With Just A Hint Of Mayhem

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

“Well I gave him roasted toadstools and a glass of dandelion wine” April 1, 2009

Filed under: Trivia — justwilliam1959 @ 10:34 am
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Good day to you regular bloggees, is that the correct terminology for blog readers if the writers are bloggers? Anyway welcome to April 1st also known as April Fools Day or All Fools Day in some quarters. Have you read any of the papers today? There’s a great story in the Guardian in the UK, it says that they will no longer publish on paper but that they will move publication exclusively to Twitter. I wonder how many people fell for that one! If you want to know more about the April Fools day tradition check it out at Wikipedia

I thought that I’d once again stray from the usual format today, well mostly anyway. I do have a couple of ‘onthisdays’ before we move on to a more All Folls day related post.

Firstly I would like you all to take time out and listen to at least one Marvin Gaye song today, the 25th Anniversary of his death. He was shot dead by his father at his parents home in LA. Marvin’s father was found guilty of voluntary manslaughter and sentenced to 5 years. If things work out there will be more on Marvin tomorrow.

Also on this day in 2001 the UK press was full of stories about former Spice Girl and one time Scary Spice Mel B. Allegedly she had been advised to sell her £3.5m mansion (which incidentally is in Marlow where I used to live!) because she couldn’t afford to run it. She had supposedly told friends that she had taken out a £500k bank loan to help with the upkeep.

In order to help cut the running costs at her mansion Mel B sold the butlers uniform

In order to help cut the running costs at her mansion Mel B sold the butlers uniform

So onto the April Fools related stuff and I promise that this will not involve any digs at that Fat Dancer from Take That (copyright Noel Gallagher). But it will include David Bowie, yes him again! As much as I really dislike this song today is the perfect day to bring it back. Can you guess what it is yet? yep you’re right it’s “The Laughing Gnome” not exactly the Dame’s finest hour but in many ways better than a lot of the crap he produced in the 80s. Sadly as I am a big Bowie fan my collection includes “The Laughing Gnome” and all the 80s crap too. Bowie recorded Gnome in 1967 which is when it was originally released, it was never a hit then though. But it was reissued on the back of his Ziggy related success and reached number 3 in the UK in 1973. When he did the Sound And Vision tour in 1990/91 there was a phone line where you could call in the hits you wanted him to play. The NME mounted a campaign to get him to play “The Laughing Gnome”. It was quite successful too as I believe that he did play it once on that tour. Click here to listen to that Bowie classic, I double dare you!

This fan let's Mr Bowie know that he prefers "Moonage Daydream" to the "Laughing Gnome"

This fan let's Mr Bowie know that he prefers "Moonage Daydream" to the "Laughing Gnome"

I’m not a big fan of comedy records but I do have a soft spot for “Ernie (The Fastest Milkman In The West)” by Benny Hill (a UK number one in 1972) perhaps because my late great father was a milkman, although he wasn’t called Ernie. Although amusingly enough there was an Ernie who worked at the same depot, I don’t recall him being particularly fast though. I worked as my dad’s milkboy from 1970 to 1975, I suppose that was my first ever job. It was a fantastic job too, I never realised until the last few months of my Dad’s life, he died in 2001, exactly how great those years working together had been. It gave me the perfect opportunity to spend so much time exclusively with my Dad, if I was to live my life again that is something I would definitely not change.

Benny only just failed the audition to join the Spice Girls as Cupid Spice

Benny only just failed the audition to join the Spice Girls as Cupid Spice

And to end this April Fools Day post what better song to do it with than Steve Miller’s “The Joker” enjoy yourselves good people!

Every pack of cards has two jokers and now so does this post! Heath ledger RIP

Every pack of cards has two jokers and now so does this post! Heath ledger RIP

 

“I could be the ticket man at Fulham Broadway Station” March 27, 2009

Filed under: News,Trivia — justwilliam1959 @ 2:21 pm
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You folks may be surprised to find that the usual format has returned for this post, it’s had a few days rest and is now ready to appear again, but dam you should see the rider it requested! I didn’t know it was possible to buy baby oil and lard in those kind of quantities! Talking of riders, is everyone aware of what a rider is? Yes I know it’s someone who sits on a horse Jes! But thanks for the input anyway. But that’s not what it is in this context. According to Wiki, which to be fair isn’t always 100% correct the ‘hospitality rider’ is a list of requests for the comfort of the artist on the day of the show. Sometimes this document is provided along with the technical rider; other times, it is provided much closer to the performance date. Thanks to those wonderful people at the ‘Smoking Gun’ website you can now view the recent riders of more than 270 acts, there is some interesting reading there, trust me! Click here to see it. Apparently one of David Bowie’s requirements is that each room must have at least two fans, I presume he means air coolers and not groupies! Hey did you see how I just sneaked in another DB reference?

I also feel bad that I didn’t post this earlier, but many of you will be aware of the death of British TV icon Wendy Richard. Wendy is perhaps best known for her roles as Miss Brahms in 70s sitcom ‘Are You Being Served’ and as Pauline Fowler in Eastenders. But wait I thought this was a music blog I hear you cry………. louder please! well yes you’re right it is a music blog and it is absolutely right to feature Wendy Richard in it too. She was the uncredited voice on Mike Sarne’s 1962 UK number one “Come Outside“. Wendy was paid just £15 for that session and the song went on to sell around a half a million copies. In 1964 she also made a cameo appearance in the Beatles movie film ‘Help!’ but her contribution sadly ended up on the cutting room floor.

presumably Wendy and Molly were discussing Mrs Slocombe's pussy ;-)

presumably Wendy and Molly were discussing Mrs Slocombe's pussy 😉

There are two birthdays today, Friday 27th March, well ok there are loads more, but just two on this post! Starting with Mr Tony Banks off of Genesis who is 59 today. He was a founding member of Genesis and along with Mike Rutherford one of the only two original members to have remained with the band for the whole of it’s existence, since 1967 in fact. In the early sixties Banks attended Charterhouse School in Sussex in the UK where he met Rutherford and also Peter Gabriel. Although Tony Banks has provided occasional vocals for Genesis and some on his solo work he has also employed an eclectic group of vocalists for his solo projects. These include Nik Kershaw, Toyah Willcox, Fish and Jim Diamond. Here is Tony with Genesis playing “Mama”

Tony was very proud of his keyboard style kitchen work tops, but where the hell was the bloody sink?

