NWOBHM

Possibly (or perhaps apocryphally/mythologically?), the first use of the term "Heavy Metal" in print was from the pen of William Burroughs, and was used to describe the guitar sound created by The Byrds.  "Heavy Metal" appears more clearly in the lyrics for Steppenwolf's "Born To Be Wild" from 1968.
Does it matter if either of these entomologies are true?
As a musical genre, it took the basis of blues, rock and psychadelia, turned up the volume and layered the sound with heavy, thick guitar riffs, power chords, screaming vocals and a thumping backbeat (you knew when it was loud enough because it shook the filling from your teeth).

Its earliest exponents are cited as Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple and Black Sabbath.  Whilst all coming from a similar starting point, Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple augmented their sound with pastoral, folk and orchestral elements, whilst Black Sabbath added a darker, more introspective tone to proceedings.
One could almost include Status Quo in the pantheon of 70s Rock/Heavy metal catalysts.  Other bands took the template, stripped back the blues noodling and went for the straight ahead, all out rock mode - Budgie and Judas Priest being perhaps the prime exponents of this sound in the middle(ish) 1970s.  Also active at this time, delivering a nice line in hippy-infused Space were Hawkwind.  Add in the influence of Motorhead (formed in 1975 following Lemmy's sacking from Hawkwind) and the template of late70s/early 80s Heavy Metal is set.  And not just in terms of sound and attitude, but sartorially too (denim, leather, biker boots, studded armbands, bullet belts - it can all be traced to this point).

The advent of punk had shaken up the record business, and it was no shown to be perfectly possible to be successful with small, independent record releases

In the period 1977 -1979, possibly as a result of the Punk attitude and proof of 'doing it yourself' and relesing your own records on independent labels, a whole bunch of bands were breaking out of the industrial areas of the North-East, the Midlands and London, and many other metropolitan areas of Britain.
During late 1978 and early 1979, these bands were going into recording studios and making their first recordings.  The results, when released, were often on small independent labels such as Gem, Bronze, Carrere, Logo and Neat (responsible for recording and issuing records by nearly evey band from the North East, including Tygers Of Pan Tang, Venom, White Spirit, Raven and Fist).  In two notable cases a completely independent, self-financed label - Iron Maiden: The Soundhouse Tapes (Rock Hard) and Def Leppard: The Def Leppard EP (Bludgeon Riffola).
It may be coincidental, but not long after these releases cane the first metions in the UK Music Press.  The first recorded mention in the national Music Press was by Geoff Barton in a May 1979 issue of Sounds.

If these releases are to be considered as the start of NWOBHM (not strictly true, but it is a good a marker as anything), then the two albums released by EMI in 1980 (and the associated EP) brought a host more bands to the attention of the public.

Metal For Muthas (released 1980)

Iron Maiden - Sanctuary
Sledgehammer - Sledgehammer
E. F. Band - Fighting for Rock and Roll
Toad the Wet Sprocket - Blues in A
Praying Mantis - Captured City
Ethel the Frog - Fight Back
Angel Witch - Baphomet
Iron Maiden - Wrathchild
Samson - Tomorrow or Yesterday
Nutz - Bootliggers

Metal For Muthas Volume II (released 1980)
Trespass - One of These Days
Eazy Money - Telephone Man
Xero - Cutting Loose
White Spirit - High Upon High
Dark Star - Lady of Mars
Horsepower - You Give Me Candy
Red Alert - Open Heart
Chevy - Chevy
The Raid - Hard Lines
Trespass - Storm Child

Muthas Pride (released 1980)
Wildfire - Wild Dogs
Quartz - Back in the Band
White Spirit - Red Skies
Baby Jane - Baby

Listening again, 34 years after original release, the contents of these 3 items still sounds good (Toad The Wet Sprocket stands out like a sore thumb amongst the other bands, but is not unenjoyable).  Yes, it may sound dated in places and some of the production quality may leave a bit to be desired in comparison to modern recording, but there is a rawness and energy running through each track.  If anything, and this maybe down to over-familiarity, or just basic musical snobbishness on my part, Volume II is a better listen than Volume I.  The fact that it opens with this track probably has something to do with swaying my decision.

Trespass - One Of These Days

For me, the 2 main ommissions from these albums are Def Leppard (signed to Phonogram Records) and Diamond Head, the often (certainly at the time) forgotten third axis of NWOBHM influence.
Diamond Head released their first single (Shoot Out The Lights) and album (Lightning To The Nations) in 1980 on their own Happy Face Records, but it wasn't until 1982 that they landed a major record label contract (with MCA).
Sadly for Diamond Head, 1982 was probably the point where NWOBHM ceased to exist as a concept, or "thing" was pretty much all over by 1982.

It was at this point that the genre started to show signs of splintering.  There was a certain mainstream commercial acceptance of the music and bands (Iron Maiden had a Top 10 single with Run To The Hills, Motorhead performed Ace Of Spades on The Young Ones (whose characters included Vyvyan, often wearing a Whitesnake T-Shirt and a studded denim jacket adorned with the phrase "Very Metal") and Def Leppard were about to go to America and sell something like 900 million copies of Pyromania.

So Britain had set the original template, and further toughened it up with NWOBHM, it was now the turn of the American bands to be the focus in the mid-80s.  Bands like Hanoi Rocks, Motley Crue and Guns n Roses took the tough sound and added elements of 1970s Glam Rock and slweaze in equal doses to create the commercially successful Glam Metal/Hair Metal scene.  At the same time, Thrash Metal came into view.  Toughening the sound further, and increasing the speed, the (supposed) "Big Four" were Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer, and Anthrax.
The primary influences on Thrash were hardcore punk, Black Sabbath and a host of NWOBHM bands (Venom being one notable name).
Certainly, one of Metallica biggest influences was Diamond Head - the NWOBHM band that never quite made it, and only got to release an album when the whole thing was falling apart.
Am I Evil and The Pronce were recorded for the Metal Up You Ass demo, and Helpless made an appearance on the $5.98 Garage Days Revisited EP.  These tracks, along with Blitzkrieg (by Blitzkrieg) would continue to make regular appearances in Metallicas live set.
Diamond Head: The band that never really made it, now seen as a seminal influence on one of the worlds biggest bands.

