It's Friday . . . Let's Dance

Today's track was supposed to be one of the deconstruction tracks that I ripped last week, however I got waylaid and instead here a monster of a house track from 1990 which could well have been the inspiration for Positive Education by Slam.

For some it may be a bank holiday, not bloody me I'm in Aberdeen on Monday, still it could be worse it could be Luton.

Have a good weekend people.

Ron Trent - Altered States

Rated X

We haven't had anything from Spiritualized here for a while.

Here is a  down-tempo track which saw the light of day on the Amazing Grace album. This version comes from a BBC session not quite sure for whom it was recorded but it wasn't Peel

Spiritualized - Rated X

I Know I Fucked Up

If you've come here to have the mid-week blues alleviated, you've come to the wrong place and might as well click on whichever link down the right hand side you think might fulfil your need. Because what I have today could  only be termed as miserable.

Two years ago Darren Hayman set himself a task to write and record a song a day during the month of January. The results are patchy and most deal with broken relationships and the struggles of life, I'm not sure if it's due to the time of the year when the songs were written, the bleak mid-winter but there is not much smiling going on here. Even the song co-written by Elizabeth Morris (Allo Darlin'), now Elizabeth has always struck me as an upbeat kind of girl with a sunny disposition but here she comes across as miserable as Morrissey must have been when he lost the court case against Mike Joyce. It is however a wonderfully rueful song.

The single came in a lovely hand painted sleeve

Darren Hayman - I Know I Fucked Up

Most Bizarre Title Of The Year?

It will be a strange record that comes up with a more Bizarre title than "I Lost My Shoes On Acid".

The track is apparently by some very famous djs but the fact that I haven't been clubbing or bought a MixMag in years puts me at a disadvantage in that I don't even know who is a famous dj these days. All I know is that this track samples the Hugh Masekela track from 1980, "Don't Go Lose It Baby and has an absolutely infectious acid line. I can imagine this being huge on the dancefloor.

Enjoy!

Unknown Artist - I Lost My Shoes On Acid

Never Alone

Here's a classy piece of Detroit soul from the Holidays , released in 1967 on the Revilot label, the song is the flip side of the faster paced Loves Creeping Up On Me. I think that this is a better way to ease us into the working week.

The Holidays - Never Alone.

What's In Yir Box? N

Slim pickings this week, not a lot of N's I'm afraid .

First in the pile is Kate Nash's debut single Caroline's A Victim another of those singles that's in the box because of what's on the b-side. Birds is a rather simple song but one which always makes me smile. It brings back distant memories of what it was like when you first started to go out with some one, the awkwardness, trying to act cool but more than anything else trying not to fuck up. It also reminds me of Billy Bragg's version of Walk Away Renee another song which always makes me smile.

Next up is Temptation by New Order. The first New Order single I bought was Blue Monday which was also the first 12" single I bought but it's not a record I play very often; too many painful memories of it being the soundtrack to me getting a severe kicking at an under 16s disco,  but that's another story. I bought Temptation after Confusion. I reckoned that their back catalogue must be worth checking out on the strength of it and the previous single. It's still my second favourite New Order track after Bizarre Love Triangle and it's a timeless tune.  It sounds just as good while I'm typing this as it did when I first bought it from a stall in Wishaw Market when I was fourteen.

The third single in the box is from a Tory who couldn't really fly a plane. When I was ten/eleven I really got into Gary Numan and bought or more often or not got my parents to buy me the first couple of albums and singles as well as the Tubeway Army albums and singles re-released on the back of the success of Cars, for me the best thing that he has ever done. But by the time of She's Got Claws I had lost interest and moved on to pastures new.

It's kind of strange that hip-hop features so infrequently on this blog as I have quite a bit of it as during the late 80s I was quite taken by the genre.  Okay it may have been the more mainstream end, the likes of Eric B & Rakim, Public Enemy etc but I'm from west central Scotland not South Central L.A. The last single in the N's comes from a crew from Compton. I never really got the Gangsta Rap shit,  all that talk of popping caps in people's asses didn't do anything for me but I did love Express Yourself, which I think is the least profane and violent track that N.W.A. ever recorded. It also uses a sample of the Watts 103 Street Rhythm Band's song of the same name to great effect. It probably speaks volumes about me that I have this in my collection and not Fuck The Police.

So that's the N's for you.

Kate Nash - Caroline's A Victim
New Order - Temptation
Gary Numan - Cars
N.W.A. - Express Yourself

N.W.A. - Express Yourself

It's Friday . . . Let's Dance

Last night I had a vague notion of a tune I wanted to post in this series but couldn't actually remember the whole tune or the artist but what I was almost, positively, sure about was that it had been released on deconstruction,  possibly??

So I hauled all of the deconstruction 12" singles down the stairs, made a brew and settled in to find the track.  The hardships I put myself through trying to keep this series going!

The first thing I realised was that I had bought a lot more records on the label than I actually remember and then it came to my attention that some of them had not dated all that well but I suspect that at the time they weren't that good and were bought in a post clubbing come down haze when you think that everything you heard the previous evening was brilliant and had to be purchased. I'm not saying that they were all like that but some.

Love Thing by Evolution as an example.  Not a clue how it went until I put it on the turntable, quickly picking up the needle again, putting it down further through the track repeating the process again and then lifting it off, consigning it back to it's sleeve for posterity.

Other things fared better,  some, granted with the assistance of some very good remixers, Fire Island and Justin Robertson to name but two.

