Saturday 31 December 2016

Out With The Old . . .



And in with the new.

I'm probably not the only one to think that 2016 was a c**t of a year. There have been more than a few dramas in the lives of people close to me, one of which had a  positive outcome but sadly not so on a couple of other occasions and just when we didn't think it could get much worse at the beginning of December one of Max's best pals was nearly killed in a freak accident and if it wasn't for another friend's bravery and  presence of mind to carry him the 500 yards to get help and the NHS staff who treated him and continue to do so he would not be with us now. He has a long road to recovery but he is a very lucky 14 year old to still be alive. So one positive to take into the start of 2017.

I would like to thank every one who stopped by here this past year and especially to the ones that left a comment, each and every one of which is appreciated, they are what make me and others continue.

Anyway,  I wish you all health and happiness for the coming year, I will leave you with a bit of Jimi Hendrix.

There will be nothing to see here until at least the 6th January as we are off to Amsterdam with my parents to celebrate their Golden Wedding Anniversary. They got married fifty years ago on the 23rd December.

Jimi Hendrix - Little Drummer Boy/Silent Night/Auld Lang Syne

Thursday 29 December 2016

Comfort Food For The Soul




The whole of the household has succumbed to the dreaded lurgy that is doing the rounds up here at the moment. I feel as if I have had a thoroughly good kicking and am feeling sorry for myself. At times like this you need something comforting and there isn't much more comforting than the dulcet tones of Dot Allison on one of my all time top 21 tracks.

This song immediately transports me back to the freezing hovel I shared with two others on Woodlands Road in Glasgow back in 1991. I used to come in at night put on an extra couple of layers,  retire to my bed and listen to this record over and over again, every now and again for a break changing it for Come Alive by the Orchestra JB. It got to the stage that in order to cut down on the getting in and out of bed I made up a c-90 one side filled with each. Fallen is the only record that I can think of that Andrew Weatherall's remix doesn't better the original.

It's strange the things you remember. This was the record I played just before finding out that Freddie Mercury died, after this had finished I turned on Radio 4 to get the news to learn of the singer's death and the first thing that came into my mind was that the radio would be full of Queen songs for the foreseeable future and most likely the Christmas number 1.

Dove - Fallen (Darkest Hour)

Tuesday 27 December 2016

Albums of The Year




There are not too many reasons for me to look back on 2016 fondly, it has been quite a shitty year for many reasons. One good thing about it was the resurgence of the long player. I noticed that the albums that I bought this year really hung together and flowed as an album should do. I'm not sure if this was deliberate on the part of the artists or just that I have rediscovered my love for the format but all of the albums in my top ten and in the many others that didn't make the cut felt more than just a collection of tracks compiled together under an album title.

Notable albums for me that didn't make the cut but which were excellent were the latest Brian Jonestown Massacre album, Third World Pyramid which reinforced my view that Anton Newcombe just gets better and better. He was also responsible for the best remix of the year with his reworking of Primal Scream's 100% or Nothing  and you should check out the Berlin ep he produced for The Vacant Lots. Another nearly but not quite was Atomic by Mogwai which is at times moving and at other times inducing a feeling of dread and fear matching the subject matter, I suspect that if I had a chance to listen to Let Them Eat Chaos more over the past couple of months it would have made the top ten but I just haven't got into it enough,

One major disappointment for me was One Day All of This Won't Matter Anymore by Slow Club, I think that this is mainly down to my expectations after Complete Surrender which I loved so much. I don't feel that there are as many standout songs on the latest album and also that Rebecca's voice isn't as prominent as it was on previous outing where at times it took your breath away. It is by no means a bad album and I am probably being a bit hard on them but I think that I will always reach for Complete Surrender over ODAOTWMA.

You will notice that Blackstar isn't in the list either. I have to admit that although it is a very good album which I think I will agree in time that it is a great album at the moment I can't listen to it without getting thoroughly depressed and for that reason it could not be considered.

10.  Beyond The Wizards Sleeve - The Soft Bounce

Some great pop moments such as Diagram Girl, space rock in the form of Iron Age and loads of psychedelic moments.



9. Death In Vegas - Transmission

Richard Fearless teams up with Sasha Grey to produce a deep, dark soundscape full of atmosphere. For some reason it had me reaching for The Fifth Mission by Two Lone Swordsmen after the first airing. If you buy the vinyl be wary as some of the first pressings were really poor on side one. I had three copies before getting a perfect one from Drone with a rather nice message of apology from Mr Fearless himself. Excellent customer service.



8. Teen Canteen - Say It With A Kiss

Lovely, sunny, pure Glasgow pop that always makes me smile. I felt very old at the album launch in Mono, that was until I saw Duglas T Stewart wandering about.



7. The Wedding Present - Going, Going . . .

The first time I put side 1 of this on, I thought that there had been a mistake at the pressing plant, the first four tracks were instrumental and very unWedding Presenty, then Two Bridges, first released as a 7" back in 2013, came on and the order of things was restored, songs of love, loss and longing followed. An album that takes a few listens to get really into. The best thing Gedge has done since Take Fountain, not as good as that album but very good indeed. I still don't get Secretary though.



6. Rancho Relaxo - White Light Fever

The influence of the Velvets is strong in this one, from the title of the album to the picture of Edie Sedgwick on the cover through the music, no bad thing in my book. An album to get lost in.



5. King Creosote - Astronaut Meets Appleman

When KC went epic. In the review on the Piccadilly Records website Barry says "All of these pieces feel like they could be the song at the end of a movie that we all end up Googling" which is about as succinct and perfect a review  as I've ever read. Every tune is great but Love Life and the bonus track on the 10" single The Long Fade are especially good.