Diamond Head - Am I Evil:

Despite giving the world 4 of the biggest bands at the time (Iron Maiden, Def Leppard, Judas Priest and Motorhead), and along with old stagers like Ozzt Osbourne, Ian Gillan, Richie Blackmore and David Coverdale (in the guise of Whitesnake, soon to go massive in the commercial hair metal fraternity) all doing big business, the British Metal scene was somewhat lacking.  The focus and energy of the original bands and NWOBHM had faded, and a plethora of bands catering for different audiences.

In 1990, 10 years after NWOBHMs birth, rock journo Geoff Barton (he who penned the original Sounds article, and Metallica tub-thumper Lars Ulrich compiled an album celerbrating NWOBHM, featuring the big, the small and the long forgotten.  Yes there is some crossover with the Metal For Muthas compilations (obviously), but what you get here is 31 tracks of the best NWOBHM available to your ears.

Diamond Head - Its Electric

Sweet Savage - Eye of the Storm
 Saxon - Motorcycle Man
White Spirit - Cheetah
Raven - Don't Need Your Money
Paralex - White Lightning
Def Leppard - Getcha Rocks Off
Weapon - Set the Stage Alight
Samson - Vice Versa
Hollow Ground - Fight with the Devil
Girlschool - Demolition Boys
Witchfynde - Leaving Nadir
Iron Maiden - Sanctuary
Jaguar - Back Street Woman
Tygers of Pan Tang - Killers
Gaskin - I'm No Fool
Sledgehammer - Sledgehammer
Venom - Angel Dust
Angel Witch - Extermination Day
Trespass - One of These Days
Holocaust - Death or Glory
Vardis - If I Were King
Blitzkrieg - Blitzkrieg
Diamond Head - Helpless
Dragster - Ambitions
A II Z - Treason
Witchfinder General - Witchfinder General
Black Axe - Red Lights
Fist - SS Giro
Praying Mantis - Captured City

For even more NWOBHM, the 2005 compilation Lightning To The Nations: 25th Anniversary of NWOBHM is worth seeking out.  Covering not just the 79-82 period, but also including bands from later who kept "the flame alive" (or just happened to be British and were playing the same type of music) - either way, you get a further 56 tracks (again there are duplications) none of which make you want to reach for the Skip button.

Samson - Vice Versa

White Spirit - High Upon High
Raven - Don't Need Your Money
Sledgehammer - Sledgehammer
Bitches Sin - Always Ready
Blitzkrieg - Blitzkrieg
Girlschool - Take It All Away
Chevy - Chevy
Persian Risk - Ridin' High
Satan - Trial By Fire
Dark Star - Lady Of Mars
Avenger - On The Rocks
Heavy Pettin - Love X Love
Xero - Cutting Loose
Hellanbach - Let's Get This Show On The Road
Bronz - Night Runner
Saracen - We Have Arrived
Bastille - Hard Man
Silverwing - Rock N Roll Are 4 Letter Words
Diamond Head - Lightning To The Nations
Saxon - Motorcycle Man
Angel Witch - Angel Of Death
Vardis - If I Were King
Fist - Name, Rank And Serial Number
Marseille - Rock You Tonight
Quartz - Street Fighting Lady
Atomkraft - Future Warriors
Aragorn - Black Ice
Shy - Give Me A Chance
Venom - In League With Satan
Jess Cox - Piece Of The Action
Tysondog - The Inquisitor
Cloven Hoof - Laying Down The Law
Dedringer - Hot Lady
Axis - Messiah
Lone Wolf - Nobody's Move
Mammath - Rock Me
Tygers Of Pan Tang - Don't Touch Me There
Praying Mantis - Captured City
Streetfighter - She's No Angel
Sweet Savage - Killing Time
Trespass - One Of These Days
Holocaust - Heavy Metal Mania
Girl - Hollywood Tease
Ethel The Frog - Fight Back
Savage - Let It Loose
Jaguar - Axe Crazy
Black Rose - Knocked Out
Sabre - Miracle Man
Turbo - Running
Crucifixion - Take It Or Leave It
Warfare - Burn Down The Kings Road
Horsepower - You Give Me Candy
Tarot - Feel The Power
She - Never Surrender
Steel - Rock Out

The track listing of the original release intended to include Iron Maiden - Sanctuary and Def Leppard - Rocks Off.

Whether any of these pressings were ever released has not been confirmed (ie I can't find any reference on the interweb), but subsequent releases contained a sticker over the reverse of the box revising the track listing of Disc One accordingly (it was obviously cheaper to produce a pile of stickers and affix them to already printed stock, than to discard and order a new re-printed batch).


The first album I bought was Iron Maiden - Number Of The Beast (£3.99, Listen Records, Butts Centre, Reading, March 1982 (don't remember the exact time of purchase though).  This purchase led to me buying anything and everything Heavy Metal related (current, past, future, all genres (although Napalm Death was maybe a bit too extreme), some good, some bad, some totally unlistenable.  I must add that this was not to the exclusion of all other music which was bring consumed equally as voraciously (as far as paper round wages would allow)By the late 80s/early 90s I was personally tiring of the 'samey-ness' of many of the records I was buying, particularly the thrash/speed variety, and the glammed up, pretty boy Hair Metal just din't do it for me.  But NWOBHM (and its forefathers) is one era of music that I can happily return to again and again.

To me, NWOBHM is the very DEFINITION of Heavy Metal - it took the template, added its own elements and attitudes and in the main conquered all that lay before it.

Carter USM

Carter USM were a band formed by accident.  Jim Bob Morrison and Leslie Carter were members of indie band Jamie Wednesday who'd released a couple of singles to little acclaim.
The band were scheduled to perform at a Charity gig at The Astoria in 1987, and no-one else turned up, so they went on stage anyway and performed to backing tapes and a drum machine.

