Decayed III: 2004

Side 1 of a cassette compilation that never was, travelling through the 2000s.

Guitars are back! Back!! BACK!!!

Not that they ever go away, but the press likes to enforce a death/rebirth cycle when it comes to guitar-based music and based. It's nonsense of course, and completely disregards the dizzying array of other popular genres and the blending and mashing up of most of them by creatives. Does it even sell column inches? Who cares?

Today's selection is quite guitar-heavy, for all that. U2 were back (along with that man Jacknife Lee) with one of the best songs they'd released in years, even if the rest of the album couldn't match up.

Beastie Boys were also back, revisiting the rap rock golden age of (You Gotta) Fight For Your Right (To Party!) with Triple Trouble, thanks to a rifftastic remix by Graham Coxon.

New kids on the block, all delivering fresh and exciting music, included Art Brut, The Vines, Bloc Party and Franz Ferdinand, whose debut album got my vote for one of The Top 20 Greatest Eponymous Albums Of All Time over at No Badger Required.

Aside from Jacknife Lee, another producer who seemed to be everywhere was Mark Ronson, here popping up with a remix of AIR, featuring Chicagoan rapper Che Smith aka Rhymefest. Licenced to Ill(inois), you might say.

After last week's guest appearance with wife Beyoncé, Jay-Z is back in his own right with Dirt Off Your Shoulder. Another example of the creative ways that labels would deal with the F's, MF's and N's that peppered rap music in order to get it played on the radio. Not so easy to sing along to, I can promise you.

Another returning guest star from last week is Jake Shears, this time in his day job as front person with Scissor Sisters. What a breath of fresh air they were. A cover of Pink Floyd in the style of Bee Gees' disco pomp, it shouldn't work, but Comfortably Numb is glorious. And there was plenty more where that came from.

After my contrived attempt to ensure that Andrew Weatherall appeared in every year of my 1990s series, a welcome return for Lord Sabre under his own steam, with old mucker Keith Tenniswood as Two Lone Swordsmen. Sex Beat is a cover of The Gun Club's 1981 song and a surprise UK Top 25 hit in August 2004.  

The opening and closing songs of today's selection represent artists that I didn't connect with at first, but later grew to love.

Gwen Stefani fronted No Doubt, who had a #1 in 1997 with Don't Speak, an atypical ballad compared to the pop/rock/ska that was their stock in trade. I wasn't a fan. However, Gwen's solo single What You Waiting For? is up there with the best pop songs of the decade and her album Love.Angel.Music.Baby. had lots to enjoy, even if not quite at the same stratospheric level. 

I'm astounded that What You Waiting For? only got to #4, losing out to Girls Aloud, Destiny's Child and Lemar from Fame Academy. No Doubt? No justice, more like!

2004 closes with Slow Life by Super Furry Animals, which I was reacquainted with during the summer thanks to The Robster's must-read series on SFA singles, featured at The Vinyl Villain. 

I'd strongly recommend that you read the entire series from end to end, it's amazing. Here's an extract from The Robster's post on Slow Life:

It was the third and final single from Phantom Power, 

but its release, in April 2004, was far from conventional. 

It, along with its two b-sides, was initially available digitally 

only from the website of Placid Casual, the band’s own independent record label, 

which suggests that Epic may have been reluctant to release it themselves, 

possibly due to its length. 

They did, however, put out a single-sided 12” promo. 

It then featured as a CD single  in the special limited edition of 

the Phantom Phorce remix album  in its own slipcase sleeve. 

Needless to say, it didn’t chart due to the nature of its release.

In the opening paragraph, The Robster writes that Slow Life "really does stand up as one of the finest moments of their existence" and, even in the truncated edit featured here, he is absolutely right.

Decayed is now at the halfway mark and has hopefully demonstrated that the first decade of the 21st century had plenty to offer, musically speaking. Can 2005 hope to keep up?