Keep it up Kenny!




4. The Woodleigh Research Facility - The Phoenix Suburb (And Other Stories)

Andrew Weatherall and Nina Walsh get deep and dubby on this excellent double lp. It feels like a natural evolution from Sabres through Two Lone Swordsmen to this.



3. The Lucid Dream - Compulsion Songs

Third album from this older than their years combo from Carlisle. This is psych rock for the 21st Century that fuses dub and rock with all the attitude of punk. I saw them in Glasgow just prior to the release of this album and they made a beautiful noise, sadly witnessed by too few people.



2. Nick Waterhouse - Never Twice

Classy, Jazzy in bits, soul and R&B at other points. totally essential.

Still not happy that Mr Waterhouse is not venturing further north than Manchester, He did however explain that he couldn't afford it.



1. Ette - Homemade Lemonade

In a year as thoroughly depressing as 2016 turned out to be thank god for Carla J Easton responsible for the two albums that put a smile on my face more than any others. I thought that the Ette album was just going to be the taster to the full album from Carla's other group,  Teen Canteen. Both albums are shinning examples of what pop music should be but the Ette album just edges it. My only grumble being that as I have said before Attack Of The Glam Soul Cheerleaders should have been released as a 7" single.








I'm Higher Than I'm Down



That's it all over for another year and I must admit I've had a rare old three days. Compliments must go once again to Delia for her expert guidance on the cooking of the Christmas lunch. I am now, however beginning to feel the effects of the over indulgence and have designated today and tomorrow as "do bugger all" days.

As this is Tuesday, how about a bit of Garage Rock from that vintage year of 1966. The Aardvarks were from Grand Rapids, Michigan and released four singles in the two years in which they were in existence. I think that this was their debut single. Classic garage rock that was recorded in an old cinema which had been converted to a recording studio, in Sparta Michigan.

The Aardvarks - I'm Higher Than I'm Down

Saturday 24 December 2016

Merry Christmas



No matter what you are up to this weekend have a good one and I hope Santa brings you everything you wanted, although I am not holding out much hope for that Bobby Kline 7" I put on my list.

The Housemartins - Caravan of Love

Thursday 22 December 2016

Tuesday 20 December 2016

Gonna Cry Me A River, A River Of Tears



I've been holding this one back for a wee while to give you something special in the run up to Christmas to cleanse your ears of all that awful piped music that can be heard everywhere at the moment. It's an absolute doozy as no one with any sense of credibility would say. Unlike many of the garage bands that have been featured here, the Unrelated Segments had a modicum of success, granted it was in Michigan and Ohio only but there first two singles gained them enough popularity to be the support act for the likes of The Who and The Spencer Davies Group.  Our attention, however is focused on the band's third and final single Cry, Cry,  Cry which bombed in 1968 but which has achieved legendary status in Garage circles since. Great Tune, pish name.

Unrelated Segments - Cry,  Cry,  Cry

Monday 19 December 2016

Keep On Keeping On



All those years ago when I was a moody teenager today's track was one of those songs that I immediately thought of when someone mentioned Northern Soul, it was one of the first tracks on the northern compilation that a girl call called Lynn gave me that whetted my appetite and led to a30/31 year and counting love affair with this music.  The song was recorded by N.F. Porter, it would be years before I found out the first name was Nolan and later still that the F was for Fredrick, not that it's of much relevance.The single came out on the Lizard label in 1971. I had a dodgy boot of this for quite a few years until last year when I picked up the RSD release with the now more popular "If I Could Only Be Sure" on the flip. Apparently Joy Division were asked to cover this. I am having difficulty imagining how that would have sounded.

N.F Porter - Keep On Keeping On

Friday 16 December 2016

Before Bobby Got His Groove On



SWC and Badger posted Come Together as number 7 in their Top 200 here today which prompted JC to comment  that he could believe that they posted it over Velocity Girl, a track which I know is a favourite of the anorak wearing C86 brigade but for me was always just a little too short and there is something about the way Gillespie sings " leave me alone" which has always irritated, being a wee bit too whiney for my liking. The post and the comments had me longing for the working day to be done so I could go downstairs and dig out my favourite pre-E Primals moment, as up until now I hadn't ripped the track. Since early this evening I think that I have played the song about ten times. Every time I am transported back to the days when I was thin, was a walking advertisement for Flip and paid over the odds for Lucky Strike unfiltered fags from a tobacconists just off George Square.

It is too good to keep to myself and on the b-side they covered a track by The Shadows of Knight but back then I didn't have a clue it was a cover.

Primal Scream - Gentle Tuesday

Primal Scream - I'm Gonna Make You Mine

It's Friday . . . Let's Dance



I'm way too busy at work at the moment. This I suspect is a common complaint so I won't moan about it, Today's track is one that I find myself playing quite frequently although a deep house track it has quite a soothing effect on me and lightens the mood considerably.The record is the work of Olof Dreijer one half of the Swedish duo The Knife and was released in 2009 and what makes this tune even more remarkable is that it is the b-side, That doesn't mean that the a-side is not a good tune, it is very good this (it has no title) is just so much better.

After last weeks five nil mauling by the side floundering at the bottom of the table,  I am rather glad that there is no home game for Airdrie this week. I think that Leo and I are suffering from PTSD, the car on the way home was silent apart from the odd sigh and me repeating "five nil, five blinking nil" and we hav e not discussed the game since. This week we are away to the league leaders, Livingston who are 7 points ahead of us.

