Wednesday 28 February 2018

Dogs



I had high hopes for Dogs after I first came across them when they were supporting the Raveonettes at the Wah Wah Hut way back in July 2004, however they got lost in the deluge of landfill indie that was all over the airwaves, Myspace and Last.fm at the time. The debut album Turn Against The Land was a favourite of mine from 2005, full of punchy songs, with sing along lyrics, some memorable hooks, the odd literary reference and excellent vocals from Johnny Cooke. None of which led to any of the four singles from the album doing any damage to the charts even though they had the endorsement of Paul Weller and the muscle of Island records behind them who subsequently dropped them. The second album which was equally as good and contained one of my favourite songs from 2007, Winston Smith, which has featured on the blog a couple of times was release on the independent Weekender label did even less business and the band kind of fizzled out releasing only one further ep in 2010 and a live album in 2016.

Here is one of my favourite tracks from the first album,

Dogs - Red 

Tuesday 27 February 2018

The Galaxies IV



I don't normally post both sides of these old garage records as usually tone side is far superior but that's not the case with today's single from that golden year of , you guessed it 1966. I really can't decide which one I prefer and usually play both when I dig out this single. Piccadilly Circus was the second single by the Galaxies IV from Trenton New Jersey and was originally released on the Mohawk label. The song is a cover of an instrumental Rolling Stones  tune, 2120 South Michigan Avenue, with added fuzz guitar. The tune came to the attention of an RCA A&R person who picked it up for a national release. The flip side, Don't Lose Your Mind is a furious slab of garage rock that builds and ends in a great furious freak out. The record did grab the attention of radio stations but unfortunately the listeners were unable to get their hands on the record as it's release was halted by a strike at the pressing plant meaning that only the promo copies and a very few of the release were ever in circulation. The record was eventually repressed last year in a limited run of 200 copies.

The Galaxies IV - Piccadilly Circus 

The Galaxies IV - Don't Lose Your Mind


Sunday 25 February 2018

Freddy Butler



That's When I Need You was a track from Freddy Butler's sole album With A Dab of Soul which was released in 1967 on Kapp records. Someone from the north of England must have bought this album or discovered it while crate digging for something else, as the song from the Detroit singer was booted and I assume found favour with the Rare Soul crew or why would it have been bootlegged anyway. I first heard it when it was included on the flip of the re-release of Voodoo Madamoiselle by September Jones on the Ace/Pied Piper label in 2014.

Freddy Butler - That's When I Need You 

Friday 23 February 2018

It's Friday . . . Let's Dance



On my post after the death of M.E.S. I mentioned that he had embraced dance music in the early 90s so when SA posted Follow The Sun yesterday that was enough to send me raking for Drum Club's remix of Middle Class Revolt from the 1994 album of the same name from 1994. I'm not sure that either of these would have gotten much play in the clubs but both mixes are worth a listen and Ctel will be glad to hear that Smith's contribution to these remixes have been kept to a minimum.

Airdrie are away to Ayr tomorrow and Leo was initially up for going to this game against the team placed second in the league. I say initially, as Stiff suggested that I should mention that we would be standing without cover on the terracing and when I told him this he decided that he was not so keen after all. I may still head down to Somerset Park as I have a wee feeling that we may come back with at least a point. I like many supporters have a new found optimism for the club as everything off the field is looking very positive, something we have not been able to say recently and I think that this has led to some confidence on the pitch as well. The latest good news is our captain Scott Stuart has signed a two year extension which is great news as I was sure that he was for the off. Stiff ever the realist pointed out that this may come to pass but if it does at least the club will get some cash.

Have a good weekend people.

The Fall - Middle Class Revolt (The Drum Club Prozac mix)


The Fall - Middle Class Revolt (The Drum Club Orange In The Mouth mix)

Wednesday 21 February 2018

45 Revolutions Per Minute,



If you have any love for well constructed early 80s indie then you need to get on this. It's only taken thirty five years to get the album released and it is bloody gorgeous. It can be purchased here. It is the best thing you will buy this month,  at the very least possibly a lot longer.

Tuesday 20 February 2018

Roadrunner



I'm over the water for a couple of days. I don't get to go to Belfast as often as I would like these days but I never relish the walk back to Car Park 1 at Glasgow Airport after the return flight as my bag is twice as heavy as it was when I went out as I have to bring back Club Rock Shandy and Tayto Smokey Bacon crisps for the boys whenever I go over.

Here is a song that I never go any more than a fortnight without playing. I used to think that Roadrunner (Twice) was the best version and for a while it was the 8 minute plus version (Thrice) that was the one for me but it always comes back to (Once), one of the definitive tracks of how it feels to be a teenager.