By the time I had played about half of the pile I had forgotten what I was looking for in the first place and after a particular 12" by the Grid, I was off on a search for a track on Junior Boy's Own but was it by Underworld or Lemon Interupt? Same thing I know but the name would determine where it was filed.

The track is by Lemon Interupt and is the AA side of Eclipse. It was released by Junior Boys Own in 1992 and was credited to Hernandez/Slim and Valesquez better know as Carl Hyde,  Rick Smith and Darren Emerson.

I bet Ctel knows which Grid tune sent me scurrying for this particular track.

Have a good weekend people.

Lemon Interupt - Big Mouth

You're Joking, Right?

No I'm not and you can blame a certain resident of Leeds for this post.

My first idea was to post this on the other blog but then I asked myself, should such a song be posted where, lets face it even less people than visit here go to?

No,  I said to myself I like it and I'm going to post it where at least thirty people can find it.

So here's to Paris and old Beaujolais wine.

Gary Moore - Parisienne Walkways

I saw Gary Moore back in 1983 at the Glasgow Apollo and I was blown away with the sounds he got out his guitar.

Prince Fatty Meets The Mutant Hi-Fi

Prince Fatty has been a sound engineer and producer since the mid nineties. Unfortunately I only came across him last year when I bought the Hollie Cook In Dub album which is the business.

His following production which pits him against the Mutant Hi-Fi (Nick Coplowe) is surf/ska/Spaghetti Western soundtrack album for a film that is yet to be made but would probably be Alex Cox than Quentin Tarantino. It is well worth checking out along with the rest of his back catalogue and the Hollie Cook albums.

I'm off to Manchester for a couple of days so no post tomorrow.

Prince Fatty vs The Mutant Hi-Fi - Wear The Black Hat (if The Black Hat Fits)

Le Thug - Swam

I cannot stop playing this track. Not sure what it is about it but I think it's brilliant. At the moment the only way to get your hands on it, don't think that is the correct term as it is criminally only available on download, is to buy the 4 pack of Barney's Beer produced for Song By Toad's Beer vs Records release for RSD. There is a 12" which contains a further 2 excellent songs by Le Thug along with a brace of tunes by Magic Eye, Plastic Animals and Zed Penguin available here which was released at the same time.

I can but hope that this gets a physical release sometime in the future.

Le Thug - Swam from Song, by Toad on Vimeo.

Thief In The Night

Thief In The Night is another one of those classic tracks that was lying about in the Fame vaults unreleased after it's recording in 1967. The song was then covered and released by Percy Sledge but I think that this version is better.

Ben & Spence's version finally saw the light of day on the four track The Stars Of Fame 7" released for RSD 2011.

We've had bloody snow up here this morning!

Ben & Spence - Thief In The Night

What's In Yir Box? M

Well we are half way through the alphabet and a bit over half way through the box. The letter M has a a respectable showing in the box and a couple of surprises as well.

First up is Madness with probably one of the best records about relationships that I know of. Like Up The Junction it is a kitchen sink drama in about three and a half minutes. I have vague memories of hearing this in my mum's red Chevette as we drove the 20 miles to my first primary school which I continued to attend for a year after we moved to Lanark and more vivid ones of playing this when I would continually fall out with the girl that I went out with for most of my late teens.

Next we have the Manhattan Love Suicides. I waited over twenty years for my wish for a female fronted Jesus And The Mary Chain circa Psychocandy and you know what,  they weren't half bad. The single in the box is the band's second release, the first being a 3 1/2" disc on Cloudberry Records. I recently found out that the main members of the band formed The Blanche Hudson Weekend on the demise of original group and have recently purchased the first two singles which I have yet to listen to.

I always found the Manic Street Preachers to be a little bit too earnest, not the kind of guys you could have a good laugh with, you don't see them smile much let alone laugh. Which is a bit funny coming from somebody who used to like Crass. But they did release some great singles, I know I will get pelters about this, but not albums, life is too short to listen to a Manics album all they way through more than once, especially The Holy Bible. Motorcycle Emptiness on the other hand I can listen to repeatedly.

Stella by Ida Maria is a good song, not sure that is great and even less sure that it deserves to be in the box but it's there and it's on nice blue vinyl. Oh and it is L's favourite lager.

I've had a wee thing for Imelda May Clabby ever since I saw her in King Tuts back in 2009. You know  that this girl knows her shit and it's not all about image. The single in the box isn't that good. Psycho, is an alright track but not the best thing on the album. But the b-side a cover of My Baby Left Me is the business.

The next single is also one where the standout track is the b-side,  which is not to say that the a-side isn't good but A Few Kind Words is one of those songs that once in your head refuses to leave. I think that Meursault deserve to be a household name and not just amongst the upper middle classes who know their white Burgundys. As with all things released on Song By Toad the record is lovely, it was part one of two singles released on clear vinyl.

I think that the next single should actually have been filed first.  M.I.A.'s Paper Planes definitely gets the prize for best use of a Clash sample. I was always going to love something that used one of my favourite Clash songs to great effect. This like Straight To Hell needs to be played very loud.

The first time I heard Roadrunner would have been off of the Great Rock And Roll Swindle when Lydon forgets the words and the whole thing is a bit of a disaster. The Modern Runners version would for sure have been heard first from one of Stiff's older brothers record collections during one of our many raids upon them. It is filed under M, as Roadrunner (Twice) is my favourite version and on the label it is assigned to the Modern Lovers, whereas, Roadrunner (Once) is Jonathan Richman and The Modern Lovers.

