The Number Ones That Never Were

Posted on January 3, 2013 by John S

The BBC website had an enjoyable piece recently on some of the great singles that only ever made No 2 in the British singles charts. Listeners to Radio 2 had voted for the best ten of all time. Here are the results.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-20881216

“Vienna” by Ultravox was No 1 of the No 2s. A great piece of New Romantic grandiloquence. Amusing but also rather atmospheric. The video shot in moody black and white of course. (Or at least that’s how I remember it – can’t find it on YouTube). When I was writing a piece on the New Romantics and electrop for my book on my musical journey, I was sure “Vienna” had been No 1 for ages. Anyway, I thought I’d better check. And no, it hadn’t. It was kept off the top slot by a novelty record, “Shadappa You Face” by Joe Dolce. A truly grim mock-Italian affair. The British public had spoken.

It’s always been this way of course.  Those of us who remember punk in the late seventies as the defining moment of our pop lives are quickly brought down to earth the moment we study the singles charts.  Take 1977, that seminal year, when punk ruled the roost, the Pistols riding high, The Clash releasing “1977”, the Jam bursting on the scene.  Well, No 1 artists included: David Soul (twice), Julie Covington, Leo Sayer, Manhattan Transfer, Kenny Rodgers and… Brotherhood of Man! At least Abba were at their peak with “Knowing me, Knowing You” and “The Name of the Game”, while Donna Summer had a No 1 with “I Feel Love” and the Floaters’ “Float On” took cheesy soul to its ultimate height.

Best punk outing, meanwhile?  Well, the Pistols’ “God Save The Queen” made No2 during the Silver Jubilee, amid dark allegations that it had been deliberately shunted off the top spot by the authorities (Rod Stewart was No1 with “I Don’t Want To Talk About It”). Otherwise not a lot.  “White Riot” by the Clash stormed to No 35 in the charts, not helped by the fact that The Clash wouldn’t appear on “Top of the Pops”. The Stranglers’ “No More Heroes” and “Peaches” both peaked at No 8. The Jam’s magnificent debut, “In the City” soared to No 40!

That old philosophical question: the difference between perception and reality…

But back to those No 2s. Can you believe that the Beatles’ double A single, “Strawberry Fields/ Penny Lane” wasn’t number one in 1967? The previous eleven singles, starting with “From Me To You” in 1963, were all No1s. The following six were too. What kept two of the greatest Beatles tunes from the top perch? Step forward Englebert Humperdinck – the alternative Tom Jones – with “Release Me”. Well done Eng! (Bert, Engels?)

Some of those No 2s in the BBC 10 were kept off the top by other fine tunes. We love the Pogues’ “Fairytale of New York” more with each passing Christmas, but “Always on my Mind” by the Pet Shop Boys in 1987 was a great pop tune too. The Beach Boys’ “God Only Knows” succumbed to the Beatles’ “Eleanor Rigby” and “Yellow Submarine” in 1966. Cheating to put TWO great songs like that on the same single! And good though “Golden Brown” by the Stranglers was in 1982, “A Town Called Malice” by The Jam, was even better.

And I have to say I’m glad “Mull of Kintyre” by Wings (along with Abba) blocked Queen’s vainglorious “We Are The Champions” in 1977. Give me Macca’s camp fire every time!

I was thinking about what other No 2s I really liked and three came to mind quickly. The brilliant “Oliver’s Army” in 1979 by one of my favourite artists, Elvis Costello, faced a rather effective brick wall of Blondie (“Heart of Glass”), the Bee Gees (“Tragedy”) and Gloria Gaynor (“I Will Survive”). The great blues rock band, Free, in 1970, released their classic “Alright Now”, but got bounced by the England football World Cup squad and “Back Home”. Fine football team – one of our best – but terrible song!

And then maybe the best Britpop song in the 1990s: “Wonderwall”, by Oasis.  A true anthem. Shoved aside by TV actors Robson and Jerome and then maybe the worst ever Michael Jackson single, “The Earth Song”.

Blimey, the injustice of it all!

But then again, people bought the other records and presumably liked them too. Who am I to judge?

And to complete the loop, who was the lead singer of Ultravox by the time of “Vienna”, anyway? Midge Ure. Cool in 1981, but how about 1976 when he was in Scottish teenybop band Slik?

(Of course he then gained pop sainthood with his role in Live Aid with Bob Geldof. And apparently he turned down a chance to be in the Sex Pistols in the early days. So pretty cool overall.  A man of many facets.)

Hey, maybe Joe Dolce deserves respect too. I had a look at his Wikipedia entry and he seems to be multi-talented, born in the US, but based in Australia, with accolades for his poetry and guitar playing in recent times.  And I bet “Shaddapa You Face” set him up for life, so he could pursue his other interests. I say respect to the man. But the enemy of all self respecting New Romantics for ever more!

