Various Artists – "Brum Beat Live At The Barrel Organ!" (Big Bear Records – BRUM 1) 1980

We cheekily mentioned the 1974 Birmingham Pub Bombings in the previous posts on Belfast,so the logical progression must be to hear some music from a pub in Birmingham,UK,not Alabama.The alleged Bombers were all arrested, basically for being Irish, and soundly beaten up until they confessed.

They were all pardoned and released some years ago now after serving 16 years at her majesties' pleasure. 

Of course you all know that Birmingham,the UK's second city)....pronounced Birmin-gum in Brummy(the local accent_, and Birming-haaam in the United states (twats....boycott them!)...has a very strong argument in the richly contested arena as to who was the most important city in the British rock'n'roll stakes,and therefore also in The World. The undisputed birthplace of all Heavy Rock,also can boast Moody Blues,ELO, the Move,Led Zeppelin,Black Sabbath,...er...Duran Duran, the worlds best selling Reggae band...UB40....Napalm Death,Traffic, Judas Priest, The (English)Beat), Dexy's,Swell Maps, Spencer Davis Group....I could go on...shit,I forgot Slade!?
Nothing like that steller list on this local compilation, but one of the groups (The Lazers), had ginger chanteuse,T'Pau's Carol Dekker on vocals!...we are definitely worthy.
This is essentialy Birmingham's version of "Hope and Anchor \front Row Festival" with it's Pub Rock sensibility, rather than the cutting edge post-punk vibes one would expect from Brum's own Nightingales. Nowt wrong with that however, me being a big digger of said scene.
Love Pub Rock me,so i do......this really was Punk before Punk in my humbles.
It does boast an act that had a single in John Peels' special box of fav singles....namely The Quads, who recorded the rather splendid "There Must Be Thousands" single that said venerable DJ,and mucky minded lady fiddler played to death in 1980.

I notice this double disked forensic investigation into all things Brummy seems to be sponsored by Ansells Bitter, not,an alcoholic tipple of choice for your average London Punk Rocker,who always seemed to have a can of Colt 45 glued to their hand; and where is Colt 45 now eh?....gone!...just like all the bands featured here....yes, even The Quads are gone and forgotten.Life is harsh innit? That such beauty could come from such a grim shithole as Birmingham is nothing short of amazing.However grim conditions are often touted as the very reason all this great art was created in the first place,an escape route so to speak.Following the Beatles to mansions in Surrey as soon as possible.The fabs couldn't wait to get out of Liverpool, and who can blame 'em?...trouble is the list of groups on this LP are patently stuck in one the world's oldest and grimest industrial conurbations.see this music as a cry for help. 

Tracklist:

A1 Bright Eyes – The Lonely Ones
A2 Bright Eyes – Casablanca
A3 The Lazers– Headache
A4 The Lazers– Rivet
A5 Willy & The Poorboys– My Babe
A6 Willy & The Poorboys– Hoy Hoy Hoy
B1 The Quads – When Everything Is Said & Done
B2 The Quads – Wonders Never Cease
B3 Rockers – It Takes A Thief
B4 Speed Limit – Alright On The Night
B5 Speed Limit – CJ
C1 Dansette Damage– All Little Girls Taste The Same
C2 Dansette Damage– Invaders
C3 Mayday – Moving In Time
C4 Mayday – Standing On The Edge Of The World
C5 Dangerous Girls– Demolition
C6 Playthings – Sally Daydream

D1 The Thrillers –To The Top

D2 The Thrillers – Breakout
D3 Spoonfull – On Your Trail
D4 Spoonfull – Nine 'Til Five
D5 Eclipse– Enjoy Yoursef

DOWNLOAD from the UK's sickened city HERE!

Various Artists – "Belfast Rock" (Rip Off Records – ROLP1) 1978

Despite the fact that the  Rip Off Records cover insist that this rocking Irish Pub Rock album is actually called "Belfast Rock" when the labels clearly suggest its called "Belfast Rocks".

The pun is,for the benefit of our dear american chums, that 'Rock' is in fact a candy-striped seaside sweet treat sold in every UK seaside town...think Coney Island.It normally has the local holiday town's name running throughout the entire length of the 'Stick of Rock'.As the cover art clearly demonstrates.

Belfast's tourism hot spots are not really sandy beaches, or even Bobby Sands graffiti,or H-Block ice cream vendors ,but none other than the Harland and Wolff shipyards,notoriously the place that the unsinkable Titanic was built.If there were Ice cream Vendors hanging around the Falls Road,around this time,would chocolate flavor be called a Dirty Protest with a flake?

This compilation, and most all of bands from Ulster, usually sank without a trace,even though all these bands would undoubtedly have played on as the ship slipped below the waves in a desperate bid to get a record contract,preferably with Stiff records,as judged by the evidence presented here.

Top notch Pub Rock from Belfast, no politics mentioned,just honest sweaty Rock'n'Roll,and not a single Kneecapping in sight.
Tracklist:

A1 Pretty Boy Floyd & The Gems– Spread The Word Around
A2 Blue Steam– Cortina Cowboys
A3 Cobra – Looking For A Lady
A4 Jumpers – Jimmy Jump
A5 No Sweat – You Should Be So Lucky
A6 Detonators– Cruisin'

B1 Blue Steam– Lizard King
B2 No Sweat – Start All Over Again
B3 Cobra – Graveyard Boogie
B4 Pretty Boy Floyd & The Gems– Rough Tough Pretty Too
B5 Jumpers – Baby C'mon
B6 Detonators– Light At Your Window

DOWNLOAD the music from the pubs that the birmingham pub bombers

refused to bomb, HERE!

John Otway & Wild Willy Barrett – "Live At The Roundhouse" (Official Bootleg) 1977

Another who extolled the virtues of wood and its role in popular music,was one Wild Willy Barrett; whose work with the bard of Aylesbury ,John Otway,took unprofessionalism to new heights.