I was cleaning the house one Saturday morning back in 1997 when I heard this absolutely amazing track on Radio One, back in the day when Radio One could still surprise me. It was on the Jo Whiley show but I didn't catch who it was by. Lynn was driving home from Edinburgh at the same time and when she came in she asked me if I had been listening to Radio One as there had been this tune on it that she knew that I would have loved. I asked her if she had happened to get the name of it and she said it was by some band called Mogwai and it was called New Paths to somewhere. The following day we scoured Glasgow for this single, eventually finding a copy in John Smiths Bookshop in Byres Rd (alas no more, it's a fucking Starbucks).

The first band that I ever had a real love for were Motorhead and they were also the first band I saw live. I got rid of all of Motorhead collection in my early twenties and am not entirely sure why. As even as a teenager in the late 80s after embracing Acid House I would still argue with anybody who would listen that the Motorhead line up of Lemmy, Animal and Fast Eddie were the greatest rock band ever so I'm not quite sure why later I would get rid of all of the vinyl, I had every single, 12" and album up to Iron Fist. I suspect that money may have had something to do with it. About 5 years ago I decided that I would try and piece the collection back together again but wouldn't pay ridiculous amounts for things, at the moment I'm still looking for decent copies of the Iron Fist single and the Ace of Spades and No Sleep 'Til Hammersmith albums.

The last of the M's come from another Scottish band, and like the Mogwai single before,  it is one that I found through listening to the radio. Not fabulous Radio One this time but 6 Music, can't remember exactly when I heard Sister Sneaker Soul Sister but whenever it was I was I paid attention at the end to catch the name,  a post it-note was put on the fridge and it was purchased a few weeks later. I'm not getting parochial here but there are certain bands that you hear and you know exactly where they come from and there is something about My Latest Novel that when you hear them you know that they couldn't come from anywhere else but west central Scotland.

Fuck, that was longer than I intended it to be but this series is evolving by the week. At the beginning I was only going to write about the song that I was posting, so as if I were to post any of the others later then I would have something to say about them but over the last couple of weeks I have felt that the other tracks need some explanation as to why they are in the box, for some it is obvious but for others less so. So sorry if the ramblings above have bored you to death, you can go back and read the Sunday papers now.

Madness - My Girl
Manhattan Love Suicides - Keep It Coming ep
Manic Street Preachers - Motorcycle Emptiness
Ida Maria - Stella
Imelda May - Psycho (My Baby Left Me)
Meursault - William Henry Miller Part Two (A Few Kind Words)
M.I.A. - Paper Planes
The Modern Lovers - Roadrunner (Twice)
Mogwai - New Paths To Helicon
Motorhead - Motorhead
My Latest Novel - Sister Sneaker Soul Sister

The Modern Lovers - Roadrunner (Twice)

It's Friday . . . Let's Dance

When I started this series I initially posted anything that vaguely made you want to dance and celebrate the fact that the weekend had arrived. The first few weeks featured northern soul tracks but it sort of evolved into tracks that fitted in with my definition of dance music, ie the use of computers, drum machines and keyboards to make music to jig about to or attempt to.

Today's track sort of deviates from what has become the norm, in that it is dance music but it has been made by guitars then remixed into a more floor friendly form which was then tagged as "indie dance", a term I've always hated.

Soup Dragons were the epitome of Indie from 1985 when they were formed in Belshill, Lanarkshire. They released their music on very indie labels and their first album was called  "This Is Our Art, Useless, Boring, Impotent, Elitist and Very, Very Beautiful". Then they jumped upon the indie dance bandwagon, hitching a ride with the next big thing had some success, appeared on Top Of The Pops and were much maligned for it.

Here is an example from Discogs, in a passage about Loaded " The sample serves as a statement of intent not only for the song, but also the then-forthcoming album "Screamadelica", and essentially, the entire Ecstasy era. The success of the resulting rock/electronic hybrid went to number 16 in the UK charts and set the template not only for Primal Scream's future career but for the uncountable number of indie bands from that moment on (The Farm and The Soup Dragons were two early and obvious adopters of this new approach)" You can almost here the contempt of the writer when mentioning The Farm and Soup Dragons or am I reading to much into it but they were derided as band wagon jumpers and scensters.

Only they didn't and they weren't. Today's track was doing the rounds at the end of 1989 at least 6 months before Loaded hit the streets.

Have a good weekend people

Soup Dragons - Mother Universe (Love dub)

The Twilite Kid

When Greg Dulli disbanded the Afghan Whigs he already had another project on the go The Twilight Singers. In 2000 the demos for the band's first album were leaked and so Dulli decided to rework the songs with dance remixers from Hull , Fila Brazilia, a bold move for a man who's work was firmly placed within the rock genre.

The resulting album "Twilight As Played By The Twilight Singers" is not without it's merits but as a whole it lacks the punch of subsequent releases, the vocals are there, as are the dark lyrics but the music isn't quite there, I think that this might have something to do with use of Fila Brazilia but can't be sure as I don't own a copy of the original demos.

Here is one of the highlights off the album

The Twilight Singers - The Twilite Kid

Sorrow

Sonny J has featured here before but both previous tracks were rather upbeat affairs, whereas this is a bit melancholic. I am not sure who the vocal is by as I seem to have misplaced the CD Disastro where the track comes from, so have a guess or if you find a copy of the cd lying about check the sleeve notes as I'm sure the singer in question must be name checked.

I wonder how the Fall gig in Glasgow went last night?

Sonny J - Sorrow

It Was A Very Good Day

L, I and the boys spent the bank holiday in the West End of  Glasgow and a good day was had by all.