They signed to small indie label Big Cat and released their first single "Sheltered Life" in October 1988.  The second single ("Sheriff Fatman") was released to wider recognition and marginally increased sales in November 1989.  The debut album '101 Damnations' was also released in 1989, and a third single ("Rubbish") was released in June 1990.

A change of label to Rough Trade in late 1990 resulted in the single "Anytime, Anyplace, Anywhere", and another single "Bloodsport For All" followed in January 1991, and the parent album '30 Something' followed soon after.

Recorded in less than a month and costing less than £5000, the album went straight into the Top 10 upon release.  The associated Long Sleeve T-Shirt bearing the album cover was rapidly becoming the most seen clothing item adorning students and indie fans.

The album is a collection of snarling (in places) direct Powerpop, replete with South London folk tales about alcohol and domestic abuse, bullying and institutional racism, bedsit culture, the Gulf War and the homogenised shopping experience.
Admittedly, not the happiest or most appealing subject matter for a pop song, but its all in the delivery.  And this album delivers healthy doses of black humour, wit, cynicism, puns and energy.  The album is stuffed full of guitars, drum machines, sequenced bass lines, and dialogue lifted from a variety of sources including Alfie, Red Dwarf and David Bowie.

For me personally, this was one of the last defining albums of my rapidly disappearing youth (in terms of chronology, perhaps not attitude or maturity), and remains their definitive work.

The first track is the instrumental "Surfin USM" which follows dialogue lifted from Red Dwarf about the perils of ageing (relatively speaking, of course):
"When you're younger you can eat what you like, drink what you like, and still climb into your 26" waist trousers and zip them closed. Then you reach that age, 24-25, your muscles give up, they wave a little white flag, and without any warning at all you're suddenly a fat bastard"

Thing is, I was 21 when '30 Something' was released - being 24 or 25 seemed ages away.  And as for 30 ...

Off the back of the success of '30 Something', the previous single "Sheriff Fatman" was re-released, gaining wide airplay and a Top30 chart placing.
1991 was turning into Carter USMs year, with tours of Japan and the USA, and a second-on-the-bill appearance at the Reading Festival.
In October, they made their first appearance on Top Of The Pops with new single "After The Watershed (Early Learning The Hard Way)" - a song that rose quickly, thanks to their popularity at the time, a disappeared almost as fast thanks to the litigiousness of Allan Klein (the crime? including the phrase "Goodbye Ruby Tuesday" in the chorus).
They were invited on to the live TV transmission of the Smash Hits Poll Winners Party, and earned front page headlines when a (possibly?) slightly tipsy Fruitbat dived on stage and rugby tackled Phillip Schofield.

By this stage, Rough Trade had collapsed, and Carter USM were now under contract to the major label Chrysalis.

1992 opened with a re-issue of another early single "Rubbish" before a taster for the new album was released in April.
"The Only Living Boy In New Cross" bore all the hallmarks of Carter USM - the wordplay, the South London location and the relentless drum machine rhythm.

Signed to a major label, front page headlines, Top 10 singles - what could possibly go wrong?
Well, the rampant rise of Nirvana and Grunge really didn't help matters.  When the new album was released in May 1992, initial sales to the core audience were enough to deliver a Number 1, but the wider audience sales were missed out on because they didn't wear lumberjack shirts or come from Seattle.
'1992 - The Love Album' is a good album, if a little more knowing in places, and does suffer at times from "trying to be too clever".  It is definitely not a bad album, it just isn't '30 Something'.

The other thing against Carter USM at this time was the criticism "all their songs sound the same".
Well, how many different sounds can you create with two guitars and a drum machine?  there is bound to be some similarity in sound.  I think the problem was that Carter's defined sound was so up front, it was difficult to break away from.  Two songs on '1992 - The Love Album' support this thought: both "Skywest and Crooked" and the cover of "The Impossible Dream" are valid entries in the catalogue, but perhaps a change too far.

Ordinarily, a move to a major label will signal a rise in a bands output, popularity and presense - unfortunately for Carter USM, the opposite seemed to apply.  Two further albums followed ("Post Historic Monsers" and "Worry Bomb"), but the audience had diminished and whilst still selling in adequate numbers, they never achieved the same impact or longevity heights as previous releases.

A move to the Cooking Vinyl label in 1996, spawned the EP/Mini-Album "A World Without Dave", but again the audience was absent.  Following a long UK tour, the band announced their split in 1998.

Almost 10 years later, the band re-convened as part of a benefit/celebration gig for Mega City Four frontman Darren Brown.  The response prompted the band to organise two "farewell" gigs at the end of the year, playing for nearly two hours at each show.  Again, the audience response was overwhelming.  So much so, they repeated the one-off farewell performances in 2008 and 2009.
They didn't repeat the event in 2010, but returned for a Festival appearance in 2011, followed by two more re-union shows in Manchester and Brixton in November.
2012 brought two more re-union concerts, coinciding with the re-release of booth '30 Something' and '1992 - The Love Album'.

In what is believed to be finality, Carter will be playing The Bearded Theory Festival in May 2014, followed by "The Last Tango In Brixton", their final ever shows in November 2014.

So there you go, a band formed out of necessity because no-one else turned up, a rapid rise, an influence on popular culture and clothing choice, a sign to a major label, loss of audience, splitting up, getting back together and refusing to stop.