Have a good weekend people

Oni Ayhun - OAR003-B

Wednesday 14 December 2016

X Film Plus Ultra



With all this talk of a new Jesus and Mary Chain album and tour next year I was reminded of swithering and missing out on the best thing that any meber of x member of the band had done in the past ten years and it wasn't a Reid brother. In 2013 Douglas Hart released his first solo single and I hesitated a bit too long and all 250 copies had vanished which was a bit of a bugger then a month or so ago I heard that he had released another record. Again I was too fucking late!




Tuesday 13 December 2016

You're In My Mind



This Garage on a Tuesday lark has turned into a thing. It wasn't my intention for this to happen but over the last wee while I have been listening to a lot of this kind of stuff, Today's track you will be surprised to know does not come from 1966 but a couple of years later and is a tad more psychedelic man than what normally appears here. Graf Zepplin were from OAk Park Illinois and formed in 1966, so we have a connection to that great year for this kind of music. The unique spelling of Zepplin came about after the drummer incorrectly spelt the name on his bass drum. Like a couple of other tracks that have featured this one was the result of the band winning a battle of the bands competition with the prize being some studio time where they laid down this great piece of psych rock. 500 copies of the single were pressed with a kind of hippy ballad, Sunset on the flip. My copy is of course a boot as an original would be well out of my price range.

Graf Zepplin - You're In My Mind

Monday 12 December 2016

Soul On Fire




" Well you know what they say, it's always a badass that makes a girl's heart beat faster . . .

. . . Wanna dance?"

LaVern Baker - Soul On Fire

Saturday 10 December 2016

The Tracks Of My Year



So it's time for my self indulgent list of what I have been listening to and buying this year. The list is limited to music made in 2016 which ruled out a load of northern soul and a couple of recent garage rock acquisitions. When compiling the list I had a feeling that there was a definite bias towards electronic and dance music but when it was finished it actually appeared to be more balanced than I thought.

There are four people with entries under two guises. Firstly Carla Easton, responsible for two of my favourite albums of the year by Teen Canteen and Ette, the music is just so joyous and both albums make me smile loads. I just wish that the Ette track included had been released as a 7" as that is, in my mind anyway where it belongs. Also when I attended the album launch for Say It With A Kiss I finally realised that I am an old duffer, christ did I feel old and if I'm honest rather out of place even though Duglas T Stewart was in attendance.

Richard Norris also pops up with two tracks in the top three,  one as Circle Sky and one in his Beyond The Wizards Sleeve guise. The Circle Sky track transports me back to my golden days of clubbing while still being absolutely fresh, a sort of Rez for 2016 not quite as great as that track but similar in the way it builds. If the original version of Diagram Girl had been extended it would have been head and shoulders above anything else for me this year but the single version is just too short and the "re-animation" although very very good is just missing a tiny something. There could have been another couple of entries for BTWS if I had allowed multiple entries.

Jamie xx is the third. I know I included Talabot's remix of Loud Places in last year's list but it did appear very late in the year and stayed glued to the turntable until about February/March this year. The first single from the third album of The xx proper augers well and on the strength of it the album was duly pre-ordered and eagerly awaited. I am still pissed off that they are not coming to Scotland during their "UK" tour but not half as upset as Nick Waterhouse not coming north of Manchester but that's another story.

The final double entry, you will not be surprised to read is from Lord Sabre himself, one as part of the Woodleigh Research Facility and the other in the form of a remix. Weatherall is the only person to be included in all 8 of these end of year things. This year he could have had at least half a dozen entries if not double figures he has been quite prolific in 2016 while managing to keep the quality of the highest order. I am sure that SA will have more than a few Weatherall tracks when his list comes out round at the Bagging Area.

With regards to the rest of the list, there is the welcome return of Meursault, Also back this year were the Wedding Present with their best album since Take Fountain, still don't understand the inclusion of Secretary though. Earlier in the year I stated that due to the extortionate price of The Spoils on vinyl this would be one Massive Attack release I would not be purchasing however I am weak and knew that I would regret it and end up paying more for it in the future so I succumbed. Slam also released a new album to celebrate 25 years of making records and it was as fresh as fuck. My new favourite band are the Lucid Dream, Stiff and I saw them in September and they were loud. Sadly also in the list is the last song by Allo Darlin' who have decided to call it a day. Unfortunately this has had to be purchased on MP3 as the limited single is only available at the band's final two shows this weekend in London and I will not be in attendance. I have pleaded with the m on Twitter but have had no response.  It's been a while since I raved about a Primal Scream tune but this year there were two that were rather remarkable, one, Big Belly Nothing 100% dub, down mainly to Antone Newcombe's remix but the other, well, if somebody had said that I would have been blown away by a Scream cover of S'Express they would have been told to go and take a flying fuck to themselves, but I was, 2016 was indeed a strange year.  Talking of that, something had to be included from Blackstar. If I'm honest I hadn't taken much notice of Bowie  since Absolute Beginners really, apart from the James Murphy remix of Love Is Lost. After his death I streamed the final album and  a few listens decided it was worth having for the last track alone but the whole thing has grown on me, not a comfortable listen but absolutely astounding under the circumstances.

Also in the list is a track by a man I had the good fortune to DJ with when we did the Blog Rocking Beats nights in the Flying Duck in Glasgow,  Gareth from the sadly defunct How Does That One Go Again, whose track Solina is number 34 on the list, a labour of love which took 17 years to finally get a release and was played on the too few balmy summer nights we had up here, the kind of track that in bygone days would have accompanied a good toke.

You may have noticed that there is nothing by the gruppe in the list, even though they released a 12" ep in 2016. I'm not sure if I was compiling a top 100 Wise Old Man would even be in there, no I am sure it wouldn't. from reading the reviews of concerts from the second half of the year there are a few promising new songs but we will see how they sound when the new album appears but until then . . .

