ROADBLOCK , ADONIS , RICK ASTLEY .........

check the future of pop for the 22nd century from sweden with the power of the kings of the universe....just take it easy.....




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radio , mousetrap with cheese and all the relishes and heroes and villans........

look at that for a cover. brilliant eh ? a crazy guy and a wardrobe........for the cunningly titled ep from the vibes , 'the inner wardrobes of your mind' .

this is an absolute gem . the vibes were scousers from wot i can glean . they never got written about in the press during their short existence - 1984-86.
they released 2 singles and one crackin album during that time. the first ep appeared on the big beat label . it intorduced me to their psychoblly sound.
unfair this lot got lumped in with that movement .......they were probably more at home listening to roky erikson records than johnny burnette .

this ep contains 2 killer tracks - 'scratch my back' and 'im in pittsburg and its rainin' (a cover of 60s garage classic by the outcasts) . i heard these tracks first in session on peel's show. i was a fan by then , so happily tuned in and got the tape deck ready on play/rec pause. i taped it .
then they released this around november 1986 maybe (?). their album 'whats inside' is another stone cold psyche classic - its fucking loud and raucous . the vibes clearly meant it and sounded like no other band around.

they mutated into the purple things who cranked up their heavy, psyche sound yet further ......i guess the vibes did split due to musical differences then ..as they had a few rockabilly cats in the band , so maybe they found the new sound a bridge too far.

a great lost band and great lost records that will remain that way i am sure.

go seek em out


now playing : joan collins movie

wonky leg , dodgy eye and booze.......it gets no better than this

the mighty gene vincent had been one of the men in the first wave of the rock n roll boom back in the day.

unfortunately for gene he did not perish in a plane or car crash, instead he had to soldier on in the face of the 'beat boom' changing pop in the early 60's all over the world.
this must have been a daunting prospect. after years of girls thrusting their very dry and proper croutches at him , he had to pack up his wodden leg in his kit bag and head to the hills.

luckily , dwelling on a nerby hill was mr john peel . peel had his own record label at this time - dandelion - peel was a huge vincent fan - his favourite singer of all time (at that time) . peel missed vincent and convinced him to come back from the wilderness (tho vincent had recorded some rippers in the 60's - see his garage punk monster, 'bird doggin') .
it came to pass that peel paired vincent up with a killer line up - skip batton , mars bonfire amongst others play on the album.........the funkiest version ever of 'be bop a lula' is on this record . that version is a life changer .
the album is produced by kim fowley (also produced them belfast gypises below) . mr fowley is mad . his madness creates a beautifully clean record that captures gene live on the mic . it feels like you are in the room with him . you can hear his anxiety as he belts out new and old songs. gene was chompin down hard on burgers , qualludes , barbs , fags and booze at this time....pop in a flicky eye and wonky hip and you have an interesting recording session.

i first loved mr vincent in about 85 during my rockabilly exploration . i then remember seeing a documenatry about this period of gene's life , when he was making this record. it was a touching documentary and always stayed somewhere in my head. i think it may have been broadcast on one of those 'marathon' music nights on bbc2 hosted by mark ellen ...those were the days.

anyways , rock n roll lives .........be bop a lula gene baby , be bop a lula.........


now playing : smut on the telly

yellow underwater walkmans and the joy of punk

here it is . a pivotal album for me aged 15 . a glorious pastiche design wise of sgt peppers , cept with punk rockers/outsiders/bums on the cover.

a glorious double album on cherry red records. it has tracks by all the biggies cept the clash and pistols cos obviously the multi nationals didnt wanna play ball with cherry red (then in their prime - early 80s).
it also brought to my attention lots of great - atv , wire and the then current wave - the business,anti-pasti , gbh etc........
this became a referential bible for me .

the clash catalogue had been battered by this point (mostly listened to on mates yellow underwater sony walkman whilst standin waitin for english lessons to begin after lunch) , so i was lookin for new darker kicks.......this album provided them.
there are great inner sleeve notes, which in turn inspired me to read more about punk and i then started to buy lots of 7"s and lps from maggie moores in smithfield market..............the best record shop ever maybe .

there is a volume 2 to this album now out on cd...but it went down the oi! route a lot more .
havin said that a lot to be said for the 'punk and disorderly' compilation...

but another day for that one.

so god bless seamus heaney poetry lessons , the clash and graeme's amazingly 'modern' underwater , plastic , yellow sony walkman..............it was th ebirth of punk rock............but not as we know it jim.

now playing : bod

hup 2 - 3 - 4

1985 or 86 this is roughly from on miles copeland's i.d label .
its the syd presley experience ..........they later morphed into the godfathers.

i dont think i even heard the godfathers. didnt care for them . but i like dthe presley men .

just fuckin hard psychedelic rocky garagey shit . it was the punk version of 60s psyche.

they did a killer performance on the tube after i had bought this. they did a cover of ono/lennon's 'cold turkey' . they played all dressed mainly in black suits . some top turtle neck action going on ...they looked mean .

this record is ferocious . just a groove with singer sayin 'hup two three four' every now and again . the drums are like bullets passing your ears.
the bside is a track called 'public enemy number one ' . it is also fierce.

there was a follow up ep which contained 'cold turkey' . i never bought it . i held it once in my hands thinking of buying it when it came out , but i didnt . i wish i had. that was it from the presley men . they then became the godfathers. it was a short life.

i bought this record for 99p in Mr Records - the rudest record store owner EVER . you would walk in , and cos you were shabby youth , he would say 'get out' or 'no browsing' .

a fucking charmer.

now playing : blackburn vs bolton

cwith eubank on thpliffths

uk hip hop...........a dirty word . nonsense .

here is a killer piece of plastic. all the way from 1988 on simon harris' music of life label .

music of life put out some crackin records which have been lost and forgotten about in the midsts of musical rewriting...........much like psychobilly..........a genre surely due a revival...or maybe we will have to wait for that from franz ferdinand whenever they don leather jackets and quiff their hair for the next album...it will be back.

so ,yeah , mc duke . he was from east london and did this killer tune ....i'm riffin (english rasta)....it has the funkiest loop ever which underpins the entire tune . it has the force , brutality and funk of public enemy . the duke does not try and pretend to be american , he drops names like forest green , manor park ...areas close to his heart . i have 2 other 12s by the dukester , both good , but not a patch on this tune.

i never bought his album , which had a strange cover of him dressed in country gent style in front of huge country estate , wearing a monicle over eye , with his crew in tow...this kinda put me off....it seemed like the duke was losin his 'street' edge ......

manor park keep dancin

now playing : geisha girls documentary

peter cormack....i fuckin love you

ok soldiers , here it is....the greatest football club side i the world.

this is the 1972-73 squad . it is a typical football record...basically it is dreadful...tho they do an amazing version of the beatles 'yellow submarine' with aspoken intro by emlyn hughes . he is dead now.

test yer knowledge......

back row : steve heighway , phil boersma , ? , ray clemence , ?
middle row : kevin keegan , phil thompson, john toshack , larry lloyd ,peter thompson , ? , peter cormack .
front row : ian callaghan , emlyn hughes , tommy smith , bill shankly , alec lindsay , chris lawler , brian hall.

this team won the league and uefa cup in this season . not too bad .

a bargain record for £3 .

now playing : kim fowley