Vinyl #28 - The Smiths

"Ask" (7" single)



One of a string of brilliant singles by The Smiths, "Ask" was released in 1986 - and despite being 32 years old for goodness sake, it still stacks up pretty well. Most great singles don't clock in over three minutes and this was no exception.

Johnny Marr's trademark guitars are there, multi-tracked to provide a wall of sound and Morrissey comes up with his usual lyrical tomfoolery. All in all, it could only be The Smiths.

At the time I bought all their albums and singles, often the latter didn't appear on any original album ("Ask" doesn't). Mrs P and I also saw them live at Portsmouth Guildhall in 1985, and they were certainly a great live act too. Marr is one of the all-time great guitarists in my opinion. Support that night came from an emerging Mancunian band called James...

As ever with The Smiths' releases the cover was also a work of art. This time featuring Yootha Joyce of 'George & Mildred' fame.

Here's the music:

https://youtu.be/zoo9Vu1a9bU

Vinyl #27 - The Undertones

"Jimmy Jimmy" / "Mars Bars" (7" single - green vinyl)



Always had a soft spot for The Undertones and after the initial excitement of their debut "Teenage Kicks" they continued to produce great guitar-driven pop-rock songs combining hummable hooks and melodies, with fun - some might say whimsical - lyrics about family life, friends and in this case chocolate bars.

Both sides of this single steam along and are short and very sweet, the A-side "Jimmy Jimmy" (2 mins 30 secs) got the airplay and lead them to another appearance on Top of the Pops. The B-side "Mars Bars" (2 mins 10 secs) is just as good in my view. To make my purchase even better it came in lurid green vinyl and a see-through plastic sleeve featuring an photo of a young Feargal Sharkey with a school trophy. 

Being a detail man it's worth noting that both songs were written by three different members of the band (as were all of their songs I think) the writing not involving vocalist Feargal Sharkey, who's distinctive voice made The Undertones easily recognisable. Second bit of detail is that the producer Roger Bechirian also worked extensively with Elvis Costello & The Attractions around this time, helping produce some of his famed early work.

Here's the music:

https://youtu.be/NiK-eGbwCj0

https://youtu.be/C5elUkRT1Fc

Vinyl #26 - Stiff Little Fingers

"Gotta Gettaway" (7" single)




Another brilliant single from Ulster's Stiff Little Fingers and another great release from the Rough Trade label.

If memory serves me correctly this was their first single following their debut album "Inflammable Material", so all us SLF fans eagerly awaited this new material. They kept the winning formula of Jake Burn's rasping vocals, power chords and catchy hooks. 

What made SLF stand apart was their lyrics - telling stories from an Ulster that was in an ongoing state of civil unrest. But these stories weren't a distorted view from one side of the religious divide, they told the human story, how it felt to be a helpless teenager with civil war literally outside your door.

It made for powerful music, and one that I think stands the test of time.

Here's the music:

https://youtu.be/_uDLjxyZGI0

Vinyl #25 - The Skids

"Sweet Suburbia" (7" single)

Having bought their debut EP on the Dunfermline-based independent No Bad Records label in 1977 (more of that in a future post), this was The Skids first release for the major label they had just signed - Virgin Records. Released September 1978.

As an early purchaser I managed to get it on rather fetching white vinyl; it was catchy, well produced and showcased The Skids knack for great lyrics (courtesy of lead singer Richard Jobson) and superb guitar playing (by the late Stuart Adamson who found more popularity with his post-Skids band Big Country).

I saw the band live in September 1978 supporting The Stranglers at Portsmouth Locarno and they could certainly cut it live as well.

As was often the case in those days, the B-side "Open Sound" is also worth a listen.

Here's the music:

https://youtu.be/CFT8cnQmiNA

https://youtu.be/6RoE8CtsPpM

Vinyl #24 - Teenage Fanclub

"Long Shot" (7" single)



World Cup theme this time.

Teenage Fanclub are one of my two favourite bands, and this one-off single was released at the height of their most creative period. Signed to the highly influential Creation Records (home to Oasis, Primal Scream, The Jesus and Mary Chain and numerous other influential bands), in their usual non-commercial way TFC decided to write an instrumental song for BBC Radio 5's 1998 World Cup programmes (France hosted in '98).

In the end I don't think the BBC took up their kind offer. So they released it as a limited edition, pressing only 3,000 copies on 7" vinyl. And I've got one. Basically I buy anything that the Fannies release as they've never released anything that's anything other than exceptional. 

