough to adorn the cover. So, this is my personal if somewhat irreverant tribute to the great musician. So long, Tom, you were something special.
Returning to the selection, being a 19th birthday present, you get a snippet of Paul Hardcastle's big hit before thankfully cutting to one of Pixies' finest moments. What seems so surreal now, thirty-odd years later, is that this was very 'now' compilation, most of the tracks having come out in 1989 or the year before, with the odd smattering of older songs. Stuart was into U2 and Cactus World News, we had a shared love of O.M.D., Talking Heads, The Sugarcubes and The Doors, and he was introducing me to R.E.M.'s incredible back catalogue. We'd been to see The Jesus & Mary Chain live for the first time at the Studio in Bristol the previous month and Stuart was raving about The Stone Roses' debut album, which at that point I hadn't yet heard.
This might have been the first mixtape that Stuart did for me and it's a good one, even if it did require a bit of fast forwarding at the end to get to Side 2. It's a snapshot of a time in our lives where the decade (and our teens) was coming to an end and anything seemed possible. Happy days.
And who was "Reg"? There was an inscription on the cassette: "Smarmy Reg Varney". Neither of us were fans of On The Buses or Mr. Varney, it has to be said, but it was knocking around as one of those meaningless catchphrases at the time. Sometimes, that's as deep as it goes...
1) Intro / Bone Machine: Paul Hardcastle / Pixies (1988)
2) Touch Me (Album Version): The Doors (1969)
3) UV Ray: The Jesus & Mary Chain (1989)
4) The Beginning And The End: O.M.D. (1981)
5) Unchained Melody (Cover of Todd Duncan): U2 (1989)
6) The Book I Read: Talking Heads (1977)
7) Just A Touch (Album Version): R.E.M. (1986)
8) Bee: The Sugarcubes (1989)
9) Reconcile (Single Version): Cactus World News (1989)
10) What The World Is Waiting For: The Stone Roses (1989)
11) Riders On The Storm (Album Version): The Doors (1971)
12) No Compassion (Part II): Talking Heads (1977)
1969: The Soft Parade: 2
1971: L.A. Woman: 11
1977: Talking Heads: 77: 6, 12
1981: Architecture & Morality: 4
1986: Life's Rich Pageant: 7
1988: Surfer Rosa: 1
1989: All I Want Is You EP: 5
1989: Automatic: 3
1989: Fools Gold EP: 10
1989: Here Today, Tomorrow Next Week!: 8
1989: Rebound EP: 9