And one last thing, getting back to injustice, how could “American Pie” by Don McLean in 1972 not be a number one? A truly iconic tune. Everyone used to sing it, me included. Bye, bye, Miss American Pie, took my chevvy to the levee, but the levee was dry…  aaahh, brings back the memories.

I should know why he got stuck at No2 though: as a 13 year old, I bought the single, “Son Of My Father” by Chicory Tip. Loved it. A glam pop thing. Pretty rubbish really. No 1. Kept Don off the top, until Nilsson’s “Without You” took over and stayed there for weeks. Double whammy.

Mea culpa!

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2012 – my blog in review. By WordPress

Posted on December 30, 2012 by John S

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2012 annual report for this blog.

Well it’s nice of Word Press to do this, so I thought I should share it with all of you who read my blog. With massive thanks for taking an interest.

[Note 16 Feb 2013. Deleted link as it is attracting thousands of spam messages. But basically, I got about 16,000 recorded views in 2012. Which was nice. And from most of the world’s countries at some point, with the majority from the US, UK, Canada, India and France.]

And thanks especially to all those who take the trouble to comment. Really appreciated.

Getting onto Freshly Pressed was what did it for the Top Ten Air Guitar Classics in April. I was gobsmacked when I started to get over a thousand hits for a few days. Back to the normal 20-30 views now –  although from time to time it goes higher – usually if I get retweeted.   But those few days in April were a real high. It is really gratifying to feel that so many people – from around the globe – are interested in what you are writing.

Remarkably I still get a steady stream of hits on that blog about air guitar. And the Queen one too, which I wrote as a bit of a joke – against myself. Liking and not liking, but succumbing eventually. What it shows is how popular around the world Metal and Queen are. Maybe I’ll do a Top Ten on Michael Jackson next…

More to come in 2013!

Wishing you all a peaceful and happy New Year.

Click here to see the complete report.

And if you’d like to see my Top Ten albums of 2012, click here.

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My Top Ten – 2012 Albums and more besides…

Posted on December 22, 2012 by John S

Let’s cut to the chase. This is my Top Ten for 2012,  then I’ll explain.

1. Wrecking Ball – Bruce Springsteen

2. Dead & Born & Grown – The Staves

3. Channel Orange – Frank Ocean

4. Twins – Ty Segall

5. good kid, m.A.A.d city – Kendrick Lamar

6. Portico Quartet – Portico Quartet

7. Until The Quiet Comes – Flying Lotus

8. Lonerism – Tame Impala

9. Melody’s Echo Chamber – Melody’s Echo Chamber

10. America Give Up – Howler

And 2011 albums that I discovered in 2012, which might have been in the Top Ten if they were 2012…

1.  Almanac – Emily Barker and the Red Clay Halo

2. Arise Ye Sunken Ships – We Are Augustines

3. Every Kingdom – Ben Howard

4. West – Wooden Shjips

5. The Lost and Found – Gretchen Parlato

I found myself a few weeks ago with a top three – same as stated, but not much else. It was because I’ve spent most of my time this year looking back. Both for my blog and for the book I’m writing – very slowly – on my musical journey.

So I resorted initially to two sources. One was my old favourite, the paper I’ve been reading since I was 15. The bible of punk, indie and more besides: the NME.  I looked through their fifty best albums, checked a few that appealed on Spotify and then did some downloading onto iTunes. Proof that Spotify actually leads to musical purchases – at least for my generation!  The other was my favourite musical website, Little by Listen, three guys with a real passion for music, and plenty of overlaps with my own preferences. Compared with them I am not worthy!

And there were a few concerts that had introduced me to my favourite sounds of the year.

And one crucial reference from Whispering Bob Harris, BBC Radio 2 DJ, doyen of the Americana/country/classic rock set.

And, and… maybe the best influence of all: my son, Kieran. I always dreamed of introducing him to the great sounds of rock’n’roll. This year, he gave me two of my top five.

So, how did it all come together?

Well, let’s start at the top. I’ve put Bruce Springsteen first because “Wrecking Ball” is possibly his best album since… “Born In The USA”? Full of passion, anger about the plight of ordinary working people in these times and a love of so many different types of music. Some wonderfully simple but hard hitting tunes, the best of all for me being “Jack Of All Trades”. It is his biggest statement for years. He is still The Boss. As simple as that. If you hate Bruce or are indifferent, ‘Wrecking Ball” may not convert you. If you have ever liked Bruce, try it! You can see my full review in my Have You Heard series on the side bar. Number 12.

The Staves – three sisters from Watford, singing modern folk sounds – have a claim to the number one slot with their debut album. Which is that I played their songs more than anyone else’s this year. It all started with Whispering Bob tweeting the video of their single “Mexico”. I liked it and checked out their music. They had an EP called “Live At Cecil Sharp House’ which I strongly recommend, especially for their version of “Silver Dagger”, which has the most beautiful harmonies you could hope to hear. I saw them perform twice this year – first at the Tabernacle in Notting Hill and then at the Latitude music festival in Suffolk. They were fantastic at both. Their singing is just so lovely! I reviewed both – go to the concerts/lists series on the sidebar if you are interested in reading more. The album is satisfying  mix of already released songs (including “Mexico”) and some entrancing new ones. It soothes the soul like no other music this year. You can read a review of “Dead & Born & Grown” in my Have You Heard series – number 27.

