I Called You On The Phone But You Started Talkin' 'Bout The Weather

Listening again to Lee 'Scratch' Perry's "final creative act", a remix of Love Died In Our Arms by Dot Allison, I was reminded - as I am, hearing any of his work - of his enduring musical genius. 

I'm inevitably drawn back to 1969 album, The Upsetter, a showcase for Perry's production skills and mostly featuring his studio band The Upsetters, along with a couple of guest spots from Busty Brown (aka Clive Smith) and The Muskyteers (better known as The Silvertones). A 2003 CD reissue was bolstered by 8 bonus tracks, including more of The Upsetters plus Carl Dawkins and David Isaacs, also known to his folks as Bruce Bennett.

The original and expanded album is a mix of instrumentals, cover versions and vocal tracks and is guaranteed to put a smile on my face and spring in my step. I love reggae and dub all year round, but it seems especially apt as spring arrives with the promise of summer to come. 

 

Looking outside, I don't think the weather got the memo, so today's selection of cuts from The Upsetter's 2003 edition - 10 songs in under 30 minutes - should bring some sunshine into your life, whatever the conditions outside.

1) Thunderball: The Upsetters

2) Endlessly (Cover of Brook Benton): The Muskyteers

3) Hard To Handle (Cover of Otis Redding): Carl Dawkins

4) Tidal Wave (Cover of 'He'll Have To Go' by Jim Reeves): The Upsetters *

5) Untitled Instrumental: The Upsetters

6) Soulful I: The Upsetters **

7) Night Doctor: The Upsetters

8) Slow Motion Version 2: The Upsetters

9) Since You Are Gone: David Isaacs

10) Kiddy-O (Cover of 'Kiddio' by Teddy Randazzo): The Muskyteers

 

* The vocal version of He'll Have To Go, featuring David Isaacs, features on the 2003 expanded reissue.

 

** Soulful I is an instrumental version of track 9, Since You Are Gone.

 

The Upsetter (1969): 1, 4, 6, 7, 10

The Upsetter (2003 reissue): 2, 3, 5, 8 ,9

 

I Called You On The Phone But You Started Talkin' 'Bout The Weather (29:26)

Concocting A Rhythm That You Could Get Lost In... (Again)

Side 2 of a mixtape, compiled 5th September 1993, rounding up some musical suspects from 1991 to 1992. A couple of Justin Robertson's finest early 90s remixes here, for Sly & Lovechild and Finitribe. New Atlantic's sole UK Top 20 hit, I Know, is included in it's definitive Love Decade remix, with a pitched up Candi Staton vocal sample giving the song its title. Leftfield and William Orbit were both hitting their stride as remixers du jour and deliver prime examples of why they were in such demand at the time. Youth contributes a pair of remixes, beefing up Frazier Chorus to great effect and obliterating The Psychedelic Furs' original vocals and instruments to the extent that, if this were a white label, you wouldn't have a clue it was them. The original mixtape featured the instrumental version of Espiritu's Francisca from the 12" single, which I haven't yet ripped, so I've swapped out for the equally good dub mix from the CD, pushing the C90 running time waaay into the red.

 

1) Spirit Of Destiny (Justin Robertson Mix): Sly & Lovechild (1992)

2) I Know (Love Decade Remix 12"): New Atlantic (1991)

3) Ace Love Deuce (Justin Robertson Mix) (Single Edit): Finitribe (1991)

4) Francisca (Dub Mix): Espiritu (1992)

5) Back To Front (The Rub It Vocal Mix By Leftfield): Adamski ft. Ricky Lyte (1992)

6) Walking On Air (Remix By Youth): Frazier Chorus (1991)

7) Treaty (Djulpan / Seven Sisters Mix By William Orbit): Yothu Yindi (1992)

8) Don't Be A Girl (Dancehall On Fire) (Remix By Youth): The Psychedelic Furs (1991)

Side Two (47:11) (Box) (Mega)

Side One here

You're The Best Thing

I've never been one for keeping diaries or journals but three decades ago, I kept a record of my travels and trials in Australia. There's no specific entry dated 15th May 1991. However, due to the 9-hour time difference with the UK, an account from 14th May (which I specifically timed at 8.30pm), would have been written at the equivalent of 5.30am on 15th May at home, so that's good enough for me.

At this point, I'd rocked up at Coffs Harbour, a small coastal city a little over half way between Sydney and Brisbane. After wandering along the shoreline and on the beach, reading, drawing and taking in the sights, I was catching up with some writing when an old guy with a zimmer frame and a dog on a lead sat next to me. This was Jack Witts and a memorable few hours ensued.