1,  Circle Sky - Reveal
2.  Massive Attack - The Spoils
3.  Beyond The Wizards Sleeve - Diagram Girl(Beyond The Wizards Sleeve Re-animation)
4,  Nick Waterhouse - LA Turnaround
5   The xx - On Hold
6.  Ette - Attack of the Glam Soul Cheerleaders
7.  Hardway Bros - Argonaut
8.  The Unloved - When A Woman Is Around
9.  The Lucid Dream - I'm A Star In My Own Right
10, Teen Canteen - Kung Fu Kisses
11. The Wedding Present - Rachel
12 .King Creosote - The Long Fade
13. Woodleigh Research Facility - Osler's Crystal Fountain
14. Jamie xx - Loud Place (John Talabot's Higher dub)
15. Slow Club - Champion
16. Sordid Sound System - I Walk on Splintered Gilders
17. Primal Scream - Mantra For A State Of Mind
18. David Bowie - I Can't Give Everything Away
19. Lack of Afro - Fires Glow
20. Burial - Night Market
21. Slam - Ecclesiastic
22. Allo Darlin' - Hymn of the 45
23. Meursault - Simple Is Good
24. Haley Bonar - Kismet Kills
25. Al Kent - Good Inside
26. The Liminanas feat. Peter Hook - Garden Of Love (Mardi Mouille mix)
27. Caverns of Anti-Matter - Tardis Cymbals
28. Levon Vincent - Birds
28. Mogwai - Fat Man
29. Pearl Charles - Idea To Her
30. Death In Vegas - Consequences of Love
31. Hooton Tennis Club - Katy Anne Bellis
32. Cigarettes After Sex - Hurt You Baby
33. Ripperton - Hat Uh Mi Head
34. Imperfect Product - Solina
35. Emma Woods - I Don't Drink Too Forget
36. Rachel Modest - I Try
37. Rancho Relaxo - Who Married Jane Fonda
38.The Third Degree - Toxic
39. Brian Jonestown Massacre - La Facon Dont La Macine Vers L'arriere
40. Deadboy - White Light Gemini



Friday 9 December 2016

It's Friday . . . Let's Dance



This week I have been spending quite a bit of time trying to work out the "Tracks of My Year" so I have been mostly listening to stuff from the past 12 months. Early in the week today's track came on the mp3 player and I had to remind myself that this single came out 5 years ago and not recently which is quite rare these days as when I find myself sticking on dance tunes from the last few years I find that a lot of them have dated quite considerably in a quite a short time.

This week the Diamonds will be hosting Stenhousemuir and a win would mean us consolidating our second spot in the table, yes I did type that correctly, we are second in the league!. Unfortunately only Leo and myself will be at the game from our mob as Stiff and Willie are off to see Newcastle United and Max has decided that he no longer wants to support Airdrie, his exact words were "I've got better things to do with my Saturday",which is debatable as all he seems to do is hang about Subway or play the x-box which is in no way better than watching Airdrie on a winning streak. I wonder what it would take for them to be made team of the day on Off The Ball, nothing short of winning the Scottish Cup I think. A few weeks ago Tam Cowan actually nominated a thug called Jim Goodwin as pplayer of the day after a game against Airdrie where he persistently fouled, scored an own goal, was sent off and nearly broke an Airdrie player's leg with his well timed cropping of the player. I'm not saying Cowan is biased but he is from Motherwell and mentions their cup win over three decades ago at least five times in every show (and his taste in music is pish). But I digress.

Have a good weekend people.

Dauwd - Acireams

Thursday 8 December 2016

I Suppose It's Time



What is all this warm temperature shit in December? Driving home from Dundee yesterday afternoon I noticed it was 13.5 c.

The Raveonettes - The Christmas Song

Wednesday 7 December 2016

Cigarettes After Sex



I heard this a few months ago and from the first couple of bars I was hooked. Okay it isn't the most original thing in the world it brings to mind the Trinity Sessions, The Velvets at their most laid back  and Mazzy Star but when in the right sort of mood on these dark evenings this really hits the spot. Not sure about the name, it's pish not as pish as Cabbage but if I had heard the name before listening I don't think I would have bothered. The band are resident in Brooklyn but were formed in El Paso by Greg Gonzalez. If you like what you hear, the vinyl or cd can be purchased here.

Tuesday 6 December 2016

I've Been Through It Before



We will keep mining the rich seam of gold that was garage land USA in 1966. This time from Lansing Michigan. The Plagues had been on the scene for a couple of years when they recorded their third and final single , I've Been Through It Before and what a way to bow out, all fuzz guitar, mournful vocals and a great bit of drumming, really what more do you want or need in a two and a half minute garage track.

The Plagues - I've Been Through It Before

Monday 5 December 2016

Your Love's Too Strong



I know virtually nothing about this track apart from it would cost you north of £300 on 7" if you could find a copy. I don't think that if you were ever to track down D Wilkerson and ask if he/she was influenced by the Motown, I don't think that there would be any point in him/her denying it as this has the sound of 2648 West Grand Boulevard, Detroit all over it, however the record apparently is a Chicago release. it reminds me a lot of Martha Reeves and the Vandellas. I love that bit at about 1:30 when the piano stops and just the drums and vocals continue.

