With Just A Hint Of Mayhem

Music reviews, gig reviews, fun trivia and extra added random stuff!

“But the Shadow Man is really you, look in his eyes and see your reflection” January 8, 2022

Filed under: News — justwilliam1959 @ 11:40 pm
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OK I know I am a tad late with this, but I don’t want to let January 8th pass by without a mention for the Dame on what would have been his 75th Birthday. After stunning comeback albums ‘The Next Day’ in 2013 and ‘Blackstar’ in 2016 who knows what he might have achieved had he lived? Would there have been more musicals after the success of ‘Lazarus’, the often spoken about Ziggy musical maybe? Would there have been more interesting collaborations? Would he have explored music genres that he had never explored before? Who knows, but to quote Mr. Bowie himself from his 50th Birthday Concert at Madison Square Gardens in New York back in 1997, “I don’t know where I’m going from here but I promise it won’t be boring”. Rest In Peace David Robert Jones your music still resonates and always will!

If you fancy some Bowie tunes I have added a few videos to this post, I have also created a few Bowie playlists on Spotify, check them out!

With Just A Hint Of Mayhem Goes Under The Covers With The Dame – Covers recorded or played live by Mr. Bowie

With Just A Hint Of Mayhem – Bowie Live – More Bowie live tracks that many of you will ever need

With Just A Hint Of Mayhem – Bowie Deep Cuts – The lesser played tracks from Dame Dave’s albums

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Mayhem Does Playlists Again – 2022 January 4, 2022

Filed under: Playlist — justwilliam1959 @ 12:24 am
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Here’s the Spotify Playlist I promised before Christmas. It includes the twelve tracks that I included in my Songs Of Hope 12 Days Of Christmas series plus some that you delightful readers recommended. I even added John Lennon’s “Imagine”, a song I really don’t like, as someone wanted it included! Like all my playlists it is recommended for shuffle play! Click here to give it a spin. Including the new one, you have fifteen to choose from!

Here are most of my other playlists. Feel free to follow them and share them!

If you want to suggest any tracks to be added to any of them just let me know!

With Just A Hint Of Mayhem Does Britpop and other 90s Greats – OK, Britpop wasn’t really a genre was it? But the 90s did have some great tunes

Billy Does Glam & other early 70s pop – get your platforms on!

Billy’s Best Snotty Punk Tracks – who doesn’t love punk?

Billy’s Ranking Reggae Rockers – everybody loves reggae right?

Billy’s 70s Soul, Funk & Disco Selection – right back to my youth! Get on your flares and get dancin’

Billy’s 60s Soul Selection – I dare you not to enjoy and dance to this lot!

Billy’s Barbecue Belters – this started as a nice backdrop to a summer barbecue that has, thanks to some musical brain farts, grown to a whopping 470 songs that helped shape my life in some way! This will take you more than 31 hours to play all of it!

Johnny Nash – The Greatest Vocalist Ever – Does what it says on the tin, the late, great Johnny Nash was for me the greatest vocalist that ever lived.

Pure Cheesy Pop! – Who doesn’t love a bit of cheese with added guilty pleasures!

Weirdsville City Limits – some really weird tracks that formed the long list for a radio show that I did for Jorvik Radio last year

FACK TRUMP! – largely political and mostly protest songs. This one needs updating!

How about a few Bowie playlists? OK? Don’t mind if I do……

With Just A Hint Of Mayhem Goes Under The Covers With The Dame – Covers recorded or played live by Mr. Bowie

With Just A Hint Of Mayhem – Bowie Live – More Bowie live tracks that many of you will ever need

With Just A Hint Of Mayhem – Bowie Deep Cuts – The lesser played tracks from Dame Dave’s albums

Probably my favourite mixtape/ playlist!

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The Mayhem Monthly Top 20 Artist Chart – January 1st, 2022 January 2, 2022

Filed under: Mayhem Top 20 Chart — justwilliam1959 @ 1:45 pm
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Greetings to readers new and old, I hope that 2022 is a great one for you. But frankly it can’t be worse than 2020 and 2021 can it? Well my 2022 has started with me isolating with Covid, so who knows! many of you know that I am a keen user of a site called Obscurify. It claims to tell you how obscure your listening on Spotify is. Compared to the rest of the UK I still remain 99% more obscure than other users in the UK. It also lists my most obscure artists, (the top two of which have been there since I began doing these posts) which currently are;

Woke Up Dead (Ever present excellent band)

Promethium (This metal bunch continue to fly the flag for great British rock)

The Dead Zoo (This fabulous band make another appearance at number 15 in this months top 20)

Catherine Anne Davies (a.k.a. The Anchoress. This entry is thanks to me spending some time with the sublime album she released with Bernard Butler, ‘In Memory Of My Feelings’)

