Endurance Test

How did that happen? Somehow I've managed to get to post #2000, more or less intact, though my dignity fell by the wayside a long, long time ago...

In the past few days, JC over at The Vinyl Villain struck the 5,000 post milestone. Not only that, but in the midst of an epic 800-song series of songs that have meant a lot to him. As a reader, it's an uplifting and inspiring read and I can't wait to find out what the final countdown looks (and sounds) like.

JC and the other bloggers that I reference both in the sidebar and frequently in my posts are a constant motivation and support, and I think what started for me in 2020 as an outlet for all the stuff in my brain has grown. I've felt and appreciated the sense of community, especially in times when the mainstream media is constantly reminding us how cruel, selfish and unkind humans are.

All that, but we're also capable of so much more, and even though the humble blog may be considered antiquated, anachronistic even, it's also a constant reminder that music is often a means of bridging those divides and finding common ground, when there might otherwise appear to be none.

A very simplistic view, I know, but I love music and connecting with others that feel the same way, and write about it so brilliantly, lets little rays of sunshine in that brighten my world.

Thanks everyone, for everything.

Today, six songs featuring the number 2,000. You connect with some or all, and my commiserations to those for whom the last resonates with their experience of this blog....!

1) Disco 2000: Pulp (1995)

2) I Love Disco 2000 aka 90BPM: Disco 2000 aka The KLF (1988)

3) Expo2000 (Orbital Mix) (Full Length): Kraftwerk (2000)

4) Lamacqmanaut 2000 aka Dogmonaut 2000 (Steve Lamacq Session): Frigid Vinegar

5) 2000 Light Years From Bolan (Album Version): Go Home Productions (2008)

6) 2000 Years Of Mental Torture: Associates (1979)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Decadance I: 1990

Side 1 of a mock cassette compilation, kicking off a new series of mixtapes that never were, and a sequel of sorts to one that I posted last August and September.

As 1989 turned into 1990 I had the idea of creating a themed series of cassette compilations, looking back at the previous decade and inspiringly titled Decade. Five C90s, one year per side, 12 songs apiece. 

I recorded the first volume on 3rd February 1990. Thirty five years later, I've finally got around to the follow up.

Decadance (sic) was originally the title of a planned companion to the Decade series, featuring selected 12" versions of 80s songs. I've appropriated it for this series instead, intentional misspelling and all, starting obviously with 1990.

The next five weekends will feature each year of the 90s, sticking with the same format of a dozen songs that dip into my record collection, which grew exponentially during the decade as I got a regular wage and a increasing addiction to music.

This was a bloody tough one to begin with. My 'shortlist' ran to over 50 songs. I decided quite early on that 1990 was going to be limited to more dance-oriented music. Although I still buying lots of guitar-based and indie records, the songs here are more reflective of what I was leaning into and hearing when I was out and about.

So, that immediately relegated Pixies, Lush, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Mazzy Star, Inspiral Carpets and, reluctantly, World Of Twist. Being in the list of 1990s biggest sellers was no guarantee either, as Sinéad O'Connor, Maria McKee, Madonna found out to their cost. 

And Vanilla Ice, MC Hammer and especially Turtle Power by Partners In Kryme were proof if needed that being in the Top 15 best-selling singles of 1990 does not mean that the record buying public was right. Although I agonised longer than perhaps I should have about whether to include Infinity (1990's...Time For The Guru) by Guru Josh (RIP).

That said, two-thirds of today's selection were Top 40, and I've even managed to include two #1's with Beats International and Adamski (who naughtily didn't co-headline with Seal) although I would have sworn that there were three.

In fact, Groove Is In The Heart by Deee-Lite didn't hit the top spot. It was kept at #2 for two weeks by the re-release of The Joker by The Steve Miller Band, before Maria McKee came in with Show Me Heaven and ruined it for both of them.

Before I'd picked any of the other songs, I knew 1990 would begin with Renegade Soundwave, simply because I loved their singles and debut album, Soundclash.  Andrew Weatherall's game changing overhaul of Primal Scream with Loaded was a strong contender but inevitably was the only way to end the selection.

In between, there are perhaps some obvious choices, with The KLF, EMF and The Beloved but hopefully a few pleasant surprises too. 

Of the singles that stalled outside the Top 50, The Fall's inspired collaboration with Coldcut was huge for me, as was The Shamen's game changing album En-Tact. The single version of Make It MIne is a different mix, but the version with the rap by Rhyme & Reason that was so cheesy it was cool is the definitive in my opinion.

As well as samples aplenty, a couple of used another song as the entire foundation of their own, to startling effect. Beats International's cover of Just Be Good To Me by The S.O.S. Band laid Lindy Layton's vocals over the rhythm of Guns Of Brixton by The Clash, with a re-recorded verse lifted from Johnny Dynell & New York 88's Jam Hot was just inspired. 