Wild Willy made his own guitars,and even made wooden sleeves for some of his solo releases.

Otway,as Willy called his rather eccentric partner,was one of those very British characters  on the peripheries of the pre-punk rock scene who seemed to exist as Stars in their own lunchtimes and in their own minds.Such as Johnny Moped,John The Postman,Chris Seivey,Wreckless Eric,and Sting,the Geordie Bono.

Like Sting, Otway,would literally do anything to achieve his dream of being a Star,but, unlike Sting,did it with an blatant sense of humour that suggested he also knew he would never make it.....surely not? But, briefly, he did. Mainly thanks to his more Punk than Punk performances on the Old Grey Whistle Test and Top Of The Pops with Wild Willy,which included Otway leaping on to Willy's amp, precariously perched on a chair,and subsequently falling off astride the amp crushing his family jewels,and disconnecting Barrett's guitar in the process,all on live national TV.

Catapulting "Really Free" to the lofty position of number 27 on the UK charts,and Polydor releasing their previously self-released eponymous LP,as financed by John's long suffering parents who re-mortgaged their home(?)in a desperate attempt to help their son to have a career....ANY career.

Of course the follow up singles flopped.Incredibly even the classic hymn to mindless violence "Headbutts", never broke the top 75!?

John then made sort of a career,post Wild Willy as a professional 'Failure',and his fans co-ordinated themselves to buy his "Bunsen Burner" single to get it into the top ten in 2002.

This pair were very representative of the generation of long hairs caught between Punk and Prog. Too young for Prog and too old for Punk,which really most of the Clash were too;but Otway and Barrett didn't have to pretend to be anything but themselves.Punk before Punk,and DIY before DIY.

This recording,headlining at the Roundhouse,was made at the height of Otway's micro stardom.Where our hero is supported by the marvelous  Fruit Eating Bears, Clayson and the Argonauts,and future hit makers,Squeeze...featuring the king of bland coffee table dad rock and boogie woogie criminal, Jools Holland...who,bizarrely, is the only one out of this lot who can still get on TV.

Tracklist:

1.Slewfoot
2.Only A Hobo
3.Really Free
4.Fire On A Mountain
5.Geneve
6.Beware Of The Flowers ('Cause I'm Sure They're Going To Get You Yeh)
7.Running From The Law
8.Cheryl's Going Home
9.Down The Road
10.Racing Cars (Jet Spotter Of The Track)

DOWNLOAD and Cor! baby, it's really free HERE!

The Stranglers And Friends – "Live In Concert, Rainbow,London 1980"

Oooh Look! A one-off collaboration for two 1980 live concerts by The Stranglers from the spring of 1980. Naughty Hugh Cornwell was in Pentonville Prison for drug possession. With two gigs scheduled at the London Rainbow for 3 & 4 April, the management decided to turn things around by approaching a number of well-known artistes to fill in for the absent Cornwell on vocals and guitar.

However,what is notable about the various guest appearances is the number of deceased individuals on one stage.....not deceased at the time one has to note, but recently deceased, as in the case of Jet Black,Nik Turner ,Nicky Tesco and ,my guitar and sartorial hero, Wilko Johnson. 

There are other less recently deceased artistes of course, like Ian Dury and Larry Wallis,but mainly we're concentrating on the new wave of dead pop-stars,wot I have wrote about in the last few posts,with the exception of Wilko Johnson,for whom I couldn't find any words to express this great loss!

He being the only musician I know of who has a spoonerism for his nom des plumes. I also could not find anything (good) he did that I haven't already posted before.....that is, until discovering his guest spot on these live recordings by a Hugh Cornwell-less Stranglers. Nestling uncomfortably alongside Robert Fripp and his terrifying wife, Toyah......later to haunt us all with their insufferable social media appearances....another dreadful consequence of the Co-Vid Lockdown.....among various Pub legends,skids,blockheads and ex-proggers. Sure enuff an impressive turn out,and a more interesting way to listen to the Stranglers back catalogue. One of the few Tribute albums that actually features the band who are the subject of the tribute.

Farewell Wilko.

Tracklist:

1 Introduction by Jet Black 1:53

2 Get A Grip
Guitar – John Ellis, Robert Smith
Vocals – Hazel O'Connor 3:42

3 Hanging Around
Guitar – John Ellis , Robert Smith
Vocals – Hazel O'Connor 4:09

4 Tank
Guitar – John Ellis , Robert Fripp
Vocals – Pete Hammil 3:03

5 Threatened
Guitar – John Ellis , Robert Fripp 3:21

6 Toiler
Guitar – John Ellis , Robert Fripp
Vocals – Phil Daniels 5:19

7 The Raven
Guitar – Basil Gabbidon, John Ellis
Vocals – Pete Hammil 4:30

8 Dead Loss Angeles
Guitar – John Ellis, Wilko Johnson
Vocals – Phil Daniels 2:18

9 Nice'N'Sleazy
Guitar – Basil Gabbidon , John Ellis
Saxophone – Nik Turner
Vocals – Nicky Tesco 6:44

10 Bring On The Nubiles
Guitar – John Ellis, Wilko Johnson
Vocals – Richard Jobson 4:00

11 Peaches
Guitar – John Ellis , John Turnball
Saxophone – Davey Payne
Vocals – Hazel O'Connor, Ian Dury, Toyah Wilcox 4:34

12 Bear Cage
Guitar – John Ellis , John Turnball
Keyboards – Matthew Hartley
Saxophone – Davey Payne
Vocals – Hazel O'Connor, Ian Dury, Toyah Wilcox 4:41

13 Duchess
Guitar – John Ellis
Vocals – Toyah Wilcox 2:44

14 No More Heroes
Guitar – John Ellis
Vocals – Richard Jobson 3:49

15 Five Minutes
Guitar – Larry Wallis
Vocals – Richard Jobson 4:13

16 Something Better Change
Guitar – John Ellis , Steve Hillage
Vocals – Toyah Wilcox 3:43

17 Sewer
Guitar – John Ellis , Steve Hillage
Vocals – Jake Burns 7:36

DOWNLOAD from over the rainbow 1980 HERE!