Numbers 3 and 5 are where I give the credit to my son Kieran.  I remember earlier in the year when I heard some sounds coming from his room which sounded familiar – but not familiar.  They had a nineties soul/jazz/rap groove, which is one of my favourite ever sounds. People like Maxwell, D’Angelo, Urban Species and Guru from Gang Starr. But they weren’t tunes I knew. The basslines were even better than before. What was it?

It was Frank Ocean. “Channel Orange”. I’ve reviewed  it – check  Have You Heard 18 on the side bar.  A brilliant melange of jazzy, soulful sounds and rhymes. Some biting lyrics, but above all, it’s the rhythms and the beats that get me. Rooted in hip hop but soaring above it. And I’m hearing so many great artists as I listen – Stevie Wonder, Prince, even Marvin Gaye. The past, present and future, rolled into one. Wrapped around with a modern sound. Amazing.

Kendrick Lamarr is a more recent taste. I heard his sound – again thanks to Kieran – and loved the bass and drums as well as his delivery. When you listen to his headline song, “Backbeat Freestyle” you might grimace at some of the lyrics, but if you know anything about reggae dancehall music, you will spot the influence. There is a rumbling bass line which is insistent and even a bit sinister. When I heard it I just thought, how good would this be pumping out out of the mega-speakers at the Notting Hill Festival? Awesome, is the answer.

Ty Segall’s  “Twins” was a Little By Listen recommendation. I have massive respect for the guys and their passion for music. I’d never heard of Ty Segall.  I played the album and thought wow! There is some immense guitar. All over the place. Brutal, noisy, dirty.  Rock’n’roll!

I go a bit jazzy, electronic, almost prog with my selection of Portico Quartet and Fying Lotus. Both make the Gilles Peterson cut on his BBC 6 show, now on Saturday afternoons. I saw Portico Quartet at a Word magazine concert, and I loved the way they carved unusual sounds from their guitars and violins and keyboards. The spirit of Jimmy Page and his violin bow, rubbing up against Radiohead, in a jazz stylee. With Flying Lotus, add a funky, unpredictable electronica to that list. I’d heard them before – an amazing tune called “Tea Leaf Dancers” – but it was Little By Listen that alerted me to this new album. Thanks guys! Both are really intriguing albums.

8 to 10 were all NME recommendations, initially.  Others too went for them, especially Tame Impala.  “Lonerism” takes you back to 60/70s psychedelia, but it also has a cut and paste element which reminds me of the Avalanches’ “Since I Left You”. Melody’s Echo Chamber is a French confection, but it sounds Swedish, like The Radio Dept, who in turn, must have drawn inspiration from My Bloody Valentine, Velvet Underground and, of course, Abba. These are good influences! Howler‘s album is the best Strokes album since “Room On Fire”, rivalled only by the first Vaccines album. Which is very good too!

I wanted to mention some 2011 albums, because they were first revealed to me in 2012, and have been some of my favourite sounds this year. The Australian folk singer Emily Barker, with her band the Red Clay Halo (named after a Gillian Welch song) have been up there with The Staves as my most played band. The more I have listened to Emily’s albums, the more I appreciate their emotional depth. I saw Emily and the band three times this year: first as a support band at a Word magazine concert, then at the Half Moon Putney and finally at the Union Hall in Islington. Each concert was bigger than the one before. At every one, the music was fantastic – beautifully played and sung and wonderfully engaging. “Almanac” has the sparse electric guitar of “Pause”, which was my favourite track until I discovered ‘This Is How It’s Meant To Be” from Emily’s debut album, ” Photos.Fires.Fables” and her rendition of “The First Time Ever I saw Your Face” by Ewan MacColl. These three songs are all top ten tracks for me in 2012. Tender, sometimes sad, truly uplifting.

Were Are Augustines were brilliant live at Latitude, where I was thinking punk and Bruce Springsteen all mixed up. I saw them in September at Shepherd’s Bush Empire, which just took me further into their debut album, “Arise Ye Sunken Ships’. They do good anthems and heartfelt lyrics, based on some pretty difficult personal experiences. The dogs on main street are howling!

Ben Howard is a young singer-songwriter with great guitar skills.  He was second on the bill on the Sunday at Latitude, before Paul Weller, and was superb. Again, Kieran put me on to him. Wooden Shjips are a pyschedelic rock band whom I’d never heard of until I saw them at Latitude. I loved their piledriving riffs and rhythms at that gig.  The latest album isn’t quite as immense, but it still rocks. And then Gretchen Parlato, a soulful jazz singer.  It was a top ten from a Word Press blogger a year ago that put me on to her.  I’m ashamed to say i’ve now forgotten who it was. But the album, “The Lost and Found”, is a smooth delight.