Tony was very proud of his keyboard style kitchen work tops, but where the hell was the bloody sink?

Second and final birthday for today is that of Mariah Carey, she reaches the ripe old age of 39 today. Did you know that Mariah’s folks named her after the song “They Call The Wind Mariah” from the musical “Paint Your Wagon”. They called the wind Mariah eh? I can feel a fart joke coming on but I’ll resist! Wow that’s a first maybe I’m reaching maturity, bloody hell I hope not! Mariah is often referred to as the ‘Queen Of Pop’ (oops there’s another fart gag there surely?). Although it’s hardly an exclusive title as at various times the following divas have also been given that accolade; Celine Dion, Beyonce, Whitney Houston, Janet Jackson, Britney Spears and Madonna. Here comes Mariah with “Hero”

That's Mariah on the left............. I think!

That's Mariah on the left............. I think!

On this day in1973 the late great (well the l’s & g’s have been resting too) Jerry Garcia off of the Grateful Dead was arrested for speeding in New Jersey. The Police discovered cocaine and LSD in his car. But strangely they discovered no speed, hmmmmm…… is that grounds for wrongful arrest? Jerry’s full name was Jerome John Garcia and he was named after the composer Jerome Kern. In 1987 Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream produced the Cherry Garcia flavour, the first ice cream ever named after a rock musician. For a month after Jerry’s death in 1995 the ice cream was produced using black cherries rather than the usual red as a form of mourning for Garcia. For all you Deadheads out there here is Jerry with the Dead and “Ripples”

Could this be a deady bears picnic?

Could this be a deady bears picnic?

And finally on this day in 2000 the late great (well they did have a very, very good rest those ‘ole l’s & g’s) Ian Dury died after a long battle with cancer. When Ian first confirmed that he had cancer he was said to have told family and friends, “I haven’t got cancer, but cancer’s got me and it’s going to have to bloody deal with me!” That has to be th epitome of positive thinking, what a great man. Also the UK tabloids had been sniffing around and offering silly money for their ‘IAN DURY IN CANCER SHOCK’ headlines, but he beat them on that too. Ian went to the Guardian newspaper and gave them a UK press exclusive on his condition in exchange for a donation to a cancer charity. I’ll say it again, what a great man! Apparently the Blockheads are writing and recording again, this time with Dave The Draw, Dury’s friend and minder on vocals. It would have been all to easy to show a clip of “Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick”, so I won’t, here’s “What A Waste” instead, with a great intro from Mr Peter Cook too, from the TV show Revolver!

Ian was never happy when he was in the papers, unless of course he was sleeping

Ian was never happy when he was in the papers, unless of course he was sleeping

 

Has celebrity finally eaten itself? March 23, 2009

Filed under: Observation — justwilliam1959 @ 10:03 am
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OK firstly let me apologise to those of you who were expecting the usual music related post. This one isn’t and is also a little more serious than usual so feel free to stop reading now if you wish. This is a kind of rant from me I suppose. The following words are simply my own opinion so feel free to disagree if you do proceed with reading it!

In my opinion the whole cult of celebrity which has grown bigger over recent years than it ever was in my youth has perhaps finally begun to devour it’s own corpse. For quite a number of years the rise of reality TV has provided an opportunity for many people to aspire to be famous for ‘Being famous’ sake. Now forgive me here but surely fame should be something earned through a talent of some kind. That is what it always used to be. But no, now we have TV shows where individuals of limited talent and in many cases limited intellect compete for their ultimate desire, which would appear to be ‘to be famous’. Please note that many of these individuals never seem to add a coda to that statement that says why they want to be famous (i.e. for their writing talent, their sporting prowess, their comedic talent, their debating skill or indeed any kind of talent).

What this gives our fame obsessed society is a bunch of people whose only claim to fame is that they have won or indeed appeared on a reality TV show and as a result have become a celebrity of sorts. Shows like Big Brother, The Apprentice, X Factor, American Idol and such. But wait I suspect that some of you are thinking that X Factor and the like are talent shows, aren’t they? Well maybe they are but in my opinion (so like I said before it is your right to have your opinion too) they are a combination of the Victorians watching the patients in the Asylum for entertainment and a bunch of people seeking fame for fame’s sake. For example Leon Jackson (2007 X Factor) winner has been dropped by his label after just one album, where are Steve Brookstein and countless others now? Where is Gareth Gates? Yes I know there have been some successes from reality TV (Will Young, Girls Aloud, Leona Lewis) but in my opinion these will always be the exception.

Maybe Andy Warhol was right and everyone will get their 15 minutes of fame and this is the culmination of that. The rise of tabloid newspapers and tabloid celebrity magazines like Hello and OK have all led the way and multiplied the number of people who now seek that holy grail of fame. But with so many people becoming ‘famous’ is it such a holy grail anymore?

In the 60’s and 70’s recording artists were developed, record companies invested time and money in them. In these days of ‘instant success’ people like Kate Bush, David Bowie and many others would have been either not signed or dropped by their label long before they achieved any success.

You may be wondering what caused me to rant about this instant fame issue, some of you have already guessed I’m sure. This weekend saw the sad death of Reality TV Star Jade Goody. What was Jade famous for? Effectively appearing as a contestant on Big Brother, she didn’t even win it. Please don’t get me wrong here, I think it is terribly sad that a 27 year old woman has died and left a husband and two young children. But why is this headline news? Millions of people die every day and there are no voices for them.