The Stranglers - "Demo's 1974-76" (a Die or DIY? Compilation)

This comes under the category of groups who were social suicide to admit you like back in the halcyon daze of the Punk Rock wars of 1977. Basically they were obviously a lot older than a Punk Rock group should be,they had a keyboard player,and half of them looked like the kind of Pub trash you'd find in 1975,mustaches,suits and beards,like background extra's on the Sweeney.......not stylish Sweeney extras like Dr Feelgood,or The Pirates,but the ones who'd get beaten up by Jack and George to get information.

This may not sound like it, but this is an obvious attempt a a tribute for erstwhile Stranglers drummer and Ice Cream saleman, Jet Black, who passed away yesterday-ish at the remarkable age of 84!? He was older than Paul McCartney,and was 40 in 1978! This guy lived through the entire history of Rock'n'Roll! That's him with the beard and portly stance...was this the only Beard in Punk Rock?

Yeah, I secretly dug the Stranglers, most especially JJ Burnel, whose Bass sound and playing launched a tidal wave of Lead Bassists on the country, and made Post-Punk a reality. Unbeknownst to me Jean Jacques was an accomplished classical guitarist before he fatally thumbed a lift from Jet Black in his ice cream van,and ended up in The Stranglers in 1974. Yes that 1974, which Ramones fans always quote as evidence that they were indeed the very First Punk group......they did "I wanna be your Boyfriend" and the Stranglers did "Go Buddy Go" that year,and displayed uncomfortably long hair,....but, the Stranglers had less long hair,and were noticeably more aggressive.

They were in fact part of a very Proto-Punky movement,which fit their image far more than the glammed up MC5 or The Stooges, Pub Rock....of which one could argue that the Damned,Clash and The Pistols were also part of.

Nowadays, as Jet's Guardian Obituary states, The Stranglers were (accidently) the very First Post-Punk band, as well as tenuously the First Punk Band, with their "Darker" album, "Black and White",from 1978, beating previous favorites , Magazine, and Siouxsie and the Banshees to the title....which is a recently tendered attempt at rewriting history,by burks like John Robb and his equivalents  ,while forgetting  in retrospect,all this was still referred to as 'Punk'music at the time,and only later were things reassigned,depending on your definition of what its supposed to be.

For me, it was always the music that came after the first wave which obviously wasn't three chord Punk,like XTC,Devo,Talking Heads etc...which also included the 'Darker Side' like Joy Division ,Bauhaus, Pere Ubu etc.

"Punk Rock said Fuck You, and Post-Punk said I'm Fucked" has become the catchphrase these days.

So allow me to pick my own first Post-Punk album, and it ain't the Stranglers,or Television.....it's obviously Ultravox innit? "Ha! Ha! Ha!" from 1977....ticks all the boxes for me.

So to celebrate Jet's very understated underplayed drumming as part of one of the most un-categorisable  group from the Punk Rock era, here's a load of slightly dodgy pre-punk demo's from the magical year of 1974 onwards!?

I once thought "Go Buddy Go" was cover version when one first heard it,and was sure it had to be a UK R'n'R classic by someone like Johnny Kidd,until i knew better.....a JJ Burnel composition no less!?

Also the first time I saw a 'Punk' group on the telly was Stranglers doing 'Go Buddy Go' on Top of the Pops....the A-side,Peaches, was banned of course....tee hee hee...they swapped instruments.....and there may have been a rather naughty expletive on Burnel's T-shirt. However,JJ's hair looked a bit too fluffy for my liking,obviously just had a shampoo in the BBC make-up dept before the performance.

Jet, as always stayed in the background,gently miming his drums,which always sounded mimed anyway,so why bother?

Tracklist:

1. Charlie Boy*

2. Chinatown*

3. Make You Mine*

4. My Young Dreams*

5. I Know It*

6. White Wedding*

7. Country Chaser*

8. Bouncing man*

9. Wasted*

10. Go Buddy Go*

11.Strange Little Girl*

12.Bitching#

13.Peaches#

14.Tomorrow Was the Here after#

15.Down In The Sewer#

16.Grip#

*1974

#1976

DOWNLOAD a demostration of jet's ability to not be black HERE!

Pink Fairies ‎– "Never Neverland" (Polydor ‎– 2383 045) 1971 (Re-Post+)

Pop Groups what played yer proper Rock'n'Roll were a rarity in the early seventies, but here's one of 'em, Der Pink Fairies.

I belatedly realised that i posted this album before,and you can read wot I wrote below in Italics. Since I wrote this crap, my attitude has since developed even more of a stink,so i will add extra cynical blurbage to the brief Mojo magazine style yawn-dom my nom de plume tapped out back in October 2016!?....and I quote:

"They contributed the proto-punk anthem "Do It" to world culture, a virtual punk manifesto expressed as a three minute symphony.
The rest of their canon never really matches the heights of "Do it",except maybe "City Kids" from the "Kings Of Oblivion" album gets closer than the rest; but they contributed a nascent punk attitude (fucking hate that word -JZ), and the roots of some of the more rock orientated Pub Rock."

Indeed "Do It" could be misconstrued as a clarion call to arms for the Punk Rock generation several years hence forth,and indeed it was.Many future punky types were regular Fairies fans,including self-proclaimed inventor of said silly genre and Prat, Johnny Be Rotten.