1) What You Waiting For? (Album Version): Gwen Stefani

2) Alpha Beta Gaga (Mark Ronson Vocal Mix): AIR ft. Rhymefest

3) Vertigo (Jacknife Lee 7"): U2

4) Triple Trouble (Graham Coxon Remix): Beastie Boys

5) Formed A Band (Album Version): Art Brut

6) Comfortably Numb (Album Version) (Cover of Pink Floyd): Scissor Sisters

7) Ride (Album Version): The Vines

8) Take Me Out (Album Version): Franz Ferdinand

9) Helicopter (Original Version): Bloc Party

10) Dirt Off Your Shoulder (Radio): Jay-Z

11) Sex Beat (Remix) (Cover of The Gun Club): Two Lone Swordsmen

12) Slow Life (Edit): Super Furry Animals

18th January 2004: Franz Ferdinand (#3): 8

25th January 2004: Scissor Sisters (#10): 6

14th March 2004: Winning Days (#25): 7

4th April 2004: Bang Bang Rock & Roll (#52): 5

25th April 2004: Phantom Power (# n/a): 12

16th May 2004: The Black Album (#12): 10

1st August 2004: From The Double Gone Chapel (#22): 11

15th August 2004: Talkie Walkie (#44): 2

19th September 2004: To The 5 Boroughs (#37): 4

31st October 2004: Silent Alarm (#26): 9

11th November 2004: How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb (#1): 3

21st November 2004: Love.Angel.Music.Baby. (#4): 1

Side One (45:36) (GD) (M)

If you enjoyed this, why not check out the corresponding mixtapes from 1984 and 1994?

L'art De La Discothèque, Volume 2

A 90 minute revision class in the art of the remix, courtesy of François Kevorkian.

When compiling yesterday's "Volume 1", I'd used half of my shortlist of 24 songs. More by luck than planning, the remaining 12 also clocked in at an hour and a half, so sequencing a "Volume 2" seemed a no-brainer.

This selection has a tighter time period, focusing on 1983 to 2000, but no less a collection of top tunes for that. 

From this century (just), there are 9-minute mixes of Bent and Moloko, featuring the vocal talents of Zoё Johnston and Róisín Murphy respectively. From the 1990s, Soho and Yellow Magic Orchestra. The rest are from the 1980s, points along the spectrum including Cabaret Voltaire, Scritti Politti and That Petrol Emotion. 

Perhaps a surprise for some, but even Lou Reed and King Crimson got in on the extended 12" remix lark back in the day. Not sure how often these vinyl platters were tearing up dancefloors across the globe, but François Kevorkian does a good job with both.

More a production than a remix, Snake Charmer was the opening and title track of a 5-track EP/mini-album by Jah Wobble, The Edge and Holger Czukay in 1983.

Ol' Dave Evans pops up twice here, reuniting with his regular workmates in U2 for an FK remix of Wire the following year. This track originally appeared on the NME Readers' Poll Winners '84, a cover-mounted freebie 7" EP. And being the Celtic Dub Mix, those of you with allergies can rest assured that this version of Wire contains approx. 65% less Bono Vox.

Combined, the two volumes represent a fraction of François Kevorkian's prodigious output since an uncredited 12" remix of Happy Song by Rare Earth in 1975. 

It's inevitable that a Kevorkian remix will crop up on pretty much every 1980s 12" mix selection that I compile from here on, but I will come back to a bespoke FK mixtape or two in the future.

For now, revel in the brilliance.

1) Swollen (Francois K Vocal Mix By François Kevorkian & Eric Kupper): Bent ft. Zoё Johnston (2000)

2) Perfect Way (Way Perfect Mix By François Kevorkian, Alan Meyerson & Josh Abbey) (Full Length): Scritti Politti (1985)

3) Big Decision (Jet Fuel Mix By François Kevorkian): That Petrol Emotion (1987)

4) Snake Charmer (Full Length Version By François Kevorkian): Jah Wobble, The Edge & Holger Czukay (1983)

5) Here To Go (Extended Mix By François Kevorkian): Cabaret Voltaire (1987)

