It's The Wolf - It's The Wolf

The 333 Mother Club is not in anyway your typical run of the mill rock venue. The DJ picks 'n' mixes hits and obscurities from Johnny Ray belters to Mark Vidler booties. There's no stage. The room seems to be scattered with lost property oddities - umbrellas, dress maker's mannequins, Chestfield chairs and has the buzz of a bordello disco set dressed by The Munsters - all of which make it the perfect prowling ground for The Wolfmen.

After Molloy's electropoppingindiedisco(more on them soon) and Space Age sitar from Bishi , The Wolfmen were up and at 'em, flooring it from the off and coming at the crowd like greyhounds out of a trap - ripping straight into 'Needles In The Camel's Eye', 'Jackie Says' ,'Cecile' and showing off shiny new tunes like 'Better Days' (a ready made summer single if ever there was one) and 'Whack That Bass' from the due soon album 'Modernity Killed Everynight'. Aside from Eno's 'Needles', other covers included a pre Velvet's Lou Reed track 'Do The Ostrich' (as featured in The Word recently) and a Bollywood Burlesque meets Biker Bar remake/remodel of 'Silver Machine' when Bishi joined The Wolfmen to add some slinky sitar trims to the Space Rock classic.

Despite a monthly residency I haven't seen The Wolfmen in action since their debut gig last November, and this experience was more of an all out 'needles in the red' rocker than the Wolf Gang's first show, with a fistful tunes that compounded the stomp of Glam, the power of Punk and the sugary hooks of Hitsville U.S.A into a bundle as tight and tough as Bruce Lee's 'one inch punch'.

So, see you there next month - same Wolf-time same Wolf-channel.

The Wolfmen - 'Do the Ostritch'



The Wolfmen - 'Cecilie'



Recommended Reading...

The Wolfmen Official Site

The Wolfmen on MySpace

Funky Friday - Frying Tonight

God only knows why Mick Weaver chose to rebrand himself as the clunkily named 'Wynder K Frog'- not that you'll give a sniff about his pseudonym, after a tucking into one of Wynder's red hot funky fry ups.

WKF's CV includes three spectacularly swishy solo albums -'Sunshine Superfrog'(1967) 'Into the Fire'(1970) and 'Out Of The Frying Pan'(1968) which for my earth money is the chef's special from his fistful of sizzlers - as well as sessions for Ronnie Lane, Steve Marriot and an appearance on Bentley Rhythm Ace's FSUK 3.

Recommend reading is Larry at Funky 16 Corners piece on Mick/Wynder

So why not have a bite of WKF's B3 boogaloo below - but, be warned, it's almost impossible to play any of these hammond flavoured hotties just once..

Wynder K Frog - Willie And The Hand Jive



Wynder K Frog - Green Door



Wynder K Frog - High Heel Sneakers



'Bad Eye' also on the 'Frying Pan' album was featured here as part of a recent for mix for The Hook And Sling website

Any Wynder K Tune makes a marvellous DIY soundtrack to this Vic and Bob clip. Turn the Youtube volume down, fire up a Wynder and off you go..

Something Old – Something New

Something New

Tronik and myself went to see Big Boss Man at Metro last week (unfortunately BBM didn't play due to the drummer’s Tonsillitis) but we did manage to catch Silvery’s high speed, high energy Victoriana vampings as well as shiny new Swedish band Mockingbird, Wish Me Luck’s debut UK gig - MWML seem to specialize in songs sketched in the neat clean lines of Scandanavian designs, blended with the muted toots of trumpets, trombones and the jolly melancholy of Nick Drake on a sunny day all finished off with a polite pop polish. But don’t just take my word for it - why not taste test one of their Scanda-pops below? Or check out their Myspace site

Mockingbird, Wish Me Luck - Let's Watch The Sunrise




Something Old

Bank holiday Sunday saw me shaking a leg and raising a glass at the Crocs 80-85 reunion along with assorted other ex Goths, Punks, Psychobillies and Blitz Kids (sort of fiends reunited - and on the Sabbath too!) How good was it to hear all the Crocs classics at club volume - as well as these period pieces I’d completely forgotten about...

Don Armando - I'm An Indian Too.



Don Armando - I'm An Indian Too.

Tuxedo Moon - No Tears



Tuxedo Moon - No Tears

Funky Friday - Worldwide Funk

Mondo Internationale - Teaser Trailer



I'm off on a Bank Holiday break at Matt's The Right Side Of Funky today, with a brand new mix 'Mondo internationale'

So what are Bank Holidays traditionally about then? Traffic and travel usually - and with that in mind I've tried to make 'Mondo internationale' a united nations mix of global groovers and tropical treats by blending acts from Nigeria, France and Jamaica with inter continental hops and stops at St Tropez, Broadway and Panama. Although there are earthquakes and a small splash of of bad weather on the way, hot pants are recommended as the temperature is generally hot, fiery and fevered with the final destination being Hawaii (5-0) for a hook up with Sammy Davis Jr.