If I was asked (and I have been once!) to recommend an entry point to Carter USM which isn't '30 Something' (my default choice), I would suggest this early track:

"Re-Educating Rita":

 ... and Cover Versions.
Carter USM, on the B-Side of their singles, often did a tasty line in re-interpreting other peoples songs.  Choices include: "Rent", "Everybody's Happy Nowadays", "Bedsitter", "Panic" and "Down In The Tube Station At Midnight".
This particular cover was on the B-Side of Allan Kleins favourite Carter USM single - "This Is How It Feels":

Shopping

My computer (the very thing that I'm sitting in front of, and typing this drivel) has seen better days.
It is now about 5 years old, and whilst not exactly had a hard life, it is basically dying on its arse.
The disk is nowhere near full, I try and keep the crud and rubbish that accumulates down to a minimum, yet it still takes 20 odd minutes to start up properly, and even then has a habit of flashing up a 'Not Responding' message or just spending ages thinking about starting a simple task.
Considering most technologies are supposedly redundant the day they leave the factory, 5 years is a pretty good life by modern standards.  But it is now too damn slow, too annoying, and I'm to lazy to do things like upgrade the hard disk or add peripheral memory (it was cheap when I bought it, and is effectively disposable/replaceable anyway, why would I invest my valuable lazing-about time in making it work any better, when I may as well just buy a new box.
(This is my way with most things of comparatively low value.  Although, I am informed that this principle is NOT ALLOWED to be applied to marriage)

So, off I go with the help of Google to find a replacement.
First consideration: Laptop or Desktop - well, according to Mrs D I'm having a laptop, so decision made (I would argue, but I value my kidneys (and other things) in the place they're supposed to be.
I did ask "why?"
"So you don't spend all your time sitting in that crap-hole upstairs, and we can get rid of that stupid oversized desk and get a bit of space in that room" was the succinct reply *

* OK, I admit it - the desk in this room is about the size of a Science Laboratory work bench (minus the gas outlet for a bunsen burner, and what am I going to do with the mass of accumulated dross in the drawers?

Thing is, I've never got on with laptops - I find them uncomfortable to use, the keyboard is cramped, I can't get on with the mouse pad thing, and the sound is always lacking any depth, definition and is horribly tinny.
So a compromise has been reached.  Yes it will be a laptop that replaces this large, ailing box, but I will supplement the purchase with a docking station, hence retaining the larger screen a decent set of speakers and a proper mouse.

So I'm searching for "laptop" - not an obviously problematic search string, but it did give me information regarding some potentially interesting pubs and clubs involving dancing.
Once I managed to tear myself away from this revelation, I was consumed by the options available and the number of companies that would help my part with my cash.
To be honest, they are all much of a muchness.  As long as I can connect to the internet, send e-mails, maintain my CD databsase, and continue to compose meandering missives such as this, I'll be happy (maybe with the addition of the odd picture of a nudie lady and the opening times for a newly discovered 'Gentlemans Entertainment' members club in the local area).

Great, I now have a variety of options, different manufacturers, various specifications, even different colours - but they are all just pictures.
Being the old school, curmudgeonly dullard that I am, I want to experience the physicality and tactility of the product.  I would like to go in a shop and fiddle with the thing, before I invest.  Check out the actual size, the weight, the available add-ons and peripherals.  (Vaguely) knowledgeable staff to assist in the purchase would be helpful too (although this is not always a guarantee in many shops).
So off I trundled to PC World, and then trundled back feeling somewhat underwhelmed by the whole experience.
With many retailers falling away from the High Street, it seems the only other obvious physical shopping option I may have is John Lewis (which can sometimes feel overpriced and minimally stocked), Argos (where you are not allowed to see the product until you have actually bought it or a Tecomorrisonsasdasainsbury Enormo-Market.  Everything you want under one roof.  But how can you take confidence from a store with a product range that includes dog food, toys, birthday cards and Home Insurance.  Call me a moaning old git, but that range just seems too diverse to me.  Where's the specialism, the knowledge, the trust?
"Pile it high, and sell it cheap" - that is the business strategy at play here - why would a consumer be interested in anything else but price?
I'm not a complete naysayer - on-line shopping is a fine method.  But it should not be, as it is fast becoming, the only method.  Certainly not for big ticket items.

However, I think I'm left with little choice here - more research, perhaps a reliance on know retailers and manufacturers (always the best advice, rather than passing your Credit Card Details to Ripemovski Retail in Uzbekastan), and an on-line purchase it will have to be.


The obvious track to go with this mild rant about shopping experiences would by "Why Can't I Touch It" by Buzzcocks (note: no definitive article).  But instead, a song about the glories (or otherwise) of shopping for everything under one roof.

Ground floor Shoppers Paradise
Haberdashery, needles, spoons and knives
Knuckle-dusters, glass jaws and wooden hearts

Spend your money girls on sprays and lipsticks
Tested on bunnies, girls, strays and misfits
Ozone friendly rape alarms
For those blinding dates
Another summer of hate

It's the top shop for the tired and rundown
Going up for the final comedown
First and second floors, third and fourth world wars
We've got a free pair of flares
With every hip replacement
Just take the stairs to the bargain basement
Babies bottles full of the milk of human kindness

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls
The big shop is open it's a wonderful world

Top floor Shoppers Paradise
We've got a drunk Father Christmas and the Antichrist
There's nothing of value, so there's no VAT
We're going S-H-O-P-P-I-N-G
We take Visa, Access, American Excess
Patched-up, hand-me-down, second to next best
Clothes for all ages, mothers and babies

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls
The big shop is open it's a wonderful world

Going down for all the things you missed
All the love. peace and happiness that don't exist
We've got enpsychopaedias we've got pic 'n' fix
A government freezer full of benefits
A childrens assortment, we're bigger than Hamleys
We've got Cabbage Patch orphans from Sylvanian Famlies
Carpets, Iinoleum, holy petroleum,
Chemi-kaze killers, little Hitlers and Napoleans
Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls
The big shop is open and the world
Is wonderful

Written by: Carter/Morrisson
From: Carter The Unstoppable Sex Machine - 30 Something (1991)

Thank You Very Much

is all you need to say, whilst putting on an over-affected mid-American accent, and hey presto - you are Elvis Presley.

One phrase, with the right intonation and you could pass yourself off as a modern day Mike Yarwood.