It could also be the anthem for this blog,as it was initially set up to focus on the classic DIY-pop era of 1979-83 cassette culture,but has since evolved into a trainspotters guide to rock'n'pop'n'all thing roll ephemera,mainly to avoid the bordeom of advancing age.A friend of mine was found Dead in his house the other week,computers still whirring,where he had lain for five days before being discovered,dead and whiffy. I fear this may be my fate one day.

I'm getting round to my obituary blog post, that,hopefully, before the heart attack kicks fully in, I can post with the flick of a finger before i drop to the floor awaiting discovery.The neighbours may notice something's wrong after approx a week or so.Poor old Joe was noticed missing online,believe it or not.Working from home! So the Fire Brigade got a call from Germany!?And kicked their way in.....if only they'd asked, we have a spare key,and the alarm code! I don't have the luxuries of worried employers (an oxymoron if ever there was one). Its normal for me to disappear for 7 days,so the girlfriend won't worry.This is the price one pays for being an anti-social arsehole....left as rat food until someone can be bothered.

Of course,the human tradition is for any good idea....DIY not death.... to have humble beginnings, then be overran with throngs of bandwagon jumping drones,like a dog with a new toy who rips the thing that gives them joy to pieces.DIY is now a genre, with all kinds of pointless groups filling up the empty slots at summer festivals with their not very Do it yourself...DIY? dogma....as dictated by the unfortunate youths who have the misfortune of missing everything thats ever happened in 20th century music and art.Stick to your video games and trainer kids,and leave the old stuff purely for nostalgic masturbation....like this blog.

Back in the day nobody had a clue that they could do all this shit  themselves. Now that the bunny is longtime out of the hat, every fucker does it.Diluting the idea so far that one begins to crave the days when Record labels ruled the earth and Massive Rock Group behemoths made us all feel like insects to be crushed under their chartered super-jumbo's complete with faux-Victorian interiors....I believe Led Zeppelin had something similar,including a real 19th century functioning fireplace on their jumbo jet:

Led Zep reliving their working class roots at 30,000 feet

This was,thankfully, unattainable for that cassette poet from Barrow-in-Furness,who will send you back his spoken word if you sent him a blank C-90 and a self-addressed envelope.It was just a dream for that shite bedroom band with upturned bins for drums to record in a 120 track digital studio, and get their awful wares displayed on a commercial space covering the entire planet and beyond.Everyone can be some form of Led Zeppelin nowadays.You can even fly to your internet arranged gigs on affordable low budget airlines......however, you are only allowed to carry one victorian fireplace as hand luggage.

Now, the clarion call is no-longer "DO IT!" for the clued up dozens, it's "DON'T DO IT!"....pleeeeze! I don't ever wanna hear your perfectly produced Nu-Folk Hip Hop collaboration with that guy in Mongolia, or you and your grannies Harsh Noise box set tribute to Jeffrey Dahmer.It's shit,you missed the bus,and the Bus has crashed because of the human plague.The same reason we will never live in peace.

Keep it to yourself if you wanna do it yourself, we killed it.

Anyway, i've done this myself....sorry, and re-written/updated the lyrics to the Pink Fairies classic "Do It"...it goes as follows as follows:

"Do it 2022" Lyrics:

Don't think about it
All you've got to do is, don't
Well don't talk about it
Don't, do it

Don't lie about it
Just Don't do it
Don't Write about it honey
Then we'll just,not do it

Yeah,don't do do do do do do do do do do it
Don't Do it do it do it do it do it do it do it do it
DON'T DO IT

Don't sing about it...Pleese,Don't Do it!

If you gonna do it, Don't
Don't write about it man
Don'T do it

Rock and roll
And the message is,its already been DONE a million times over
But You knew it? Didn't you?
You blew it,DON'T do it,don't do it, don't do it,

Don't do it (x12) NO!

(Words by J.Zchivago....go on sue me.)

PS: I may record this if i can be arsed to learn the tabs.

Tracklist:

Original Album:

1 Do It 4:15
2 Heavenly Man 3:41
3 Say You Love Me 3:48
4 War Girl 4:34
5 Never Never Land 6:55
6 Track One, Side Two 4:41
7 Thor 0:58
8 Teenage Rebel 5:20
9 Uncle Harry's Last Freakout 10:51
10 The Dream Is Just Beginning 1:18

Bonus Tracks:

11 The Snake 3:58
12 Do It (Single Edit) 3:04
13 War Girl (Alternate Extended Mix - Previously Unreleased) 4:34
14 Uncle Harry's Last Freakout (First Version - Previously Unreleased) 12:24

DOWNLOAD don't think about it just do it HERE!

Gorillas – "Message To The World" (Raw Records – RWLP 103) 1978

Jess Hector's 'Message to the World, as printed on the back cover to their/his only official album release in their lifetimes, has been ignored,as has this rather over-produced dee-rocked debut and final album by the Gorillas, formally the Hammersmith Gorillas who took their name from London's pro-Castro activist group the Hammersmith Guerillas.....although i suggest that Jess and the boys probably couldn't give a fuck about all this anti-human political bullshite......hence the piss-take replacing Guerrillas with Gorillas?

Jesse has his Marc Bolan warble center stage on this one,even managing to remove all the Funk from Hendrix's "Foxy Lady" as made by late period T-Rex....sounds good on paper.

All his hero's were dead, even by 1978, so whats a boy to do but try to resurrect their souls using the new age Voodoo that is Rock and Roll?.....it didn't work, Hendrix is still very dead,as is the wonderful Marc Bolan,whose kids TV show , "Marc" was a primary influence on the young Zchivago.It had my second experience of Punk Rock on it, Generation X, Eddie and the Hot Rods...who everyone thought was 'Punk', and why the fuck not? They were faster than the Ramones,and no Glam influence either.The Jam,the LP of which (In The City),my sister had,so I nicked it.....their best album by far.