As was A Tribe Called Quest's debut Top 50 hit, Bonita Applebum, whose pairing with Carly Simon & Chic 1982 hit Why? elevated both songs to another level entirely.

Although never in the same league as Andrew Weatherall, I liked Paul Oakenfold's remixes and whilst he's represented here, you may be scratching your heads wondering why I've left off his frankly brilliant remix of Step On by Happy Mondays (#5 in April 1990) for his arguably lesser known remix of Nothing by Frazier Chorus (#51 in August 1990).

Despite Step On coming out earlier in the year, I actually bought the 12" singles of Cloud 8 and Nothing first. Both featured Oakenfold remixes (I'd also recommend the limited edition Chad Jackson reworks of Nothing) and both were a surprising and pleasing departure for Frazier Chorus. Not that it helped them in the commercial sense, unfortunately,  but look what success did to Happy Mondays...

As an added bonus, this time around, I've included info at the end on when each single's peak (UK) chart placing and date, and the respective EP or album the featured version is lifted from. Well, it keeps me occupied and off the streets.

It will come as no surprise that Sunday will take a look at 1991. 

The Top 10 best selling singles of that year included Bryan Adams, Queen, The Simpsons, Chesney Hawkes and Color Me Badd. You may be relieved to know that none of them will be showing up here.

1) Probably A Robbery (7" Remix By Daniel Miller & Rico Conning): Renegade Soundwave
2) Telephone Thing (Album Version By Coldcut): The Fall
3) Unbelievable (Album Version By Ralph Jezzard): EMF
4) Make It Mine (V2.5) (Remix By The Shamen & 'Evil' Eddie Richards): The Shamen ft. Rhyme & Reason
5) Hello (Album Version By Martyn Phillips): The Beloved
6) What Time Is Love? (Live At Trancentral) (7" Version): The KLF ft. MC Bello & The Children Of The Revolution

7) Dub Be Good To Me (Album Version By Norman Cook): Beats International ft. Lindy Layton

8) Bonita Applebum (7" Why? Edit By CJ Mackintosh & Robin Hancock): A Tribe Called Quest

9) Groove Is In The Heart (LP Version By Deee-Lite & Mike Rogers): Deee-Lite ft. Bootsy Collins & Q-Tip

10) Nothing (7" Edit By Paul Oakenfold & Steve Osborne): Frazier Chorus

11) Killer (Edit By Adamski & Mike 'Spike' Drake): Adamski ft. Seal

12) Loaded (Andrew Weatherall Mix) (7" Version): Primal Scream

27th Jan 1990: Extricate (#58): 2

11th Feb 1990: Happiness (#19): 5

18th Feb 1990: Probably A Robbery EP (#38): 1

25th Feb 1990: Dub Be Good To Me EP (#1): 7

18th Mar 1990: Loaded EP (#16): 12

6th May 1990: Killer EP (#1): 11

12th Aug 1990: Bonita Applebum EP (#47): 8

26th Aug 1990: Nothing EP (#51): 10

9th Sep 1990: World Clique (#2): 9

9th Sep 1990: What Time Is Love? EP (#5): 6

22nd Sep 1990: En-Tact (#42): 4

25th Nov 1990: Schubert Dip (#3): 3

Side One (47:24) (GD) (M)

Decade V: 1988

Side 1 of a C90 of the 80s, recorded 8th April 1990.

 

First up, apologies for the very late post this morning. I had a long day at work, overslept and woke to a wailing cat, who was behaving like they had been trapped at the bottom of a well for a week without food. Where were they three hours ago?!

Anyhoo...

1988 was a transformative year, in good and bad ways. By the end of the year, I'd turned 18, dropped out of sixth form college, passed my driving test and bought my first car, got a job, went clubbing more and found myself mostly single and 'friend zoned' more often than I planned, and before that was even a thing. And still living at home with my parents, which was really starting to bite.

Musically speaking, my horizons were broadening exponentially, though you'd be hard pressed to guess from today's selection. 

I went to relatively few gigs in 1988, but all ‘first timers’: Erasure supported by Zip (Pete Shelley's short-lived band); Siouxsie & The Banshees; Pixies supported by My Bloody Valentine (!); Marc Almond and Julian Cope. What a year!

Despite the absence here of songs aimed squarely at the pop charts or the dancefloor (as explained last week), I quite like this selection's eclectic mix of hits, non-hits and never-had-a-hope-of-being hits.

The lush gatefold 12" single of Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie's eponymous single leapt out from the record racks almost as much as the 'reduced for a quick sale' sticker in the top right hand corner of the sleeve did. I'd seen The Rattler on TV, and bought this one on  spec. I enjoyed this EP and their debut album, though it was the first time I really understood what was meant by 'over produced'. Turns out the guy at the controls was Rheinhold Mack, Queen's go-to producer. Not such a good fit for the (other) Macks, unfortunately. They never got the success they deserved, but Shirley Manson did alright afterwards.