The full mix is below if you fancy hopping onboard

Mondo internationale

Think of it as an antidote to Eurovision

You can taste test my musical version of a Wimpy International Grill at the top of the page. Somehow I couldn't seem to squeeze these two tunes into this short haul shakedown

Asiko Rock Group - Lagos City



Alan Hawkshaw - Expo In Tokyo



There's another couple of outtakes here if you fancy completing the set

Favourite Shirts - Admiral Ringer

How badly do I want of these T Shirts? Enough to spend more hours than I really should scanning and scouring eBay for variations on the “Admiral ringer tee shirt” theme. I’d have to favour the sky blue flavour out of the three though.


And how about a manbag to go with it? - Perfect


So get your ringers on, have a quick freshen up with this - then it’s off here to shake a leg to tunes like…

Close Shave - Keith Mansfield



These pic's are taken from the 'Admiral 77/78 Season Catalogue', when Admiral were the Kings of club kits, and in case you’re wondering...

Yes - I do have the whole catalogue.
Yes - I will be scanning in the highlights

Funky Friday - Spliced Krispies

For as long as DJs and remixers have been recycling rock, rap and pop scraps into home made hybrids and patchwork tracks - I've been collecting them.

The King of cut and paste pop is Mark Vidler/Go Home Productions (the legendary 'Ray Of Gob' and 'Can't Get Blue Monday Out of My Head' are both GHP creations ) whose brand new booties 'Spliced Krispies' have been rocking my noggin for the past two weeks. And as if he's not busy enough making mashups and a full set accompanying videos, Radio One appearances, magazine features, podcasts guest spots and a new album - the Grand Master of Mashups himself Mr Mark Vidler is here, right here to give us some exclusive snap, crackle and pop on a selection from his latest tasty treats 'Spliced Krispies' -

"Wouldn't It Be Nice To Have A Finger Of Fudge"

OK, I was born in the original Summer Of Love (not the attempted ecstacy-fuelled 80's version), pre-Pepper by a month yet the smell of Strawberry Fields was still strong, if you get my drift. So...that means I grew up in the Seventies:

Space Dust, Planet Of The Apes, The Double Deckers, Krazy Comic, Horror Bags crisps, Top Deck, Space Invaders, Glam Rock, Punk Rock, New Wave, Mod Revival, Texan Bar, Curly Wurly, Finger of Fudge (got there in the end).

The Cadbury's Fudge jingle / TV ad appeared at the tail end of the 70's and well into the 80's, so if you're of a certain age you'll either remember it fondly or dismiss it for being a mild irritant. I guess I'm somewhere between the two camps but back in April when I started creating the "Spliced Krispies" album, I always knew I was going to 'doctor' it in some way. It's light and breezy feel (mostly a capella) and school boy charm was just crying out to be bastardised with something from another universe (in musical terms).

Fact 1: Mike D'Arbo (formerly of Manfred Mann) wrote the jingle.
Fact 2: I originally matched it up with Nirvana's "Teen Spirit".

Thank God I didn't stick with that idea though. It's one of those 'For every 5 gems, there's 50 shit ones' scenarios. So I continued trying to find Fudge a partner well into the wee small hours, fuelled by a bottle of Columbian Gallo and roast chicken (Hong Kong style), until Pet Sounds came calling from the corner of the room. It was purely accidental If I'm brutally honest. I was listening to 'Let's Go Away For A While' earlier in the week, so the CD was close to hand. "Wouldn't It Be Nice" seemed to good to be true. One of those 'goosebump' moments when I could hear that Fudge worked effortlessly with it...

I guess it's the one track that's getting the most attention since releasing "Spliced Krispies" to an unexpectant public in May. Chris Moyles (Radio 1 DJ) picked and played it 3 times on his breakfast show. Fair play, he gave 'The Vidler' and 'Go Home Productions' website a very massive plug, questioning my sanity for even contemplating the 2 songs together yet describing it as genius. The phone was hardly on it's hook that morning.
Funny what a 'finger of fudge' can actually do for you...