6) Nostalgia (Jeux De Mixage) (Remix By François Kevorkian & Goh Hotoda): Yellow Magic Orchestra (1993)

7) My Red Joystick (Remixed Version By François Kevorkian & Jay Mark): Lou Reed (1984)

8) Don't Look Any Further (Extended Mix By François Kevorkian, Alan Friedman & Alan Gregorie) (Cover of Dennis Edwards): The Kane Gang (1987)

9) The Time Is Now (Francois K Main Vocal Mix By François Kevorkian & Rob Rives): Moloko (2000)

10) Sleepless (Dance Mix By François Kevorkian & John Potoker): King Crimson (1984)

11) Freaky (Francois' Mix By François Kevorkian): Soho (1990)

12) Wire (Celtic Dub Mix By François Kevorkian): U2 (1984)

L'art De La Discothèque, Volume 2 (1:30:18) (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)

Decade IV: 1987

Side 2 of an 80s mixtape, compiled 8th April 1990.

 

This one goes up to 11...

 

The guitars are in full effect, though you'll be hard pressed to find any big (UK) hits this time around. Only The Cult's Love Removal Machine scraped into the Top 20 (#18 in its first two weeks of release).

 

Whilst The One I Love managed a creditable #16, it was in 1991 when ex-label I.R.S. sought to cash in on R.E.M.'s major label success. In 1987, the post-Christmas lull meant that the song managed a brief peak at #51, criminal given that it's now considered an all-time classic.

A couple of inclusions here failed to chart at all. I first saw Yon Yonson by The Dave Howard Singers on TV, The Chart Show to be precise, and I was both annoyed and fascinated by the song and video in equal measure. The latter won out and I ended up with both 12" single versions, neither of which did any good as far as a boost up the charts or appearance on Top Of The Pops was concerned.

Doctor & The Medics did make it to Top Of The Pops and a UK #1 with their cover of Spirit In The Sky in 1986. Despite an alleged six-figure signing fee (according to Smash Hits so it must be true, right?), The Doctor couldn't arrest ailing record sales. More, lead-in for second long-player I Keep Thinking It's Tuesday, failed to generate interest in either the single or the album. A shame as it's a decent enough song and the video was (typically) a lot of fun.

In a nice tie-in, I first encountered The Bambi Slam as one of two support acts for The Cult at the Colston Hall in Bristol on 23rd March 1987. I was sufficiently impressed by their set to go out afterwards and buy the only record of theirs that I could find, included here. The other support act was Balaam & The Angel, who are conspicuous by their absence on this mixtape, which may tell you all you need to know.

Confession time. If you're someone who likes to scrutinise the headline photos, especially my handwritten cassette sleeve track listings, then you will have spotted that song 3 should be Sidewalking by The Jesus & Mary Chain. Rookie error, as it wasn't actually released until March 1988 and on this occasion I can't even blag my way through by pointing to promos or previous releases in 1987. 

Nope, I messed up. Even more embarrassing when I acknowledge that I recorded the tape on 8th April 1990, exactly two years after the single had got to #30 on 9th April 1988. Nineteen years old and my memory was already shot...!

Luckily, being The Jesus & Mary Chain, I could swap Sidewalking out for another great single, Happy When It Rains, which peaked at #25 in August 1987 and therefore legitimately deserves a place in this selection. Oh, and don't be fooled by the 'long version' label. It's the same as the album version, but longer than the 7" version by about 30 seconds.

Bobbing around just outside the Top 50 were Faith No More, The Icicle Works, R.E.M. and The Fall. Mark E. Smith and crew make their one and only appearance in this series with Hit The North, arguably one of their greatest songs ever, let along in the 80s. 

 

I was surprised to find that I Started Something I Couldn't Finish by The Smiths and Trampolene by Julian Cope were as big hits as I thought they were, though in Copey's case that was pretty much the case with everything that he released in the 1980s.