By 1988, Killing Joke were reduced to a duo of Jaz Coleman and Geordie Walker and released the album Outside The Gate, which seems largely unloved. On first hearing lead single America, I thought it was so awful that I had to buy it. I've grown to love it - and the album - since, it's bonkers. 

Andrew Eldritch was continuing to piss off the Goth purists by reforming The Sisters Of Mercy with Patricia Morrison (ex-Gun Club) and daring to grow a beard and wear a cream suit with tie on Top Of The Pops. I loved what went before, but I loved the overblown drama of This Corrosion and the Floodland album too. Dominion was another heavy single, but a welcome chart-troubling contrast to Rick Astley, Mel & Kim and Johnny Hates Jazz.

Zeke Manyika was a member of Orange Juice and played on The The's Soul Mining album. Matt Johnson returned the favour by co-producing and 'editing the lyrics' for Zeke's single Bible Belt. One of many anti-apartheid songs at the time, the astonishing video was filmed in The Beira Corridor in Mozambique with the blessing of the authorities, who lent a train, a military helicopter, and an armed security detail! Bible Belt was sadly not a hit.

Orange Crush, however, provided R.E.M. with their first Top 30 single in the UK. The title refers to the chemical defoliant Agent Orange used extensively by the US Army in the Vietnam War. Coincidentally, Agent Orange also inspired the title of a Depeche Mode B-side the previous year. Whilst Green is not my all-time favourite R.E.M. album, it was head and shoulders above much of what was in the charts in 1988, as was the single. It still holds that power.

I got into Pixies straight away, as my brother had a copy of Come On Pilgrim, though I think he was less excited about it than I was. I soon got my own, along with follow up Surfer Rosa and the double A-side 12" pairing re-recorded versions of Gigantic and River Euphrates. Whilst I prefer Steve Albini's production on the former, Gil Norton's extended take on River Euphrates on the single just about edges it for me. 

I bought The Justified Ancients Of Mu Mu double vinyl compilation Shag Times in 1989. I subsequently trading it in for a CD version, which is these days cited by writers recalling the "CD rot" travesty of the same period. My copy is rarely played now, but (touch wood) is at least still playable. I also belatedly bought the 12" single of Burn The Bastards, which contains an edit and a club mix, both credited to The KLF. 

 

Burn The Bastards is a joyous, carefree pastiche/rip-off of Sly & The Family Stone's Dance To The Music (repurposed as "JAMS have a party!"). Bill Drummond tries rapping and there are samples galore, including Whacko Jacko and yes, that's Dirty Den from EastEnders being abruptly cut off at the end.

Also benefiting from a remix are The Sugarcubes, with Cold Sweat. I loved their album, but I have a special place in my heart for the remixes of Cold Sweat and Deus, on limited edition 12" and 10" singles respectively. This version strips things back a little, beefs up the drums, inserts a well-placed sample and gives more room to Björk and Einar's dynamic duet.

And yes, some U2 with their first UK #1 single, Desire in October 1988. I perhaps should have included a health warning for some of the regulars. I make no apologies, I like the song, they were my friend Stuart's favourite band and whilst I didn't own any of their albums, I begrudgingly enjoyed U2's Rattle & Hum film, even if Bono was being a hairy arse for most of it. An unintentionally hilarious hairy arse, to be specific.

Shane MacGowan was called many things, but he was definitely less of a hairy arse than Bono. And The Pogues were fantastic. I bought the limited edition 12" of If I Should Fall From Grace With God, released in a green tinted sleeve to coincide with/celebrate St. Patrick's Day. Why on earth wasn't this a #1 too?

Scritti Politti were also back in 1988, with the follow up to the phenomenally successful Cupid + Psyche 85. Provision is a great album and made the Top Ten, though didn't quite match the success of its predecessor. Likewise, the singles.  

 

Boom! There She Was only managed #55, despite the added appeal of "Roger" aka Roger Troutman of Zapp fame, who thankfully remembered to bring along his trademark talk box, which he uses liberally throughout the song. Maybe radio listeners weren't quite ready for this. Or maybe it was Green's lyrics, which reference the Tupamaros (a guerilla group in Uruguay circa 1970-1971), Pharmacopoeia (a book used to identify of compound medicines), or Italian motorcycle manufacturer Moto Guzzi. Stock/Aitken/Waterman it most definitely was not!

 

Talking Heads delivered what was to be their final album this year. Reading Chris Franz' autobiography, it seems that this was essentially David Byrne getting to work with a bunch of other artists (including Johnny Marr), with the rest of the band treated as little more than session musicians. Byrne may or may not remember things differently, but regardless, the end was nigh.