The news media, especially the tabloids, would appear to be on the verge of canonising Jade Goody. According to the BBC the Prime Minister led the stream of major celebrities that have expressed their condolences and she is on the front of every UK newspaper this morning. The very same newspapers that were baying for her blood during the racism row in Celebrity Big Brother just a short while ago. Just how morally redundant are the press? It seems it doesn’t matter as long as it sells copy and as for OK magazine, well they even published a Jade Goody tribute magazine before the poor woman was dead. In my opinion people like Max Clifford, Jade’s Publicist, are trying to build this whole thing up into a Princess Diana level event. Frankly that was a staggering outpouring of grief for another woman that most people only hew through her portrayal in the news media. I know that the money made will help provide excellent education and such for Jade’s children but clearly Mr Clifford isn’t doing this out of the kindness of his heart either. Many people unconnected with Jade will profit from this.

I have also read that many more women are seeking cancer screening tests as a result of the publicity generated by Jade’s illness. This is obviously a good thing but I certainly doubt that this was one of the aims of the whole publicity circus.

Maybe Celebrity has finally killed itself off and is feasting on it’s remains. Let’s hope this also kills off the tacky, unscrupulous and morally bankrupt tabloid press too. Jade who?

 

“You can almost hear time slipping away” March 20, 2009

Filed under: Trivia — justwilliam1959 @ 9:55 am
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At last it’s the end of the week and a whole two days of weekend beckon. It doesn’t sound like much when you say it like that does it? And finally for the first time in a long while this is a very short post! See I did it eventually

So onto today Friday 20th March 2009. Just one birthday today, well I mean there are obviously many others but I’m only covering one ok! That birthday is the 50th birthday of one Mr Richard Drummie off of Go West a classic 80’s band. Wait a minute I can’t believe I just used classic and 80s in the same sentence. It was definitely not my favourite decade for music. Although Go West were pretty good I would grudgingly admit. Richard’s partner in Go West was Peter Cox and they released their first single “We Close Our Eyes” in 1985. At the 1986 Brits they were voted Best Newcomers. One of their bigger US hits was “King Of Wishful Thinking” which was covered by New Found Glory last year. That version also included Fall Out Boy’s Patrick Stump on guitar. Go west are indeed still around and released a new album last year called ‘futurenow’ here are the Go West boys closing their eyes with, of course, “We Close Our Eyes”

Go West? Looks more like Go Vest to me!

Go West? Looks more like Go Vest to me!

On this day in 1970 David and Angela Bowie (yes you’ve been hit with yet another Bowie reference) were married at Beckenham Registry Office in Kent in the UK. They were divorced in 1980. It always amazes me that Bowie won custody of his son in the settlement. He was snorting mountains of cocaine from the mid 70’s and allegedly living on just milk and peppers. He also believed he had been kidnapped by witches at one point. Either he had a superb legal team, (but remember at that time he was close to broke thanks to the awful contract he had signed with Tony DeFries) or Angie was in an even worse state.

It's hard to imagine that this man (he's the one on the left by the way) became a style icon

It's hard to imagine that this man (he's the one on the left by the way) became a style icon

On this day in 1982 Joan Jett and the Blackhearts began a mighty seven week run at the top of the US singles chart with “I Love Rock ‘N’ Roll” which only managed a number four placing in the UK chart. The song was originally a hit for the Arrows in the 70’s and was written by two of that very band, Alan Merrill and Jake Hooker. The song was produced by Mickie Most and was originally a B Side. The younger readers may be more familiar with a more recent cover of the song from Britney Spears. Here is Joan in the original colour version of the video for “I Love Rock ‘N’ Roll”

Joan was clearly better at music than dress making

Joan was clearly better at music than dress making

And finally on this day in 2002 the Sun newspaper reported that Robbie Williams (yep him again) had become a priest. He had apparently been ordained by the non-denominational Universal Ministries via the internet. According to the report he officiated the wedding of Billy Morrison off of the Cult. Well it was in the Sun so it must be true right? 😉

Robbie's priestly robes seemed a little small and what is that stain on the front? OK I've been advised by my legal team to take this no further!

Robbie's priestly robes seemed a little small and what is that stain on the front? OK I've been advised by my legal team to take this no further!

 

“These are the days when you wish your bed was already made” March 15, 2009

Filed under: Trivia — justwilliam1959 @ 1:19 pm
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Well this is it folks the Ides of March, are you scared? Do you even know what the hell they are? Well the term Ides was thought to have meant the day of the Full Moon. The Ides of March (15th March) was made famous in Shakespeare’s ‘Julius Caesar’ as the day on which Caesar was assassinated. If you want more information about those nasty ides click here.

So without further ‘ides do’ and before the usual birthdays and stuff I have another contribution from one more regular reader. This time it’s Karen McP who would like me to mention her mate Martin’s band. They’re called ‘No Drinks On The Dance Floor’ I’ve had a listen to them on MySpace and I think they’re pretty damned good. Click here to go to their MySpace page and let me know what you think of them.

The other day I mentioned Bobby McFerrin and his excellent song “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” well I just heard it again in an environment that I hadn’t noticed before. Have you ever watched George A Romero’s ‘Dawn Of The Dead’ Zombie movie? I was watching the DVD last night and there is a great scene where the survivors decide to break into the shopping mall for protection. As they enter the building there is the usual awful electronic muzak playing and the tune is the wonderfully ironic (in this setting anyway) “Don’t Worry Be Happy”. How cool is that? Also I received this picture from Ellen at the Dead Zone group today, how appropriate?

Don't Worry, Be Hippy

Don't Worry, Be Hippy

So onto todays birthdays. Firstly today would have been Arif Mardin’s 77th birthday. He was born in Istanbul and died in New York in 2006. Arif produced some of the greatest acts to appear on the Atlantic label, where he spent 30 years. During his career he produced hits for many artists, these included; Carly Simon, Petula Clark, Bette Midler, Barbara Streisand, Diana Ross, Bee Gees, Patti Labelle, Aretha Franklin, Lulu, Anita Baker, Judy Collins, Phil Collins (no relation), Culture Club, Scritti Politti, Roberta Flack, Hall & Oates, Norah Jones, George Benson, Chaka Khan, Ringo Starr, Dusty Springfield, Average White Band and none other than David Bowie (I bet you never thought I’d get a Bowie reference in that list did you?). After meeting Quincy Jones and Dizzy Gillespie at a concert in Istanbul in 1956 Arif submitted a couple of compositions to Quincy. This changed his life as shortly after he became the first person to receive the Quincy Jones Scholarship at the Berklee College Of Music in Boston. He moved to the US with his wife Latife in 1958. He also won 12 Grammys during his career. So what song should we choose to celebrate what would have been Arif’s birthday? It has to be “Cut The Cake” by the Average White Band. OK fact fans, how many of you know that the Average White Band are in fact from Scotland?