Donna Coleman - Your Love's Too Strong


Friday 25 November 2016

It's Friday . . . Let's Dance



I'm going clubbing with my nephew tomorrow! I know, I should know better. When I say clubbing, I mean I'm taking Lewis to see the Orb perform Adventures Beyond The Ultraworld in full and also stuff from Chill Out World in a club in the town and I'm right looking forward to it. Stiff and I went to see them in the same venue last year for the first time in 10 - 15 years and both of us didn't really know if we were up to it anymore but we had a rare time although decided that the club needed arm chairs and tea served to us as we sat and soaked up the vibes. There will be no such behaviour tomorrow as Lewis is a bit of a bevy merchant (ie likes his alcohol). I'm not sure he quite realises what he's in for as his usual haunts are Pressure and the Subby but we will see. Due to this I am going to have to miss tomorrow's Scottish Cup Round Three encounter with Livingston, who sit one point ahead of us at the top of League 1! No, you did not read that wrong, Airdrie are second in League 1 and I think that we are all a bit shell shocked about that. Not sure how long we can stay there and I'm not sure either Bat, Stiff or myself's nerves will be able to take, (Leo on the other hand is very cool about the situation) but I have to admit that it is a very good feeling.

Have a good weekend people.

The Orb - Suburban Smog

Thursday 24 November 2016

And Yet It Moves



Do you remember the Amazing Snakeheads, responsible for one of the best albums of  2014? Well the lead singer Dale Barclay has returned with a new project which if the track below is anything to go by is a very interesting project. The track " Make America Great Again", nothing if not topical,  was recorded live at Glasgow's Green Door Studio. If you like what you hear and I had gotten off my arse quicker you could have caught them at various places in the UK on their second tour which finished a couple of days ago. If you are in London all is not lost as they are playing Unit 30 in the Bow Triangle Business Estate on the 10th of December and I am hoping to catch them at the Kinning Park Complex in Glasgow on 16th. The Snakeheads were always very exciting live and so I will be hoping for more of the same from this mob.


Wednesday 23 November 2016

Garden



I hadn't listened to Perverted By Language  in ages and had sort of forgotten just how brilliant and original album it is. Nobody else sounded like the gruppe sounded back in 1983. This was the Fall's 6th studio album and the first to feature Brix Smith but due to the fact that the majority of the album was recorded prior to her joining the group it isn't quite as, for want of a better word, accessible as the next few albums would be. I don't think there is a bad track on the record but one  for me towers above the rest and that is Garden. I have no idea what Smith is going on about in the song and don't really want to know but the repetitive nature of the music always sucks me in and if it went on for a further ten minutes it would still grip my attention. I have stated before and I know that quite a few disagree with me, but the Peel session versions of Fall tracks tend to be superior and that is no different here it feels fresher and is over a minute longer. It comes from the 6th session broadcast on 23/03/83.

Marvelous stuff.

The Fall - Garden (Peel session)

Tuesday 22 November 2016

I'm Movin' On



Today's slice of garage rock again comes from that vintage year of 1966. Not strictly true as I'm Movin' On was never released and languished on acetate for years eventually being unearthed by a garage music historian Miami Jeff who released it on his own Florida Archive Recordings/Limestone Records.

Evil hailed from the Miami area and were active from 1965 to 1967. In 1966 the won a local Battle of the Bands competition and their prize was some studio time where they recorded I'm Movin' On and a few other songs, which were cut onto an acetate and then forgotten about. The band did release one single, a cover of the Small Faces Whatcha Gonna Do which was released in 1967 on another local label which came to the attention of Capitol Records who signed them up and re-released the single and the group duly imploded before they released anything else.

Miami Jeff deserves some sort of award for unearthing this absolute stormer of a track where the influence of the Who and The Small Faces looms large. No bad thing in my book.

Evil - I'm Movin' On 

Sunday 20 November 2016

Spellbound



Not the same song as the Azie Mortimer one that has featured here on more than one occasion at Halloween on this blog, Tamiko Jones* release from 1966 on the same label, which surprisingly hasn't featured here. Spellbound was originally supposed to be released on Ed Wingate's Golden World label but was shelved when Berry Gordy bought the label and only saw the light of day. until recently  as an album track on the first Grapevine compilation album, Talk of The Grapevine in 1978. Betty Boo's real name is Betty Winston who along with her sister Jackie and Pat and Diane Lewis recorded three singles as the Adorables for Wingate's label.

Betty Boo - Spellbound

* Kindly pointed out by John in the comments, it was late last night when I threw this together.

Saturday 19 November 2016

Sharon Jones RIP



We've lost another one, jeez!

Rest Easy Sharon

Sharon Jones and The Daptones - 100 Day, 100 Nights

Friday 18 November 2016

It's Friday . . . Let's Dance



Staying on the up beat with today's bit of disco infused house music. The original version of Free is by Italian singer Marina Conti  and was the second single from her 2012 album. I have no idea what it sounded like but Raj Gupta (Ray Mang to us) liked the vocal so much that he lifted it along with the piano line, fucked about with them a bit, I think he might have been listening to Ten City  at the time and produced this brilliant, uplifting piece of music which would fill any dance floor.

Airdrionians are going through a bit of a purple patch at the moment, although I have probably just put the kibosh on that. They have won four games on the bounce and are sitting fourth in the league!. I know! Last week they were a joy to watch not just because they won but they were playing with a confidence and dare I say it ability that has been lacking for quite some time. Tomorrow we take on Alloa Athletic one place above us in the table,  a win would see us take third and if local rivals, Albion Rovers could do us a favour by beating Brechin we could even be sitting second!

Have a good weekend people.

Mari - Free (Ray Mang extended mix)

Thursday 17 November 2016

This Never Fails



I tweeted on Saturday night that when all else fails I turn to this record to cheer me up. Which wasn't 100% accurate it would be this or Bizarre Love Triangle. I don't think that I need to go into the merits of this tune they become evident from the first note until the last. Play as loud as you possibly can.