We got talking and, small world that it is, I found that he had been born in Swindon and emigrated to Australia four decades ago. After chatting for a while, I accepted a lift to his local pub-cum-betting shop for a few lagers and more stories. Jack had lived an interesting life: stationed and fought in North Africa during World War II, adventures working on the railroads in Australia and misadventures on the road, travelling the vast continent. All fascinating to hear and the hours flew by...

...to the extent that I thought nothing of accepting when Jack offered a lift back to his place for some moonshine. As an older, more risk-adverse adult, I still wonder why I thought getting in a car with an old guy that I'd only met a few hours previously, heading to goodness knows where in the middle of nowhere, with the promise of some homemade hooch and a place to crash for the night was a good idea. But I did it.

Jack lived at the Koala Caravan Park, just off of the Pacific Highway, and it was almost exactly as I'd imagined: a ramshackle caravan with a sheet metal 'extension' and a flower bed border; one light in working order; ornaments  fighting for space with the TV; an antique oven unit and a bucket to piss in.

After a few more drinks and many more expletive-riddled stories, I decided it was time to leave. I was about 6km from Coffs Harbour and the hostel I was staying in, so it was going to be a push to get back there before midnight. My last sight of Jack was his head poking out of the caravan door, muttering to himself.

Of course, as soon as I hit the highway, it began to rain...and rain...and rain and Jack's offer of a place to crash didn't seem like such a bad idea after all. In another serendipitous moment, a passing car pulled over and the driver asked where I was going. "Hop in the back" he said and, in record time, I was back at the hostel to a warm shower and dry clothes. I only had dry bread and tea to try to soak up the hooch. I had the mother of all hangovers the following day, to the extent that I failed to book a seat on the next Greyhound and spent an extra couple of days in Coffs Harbour. A hell of a day, though.

On 15th May 2002, I was in Mauritius, walking along another beautiful beach, having just exchanged vows with Mrs. K. It was another momentous occasion and I'm still pinching myself that, two decades later, we get to share time and adventures together and create our own stories. As a aside/nod to Jack Witts, my nearest concession to homemade hooch is making Sloe Gin in the early years of our marriage.

We weren't alone on that beach walk as, a few steps behind us, a Mauritian wedding band gleefully doled out unique takes on some popular songs. The choices were somewhat limited - no chance of The The's This Is The Day or Billy Idol's White Wedding, for example - and "our" song was, depending on whether you ask me or Mrs. K, was a classic by The Troggs, at a push R.E.M. and definitely not ever by Wet Wet Wet.

The trio also didn't have You're The Best Thing by The Style Council in their limited repertoire, but I really wish they had as it's one of the finest pop/love songs ever written and recorded.

You're The Best Thing was released as a double A-side single in the UK, titled Groovin', on 26th May 1984, the day after Paul Weller's 26th birthday.  I'm now twice that age and can still only dream of writing such a beautiful and resonant song. 

This isn't "our song", Mrs. K isn't even particularly a fan of The Style Council or Paul Weller's music in general, but You're The Best Thing perfectly sums up how I feel about Mrs. K today.

I could be discontent and chase the rainbows end
I might win much more but lose all that is mine
I could be a lot but I know I'm not
I'm content just with the riches that you bring

 
I might shoot to win and commit the sin
Of wanting more than I've already got
I could runaway but I'd rather stay
In the warmth of your smile lighting up my day, the one that makes me say

 
'Cause you're the best thing that ever happened to me or my world
You're the best thing that ever happened, so don't go away

 
I might be a king and steal my people's things
But I don't go for that power crazy way
All that I could rule I don't check for fools
All that I need is to be left to live my way, listen what I say

 
'Cause you're the best thing that ever happened to me or my world
You're the best thing that ever happened, so don't go away
'Cause you're the best thing that ever happened to me or my world
You're the best thing that ever happened, so don't go away

 
I could chase around, nothing to be found
But why look for something that is never there
I may get it wrong sometimes but I come back in style
For I realise your love means more than anything
So not makes me say

 
'Cause you're the best thing that ever happened to me or my world
You're the best thing that ever happened, so don't go away
'Cause you're the best thing that ever happened to me or my world
You're the best thing that ever happened, 

now don't go, I say don't go, no no, don't go away

 

You're The Best Thing: The Style Council (1984)

His Final & Most Fabulous Creation

Side 1 of a mixtape compiled for me by my brother, circa 1995.

Back to the beats for this Saturday selection which, despite it's mid-90s creation, seems to have a lot of love for 1992, with two thirds of the selection from that year.