This picture says two things to me 1) Caption Competition - come on readers do your worst and 2) I can't be bothered to think of anything amusing myself!

This picture says two things to me 1) Caption Competition - come on readers do your worst and 2) I can't be bothered to think of anything amusing myself!

The second and final of todays birthdays is that of Mark Hoppus from Blink 182 and +44. He is 37 today. Blink 182 is my son’s all time favourite band, so rest assured there will be yet another plug for his band later in this post! Hoppus plays bass and provides vocals for both Blink and +44. In addition to these talents he has also produced other bands such as New Found Glory and Motion City Soundtrack. These are exciting days for Blink fans with the band now back together following their reconciliation after Travis Barker’ horrific air crash earlier this year. They must be playing the UK surely, how about Reading and Leeds in August, any ideas? Mark was apparently conned out of half a million dollars last year by two people who offered him a deal in the development of automated checkouts for McDonalds. They were right cheating burgers weren’t they? Anyway here is Mark with the other Blink boys in the video for “What’s My Age Again?”

Mark knew that the rest of the band were incredibly jealous of his invisible stool

Mark knew that the rest of the band were incredibly jealous of his invisible stool

So onto that shameless plug for my son’s band. They’re called ‘Steal The Smile’ and you just need to click here to go to their MySpace page. Let me know what you think of them too. My son Luke is the guitarist and singer. And remaining with Blink 182 for a moment, Luke met Tom DeLonge after his Angels and Airwaves set at the Reading Festival in August 2007!

On this day in 1986 the Bangles were at number 2 in the UK singles chart with “Manic Monday” The song was actually written by Prince using the pseudonym Christopher Nevermind. In a bizarre twist of fate the song was stalled at number two in the US chart, it was held off the top spot by none other than Prince himself with the classic song “Kiss”. I must confess I really dislike the Tom Jones cover of “Kiss” that he did with the Art Of Noise. What do you think of it? Here are the Bangles with “Manic Monday”

This was probably the smallest stage the girls had ever played on, particularly as there was only room for three of them

This was probably the smallest stage the girls had ever played on, particularly as there was only room for three of them

And finally for today on this day in 1992 the Beastie Boys appeared at the Marquee Club in London. The Beasties started life in 1979 as a hardcore punk band called the Young Aborigines. They became a fully fledged rap crew after Rick Rubin signed them to the Def Jam label in the early 80s. They released the classic album ‘Licensed To Ill in 1986′ It became the first rap album to top the Billboard album charts in the US and went on to be the biggest selling rap album of the 80s. Arguably the band are the best white rappers there have ever been. Eminem and his fans may disagree but surely Vanilla Ice and his fan won’t? There is expected to be a new album from the boys later this year, tentatively titled “Tadlock’s Glasses’ To finish todays post here are the Beastie Boys with the rather good “Ch-Check It Out”

Surprisingly the Beasties play the game for men with small balls

Surprisingly the Beasties play the game for men with small balls

 

“We were barely 17 and we were barely dressed” March 11, 2009

Filed under: Trivia — justwilliam1959 @ 7:44 am
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Hello dear readers and welcome to the 11th March, coming up there’ll be one birthday and four ‘onthisdays’. But just before those here is yet another blatant plug for my son’s band ‘Steal The Smile‘ check them out and tell me what you think of them, add them as a friend on MySpace too if you haven’t done so already, click their name for the link.

So in yet another attempt to post a short one (oooooerr missus!) here comes that birthday.

Today is the 59th birthday of Bobby McFerrin who had a massive hit in 1988 with the rather excellent “Don’t Worry Be Happy” (UK 2, US 1 that is it’s respective chart positions and not an international soccer score in case you were wondering). It was the first a capella song to reach the top of the Billboard charts in the US. The phrase “Don’t Worry Be Happy” comes originally from the teachings of Meher Baba. His teachings were followed at times by Pete Townshend of the Who

Bobby was having the worst bad hair day of his life!

Bobby was having the worst bad hair day of his life!

On this day in 1967 the music publisher Dick James announced that the Beatles song (well it’s Macca’s really) “Yesterday” had been recorded by 446 acts at that point. Considering the song was only released in 1965 that’s pretty good going It is now believed that there are more than 3,000 recorded versions. The song is believed to have been performed more than 3 million times in the last century according to the BMI. Paul McCartney gave the tune the working title of “Scrambled Eggs” before he wrote the lyrics. Here are two cover versions of the song, firstly from Dogpatch Debbie, it’s certainly different and then a great version from the late great (oh yes they’re back!) Ray Charles

Paul's audience were somewhat surprised when he decided to cover "I'm A Little Teapot Short And Stout"

Paul's audience were somewhat surprised when he decided to cover "I'm A Little Teapot Short And Stout"

On this day in 1978 there was some shocking news (geddit?). French singer Claude Francois was electrocuted while changing a light bulb when he was standing in his bathtub, presumably with water in. he had a UK hit in 1976 with “Tears On The Telephone” Claude is perhaps most famous for writing the song “Comme D’Habitude” which became a standard after English lyrics were written by Paul Anka and the song with those new lyrics was recorded by ole’ blue eyes himself Mr Frank Sinatra (or as I like to call him Frank Sinister). That song ladies and gentlemen is “My Way” Incidentally David Bowie (yet another DB reference) was the first person to write an English lyric for the tune but nobody took his words up! Here is Claude with “Comme D’Habitude” and here Mr Bowie explains his encounter with the song, it’s impact on “Life On Mars” and how he met Marc Bolan.