"Mmm, Betty" and you are Frank Spencer (note: say "Mmm", not "Ooo" - it just works better).  And for completeness, add in the phrase "the cat's done a woopsie in my beret"

"Scooby-Dooby-Doo" and you have convinced the world that Frank Sinatra has just walked in the room

And here are a few more to add to your ever expanding "Dead Ringers" toolkit:

Tom Jones - "Huh!" (maybe after an affected cough)
Bing Crosby - "Ba Ba Ba Boom" (the pipe and cardigan are entirely optional, but may add to the overall visual look)
Liam Gallagher - Sh-eeee-iii-ne" (and don't forget to sneer a bit, and maybe beat up a photographer for good measure)
Manuel - "Que?" or "I know nuuthing" (the addition of a moustache may help you get in charcter)
Dave the Barman from Minder - "Allo Arfur" (tip: keep one eye closed in a sort of extended wink whilst performing this one
Michael Caine - "My name is Michael Caine" and "Don't frow bloody spears at me" and "You're only supposed to blow the bloody doors off" (don't forget to point to help emphasise every word).


Rory Bremner can take up to a year to perfect his impressions, with the above guide you can be on stage within seconds (I can't promise an appreciative response from the audience though).

Musically, there is probably no-one more over represented by impersonators and/or tribute acts than Elvis Presley.  There is the Chinese Elvis, the Indian Elvis, the Lady Elvis, the Child Elvis, the Reggae meets Led Zeppelin incarnation of Dread Zeppelin.  Although most of them seem to focus on the bloated Vegas period.  This may be another "simple starter kit" - all you need is a white jump suit, a big pair of sideburns and some some glasses and hey presto, you are paying Colonel Tom Parkers gambling debts.

Evoking the spirit of an earlier incarnation of Elvis is Jim Brown from Northern Island, who performs under the moniker 'The King'.
Indeed the liner notes of his first album ('Gravelands') speak of how he was awoken one night by a shadowy figure who said he wanted to make another album and Jim Brown would be his body and soul on Earth to achieve this purpose.
The reality is that a married Post Office worker was reluctantly pulled on stage to perform a version of "Suspicious Minds" with a local band.  The response from the crowd convinced him to take a period of time off work and explore the possibilities of this alternative career.
The singer was signed to EMI-Electrola and 'Gravelands' was released to critical acclaim (if not matched by public sales).
The pre-text of the album is a bunch of classic rock songs ("Come As You Are, "Love Will Tear Us Apart", "All Or Nothing, "Voodoo Chile") delivered in pure Elvis stylee (which if the man was still on stage in Vegas in the 21st Century would undoubtedly be his current act).

A potentially flimsy concept - I mean, how many Elvis impersonators are there out there all doing this same sort of schtick?
Well, what sets this one apart is this isn't done for laughs, or just a tribute showcasing contemporary songs in Elvis-style.  Theres something else going on here, there is almost a suspended belief that you may actually be listening to a re-incarnation of Elvis.
(OK, I might be laying it on a bit thick, but the performance is very good)

The second album, 'Return To Splendour' is even better, with a richer production and a wider song choice.

Track List for 'Gravelands':

• Come As You Are 
• Love Will Tear Us Apart
• Song To The Siren
• Whiskey In The Jar
• I Heard It Through The Grapevine
• Blockbuster
• Sweet Home Alabama
• Working Class Hero
• Something Else
• All Or Nothing
• Twentieth Century Boy
• Dock Of The Bay
• Piece Of My Heart
• No Woman No Cry
• Voodoo Chile
• Whole Lotta Rosie
• New York New York

Track List for 'Return To Splendour':

• Sympathy For The Devil
• L.A. Woman
• Under The Bridge
• The House Is Rockin'
• Whole Lotta Love
• You Got It
• Everybody's Talkin'
• Child Of A Preacher Man
• King Of The Road
• Good Vibrations
• Crazy Little Thing Called Love
• Pretty Vacant
• Hoochie Coochie Man
• Take Me Home, Country Roads
• What A Wonderful World

These two albums occupy a dual purpose.  On the one hand, they are a bit of a laugh to hear these great songs done in this way, on the other hand they are really well put together, thought out and performed pieces of work.

After all, they may be considered as nothing more than Tribute albums, but in what way do they differ from Rod Stewarts American Songbook collections, or Brian Ferry's interpretation of Bob Dylan, or his re-working of Roxy Music tracks in Jazz style?

Whole Lotta Rosie (from Gravelands)

Sympathy For The Devil (from Return To Splendour)

Shaking Some Action On The English/Welsh Border

Montgomery has various definitions.

• it can be used as an alternative name for a Martini cocktail
• it can refer to Field Marshal Sir Bernard Law Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein, KG, GCB, DSO, PC (more commonly recognised as simply "Monty")
• it may be expressed as an arithmetic computation, called the Montgomery reduction which is an algorithm that allows modular arithmetic to be performed efficiently when the modulus is large
  (nope, me neither? - and this doesn't help much either: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montgomery_reduction)
• it is the forename of Scotty in Star Trek
• a small village on the Shropshire / Powys border

It is to the last of these definitions that I have just been for a week.  A week spent in the depths of the countryside in an area which seems to swap borders of county and country with virtually every step.

Initial impressions - it was like going back in time.  The streets were cobbled, no Channel 5 (a good thing, surely?), and limited mobile phone/internet connection (again, possibly a good thing).

Basically, a week of dossing about, visiting places, eating rich food and washing it down with copious amounts of Wye Valley Butty Bach.

On a more positive note, previous holidays to such remote parts have often brought disappointment/despair on the shopping for essentials front.  It is usually a case of either travel 15 or 20 miles to find a badly stocked Tesco or Asda, or visit the local Spar where a tin of beans will cost about £12.
Within this area of England/Wales (it was never really clear), it seems someone has hit upon the eminently sensible idea of setting up a number of large convenience stores, often in business units/warehouse premises with a cafe and petrol station attached.  These shops are well stocked, and although marginally higher priced than a mega-hyper-enormo-market, at least don't require the security of a small mortgage to buy some loo roll.