A bit of a red herring to start, with Jim Thirwell's Foetus guise in full orchestral pomp, before we dive straight into a remix of rave classic Stakker Humanoid by Brian Dougans and FSOL partner Garry Cobain, then sidestep into Hi-NRG disco with the ever-brilliant Divine. 

A couple of Buzz McCoy tracks to follow, first up with his main concern, My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult, then a partnership with Sascha from KMFDM as Excessive Force for a one-off single in 1991, this version popping up on the Conquer Your World album, which reached the UK the following year.

Orbital's Chime is a brilliant song in any version, but I particularly like this remix by the Hartnoll brothers, which appeared on their Mutations EP. Likewise, If? benefited from some top remixes of their songs, especially by Leftfield, as evidenced here.

808 State's variations on Pacific, like Orbital's Chime, never get boring or sound dated to these ears. This is the version that was used for their debut album on ZTT, 808:90.

Rounding things off is another remix by The Future Sound Of London, this time of one of their many, many aliases, Semi Real. A lovely Balearic vibe here. As the original cassette side ran a couple of minutes short, I've swapped the original radio edit for the extended Med Mix here.

Happy memories of driving around with my college friends in my clapped out motor, playing this very loud, usually to requests/protests for Ned's Atomic Dustbin or The Levellers. Solid times.

 

1) Theme From Pigdom Come: Scraping Foetus Off The Wheel (1985)

2) Stakker Humanoid (Outer Limits) (Remix By The Future Sound Of London): Humanoid (1992)

3) Native Love (Step By Step) (Short Version By Bobby Orlando & Mark Bauman): Divine (1982)

4) Sex On Wheelz (Motor City Remix By Buzz McCoy): My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult (1992)

5) Conquer Your House II (Album Version By Sascha Konietzko): Excessive Force (1991)

6) Chime Crime: Orbital (1992)

7) Everything And More (Leftfield Vocal Mix): If? (1992)

8) Pacific 202 (Album Version): 808 State (1989)

9) People Livin' Today (Med Mix By The Future Sound Of London): Semi Real (1992)

Side One (45:42) (Box) (Mega)

All Colours Washed Away Again

Archive have featured in previous Dubhed selections in September and December 2021, but never in their own right. Prompted by SWC's Archive post in March on the ever-excellent No Badger Required and the release of 12th album, Call To Arms & Angels, on 29th April, I've kicked off with the current - and fourth - single, Frying Paint. I’m not particularly sold on the (to my jaundiced viewer's eyes) ropey CGI but I like the song. 

The album is available as a standard 17-track or deluxe 27-track edition on vinyl and CD formats. Vinyl appears to have already sold out in the official Archive store but your friendly neighbourhood record store may have copies.

In 2019, Archive celebrated 25 years with a couple of succinctly named compilations, 25 and Versions. The former drew on songs from their expansive back catalogue, the latter newly recorded and reimagined versions of select cuts. I don't have either of those, but I did dip into 2020's follow up, Versions: Remixed, last year with the particular attraction of remixes by Richard Norris and Andy Bell in his GLOK guise. 

I've included a trio of the remixed Versions below, paired with their live or original single counterparts for comparison. As SWC noted in his post, Archive's Wikipedia entry comes with a potential health warning of "progressive, avant garde rock", I think mainly for their propensity for including one or more 10+ minute songs on each album, Call To Arms & Angels no exception. 

 

If you remember Archive for their 1996 breakthrough hit Londinium, featuring Rosko John and the amazing Roya Arab, then you may be disappointed, but there's much to explore and enjoy in the Archive, er, archive.

 

Frying Paint (Video Edit) (2022)

Pills (Version) (Richard Norris Pills In Space Remix) (2020)

Pills (Live @ Badminton Theater, Athens, Greece, 25th September 2010)

Remains Of Nothing (Album Version) (ft. Band Of Skulls) (2019)

Remains Of Nothing (Version) (Bokka Remix) (2020)

Kid Corner (Album Version) (2015)

Kid Corner (Version) (GLOK Remix By Andy Bell) (2020)

Call To Arms & Angels (17-Track Double Album Version (2022)

Versions: Remixed (Full Album) (2020)

Well, The Blues Had A Baby And The Bastard Couldn't Sing

One year ago, and thirty posts into the Dubhed blog, I took further inspiration from those fellow bloggers around me and decided to commit to daily posts for as long as I was able. To be honest, I didn't expect twelve months later to have managed here but, here we are with post #395.