At first glance, U2 also appear to have experienced a rare flop with In God's Country, the fourth single from The Joshua Tree. The previous three singles in 1987 had respectively got to #4, #6 and #4. By comparison, In God's Country achieved a surprising and disappointing peak of #48. That is, until you release that it was released as a 7" single in North America only and the UK chart placing was down to import sales alone. 

 

Ian McNabb may have given his good teeth for a #48 hit, given that The Icicle Work's Evangeline stalled at #53, the third consecutive single in less than 12 months to achieve a similar chart placing.

Mind you, the general record-buying public were being swamped with pop pap from 'The Hit Factory' of Stock, Aitken & Waterman. Or T'Pau and Wet Wet Wet. I'm not sure which is worse but either way, I literally wasn't buying. Even the Pet Shops Boys and Dusty Springfield were asking What Have I Done To Deserve This?!

That's it for another look back at the 1980s. See you here next week, and the year when I started to ditch black stretch canvas drainpipes and biker jackets for loose fit blue jeans and Converse trainers, but remained largely oblivious to the acid house revolution. Yep, 1988's on it's way.

1) Love Removal Machine (Album Version): The Cult

2) We Care A Lot (Album Version): Faith No More

3) Happy When It Rains (Long Version): The Jesus & Mary Chain

4) Yon Yonson (Single Version): The Dave Howard Singers

5) Hit The North (Part 1) (Single Version): The Fall

6) Happy Birthday (Yet Another) (Thick, Hard And Long Mix): The Bambi Slam

7) I Started Something I Couldn't Finish (Album Version): The Smiths

8) More (Album Version): Doctor & The Medics

9) The One I Love (Album Version): R.E.M.

10) Trampolene (Album Version): Julian Cope

11) Evangeline (Album Version): The Icicle Works

12) In God's Country (Album Version): U2

1st February 1987: Saint Julian (#31): 10

15th February 1987: If You Want To Defeat Your Enemy Sing His Song (#53): 11

22nd February 1987: Electric (#18): 1

19th July 1987: Yon Yonson EP (# n/a): 4 *

2nd August 1987: Happy Birthday (Yet Another) EP (# n/a): 6 **

9th August 1987: I Keep Thinking It's Tuesday (# n/a): 8

16th August 1987: Darklands (#25): 3

1st November 1987: Hit The North EP (#57): 5

15th November 1987: Strangeways, Here We Come (#23): 7

20th December 1987: The Joshua Tree (#48): 12

27th December 1987: Document (#51): 9

7th February 1988: Introduce Yourself (#53): 2 ***

Side Two (45:51) (GD) (M)

* Yon Yonson failed to crack the UK singles chart, however it get as high as #4 in the indie singles chart, in part thanks to repeat appearances of the video on Channel 4's Chart Show. That's how I first came to hear it and bought the 12" single (both of them) soon after.

** Similar to The Dave Howard Singers, The Bambi Slam failed to dent the UK singles chart, but Happy Birthday (Yet Another) made an appearance in the indie singles Top 10 on Channel 4's Chart Show on 14th August 1987, having dropped to #8,

*** The album Introduce Yourself was released in 1987, but We Care A Lot wasn't released as a single in the UK until 18th January 1988, charting a couple of weeks later at #71. Oh, to have had access to the internet in April 1990 to check chart dates!

Decade I: 1980

Side 1 of a cassette compilation, recorded 3rd February 1990.

 

In 2023, Toby Roberts dreamed of competing in the 2024 Olympics, qualifying in October and yesterday bringing home gold with an incredible boulder and lead performance, aged 19.

In 1990, 19-year old me dreamed of girls, music and getting away from the UK. As Meat Loaf once over emoted on vinyl, two out of three ain't bad. My love life was at least consistent: mostly short-lived or unrequited. But...I did eventually get away from the UK later that year, a life-changing solo experience in Australia. Gold Coast rather than a gold medal, but good enough for me.

And my relationship with music has sustained me through the years, never letting me down. Well, apart from that Simple Minds headline gig at the Ashton Court Festival in Bristol, but nothing's perfect, right?