Marc's old mates The Radio Stars were on it, i thought The Boomtown Rats were good????......can't win 'em all?....but best of all was Hawkwind,in their punk phase with "Quark Strangeness and Charm"...a classic.

The series and Marc's life ended with a ramshackle duet with David Bowie....his last performance before his wife,The Tainted love legend Gloria jones, drove their mini into an old sycamore tree near Queen’s Ride in London. What delights has this tragedy deprived us of,one could only guess.He did ,however, write and record the same song over and over again....but what's wrong with that if it's a Good'un.

An interviewer once asked Angus Young of Aussie Pub Rock legends AC/DC why they had made the same album ten times over?

He replied thus, " I find that quite insulting, its the same album Eleven times over actually,get yer facts right mate!.

I'm certain that Jesse Hector wouldn't mind at all that my blurb is all about Marc Bolan rather than him.We can't all sit among the elite in Rock'n'Roll Valhalla can we?

Tracklist:

A1 Foxy Lady
A2 I'm A Liar
A3 I Need Her
A4 Going Fishing
A5 New York Groover
B1 Outa My Brain
B2 Waiting For You
B3 No Way In
B4 Last Train
B5 Message To The World

DOWNLOAD and get the message HERE!

The Hammersmith Gorillas – "Gorilla Got Me" (Big Beat Records - CDWIKD 185) 1999

 

This is what CD's were invented for....surely?....,Primarily so we could get all of The 'Ammersmiff Gorilla's non album work in one place.

If you look closely at the sartorially elegant gentlemen on the cover,you may have noted that two of them were last seen in proto-Punk flag bearers Crushed Butler. Sporting a fine set of muttonchops would be rockin' warhorse Jesse Hector, with the late Alan Butler himself (he fell off a horse),sporting a rather fetching Steve Marriot on heat haircut.

Alongside, Eddie and the Hot Rods,Doctor Feelgood,Ducks Deluxe and the Bishops, The Hammersmith Gorillas helped keep alive the Rock and the Roll for the poor kids who, sadly, came of age post Sgt Pepper, as part of the Pub Rock circuit around 1974,which basically served the same purpose as the Ramones/Heartbreakers end of the arty New York CBGB's/Max's scene; but with a lot more Rock'n'Roll and a lot less pretentious bohemian prancing involved.Out of which sprang forth most of the 'Punk' groups. Basically,the formula reads something like this Pub Rock plus Ramones,plus Glam plus the Sex Pistols management created what was now called Punk Rock in 1976....unsquared. A formula, if left unchecked,or applied incorrectly, will lead to a New Wave of British Heavy Metal....which it did.

The Gorillas,as they were known,in their contracted Punk Rock form,were certainly a mixture of Glam, which had its own more nostalgic revival of Rock'n'Roll going on and the hooligan friendly Slade inspired Bovver Rock of the pre-punk period.

These chaps certainly know their Rock history,selecting to cover the two main precursors on how to be a punk Rock group,namely "You Really Got Me" and "Wild Thing"....that's where the seeds were sown,maybe cross-pollinated with a bit of "Johnny BeGoode" and "Louis Louis",from here sprung hither the mutant.

Whatever, the Gorillas had great Haircuts and recorded for legendary Punk Label Raw Records, straight outta Cambridge.

Tracklist:

The Hammersmith Gorillas
1 You Really Got Me
2 Leavin' Home
3 Eleanor Soapdodge
4 I Live In Style In Maida Vale
5 Luxury

The Gorillas
6 She's My Gal
7 Why Wait 'Til Tomorrow
8 Gatecrasher
9 Gorilla Got Me
10 Move It
11 Song For Rita

The Hammersmith Gorillas
12 Moonshine
13 Shame Shame Shame
The Gorillas
14 Feel It Easy
15 Miss Dynamite

The Hammersmith Gorillas
16 You Can't Judge A Book (By Looking At The Cover)
17 Leavin' 'Ome
18 Come On Down
19 Jailhouse Rock
20 Wild Thing
21 Keep On Chooglin'
22 Foxy Lady

23 It's My Life (Raw Single)

24 My Son's Alive (Raw Single)

25 I'm Seventeen

DOWNLOAD a 'gorillas' without a single damon albarn in sight HERE!

Last Exit ‎– "First From Last Exit" (Impulse Studios, Newcastle ‎– WUD/C/101) 1975

 Ahaaaaa!....did someone mention Sting's first band? Indeed, Gordon Sumner got to use the 'Last Exit' moniker first with their depressing,geordie, version of the Average White Band. The Pub Rock shadow of the German American Noise Jazz outfit from a decade later,when the Bass Player (in fact both of the Last Exit's bass players!) was/were,and still are,enormous pricks. This says more about the origins of 'Punk' than any forgotten, "we got there first man" punk before punk groop from Boise Idaho that gets discovered every year. This represents what an awfully dull and depressing hole Great Britain used to be in 1975,and its main protagonists wern't necessarily all in search of the re-birth of rock'n'roll. 'Bandwagon' was a word oft-used by 1978, and sting was indeedy accused of this common behavioural pattern;either that or he had his eyes and ears open for something better? The early Police were a great band,full of ex-proggers ,looked good sounded good,and had eff-all to do with the London based clique that became 'punk Rock'. Sting often relayed a story about when the Police were bottom of the bill at the second Mont-de-Marsan Punk Festival in 1977,when he popped his bleached blonde head in the Damned's dressing room,and humbly asked for a Beer,the response to which was,from Rat Scabies I believe, "Fuck Off and come back when you're as famous as us!"....oh how Ironic.This brings to mind tne old showbiz addage to 'be careful who you meet on the way up for you will surely meet them again on the way down'.