 

I need to keep a sense of perspective: yesterday, Adam at Bagging Area celebrated his 5000th post since 2010 and whilst he modestly describes some posts as "perfunctory", his daily musings and love for music has been an essential read for me; I was a "late" joiner around 2013-2014.

So, what was the post that kicked off my daily marathon, on Wednesday 12th May 2021? Ironically, to nick Adam's turn of phrase, it was a perfunctory post of a YouTube link, perhaps less surprisingly featuring a Julian Cope song, given the number of times he's appeared here.

As a nod and a tribute to that post, and in a coincidental move that nudges the Arch Drude temporarily into pole position as Dubhed's most tagged artist (frequently alternating with Andrew Weatherall), here's more Julian Cope on YouTube.

Back in October 2020, in a guest posting for The Vinyl Villain, I submitted An Imaginary Compilation of Julian Cope live in concert. I've been to more Julian Cope gigs than any other artist. They've all been excellent and special in their own right, but a particular highlight was his standout performance at the first Phoenix Festival on Friday 16th July 1993. Drawing heavily on his magnum opus Peggy Suicide, the more recently released Jehovahkill barely gets a look in, but there are a few crowd-pleasing favourites thrown in for good measure.

Luckily, an audience member filmed the entire set and posted it to YouTube. The audio quality is inevitably a bit hissy and the picture quality a bit blurry yet, it captures what was an incredible set and unforgettable experience. 

Supported by a full band on top form - Donald Ross Skinner & Mike Mooney on guitar, Tim Bran on bass, Rooster Cosby on drums and Cope himself on vocals, guitar, keyboards, costume changes and occasional scaffold climbing - it's an aural and visual assault that left a lasting impression on my friends.

Incredibly, 19th October 2022 marks the 30th anniversary of Jehovahkill; 21st October 2022 is Julian Cope's 65th birthday. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that, with live gigs beginning to return, there will be another opportunity to see Julian Cope perform music on a stage again. In the meantime, put off what you were planning to do for an hour or so, click on the link, sit back and enjoy.

 

 

1) The Subtle Energies Commission 00:00 

2) Hanging Out & Hung Up On The Line 08:45 

3) You... 13:32 

4) Pulsar 19:14 

5) Safesurfer 20:15 

6) Beautiful Love 32:10 

7) Sunspots 36:00 

8) Pristeen 39:30 

9) Double Vegetation 44:10 

10) East Easy Rider 48:50 

11) World Shut Your Mouth 54:57 

12) Spacehopper 59:00 

13) Reynard The Fox 1:03:10

 

1984: Fried: 7, 13

1987: Saint Julian: 4, 11, 12

1991: Peggy Suicide: 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10

1992: Jehovahkill: 1

The Perfect Crime

Today's selection recorded sometime in the summer of 1990 features London rabble rousers The Godfathers.  My first exposure to them came via an appearance on ITV's The Chart Show, albeit the Indie Top 10 countdown, with their cover of Sun Arise by then-kids' TV favourite, now convicted paedophile Rolf Harris. 

Eight of the fourteen songs featured here appeared on their 1987 album Birth, School, Work, Death, officially their debut (and, by then, on a major label, Epic) although their former label Corporate Image had issued an album in 1986, Hit By Hit, compiling the first three 12" singles.

 

At the time of recording this compilation, I had the Birth, School, Work, Death album, plus a handful of 12" singles. The Godfathers were a band that I never saw live, but wished I had. They disbanded in 2000, reformed in 2008 and appear to have been going strong ever since, particularly on the live circuit. 

 

Only lead singer Peter Coyne remains from the line up featured in today's selection. Whilst putting this post together, I listened to The Godfathers live at Rockpalast in 2020. The band sound brilliant, pumped up and capturing the energy of songs that are now over three decades old. Unfortunately, Coyne's performing voice seems to have gone the way of Ian McCulloch. Given his limited range to begin with, some of the songs do seem a bit beyond his reach now and at times painful to listen to. A real shame.

 

I've no idea how I managed to cram all of these songs onto a side of a C90 cassette, I can only assume my turntable was running a bit fast at the time. Still, here's (a bit over) three quarters of an hour of The Godfathers at the peak of their powers..

