Jemblog

Oasis: Don't Believe the Truth

The Observer got themselves very excited about the new Oasis album yesterday. “Our bond with them is renewed” concluded Caspar Llewellyn Smith. 5 stars for a new Oasis album. Blimey. Surely a cock up.. So purely for the purposes of “research” I tracked down a few songs from the new CD from a friend of a friend to back up these ridiculous claims.

One (written by Andy Bell) sounds naturally enough, like peak era Ride (ie: the first 3 EPs), another like (a tuneful)  The Faces, and I can confirm that the acoustic Noel/Liam duet is precisely as Noel generously puts it akin to an Oasis B side from 1995. All good, present and correct and already a notch ahead of anything put out by the ever changing fivesome/foursome since er, 1995. Which is exactly how it should be. (apart from Sunday Morning Call)

However  it was then that I stumbled upon“Mucky Fingers” and its not what you’d expect from Oasis at all. Taking its cue from of all things, “I’m waiting for your man”, some lovely one chord piano, dylanesque mouth organ, and an emphatic Noel chorusing “its alright”, its probably the most excited I’ve felt about Oasis since ooh, listening to the demo of Cigarettes and Alcohol on a free NME tape in Feb 1994. They’re back. This time they really are. With grey hair I notice from the new publicity shots.. Well haven’t we all.

Johnny Boy: You are the Generation

Joining Just Like Honey and Eighties Fan in that small (ish) group of ultrafine singles that rip off Phil Spectors finest 3 seconds; the boom ba boom tamboombourine intro of “Be My Baby”, the debut single by Johnny Boy; You Are The Generation That Bought More Shoes And You Get What You Deserve was the most under rated track of 2004.

Unfortunately they seemed to have joined Michelle MacManus in unleashing a sterling debut effort only to be promptly dropped by their impatient record company hoping for world peace AND a top five placing in the first week. Look trust me…this is my  favourite record with a horn section since “A Solid Bond in Your Heart” (yep, that good). My favourite record with a chorus of “yeah yeahs” since She Loves You and In my (quite tired) world this is side one, track one on Now 60. Buy it now. (except you can’t cos its already deleted..oh dear.)

Ok  it was their 2nd single and praised to the hilt in the Guardian, Observer and a single of the week in NME but whatever.

For some reason I was allowed to DJ on Friday night for my friends joint birthday party.
I was turfed off just as I was getting going (or more likely because I was playing some right old rubbish) by some very excellent youths playing some very old records from 1965. In case you’re curious this was the pubdjcd itunes playlist.

1.Camberwick Green    -Theme/Brian Cant
2 No_One_Takes_Your_Freedom_ DJ Earworm - Scissor Sisters/Beatles/George Michael/Aretha Franklin
3.Livin' Thing Electric Light Orchestra   
4.Catch My Disease    Ben Lee   
5. Marching Here from There/Theme From Screen Test    Syd Dale/Theme
6. I'm In Love With A German Film Star    The Passions       
7.Theme from the Goodies – Bill Oddie/Graeme and Tim
8.Ladyflash - The Go! Team   
9.Stardust – Frank  Sinatra   
10.Love Goes On    The Go-Betweens   
11.Bruce's Big Night - Bruce Forsyth/Theme   
12.Geno - Dexy's Midnight Runners       
13.One Life Away - M Ward
14.Main Theme From The Long Good Friday Francis Monkman   
15.Hart to Hart (‘she’s gorgeous’)  - Theme
16.How Long     Ace   
17.Judy (Wotcha Gonna Do?) - The Pipettes
18.Power Rangers Dino Thunder – Theme
19.January - Pilot   
20.Beatnik - Michel Polnareff   
21.Laughter In The Rain - Neil Sedaka   
22.Recordbreakers    - Theme/Roy Castle   
23.The Winner Takes it All    ABBA
24. Born to be with You –Dion

My Suitor: Berntholer

Christmas 1983. At weekends I worked in a miserable newsagents next to the Tesco in Boundary Road, Hove on the “music” counter. (we only stocked cassettes). Cold, miserable Saturday afternoons listening to Thriller and Lionel Ritchie over and over. 3 memorable moments. Being sacked a few weeks later for having the wrong “attitude”. How thrilled I was for this to happen when you like the Smiths and you're 18. Spending weeks summoning up the courage to ask the blonde shopgirl out and then being crushed in 5 seconds. “er, we’ll see” and then she laughed. Nice. Maybe it was my Next jumper. And ridiculously most Sunday mornings playing (the "manager" was invariably asleep hungover on the floor of  his “office” overlooking the shop) entire John Peel shows (well what you could fit onto a C90) Yes that is Xmal Deutschland/Cocteau Twins/the Mighty Wah! sir. Is that a Twix you want with your Mayfair and the Sunday People. Fascist!