Claude always wore Lynx anti-perspirant and it certainly seemed to work for him!

Claude always wore Lynx anti-perspirant and it certainly seemed to work for him!

Also on this day in 1978 Meat Loaf’s “Bat Out Of Hell” album began a 416 week run in the UK album charts and selling 2 million copies in the process. Mr Loaf is actually called Marvin Lee Aday, his Meat Loaf name allegedy came from an incident when he stood on the foot of his high school football coach. Jim Steinman wrote the ‘Bat Out Of Hell’ album and many claim that it shows his love of Bruce Springsteen, Phil Spector and Wagner. The album was produced by Todd Rundgren. The album supposedly still sells around 200,000 copies per year even now. Is there anyone reading this that doesn’t own the album? Here is Mr Loaf himself with the classic “Paradise By The Dashboard Light” ably assisted by Ellen Foley.

From the look of it Meat Loaf should have taken Claude's anti perspirant advice

From the look of it Meat Loaf should have taken Claude's anti perspirant advice

And yet again in 1978 the debut single from the wonderful Kate Bush, “Wuthering Heights” Kate was only 15 when EMI’s interest was sparked by a demo tape of hers was passed to their A & R man Bob Mercer by David Gilmour of Pink Floyd. Gilmour actually plays guitar on the song too in particular that wonderful solo on the fade out. The company spent nearly 3 years on developing Kate as an artist. Sadly with the awful rise of X Factor and Idol shows that kind of thing is almost unheard of these days. She undertook, dance, vocal and mime classes. Her mime teacher was none other than Lindsay Kemp, who also taught David Bowie his mime skills (there you go, yet another Bowie reference). “Wuthering Heights” was originally scheduled for release in November 1977 but the company deemed it to be not radio friendly, it was eventually issued in January 1978. The song was inspired by Emily Bronte’s book of the same name, Kate is a big Bronte fan and even shares her birthday, July 30th. (Kate in 1958 and Emily 140 years earlier in 1818) Here is Ms Bush with that wonderful song and yes “Wuthering Heights” is certainly one of the 50 songs in my top 10

Kate's Atage Musical version of Lady Godiva never really took off

Kate's Stage Musical version of Lady Godiva never really took off

And finally here’s another picture of Kate, simply because I’ve always had a thing for the delectable Ms Bush 🙂

More Kate Bush........ because I can!

More Kate Bush........ because I can or perhaps more likely because I'd like to 😉

 

“I spent the evening thinking about all the blood that flowed away” March 5, 2009

Filed under: Trivia — justwilliam1959 @ 11:03 am
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OK peeps it’s Thursday, it’s the 5th of March and it’s ……….. well it’s a big build up, but just another blog. Before I forget I should warn those of you that read this thing regularly that there may not be a post at all this weekend.

Are any of you a member in any Yahoo Groups? I’m a member of quite a few and I’d like to recommend a couple of those to you (click on the group name to go to the group home page). Both are very well run and full of news updates on a fantastically eclectic mix of artists. So give them a try and tell Tracy I sent you 🙂 So the groups in question are FAMOUS_WOMEN_OF_ROCK and ROCK-AROUND-THE-CLOCK I hope you enjoy them.

Before we get into the usual stuff thanks to Nick H for this link from the BBC. How many of you have degrees? If you answered yes is it a good one like maybe Engineering or Languages say, or is it a cop out subject like Media Studies or Travel & Tourism? Well fear not because help is at hand from Hope University in Liverpool. They are now offering a Beatles Degree!
Click here to get to the story. It doesn’t say but I wonder if there is an easier option like a Westlife NVQ or Boyzone BTEC. Im getting soft in my old age, a golden opportunity to dig at Robbie and I chose not to!

And now let’s get into the birthdays. First up today are twins Craig and Charlie Reid, who you probably know much better as the Proclaimers. Born in 1962 in Auchtermucty, Fife, Scotland the guys are 47 today. At school they were in a number of punk bands one of which was called ‘Eight Eyes’ which railed against the constant taunts of ”four eyes’ made to kids who wear glasses. Does that still happen? is it just a UK thing? Many of you will have heard of them from the reissue of their excellent “(I’m Gonna Be) 500 Miles” in 2007. This version was in aid of Comic Relief and featured Little Britain characters Brian Potter and Andy Pipkin and an excellent video led by Peter Kay, but that one has been seen so often I’m not going to include it here. Incidentally click on Comic Relief and you can see what great work they do and make a donation, go on, you know that you want to! I am going to give you the link to my favourite Proclaimers song though, that is “Letter From America” Sing along and enjoy! Don’t forget Red Nose Day is on Friday 13th March wear yours with pride!

They certainly looked like identical twins but they were very different in size!

They certainly looked like identical twins but they were very different in size!

The second and last of todays birthdays is that of John Frusciante of that excellent band the Red Hot Chili Peppers, he is 39 today. The band was originally formed in 1983 but Frusciante didn’t join until 1988 he then left during a Japanese tour in 1992. In a real case of revolving doors he rejoined the band in 1998! Outside of the Chili’s John has had a successful solo career and has also often collaborated with the Mars Volta. So to celebrate Mr F’s birthday here is “Californication”

Springfieldfornication doesn't really work does it? RHCP on the Simpsons

Springfieldfornication doesn't really work does it? RHCP on the Simpsons

On 5th March 1963 the late great (hey those l’s and g’s are still with us!) country singer Patsy Cline was killed in a plane crash in Dyersburg, Virginia along with the lesser known performers Cowboy Copas and Hawkshaw Hawkins (sorry but they sound like western action figures or porn star names to me, what do you think?)They were travelling to Nashville for a benefit concert for DJ “Cactus” Jack who had died in a car crash. Two days later in a most unfortunate twist of fate country singer Jack Anglin was killed in a car crash while on his way to Patsy’s funeral. Here is Patsy with “Crazy” which is one of my Mum’s favourite songs

Patsy had tried to live a 'no frills' life but found that she just didn't enjoy it, so the frills were back out front again!

Patsy had tried to live a 'no frills' life but found that she just didn't enjoy it, so the frills were back out front again!

