There’s not really much I can add to the endless stream of media vomit that has followed the death of Michael Jackson. Like most kids my age I LOVED the Jackson 5 – made my parents buy the records, watched the cartoon TV show and generally grew up with them. You just can’t argue with the tunes, the incredible sound and energy, the sheer exuberance that jumps from those records. It’s pop in the greatest sense of the word, of it’s time but also absolutely timeless.

Here we have the a-side from the band’s first single, released in 1968 on Steeltown Records. I was lucky enough to be gifted a copy of this years ago by a record store buddy (thanks Ray!), and while you wouldn’t mistake it for a Motown production or anything, I think it does give some indication of what was to come. Under the rough production a very young Michael’s talent is unmistakable, and though his trajectory is irreducibly tragic, the innocence and unalloyed joy on evidence here remains untainted.

Big Boy, [mp3]

Some tunes to fight off the January Blues;

Nottee “Young Modern Life”

Excellent Swede pop; a smidge St. Etienne, a sliver of Knife equals a slice of aural sunshine. i know less than nothing about them, other than they rock and rule, but not rot. 

Lissy Truille “Self Taught Learner”

New York model decides to make record. Not the most promising start, but the songs are something special. Has the vibe of those 80s bands copping a Lou Reed/Velvets attitude. All the ‘P’s; Pretenders, Passions, the Primitives. Perfect.

Early Presents!!

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I first heard AKIM & The Teddy Vann Production Company’s Christmas-Number-One-In-An-Alternate-Universe on the excellent festive offering, “A John Waters Christmas”

Although he’s pretty much regarded as the odd but harmless bachelor uncle of America now, the guy can still bring the weird. 

The record also includes outsider God Tiny Tim’s brutal essaying of “Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer”, alongside more standard fare, such as “First Snow” by indie lounge poppers (and Pre Sea And Cake-ers) The Coctails. Seeek it out!

I also heartily recommend his other comp “A Date With John Waters”, if only for the most sexually explicit version of “Ca Plane Pour Moi” these ears have ever heard. 

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There are few occasions when a cover is better than the original- and when the original is by The Band, the go to guys for surpassive covers, you know it’s gotta be good.

Full disclosure, I haven’t heard the Band’s version. Not surprising, as i’m of the opinion they sucked bigtime after the first two records, and you couldn’t pay me to listen to them. 

There is brief clip of it on the Bill Murray Kwanzaa classic “Scrooged”.

But it appears to be a solo Robbie Robertson joint. And as good a writer as he was, the guy just ain’t go the pipes or the chops.

This attempt- as beautiful, as tasteful as i’d like to think messrs Danko, Helm, Manuel etc would make it- is by Manchester (i think) band Screen Prints.

There’s really no info out there about Screen Prints. Strange in this day and age, but apt for a band like them. there’s an (out of print?) comp called “Perfect City”, which is, well perfect. seek it out.

Anyone any other suggestions for alt. holiday classics?

Enjoy your Turducken.

One of my favorite mid-80s bands, Yeah Yeah Noh came out of Leicester in 1984 with a spiky-but-catchy post-punk sound with more than a fair bit of twang and psychedelic suss. Leader Derek Hammond wrote sharp lyrics and sang them a flat baritone voice, all the better to contrast with the band’s prickly pop dynamics. A string of singles on In Tape culminated in their excellent “Cutting The Heavenly Lawn of Greatness…” album, from whence we present you with “Prick Up Your Ears.” Cherry Red has a very well-considered Yeah Yeah Noh comp available that I can highly recommend. The 80s really were a great decade for music.

Prick Up Your Ears, [mp3]

Boyracer – well, what can we say about the mighty ‘Racer? Some of my favorite Slumberland records are Boyracer records, and through these many years Stewart has steadfastly stuck to his DIY roots. His dedication to putting the Punk into pop has been an inspiration, and his records never fail to get us fired up. Since pairing up with Jen and repairing to the hot and dusty Arizona desert, their output has amazingly not flagged at all, and while the climate for indie labels might not be the best right now, Jen & Stew continue to release quality records on 555.

The latest is the first Boyracer vinyl LP in ages, “Sunlight Is The Best Antiseptic.” 12 songs, limited to 100 copies and packaged in a hand-screened sleeve, this is classic Boyracer – rambunctious, noisy-as-heck pop with it’s punk roots showing. Opener “The Heartbreaker” is a great example of what Boyracer 2008 are all about – rough, immediate, tuneful and bursting with energy. I hear these are selling out quickly, so don’t delay. Get on over to the 555 mail order page and grab one.

The Heartbreaker, [mp3]

As a long-time 2Tone fan and proud owner of the Intensified! comps and a few Wailers and Prince Buster records, the young Kid Frostbite thought he had a pretty good handle on this whole ska business. Then along into my listening life came a rough Jamaican pressing of All Star Top Hits, and my mind was completely blown. Having the distinction of being the first album released by Clement Dodd (Coxsone to you), way back in 1961, it’s a crucial example of prime Jamaican R&B and formative ska.

