What's That All About?

Can't believe I've never posted this song before.

One of the most bombastic songs this side of The Story Of The Blues, You Are The Generation That Bought More Shoes And You Get What You Deserve may not be the catchiest title in the world but it does make you stop wonder what the fuck they are going on about.

This was the second and as far as I know the last single by Johnny Boy and it is absolutely brilliant.

Johnny Boy - You Are The Generation That Bought More Shoes And You Get What You Deserve.

It's A Sair Fecht

The first day back to work after some time off is usually a fairly hellish occasion for me at the best of times but going back today was worse than usual as I'm still loaded with the flu but need to go back and get the stuff done that was put off by the extreme weather in December.

So,  this morning after spending the night tossing and turning, coughing and spluttering and checking the clock every hour or so to see exactly how little time I had left until it was time to get up, I eventually got out of the house about ten minutes later than planned stuck the ipod on shuffle and this came on. I turned up the volume and  sat their for a couple of minutes and then set off. Nearly made it worthwhile getting up, nearly.

Johnny Boy - Johnny Boy Theme dub

Johnny Boy

The first time I was aware of Johnny Boy was when I received the latest installment in the series of Boobytrap monthly cds back in 2002. On first listen it sounded to these ears like a lost Pete Wylie song from the same session that produced Come Back. It had that epic, dare I say it, wall of sound backing, with a sample at the beginning which took me a long time to identify as being from Mean Streets. Being a sucker for anything vaguely Spectorish I fell in love with the track and had it on continually for weeks and eagerly awaited the next single.

It was to be a two year wait, the follow-up has probably one of the best titles I've ever heard - You Are The Generation That Bought More Shoes And You Get What You Deserve. The song turned out to be every bit as bombastic as the debut if not more so. It was produced by James Dean Bradfield who had heard the first single and loved it that much that he offered to produce the duo. Why this song did not did not reach a wider audience I will never understand as it is epic in every way.

After another couple of years an album appeared which I found a disappointment, I don't know if this was due to the wait and expectation of the first 2 singles or I had just lost interest but I have not found myself playing anything else apart from the tracks that introduced me to the band after the initial couple of listens. Maybe further listening and a reappraisal is in order.

On their myspace page they describe their music as "Church bells, boy-girl vocals, loops, twists, warps, walls of sound and edgy guitars combined to rekindle the idea of Sandinista!-era Clash having an, erm, shootout with Phil Spector. The Sandinista reference I know will put off a few of you (JC?) but give them a chance.

Johnny Boy - Johnny Boy Theme
Johnny Boy - Johnny Boy Dub