There are plenty of other tracks I’ve liked – some from 2012, other discovered this year but from earlier years. Two that stand out are “Hollywood Forever Cemetry Sings”  by Father John Misty, another Little By Listen recommendation, and “Heart Attack” by Kurt Vile, which I discovered when he performed it at Latitude. See my Have You Heard 19 for a bit more on Kurt and this song, where I wish for a duet with Kylie Minogue. It’s not as implausible as it sounds!

What this blog shows, I hope, is that there has been some fantastic music this year. And that’s just the selection that I most like. There is plenty more. Alt-J won the Mercury music prize, for example. I haven’t really got into their music, but Kieran says it sounds great on his Dr Dre headphones.

So I would say, if you are looking for the best music of this year, take a look at the NME top fifty, and the Guardian equivalent too. Try what they are recommending.  I’m totally biased: these are my newspapers, read and loved since my teenage days. When Little By Listen do their take, well worth reading that too.

The NME and Guardian didn’t feature Bruce, or Emily, or The Staves. Those choices, in a way, are my most personal ones. Otherwise, I think they’ll guide you to the right place.

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Sportsthoughts (56) – Quins A team win the final!

Posted on December 18, 2012 by John S

We were down at the Stoop on Saturday, enjoying Quins’ 53-5 romp against the Italians, Zebre, in the Heineken Cup and enthused by that result thought we should go along and support the A Team – the reserves – in their “A” League final on Monday against Saracens. See some of the young players on the point of breaking into the first team, or at least the squad. Bound to be some great rugby – less fear, more adventure. Not that you can say Quins lack adventure. Just that most of their opponents do these days.

There was a good atmosphere. Just the one stand open, but it was pretty full. just over 4,000 in attendance. And some famous faces around the place. Loads of the Quins first team were there and we had ex England captain, still playing for Saracens, Steve Borthwick, sitting just behind us.

And there was some great rugby. Quins were superb. Saracens took the first five to ten minutes but then Quins’ pace and forward power started to tell. It was a pretty strong Quins team, with players like Karl Dickson, Rory Clegg, Ben Botica, Rob Buchanan, Charlie Matthews and captain Luke Wallace experienced first team squad players. But there were so many exciting up and coming players too. Forwards like Darryl Marfo (who got two tries), Sam Twomey, Joe Trayfoot and Jack Clifford. And then the backs – speed merchants. Charlie Walker on the wing, and above all, Ollie Lindsay-Hague at full back. Extraordinary pace and trickiness. One run took him from his own 22 to the opposition’s. It really got the crowd going.  He scored two tries and was deservedly made Man of the Match. Can’t be long before he is seriously challenging for a place in the first team. The great thing is that the competition for places is now so fierce – the mark of a good team.

At half time it was 17-0, three tries to Quins. Sarries got one back at the start of the second half, then Quins really turned it on. Took it to 37-5, but then all the substitutions disrupted things a bit and Saracens piled on the pressure in the last ten or so minutes.  They got one converted try and came close a few more times. Quins’ defence was good though, and it ended 37-12.

We stayed for the award of the trophy. A real feel good evening. Here are a couple of dodgy iPhone photos of the celebrations.

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Luke Wallace – not quite parading the trophy. He’d done that already.

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Future England player…

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Sportsthoughts (55) – And the BBC Sports Personality of the Year is… Bradley Wiggins!

Posted on December 17, 2012 by John S

Yes!

That’s where my vote went.  Cyclist supreme.  First ever British winner of the Tour de France – the ultimate endurance test – and olympic Gold medallist in the men’s cycling time trial. And a personality and a very cool dresser – in a Mod style.

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There was fantastic competition though. Mainly through the great feats in this summer’s Olympics and Paralympics. Jessica Ennis, Mo Farrah, David Weir, Sarah Storey and so many others. I waxed lyrical on my Sportsthoughts posts at the time.  It was the most uplifting summer of sport ever.  And the two events brought people together in an unprecedented way. Barriers – national, racial, able bodied/disabled , the daily surliness of London – all dissolved. We were united in admiration of all the athletes. And cheered up by all those volunteers – the Games Makers. And, of course, all those victories of our British athletes. There were so many medals we barely knew how to cope!

Reserve and cynicism was out. Celebration was in.

The best of times.

Looking back, there are other great moments for me, as a sports lover in 2012. My football team, West Ham, got promoted back into the Premier League. My rugby team, Harlequins, won the Premiership – top of the league and winners of the play offs. The elation of that day at Twickenham when we triumphed over Leicester in the play off final was as good as any single moment the Olympics. Well, OK, not quite as moving as Jess’s tears … but close.

