United Stoats of America. 'Live' in St. Leonard's.

After last week's Music Spot that spoke of "'Fat Tuesday' (Mardi Gras) in St. Leonard's, taking place in small bars that squeezed musicians into limited spaces that in one instance blocked the way to the toilet." - I thought this statement may benefit from some photographic evidence.

So above we have the six-piece band United Stoats of America (plus their instruments - one being a double bass) performing in the Craft Beer bar 'Collected Fictions' in St. Leonard's on Saturday 10th February 2024. The toilet in question is to the left of the photo and completely inaccessible. 

  

You can't beat 'Live' music !

2024 has so far been full of great music seen in a variety of venues. From our local pub to 'Fat Tuesday' (Mardi Gras) in St. Leonard's, taking place in small bars that squeezed musicians into limited spaces that in one instance blocked the way to the toilet. Intimate, is sure was. 

The performance and the playing always presenting something different. The atmosphere, the audience participation and even the playing of a familiar song can offer an unexpected new experience. The moment can be unique, the memory likewise. 

Today's track just about covers all of those things. 'Live From The Backyard' > a personal show from Columbia, South Carolina > has three songs, sung by Nick Stone, mixed together in a surprising way that I won't give away here. And as mentioned in the YouTube comments "the lead guitar player is the most tasteful guitarist I've heard in a long time" !

On lead Manning Feldner, playing with Nick Stone and the Shifty Hunchbacks > take it away

  

More backyard videos : @  https://nickstonemusic.com/  

   

The second 'lurve' song this week. And a huge hit ! 

Released and in the UK chart over Christmas, December 1987 it was No.1 for two weeks in mid January 1988. It also topped the charts in the US and many other countries.  

Uplifting power pop ‘Heaven is a Place on Earth’ was Belinda Carlisle's biggest hit single, but by no means her only chart success as numerous hits followed. 

Seen here performing for 'Top of the Pops' in their Los Angeles studio >

Belinda Carlisle was a member of the Go-Go's, the most successful all female band of all time.  

Check out 'Vacation' >>> here  😎 

  

An alternative (and occasional) music posting highlighting something out of the ordinary. Perhaps of limited appeal, unconventional, experimental or just far-out ! Call it what you like (or switch it off, if you don't like). 

Something for Valentine's Day - an excuse to feature this: 

I've long been fascinated by tracks that sample bits of other songs. Every time I heard this record I thought it was sampling 'The Days of Pearly Spencer' a 1967 song by David McWilliams. It turns out I am complete wrong because it is in fact a 1932 song called ‘My Woman’ by Al Bowlly with Lew Stone and His Monseigneur Band. 

"Love Again" by English-Albanian singer Dua Lipa from her second studio album 'Future Nostalgia'. The song was written by Lipa alongside Clarence Coffee Jr., Chelcee Grimes and its producer Koz, with Bing Crosby, Max Wartell and Irving Wallman also credited as the writers of 'My Woman'. 

Dua Lipa ‘Love Again’ was released March 2021 >

FYI: The original 'My Woman' song. Link here

   

Last week I made reference to the fashionable King's Road in Chelsea. This week we are going there and travelling back to the Swinging Sixties. Let's take a trip...  

In February 1966 at 488 King's Road a boutique shop opened run by Nigel Waymouth, his girlfriend Sheila Cohen and John Pearse, in 1969 it was acquired by Freddie Hornik and remained open until the mid-1970s. It has been called the "first psychedelic boutique in Groovy London of the 1960s" - the shop was called 'Granny Takes a Trip' ! 

I have photos and links to all of this (which will appear as extras at the end of this post). 

But first a promotional film to a single released in 1967 by The Purple Gang titled 'Granny Takes a Trip' that is a fantastic bit of time travel down the King's Road and into the actual shop in question. 

People like John Peel loved this record – but the BBC had other ideas and promptly banned it, even though the 'trip' had nothing to do with LSD. So instead of soundtracking the hippy era, it sold a measly 4,340 copies. With its honky-tonk piano and one of pop's rarest of instrumental breaks, a kazoo solo, it remains an innocent, timeless reminder of the first Summer of Love. 

Produced by Joe Boyd and recorded at the same time and same studio as Pink Floyd's 'Arnold Layne' this is The Purple Gang > [full screen a must]

Extras:-

A very short film: Excerpt from a 1967 'Look At Life' documentary (link here)  Far Out ! 

The ever changing shop front is captured along with photos of The Purple Gang band (here) 

Location - it was not really a place I remember as it was a mile away from where I was working - down the King's Road at World's End. 

(Left) in the 60s and (right) 488 King's Road today. The zebra crossing and Belisha beacon have gone. 