I actually enjoy listening to this tape believe it or not? This Jazz rock bland-out transports one instantly back to a time which is often accused of being the worst year ever in Rock Music....which is crap.For a start every year ,virtually since ,i'd like to say 1988,but its probably since about 1999 is the worst year in pop and rock music. Sting's Last Exit is a fine example of the kids doing it for themselves in the height of the 'Pub Rock' phenomenon, which had far more influence on those original spikey tops than Iggy Poop.

Don't worry, i'm not gonna post a load of Police rareties,I feel a duty to amuse as well as bemuse.

Tracklist:

A1 We Got Something 4:05
A2 Truth Kills 4:41
A3 Whispering Voices 2:56
A4 Carrion Prince 2:48
A5 Savage Beast 4:49
B1 I Got It Made 3:46
B2 I'm On This Train 3:45
B3 Oh My God 4:43
B4 A Bit Of Peace 3:03

DOWNLOAD the first exit of gordon HERE!

Terrorways ‎– "Short-Haired Rock And Roll (1978-80)" 2008

Another AK:79 band, The Terrorways, were a kind of Pub Rock/Punk Covers Band hybrid.
Heavily reliant on Chuck Berry riffs, and covers of UK punk bands,(The Boys, and ATV seem favourites).They were the kind of band that, if they existed today, could make a healthy living playing at 'Old Folks Homes'.
They also have a good line in doing cover versions of cover versions;eg The Saints "lipstick on your collar" and "River deep Mountain High",The Drones "Be My Baby" and The Rezillo's doing Fleetwood Mac's "Somebody's Gonna Get Their Head Kicked In Tonight" being prime examples of this illusive genre.
They also dabbled in writing some rather Iffy original songs too,like the title track; but its their amped up cover versions that make this a jolly good wheeze for any septagerian Punk Rock Party.
One especially likes the 100Mph version of 'Borstal Breakout', that one could even get me pogoing ?......but only when me mums gone out.

Tracklist:

1 Short Haired Rock And Roll (1980)
2 Never Been To Borstal (1979)
3 She's A Mod (1979)
4 Love Lies Limp (1980)
5 Somebody's Gonna Get Their Head Kicked In (1978 Bedroom Demo)
6 Be My Baby
7 Things Go Wrong
8 Lipstick On Your Collar
9 Some Kind Of Fun
10 Why Don't You Do Me Right
11 Sick On You
12 First Time
13 Leave Off
14 Love Lies Limp
15 She's A Mod
16 Short Haired Rock And Roll
17 Get Outta My Pagoda
18 I Don't Care
19 Walk The Plank
20 Ask About You
21 Never Been To Borstal
22 River Deep Mountain High
23 Suspect Device
24 Borstal Breakout

DOWNLOAD some antipodean retirement home cabaret HERE!

Various ‎Artists – "The Snoopies Album: The Last Remains Of A Richmond Venue" ( 1,000 Only Records ‎– RSB1) 1981

Staying in the London area with,not quite a local bands compilation,but an album of studio recordings of some of the bands who played in very posh Richmond's premier alternative music venue....."Snoopies".Which closed its doors in 1981.
Some cracking tunes on this one, including a 'Hit', with an earlier version of The Cardiacs stadium pop classic "Is This The Life?", which was a minor hit single in 1988!? 
There's plenty of classic UK DIY as well, including the Tronics and the legendary Scissor Fits!

Tracklist:

A1 –Rich & Famous - Machine Gun
A2 –The Mag 7 - Rosalind Jones's Umbrella
A3 –Tronics - I'm A Diver
A4 –The People Upstairs - Whips Leather & Other Animals
A5 –Plain Characters - I Am A.
A6 –The Trudy - The Trudy
A7 –Thirteen At Midnight - Follow Yourself
A8 –Babybabybabybaby - Supernatural
B1 –Snatch 22 - Be Like You
B2 –Sister Sister - The Blackmen Dance
B3 –Scissor Fits- Radio Teeth
B4 –M.L.R. - The Recked Rectors Of Og
B5 –The Crew - Songs Like These
B6 –The Europeans - Drink Pink Zinc!
B7 –Cardiacs - Is This The Life?

DOWNLOAD these remains HERE!

The Cortinas ‎– "True Romances" + "Please Don't Hit Me (CBS Demo's)" (1978)

True Romances (CBS Records) 1978

A1 Heartache 4:48
A2 I Don't Really Want To Get Involved 2:20
A3 Ask Mr. Waverly 3:39
A4 Youth Club Dance 2:58
A5 First I Look At The Purse 2:28
A6 Radio Rape 3:49
B1 Tribe Of The City 3:39
B2 Have It With You 2:02
B3 I Trust Valerie Singleton 2:08
B4 Broken Not Twisted 3:01
B5 Take That Light Away 2:12
B6 Further Education 2:26
B7 I'll Keep My Distance 3:51

"Please Don't Hit Me!" (CBS DEMOs)1978

1 Tribe Of The City
2 I Don't Really Want To Get Involved
3 Youth Club Dance
4 Ask Mr. Waverley
5 Have It With You
6 Broken Not Twisted
7 Heartache
8 Radio Rape
9 Justice
10 Further Education
11 I Trust Valerie Singleton
12 First I Look At The Purse

Bristol's premier 'Punks' ,The Cortinas, were one of those few '77 punk bands that looked like kids from the street. No expensive biker jackets,swastika t-shirts and spiky haircuts for these hicks from the provinces.They also played no-frills rock'n'roll rather than the hyped up version of Rock and Bad heavy metal that was the output of the higher echelons of the genre.They even had a singer who sported a proud Quiff, how anti-fashion was that?

The record companies were running out of 'punk bands' to sign up and destroy, so, inevitably the turn of the Cortinas would come.