The Only Ones - Another Girl Another Planet

Wednesday 16 November 2016

Wednesday's Sharing "Up Beat" Tune



SA issued a call to arms yesterday for all of us to counteract the seemingly relentless gloom by the power of music. It would have been churlish not to get in on the act.

We shall see how long I can last on the up beat but at least for today here is a song that if it doesn't make you want to dance, well you might as well go join the meanies.

"Watch me now as I go into action"

Richard Temple - That Beating Rhythm

Tuesday 15 November 2016

Part Time Rockstar, Full Time Legend



Stiff and I spent a rather life affirming couple of hours in the company of a few hundred like minded people on Sunday night listening to the music and stories of Pete Wylie and his latest incarnation of The Mighty Wah. It was a bit of a nostalgia fest, sentimental in parts, a lot like preaching to the converted at other points but sometimes you need to be reminded of the past in order to focus on the here and now. And as an added bonus,  for a change Stiff and I weren't the two old gits in the corner.

Pete Wylie - Four Eleven Forty Four

Saturday 12 November 2016

A Weekend for Quiet Reflection, I Think.



I am trying to calm down, get some perspective and find something positive about the week's goings on. Bugger the American election results, did you see the Scotland performance last night? Still tennis is our national sport anyway.

Along with Leonard Cohen I think that I will be mostly playing records with a low bpm count this weekend.

A few years ago I posted the a-side of today's track and dismissed this track as "ambient noodling" to which Ctel disagreed stating that it was a great track and I have to admit that Ctel is correct and I was wrong, it is a very good track.

Holmes & McMillan - Total Toxic Tranquility

Friday 11 November 2016

Thursday 10 November 2016

Plagiarism or Eclecticism?



Still finding it hard to focus after yesterday's result. If the UK decision to leave the European Union made me nervous, the realisation of Trump in the White House in a few months for at least four years fills me with dread.

So to the music. Here is a track that will sound familiar to all of the Weatherall acolytes out there. I'm sure that most will be aware that New Age of Faith predates one of Lord Sabre's masterpieces by four years.  Tucked away at the end of side two of a 12" sing;e after a myriad of mixes of The True Story of House Music. For years I have struggled with whether this was a blatant rip-off or an example of making a silk purse, not out of a pigs ear as such but out of a piece of  discarded, unremarkable cloth. I tend to think that although the bare bones of the track is there it takes the Weatherall magic to transform it into a thing of beauty.

LB Bad - New Age of Faith

Wednesday 9 November 2016

Aw Fuck, No!




America, I hoped that you were better than that!

At least the brickies will be happy.

Time to stock up on the dried and tinned goods I would suggest.

KLF - America No More

The Housemartins - Heaven Help Us All

Tuesday 8 November 2016

I Can Only Give You Everything



This absolutely astounding, thrashy cover of the Coulter/Scott penned song best known in the version by Them from their third album Again, is by one of the few garage bands featured on this blog who went on to fame or more correctly notoriety if not fortune. The MC5 would become well known in the late 60s as much as members of the protest movement, especially in Detroit as they would for their incendiary live performances and would produce three critically acclaimed albums which would become part of the blueprint for punk rock. . I only have the first one, Kick Out The Jams which I haven't played in ages. This single from two years prior to that album shows the direction that the band will take sonically, if not lyrically, this isn't revolution rock but deep down dirty first class R&B. I love this versiuon of the song, however my favourite interpretation has got to be Nick Waterhouse's classy, straighter version that I posted a few years ago.

MC5 - I Can Only Give You Everything

Monday 7 November 2016

I Got To Find Me Somebody



We're in girl group territory, one of my favourite genres if you hadn't already sussed that out, with today's bit of soul. Another record that I know very little about, aren't they all. I do know that the Vel-Vets were a trio from L.A who cut this tune for 20th Century Fox Records in 1967. If that intro doesn't get you off your seat nothing will.

The Vel-Vets - I Got To Find Me Somebody 

Friday 4 November 2016

It's Friday . . . Let's Dance


y

A little bit of teutonic techno for you this Friday from Ellen Allien,  one of the leading lights in the Berlin and European techno scenes. She started djing in 1992 and landed a residency at Tresor, one of the most influential clubs for techno over the last couple of decades. Subsequently she has had her own radio show, organised parties, started 2 labels, the shortlived Brain Candy and BPitch Control on which she has released her six albums and numerous others including Modeselektor and Apparat and one of my favorite albums from 2009, by Moderat.  The track posted was the lead single from the 2005 album Thrills. I first heard this one day when lurking round Fopp when Fopp was still Fopp looking for something different. I asked the guy behind the counter what it was, bought the album which turned out to be just the sort of thing I was looking for.

This weekend I will be mainly finishing off Max's bedroom which is looking quite good if I say so myself (if it doesn't stay that way there will be trouble) and starting on Leo's as there is no home game for the Diamonds, as Airdrie travel a couple of miles down the road to Coatbridge to take on local rivals Albion Rovers. I really should go but I can't stand living in this guddle for much longer.

Have a good weekend people.

Ellen Allien - Magma

Wednesday 2 November 2016

One Hundred and Fifteen Seconds Of Pure Quality, Man.



Here is another absolute belter of a track from that most excellent of years for garage rock, 1966. There were a few bands that went by the name of The Outcasts, the ones we are concerned with here are the group that hailed from San Antonio, Texas. They released 5 singles in their short career. I'm In Pittsburgh (and it's raining) written by rhythm guitarist and vocalist Jim Carsten for me is the pick of the bunch. A few years ago I featured the cover version by the Vibes from the mid 80s which I foolishly stated was better than the original which of course is nonsense. I'm not sure you will hear a better sub two minutes of music today.