GHP - "Wouldn't It Be Nice To Have A Finger Of Fudge"





"Grandstand Supreme"

Throughout March this year I was aquiring and listening to a hell of a lot of KPM Library Music, probably fuelled by my sudden 'trying to reclaim my youth' mood that was taking me back to the Seventies, so I was consuming a lot of Alan Hawkshaw, Keith Mansfield, Brian Bennett etc and dragging out my Blow Up compilation CD's, DeWolfe comps and TV Themes albums. I felt like I was living out an episode of every BBC / ITV production between 1973-1979. Very weird but very enjoyable at the same time, so it was hardly suprising that something would filter through and end up on the album. The full Grandstand theme is quite simply a work of art. It's probably Keith Mansfields' most well known. The addition of the Supremes is probably not too much of a surprise really. I think the surprise lies in how well the vocal fits
with the backing track at certain changes. It took a bit of editing and shuffling around but I think that my decision to leave the song length the same as the opening titles was right. In the end it was probably more a case of making the music to fit the video that I was creating at the same time. Funnily enough Moyles played this track on his Breakfast show as well...

GHP - "Grandstand Supreme"





"Finally, Did You No Wrong'"

I can't leave the Sex Pistols alone.They are my regular fix of energy and attitude, reference point and inspiration. See, I was too young to be a punk in 1976/1977. I was only nine years old and more into supporting my beloved Arsenal and playing with my Six Million Dollar Man doll than following bands or pop stars. I watched Top Of The Pops from a very early age (apparently) but never went out and bought records until I was 12. I can remember Gary Glitter, Slade, The Sweet, Suzy Quatro, The Bay City Rollers, Osmonds and T.Rex but I never indulged in the sacred plastic. Those bands seemed a bit cabaret to me at the time if I'm honest. Anyway, I witnessed the Pistols on the Grundy show and that definitely left an impression. Janet Street Porter's 'Punk' documentary for the London Weekend Show was another slice of legendary TV that I caught as well, but it wasn't until 1979 that I jumped right in and started buying the stuff.

By then the Pistols had run their course and the new wave was settling in but I bought 'Never Mind The Bollocks' and am still amazed to this day by it's awesome production and energy. It's the best album to put on when the sun is out and the windows are open. It's pretty well known that "Ray Of Gob" (Pistols vs Madonna) gave me the foot-up into the Music biz back in 2003, so I just felt like doing another one for a laugh and see what turned up. This one came about pretty quickly. In fact the video took longer to make because I spent so much time watching all my Pistols DVD's for source material...I mentioned elsewhere that I had to bolster the bottom end by playing the bass part and mixing it back in but I think the track works well enough now and it's quite strange how nicely female vox fit with a Pistols song.

GHP - 'Finally, Did You No Wrong'



All the best

Mark.

I'm sending out extra special soul salute to Mark for finding the time rustle up with a great bowlful of goodies of for my blog - so please speed on over to Go Home Productions and fill your boots with his boots..

Double Top

As I may have mentioned before - I am a terror for a bootleg remix...

So here are a couple of cut and paste cuties both formed from the same Caribbean cloth - using 'Double Barrel' as a musical bed and backdrop, with kittenish girl group vocals smoldering center stage.

McKay - Take Me Over



Soundhog - Double Freak



Think of this as a warm up for Funky Friday - which has an extra special guest this week.

This Week's 'To Do' List......

Learning at least three of the leg actions featured here..



The track used in this clip is..
DJ Z-Trip - 'All about the music'



And any five face actions from this gallery of gurning



Next week's 'To Do' list
Combinations

Funky Friday - Animal Crackers

Is it possible to build an audio ark, a musical menagerie, a funky farm, a zound zoo..

*goes on like this for several hours*

of animals celebrated in soul stompsters and sizzlers?

Well, for starters, here's a few beauties and beasties racing straight out of the traps...

If you only have the chance to check out one of these tunes Please. Please. Please check out the 'Funky Chicken' nugget, not just for the most eye blinding explosion of spectacular clobber ever seen at any single event.

But also the collective display of shaking, strutting and group frugging - it's like Heronymous Bosch flash mobbing..

Rufus Thomas - The Funky Chicken (from Wattstax)




Billy Preston - The Octopus



Los Gatos Negros - Hey Hey Bunny



Syko and The Caribs - Do The Dog



Bernard Purdie - Funky Donkey



Rufus Thomas - Walking The Dog

Brazilian Wax

Really... who wants to be working on a day like today when you could be sitting and sipping in the sun. So, should you feel like popping some bottle tops for a splash of something soothing why not try these tunes as a musical mixer..

And speaking of mixes I'm working on a new comp' for Matt's The Right Side Of Funky blog ( you really should check out the new 'Quel Organ' Mix on there right now) which I'm trying to keep as tight as pair of snug fit Speedos but just can't seem to tuck these tunes into the tracklist...

Sergio Mendes and Brazil 77 - 'Superstition'



Patricia Marx - 'Menino'



Azymuth - Jazz Carnival