CBS released an LP based on the Demos they recorded to get a record deal, which was a sterile over-produced version of what had made them a viable acquisition for the label who had turned the Clash into an Adult Orientated Rock act.

Included here are both the Demo versions, and the Official versions for a contrast and compare lesson in why record companies Suck!

Its like giving your mum (or Dad) your dirty jeans to wash and receiving them back washed and ironed with a sharp crease running down the front and back of the trouser legs.

"Please Don't Hit Me" (Valarie singleton) is raw,rough and ready Pub influenced Punk Rock;whereas, "True Romances" is polished New Wave pop,expertly recorded in an acoustically dead studio.....which I have grown to actually like over the preceding 40 years.

Both versions have their plus points in 2017, but for the time, it is astonishing how unbelievably stupid record executives/producers were in 1977/8 and beyond.Punk Rock was universally misunderstood by almost everyone in the business, and these two LP's stand as a testament to that.

I suppose it's like myself producing a Hip-Hop album.....hang on...no i think i'd do a good job on that one actually....and i'd love to produce someone like that ginger bloke with the small acoustic....er...Ed Sheeran, thats it; and I wish I could have produced The Cortinas in 1978 too.

The cover is another issue. Looking through the 'New Wave' section in Revolver, Leicester, in 1978, I was looking for this album and couldn't see it.Asked the assistant and he flicked through twice and found it. It just so invisible, like when Man United played in a Grey kit and lost 3-1 against Southampton.The manager complained that they couldn't see each other. After changing the kit at half-time they still lost.......if CBS changed the cover at half-time I reckon the sales would have shadowed the fortunes of Manchester United that fateful day, and sunk without trace.

Yep big business and art don't go together, just like Footballers and brains......and the colour Grey.

DOWNLOAD a True Romance HERE!

and

DOWNLOAD a truer version of True Romances HERE!...(i.e. please don't hit me)

The Cortinas - "Sessions,Demos,and Singles 1977" (a Die or DIY? Compilation)

And who got there first in Bristol then?
'Twas 2nd wave punk band The Cortinas, which included a future member of "Cut The Crap" Clash (but we'll keep that quiet!), and a Singer with a quiff called Valentine!
More on the Pub Rock side of early Punk Rock were our Cortinas,refreshingly, keeping a clean crunchy guitar sound unlike the majority of the class of '77. Provincial Punks like this lot were rare in the early days, and to be accepted into the trendy clique was difficult; but without doubt they were one of the most competent and energetic of the New Wave crowd.This wasn't enough to survive the Seditionaries clad London fashionistas of the Kings Road.They always remained outsiders up until the rest of the Bristolian scene got the Funk on and left Punk and The Cortinas behind.
Here's a compilation I chucked together of some early Demo's, the John Peel Session, and the first two, Classic, singles, which showcase the band at their best before the Record Company got hold of them and destroyed 'em.(see the last track)

Tracklist:

01 Fascist Dictator (Single A-side 1977)
02 Television Families (Single B-side 1977)
03 Defiant Pose (Single A-Side 1977).
04 Independence (Single B-Side 1977).
05 Having It (Peel Session - 16-07-1977)
06 Further Education (Peel Session -.16-07-1977)
07 Defiant Pose (Peel Session - 16-07-1977)
08 Television Families (Peel Session - 16-07-1977)
09 Tribe of the City (Demo).
10 I Don't Really Want to Get Involved (Demo)
11 Youth Club Dance (Demo)
12 Mr Waverley (Demo).
13 Having It (Demo).
14 Broken Not Twisted (Demo).
15 Heartache (7" single version 1978.)

DOWNLOAD punk from before bristol got the funk HERE!

Punishment Of Luxury - "Live at the Hope and Anchor 21/07/1978"

More bootlegged Punilux captured at the home of Pub rock, complete with those familiar 'small room' acoustic's.
Sounds like a loud high-octane performance that's too big for the room. They even do an encore before the tape runs out.....how non-punk is that?

Tracklisting:

1 - Puppet Life
2 - The Demon
3 - The Puff Song
4 - Lets get Married/You're So Beautiful
5 - Brainbomb
6 - Excess Bleeding Heart
7 - Babalon
8 - Funk Me (Lizard Love)
9 - Jellyfish
10- (Crowd) Speeding

DOWNLOAD punishment at the hope and anchor HERE!

Various Artists ‎– "Goodbye Nashville Hello Camden Town - A Pub Rock Anthology" (Castle Music ‎– CMEDD1451) 2007

To finish this long,and sometimes boring,journey through the annals(or anals) of UK Pub Rock(some of you will be pleased to hear), here's a superb and wide ranging compilation covering everyone from Brinsley Schwarz to Chas and Dave.
I own two t-shirts with musicians emblazened across the breast area, One is ,of course, Motorhead, and the other is, less obviously, Chas and Dave. So its good to see them listed as Pub Rock rather than in the Novelty record section.
There are a few notable omissions, mainly the charlie big potatoes of Pub Rock, like Elvis Costello and Dire Straits;but who cares about that? A fine compilation indeed.