The town of Montgomery itself consists of a Post Office, a Library, a Pub, a Hotel, a Museum, a Hardware Shop, the obligatory Spar Convenience Store and an Indian Restaurant (potentially out of place in such a rural setting, but useful fallback when you can't be bothered to cook).
It is also within easy reach of one small town (Welshpool) and two larger towns (Ludlow and Shrewsbury).
One noticeable "shopping" observation of the above towns is that the shopping experience is not confined to the usual suspects which seem to be taking over towns and providing identi-kit shopping experiences from Newcastle to Nuneaton, but there are a large number of independent shops, cafes and restaurants.

Armed with the usual holiday literature of a copy of Never Mind The Bollards: A Road Trip Around Englands Rock & Roll Landmarks and the Record Shop Directory printed in Mojo Magazine, it was in Ludlow and Shrewsbury that I alighted on two fantastic record shops, which I could've spent hours in but I was receiving the 'folded albums arms and narrow smile' look from Mrs D.

As is most unusual, and to paraphrase Withnail & I: "I'd come on holiday with no music by mistake"

A visit to Mod Lang in Ludlow soon rectified this oversight.  The shop can be found down a small side street, and up a flight of steps to a loft-type shop unit.
The first thing I noticed on entering, was the large Rockpile poster on the wall.  A sure sign that I was entering a place of sanity and comfort.
Mod Lang deals primarily in Vinyl, with particular emphasis on 70s Rock, Soul and Jazz.  From the selection of CDs on offer, my eyes were drawn to a Flamin' Groovies compilation, which then became the soundtrack for the week.
The second discovery was Cave Records in Shrewsbury.  This shop is located in a small arcade at the top of the town and deals specifically in Vinyl (both new and second-hand).  It has plenty of stock, and a variety of styles (I briefly remember seeing Frank Zappa, Teenage Fanclub, Nick Drake, Husker Du and Tom Waits).  The timing of the visit was unfortunate for me, but I remain in little doubt that a good thorough browse could easily fill an afternoon.

If you are ever in the wilds of Shropshire, there are worse things you could do than pay a visit to either of these two emporiums.


The Flamin' Groovies formed in San Francisco in 1965, with a sound that drew in elements of Rock n Roll, Blues, Sixties British Invasion, surf music, psychedelia and garage rock (in fact they wouldn't sound out of place on the unimpeachable Nuggets compilation).
In short, the band can be best summarised as one the prime progenitors and exponents of that nebulous genre "Power Pop".
Their first album 'Supersnazz' was released on Epic in 1969, and due to the fact that it sold next to nothing they were pretty soon dropped, and found a new home at Kama Sutra.  1970s 'Flamingo' offered more of the same and garnered about the same level of interest and sales as their debut.
'Teenage Head' was released in 1971, and despite relatively low sales (again) the album was talked up by an (possibly) unexpected supporter.  The Rolling Stones released 'Sticky Fingers' in the same year, and Mick Jagger stated that he felt The Groovies did a better job a capturing the brand of bluesy, dirty, Rock n Roll than The Stones album.
The lack of success and the fractious relationship between original members Cyril Jordan and Roy Loney, led to the departure of the latter guitarist (replaced by Chris Wilson), and the re-location of the band to Britain.
Dave Edmunds expressed an interest in producing the band, and some initial recordings were made in 1972.
It wasn't until 1976 that this relationship bore fruit with the release of 'Shake Some Action', and album full of chiming guitars, heavy bass, reverb, and Dave Edmunds production stamped all over it.
More of the same came with 1978s 'Flamin Groovies Now'.  The album is primarily made up of cover versions, and whilst performed with the same enthusiasm and verve apparent on 'Shake Same Action', there is a feeling that the band may be running out of steam.  Sadly, 1979s 'Jumping In The Night' confirmed this prognosis, with a repeat of covers mixing with a few originals.  The two cover highlights from this album are 'Please Please Me' and 'Werewolves Of London'.
But it was at this point that the Groovies flame went out.

They did re-appear in 1987 with 'One Night Stand', which was ostensibly a Flamin Groovies Mark 2 re-recording of past triumphs, and then again with the lacklustre 'Rock Juice' in 1993.

Flamin' Groovies - Shake Some Action

1987 - What The F**k Is Going On?

was the title of a KLF album.
And I agree with Bill Drummonds assertion - what exactly was going on at that time?

• Smiths had just split
• No new Iron Maiden album
• The rampant rise of American Hair Metal/Poodle Rock with Bon Jovi headlining Monsters Of Rock at Donnington
• Stock, Aitken & Waterman
• Acceeid!
• Only 10 years since The Sex Pistols, and the passing of Elvis Presley and Marc Bolan - feels like longer!

It really was a rubbish year for buying records and listening to music.
In fact, it stayed firmly stuck in a rut until March 1992, when this record heralded the beginnings of what the world would come to know as Britpop

Blur - Popscene

But was it all bad in 1987?
To be honest, there were some definite plus points.  Prime examples being:

• Pogues and The Dubliners performing "The Irish Rover" which certainly lit up an otherwise "ho-hum" edition of Saturday Night Live
• The Cult - Electric
  An album which pulled on classic AC/DC riffs, Robert Plant-esque vocal, thundering drums, all topped off with Rick Rubin's thoughtful, commercial production job.  You can even forgive the perfunctory, almost pointless, cover of "Born To Be Wild"
• Jethro Tull - Crest Of  A Knave
  A fantastic album, albeit a slightly restrained Tull performance following Ian Anderson's throat surgery.  Contains some fine songs, and is probably their best outing (if not surpassing) 1982s 'Broadsword And The Beast'.  One nice touch: this album won a Grammy for 'Best Metal Performance' beating Janes Addiction ('Nothings Shocking') and Metallica ('... And Justice For All').  Rightly so in my opinion, although describing 'Crest Of A Knave' as a Metal album is pushing the envelope a bit
• Marillion - Clutching At Straws
  Fish's last outing with the band.  And a sign off in style, the songs here are some of the most thought out, best arranged and direct songs the band had produced (personal note: it's not as good as 'Misplaced Childhood' though)
• Guns n Roses - Appetite For Destruction
  When considered in retrospect this is a hard rocking, hard drinking, masterpiece of sleaze.  But in 1987, I blanked it.  I almost went out of my way to dislike it, feeling that it was derivative, un-original and was image driven (marketing) rather than music driven (honesty).  Hey, I was wrong and this is a definite classic of the age