And anyone interested (like me): Nigel Waymouth was a designer and artist and responsible for the constantly changing shop fronts. While still involved in Granny Takes a Trip, in 1967 he teamed up with fellow artist Michael English and together they began designing many of the quintessential British pop posters of that era. See here 

  

Looking back 50 years - who remembers the 'Three-Day Week ?  My short story:

At the end of 1973 I began a new job. Which strictly speaking was the same job as I'd had before but with a different company, only now in the fashionable surroundings of the Kings Road, Chelsea with the main account of this small design studio being RCA Records. All very exciting ! David Bowie, Lou Reed and signed from the Pye label in 1971 The Kinks.
However my early months there were interrupted by the UK government's '3-day working week' ruling to conserve electricity generated by coal, which was being effected by industrial action from coal miners and railway workers. This involved working by angle-pose lamp with candles ready to light in case of a knock on the studio door and being caught with our lights on. Also rather than working on posters, points of sale and record sleeves for the above notable artists I found myself in the company of Perry Como, Jack Jones and Charles Aznavour, all very squares-ville, RCA ! I wasn't a fan of John Denver either, far from it, yet 5 years later I converted to 'Coloradoism' as I found his lyrics and songs making far more sense whilst travelling in the States - as we all went to look for America. 'Rocky Mountain High' best describes my conversion.

"John Denver's Greatest Hits" is the first hits album by American singer-songwriter John Denver, released in November 1973 by RCA Records. 'Rocky Mountain High' closes the album. 

This lyric video is great > 

NB: The 'Three-Day Week' was 1 January to 7 March 1974 (see article).  

  

From Prog-Rock and Symphonic Pop through Punk, New Wave and Heavy Metal to Electronica and Hip-Hop, Grime and Dubstep, Nightingale embraced them all. I'm quoting this from the Times obituary to Annie Nightingale, the first female disc jockey to break into the 'boys club' of BBC Radio 1, who recently died. She went on to outlast them all and remain on air for more than four decades. 

It occurred to me that this was a musical itinerary experienced by many of us of a similar age. Personally I'd have to insert Folk in there and the Blues, but the rest all fits. 

Elsewhere in the obituary it mentions her listening to 'up' music. She says: 

"I'm not a great fan of very down, depressing music. So I love uplifting music, music that makes me feel happier. And 'Three Little Birds'… I can't think of another song ever by anybody that makes you feel so happy. If ever I put together a mixtape – say someone is ill, or down, or depressed, or something, needs a lift – then that is the tune I play them."

Bob Marley & The Wailers – 'Three Little Birds' is today's Star Track 

   

We're in mellow mode today. 

Last year began with the deaths of prominent musicians - Jeff Beck and then Dave Crosby. Along with other sad news I found myself not always recording when this happened. Tina was remembered but many weren't, as the list grew through the year, becoming too many to mention them all. 

- Gordon Lightfoot, Randy Meisner (of the Eagles), John Gosling (Kinks keyboard player in the 70s), David Lindley (multi-instrumentalist in Jackson Browne band - wonderful lap steel guitar), two members of Bachman-Turner Overdrive: Robbie and Tim Bachman, Sinéad O'Connor, Tony McPhee (of the Groundhogs) and many many more... 

So today is for all the people who left us in 2023. 

A version of 'A Whiter Shade of Pale' played by King Curtis & the Kingpins >

 

From the 'King Size Soul' LP (1967)  

Curtis Ousley (born Curtis Montgomery in 1934). A master of the soprano, alto and tenor saxophone played rhythm and blues, jazz and rock and roll. 

  

He was Davy Jones and Dave Bowie and then David Bowie but in 1972 he became Ziggy Stardust ! 

In 1969 his character Major Tom had a hit single with 'Space Oddity'. On the 'B' side of the original Philips release was a song called 'Wide Eyed Boy from Freecloud' - this version has sparse instrumentation: guitar (played by Bowie) and arco bass (by Paul Buckmaster). The album version, recorded in July/August 1969, features a full orchestral arrangement by Tony Visconti. Have a listen to the single 'B' side here > 

 

Last summer I saw the re-release (after restoration) of D. A. Pennebaker's documentary film of the final Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars performance on 3rd July 1973 at the Hammersmith Odeon, London. RCA records had recorded it with the intention of releasing a live album. However, the project was shelved for several reasons, rumoured to include Bowie's desire to leave Ziggy behind, and the poor quality of the recordings. Bowie and producer Tony Visconti mixed the recordings in 1981, a mix heavily criticised, although Visconti describes it as "more of a salvage job than an artistic endeavor" considering the state of the source material. 

That said, this sounds pretty good to me. 'Wide Eyed Boy from Freecloud' was played as part of a medley with "All the Young Dudes" and "Oh! You Pretty Things". 

> Finally, did any one of you ever see "Ziggy play guitar" live in concert ? 

  

An alternative (and occasional) music posting highlighting something out of the ordinary. Perhaps of limited appeal, unconventional, experimental or just far-out ! Call it what you like (or switch it off, if you don't like). 

This track finds David Bowie at the other end of his catalogue, in the late 1990s.

I'd never heard this until last year and knowing he went through many musical changes during his life, some more popular than others, see what you make of this. It's different yet infectious !

Written by Bowie and Brian Eno it went through various revisions before emerging in 1997 on the 'Earthling' album and as a maxi-single release. A techno (or industrial) track, it presents a critique of America through the eyes of a stereotypical "Johnny" and is a mix of drum patterns, synthesizers, various loops and vocal distortions.

See what you make of "I'm Afraid of Americans" >