On this day in 1965 “I Pity The Fool” the first single from a promising UK band, the Mannish Boys was released. It wasn’t a hit but the band did feature an 18 year old by the name of David Robert Jones. You may know him better as David Bowie. Oh man I got another Bowie reference in! I won’t say much about him, because there has been so much already since this blog started, so here is Muddy Waters with the song “Mannish Boy” which is where the band took their name from

David's hair always afforded him special treatment when the nit inspector (in this case 'Nitty Norman') visited his school!

David's hair always afforded him special treatment when the nit inspector (in this case 'Nitty Norman') visited his school!

And finally on this day in 1975 Rod Stewart met Britt Ekland ,in my opinion that is the moment that Rod started to go downhill. Especially with crud like “Do Ya Think I’m Sexy” and “Baby Jane”. I’ll forgive him “Ole Ola” as that was to support Scotland in the 1978 World Cup, but it was a crap song nonetheless. So I guess the relationship advanced Britt’s career more than it did Rod’s. She had previously been married to Peter Sellers, they seem very different don’t they Pete n Rod. Incidentally Rod is NOT Scottish although my Dad who was always insisted that Rod was, that was the only lifelong disagreement I ever had with my Dad. In case it helps I’m half Scots! By the way, Rod’s Dad was also Scottish! I’ll end with a reminder of just how good Rod once was, here he is with the Faces in 1974 with “You Wear It Well” and “Maggie May”

Rod and Britt really hoped that the old saying of 'two heads are better than one' was true as they had used so much hair spray that their heads were indeed stuck together!

Rod and Britt really hoped that the old saying of 'two heads are better than one' was true as they had used so much hair spray that their heads were indeed stuck together!

 

“did you see the suits and the platform boots?” March 1, 2009

Filed under: Trivia — justwilliam1959 @ 8:34 am
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I’m back again and it’s a brand new month, time Marches on doesn’t it? Anyway there have been some excellent comments in response to the current banking farce and also about the Chris Allen naked story, we still don’t know who he/ she is although Tom has owned up to searching for naked pictures of the elusive Chris. No one has found us yet via the Lily Allen naked route though, I’m beginning to think that’s a good thing.

I have also received a couple of e mails relating to my comments about that splendid airline company Ryanair who as you know offer some very cheap headline fares and then charge for everything else on top. The UK press today says they are floating an idea to put coin op slots on the aircraft toilets. You’ll need to spend a pound to ‘spend a penny’. On a similar note I reckon you’ll love the link sent to us by Nick H, just click on Ryanair. Maybe it’s actually true!

The new cheaper Ryanair fleet had just been delivered

The new cheaper Ryanair fleet had just been delivered

Larry sent this one to the Dead Zone Yahoo Group, which is where I borrowed it from. It’s an excellent link to a site showing Billy Idol’s “White Wedding” video but doctored so that it has him singing about what is actually in the video. Trust me this one is very funny!

Billy held out his arms ready to fly, he figured it would be so much cheaper than Ryanair

Billy held out his arms ready to fly, he figured it would be so much cheaper than Ryanair

Feel free to send me things that you think the other readers may enjoy, mostly music related but hey there’ll always be the occasional rant about things like Banking and Ryanair 🙂

So onto todays ton of trivia, well maybe not a ton, but quite a lot! Starting with a couple of birthdays. Firstly 1st March 2009 is Roger Daltrey’s 65th birthday. Does that mean he’ll be getting a “Magic Bus” pass? Roger is one of the two surviving members of the Who along with Pete Townshend. In 1972 Roger took the starring role in a fully orchestrated version of the Who’s “Tommy” at the Rainbow Theatre in London. According to Pete Townshend, who was in the audience, this was the moment when he realised just how good Daltrey was. He spent the next few years worried that Daltrey would leave the band, thankfully for us that didn’t happen. In 1973 Daltrey released his first solo album called, very imaginatively, ‘Daltrey’. Most (or maybe all) the songs for it were written by none other than Leo Sayer with his co writer Dave Courtney. Leo went on to record some of the songs for his own albums in the future, notably “One Man Band”. My favourite track from that album and yes it’s also one of the 50 songs in my top 10, was “Giving It All Away” This clip is from a 1973 edition of the Beebs excellent “Old Grey Whistle Test” it also features Russ Ballard from Argent on guitar.

The front row at this gig soon became aware just how many baked beans Roger had eaten before the show

The front row at this gig soon became aware just how many baked beans Roger had eaten before the show

Today is also the 36th birthday of Ryan Peake guitarist with the band Nickleback. For some strange reason my mate Dave always calls them Stickleback, but then his better half calls him Nobby, so perhaps we shouldn’t go there eh? Nickleback got their name from something Mike Kroeger, also a band member, used to say every day when he worked at Starbucks. After a sale if a customer paid cash he often asked “would you like your Nickel back?” I presume that if Gareth Gates formed a band now it might be called ‘Doyouwantfrieswiththat’ what do you think? Anyway here are the Nickleback boys with “How You Remind Me”

The band much preferred fans to wave their phones and not their flame throwers during the slow songs

The band much preferred fans to wave their phones and not their flame throwers during the slow songs

On this day in 1970 Mott the Hoople appeared at the Northcote Arms in Middlesex (I think I’ve had a pint or two in there in my much younger days) They were supported by none other than Genesis in the days before they had a singing drummer! Mott have reformed for a London gig later this year are any of you guys going? If you ever read Rock books you must read Ian Hunter’s ‘Diary Of A Rock n Roll Star’ Ian was Mott’s front man and the book is about the bands early 70s days touring in the US. It is truly an excellent book. In 1972 after a show in Zurich the band decided to split up. After hearing this news one of their biggest fans, none other than David Bowie (another Bowie reference at last!) offered them one of his new songs to persuade them to carry on. The band rejected “Suffragette City” but went on to record “All The Young Dudes”. The rest as they say is history. Here’s one for you fact fans, Mick Jones of the Clash was also a big fan of Mott too. My favourite Mott the Hoople song is “Saturday Gigs” which is about the band’s history and also features the late great (another l & g comeback) Mick Ronson who was a member of the band for just a short while in the mid 70s