For months Peel was in love with this. I was in love with this. Even the shopgirl finally fell in love with this (but not with me).  My Suitor by Belgian group; Berntholer was a 1983 single full of cello, the spooky vocals of Albanian; Drita Kotaji, and 10 ounces of nico drenched balladery. It was eventually released by WEA (Blanco Y Negro) over here and sold 10,000 copies. As a result it limped into  the Festive Fifty for 1984 at No.34 betwen Robert Wyatt and This Mortal Coil and they've been virtually forgotten and misspelt ever since. For years its been unavailable but thankfully a lavish compilation ; "Merry Lines in the Sky" was put together by the LTM fellas late last year which includes this and many more miserable torch songs. Its a very beatiful record. Perfect for sunday mornings on the Boundary Road selling crisps.

Hit Parade: Back Back Back

Back in the day this lot suddenly appeared with their pianos, golden voice(s) and about 82 record sales (mostly in Japan). Unlike the other incompetents, the Hit Parade had both the genuine love of a nice tune but with a briefcase attached. A real record label !, being aloof from the grubby inky weeklies, irony (well it was very earnest in the 80s...Have you ever read "Are you scared to get Happy ?") and bloomin heck: staying power. Ok they flirted with the indiepoposphere by  signing to Sarah and releasing a christmas single with Amelia (from Tallulah Gosh) but I'm sure it was only because that chimed perfectly with the Parade's demographic. (Lovelorn anorak wearers, the youth of the far East, er me.). And didn't they know it. So  almost 20 years on and (presumably) financed by his evil career as a marketing executive  Julian Henry (for it is he) / The Hit Parade have returned to the fray. Starting with probably the last ever UK advertising campaign for a 7" single (quarter pagers in Mojo and Word and everything) their 3rd (4th..I'm not sure) album is upon us in a few months time. I've not heard it yet but of course it'll be annoyingly perfect and I'll be whistling it for weeks. The kids won't know where to turn. 3 Field Mice Reissues, A *new*  Go Betweens album, Simon Reynolds book, 4 more years of Tony Blair and this. Its all too much. Well better than those bloomin columns in the Guardian thats for sure. Henry's House. Ho Ho..

Sweetie: The Chefs

I first heard this long forgotten single at Sunshine Playroom in the summer of 1987. Naively at the time I wrongly assumed it was by Talulah Gosh or probably a new Sha-La-La flexi. Fruitless journeys around Brightons (many) 2nd hand shops ensued. I then caused no doubt endless mirth attempting to sing the bloody thing over several counters trying to track it down.
I paid three quid of my dole money for it 2 weeks later having found it in a shop in, of all places, Leeds. The most joyous, poppiest single I owned.

Sweetie by The Chefs was released in 1980 on Attrix Records, a small label in Brighton and also the name of a shop in Sydney Street that sold punk singles. The history of the label and bands from the time are recalled here on Stuart Wilson's astonishing biographical site; "The Punk History of Brighton". Apparently I wasn't the only one who liked The Chefs.

“Stuart! There’s someone on the phone for you!” This turned out to be none other than Pete Waterman himself, who then proceeded to froth at the mouth with adoration about the Chefs! He loved their image, their songs, and was going to make them stars, millionaires! He went on and on about their song Sweetie: “Its gonna be a number one all over the world! Im tellin’ ya!”

The site has dozens of old flyers, discographies, memoirs and news of the bands and this brief profile of the band taken from the Brighton compilation; Vaultage 79

The Chefs call their music pop as they really are too nice to cut it as punks. Catchy, distinctive and sparse, the Chefs sing about oral sex, VD, boredom and food. One song, Thrush, has a great punk lyric: 'I was just a bunk-up for you to get your spunk up'.

it turned out I'd already owned a single by Helen "McCookerybook" Reddington. (the band's singer/songwriter) Freight Train by her later band; Helen and the Horns. They didn't become stars either. But, 25 years on, Helen has bravely decided to have another go, The Chefs/Horns output is being reissued and Helen and the Horns have reformed and are playing at the Brighton Komedia on June 22nd. Ok its not exactly  Duran Duran or Gang of Four proportions but hey anyone who can write a single with the lyrics "Records and Tea are all life means to me" is worth celebrating second time around.