 

I don't think I've ever seen anyone refer to Naked as the best Talking Heads album and it most certainly isn't. And yet, there are moments of greatness on it, not least with the single Blind. It's recognisable as Talking Heads, but it's paving the way for David Byrne's subsequent solo album. Blind is also funky as hell, with an infectious twangy guitar and rolling toms, demanding that you get into the groove.

 

See you here again tomorrow (hopefully back to the usual time) for the final part of this series and the last gasp of the 1980s...

 

1) Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie (Single Version): Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie

2) America (Single Version): Killing Joke

3) Dominion (Unreleased Promo Version): The Sisters Of Mercy

4) Bible Belt (7" Version): Zeke Manyika

5) Orange Crush (Album Version): R.E.M.

6) River Euphrates (Single Version): Pixies

7) Burn The Bastards (Edit): The KLF

8) Coldsweat (Remix): The Sugarcubes

9) Desire (Album Version): U2

10) If I Should Fall From Grace With God (7" Remix): The Pogues

11) Boom! There She Was (U.S. Mix): Scritti Politti ft. Roger

12) Blind (Album Version): Talking Heads

31st January 1988: Life's Too Good (#56): 8

28th February 1988: Floodland (#13): 3

6th March 1988: If I Should Fall From Grace With God (#58): 10

24th April 1988: Shag Times (# n/a): 7

1st May 1988: Outside The Gate (#77): 2

11th June 1988: Green (#28): 5

14th August 1988: Surfer Rosa (#59): 12

21st August 1988: Good Deeds And Dirty Rags (#62): 1

28th August 1988: Surfer Rosa (#93): 6

11th September 1988: Mastercrime (# n/a): 4

2nd October 1988: Rattle & Hum (#1): 9

13th November 1988: Mastercrime (#55): 11

 

Side One (45:48) (GD) (M)

Three x3 x3 x3

Somehow, I'm not quite sure how, Dubhed is three years old today. Not something I imagined writing when I first started this blog in 2020. 

 

A piffling amount of time if you visit any of the blogs linked to this site and see what dedication and long-term commitment really looks like, but it's without a doubt the most sustained period of activity for any 'creative venture' that I've ever been wholly responsible for. 

Will it change your life? No, of course not. But it has helped mine in some subtle and more obvious ways. Especially since moving to the discipline of a daily post, it's given me a structured mindfulness activity that's been more of a help with my mental health that I can fully appreciate, both as a preventative and a curative exercise.

The best bit though, and the inspiration for doing it in the first place, is the lovely blogging community that I discovered and have since felt a part of, a reminder when you are surrounded by news and stories to the contrary that there are many, many wonderful human beings out there. And we all share a passion for music. Not necessarily the same music all of the time, but an appreciation and respect for the sheer love of it regardless.

It's not just about the music, though, this sense of community. Whenever I can, I try to make some time on a Saturday morning to drop by at My Top Ten to join in with Rol's excellent - and teasingly, pleasingly difficult - Saturday Snapshots quiz. Every month in 2023, John's Are We There Yet? blog has hosted a gallery of themed photos, which I started contributing to (albeit generally always just under the deadline wire - sorry, John!) and enjoy a lot. SWC at No Badger Required has run regular countdowns, based on votes from a musical jury and I'm privileged to have been a member on quite a few of these. And it all started for me with guest contributions to The Vinyl Villain, specifically JC's epic and ongoing An Imaginary Compilation album series, which has pretty much been the template for the Dubhed selections that have regularly featured here. 

 

That's just scratching the surface: there are so many fantastic music blogs out there, all saying something different, all opening up my mind (and ears) to new experiences and not just music, of course. Every single one of the blogs in the "Other Head Music" roll call on your right (in web view, that is) are a continual inspiration.

 

I recently commented that Swiss Adam's Bagging Area "has always been more than a blog for music lovers, it’s a lesson in humanity." It's a humbling experience reading other people's raw and vulnerable thoughts and expressions - painful and inspiring often at the same time - and it's wonderful to see how people rally round, offer support and encouragement and just care.

Thank you all, you know who you are. Whether you have visited once or lots of times, left plenty of comments or none at all, have downloaded a Dubhed selection or had a glance through and moved on, thank you.

 

Anyhoo, before you start to wonder if you've stumbled on a Grammy award acceptance speech by accident, let's have some music.

If I've got my numbers right, today is my 970th post and my 654th Dubhed selection (if you count individual sides of a mixtape, which I am). No wonder my back up drive is looking full...!

I thought I'd struggle to find enough songs in my collection with 'three' in the title. No such trouble, as it happens, to the extent that I've left out some really obvious ones (apologies, De La Soul) and mix it up a little.

So, the name of this mix. Three multiplied by three three times is 81 so this selection is of course 81 minutes long (or as near as dammit). Each song contains 3 or three in the title. There are 20 tracks in total, which as you'll know is...not divisible by three. Well, you can overwork a theme sometimes, can't you?