Having said that, I rarely play this although it's a catchy tune and to these ears it's easily recognisable as being them  Anyway if nothing else at least it's topical...

Here's the song:

https://youtu.be/NWIN5DdUedQ

Vinyl #23 - Bob Marley & The Wailers

"Redemption Song" (7" single)



Not really too much to say about this other than I love this song as much now as I did when I bought it in October 1980.

And that was a mere seven months before Marley died in May 1981 - aged 36. Not a hint of reggae in this beautiful acoustic ballad, although the B-side is the full Wailers treatment of the song. It's good but not a patch on the solo version on the A-side.

Heartfelt lyrics that are as relevant now as they were then. Unfortunately.



Here's the music: https://youtu.be/OFGgbT_VasI

Vinyl #22 - The Police

"Message in a Bottle" (7" single- green vinyl)

Always had a soft spot for The Police and this single was their big breakthrough. Although Sting dominates, it was Andy Summers who came up with the memorable guitar riff, and Stewart Copeland's drumming is top drawer, as ever.

Little did I know when I bought this (coloured vinyl was all the rage then) that I would move to the Leatherhead area years later, and this is exactly where The Police recorded it (and their first two albums). To be precise it was at Surrey Sound Studios in Kingston Road. It's no longer a recording studio, but every time I drive past the building I smile at the thought of such classic and legendary music being made there. 

In little Leatherhead. Who'd have thought it?

Here's the music which of course you know already:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbXWrmQW-OE


 

Vinyl #21 - The Stranglers

"Sverige (Jag ar insnoad pa ostfronten)" (7" single)

I always loved The Stranglers - the first band I saw live. I loved them so much that in the first few years of their existence I bought everything they released - including a few imports.

Their initial output was phenomenal - first album ("Rattus Norvegicus") released in April 1977; then in September 1977 a mere five - yes five - months later a second album ("No More Heroes") and then in May 1978 a third album ("Black and White"). Plus assorted non-album singles and b-sides.

And it's from that brilliant third album that this single was taken - with a catch. It was only released in Sweden and was sung in Swedish. The English-language version was only ever an album track ("Sweden - All Quiet On The Eastern Front"). It contains a fantastic and typically Stranglerish keyboard and guitar motif (at 2.01 mins on link below)

But being the Stranglers freak I bought it - which was only possible via mail order. The NME used to have pages of adverts to order records by post, but I must have been sooo excited when this plopped on the map. 

I knew the song was about how grey and boring Sweden was (is?) - based on singer/guitarist Hugh Cornwell's time there doing post-graduate research. And it was so typically contrary for them to record a version in Swedish and release it there. For that reason alone I prefer this version even though I can't understand it. I've no idea how it did in the charts. Not well I suspect!



Here's the music:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLzGMs7vgZc

Vinyl #20 - The Ruts

"West One (Shine On Me)" (7" single)

I'd  become aware of The Ruts via the John Peel radio show, in particular their excellent debut single "In A Rut" and they subsequently had a top 10 hit with "Babylon's Burning" (and appearances on Top Of The Pops etc).

But this was the only single of theirs that I ever bought and I think it was the best thing they did - showing how far they had developed since their debut single only a couple of years before, and brilliantly showing off their rock, reggae and dub influences. 

It was also released only a month or so after the death of lead singer Malcolm Owen which obviously put a halt to their career (although the remaining members eventually continued as Ruts DC and still tour and record today)

Here's the music: https://youtu.be/-s8k0GtLZ4o

Vinyl #18 - Buzzcocks

"Love You More" / "Noise Annoys" (7" single)

I remember exactly where I was when this was released. It was the summer of 1978, and although I was still only 15 years-old I had finished my O Levels at Havant Grammar and had left school, so I had a summer job at IBM in Havant - my parents both worked there at the time. IBM had this great system of flexi-time where you could build up 5-minute increments of time - so if you started work 5 mins early you could leave 5 mins early etc. I remember trying to save up enough time to get a decent early finish to go and buy this single. 

Looking back it was my first introduction to an adult workplace, goodness knows what they all thought of this naive teenage boy whose Mum got him a job! I recall wondering what all these bits of computer print-out really meant and what I was meant to do with them! Somehow I survived the few weeks until I started my real job at Lloyds Bank as soon as I turned 16 at the end of August. And they paid me as well!!