So, as 1989 turned into 1990 I had the notion of doing a themed series of cassette compilations, looking back at the previous decade. Five C90s, one year per side, 12 songs apiece. 

I had a growing record collection by that time, mostly vinyl and cassettes, with a few CDs creeping in. I also had access to my brother's vinyl - he'd gone to uni in Bournemouth and left most of behind with my parents - and my friend Stuart's collection, to plug any gaps in my 'wants' list.

1980 is inevitably a cracking selection, if I say so myself, as there was so much good music to choose from. Pretty much all of these came from my own records, the only exceptions being Martha & The Muffins (my brother's copy of Metro Music) and Talking Heads and U2, borrowed from Stuart.

And yes, I accept that Once In A Lifetime wasn't released in the UK as a single until January 1981. However, in those pre-internet years, I went by the P&C year stated on the back sleeve and labels. Remain In Light said 1980, so that was good enough for me. I subsequently found that the info printed on records were often unreliable in this regard. in this case, I'm happy to confirm that Remain In Light came out in October 1980. Yippee, me.

A strong opener to the series, then. Could I sustain it? 

You won't have long to find out...

 

1) Messages (10" Version): O.M.D.

2) Fade To Grey (Dance Mix Edit): Visage

3) Echo Beach (Album Version): Martha & The Muffins

4) Once In A Lifetime (Album Version): Talking Heads

5) Call Me (Theme From American Gigolo) (Single Version): Blondie

6) Do It Clean (Single Version): Echo & The Bunnymen

7) Independence Day (Album Version): The Comsat Angels

8) Israel (Single Version): Siouxsie & The Banshees

9) Love Will Tear Us Apart (Album Version): Joy Division

10) My Perfect Cousin (Album Version): The Undertones

11) A Day Without Me (Album Version): U2

12) Being Boiled (Album Version): The Human League

23rd March 1980: Metro Music (#10): 3

20th April 1980: Call Me EP (#1): 5 

11th May 1980: Holiday 80 EP (#56): 12 *

11th May 1980: Hypnotised (#9): 10 

15th June 1980: Messages EP (#13): 1

13th July 1980: Waiting For A Miracle (# n/a): 7 **

20th July 1980: Love Will Tear Us Apart EP (#13): 9

24th August 1980: Boy (# n/a): 11 

5th October 1980: The Puppet / Do It Clean EP (# n/a): 6

30th November 1980: Israel EP (#41): 8 

1st February 1981: Visage (#8): 2 ***

1st March 1981: Remain In Light (#14): 4 ****

Side One (46:12) (GD) (M)

 

* Being Boiled was re-released on the back of The Human League's chart success and peaked at #6 in January 1982.  

** Neither single nor album troubled the UK charts in 1980, but a re-recorded version of Independence Day made it to #71 in January 1984 

*** Fade To Grey first entered the UK singles chart on 14th December 1980

**** Remain In Light entered the UK album chart on 26th October 1980 and that, M'lud, is my sole defence!

Whatever Happened To Reg? Revisited

Side 2 of a cassette compilation, recorded on 2nd December 1989 by my friend Stuart as a 19th birthday gift.

 

Revisiting mixtapes from my teenage years is a reminder of a simpler time, when my friends and I had much smaller music collections - vinyl or cassette, very few CDs at this point - but knew them inside out and loved them deeply. As my head bobs slightly above the surface of a sea of music, when pretty much anything from the last 100 years is accessible with a few taps of a keyboard, clicks of a mouse or a voice instruction, it can be overwhelming. 

I loved this compilation, so much so that it got packed with a bunch of other cassettes and joined me on my travels Down Under in 1990/1991 and was pretty much a staple of the in-car stereo playlist during my second attempt at a college education in the early 1990s. It survived more or less intact throughout that decade and into the 2000s, until years of excessive play and poor storage in a succession of damp flats did for it. Thank goodness for MP3s, Audacity software and music blogs then, eh?