Not sure why I have an affinity with this song as I didn't have a car or had any inclination to drive one when I was a teenager but I did have the scooter which gave me the same sort of freedom that Richman sings about but without having the "radio on". In the mid 80s the technology did not exist  to listen to the radio while riding along dodging the half bricks and the boy racers trying to run you off the road. A couple of the guys did fit speakers to the front of the glove box of their PXs' and have a tape player inside but it was about as much use when riding as an ashtray on the headset. But the lyrics of Roadrunner nailed that feeling of freedom when driving/riding about just because you could and you had nothing better to do. Plus it's the best Velvets song that the VU never did, although you just couldn't imagine Lou Reed singing about something as mundane as driving.

Laura Barton produced a programme years ago for Radio 4 where she went to Massachusettes and drove Route 128 which was one the best things that has ever been on Radio 4.

Anyway, here are Roadrunner (Once) and (Twice)  and the Youtube of (Thrice) as when I dug out my copy to rip as it wasn't in iTunes,  which was strange, until I put it on the turntable and found out my copy is scratched to fuck and sounds absolutely terrible.

Jonathan Richman - Roadrunner (Once)

The Modern Lovers - Roadrunner (Twice)

Sunday 18 February 2018

Friday 16 February 2018

It's Friday . . . Let's Dance



We don't tend to feature the Main room bangers here on a Friday but I dug out this 12" single last week when I was searching for something else. The Mighty Ming by Brother Love Dubs which appears to have gone walkabout. and it sounded really good, a breakdown which for the time was quite novel and a powerful vocal and it didn't sound dated at all. Bedrock consisted of John Digweed and Nick Muir and on For What You Dream Of,  the dulcet tones of Carol Leeming alias K.Y.O. This track was the one that got Digweed noticed and it wouldn't be long, for better or worse, before he was all over the dance scene like a rash, with his mix cds with Sasha. I personally hold them 85% responsible for all the pish that came out in the mid 90s under the trance banner and for dance music retreating up it's own arse. But I do like this.

After a highly entertaining but ultimately pointless excursion to Kirkcaldy to take on Raith Rovers last week, Airdrie are at home to Queen's Park tomorrow. The Spiders are currently sitting 9th in the league and will be desperate for a win to try and get them out of the relegation play-off place and therefore it should be a competitive game. If the Diamonds play as well as they did last week and can find someone to put the ball in the back of the net then they should win but this is the third tier of Scottish football where anything can and often does happen.

Have a good weekend people.

Bedrock feat K.Y.O. - For What You Dream Of

Thursday 15 February 2018

Do You Work Hard?



I was watching the Wonderful and Frightening World of Mark E Smith on Saturday night on BBC4 and was trying to compile in my head my top twenty Fall tracks, an impossible task but I know for sure that the mighty "Blindness" would be right up there in my top 5. It was recorded by the incarnation of the Fall that would leave Smith in the middle of a tour of the USA and whom he would later immortalise in the title of the next album,  Reformation Post TLC (Traitors, Liars Cunts). I have 24 versions of  Blindness, which was always absolutely immense live, even if Smith himself was not at his best the gruppe always were. The version posted is from The Last Night At The Hammersmith Palais album during which the Fall had two bass players and two guitarists as the Dudes (the Americans he hired to fill in when Elena and he were left high and dry in the States) were yet to go back to their main gig, their band Darker My Love and also two members of the gruppe who would record the previously mentioned Reformation Lp and would be there from 2006 until, sadly the end last month.

The Fall - Blindness (01-04-2007)


Wednesday 14 February 2018

Psychic Lemon



I stumbled across Psychic Lemon a couple of months ago. With a name like that you're bound to be curious aren't you,  a lot more so than if they were named Cabbage anyway. And I was not disappointed long instrumental space rock wig outs, the kind of thing that really floats my boat at the moment. So I took the plunge and ordered their second album, Frequency. Rhythm.  Distortion.  Delay.  on purple splatter vinyl and it has had a fair bit of turntable time and yesterday I had it on on the Ipod while checking site files and it sounded absolutely glorious through the headphones. The album can be purchased here along with the first one on either cd or download which although not quite as good as FRDD it is worth a fiver of anybody's money.

Tuesday 13 February 2018

Sad Days, Lonely Nights



Jason Pierce has always had exquisite taste in the songs that he covers. Here he takes an absolute classic bit of the blues by legend Junior Kimbrough,  adds the drone and turns it into a piece of mind bending garage rock. This can be found with some other great covers from the likes of Iggy and The Stooges, The Black Keys and Mark Lanegan amongst other of the late Kimbrough's work on the Fat Possum compilation Sunday Nights that was first released in 2005 and then again a couple of years ago.

Spiritualized - Sad Days Lonely Nights

Monday 12 February 2018

It's All Over



This is a gorgeous piece of Northern Soul that was big on the scene, especially in Cleethorpes in 1975 making it very nearly a new release, well a couple of years old only. It's All Over was released on the ABC label in 1973 and is one of those tracks that when I got into the music I kind of dismissed as it was not a four to the floor stomper, it's a lot subtler than that. Thank god that my tastes evolved as this is just so so good.