The main reason for the trip into the town was to see the Gareth (of How Does That One Go Again fame) curated exhibition on Scottish football, "More Than Just A Game" which if you are ever in Glasgow or close enough to visit you really should go and see. When I saw the picture of Broomfield and the famous Pavilion I got more than a little watery eyed. And did you know that The Airdrie Schools cup is the oldest competition of it's kind? Well, I did because my dad has told me so on more than one occasion, his team's winning of the trophy along with the 1960 European Cup final and his trip to Wembley in 1967 being his favourite three stories the last two being present in celluloid at the exhibition and the actual trophy of the first behind one of the cases. Although I cannot comprehend being in a crowd of 127 000 people watching the football, we are lucky to get 900 at the games these day and it will be less next season apart from on two occasions, I suppose.

When we eventually left Kelvingrove it was over the avenue to the skate park where as luck would have it just up a wee bit The View were playing on the top of a bus promoting the T in The Park festival. The boys from Dundee were maybe not "on fire" but they were very good and a pleasant surprise

After the band finished and the kids played for a while in the park it was up to Byres Rd for something to eat and then off to Oxfam music for a very quick root about where I managed to get a triple vinyl 12" pack of Aretha Franklin and C&C Music Factory's "A Deeper Love" at a very reasonable price which will appear here soon. By this time it was time to head home.

A most agreeable way to spend a Bank Holiday, me thinks.

The View - Grace

The Girl That Radiates That Charm

Here is a cracker of a tune to soundtrack your bank holiday and for those further afield than the UK, to banish away the Monday blues.

This single was included in last year's RSD released Fame Box set. Jimmy Ray Hunter was the second person to sign to the label and by coincidence the first ever artist on the label, Arthur Alexander also cut a version "The Girl That Radiates That Charm"

Jimmy Ray Hunter and the Del Rays - The Girl That Radiates That Charm

What's In Yir Box? L

A few more singles in this section than there were in last weeks.

First up is probably the best pop song of the 80s. Hyperbole? I don't think so, not many songs from that period do for me what There She Goes does, I can't think of one criticism of this track apart from that, well nothing at all really, it is that good.

Next up is the Libertines with Time For Heroes, the closest thing to the Clash that 2002 could offer and with a line like "there's few more distressing sights than an Englishman in a baseball cap" one of the best lyrics ever.

A couple of singles by Little Willie John, still not sure whether he should be here or under J. A bit of a sad story, the life of Willie John, dead by the age of thirty but with at least two brilliant singles left for posterity.

Marie McKee is one of my favourite vocalists, I absolutely love her voice and the first Lone Justice lp spent a lot of time on my turntable in 1985 along with Psychocandy. I listened to Ways To Be Wicked yesterday for the first time in ages and I was slightly disappointed it seemed a little tamer than I remembered but still a good single.

Finally we have Lucky Soul, a really good "mod" band who have  quite a few very good singles and a couple of albums to there name but haven't produced anything for the past couple of years. Not sure if they are still a band or not. The single in the box is there debut a great pop soul record.

The La's - There She Goes
The Libertines - Time For Heroes
Little Willie John - Fever
Little Willie John - I'm Shakin'
Lone Justice - Ways To Be Wicked

Lucky Soul - Lips Are Unhappy

It's Friday . . . Let's Dance

Apparently this is my 1500 post, according to Blogger and how apt that such a momentous occasion should fall on the day of the series that refuses to give up the ghost and vacate the building.

I was thinking that to mark such a milestone I should post my favourite dance tune in the world ever, however I have posted Rez once or twice before. So instead, here is something quite recent  from The xx, remixed by the Balearic remixer of choice,  John Talabot once again. Fans of the Streets may recognise the sample. This was another record by The xx which was pressed in a ridiculously small run off, although double the previous Talabot remix and not only available from Japan.

If this tune makes you feel a bit blissed out check out Duke Dumont's remix of Falling by Haim, future summer fave, if we ever get a fucking summer up here. It reminds me of an old tune called Energy Rush by Suburban Delay for some reason.

I was feeling quite summery this week, after two days in Luton, the sun being out making it bearable but on the decent into Glasgow last night it was back to cold, wet and windy which it still is today.

Have a good weekend people.

And yes, we have had this picture before.

The xx - Chained (John Talabot & Pional Blinded remix)

Give Me A Muthafuckin' Breakbeat

SA over at the Bagging Area had a post at the weekend about The Face magazine that got me searching the internet for a copy from late 1988 that I missed out being in by about an hour, see here.

Anyway, after a bit of investigation, it turned out that the edition was November 1988. This was also the edition with an article about Neneh Cherry at that time a little known artist. The article stated something like " Buffalo Stance is the best record you will hear this year" and one thing The Face was good at, for me anyhow was that their music reviews tended to be spot on. And so it was with Buffalo Stance, it might not have been the best record of that year but it was up there and I flogged it to death in it's original and remix form.

Here is the remix which doesn't tend to get much of an airing.

Neneh Cherry - Buffalo Stance (Give Me A Muthafuckin' Breakbeat)

Rain

A few weeks ago I finally got my hands on an original copy of one of my favourite northern singles, Lies by Gwen Owens for a more reasonable price than I expected and I suspect that the vinyl may not be an original but a copy but I am not complaining as I would have happily paid double for it then. But now after getting it playing it and discovering what was on the flip I am more than happy.

Rain is a totally different song to that on the other side in that instead of an up beat dancer we have a ballad but what is the same is that marvellous voice of Miss Owens, utterly wonderful stuff.