But the above were mere glints of light in an oasis of blandness and boredom.  It was also the start of the "looking back to the past" era, with the year opening with Jackie Wilson's "Reet Petite" at Number 1.
The success of "Reet Petite" was a result of the 'claymation' video, but the appearance sat nicely with the ongoing Levis adverts and the old song used to soundtrack them ("Wonderful World" and "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" in 1986, "Stand By Me" and "When A Man Loves A Woman" in 1987).
1988 continued in a similar vein, with rare shafts of light cutting through an otherwise turgid musical landscape filled with Stock, Aitken & Waterman, Acid House/Rave stuff, re-releases (often inspired by TV adverts) and multiple cover versions.

And now my original intention to denegrate 5 years of musical history (from 1987 to 1992) as "a bit rubbish" rally starts to fall down.
1988 also brought forth bands such as The Primitives, Transvision Vamp, The Wonderstuff, Pop Will Eat Itself, Carter The Unstoppable Sex Machine and Zodiac Mindwarp (plus a host of others which I can't remember at the moment).

Rolling into 1989, it appeared that this was to be another year of bland and insipid, punctuated at times by the genuinely interesting.  To a mainstream audience, this was to be the year when the first rumblings of what was to become known as Madchester were felt.
Indie or alternative rock had been doing the rounds for many years, but the NME C86 Cassette was perhaps a catalyst of sorts which started to regiment and identify this particular form of music.  Band such as Primal Scream, The Jesus and Mary Chain and The Wedding Present were selling records but in relatively small numbers, and never really getting commercial recognition.
Indeed, as stated above there were an increasing number of bands gaining recognition, but a combination of backward looking, forward thinking bands brought the word "indie" right into the medias focus.
Madchester was a meeting of dance culture, clubbing, indie rock and psychedelia (a pretty simplistic attempt at a definition, but you get the general idea).  In late 1988,  The Happy Mondays and The Stone Roses had released their first singles (or at least their first singles that the wider world took any notice of), and a head of steam was being built in the music press.  By late spring 1989, the Stone Roses debut was released.  Whilst initial reviews were positive, it wasn't the instant explosion of success that legend would have us believe.  The album sold fairly well, and the Stone Roses "legend" (and by association the idea of Madchester) grow steadily.  It was perhaps the release of "Fools Gold" in November which cemented the Stone Roses in the public consciousness.  The dual appearance of Stone Roses and Happy Mondays (Madchester Rave On EP) on Top Of The Pops certainly helped.
After this, Madchester became a bandwagon that the press and the record companies boarded.  Pretty soon any band with either a Manchester postcode and/or a Byrds-ish guitar style or Hammond Organ stylings were rewarded with record contracts, TV appearances and general adulation.
The big 4 at this time were probably (and this is my opinion): Happy Mondays, Stone Roses, Inspiral Carpets and The Charlatans.
This period also spawned, either in contrast or in conjuction with Madchester, the Baggy movement.  If I'm being cynical, this was the same thing just on a more nationwide scale.The original template of the above bands was taken, squeezed and fitted with new thought process, attitude and audience.  Much of it was more "pop" focussed.  Bands such as The Farm, Flowered Up, Jesus Jones, The Soup Dragons, The Mock Turtles, New Fast Automatic Daffodils and Northside benefited from this broadening of geography

1990 & 1991 continued a theme with a plethora of Indie Rock bands breaking through and keeping my world interesting.  Jangle-pop, Indie Dance stuff, Shoegazing and a great many other sub-genres.  Bands included: Teenage Fanclub, Carter USM, Neds Atomic Dustbin, Senseless Things, Sultans Of Ping FC, Blue Aeroplanes, Curve, Ride, The Almighty and first outings for the Manic Street Preachers.

Whatever label it was given, the period 1989 to 1991 was a wonderfully interesting (if not massively diverse) time for indie/alternative rock and it's many variants.

So, I've failed with my original hypothesis.  This 5 year period was not the blank landscape that I originally decided it was (1987 was still a bit off a duff year though).

2014 marks the 25th Anniversary of the release of The Stone Roses debut album.  As stated above, it wasn't the legend that it is now believed to be when initially released.
In fact, like "Appetite For Destruction", this was another album which bore the brunt of my misguided prejudice.  When I first heard it, I really didn't think much of it.  I felt it was slow, ponderous and a bit clinical in places.  The fact I wasn't "into" the dance elements of the music probably didn't help matters either.
It is only in the last 5 years (or so) that I have gone back to it, and started to "get it" - oh well, better late than never I suppose.

Stone Roses - She Bangs The Drums

Stiff Little Fingers - No Going Back

The first incarnation of Stiff Little Fingers released 4 albums (plus 1 official Live album) in 4 years of existence.  Since their reformation in 1987, Stiff Little Fingers have released 5 studio albums, plus a clutch of Live and Compilation albums.
Stiff Little Fingers (Phase 2) are about to release their 6th studio album

In the 11 years since their last outing, they have departed from EMI (who released 1999s 'Hope Street' and 2003s 'Guitar and Drum'), original bass player Ali McMordie re-joined the band in 2006 providing both stability to the line-up and the inclusion of 2 original members, and the band have been touring for what seems like always.
But those same targets of past SLF records remain, and the time was right for the band to produce another batch of songs fronting up to these injustices and sometimes difficult situations.  Unscrupulous politicians, the banking industry, record companies, equality, hypocrisy and intolerance are just some of the subjects to make an appearance on the latest release.
It has been sugggested that at one point, this album very nearly didn't happen.  Jake Burns passed his 50th birthday, and lost faith in his songwriting

"I was going through the motions. There was no real inspiration in the songs and I could do a lot better"

http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/music/spoiling-for-a-fight-20140227-33krq.html#ixzz2vDHuS3Mk


Jake Burns re-discovered inspiration, and has come up with a set of songs which rank alongside the best he has done.  Tuneful, melodic and full of power (not always blood, guts and outrage, but there is some of that).