 

Today's cover art is photo of Lagos - Resistance, Lagos Roads, a 1992 work by Otobong Nkanga, born in Nigeria, based in Belgium and whose exhibition was viewed and enjoyed by Clan K in Spain a few weeks ago. And yes, there's the 'three' theme again.

If you made it to the end of this post, an extra thank you. Rest assured, a return to the usual nonsense tomorrow.

 

1) 3 a.m. Eternal (Rankin' Club Version By Moody Boys & The Mad Professor): The KLF (1991)

2) Yeah x 3 (X-Press 2 Remix): David Holmes ft. Raven Violet (2023)

3) Three Card Trick: The Clash (1985)

4) #3 (In The Corn Belt) (Album Version By Arthur Russell): Dinosaur L (1981)

4.1) The Three Sneezes (Original Story by Roger Duvoisin) (Part 1): Martin Wallace (2006)

5) Three (Album Version By Massive Attack & Nellee Hooper): Massive Attack ft. Nicolette (1994)

6) Three MC's And One DJ (Album Version By Beastie Boys & Mario Caldato Jr.): Beastie Boys (1998)

7) Three Minute Hero: The Selecter (1980)

8) Three And Nine: Roxy Music (1974)

9) The Three Sisters: The Cure (1994)

9.1) The Three Sneezes (Original Story by Roger Duvoisin) (Part 2): Martin Wallace (2006)

10) 3 Gypsies In A Restaurant: Billy MacKenzie (1996)

11) Three Monkey Tango: Marc Almond (2006)

12) Spit Three Times (Album Version By Kieran Hebden): Neneh Cherry (2014)

13) Jltf 3 (Ambient): Moby ft. Melody Zimmer (2009)

14) 3 Of Us (4 Your Club Mix By Steve Thompson & Michael Barbiero): Humpe Humpe (1985)

15) Three Wishes: Let It Come Down (Kramer & Xan Tyler) (2020)

16) The Three Shadows Pt.1: Bauhaus (1982)

16.1) The Three Sneezes (Original Story by Roger Duvoisin) (Part 3): Martin Wallace (2006)

17) We Three Kings Of Orient Aren't: Jamie Wednesday (1986)

18) Three Girl Rhumba (Cover of Wire): Bark Psychosis (1996)

19) 3 a.m. Eternal (Almighty Radio Edit): People Of 'K' ft. Crystal (2014)

20) The Three Sneezes (Original Story by Roger Duvoisin) (Part 4): Martin Wallace (2006)

Three x3 x3 x3 (1:20:59) (KF) (Mega)

Who-ray

At 5.15pm on Saturday 23rd November 1963, Doctor Who made it's debut on BBC One.

 

Incredibly - and notwithstanding a 16-year 'rest' from the small screen, bar a one-off movie in 1996 - Doctor Who is celebrating it's 60th anniversary not alone as an ongoing series but arguably bigger than it's ever been before, with the Disney boosting the BBC's financial and global reach even further.

 

If you're a fan, whether that began during the TV series' first run from 1963 to 1989 or with the hugely successful reboot in 2005, there is much to enjoy at the moment. BBC iPlayer kicked off November by adding most of the original run of Doctor Who episodes to the 150+ of the current series to watch for free.

 

Tonight on BBC Four, the first appearance of The Daleks from 1963 will be re-presented as a 75-minute edit in colour for the first time. The technology available now to produce the current TV series and repackage the old for a new audience could only be dreamed of six decades ago.

 

The icing on the cake is of course the double whammy two new Doctors before the end of 2023. First up is David Tennant, who played the Tenth incarnation of the Doctor from 2005 to 2010 and is returning as the Fourteenth iteration. Looks similar but not the same...

 

Tennant made his first 'full' on-screen appearance, in a brief encounter with Davros (kind of) and the Daleks (well, one of the them) for BBC's Children In Need telethon. It was short, it was irreverent, it was fun and a nice way to kick start the 60th anniversary.

 

The BBC also chose Children In Need to celebrate Doctor Who's 30th anniversary in 1993. The show had been off-air since 1989 so anticipation was high. This is what we got.

The original broadcast was in 3D, though arguably most of the acting was of the 2D variety with dialogue that would have had the cast frequently chewing the scenery. Not the revival that fans were hoping for, to say the least.

 

David Tennant will appear again on Saturday and will be on our screens for the next three weeks. From there, Ncuti Gatwa will make his debut as the fifteenth Doctor, including the return of the Christmas Day special which became a staple during the first decade of the revived series.

 

I thought Jodie Whitaker was a great Doctor Who but that period of the show suffered from episodes that looked fantastic but were frankly a bit dull and unengaging, miscast in some cases and didn't give the lead actor enough to work with. Although it may feel like a backwards step, with the return of former showrunner Russell T. Davies, the energy and buzz around the series is palpable and personally, I'm excited to see what's ahead.