In football it was good to have a new winner of the Premier League in Man City.  Especially with the way that they snatched victory in the last minutes of the last game of the season against QPR, with Man Utd thinking they’d done it up at Sunderland. City are bankrolled by an oil sheikh, so aren’t really lovable anymore, but there’s still a bit of an affection for them, from when cityitis was a synonym for implosion and farce.

And while I’m no fan of Chelsea, they have to be given credit for winning the Champions’ League against the odds. Those back-to-the-wall victories, against Barcelona in the semis and Bayern Munich in the final, were extraordinary.

Then there is Andy Murray in the tennis.  Runner up at Wimbledon to the brilliant Roger Federer, winner of the US Open against Djokovic (his first major) and winner of Olympic Gold. I’ve never been a big fan, partly because of his anyone-but-England attitude to other sports (a healthy Scottish trait!), but really, this was a magnificent year for him – the breakthrough year. Winning a major – that is seriously good.

And the European golfers at the Ryder Cup in the US.  What was that all about? The comeback of all time! Ian Poulter leading from the front. Pure passion.

And then, just recently, the England cricket team excelling in India, poised to win a test series over there for the first time in 28 years (as long as they don’t collapse tomorrow!). And in rugby, that amazing England performance  against New Zealand. Winning with style and gusto. New hope for the future.

The footballers were predictably disappointing in the European Championships in Ukraine and Poland, but that aside, I think we have to mark 2012 as just about the best year of sport, ever, in Britain.

At the heart of it, the Olympics of course.

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We did it!

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Hidden London – the Grand Union Canal by Ladbroke Grove

Posted on December 8, 2012 by John S

It was a lovely, but cold, day in London today. The sun was shining and there was very little wind.  Perfect for a good long cycle. I started with an old favourite, the Thames towpath down to Hammersmith Bridge. Then, radically, rather than just heading back on the other side of the river, I cycled up to Kensington past Holland Park. There’s a cycle lane called Holland Walk (strangely enough). It was hillier than I’d expected – up and down. I then went over to Ladbroke Grove and took the journey up to the Paddington branch of the Grand Union Canal. Ladbroke Grove is at the heart of Notting Hill. It is simultaneously one of the wealthiest areas of London and one of the most ethnically diverse. It is the home of the Notting Hill Carnival at the end of August every year, which celebrates the culture, and especially the music, of the West Indian community in London.  I haven’t been so much recently, but I remember many a good moment absorbing the sounds of reggae, soca and other dance music, with the enormous bass speakers pounding the sounds through your chest.

As you turn into Ladbroke Grove, you are immediately delivered into some of the grandest architecture in London.  The homes of the rich – the bankers, the oligarchs, the artists, the odd politician, the just-got-luckies. All that white and cream stucco, the columns, the high fences. Keeping out the riff raff.

As you ascend, the architecture slowly changes.  The houses become smaller, more terraced and eventually rather run down. You then get into the shops and restaurants, ethnically diverse, vibrant. This is the heart of the Notting Hill Carnival. The Westway – the A40, one of the major routes out west – crosses over. It’s one of the iconic places in punk culture, eulogised by the Clash, amongst others.

And then, heading further north, you move into a bit of a no-man’s land. Semi industrial, semi residential. North Kensington. Hmm, not quite the same as central Kensington, or South Kensington, or even West Kensington.  Pockets of trendiness, no doubt, taking advantage of cheaper property prices. But otherwise, this is not really Kensington even if it says it is.

And this is where I got off the road (hooray!) and back onto the water’s edge. This time the Grand Union Canal, Paddington branch. This branch of the canal starts in Southall, West London and travels all the way to Regents Park, in central London, home of London Zoo. I sometimes join it in Perivale, in the North of Ealing and head east for a bit. It really is one of those bits of hidden London. Hardly anyone knows about it.  You go by places like Alperton, Old Oak Lane, the back of Wormwood Scrubs (home of the famous prison as well as lots of football fields). There’s a big Indian food factory, whose curried odours permeate the atmosphere. And there’s a bridge where, bizarrely, the canal flows over rather than under the North Circular, London’s main peripheral road before the M25 was built. This must have been a tremendous feat of engineering.  Every time I cycle over the bridge, I think, what did they do with the water while they were building the bridge? There’s probably a simple answer, but I’m a writer, not an engineer, so it’s not remotely obvious to me.

But anyway, as I went on to the canal, I was immediately struck by the serenity and otherness of the place. Such a contrast to its surroundings. I took a few shots with my iPhone, mainly into the sun, which was already thinking of setting in the west. So the best ones are the silhouettes and the distortions courtesy of the zoom. At least I think so!

Some views from near the bridge:

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Some of those distortions:

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Reflections.

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These gasworks offer some fascinating shapes and structures.

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Distorted.

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With the sun behind.

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And a bit further along the canal, Wembley Stadium rose from behind the rubbish dump. This is what you get on canals! Zoom effect.