Gwen Owens - Rain

What's In Yir Box? K

Another letter with not a lot of presence in the box. The two artists who do appear could have had ten singles in the box including split singles between them but for me these are the two best singles by the bands.

Anybody who doesn't know who the Kills are I salute you as you obviously don't read any style. gossip mags. When I first saw the Kills at the Wah Wah Hut not that many people just like the White Stripes. My views on the Kills can be found elsewhere on this blog but in summary, great first album, alright second attempt, third album big yawn, fourth, nearly as good as the first. The single in the box comes from the fourth album and was featured on ATKT at the beginning of last year or end of 2011.

The Kills - Baby Says

Kid Canaveral unlike the Kills don't have any members stepping out with famous people or if they do I don't know about it. The band were formed in St Andrews, Fife in 2003 and have released two albums and six singles. The one in the box is the first one but it could have been any of them really but it is Max's favourite which ensured that it pipped the others to the place in the box. Like the following three singles and first album it was released on the band's own straight to video records label, since then they have released their subsequent two split singles and second album on Fence Records.

Kid Canaveral - Smash Hits

It's Friday . . . Let's Dance

I never really got into The Shamen, to be honest that Mr C really got on my nerves and also all that cod philosophy bollocks did my head in as well. But I did quite like Progen when I first heard it, enough to buy it anyway.

It's not a track that I play all that often, well ever really but I thought that it could feature here as at the time it went down quite well in the clubs and was huge when re-released the following year re-titled Move Any Mountain. It would be a much better track with the crap rap taken out.

Have a good weekend people.

I will be going to the Excelsior stadium in the hope of seeing Airdrie achieve their first home win of the year at the last home game of the season, I fear that it is a lost cause! Most likely they will be two up with five minutes to go and then get skelped when Livingston score three in the last couple of minutes.

The Shamen - Progen (Land Of Oz mix)

Mosquito

I wish that the Caulfield Sisters had released more than an ep and a split single. I was hooked from the first time I heard them on KEXP covering Some Candy Talking with an accordian, it really is much better than that sounds.

This track is one of five from their debut ep which was available through American Laundromat Records on cd and is on iTunes if you like what you hear.

The Caulfield Sisters - Mosquito

Big Muff

I have loved this track for years and have played it hunners of times but it wasn't until  last Sunday that I realised that it was co-written by Lee Perry. Makes perfect sense now!

As they say, "every day's a school day".

John Martyn - Big Muff

RIP Richie Havens

Go easy Richie

Here is a brilliant vocal from the man.

The Groove Armada feat Richie Havens - The Hands Of Time

I'm Not The Man I Used To Be

Forty Fucking Four!, Jesus!

I think I'm past the revitalizing cream stage.

Fine Young Cannibals - I'm Not The Man I Used To Be (Solo Piano Intro/12" Remix)

The Girl Across The Street

Frequently within the realm of northern soul some of the best known and best loved tracks have been recorded by people whom nothing much is known about apart from where and when they recorded the track.

Moses Smith is one of those artists, The Girl Across The Street is a superlative song, a great pounding beat and those yearning vocals but apart from the fact he recorded this track in Philadelphia in 1967 and that he released another cracker of a single for Cotillion the Atlantic offshoot (which I just so happened to pick up a splendid 10 single boxset at Monorail on Saturday), nothing else is known of the man which I find sad as he has absolutely no idea of the joy that thousands of people have either listening to or dancing to this classic which he created.

Moses Smith - The Girl Across The Street.

What's In Yir Box? J

Sadly for George there is a Jam single in this group but I had to keep it to a one record to make more room for singles by another band and even when it came to them there was quite a debate as to how many I could reasonably keep in the box. The first nine singles and a further three or four could all have justified a place but in the end I decided upon five Jesus and Mary Chain singles, although two are double packs.

The Js are actually kind of standard indie fare,  very of my age group with the exception of the Jumbonics funky as fuck version of Last Nite. I have posted this track before but it was in the very early days of the blog and think that I can justify another airing.


Chuck Jackson - Any Day Now
The Jags - Back Of My Hand
The Jam - When You're Young
Jasmine Minks - What's Happening
The Jesus And Mary Chain - Upside Down
The Jesus And Mary Chain - Never Understand
The Jesus And Mary Chain - You Trip Me Up
The Jesus And Mary Chain - Just Like Honey (dble)
The Jesus And Mary Chain - Some Candy Talking (dble)
Johnny Boy - You Are The Generation That Bought More Shoes And You Get What You Deserve
Joy Division - Love Will Tear Us Apart
The Jumbonics - Last Nite

The Jumbonics - Last Nite

It's Friday . . . Let's Dance

What is there to say about this record?

It's Primal Scream remixed by Weatherall that's all you need to know.

I seem to remember waiting for ever for this to come out. When I finally got it home and put on side A I thought, that's good, that's very good. Wonder what side A is like?

Turned it over and fuck me did it not just blow me away.

Have a good weekend people.

I'm up early and into Glasgow to queue for a couple of hours outside Monorail, my favourite record shop and then hopefully get everything on my list. Then it's up to Forbidden Planet with Max and then to Edinburgh with L for an early birthday meal and overnight.

Primal Scream - Come Together (Weatherall)

No More

Right,  that's it, enough,  lets all move on.

I think that the best thing we can do is draw a line and say chapter closed.

Those of us who believe that we are stronger as an inclusive society who help each other and care what happens to others need to organise, protest and let all of them know, including not so red Ed that things have to change.

Fine Young Cannibals - Blue

The Redskins - The Power Is Yours (MGM mix)

Get Out Of The Office And Into The Springtime

If we only could.

