You've gotta love the ol' shuffle button and it's Tombola way of popping winners into play
The two most recent treats (picked and played back to back) were alt-takes from ever-cherished faves The Beatles and The Damned, who, have more crossover and connection than you may initially think..
The Hard Day's Night sleeve re-jiggery , main songwriters starting out as bass players - Captain even played a Macca style Hofner violin bass in his earliest period, is also a dedicated Veggie and animal rights activist - then there's Help appearing on the B-side of first single New Rose, and the sideswipe at Lennon..Would You Be So Hot (watch for the powerdiddle drum fills at 1:46, the Santana style closing coda and some solid soloing from Cap')
But getting back to the tracks...both are faster, flightier versions of familiar tunes - whipping along with extra fizz, vim and voom!
You can see why, as Stuart Maconie reports in Cider With Roadies, he was stunned into submission and silence by this assault of battering ram riffs and rhythms.
The Damned - Neat Neat Neat (Peel session 30/11/76)
Take 6 of The Word is a bouncier, beatier versh, which to my old lugs sounds ever so slightly sped up. That it's 15 seconds shorter than the official release may mean it has been gear-shifted up a notch...(full breakdown here Fab avids)
The Beatles - The Word
The Damned - Help
do like the Fabs track:
ReplyDeleteI'd forgotten how complex their harmonies were until I sang 'if you let me take your heart' with the local Ukelele group last week:
nice post ^_^
I remember a Q review of an anthology of the Damned not so long back, which was hugely complimentary of the entire contents, with one exception. The last line of the review read: "Ignore their version of Help! though. It's rubbish."
ReplyDeleteThose harmonies are magic Choco - and probably peaked with Because. We had an acoustic sing-a-long round Tony Harrison's (him of the butchers opposite Leigh Library) over Christmas..and Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds was just magic backing vox-wise..
ReplyDeleteThe Damned's redux of Help, if I'm honest, is a shouty ol' clatter-about, but Fabs style kaleidoscopic pop influences are all over the Black Album and Strawberries and well worth grabbing if you haven't yet Matt..
A couple more Hard Days Night sleeve parodies for you Mr M: Nick Heyward and John Pizzarelli
ReplyDeleteWrong way 'round!
ReplyDeleteIn fact, here's all 23!
ReplyDeleteBrilliant haul J. Can't believe I'd never clocked the Ultravox rework afore..I must log a Nick Heyward bit in the blog soon..
ReplyDeleteMarvel Comics, did a great parody of the With The Beatles cover using the Fantastic Four - but buggered if I can find it. However, have a peep at these and see if you can spot all four moptops in the middle pic (plus other assorted slebs). And of course Paul is dead myth, referenced here
Have you read Paul Is Undead, The British Zombie Invasion?
ReplyDeleteWHA'? How did I miss that gem. There's a follow up too Give Death a Chance
ReplyDeleteFor more Comic crossover...
Howard the Duck meets Kiss
Superman meets Orson Welles
Captain Britain meets Gordon Brown
Spider-man meets Barack Obama
Have a squint here
The Ultravox reference passed me by all these years, too. Mind you, there's a Beatle-shaped chasm in my musical appreciation. I'd go straight to The Damned any day!
ReplyDeleteIt's just finding a way in with these things - I'm sure the Fabs will click with you one day. Having said that - Bob Dylan, U2 and The Clash have never clicked with me. *trips over self*
ReplyDelete