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London’s secret places…

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Have You Heard? – (30) What the Stranglers and Smith and Mighty did to “Walk On By”

Posted on December 8, 2012 by John S

“Walk On By” is a classic sixties soul song with a jazzy shuffle and lazy trumpet absolutely typical of the era. Penned by Burt Bacharach and Hal David, who else? A poignant break up tune: if you see me walking in the street, and I start to cry, each time we meet…. walk on by.

The original was sung by soul songstress Dionne Warwick and has been covered by many others since. Done in the soul/jazz style, it would be hard to beat Dionne’s rendition.

But there are at least two versions of the song that I know and love which rip it up and start again.

First up, those hoary old punks from the seventies, The Stranglers. Always a bit more sophisticated than most of their counterparts, and this song, along with “No More Heroes”,  really brought that out. They both had guitar solos. Not punk

Smith and Mighty, you might not know. They were a late 80s/90s band, playing what was sometimes categorised as “trip hop”. A kind of woozy hip hop. Slow beats, but using all the same techniques as dance and rap.  Throwing in a few wobblers. I bought a couple of twelve inch singles, which both had some intriguing beats and sounds.  Just that bit off kilter.  I love the pulsing beat which pretty much ploughs its own furrow, the vocals which exist in their own world. It’s a disconnected record. Kind of weird. Which makes it interesting.

When a song is so good to start with, you can do a lot with it. The essence survives all the remakes and remodelling. The Stranglers and Smith and Mighty demonstrate that.

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Have You Heard? – (29) “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face”

Posted on December 6, 2012 by John S

With apologies to any all-out rockers reading this blog, who might have strayed this way having read my Top Ten on Air Guitar, this is all about a wonderful love song. No riffs, just beauty…

“The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” was written by the Scottish folk singer, Ewan MacColl, in 1958.  It’s the same age as me! (I snuck into that year on 25 Dec, famous for something else…). It’s a beautiful love song, with some simple, heart rending lyrics. I think it was written by MacColl for his new love at the time, Peggy Seeger.  It’s a love at first sight song:

The first time ever I saw your face, I thought the sun rose in your eyes…

I knew the song, probably heard it lots on BBC Radio 2 back in my childhood days.  Subliminally logged in my brain. Loads of people covered it. But it was just recently that it came back to the forefront of my consciousness. The reason? A lovely, raw rendition of the song by Emily Barker in a video for the brilliant Songs From The Shed Series.

It’s not technically perfect, but it’s all the better for that. It’s real.

Emily and her band, the Red Clay Halo, have also recorded the song and it’s available on a free download.

And here’s a link to her website where you can download it. I got it from the Soundcloud route, but it’s also on Bandcamp.

https://soundcloud.com/emilybarker/first-time-ever-i-saw-your

Emily’s rendition of the song is heavily influenced by the classic take by the great soul songstress, Roberta Flack.

But there are a lot of other wonderful versions.  I went a bit mad on iTunes and eventually made myself a playlist of 20 versions! Mostly middle of the road stuff, but here are three more. That will do!

George Michael covered the song on his album, “Songs From The Last Century”.  I remembered I actually owned this just before I downloaded it again! George Michael is a wonderful singer – such a shame he’s faded away. Hopefully he’ll sort things out and come back.

Can’t resist a reggae version: Marcia Griffiths. A great reggae tradition, covering the soulful love songs with that beat.

And in some ways the best take (apart from Emily, of course) from someone who I wouldn’t usually pay much attention to: Leona Lewis. Sung with gusto – I could imagine Alicia Keys, or Beyonce,  doing it this way. But Leona makes the song her own here. I love this version.

Oh, and maybe I should mention the original. Sung, I think, by Peggy Seeger, even though it’s about her. Very different to later versions. Folkier, less developed sonically.  But with the essence…

 

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Sportsthoughts (54) – West Ham and England do the incredible!

Posted on December 2, 2012 by John S

What an incredible afternoon of sport! As in unbelievable. As in results so unlikely that if you’d gone the bookies and put a tenner on the double you’d be walking away with a few thousand pounds.

Football: West Ham 3 Chelsea 1

Rugby: England 38 New Zealand 21

As the sadly deceased commentator, David Coleman, used to say: quite remarkable!

After a quick cycle round North Ealing, I settled on the sofa at 12.45, cup of tea in hand, ready for four hours of bracing live sport. Bracing as in a cold wind of harsh reality sweeping through my teams’ aspirations. Hopefully entertaining, if most likely excruciating. Had to be watched, no matter what the outcome.

First up the football. West Ham have had a great return to the Premier League. Top eight pretty much all season. But in the middle of a difficult run of fixtures. Lost away to Tottenham and then Man Utd – no surprises there – and now a home game against Chelsea.  Of all the teams in the league, the one I generally hold out least hope against is Chelsea. Not beaten them since 2003.  There was just a glimmer of hope, which was the crazy turmoil at Chelsea, after the Russian chairman, Roman Abramovich, inexplicably sacked manager Roberto di Matteo, who won him the Champions League in May, and even more inexplicably, appointed Rafa Benitez, much reviled by Chelsea fans when he was Liverpool manager. But I feared that West Ham would provide him with the respite he needed, the easy win to get his tenure going.