1) Birth, School, Work, Death (Album Version By Vic Maile & Steve Brown) (1987)

2) If I Only Had Time (1988) 

3) Angela (1987)

4) It's So Hard (1988)

5) 'Cause I Said So (1988)

6) I'm Unsatisfied (1986)

7) The Strangest Boy (1988)

8) Love Is Dead (Valentine Day Massacre Mix By Vic Maile) (1987)

9) Gone To Texas (1987)

10) Obsession (1988)

11) Tell Me Why (1988)

12) Miss That Girl (1987)

13) I Want Everything (1986)

14) When Am I Coming Down (Album Version By Vic Maile & Steve Brown) (1988)

 

1986: Sun Arise / I Want Everything EP: 6, 13

1987: Birth, School, Work, Death EP: 1, 12

1987: Love Is Dead EP: 3, 8, 9

1988: Birth, School, Work, Death: 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 10, 11, 14

The Perfect Crime (46:48)

Life's A Well-Thumbed Machine

Back in time half a century (really?!) to a dozen songs from 1972.

 

Most of these I discovered in the 1990s and 2000s. Speed, Glue & Shinki was one of a number of bands that I looked up after reading Julian Cope's 2007 book Japrocksampler. The fabulous Art Decade blog ("specializing in music of the 'long seventies'") was a rich source of new (to me) artists and lost songs in the 2010s, including Israeli singer and actress Esther Ofarim. Gnostic Serenade featured on the brilliant 'double album' Winter-Harvest, posted by one of the regular contrinbutors Emmett, on 11th February 2010. You'll need to scroll down the page to find the post, but amazingly the zip file link is still live. Highly recommended if you enjoy today's selection.

 

Some more obvious choices included: Exile On Main Street and Harvest were a given, classic singles from David Bowie and Hawkwind, along with a should-have-been single from Jonathan Richman & co.

Quite a few of these songs haven't had an airing on my playlists for a while, so I'm pleased to give them a dusting off and present them for your listening pleasure. Happy Tuesday, everyone!

Side One

1) Flat Fret Swing: Speed, Glue & Shinki

2) Loving Cup: The Rolling Stones 

3) Faust '72: Dynastie Crisis

4) She Cracked: The Modern Lovers

5) John, I'm Only Dancing (Single Version): David Bowie

6) Silver Machine (Single Version): Hawkwind

Side Two

1) Gnostic Serenade (Cover of 3's A Crowd): Esther Ofarim

2) Alabama: Neil Young ft. David Crosby, Stephen Stills & The Stray Gators

3) Wishing Well (Single Version): Free

4) Keep On: Bang!

5) Stars (Single Version): Kevin Ayers

6) Listen, Listen: Sandy Denny

Side One (22:39)

Side Two (23:00)

Let Me Know When You Can Breathe Again

Another of my Bandcamp purchases this weekend was the Georgia Gothic Dubs EP by Mattiel. As the title suggests, 4 dub remixes from the Georgia Gothic album by Raf Rundell, appropriately enough on the Heavenly label.

 

All four are highly recommended, though the original album is such a rich source to begin with. My disappointment that there isn't (yet?) a dub of album opener Jeff Goldblum is more than compensated by the tracks on offer.

 

As an example, here's the excellent video for second single Lighthouse, released in January, together with the Salty Man Dub version.

Lighthouse (Album Version): Mattiel (2022)

Lighthouse Dub (Raf Rundell's Salty Man Dub): Mattiel (2022)

підтримка україни компіляції

Sticking with the theme of the past few days, I mentioned in Friday's post that
Munich-based label Toy Tonics had released the Support Ukraine Compilation in March. I bought the digital format on Bandcamp Friday and have been enjoying it over the weekend. Drawing on Toy Tonics releases from 2018 to this year, it's just over an hour of uplifting grooves, many of the artists completely new to me. 

 

The 13-track compilation is available on Bandcamp for free/name your price, but all profit from payment goes 100% to the Red Cross Ukraine crisis appeal. As of itself, the album is worth paying for anyway, even more so given the cause. 

 

For today's selection, I've sequenced a 30-minute sampler to whet your appetite for the full album, including a couple of Toy Tonics label head Mathias Modica aka Kapote and closing with a edit from the legend that is Danny Krivit. The title is Support Ukraine Compilation in Ukrainian (as far as online translation tools can be trusted, that is). Enjoy! Then buy!

 

1) The Semimodular Bird Of Jazz: Felipe Gordon ft. Paula Pedraza (2020)

2) L.O.V.E. 2020 (NYC Tribute): Kapote (2020)

3) Danza Organica (Extended Version): Sam Ruffillo (2022)

4) LS Anthem: Cody Currie ft. Andy K & Ally McMahon (2021)

5) Strangers: Kosmo Kint & Kapote (2021)

6) Let Out On The Loose (Danny Krivit Edit): The Phenomenal Handclap Band (2020)

підтримка україни компіляції (29:59)