As this is supposed to be a music blog, I should add something more than the opening video by The Timelords (aka The KLF), shouldn't I? 

 

Last February, as a birthday gift for my mate Shane, I posted a 20-track, 60(ish) minute mish-mash of Doctor Who songs and snippets, including Matt Smith (Doctor #11) appearing with Orbital at Glastonbury, Jon Pertwee (Doctor #3) teaching Dry Cleaning a thing or two about sprechsang, The KLF unofficially celebrating 25 years of Doctor Who and getting a UK #1 for their trouble and of course that classic theme tune (twice). As I'm in a celebratory mood, you can find it again here.

 

Happy birthday, Doctor, all of you!

Burn Baby Burn

Sunday 5th November is officially Bonfire Night, or Guy Fawkes Night if you prefer, although most of the displays in my neck of the woods inevitably took place on Saturday night. 

Things have changed dramatically since I was a kid. The weeks leading up to 5th November used to see children pitched up outside the local newsagents with a badly stuffed and clothed effigy and calling out for a "penny for the Guy". This year my local shop had a copper-hued approximation of Spongebob Squarepants, no kids and no indication of whether poor ol' Bob was going to end up on the pyre come the evening's festivities.

Hallowe'en was virtually non-existent as a "thing" when I was growing up but seems to have completely taken over from Bonfire Night in the last few decades. We were in Valencia for the former, which is followed on 1st November by el Dia de Todos los Santos ("All Saints Day" itself derived from the pagan festival "All Souls Day"), a national public holiday and a time to remember and honour the dead.

From a meteorological perspective, there couldn't have been a greater contrast. Hallowe'en and All Saints Day were bright and sunny, with temperatures in the mid-high 20s; Bonfire Night was bloody freezing and it had been raining for much of the day. We've not been to the local firework display since Lady K very quickly lost interest in it as a child and this year was no exception. Bah. And humbug.

However, it does give me an excuse to pull together a (let's face it, verrrry loose) Dubhed selection based on fireworks, bonfires and fires in general. Spoiler alert: despite the title, Ash doesn't feature at all.

What you do get for starters is a one-off collaboration between The Go-Betweens and The Birthday Party from 1982. From there, a trio of 1986 treats by XTC, Elvis Costello and Ciccone Youth, with more 1980s gems from Redskins, Siouxsie & The Banshees and Tom Robinson following later.

On Thursday, Walter - he of the excellent A Few Good Times In My Life blog - waxed lyrical about the 50th anniversary reissue of classic film The Wicker Man. As noted, Bristol legend Katy J Pearson was invited to cover a number of the soundtrack's songs. Katy brought some friends along, including Drug Store Romeos, Wet Leg and Sarah Meth for a spine-tingling version of Fire Leap.  

Speaking of covers, the only song I have by Joensuu 1685 is their full-volume cover of I'm On Fire by The Boss. The Helsinki-based band comprises three Joensuus - Markus, Mikko and Risto - though only the first two are related. Their second album was released in 2020 so I assume that they're still a going concern.

It would be remiss of me not to include a Spanish band in this selection and whilst they hail from Madrid not Valencia, who better than the raucous Hinds? 

By complete contrast, things drop down to a much more sedate level for the closing song, The KLF adding a chilled country twang to Build A Fire from their seminal album The White Room.

 

1) After The Fireworks: Tuff Monks (1982)

2) Sacrificial Bonfire: XTC (1986)

3) Indoor Fireworks: The Costello Show ft. The Attractions & The Confederates (1986)

4) Burnin' Up (Mike Watt Original Demo) (Cover of Madonna): Ciccone Youth (1986)

5) Building A Fire: James & Brian Eno (1994)

6) Worn From The Fight (With Fireworks): Castanets (2009)

7) (Burn It Up!) Bring It Down (This Insane Thing) (12" Version): Redskins (1985)

8) Light/Fireworks: The Fall (1993)

9) Fire Leap (Cover of Magnet): Katy J Pearson ft. Drug Store Romeos, Wet Leg & Sarah Meth (2023) 

10) Bonfire: Lamb (1999)

11) Fireworks (12" Version): Siouxsie & The Banshees (1982)

12) I'm On Fire (Cover of Bruce Springsteen): Joensuu 1685 (2009)

13) Looking For A Bonfire (Unreleased Alternate Recording): Tom Robinson (1984)

14) Burn: Hinds (2020)

15) Build A Fire (1991 Album Version): The KLF ft. Maxine Harvey (1991)

 

1982: After The Fireworks EP: 1

1982: Fireworks EP: 11

1985: (Burn It Up!) Bring It Down (This Insane Thing) EP: 7

1986: Burnin' Up/Into The Groove(y) EP: 4

1986: King Of America : 3 

1991: The White Room: 15

1993: The Infotainment Scan: 8

1994: Wah Wah: 5

1997: War Baby: Hope And Glory: 13

1999: Fear Of Fours: 10

2009: Texas Rose, The Thaw, And The Beasts: 6

2010: I'm On Fire / Perfect Grace EP: 12

2016: Skylarking (Steven Wilson Mix): 2

2020: The Prettiest Curse: 14

2023: The Wicker Man EP: 9

Burn Baby Burn (59:13) (KF) (Mega)

More Devotional

Side 1 of a Depeche Mode cassette compilation, recorded circa September/October 1998.