The first half bore out those fears.  West Ham were timid, apprehensive.  Chelsea, marshalled by the brilliant Spaniard, Juan Mata, pulled the Hammers all over the place and led 1-0 at half time. It should have been 3 or 4, to be honest. Fortunately striker Torres was misfiring and the West Ham goalkeeper, Jussi Jaaskelainen was in heroic form.

But at half time something happened. Actually, it was quite obvious. West Ham brought on their player of the season so far, Mohamed Diame. Why he was left out in the first place is a good question. Big Sam said he was a bit tired after the Spurs and United games. Well fair enough, he should know, but it was a risky tactic. Anyway spurred on by Diame, West Ham upped their game massively, used the wings and provided striker Carlton Cole with some decent balls rather than hopeful lunks. They pressed higher up the pitch and started to turn the game.  After about twenty minutes the equaliser came: Cole climbing all over Chelsea centre back Ivanovich to head into the net. A bit lucky he wasn’t penalised, but I’m not complaining! Chelsea then came back into it and Mata hit the post. But West Ham hung on and towards the end racked up the pressure.  Diame powered in the second goal after a great lay off from Cole, and then sub Maiga finished it off just before the 90 minutes were up.

3-1 against Chelsea! Unbelievable…

Which leads us on to the rugby. Had to watch it on slight delay as the games overlapped, but thanks to Sky Sports I could see all of both. (Just had to deny myself the joys of Twitter during the game to avoid prior knowledge of the score). I wanted to see the start of the game because one of the great sights in rugby is the All Blacks performing the Haka. Brilliant theatre, always increasing the sense of anticipation, even if, today, the sound was drowned out by the England fans singing “Swing Low Sweet Chariot”.

The Autumn rugby internationals are a highlight of the rugby season, but always a reality check, as the Northern hemisphere sides generally suffer against Southern hemisphere teams. England, being the biggest money-spinners, get to play all three of the world’s top teams, New Zealand, South Africa and Australia. It is usually a sobering experience. This season England, rebuilding, lost the first two, against the Aussies and Boks. Both games were close, but England’s handling was imprecise, most of their play a bit laboured.  Against the top defences in the world, mind. Last weekend, the captain, Chris Robshaw was slaughtered by the press for choosing to take the three points from a penalty a couple of minutes from the end, rather than have the fly half, Owen Farrell, kick to touch for a lineout, which possibly could have led to a try.  Possibly. No such thing had happened in the rest of the game. Kicking the three points (which Farrell did) would put England one point behind, with a chance to gain possession from the South Africa kick off, and then go through the phases, with the chance of another penalty, or a drop goal, or even a try. The only problem, in the end, was that Mauritz Botha dropped the ball, therefore ruining the plan.

I should declare an interest. Robshaw is a Quins man, a magnificent leader and player. But I do think he took the right decision. It was the execution that went wrong. At Quins it may well have worked.

Anyway, with England having lost to both South Africa and Australia, expectations were low heading into the New Zealand game. The All Blacks, after all, are the best team in the world. But, as with West Ham v Chelsea, there was just a glimmer of hope.  In this case it was the feeling that England  are actually quite good, and are developing into a top team. Maybe this was the game when it would click. Maybe…

Most of the chat beforehand was about the margin of defeat for England.  I opted for ten points.  Thinking they’d push New Zealand, but still be outclassed.

Well, how wrong I, and everyone else was!

England came out of the blocks competing fiercely, and took New Zealand by surprise with their intensity.  The first half was all about penalties.  Owen Farrell scored four out of four; the world No 1 Dan Carter missed both of his kicks. 12-0 England. We started to think, could it happen?

In the second half Farrell slotted over another penalty to make it 15-0. I was enjoying this!  But then the backlash – or should that be blacklash? – occurred. New Zealand upped a few gears and tore through England’s defences for two quick tries. Carter converted both.  15-14. Oh well, it was good for the first forty five minutes…

We waited for the next NZ try.  But then something else happened. England scored three! In rapid succession. They ripped New Zealand apart. All the tries by backs who’d taken a bit of stick after the first two matches, for lack of creativity and penetration. First, centre Brad Barritt, then winger Chris Ashton, then the other centre Manu Tuilagi. And it was the latter who was most responsible for the breakthrough. He was clearly the back New Zealand most feared and that led to mistakes in their defending for the first try. Ashton’s try came after a Tuilagi burst, and the third came from Tuilagi himself after he intercepted a New Zealand pass. Incredible stuff – suddenly England were 32-14 up!