Anyway music was what I was really into and Buzzcocks were my favourites. This single was two new tracks - neither appeared on an album (apart from compilations in the future) and showed Pete Shelley's ability to write perfect teen-angst love songs set to buzz-saw guitars and the sharpest, busiest drums. Buzzcocks had this fantastic ability of sounding like the four members of the band were individually playing slightly different songs but when put together it made a perfect cocktail of sound.

Both songs were brilliant and got equal billing, although see pictures below of labels that 'Love You More' is the A-side whilst 'Noise Annoys' is the 1-side. The former got played more because it's more instantly catchy and it maybe the shortest single ever released - 1 minute 45 seconds!! A real case of small is beautiful.  It charted so Buzzcocks subsequently appeared on Top of The Pops playing it and I wanted to be Pete Shelley. It was worth watching all the middle-of-the-road dross usually on TOTP just to see this little gold nugget shining through. 

Just a perfect piece of vinyl.

Here's the music:

https://youtu.be/uMvFL8IK60E

https://youtu.be/_7kfJ9qmP7o

Vinyl #17 - Gang of Four

"Damaged Goods" (7" single, 45 rpm)

A classic of its era, released at the end of 1978. The Leeds-based Gang of Four were at the forefront of the 'post-punk' movement and this single was their debut. Again I must have heard it on the John Peel show. As the attraction of punk wore away - and as I got older I suppose - the Gang of Four offered a very attractive alternative, with political, left-wing lyrics and statements set to dance-able, rhythmic guitar music. If you want to know where Franz Ferdinand learnt their angular guitar licks then start here!

And just as the Rough Trade label in London offered a near-guarantee of quality, so did Fast Product - based in Edinburgh - north of the border. This was Fast 5 (the debut single by The Human League was Fast 4).

All three tracks are great but the A-side is the star, a slice of northern punk-funk, with a pulsating and looping bass, driving drums and a guitar that slices and slashes across it all. Top it all with lyrics that require listening and interpreting, you have all the ingredients this 16 year-old needed in the music he listened to.

Here are the three songs:

https://youtu.be/JFU_1h7io0Y

https://youtu.be/1Rws1YFS6sw

https://youtu.be/Akz2efTdJ-E

Vinyl #16 - Stiff Little Fingers

"Suspect Device" / "Wasted Life" (7" single, 45 rpm)

A brilliant band from Northern Ireland who wrote great guitar-based rock songs that spoke about the 'Troubles' in Ulster (hence "Suspect Device"). I immediately warmed to them when John Peel picked up on this - their debut single which was originally released on their own Rigid Digits label [rigid digits = stiff fingers, geddit?], and then picked up by that guaranteed-high-quality label Rough Trade - and this is the version I bought at Focus Records in Waterlooville. They subsequently recorded several great sessions for Peel.

SLF had a raw power and songs with honest lyrics that told the real story of what it was like to be a teenager living in a religiously divided province - they sang about issues that nobody else would sing about - often directly addressing the terrorists in their midst.

A more polished version of the song reappears on their classic debut album "Inflammable Material" but for sheer aggression and power this is my preferred version. I went on to buy several more of SLF's records (which may indeed appear on this blog at a later date) and saw them live at the Portsmouth Guildhall where they didn't disappoint. Like a lot of original punk bands SLF still play live and have a loyal, if ageing following. Personally I don't feel the urge to see them again, they were perfect for the time, but the world and the issues they sang about have moved on...






Here's the song:

https://youtu.be/ZedI0NPU6U4

Vinyl #15 - U.K. Subs

"Stranglehold" (7", 45 rpm)

The UK Subs were part of the original punk rock scene, having formed in 1976, but this  single is the only record of theirs I bought. Although Peel played them a lot, they never really registered with me but this is a little gem of a song, a typical punk song of limited chords but great hook. And only just over two minutes long. Perfect. I love the red vinyl but can't remember whether that was a factor in buying it (quite possibly though!). 

The really interesting thing about the UK Subs is that they are still gigging and touring around the UK, and that 73 year-old (yes I said 73) lead singer Charlie Harper is the only original member left (he also writes the songs). I actually saw him at the Concorde 2 last October - he was at the bar watching his old mates the Buzzcocks who were playing at the venue. Looked pretty good for 73 years old, and still looks cool in a leather jacket...

And here's the song:

https://youtu.be/S0VEFalOnyQ