 

I posted Side 2 in May this year and I still haven't got around to buying the current Depeche Mode album, Memento Mori, despite really liking the lead single, Ghosts Again. A testament to the amount of other great music that's been released this year but despite being the first gig I ever went to and my obsessive need to buy all of their singles through to, well, around the end of 1998 I was still never what you'd describe as a devotional fan.

I did like their singles and pick of remixers though and I think this mixtape is a pretty good example that when they were good, they were very good.

William Orbit's Random Carpet Mix of Walking In My Shoes pops up on compilations in a full length 8+ minute version, but I prefer the six-and-a-half minute edit that appeared on the original CD single. 

The KLF remix is a relative rarity. They didn't do that many in their time but they were always worth hunting down. As is Dan The Automator's trip hop take on standalone single Only When I Lose Myself, only pipped as my favourite mix of the song by Loo & Placido's mash-up with Dr. Dre from 2006 aka Still Losing Myself.

 

Not quite a mash-up, but Art Maharg drops a cheeky Enya sample into his edit of Sea Of Sin. His and Joseph Watt's (mostly) bootleg Razormaid mixes were often as good as and occasional better than the commercial releases.

I've found the 21st Century remixes a very hit-and-miss affair to be honest, leaning towards the latter. In the right hands, though? Mode magic.

 

1) Walking In My Shoes (Random Carpet Mix By William Orbit) (Single Version) (1993)

2) Everything Counts (Remix By Tim Simenon & Mark Saunders) (1989)

3) It's No Good (Album Version By Tim Simenon) (1997)

4) Personal Jesus (Holier Than Thou Approach) (Remix By François Kevorkian) (1989)

5) Only When I Lose Myself (Dan The Automator Mix By Dan Nakamura) (1998)

6) Policy Of Truth (Trancentral Mix By The KLF aka Bill Drummond & Jimmy Cauty) (1990)

7) Sea Of Sin (Razormaid's Orinoco Flow Edit By Art Maharg) (1990)

8) Rush (Spiritual Guidance Mix By Jack Dangers) (1993)

Side One (46:07) (KF) (Mega)

Side Two, including revived links to previous Depeche Mode selections, can be found here

All You Need Is Dub

As a Bank Holiday special here in the UK, here's both sides of a mixtape I compiled on 5th September 1993. Nearly thirty years ago. What happened?

I've recorded two compilations called All You Need Is Dub, this one on cassette and the other in 2005 on CD-R, both very different selections. The latter was more rooted in old school dub and it's influence on later artists. This mixtape is very much all about electronic music circa 1990-1993, vocals dubbed to a minimum or removed altogether to enhance the dancefloor experience.

 

Setting the bar high is Andrew Weatherall's still jaw-dropping remix of Papua New Guinea by The Future Sound Of London. The 12" single was packed with top notch mixes but this one was on another tier altogether. 

 

Fearlessly following up are the Hartnoll Brothers, Phil and Paul adding a heft to Daydream by Back To The Planet that makes me wish the band had got Orbital to remix more of their music. I first got this on 7" vinyl, the flip side to the original version and an Adrian Sherwood dub. Probably paid less than a couple of quid for it at the time. What a bargain.

Miranda Sex Garden were on the Mute record label but always felt more suited to 4AD. This remix by Danny Rampling only appeared on the 12" single along with a couple more mixes, including another rather good one by Thrash aka Kris Weston of The Orb.

I'd like to pretend I was so on it that I picked up the Palatial single by Love Corporation aka Edward Ball of The Times. Not a chance. However, Creation Records were good at ensuring you didn't miss out by putting out a shedload of compilations that mopped up lots of essential purchases. This version turned up on Do You Believe In Love? released in 1990, the same year as the single. Palatial II was originally a B-side and perhaps in the shadow of Danny Rampling's monumental remix, but I like this mix by Doug Martin a lot.

 

After several attempts with What Time Is Love?, The KLF finally released a chart-smashing version in 1990. I went for the limited edition 12" single which featured an unexpected remix by Echo & The Bunnymen. Much as I'd love to imagine Ian McCulloch at the controls, he was long gone by this point and this is the unloved incarnation that released the Reverberation album which hasn't quite been erased from Bunnymen history. The remix is credited to the band but I'm guessing it maybe largely if not solely Will Sargeant's work. Lots going on, with sitar and tabla replacing the main chord, fuzzy guitar, Star Trek transporter SFX, soundbite samples including Gordon Rollings' "Herbidacious" from a beloved TV series from my childhood. Great stuff.