What is immediately apparent (to me, at least) from the track listing of Sides 1 & 2 is that:

1) Stuart was (and still is) a huge fan of R.E.M. and was determined to educate his largely ignorant friend in their brilliance (it worked);

2) We both loved The Doors; I'd got the first two albums, Stuart got the rest, including their final proper album with Jim, the two best-known songs appearing on this C90;

3) We also both loved Talking Heads and between us had all of the albums from 77 to Naked;

4) Architecture & Morality by Orchestral Manouevres In The Dark was also a pretty important album for us both;

5) Here Today, Tomorrow Next Week! by The Sugarcubes was only a few months old at that time and we were both in agreement that it was even better than the debut album;

6) Fools Gold / What The World Is Waiting For had been released a few weeks before I got this cassette. Stuart (& I) clearly blown away by it; I'd heard both on the radio but I think this might have been the first time I'd heard anything by The Stone Roses.

 

I adore the opening live version of Vicious from Lou Reed's 1975 album, the inspiringly-titled Lou Reed Live. It sets the pace for what is a rollocking ride through music that has since become so important to me. Incredible to believe now, but listening to this cassette was probably the first time that I heard Catapult or Don't Worry About The Government...

 

You might be hard pressed to find anyone who would name Automatic as their favourite album by The Jesus & Mary Chain. The album had been released on 9th October 1989, Stuart and I saw them live in concert at the Studio in Bristol on 14th November 1989 and I got this cassette around 11th December 1989, so Automatic was fresh and new at that time and I loved it. It's not my favourite JaMC album either, but it will always have a special place in my heart for all of the above reasons.

 

Timing issues were always a challenge when compiling cassettes, especially trying not to leave a massive gap at the end, an anathema to being out with friends and a battery-powered ghetto blaster. I might imagine that Stuart may have originally intended to end on a high with track 10, added (arguably) a R.E.M. album filler (which I still love, by the way) and then cursed at seeing a sizeable chunk of reel remaining. Hence, the inclusion of a U2 B-side from a limited edition double 7" of The Unforgettable Fire. For all you Bono fans out there, stand down, it's an instrumental. I like it, and even more in the context of the compilation and the decades of repeat listens that have passed.

Stuart opened the compilation with a cheeky edit of Paul Hardcastle's 19 muscling in on Pixies. Suffice to say, Black Francis gets his revenge - and the last word - at the end of Side 2.

1) Vicious (Live @ Howard Stein's Academy Of Music, New York): Lou Reed (1973)

2) Catapult (Album Version): R.E.M. (1983)

3) L.A. Woman (Album Version): The Doors (1971)

4) Superman (Album Version) (Cover of The Clique): R.E.M. (1986)

5) Uh-Oh, Love Comes To Town: Talking Heads (1977)

6) Fools Gold 4.15 (7" Version): The Stone Roses (1989)

7) Tidal Wave (Album Version): The Sugarcubes (1989)

8) Here Comes Alice (Album Version): The Jesus & Mary Chain (1989)

9) She's Leaving (Album Version): O.M.D. (1981)

10) Don't Worry About The Government: Talking Heads (1977)

11) Underneath The Bunker: R.E.M. (1986)

12) Sixty Seconds In Kingdom Come / Outro: U2 / Pixies (1985) 

 

1971: L.A. Woman: 3

1975: Lou Reed Live: 1

1977: Talking Heads: 77: 5, 10

1981: Architecture & Morality: 9

1983: Murmur: 2 

1985: The Unforgettable Fire EP: 12

1986: Life's Rich Pageant: 4, 11

1989: Automatic: 8

1989: Fools Gold EP: 6

1989: Here Today, Tomorrow Next Week!: 7

 

Side Two (45:11) (KF) (Mega)

Side One here

Whatever Happened To Reg?

Side 1 of a cassette compilation, recorded 2nd December 1989 by my friend Stuart for my 19th birthday nine days later.

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

Side One (44:54) (Box) (Mega)