This is one of these songs that when I play, I think to myself this is brilliant, why do I not play this more often, put it back in the box and then forget about it again for months on end. Not quite sure why.

Belle and Sebastian - Legal Man

I'm Moving On

Thought that I would post this as I see that it is another soul track plundered by advertising.

I'm Moving On was written and originally recorded by Hank Snow and has been covered by dozens of folk, from Ray Charles to Roseanne Cash. I think that the Nash version from 1963 version is the best.

Johnny Nash - I'm Moving On

What's In Yir Box? I

"I think you should remember whose side you are on."

Inspiral Carpets feat Mark E Smith - I Want You

It's Friday . . . Let's Dance

It's been a bit of a week. I am absolutely sick to the back teeth of hearing about the "saviour of the nation". According to some baroness or other on PM last night there wouldn't have been mobile phones or the internet without her, for fuck sake! And if I have to hear Charles Moore going on about left wing bias at the BBC much more I may not be responsible for my actions. What a fucking fud. I know that is not the most erudite of descriptions but it doesn't make it any less apt.

Anyway back to the music and here is one of the best things that the President of Malawi's least favourite pop star has ever done.

Have a good weekend people.

I will be watching Airdrie getting humped by Partick Thistle and then going to see Father Sculptor in Stereo, a gig that if you are anywhere near Glasgow, you should try and get along to.

Madonna - Hung Up (SDP extended vocal)

A Good Soundtrack Is Not Always Necessary, But It Helps.

Max has taken a shine to the works of John Hughes recently . The other week there we watched Uncle Buck which I found a little bit saccharine but the boy thoroughly enjoyed. To be honest until I started watching it again I had forgotten that it was one of Hughes' films.

Max had already purloined my copies of Some Kind Of Wonderful and Pretty In Pink after watching Ferris Bueller's Day Off. What most of the John Hughes films had was great soundtracks from artists such as The Smiths, Otis Redding, The Jesus And Mary Chain etc.

As Max liked these films so much I decided to introduce him to the ultimate teen film, Gregory's Girl. I knew that he would enjoy it, as he already had Restless Natives which is put on on a regular basis. So we sat one night and sniggered through the whole film and while watching it, it suddenly struck me the total lack of a soundtrack, there was some incidental music but nothing more. This got me thinking as to what music from 1980/81 I would include in the film and after much consideration decided that the film didn't actually need a soundtrack as it had taken me thirty years to realise that one was missing so it couldn't be that important.

I then thought about the John Hughes films and what they would be like without their soundtracks and decided unlike Gregory's Girl I don't think that many of his would have been as successful without the music.

Here is one of my favourite tracks from my favourite Hughes film, Some Kind Of Wonderful and a couple of  classic scenes from Gregory's Girl

Stephen Duffy - She Loves Me

Protest Song, Never!

I've been thinking quite a bit about my formative years during the 80s over the past couple of days, like a lot of people I expect. Concentrating on the music that I was listening,  to not all of the music but the stuff with a message, the protest music.

You can relax this isn't going to be an argument that the protest music in the 80s was better than anything that has come long since. No point debating that, it is a given.

I was thinking of all the Billy Bragg, Red Wedge affiliated groups such as the Style Council, Communards etc and also the raging, angry stuff by the likes of Crass, Conflict and Chumbawamba. Most of the music was preaching to the converted I think, I'm not sure too many folk who had been dressing like fannies and listening to the likes of Duran Duran took to heart the lyrics of To Have And To Have Not or Pills and Soap.

A tune by the biggest pop group of  1984 keeps popping into my head when I remember those days when it seemed that every weekend I was marching for something but mostly for an end to the nuclear arms race and the presence on British soil of American Cruise Missiles and the looming deployment of the Trident Submarine, first strike weapon.

The cover version of Born To Run won't seem like a protest song to most but to I have always felt that it fitted right in with the rest of the tunes I would put on my 80s protest compilation tape. Part of the reason must be that the first time I heard it was on the bus going to Barrow In Furness for an anti-Trident demo. Also the snatch of dialogue at the start suggests that the guy getting the bollocking is raging against something. But when you listen to the song their is a definite feeling desperation about it, not the getting your end away suggestion of the original but more a we need to get the fuck out of here as it's shit, which is exactly how I felt in 1984.

I'm probably talking a load of bollocks but I've always felt that there was more to the cover version than a camp tongue in cheek cover of Springsteen. Anyway,  it will be on my 80s rally compilation just after Bob Marley's Redemption Song, another I heard first on that demo in Barrow.

FGTH - Born To Run

Well That Will Be That Then

You may think this post crass, inappropriate or in complete bad taste but I would be a liar if I didn't acknowledge the death of one of  few people I would use the word hate for. I am not exactly rejoicing but I will not be shedding a tear. Like many I suppose it will be as if a shadow has now been lifted.

I would rather she had not come to power and decimated the north of Britain and built up the north/south divide into what it is today. And if you are thinking of shedding a tear or after hearing the warm words on the radio or television think "she wasn't all that bad" just take a minute and think the reason why you cannot get a decent council house and are at the mercy of private landlords is that she sold off the housing stock to bribe people to vote for her but didn't bother to build anything like the amount sold off.  We no longer have any industry to speak of because of the policies that she implemented. It is acceptable for bankers to earn huge bonuses and for others to be dependent upon benefits even though working more than forty hours a week because of her belief in the market. And if you look around and don't see much of a society it is because she believed that there was no such thing and did all that she could do to dismantle communities. If that is not enough for you, remember her friendship with a certain General Pinochet.