From Bunnymen to Bowie, with his 1992 comeback single and one of three remixes by Leftfield, who at the time were embroiled in record label shenanigans that prevented them from releasing new music of their own and resulted in some astonishing remixes for other artists. Their 'Dub Oddity' mix of Jump They Say was one of three but (hard) hands down, the best.

Sunsonic were born from the ashes of The Flowerpot Men, who I also liked a lot, though sadly even more short-lived, producing a brilliant album (Melting Down On Motor Angel) and three fantastic singles in 1990. Driveaway was their last, the main single remixed by Graham Massey/808 State, the limited edition 12" single reworked by the band themselves. The Primate Mix strips away the vocals, ups the tempo and adds sparkling synth lines to great effect. 

 

Cabaret Voltaire took what many considered a back step in 1989/90 by making a commercial album that seemed rooted in the present music scene rather than setting the pace for others to follow. Regardless, I loved what they were doing although even I questioned the choice of Easy Life as the third and final single. No matter, the remixes were great including the suitably named Very Strange Mix by Robert Gordon of Forgmasters/Fon Force fame (oh, and a co-founder of Warp Records). 

 

White Love by One Dove was one of those singles that I bought in multiple formats as it was impossible to choose just one. The CD single included Andrew Weatherall remixes and a beautiful 10-minute demo version, whilst the limited edition 12" single featured a brace of Slam remixes that redefined epic. This mixtape features the first of these, a fifteen-and-a-half minute journey from ambient to vocal to techno and back again without ever seeming like it's time to end. Still stunning today.

 

Happiest Girl was one of two new songs accompanying the single release of World In Your Eyes by Depeche Mode. To be honest, I wasn't all that blown away by the single or 12" versions until I bought the (you guessed it) limited edition 12" single. It was a sod to get into, sealed in a blue plastic outer sleeve that you had to physically cut to retrieve the record inside, which included a 'standard' 12" and lavish inner sleeve. Goodness only knows how much the band lost on this one. But the music within was a revelation, not least The Pulsating Orbital Mix of Happiest Girl. Not to be confused with Phil and Paul, who appeared earlier, this was Alex Paterson and Kris Weston aka The Orb, who also had a habit of using the word Orbital in their mix titles to confuse the heck out of we mere record-buying mortals. The Vocal Mix is more readily available these days and pops up on most compilations. No offence Dave Gahan, but this is the go-to mix for me.

 

System 7 had already made an impression with their debut album and singles and 7:7 Expansion was an encouraging primer for the new material that was to follow in 1992. Youth aka Martin Glover delivers a brilliant 10-minute mix with vocal samples echoing Buffalo Gals by Malcolm McLaren and trademark guitar squalls from Steve Hillage. 

 

And back to where we started with the Dub Mix reprise at the end, Brian Dougans and Garry Cobain remixing their own song in succinct fashion.

 

The majority of these versions were only available on vinyl formats back in the day and many have yet to be re-released digitally and/or duplicated in my collection. In other words, there's a fair bit of crisp and crackle in several tracks, betraying their wax origins. I don't think any of it detracts from how bloody good the music is though. 

 

Side One

1) Papua New Guinea (Andrew Weatherall Mix): The Future Sound Of London (1991)

2) Daydream (Orbital Mix By Paul Hartnoll & Phil Hartnoll): Back To The Planet (1993)

3) Gush Forth My Tears (Dance Mix By Danny Rampling): Miranda Sex Garden (1991)

4) Palatial II (Remixed By Doug Martin): Love Corporation (1990)

5) What Time Is Love? (Echo & The Bunnymen Mix): The KLF ft. The Children Of The Revolution (1990)

6) Jump They Say (Dub Oddity Mix By Leftfield aka Neil Barnes & Paul Daley): David Bowie (1992)

Side Two

1) Driveaway (Primate Mix By Sunsonic aka Adam Peters & Ben Watkins): Sunsonic (1991)

2) Easy Life (Very Strange Mix By Robert Gordon): Cabaret Voltaire (1990)

3) White Love (Slam Mix By Stuart McMillan & Orde Meikle): One Dove (1993)

4) Happiest Girl (The Pulsating Orbital Mix By The Orb aka Alex Paterson & Kris Weston): Depeche Mode (1990)

5) 7:7 Expansion (Conspiracy Mix By Youth): System 7 (1992)

6) Papua New Guinea (Dub Mix By Brian Dougans & Garry Cobain): The Future Sound Of London (1991)

Side One (46:35) (KF) (Mega)

Side Two (46:04) (KF) (Mega)