The new album started life as a PledgeMusic campaign and the target was achieved in 12 hours, demolishing the two month time period the band set for raising the funds.

So, true to their word they entered a recording studio in Los Angeles in mid January, and the finished product emerged some 6 weeks later.
Releases as a download version to those who pledged their support, the album is due full "physical" release at the end of March

Jake Burns:
We were a bit nervous about it at first, probably because we’d never done it before, but the more we thought about the more we realized that, realistically, with the rise of the internet, traditional record companies are pretty much dead in the water these days. We did talk to a few but, they were kind of so dismal about their own outlook that it didn’t really inspire us to want to work with anybody, And the more we thought about the pledge thing, the more we realized that it was kind of close to the do-it-yourself ethic that we came from. And it brought us almost full circle into being a fully independent band again, and there’s a lot to be said for that. Not that we ever had a huge amount of interference from either Chrysalis or EMI, or any of the record people we worked with, basically they just let us get on with it. But there always was the possibility that somebody from the company would come down and make harrumphing noises at the back of the studio. Whereas, with this, we’re the only ones in charge, so you do get a huge amount of artistic freedom with it.

It’s interesting, because, as I said in the past, we were going into the studio and we were effectively spending EMI’s money. It was OUR money at the end of the day because it’s only an advance, but you kind of felt, it’s a big corporation, they can afford it. With this, because it was the audience’s money, we kind of feel a bigger responsibility to get it right this time. Because it’s a huge leap of faith on their part. Effectively they are pre-buying a record that they haven’t heard. Which shows a huge amount of faith in us, so obviously you don’t want to let them down, you want to justify that faith. So we’re all … I think whenever the guy hit record, today was the first day I was actually working on the guitars, when he put the machine into record, I’m suddenly very aware that, I gotta get this right! I can’t afford to screw this up because, like I said, they’ve already bought it. They’ve put their faith in us.

"Shamefully" lifted from an interview with Bob Lee / LA Beat (Eternally Inflammable: An Interview With Stiff Little Fingers’ Jake Burns)

http://thelosangelesbeat.com/2014/02/eternally-inflammable-an-interview-with-stiff-little-fingers-jake-burns/

The 12 new songs that make up the album bear all the hallmarks of the bands history.

Echoes of previous outings, replete with hammering riffs, soaring guitar, solid bedrock bass and pounding drums are much in evidence.
The songs retain an anthemic quality, with a call to arms in places, and the ability to provoke thought and discussion by offering a new way, or a personal viewpoint on a particular situation.
In short, this isn't just a bunch of old geezers continuing recording for the sake of it, this album offers valid comment on the world around them.

Stiff Little Fingers will often be associated with political statement, and opening track "Liars Club" maintains this expectation with a sideswipe at politicians
"My Dark Places" documents Jake Burns personal battle with depression.   It is both poignant and powerful, conveying the message in a clear personal tone, and offering an element of hope at the end of it.
"Full Steam Backwards" is an attack on the unscrupulous nature of the banking industry, and the re-distribution (or lack of) wealth in society.  The bass track underpinning this song confirms a belief that Ali McMordie is in the top 3 of punk/new wave bassists alongside Bruce Foxton and Jean-Jaques Burnel.
The pace is maintained "I Just Care About Me", and then the opening lazy reggae riff which underpins "Don't Mind Me" offers variety to the sound.
And then there is another change of pace.  The pipe introduction for "Guilty As Sin" offers no clue to the subject matter therein.  The difficult and taboo subject of the effects of child abuse and the hypocrisy of the Catholic church are tackled, in an honest and straightforward matter (what else did you expect from SLF?).
It's back to to speed next, with the pummeling riffs, power chords and melodic solos in abundance through "One Man Island", "Throwing It All Away" (vocal from Ian McCallum), "Good Luck With That" and "Trail Of Tears".

Closing on two tracks questioning just how far the world has moved in the last 20 or 30 years.
"Since Yesterday Was Here" has all the anthemic, air punching trademarks you expect, plus a nifty little guitar solo in the middle.  "When We Were Young" is a review of the past, and the realisation that yep, nothing much has changed.  Completing the "full circle" motif, almost eerie echoes of "At The Edge" can be heard in the playout track

Comparisons to previous work are often simplistic and unhelpful in the appraisal of a new album, but ...
In terms of sound, this album is closer to Now Then, if less cluttered, than any of the other first incarnation albums (in fairness, they were hardly likely to produce the adrenaline rush of punk that was 'Inflammable Material', the punk-pop of 'Nobodys Heroes' or the exuberant power-pop of 'Go For It').  "Why not" you may ask - they're older, wiser, more technically competent and the world is a different place than it was in 1978.
The 5 albums released since the reformation have been steadily improving in composition and clarity, and this album represents a welcome addition to the cannon.  The album has a wonderfully clear and bright sound, with none of the band getting lost within the mix, and there is no doubt about the bands focus and pride.
Just one listen confirms that the passion of is still there - to nick a title from the previous album, Stiff Little Fingers are Still Burning and have delivered a searing collection of songs which ranks as probably the best (or at least the equal of 'Guitar and Drum') of the second incarnation (ie post 1987)), and sits comfortably alongside the earlier works in terms of power and delivery.



For full details of the Pledge Campaign:
http://www.pledgemusic.com/projects/stifflittlefingers