England by now were playing with verve and great confidence.  The forwards were awesome – they were winning all the battles. The All Blacks were seriously rattled. Then the substitutions began. I can understand why.  Fresh legs, unbattered bodies, are needed. But it made me nervous. Owen Farrell off, debutant Freddie Burns on. Why take that risk? What if Burns fluffed it, great prospect though he is?  (He didn’t: in fact he turned the screw on New Zealand, as the management would have anticipated). England got another penalty, converted by Burns. 35-14. That helped, though I couldn’t escape the mindset that even with a few minutes to go, New Zealand were perfectly capable of turning everything around. They did get one try back and threatened the England line again. As the threat of defeat finally receded, I wanted this to be the biggest defeat of the All Blacks ever. The commentator told us the previous margin was 13 points. Hold on to that 17! New Zealand attacked.  There was a melee on England’s try line.  Surely not a try? No, the ref blew the whistle….

38-21. The record winning margin for England against New Zealand. Truly amazing.

Flanker Tom Wood got man of the match. Right that a forward got it. It was the intensity of the forwards’ performance that set England up for victory. Then the backs did the business. The old adage: the fowards win you the game, the backs determine by how much. A bit unfair, given the defensive shift the backs put in too, and their role at the breakdown; but that is the nature of rugby union.

There were fifteen MoMs out there. Chris Robshaw was everywhere, leading from the front. The two second rows, Geoff Parling and young Joe Launchbury, were immense. Dan Cole at prop was ruthlessly efficient in the rucks. Owen Farrell kicked and passed brilliantly. Ben Youngs at scrum half was back to his pacy, probing best. Mike Brown, on the wing, gained the hard yards and was superb under the high ball. And Barritt and Tuilagi were solid and dangerous in the centre.  Which takes us back to the point made earlier that the All Blacks clearly feared Tuilagi, and in the end, he was the game changer.

So maybe Tuilagi was the true man of the match, the catalyst.  I’ve had my doubts about him, but today we saw how his raw power makes the difference.

Wow! I never thought I’d be writing about the England rugby team like this.  Not today, anyway. But this really is a result to savour for a long time. And one to give us hope that this team could become great, maybe even win a World Cup. No, no let’s not get too carried away. It’s one fantastic result. That’s all. It could be the turning point, but let’s see if the level of performance can be sustained.

Roll on the Six Nations!

 

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Emily Barker at the Union Chapel… and the Rocking Trio at the King’s Head, Islington

Posted on November 22, 2012 by John S

I’ve just had the most brilliant musical evening. I’m staying up late to write about it because I’m away for the next few days. And I’m still buzzing…

It started with Emily Barker and the Red Clay Halo at the Union Chapel in Islington.  If you follow my blog closely, you’ll know I love this band and have reviewed them before.  This was a big concert for them tonight.  The final gig of a headlining tour. I’d not been to the Union Chapel before.  It’s a lovely venue. Still a church, but multi-purpose. Magnificent arches and diagonal seating which focuses the whole congregation on centre stage. Which, tonight, was Emily. It’s the third time I’ve seen her and the band in the last year. You could sense the occasion tonight. She was a little nervous at the start. And who wouldn’t be at such an important moment.  I felt for her.

It was a fantastic concert. Beautiful tunes, singing, playing, everything.  My personal highlight was about half way through with the wonderful “Pause”, just Emily strumming on her electric guitar and all four members of the band singing the loveliest harmonies. And following that,  a delicate tune from the first album, “Photos.Fires.Fables”, called ‘This Is How It’s Meant To Be”, a wistful melody, lovely plucked guitar and some harmonica at the end which was just so perfect. Really moving. I felt the tears welling for these two songs.

There were a few new songs, from the forthcoming album in the new year. They were a bit more electric, a bit more upbeat. Preparing for a bigger stage? I liked them (of course). The music had a hint of Springsteen.  That is always OK by me!

The concert ended quite early – around 10.15 – so there was an option to have a couple more beers. One of my friends, Shane, and I decided to wander down Upper Street and find a decent pub. Shane lives locally, so he knows where to go.  We went into the Kings Head and found a rock’n’roll band playing. A trio called… The Rocking Trio. They were really good.  When we arrived they were playing that music that just pre-dated the rock’n’roll explosion, a hint of jazz and swing, Latin. A few people were dancing; one couple were jiving. The vibe was good.

Shane and I got our lagers and slipped towards the back of the pub where we could still talk. But the music increasingly captured our attention. Rock’n’roll classics: Eddie Cochran, Buddy Holly, Jerry Lee Lewis, Chuck Berry, Elvis. It was really good!  Superb guitar, a classic double bass, a solid drum beat holding it all together. I’d only intended to have a quick pint. But it was so enjoyable that I suggested one for the road… and then another! It wasn’t the beer, it was the music. We didn’t want to leave. At 11.45 I started to think about the tube home to West London, so had to leave, but I could have stayed. It was great stuff.

Simple, brilliant rock’n’roll. The essence.

I loved the end to this evening. Emily Barker was just so good. But then Shane and I had this bonus. Purely by chance. Wonderful.

I think the word is serendipity.…

(Previous review here)

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