It was clear that Ian Hunter had the Austin Powers look even before Austin existed

It was clear that Ian Hunter had the Austin Powers look even before Austin existed

On this day in 1977 Iggy Pop appeared at Friars in Aylesbury and his keyboard player was none other than David Bowie. (Whaddya know, no Bowie references for a while and then two arrive at once, a bit like Mr Daltrey’s Magic Bus perhaps?) Iggy with Ziggy now that’s cool! The support band that night was the Vibrators. I wonder if they’ve changed their name and now tour as the ‘Rampant Rabbits’? 😉 Well if the Stones Roses (see yesterdays post) considered ‘Angry Young Teddy Bears’ as a name it’s not beyond the realms of possibility is it? Anyway let’s get back to the Igster, if you haven’t heard his original version of “China Girl” click the title to check it out, it really does blow Bowie’s version away!

Iggy had to sell his shirts to pay for his RyanAir extras

Iggy had to sell his shirts to pay for his RyanAir extras

And finally I’ve included this as I used the word motley the other day and didn’t mention the crue at all. On this day in 1997 a Motley Crue fan who claimed his hearing had been irreparably damaged after a show in New Jersey had his lawsuit thrown out of court. The judge told Clifford Goldberg (aka Chris Allen? Well you never know!) ,who was sat near the front of the stage that he knew what risk he was taking. Presumably Clifford said “Wot?” In the meantime here are the boys with “Smoking In The Boys Room” Is that headmaster scary or what? “Wot?” oh shut up Clifford I’m not talking to you!

The boys had looked forward to Halloween all year long. "Wot?" said Clifford

The boys had looked forward to Halloween all year long. "Wot?" said Clifford

 

“It’s 8:15 and that’s the time that it’s always been” February 27, 2009

Filed under: Trivia — justwilliam1959 @ 9:43 am
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Another week gone already here we are at Friday again, I hope that you liked the Free Banking Bonus Post yesterday. If you haven’t read it you’ll find it just below this one.

A big thank you too for all the views and comments (Mickelodeon, Marcy and Catwoman) on my “Bank Robber” post yesterday. I’ve followed up with a further “Bank Robber….too” post which you will find below this one and a poll to choose the banking anthem. Get voting people

So without further fuss and stuff it’s on with the motley, not crue just the motley ok!

Let’s start with a couple of birthdays. Firstly Paul Humphreys from Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark (OMD) is 49 today (27th February 2009). I liked OMD a lot when they first came on the scene, so did the NME, they had a weekly anagram of the bands full name running for quite a few weeks which was often good for a chuckle. Does anyone else remember that or are they the only sad anorak? My favourite song by the band is “Enola Gay” and yes it is one of the 50 songs in my top ten! But did you know what the song is about? Well Enola Gay was the name of the plane that dropped the Atomic Bomb on Hiroshima in August 1945. The bomb itself was nicknamed ‘Little Boy’ hence the lyric ‘ is mother proud of little boy today’. But for me the scariest lyric in the song is ‘this kiss you give, is never ever gonna fade away’ So here is OMD’s “Enola Gay” Is that anyone else’s favourite?

The OMD boys in their audition for the 'Men In Black' movie

The OMD boys in their audition for the 'Men In Black' movie

The second and final of our birthdays today is that of Rozanda “Chilli” Thomas one of the singers with all girl R & B combo TLC. she is 38 today. Along with “Chilli” the group also included Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins and Lisa “Left Eye” Lopez. Sadly “Left Eye” was killed in a car accident in Honduras just before the release of their third album in 2002. You clearly had to have a nickname to join the group and let’s face it they are way better than Scary, Sporty, Baby, Posh and Ginger aren’t they? Talking of nicknames, there was unusually for me a point to it, do you know where the TLC name came from? Tender Loving Care? Nope. Totally Lousy Crap? Definitely not. T-Boz Left-Eye Chilli. yep that’s the one, the name comes from the first initial of each of the girls nicknames. All the girls sang within the group and “Chilli” also did their choreography too. Here are the girls withe rather jolly tuneage entitled “No Scrubs”

After another early start the girls had once again had to get dressed in the dark

After another early start the girls had once again had to get dressed in the dark

On this day today in 1964 a 21 year old former hairdresser and cloakroom attendant at Liverpool’s famous Cavern Club was number one in the UK charts. Her name was (and indeed still is) Cilla Black and the song was her version of Burt Bacharach and Hal David’s “Anyone Who Had A Heart” which had previously been recorded by Dionne Warwicke (who for those fact fans out there is Whitney Houston’s Aunt). The week that Cilla was number one was also the first time in UK chart history that the top ten had featured exclusively UK acts

Cilla was a little worried that her red flower was too discreet to enable her 'Blind date' to identify her

Cilla was a little worried that her red flower was too discreet to enable her 'Blind date' to identify her

On this day in 1967 Pink Floyd recorded their classic single “Arnold Layne” This was back in the days when they released the odd single and also when the late great (those l’s and g’s are still hanging in there) and supremely talented Syd Barret was still a part of the Floyd. When EMI signed the group it is alleged that one of the record companies executives asked of the band “Which one of you is Pink?” I would have loved to have been there to hear the answer! Interestingly “Arnold Layne” covered the topic of transvestites and was banned by pirate station Radio London although, here’s the surprise, the BBC continued to play it. The song reached number 20 in the UK and it’s follow up, “See Emily Play” hit number 6. That song was to be their last single for 12 years in the UK. Come on who remembers what that 1979 song was? Answers in the comment box or a postcard if you prefer. I just have to add of course that David Bowie (yep another Bowie reference) did an brilliant cover of “See Emily Play” on his Pin Ups album of covers from 1973. He also recorded a great live version of “Arnold Layne” with David Gilmour a year or so ago. Click on the titale and tell me which version you prefer

no one knew that Pink Floyd had secretly been recording a psychadelic version of 'The Hokey Cokey' with Chas and Dave in an East End pub

no one knew that Pink Floyd had secretly been recording a psychadelic version of 'The Hokey Cokey' with Chas and Dave in an East End pub

