I am a big fan of the Rough Trade Shops 'Counter Culture' annual compilations. Or at least, I became a fan after Graham alerted to me to them...They are 2 CD compilations of the RT shop staff's favourite tracks of the year, and whilst there are a few mainstream-ish tunes on them, it's mostly pretty leftfield stuff across a lot of different genres.
For this year, they have issued Counter culture 1976 to accompany 2006, and my cds arrived yesterday. Most of the tracks from 2006 are new to me, and I do like a lot of them, but in comparison with the 1976 disc, which includes The Ramones, Candi Staton, The Saints, Dennis Brown, Patti Smith, Nick Lowe -they seem rather forgettable. Not that I remember any of that stuff - in 1976 I was 8 years old and under attack from the ladybird swarm that descended that summer, and it was well before I even thought of buying any records - 'Everybody Wants To Be A Cat' was where it was at for me in those days...
24.1.07
23.1.07
Just Like Money
The Jesus and Mary Chain are 'reforming' to play some enormo-festival in California in the Spring. Seems a shame, but I guess they have bills to pay same as all of us. Cult recognition and lasting influence on music across a generation is all fine and dandy, but cash money is still the bottom line, so it's hard to blame them. Still prefer to remember them from their Psychocandy incarnation though...
21.1.07
Best of the 2006 best ofs
With only one to come in (yes I know I have lots to send out, I'm working on it!), as of today these are the most popular LPs of 2006, culled from those which had a minimumof 3 tracks chosen from them on this year's best of CDRs. Does that make sense,?? either way, these are they:
the 4 Mogwai tracks are all different - the four Muse tracks are all the same (Knights of Cydonia)...
and no, it's not a fix fix that Dylan came top...
| bob dylan | 5 | |
| Primal Scream | 5 | |
| Belle and Sebastian | 4 | |
| Fratellis | 4 | |
| jarvis cocker | 4 | |
| mogwai | 4 | |
| muse | 4 | |
| arctic monkeys | 3 | |
| comets on fire | 3 | |
| CSS | 3 | |
| Isobel Campbell and Mark Lanegan | 3 | |
| joanna newsom | 3 | |
| raconteurs | 3 | |
| seth lakeman | 3 | |
| sufjan stevens | 3 | |
the 4 Mogwai tracks are all different - the four Muse tracks are all the same (Knights of Cydonia)...
and no, it's not a fix fix that Dylan came top...
Going to a go-go
Today's Observer Music Monthly has a feature about 25 of 'the best gigs ever'. Of the gigs listed, I would love to have seen the Velvet Underground in NYC in 1966, or Elvis in 1975, or the Pistols and the Clash in their heyday. I would be less enthused by Oasis or Jay Z, but I bet Roxy Music in '73 were good fun. Stephen Merchant reckons that Springsteen was so good, he didn't once get up foir a piss during the gig. If this is the measure of a top night out, then I am lost for words...
Anyway, with a heavy sigh and a depressing sense of inevitablility, here's my random 'off -the -top of- my -head' list of my top 10 gigs:
1. The Pogues, Brixton, 1988
2. Kraftwerk, Leicester, 1992
3. Colorblind James Experience, Hull, 1989
4. Steve Earle, Harlesden, 200?
5. Iggy Pop, Nottingham, 1988
6. Alabama 3, Birmingham, 2001
7. The Fall, Nottingham, 2005
8. The White Stripes, Nottingham 2001
9. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Manchester, 2005
10. Beck, Nottingham, 1997
well that's just a random spurt of the first classics which come to mind././ the Ramones were great, although well past their best, Richard Thompson has never disappointed, plus Teenage Fanclub, Primal Scream, Micah P Hinson, oh and about a thousand more...
Anyway, with a heavy sigh and a depressing sense of inevitablility, here's my random 'off -the -top of- my -head' list of my top 10 gigs:
1. The Pogues, Brixton, 1988
2. Kraftwerk, Leicester, 1992
3. Colorblind James Experience, Hull, 1989
4. Steve Earle, Harlesden, 200?
5. Iggy Pop, Nottingham, 1988
6. Alabama 3, Birmingham, 2001
7. The Fall, Nottingham, 2005
8. The White Stripes, Nottingham 2001
9. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Manchester, 2005
10. Beck, Nottingham, 1997
well that's just a random spurt of the first classics which come to mind././ the Ramones were great, although well past their best, Richard Thompson has never disappointed, plus Teenage Fanclub, Primal Scream, Micah P Hinson, oh and about a thousand more...