Charles Mann - It's All Over

Thursday 8 February 2018

Lina

I got this 7" single the other week but haven't gotten round to ripping it yet. Nothing remarkable about it, just a lovely piece of  happy, retro pop soul. Not everything has to be groundbreaking and meaningful. As far is I can find out Dip was the only single released by Lina Loi a Texan living in L.A, that's rubbish she has actually released four albums and a wheen of singles most of it that I have clicked on is a little bit too bland for my tastes. . There are a few other things on Youtube like the excellent My Man that is also worth checking out.

Tuesday 6 February 2018

Luton!



I'm down in Luton for a couple of days again for my sins. Mixing with the great and the good within my company and hopefully hearing of some new studies coming my way preferably north of the border but we will see. This song and this version in particular always comes into my head after about two hours in the town that spawned the EDL. I hadn't played this for a wee while and had forgotten about the guitar solo which surely raised a few eyebrows or by 1980 were we far enough away from year zero for such things not to matter.

Angelic Upstarts - We Gotta Get Out Of This Place  

Monday 5 February 2018

Dennis Edwards



Filling the shoes of David Ruffin as lead vocalist in the Temptations must have seemed at the time to be if not an impossible task then at the very least extremely daunting but that is exactly what Dennis Edwards, up until this point the lead singer with The Contours, did on 28th June 1968 the day after Ruffin was sacked by the other four members of the group after not turning up for one two many gigs. And he did it with aplomb.  It must have been a bit of a pisser for the troubled Ruffin to see the Temptations go from strength to strength with Dennis Edwards up front and Norman Whitfield's change in direction with the  new Psychedelic Soul sound for the group. This led to the group winning the first Grammy for Motown for Best R&B Vocal group in 1969 for the absolutely essential Cloud Nine lp where today's track comes from.

Edwards was the lead vocalist with the Temptations for nine years until he was sacked in 1977  by Otis Williams when he embarked upon an unsuccessful solo career. He returned to the Temptations three years later and stayed until 1984 when he re-launched his solo career on Motown with the hit single Don't Look Any Further, later sampled to great effect by Eric B and Rakim.

He continued touring during the 80s and 90s, firstly with David Ruffin and Eddie Kendricks until their deaths in the early 90s when he toured under the moniker of  "The Temptations Review featuring Dennis Edwards". Which I suspect was not the greatest thing to see as he was the only Temptation in the band.

Edwards sadly died on the 1st February two days short of his 75th birthday.

Dennis Edwards - I Got Find A Way (To Get You Back)





Friday 2 February 2018

It's Friday . . . Let's Dance



Last week before the sad death of MES I had a couple of further couple of posts with tenuous Pink Floyd links. Thursday's was going to be a cover of Lucifer Sam by Cat's Eyes which after checking back had already been posted a few years ago. I must make clear that last Monday it wasn't my intention to have 4 days of rock dinosaur related posts it was just turning out like that. Anyway I had a belter of a track for Friday, Open Up by Leftfield. Some of you might have clicked by now what Open Up's got to do with Waters, Gilmour, Mason and Wright. The vocals on the track were supplied  by John Lydon, who if I seem to remember had nothing but disparaging comment to make about dance music prior to this collaboration but  he never was one for consistency.  Lydon famously  walked about sporting a Pink Floyd T-shirt that he had sprayed the words "I hate" onto when in the Sex Pistols, so when Weatherall was asked to provide a remix, he subtitled it the "I Hate Pink Floyd mix" which is great but clocking in at 3.54 is more than a little disappointing. Anyway, last year Leftism was 22 years old and as you do when things reach that anniversary you re-release your album with an extra 11 tracks, remixes of the original album.  I'm not sure what they all sound like as that a ripping the pish too far even for me, besides my original triple album is perfectly fine, the Skream remix of Open Up is a belter and if it had been released as a stand alone 12" single I may have been tempted.

Airdrie are away to Forfar tomorrow and so I will not be in attendance. Last Saturday's nil nil draw with Arbroath was possibly the most frustrating game of the season what with dodgy refereeing decisions, Arbroath's Goalkeeper should have been off the park for handling the ball outside the box and the Diamonds inability to turn four great opportunities into even one goal. You wait three years for a goalless drawn and then you get two in two home games. The team are sitting 7th in the league and could do with an away win, Forfar who are two places below also need the win, so the game should be competitive.

Have a good weekend people




Thursday 1 February 2018

Not To Be Confused With





The Shacks are a duo from NYC who I stumbled across a wee while ago. On Follow Me, the singer sounds like a Brooklyn version of Tracyanne Campbell. Echoes of late 60s grooviness and shades of summer. A little early perhaps but we could do with a little sunshine right now. It is availible as a dinked 45, the best kind. But don't be rash like me if in the UK and buy directly from Big Crown as it will cost you half the price from Juno Records.