The Suncharms (Two months in a row in the obscure gang and top of the last chart too, falling to number two this time out)

So who were the top artists for January 1st (which incidentally was also my birthday!) ? Check the full lists below, the Dame is back at the top after a lowly showing last time. Suncharms stick around at 2. Number 3 is the home of one of my favourite ever acts, the KLF. Meanwhile the Kunts, the marvellous punk Christmas chart Crusaders are at number 4, thanks to me looping their excellent attack on Boris Johnson in a campaign to get it to Christmas number one There are a few new (to me) artists in there, notably Kid Kapichi, Captain Accident and Ferocious Dog. Also, plenty of the usual classic acts, including Paul Weller, Frank Zappa, Bruce Springsteen, Emmylou Harris, Wings and Procol Harum. Give Obscurify a spin and let me know what your chart looks like and how obscure your tastes are 🙂

Mayhem’s Top 20 Artists on Spotify (January 1st 2022)

1 David Bowie
2 Suncharms
3 KLF
4 The Kunts
5 Paul Weller
6 Emmylou Harris
7 Frank Zappa
8 Bruce Springsteen
9 Gregory Porter
10 Alicia Keys
11 Captain Accident
12 Cat Power
13 Ferocious Dog
14 Wings
15 The Dead Zoo
16 Apollo Junction
17 Procol Harum
18 Stanley Clarke
19 Kid Kapichi
20 Depeche Mode

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The Mayhem Christmas Message 2021 December 25, 2021

Filed under: Christmas Message — justwilliam1959 @ 5:45 pm
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I hope you are all doing well given what Covid has done and is still doing to us. I really hope that we will start to see the end of living on Plague Island in 2022. I would like to say a huge and heartfelt thank you to everyone who has read, liked, or followed With Just A Hint Of Mayhem during 2021 and a big shout out to all of you who have been with us longer than that. I am especially grateful for the reviews that Paul and Tom have added to the site. Then of course the bands and artists that gave us some awesome Christmas messages this year. Personally, I have loved getting back to live gigs after so long, hopefully, this will only get better next year. We have been a little behind on reviews in 2021, we plan to do better next year. It just remains for me to say enjoy the rest of your Christmas and have a fabulous new year. You may have seen the Queen’s Christmas message, well this is mine!

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A Christmas Message From The Last Of The Fallen Angels December 24, 2021

Filed under: Christmas Message — justwilliam1959 @ 4:42 pm
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This is our 11th and final Christmas message for 2021, well you still have my own Mayhem Message to come tomorrow. I would like to say a huge thank you to all the bands and artists that have given a Yuletide message, we will definitely be doing this again next year. So this final one is from a band that always produces quality music, it is the Last Of The Fallen Angels. Conrad McQueen the Fallen Angels main man gave me some info about what they have been up to in 2021 and what is on the horizon for 2022. They released an 8 song CD earlier this year called “Radio Babylon” which features Peter Hook, Rowetta, Brinsley Forde, Victoria Owsnett and many more. The CD is available for only £10 and all sales go to Musicians Against Homelessness supporting Crisis. Just click here and in no time at all you will own this fine collection! As for 2022 apparently the Last Of The Fallen Angels will have some cracking new tunes for us, now that is definitely something to look forward to! Oh and if you think the Christmas message looks familiar, it is, it is last years message, which was so good we are using it again! Watch carefully and you will see an appearance from Taylor of Not Now Norman, who also provided one of our earlier Christmas messages.

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A Christmas Message From Avalanche Party December 23, 2021

Filed under: Christmas Message — justwilliam1959 @ 10:51 pm
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Just when you thought those Christmas messages had ended along comes another one, this time from a band that I have now seen as many times as I saw David Bowie, so twelve times then. I have been a fan and have followed Avalanche Party since I first saw an embryonic form of the band, under the name of 3 Foot Ninja back in May 2009. Probably one of the best live bands there is and their debut album in 2019 was stunning. Expect more material, loads more gigs, and a new album from the Avalanche Party boys in 2022. Click here to check out their website for some great T-Shirts and an opportunity to purchase that debut album. The message is from bass player Joe on behalf of the band. Remember, there ain’t no party like an Avalanche Party!