Crappo The Clown
A great title, the first track on Malcolm Middleton's first LP. He really is a miserable bastard, but I do like his records and the way he combines the bleakest of lyrics with uplifting tunes. Not that they are all uplifting - some are bloody depressing, but that's OK too.
Anyway, there's a new LP out in Feb, and the two tracks on his MySpace sound excellent.
Anyway, there's a new LP out in Feb, and the two tracks on his MySpace sound excellent.
12.1.07
In Spite Of Ourselves
I haven't seen this since I was in the audience. It was the Cambridge Folk Festival in 2003, it rained and rained, Jim contracted a bizarre chest infection only allieviated by whisky, and it was magic to see John Prine. Joe Strummer was there too, it was the year he died. He used what they call 'very strong language', as I recall.
It seemed then that we had an almost unremittingly bad time - the mud got tedious, and a very complacent and stubbornly seated audience was infuriating. We would charge over to a particular tent to see someone (it was a great line up that year, Eliza C, Bragg, Be Good Tanyas, etc) only to be foiled by a bunch of bastards on picnic blankets and camping chairs stuck in the way. But, the music and the beer were brilliant, and I would like to go back soon...with a blanket and a camping chair of course. On Sunday morning they broadcast the Archers omnibus across the campsite and festival arena...it's that kind of event..
It seemed then that we had an almost unremittingly bad time - the mud got tedious, and a very complacent and stubbornly seated audience was infuriating. We would charge over to a particular tent to see someone (it was a great line up that year, Eliza C, Bragg, Be Good Tanyas, etc) only to be foiled by a bunch of bastards on picnic blankets and camping chairs stuck in the way. But, the music and the beer were brilliant, and I would like to go back soon...with a blanket and a camping chair of course. On Sunday morning they broadcast the Archers omnibus across the campsite and festival arena...it's that kind of event..
11.1.07
Cortez The Killer
More Neil Young and Crazy Horse, Zuma this time. I have this on vinyl, but I saw it in Fopp today for a fiver, and thought why not. Apparently he has no memory of recording 'Barstool Blues', which makes it similar to Status Quo's 'Mystery Song' - they were so coked up, allegedly, that they couldn't remember recording that one either, hence the title...
And I would say that there's where the resemblance ends...Zuma has plenty of grungey strung out guitars, especially on 'Cortez The Killer', and a great side one track one in 'Don't Cry No Tears'.
10.1.07
Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere
Listening to a lot of Neil Young and Robyn Hitchcock at the moment.
Saw Hitchcock at the Rescue Rooms last Saturday night, a terrific gig, he has Peter Buck out of REM in the band at the moment, so there was a lot of Rickenbacker 12 string Byrds-ish chiming guitars, it was brilliant. It helps that Hitchcock's new LP is so good, easily his best for a long time. We didn't see them, but Michael Stipe and Mike Mills out of REM were in the audience. They must have been hiding, because the place wasn't full, and the Rescue Rooms is hardly the Albert hall.
As for Neil Young, I've picked up the Live At The Fillmore 1970 cd, which has all those fantastic rambling guitar solos which last for 12 minutes and then start all over again. This got me into Tonight's The Night, long held to be a bleak and strung out heartbreaker of an album. I don't know about that; but the songs are great, and the guitars sound incredible.
Saw Hitchcock at the Rescue Rooms last Saturday night, a terrific gig, he has Peter Buck out of REM in the band at the moment, so there was a lot of Rickenbacker 12 string Byrds-ish chiming guitars, it was brilliant. It helps that Hitchcock's new LP is so good, easily his best for a long time. We didn't see them, but Michael Stipe and Mike Mills out of REM were in the audience. They must have been hiding, because the place wasn't full, and the Rescue Rooms is hardly the Albert hall.
As for Neil Young, I've picked up the Live At The Fillmore 1970 cd, which has all those fantastic rambling guitar solos which last for 12 minutes and then start all over again. This got me into Tonight's The Night, long held to be a bleak and strung out heartbreaker of an album. I don't know about that; but the songs are great, and the guitars sound incredible.
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