And finally today there have been a couple of redheads mentioned; Ginger Spice, Cilla Black (not sure she’s a natural redhead though) and yesterdays banking bonus post included Mick Hucknall and Simply Red. So I thought it was about time I gave a plug to another (soon to be) famous red head, my son Luke. Yes this is another blatant plug for his band ‘Steal The Smile‘ check them out and tell me what you think of them, add them as a friend on MySpace too if you haven’t done so already, click their name for the link. here is their band logo 🙂

The Steal The Smile Logo

The Steal The Smile Logo

 

“And you sip your Napoleon Brandy, but you never get your lips wet” February 26, 2009

Filed under: Trivia — justwilliam1959 @ 8:20 am
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Here we are again, my my doesn’t time fly? Probably not if it wants to take a suitcase on a Ryanair flight though!

Just to let you know I posted a brief update about the NME Shockwaves Awards last night. Want to know who won what? Well just read the post below this one 🙂

In other music news President Obama presented Stevie Wonder with the Library Of Congress Gershwin prize for services to music. This is presumably for all the fantastic work he has produced in his lifetime, well with the exception of “I Just Called To say I Love You” perhaps. Well done Stevie!

Anyway normal service will now be resumed with todays birthdays. February 26th 2009 is the 81st birthday of Fats Domino. Wouldn’t his name make a great meal name for a pizza for Dominos Pizza – The Fats Domino deep crust with lard, butter, chips, deep fried Mars Bars, pork scratchings and blueberries. Do you like the sound of that one? Incidentally can you guess where Mr Domino actually got his name from? Yep you’re right, his size. He wasn’t obese by any means and certainly not by todays standards. He weighed 224lbs (that’s 16 stone in English!) in 1950, but he was only 5′ 5″. His first hit was a song called “the Fat Man” which was effectively a song called “Junkers Blues” with new lyrics by Fats himself. He is perhaps remembered by most people for the classic “Blueberry Hill”, how many times have I sung that in the shower! I also loved the way Richie Cunningham (Ron Howard’s character in ‘Happy Days’ used to sing the refrain whenever he thought he was onto a good thing with a member of the fairer sex. Fats was at one time believed to have been one of the many who perished as a result of the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans in 2005. To the extent that graffiti reading RIP FATS was painted onto his home. He was later found to be alive and well. So to celebrate his birthday here is Fats with “Blueberry Hill”

Fats really wanted some help to push the piano off the stage at the end of his set

Fats really wanted some help to push the piano off the stage at the end of his set

The second of todays birthdays is that of the late great (those l’s and g’s are just ever present!) Johnny Cash he would have been 77 today had he not died in September 2003. After graduating from High School he worked for a short time in a car plant before enlisting with the US Airforce. He was stationed in Germany which is where he learnt to play guitar and write songs. He even formed a group with some fellow servicemen called the Landsberg Barbarians. His first published song “Hey Porter” was published in the US forces journal the ‘Stars and Stripes’ in the early 50’s. Early in his career he claimed that his ancestry was from the Cherokee nation, it turned out that this was not strictly true and his roots can apparently be traced back to 17th century Scotland. I’m half Scottish, perhaps we’re related, but I doubt it because I never have any cash! I acquired a taste for the music quite late on really, largely because my Mum and Dad loved him, so it wasn’t cool for me to like him as a teenager. But I absolutely love the stuff he did with Rick Rubin in the years before his death. So from that period here he is with the excellent cover of the Trent Reznor song “Hurt” This song makes me cry almost every time, OK so I’m a wuss, I can live with that!

Johnny was desperate to figure out how to lengthen his guitar strap

Johnny was desperate to figure out how to lengthen his guitar strap

The final birthday for today is that of Sandie Shaw, she is 62 today. I wonder if anyone will buy her some shoes for her birthday? Her real name is Sandra Goodrich and she used to work as an IBM machine operator in Dagenham, Essex in the UK before she found fame. She spent most of her early singing career singing in bare feet, she didn’t necessarily choose this option, but her manager Eve Taylor (who also used to manage Adam Faith) felt it would be an excellent gimmick that the press would pick up on, and that they certainly did! She was the first UK winner of the Eurovision Song Contest in 1967 with “Puppet On A String”. The following year she celebrated her 21st birthday with a party in the Madame Tussauds Chamber Of Horrors in London. I’m not sure if that is where she found him, but in March of that year she married fashion designer Jeff Banks. She spent quite a long while away from the limelight before a barnstorming return with an excellent cover of the Smiths “Hand In Glove” in 1984. Morrissey was a lifelong fan and had always wanted to work with her. So for Mozzer it was truly mission accomplished!

Sandie wanted everyone to leaf her alone

Sandie wanted everyone to leaf her alone

On this day in 1969 Peter Sarstedt was at number one with his classic song “Where Do You Go To My Lovely” The song was a joint winner of the Ivor Novello award in 1969 along with David Bowie’s “Space Oddity” (at long last another Bowie reference!). His two brothers also had hit songs. His older brother Richard had a big hit with “Well I Ask You” as Eden Kane in 1961 and his younger brother Robin had a hit in 1976 with “My Resistance Is Low” Here is Peter with his classic “Where Do You Go To My Lovely” watch out for the intro too, I think that is Simon Dee. Does anyone know what happened to him?

Peter wondered whether anyone else could see the caterpillar that had found it's way onto his top lip

Peter wondered whether anyone else could see the caterpillar that had found it's way onto his top lip

And finally on this day in 1997 songwriter Ben Raleigh died after setting fire to his bathrobe while cooking. He should have just ordered a Fats Domino Deep Pan from Dominos! He wrote many songs including “Tell Laura I Love Her” and one that I’m sure most of you know whatever age you are, “The Scooby Doo Theme” come on grab yourself a scooby snack and sing along!

All together now...... Scooby Dooby Doo Wher e Are You.....

All together now...... Scooby Dooby Doo Wher e Are You.....