Enjoy

The Outcasts - I'm In Pittsburgh (and it's raining)

Tuesday 1 November 2016

You Better Think It Over



Today's piece of soul come from Chicago and was first released in 1965 on Golden Gate Records but it sounds like it came straight off of the production line in Detroit and to me is very reminiscent of Nowhere To Run from the same year. I know absolutely nothing about the DuShons but somebody must have rated this track as it was re-released on Down To Earth records in 1970 and was then bootlegged. I love this kind of girl group thing.

The DuShons - You Better Think It Over

Monday 31 October 2016

Happy Birthday, Son




Max reaches his teenage years today. He has been as moody and petulant as your typical teenager for a couple of years now. but anyway now it's confirmed. I remember his birth like yesterday and can taste the JPS that I chain smoked for the last few of the twenty two hours that L was in labour. It was apt that he was born on Halloween, as he scared the shit out of us then by refusing to appear and L having to have an emergency section and has been scaring the shite out of us regularly ever since. Happy birthday son. Here is one of the tunes that he likes at the moment.

N.W.A - Express Yourself

and I nearly forgot, the obligatory Halloween tune. My second favourite track entitled Haunted. Oh bugger it here's both.

Shane MacGowan and the Popes - Haunted

Azie Mortimer - Haunted


Friday 28 October 2016

It's Friday . . . Let's Dance



Not got a lot of time or much to say about this record apart from it is a rather brilliant piece of Tech House released on the Hot Flush label back in 2014. The version posted is the SCB mix which is on the flip.

This week I will be mostly trying to finish the glossing in the hall. At the beginning of the 20th Century their must have been a glut of hardwood about if the amount of fucking wood that has been used in our house is anything to go by, L just hit me with the joyous news that "the boys rooms need decorating  . . . badly!" So I think for the next few weeks my weekends are sorted out.

Have a good weekend people.

Scuba - NE1BUTU (SCB Remix)

Thursday 27 October 2016

My Curse



I wanted to post the Peel session by the Afghan Whigs to celebrate Keeping It Peel day on Tuesday but unfortunately could not find it on the net. Since then some kind soul has sent me a link to Jim's blog AyeTunes where the session is present,  correct and available for download. The session consists of two covers and two original compositions from  the Gentlemen album, including the highlight for me  "My Curse" sung by Dulli which is pretty amazing, however the album cut is sung by Marcy Mays who adds a little something to,the song and makes it an even more uncomfortably listen. My Curse is a dark, dark song from an album which is quite harrowing in parts, not an easy listen but an absolutely enthralling one. I flit from considering this the best Afghan Whigs album but in lighter moments I prefer 1965, the first album I bought by the band and by far the most accessible. I'm going to post the album version of My Curse, if you would like the Peel sessions head over here where Jim will sort you out. I know that I say this quite often, but if you don't own Gentlemen I suggest you rectify the situation as soon as possible.

The Afghan Whigs - My Curse

Wednesday 26 October 2016

Searching



Another great piece of fuzzed up Garage Rock for you today. The Omens were from Hammond, Indiana not that far from Chicago. Searching was recorded in the Windy City not in a studio but in the living room of a second floor flat on an Ampex Reel to Reel in mono,  in one take and all the better for it. It was released on the Cody label backed with another original song Girl Get Away. in 1966, a vintage year for this kind of music. The band recorded another single, a cover of  As Tears Go By and like most bands from the Garage rock scene of the mid 60s split leaving a very slight recording legacy but one very rare, in demand blistering single.

The Omens - Searching

Tuesday 25 October 2016

Keeping It Peel



I'm not sure if Keeping It Peel is still a thing. I haven't seen anything about it this year and I was tryin g to find the Afghan Whigs tracks that Dulli and the guys did for Peel back in 1994 but to no avail so I thought I would just post the best Peel session ever in stead. Back in 2010 for this I did a run down of my favourite sessions, if you want to find out what the other nine are just look down the side and click on October 2010,

Well here it is, my favourite session track ever from the John Peel show.  Another one of those "what the fuck" moments and not just from me I think,  as it was also the most requested session for repeat.

I did hear it first on the Peel show and I can honestly say it was like nothing else I had ever heard before, totally unique. For one thing there didn't seem to be any structure to the track, just snippets of dialogue, samples of everything from jets to cockerels, beats floating in and out and it seemed to go on forever. Before this session I had never heard of the Orb and I don't think it was until the second or third repeat that I actually caught the name.

This session didn't just baffle the listeners but also the staff at Maida Vale didn't have a clue what was happening during the recording of the track. Here are Alex Paterson's recollections of the session lifted from Ken Garner's excellent book the Peel Sessions, which if you don't have a copy you really should click here and rectify the situation.

"We turned up early and, finding nobody about, started setting up the turntables and desk in the control room. Suddenly the producer appeared and bawled out: "Get this equipment out of here!" He told us to set up in the studio and come back at 2pm. We said that we were going to generate a load of samples then mix it off the multi-track, which he didn't seem to get. We were so put off that we went round to a friend's house for an hour. But we were determined to defeat this producer so we went back, and pulled all the sofas and lamp stands into the middle of Studio 3 and set up a little living-room set in this huge studio, like something out of Alice In Wonderland and got the main lights switched off, to get a good atmosphere. I just started throwing all these samples at Jimmy: Waves, birdsong, jets, old Sci-Fi play excerpts, those "Aaaahs" of Grace Jones' Slave To The Rhythm, and Minnie Ripperton's Loving You, of course (we'd already started this thing of crediting all our samples, and virtually mixing the drums out of house music). And Jimmy did this great live mix really quick. I think that we were out of the building by 7pm! I think that it was the best mix we ever did of that. The head of Geffen records was over here, and listening to it on Peel while driving and had to pull over, he was so knocked out. He tried too sign us for America, but we already had a deal. The whole thing couldn't have been planned: it was just a very vivid day, because we were finding it so entertaining to defeat this producer bloke."