One of my favourite quotes which kind of sums her up is  “No-one would remember the Good Samaritan if he'd only had good intentions; he had money as well."

Hefner - The Day That Thatcher Dies

Ain't That Love

Here is a rather good cover of a Ray Charles song by Mitty Collier who is probably better known for her version of My Babe.

Mitty Collier - Ain't That Love

What's In Yir Box? H

Slim pickings this week.

I looked through the other boxes and there are quite a few H's including Richard Hawley, more than a few Housmartins singles and curiously enough an Arab Starp remix of David Holmes which back in the day I had to scour the country to find a copy of but none of these was deemed good enough for entry into this box.

So, instead the choice is between Happy Mondays Wrote For Luck and Who Can Say by Horrors. However I may have to take the Happy Mondays single out of the box as the 12" along with The Rave On ep is in the 12" box and there is no room for duplication.

Horrors - Who Can Say

Drew's World

There is a parallel universe somewhere, where a thinner and less "gone to the dogs" version of myself listens to one of those oldies radio stations that only play the highest ranking singles from the past. The alternative version of myself loves this station because in that reality things such as Keep On Keeping On, Stupid Thing, Forest Fire and There She Goes all topped the charts with whole load more that I could list that failed to entertain or inspire the great unwashed in ours.

In that other place in Apil 2004 this record came out of nowhere soared up the charts making it to the top in a fortnight and resided there for twenty four weeks until something equally deserving knocked it off.

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

It's Friday . . . Let's Dance

Just back from the capital and guess what, the trams still aren't running. With all the upheaval at the bottom of Lothian Rd and the end of Princess Street, I am so glad that I no longer have to do that commute. If I ever get all dewy eyed about the city with the castle I just remember the problems trying to get out of it and one on a Friday afternoon, the rage, frustration and the weekly near nervous breakdown. Thank fuck all that shit is well in the past.

Not the cheapest of city's but we had a very good couple of days, must have walked for miles.

You have to salute the antiquated Scottish licensing laws. On Wednesday we were walking up the Grassmarket, L fancied a drink, me a coffee and the kids something full of sugar to keep them hyper. As it was a lovely day we decided to by all European, well according to old fish face we all are anyway, so we sat outside and I went in for the drinks. I ordered beer, two J2Os and a coffee after opening the bottles and pouring the beer the barman said, " are any of these for children?"

"the J2O's" I replied.

"not unless they are eating" was his smart arsed retort"

to which I pointed out that unless the next order was exactly the same as mine he had needlessly poured three drinks and bid my farewell.

See Scotland, See Cafe Culture, only if you can find a bona fide cafe.

Anyway,  today's track comes courtesy of Richard D James and is probably his most danceable, dance track.

Quoth comes from the Polygon Window albun, Surfing the Sine Waves. the 12" single was released in 1993 on lovely clear vinyl.

It i said that the sounds that make up the track are all from recordings that James made on the London Underground and if you concentrate on the track it does sound vaguely like steel clattering along and echoing in a tunnel.

Have a good weekend people.

Polygon Window - Quoth

A Short Break

I'm off to the capital with L and the weans for a couple of days of quality huffs and family fights in a different location.

It's been a couple of years since I've been in the city center so I'm looking forward to riding in a straight line on the wonderful new tram system which should surely be completed by now.

Ultramagnetic Mc's - Traveling At The Speed of Thought (remix)

Sugar Man

I've been listening to quite a bit of Kris Kristofferson over the past few days. I needed something a bit more mellow than the weegie kraut/space rock of the Cosmic Dead which hadn't left the turntable for the week after it arrived. Seriously, worth a listen.

I wonder if Kristofferson has ever contemplated writing about sunny days and green lights all the time?

Kris Kristofferson - Sugar Man

Sweetheart Things

During the 60s and 70s Ruby Winters recorded a few belters of singles which have been taken on board by the rare soul fraternity. Sweetheart Things isn't one that has ever gained much popularity as far as I'm aware, this may be due to the fact that there are loads of copies out there. You can pick up a vg + copy for around a fiver. It's certainly not due to that quality of the song, this is great slice of soul. Recorded at Muscle Shoals and released in the Diamond label in 1969.

Ruby Winters - Sweetheart Things

What's In Yir Box? G

To be honest with you the Gs aren't really that interesting on first look but all of them blew me away at one time or another and I still get goosepimples every time I play the Marvin Gaye single which is quite, quite beautiful.

It is quite interesting that every single has already featured on the blog, so it's difficult to pick one to post but I haven't played the Guillemots for quite a while. It is one of those singles that if you didn't know the subject matter you would think was just another upbeat pop song.

Marvin Gaye - His Eye Is On The Sparrow
Glasvegas- Daddy's Gone/Flowers And Football Tops
Glasvegas - It's My Own Cheating Heart That Makes Me Want To Cry
The Go Team - Ladyflash
Goldfrapp - A&E
Goodbye Mr McKenzie - The Rattler
Guillemots - Trains To Brazil

Guillemots - Trains To Brazil

The Easter Parade

I sometimes worry that my boys aren't getting the spiritual guidance that they should from me, this especially comes to the fore at the times of the Christian holidays. Max will ask me why Jesus had to die on a cross, or why Moses had to build an Ark and other things and I give him so half arsed attempt to explain something that I firstly don't believe in and secondly I don't know that well and I'm afraid that Max is wise to this and I fear that it won't be long before his brother latches on to the fact that their dad is a bit sceptical when it comes to faith.