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The 12 Days Of Christmas 2021 – Songs Of Hope – Day 12

Filed under: Christmas — justwilliam1959 @ 12:27 am
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Well, this is it folks, the final day and song of this year’s 12 Days of Christmas series which as most of you know comprises a collection of songs about hope. The first ten posts have given you songs from Bill Withers, The Beatles, Johnny Nash, Bob Marley, ELO, Sam Cooke, Monty Python, Curtis Mayfield, Fleetwood Mac, the Four Tops, and the Source featuring Candi Staton. In the next few days, there will be a Spotify playlist of all twelve tunes and any that you recommend, feel free to fire more of your recommendations to me. For my final choice, I wanted to use a Christmas song, but I struggled to find something appropriate. So after much deliberation, I chose a 1991 UK top five hit, produced by Suggs of Madness, “All Together Now” by the Farm. Why did I choose this as a Christmas selection? The lyrics were written about the Christmas Day Truce in World War I where, on Christmas Day 1914, soldiers from both sides put their weapons down, and met in no man’s land to exchange gifts and play football. This was an action driven by the soldiers, not the top brass. Personally I well up every time I hear it, but it also makes me feel inspired to think that we can change things by our actions and that whole thing shows the total futility of war in my view. I have immensely enjoyed putting these songs out there and I hope you have enjoyed listening to them. The world remains a strange, dark place, well it certainly feels that way here on Plague Island UK. But I sincerely hope that these songs help you even in a small way. Stay safe, stay strong and I will be there for you if you need me.

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The Race For The UK Christmas Numer 1 in 2021

Filed under: Christmas,News,Observation — justwilliam1959 @ 12:26 am
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PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT: Before you read this I should warn you that if you are offended by profanities you might not enjoy it!

2021 is the 70th year of the UK Christmas Number one and up to now only three acts have managed three successive Christmas number ones; The Beatles, Spice Girls, and Ladbaby (a.k.a Mark Hoyle), the latter is vying for four in a row with “Sausage Rolls For Everyone” supported by Elton John and Ed Sheeran, the song is effectively a rework of Ed and Elton’s new Christmas tune, the current number one. It is also worth pointing out the Beatles took Yuletide number one on four occasions. The 2021 Official Christmas Number 1 will be announced on Friday, December 24 by Scott Mills live on BBC Radio 1’s The Official Chart Show. So you can download or stream up to midnight on 23rd and that will help your favourite move up the charts. Ed Sheeran and Elton John’s “Merry Christmas” might hang on to the top slot and everyone from Abba to Gary Barlow to Craig Revel Horwood to George Ezra are in the mix. But so are the Kunts with an updated version of “Boris Johnson Is A Fucking Cunt” from last year, the slight change is that it is now titled “Boris Johnson Is Still A Fucking Cunt”. (There are eleven versions of the Kunts track, don’t forget to download them all, you know you want to. I totally agree with the sentiment and personally, I would love to see the Kunts at number one, although I suspect that Ladbaby will win in the end. The saving grace for all of Ladbaby’s hits is that all the proceeds go to the Trussel Trust who supports a nationwide network of food banks in the UK. As I said earlier I really would love to see the Kunts top the chart, but if it has to be anyone else then at least the Ladbaby song is raising money for a great cause. Who is your tip for UK festive number one?

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A Christmas Message From Not Now Norman December 22, 2021

Filed under: Christmas Message — justwilliam1959 @ 11:51 pm
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Those Christmas messages keep coming, sadly it looks like this might be the last one for this year, but if it is we’ll go out with a bang because it is the dynamic, delightful, dynamite rockers Not Now Norman with a wonderful acoustic update to their rather spiffing song “Little Frankenstein”. This is “Christmas Frankenstein (With Just A Hint Of Mayhem Special)” exclusively for you dear readers, at least initially. In my opinion, everyone should have the opportunity to hear this. Taylor and Zander absolutely knock it out of the park! Click here to check out their site, you can even peruse the lyrics. Then check out more Not Now Norman tunes on Spotify. Then finally bag yourself an ace band T-Shirt via Bandcamp. This amazing band is also on my bucket list to see play live in 2022.

Incidentally, I found the picture online, if the photographer would like a credit or removal please let me know.

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The 12 Days Of Christmas 2021 – Songs Of Hope – Day 11

Filed under: Christmas — justwilliam1959 @ 6:51 pm
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We are at day 11 of this year’s 12 Days of Christmas series which as regular readers know showcases a collection of songs about hope. That’s right, only one left after this. The first ten posts have given you songs from Bill Withers, The Beatles, Johnny Nash, Bob Marley, ELO, Sam Cooke, Monty Python, Curtis Mayfield, Fleetwood Mac, and the Four Tops At the end of the twelve days, there will be a Spotify playlist of all twelve tunes and any that you recommend. I have really enjoyed putting these songs out there and I hope you have enjoyed listening to them. The world remains a strange, dark place, well it certainly feels that way here on Plague Island UK. But I sincerely hope that these songs help you even in a small way. Today’s song is one of my favourite songs of all time, the Source featuring Candi Staton with “You Got The Love”. Check out some of the other mixes too, but for me, the Now Voyager Mix is the definitive one. I know that this is rooted in God and religion and I am an atheist, but it transcends pure religion, it is simply sublime. Get your groove on and dance people!

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