This session for me is one of the best illustrations of why John Peel is revered by so many people and was so essential to popular music during the thirty seven years that he was broadcasting on the BBC.  Long before the Radio One bosses decided that they needed specialist dance dj's Peel had been championing house and hip-hop. No other DJ anywhere in 1989 would have had the courage or sheer bloodymindedness to play a 20 minute noodling like A Huge Ever Growing Pulsating Brain That Rules From The Centre Of The Ultraworld (Loving You) and for that reason alone he should be saluted.

And lets not forget all of the bands he gave the chance for more than their mates to hear by airing their demos or first singles. Or the obscure reggae, soul and other genres that got no other national airplay. He certainly contributed greatly to me opening my mind to music that probably if I hadn't heard it on his show I would have remained oblivious to.

Another reason I respect the man so much is that he refused the Irish Band a session, bit petty I know but that's me.

John Peel meant many things to many people,  from the sympathetic voice that listened to peoples woes and idiosyncrasies on Radio 4's Home Truths,  the devoted Liverpool supporter who cried on air after the Hillsborogh tragedy, the champion of so many different genres of music not least punk,  to the hippy who was friends with Mark Bolan and presented The Perfumed Garden.

It may be an overused phrase but it makes it no less true that his like will never be seen or heard over the airwaves again.

Teenage dreams so hard to beat



 Orb Session recorded 03rd December 1989 aired 19th December 1989

Tracklisting: A Huge Ever Growing Pulsating Brain That Rules From The Centre Of The Ultraworld (Loving You)

The Orb - A Huge Ever Growing Pulsating Brain That Rules From The Centre Of The Ultraworld  (Loving  You)

John Peel - The Fall

Monday 24 October 2016

Just Sayin'



The Jesus and Mary Chain - Never Understand

Why



Last week while attempting the mammoth task of painting our hall, stairwell and upstairs I fired on some cds that I hadn't listened to in ages including the most excellent "For Millionaires Only " series from the Goldsoul label, volumes 1 through four. As the title suggests these records if bought seperately on 7" vinyl would cost an absolute fortune, all being at least in three figures many in the thousands . While playing  volume four a song came on which was really familiar but which sounded a bit on the fast side, so I consulted the cover to be informed that the song was "Why (I Want To Know) by Nat Hall and then I noticed that the next tune was also a version of Why this time by Willie Mason and All The Kings Men", that must be the version I'm more familiar with I thought and so waited for it to be play but the muffled version with the incongruous wah wah guitar was even less familiar than the previous song. So I played the  Nat Hall original again  but I was still sure that this was not the version that I knew. Over the next couple of days it bugged me and on Saturday I decided thast it was time to go through the northern boxes to find my version. I was sure that I had played it on vinyl and I knew that I didn't have a copy of the Hall version and after consulting the sleeve notes of the cd I was sure that it wasn't the Willie Mason release on Ka-La-Ma records as I had never heard of the label.

After quite a bit of rooting about the northern boxes I found the song on the flip side of a cover of It's Your Voodoo Working by Eugene Morgan on the Full Sail label. This version is slightly slower in tempo, a bit more moody and I think superior not least due to the organ solo to the other two versions.

Eugene Morgan - Why

And to compare and contrast.

Nat Hall - Why (I Wan't To Know)

Willie Mason & All The King's Men - Why


Wednesday 19 October 2016

Honey In The Sun



I love Camera Obscura. When they are miserable they are great and when they are joyous as they are here. well they are hard to top. So when Honey In The Sun came on the ipod yesterday it was kind of bittersweet as it lifted my mood as I am spending another week off painting! But also last Tuesday marked a year since the passing of Carey Lander.

Camera Obscura - Honey In The Sun (Vic Galloway session 11-05-09)

Please watch the video

Tuesday 18 October 2016

(I'm Not Your) Steppin Stone



I am no longer sure which is my favourite version of Stepping Stone, it used to be The Monkees version and then when I eventually heard it, it was the disputed first recorded version by Paul Revere & The Raiders but at present I think it is the version by the English band "The Flies". 1966 was a busy time for recording and releasing this song all three versions above are from that year and also recorded that year was a version by The Liverpool Five and probably a whole load more. I think that if a song is good ten it is quite hard to really fuck it up, the Sex Pistols tried to do that with their version od Stepping Stone but even that one is not without merit as is the version from the Farm released in 1990. Which is a testament to the song writing skills of  Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart. The only version which I have heard which was utter rubbish was by Minor Threat.

The Flies - (I'm Not Your )Stepping Stone

The Liverpool Five - (I'm Not Your) Stepping Stone

Monday 17 October 2016

So Is The Sun



A bit of psychedelic soul, very Sly & the Family Stone(y)and a bit of a stomper for you this Monday morning. If this sounds familiar to Jam fans, Trans Europe Express from the Gift owes more than a small debt to World Column and if not given writing credits alongside Paul Weller, Boller, Kaplan and Johnson bloody well ought to. So In The Sun was released on the Capital label in 1969 and was big in Black pool, Cleethorpes and Wigan in 1976.

The World Column - So Is The Sun