The story of the early Jamaican sound systems and the development of ska has been told many times so I won’t recount it here (try Steve Barrow’s Rough Guide To Reggae for an authoritative account). What I can tell you is that the tunes on this record sounded like some sort of musical rosetta stone to me, easily bridging the New Orleans style R&B swing so beloved in the Caribbean with the faster, choppier local rhythms that would become ska. From Derrick Harriott’s soultastic “Answer Me My Darling” to instrumental classics like “Don Cosmic” and “Salt Lane Shuffle” this album just plain rules. I’ve never remotely gotten over the initial thrill of hearing these rambunctious, soulful, swinging tunes and it’s fair to say that it’s this record that really hooked me on Jamaican music. Maybe it will do the same for you?

While the original is nominally still in print (!), it can be hard to locate so I’m happy to say that it’s readily available as part of Heartbeat’s superb Ska Bonanza compilation, now finally also available on vinyl. To give you some idea of how special this record is, check out The Jiving Juniors’ gospel-tinged “Over The River,” sure to get you rolling back the carpet and throwing some crazy shapes. Simply timeless.

Over The River, [mp3]

Beloved of mods, soul fans and hipsters worldwide, Georgie Fame might just be If Things Were Perfect’s favorite English soul man. Equally at home with New Orleans R & B, Mose Allison-style jazz and straight-up Chicago-flavored proto-soul, Fame left a trail of blazing singles and albums behind him through the course of the 60s, with tunes like “Yeh Yeh,” “Sitting In The Park” and “Do-Re-Mi” rocking many a basement party and Ready Steady Go episode.

Lest all of this sound like faint praise, spare a moment to listen to this live version of “Night Train,” recorded in 1963 in front of one very lucky, appreciative crowd. Mr. Fame’s organ comping swings ruthlessly, while the band struts along behind him in fine fashion. This is serious business.

Night Train, [mp3]

James are one of those bands who put out a few AMAZING records, then have a much longer and more successful career doing somewhat less amazing music, to the extent that not all that many people really know their great stuff. Originally unfairly tagged as a Smiths-wannabe group, their first two singles were released on Factory in 1983 and 1984 and what crucial artifacts they are. Coming from out of leftfield (well, Manchester, anyway), “Jimone” and “James II” still sound startling more than twenty years later. Strands of folk, pop and post-punk are intricately wound together, fired by Gavin Whelan’s frantic drumming and singer Tim Booth’s full-throated declamations.

Both singles were fairly popular by the indie standards of the day, but a poorly-conceived major label deal dragged the band down, and later deals eventually pushed them in more commercial directions. Whereupon, against all odds, they became a huge, UK chart-busting act in the early 90s and alas our interest does not follow. “Hymn From A Village” is the b-side of the “James II” 7″ and remains one of my favorite songs from the mid-80s, heck perhaps just one of my favorites full-stop. It’s a b-side that could be an a-side, a band-defining anthem that appears (sorry, i’m terrible with lyrics sometimes) to take aim at the indie music scene of the day and perhaps pop music in general, post-punk optimists fighting against a most cynical industry. A thrilling, frenetic rush, “Hymn From A Village” could have come out yesterday, it sounds that fresh and urgent still. Man, do I love it. I hope you do too. Oh, and PS – the name of our blog was taken from one of those early James songs. We’ll post that soon, too.

Hymn From A Village, [mp3]

I’ve been meaning to get together a longer post about The Verlaines for ages. They are absolutely one of my favorite bands of all time; their blend of timeless songs, indelible melodies, and solid playing easily vaults them into my A-League. Main Verlaine Graeme Downes is nothing but a poetic genius, somehow managing to make references to Dostoevsky and James Joyce sit comfortably next to impassioned odes to pubs and women without being the least bit forced or pretentious.

This mere paragraph can only hint at the Verlaines’ greatness, but it’ll have to wait til I get a little more caught up with life and Slumberland to write something more in depth. So for now let’s settle for “You Forget Love,” a smashing tune from their incredible second album “Bird-Dog.” Although the album is sadly out-of-print, Flying Nun does have a solid Verlaines comp called You’re Just Too Obscure For Me available which I can highly recommend, though you’ll still want to look out for used copies of their proper albums.

[mp3]

I’d imagine that most readers of this blog are somewhat familiar with “It’s A Fine Day,” a lilting a capella whose pastoral charms made it a surprise hit in 1983 and periodic source material for cheesy progressive house goof-offs. Mr Barton himself has something of a track record as an eccentric and somewhat successful songwriter, but that’s a story for another post. Here you will find A Guy Called Gerald’s amazing proto-jungle/tribal/breakbeat mix which might have been a hit itself when released in 1992, but was pipped to the post by Opus III’s smash cover. I had a devil of a time finding this 12″, thank you gemm.com. I love these weird early 90s Gerald productions, hope you will too.

[mp3]