There was a prime example of this yesterday morning when both of them jumped up and down on the bed clutching an chocolate egg in both hands and asking if they could open them. I tried to explain the significance of the egg, that it symbolised the rock in front of Jesus's tomb and shouldn't therefore be eaten 'til Easter Sunday to which Max,  quick as a flash said to me "but you don't believe all that anyway, so where is the problem?" To which I had no answer.

My problem with Christianity stems back to when we moved to Lanark. I was in Primary 7 and had moved from a rather forward looking progressive school which taught little bits about lots of religions but didn't force Protestantism down our throats, the brand of Christianity that I am supposed to follow, which is hard to believe being in Chapelhall which was just another bigoted village in the central belt of Scotland.

As I said, I moved to Lanark which was back in the dark ages,  where every morning in class started with the recital of the Lord's Prayer and some poor bugger having to rhyme off the books of the bible. Twice I was picked to stand up and spout this indoctrination, the only problem being I did not know the books of the bible and when I told the teacher this, well I could have told her my name was Damien and she would have looked more kindly at me. I was given a week to learn them, which I had no intention of doing, not because I was being a rebel but because after discussing it with my mother, at this time an assistant head teacher in my old school, we came to the conclusion that it added nothing to my education.

The fateful day came when I was told to stand out on the floor and do the necessary, which I said that I could not do and told her my reason. I was then marched off to the head teacher's office. The head teacher was a particularly slimy and sadistic man who took great pleasure in handing out my punishment,  four of the belt. The belt or Lochgelly was a particularly nasty invention, a strip of leather about an inch thick and a foot long which split into two tongues at the end, it was designed to hurt but not mark, lovely.  I would like to say that I didn't cry but I did, it was fucking sore. But my stance did benefit others, as the very next day my mother went to see the head teacher and amongst other things explained to him just what non-denominational meant.

Nobody was ever belted for not knowing the books of the bible again.

But I still have this nagging doubt about religion. I mean I am not arrogant enough to think that I know everything and when I look at the folks going to their churches I wonder if maybe I'm selling my boys a pup. I have never said to them that I don't think that God exists and that Jesus "is just some Spanish boy's name" but Max isn't stupid, so maybe in future I should be a bit more enthusiastic when discussing other points of view with them.

I am trying to bring my boys up correctly as I see it. With a sense of what's right and wrong and that no matter how much you disagree with some-one they are entitled to hold their opinion. But more than that I am trying to instill the idea of fairness and equality.

And now I get round to the point of the post.

When I think back to to that good Christian teacher and her ways. Also that evil woman who sent 1000 people to their deaths just so she could get re-elected and her spawn who can tax a woman for her dead son's bedroom, all of whom would think of themselves as good Christians I think that I might just take my chance with auld nick.

Here endeth the lesson

The Faith Brothers - The Easter Parade

It's Friday . . . Let's Dance

This time last year we were basking in sunshine with southern European type temperatures not freezing our gonads off and wrapped up as for a Antarctic expedition when only going 100 yards to get a bag of ice, ironically!

Here to warm the cockles of your heart and transport you back to earlier times and sunny climes, Mr H will probably have a tear in his eye, is one of my favourite pieces of  balearica, an Italian reinterpretation of Manuel Gottshings E2:E4.

I think that somebody may have posted this not so long ago but it should be heard quite often in my book.

Have a good Easter weekend people.

Sueno Latino - Sueno Latino

You'd Rather Run

I absolutely love this song. A couple of glaring influences here,  Dylan but even more blatantly Leonard Cohen. Doesn't make it any less a song, there is a certain sadness in  Jamie Seerman's voice that I really find quite comforting.


Jaymay - You'd Rather Run

Nothing To Do On 13th April?

 

So there I am walking back with Max, Stiff and William from the stadium to the cars, all dejected at seeing Airdrie getting gubbed once again on possible the coldest day ever.  Will William see a home victory this season? I think not, but anyway back to the story. So as we reach the traffic lights I see a familiar face walking at speed, JC, the Vinyl Villain, of course a dedicated Raith Rovers fan who has just witnessed his team beat Airdrie for the fourth time this season.

I didn't have much of a chance to speak to JC as he was in a hurry to get the train back to the city but I did promise to advertise this night that he is promoting. And as both of us were in attendance the night of Father Sculptor's first outing at King Tut's how could I not.

So if you are in the Glasgow area a fortnight on Saturday, you could do worse than come along to Stereo and see this up and coming band.

Tickets can be purchased from  http://www.wegottickets.com/event/213547

See you there. 

Father Sculptor - Sault

This Old Routine

The Lion's Roar, the second album from the Swedish Soderberg Sisters was kind of ignored in this house when it came out due to the almost constant playing of One Day I'm Going To Soar and then Coexist. Now that I have gotten round to really listening to it, I find that it would probably have turned up in my top ten albums of the year. beautifully crafted songs with really gorgeous vocals.

This Old Routine has particularly stuck with me and I have had it going through my head now for over a week.

First Aid Kit - This Old Routine

Improper Trax

I'm not sure if I should be posting this, as the people behind the illegal edit that this is an edit of have threatened violence to anybody who sells or plays the record, so I suppose posting it for free will get me a kicking as well.

The San Soda edit, the one that this is an edit of, is a remix of an early house track, It's You by E.S.P. from 1986. Are you still with me? The edit posted titled The Heat sounds pretty good to me even if it is a bootleg. When I bought it I thought it was a legit record and as the San Soda edit was produced in a ridicoulous run of 150 and the only copy on Discogs going for nearly 500 quid, I'm not surprised it has been bootlegged.

Improper Trax - The Heat