Tracklist:
1-1 –Chilli Willi & The Red Hot Peppers - Goodbye Nashville, Hello Camden Town 2:50
1-2 –Kilburn & The High Roads - Billy Bentley (Promenades Himself In London) 3:02
1-3 –Bees Make Honey - What Have We Got To Lose 3:34
1-4 –Brinsley Schwarz - Country Girl 3:10
1-5 –Country Fever - Only Daddy That'll Walk The Line 2:35
1-6 –Chas And Dave - Scruffy Old Cow 4:01
1-7 –Big Jim Sullivan - If I Could Only Play Guitar Like That 3:02
1-8 –Jerry The Ferret - How Long 3:02
1-9 –Eddie And The Hot Rods - All I Need Is Money 2:28
1-10 –Eggs Over Easy - Runnin' Down To Memphis 3:15
1-11 –Meal Ticket - Day Job 4:25
1-12 –Fabulous Poodles - Third Rate Romance 3:09
1-13 –Kursaal Flyers - Drinking Socially 3:38
1-14 –Writing On The Wall - Man Of Renown 3:08
1-15 –Albert Lee - Best I Can 2:43
1-16 –Unicorn - 115 Bar Joy 3:48
1-17 –Zoot Money - Arkansas 3:22
1-18 –Jo Ann Kelly Band - It's Too Late For That Now 3:48
1-19 –Brunning Sunflower Band - Good Golly Miss Molly 2:22
1-20 –Ernie Graham -Sweet Inspiration 3:19
1-21 –Bees Make Honey - Indian Bayou Saturday 3:26
1-22 –The Johnny Young Band - Country Boy 4:29
1-23 –McGuinness Flint - Ride On My Rainbow 2:58
1-24 –Dr. Feelgood Roxette 2:53
2-1 –Kilburn & The High Roads - Rough Kids 2:24
2-2 –The Count Bishops Train Train 3:19
2-3 –The Pirates - Gibson Martin Fender 3:23
2-4 –Matchbox - Rock & Roll Band 2:40
2-5 –Mick Farren- I Want A Drink 1:45
2-6 –Mickey Jupp - If Only Mother 3:01
2-7 –Black Claw-Another Useless Day 4:58
2-8 –Mountain Line - Midnight Flyer 2:28
2-9 –Chilli Willi & The Red Hot Peppers - Choo Choo Ch'Boogie 3:31
2-10 –Tyla Gang - Fireball 4:04
2-11 –The Cartoons - Lunchtime Love Affair 3:02
2-12 –Chas And Dave -I Am A Rocker 3:46
2-13 –Downliners Sect = Blues Coup De Ville 3:05
2-14 –Fabulous Poodles - Roll Your Own 2:46
2-15 –Bees Make Honey -Dance Around 3:23
2-16 –Country Fever - Mama Tried 2:19
2-17 –Stray -Oil Fumes And Sea Air 4:57
2-18 –Ernie Graham - Baby You're All I Need 4:02
2-19 –The John Dummer Band -Young Blood 3:06
2-20 –Unicorn - Country Road 4:14
2-21 –Nine Below Zero -Homework 2:30
2-22 –Eddie And The Hot Rods -Do The Monkey Man 2:56
2-23 –Kilburn & The High Roads - Crippled With Nerves 3:43
2-24 –Chilli Willi & The Red Hot Peppers - Six Days On The Road 2:50

DOWNLOAD a damn good night out in 1970's London HERE!

Eggs Over Easy ‎– "Good 'N' Cheap"(A&M Records ‎– SP 4366) 1972

From the smallest seeds grow mighty trees which bare the strangest fruit,
Eggs Over Easy, despite the terrible name, and bland post-hippie soft country rock, were the catalyst that eventually produced Punk Rock and its many children.
Stuck in London in 1971, after some financial irregularities in the USA led to them being advised to stay away. Being at a loose end they persuaded the landlord of the Tally-Ho pub in kentish Town to give them a couple of gigs.
Impressed local musicians, such as Nick Lowe were suitably inspired enough to have a go themselves.One thing led to another and before you could say "mine's a pint", there were similar bands springing up all over London with an eager audience queuing to see them. Before long, a 'movement' was born.These bands took to the tiny pub stages with the bare minimum of equipment and stripped music back to its basics.
Although they were only in London for a matter of months, the effect the Eggs had on music in the Britain's capital would mutate into something very different indeed. Like a pebble tossed into a still pond, the ripples would reach out to influence the whole planet.
Its effect was a bit like when the 'Non-interference directive' in Star Trek was slightly ignored and whole planets ended up as Nazi Germany, or Gangland Chicago in the 1920's.
All this from the most inoffensive and dull band one could ever imagine.
Stiff Records impresario Jake Riviera summed up the need for Pub Rock in this quote:
"Before pub rock people used to think the ideal gig was somewhere like Guildford Civic where you could sit cross-legged and watch King Crimson pan across the stereo. But with the Ducks, the Eggs and the Brinsleys, instead of sitting there reverently impressed, you could get effin' legless and have a good time!"

Tracklist:

A1 Party Party 2:58
A2 Arkansas 3:57
A3 Henry Morgan 4:39
A4 The Factory 3:00
A5 Face Down In The Meadow 4:07
B1 Home To You 3:54
B2 Song Is Born Of Riff And Tongue 4:18
B3 Don't Let Nobody 3:02
B4 Runnin' Down To Memphis 3:14
B5 Pistol On The Shelf 3:33
B6 Night Flight 3:35

DOWNLOAD it HERE! It's over easy!

Nick Lowe - "Jesus Of Cool" (Radar RAD 1) 1978

Dunno about being the 'Jesus of Cool', but Nick Lowe is probably the Jesus of Pub rock.....and therefore ,ultimately The Jesus of Punk and DIY.
For 'twas he who spotted the lamentable 'Eggs Over Easy' at the Tally-Ho pub and thought it would be a good idea to get a pub residency for his group, the equally lamentable Brinsley Schwarz. From there the flood gates opened and we ended up with Punk Rock and its myriad of off shoots.
Lowe himself, was a pretty talented songsmith and producer , so it was inevitable he would have a solo album at some point; and here it is ,jam packed with clever catchy pop songs.It even contains a 'Hit'!?
Pathetically, this great album was renamed "Pure Pop For Now People" in the USA, because you can't mention Jesus over there without having death threats from the American Taliban. The memory of the John Lennon bigger than Jesus comment was still raw in the memory of the record executives.
I can just imagine the Record Company chief;like a fatter Mike Pence, wearing a double breasted polyester suit, aviator shades, Hawaiian shirt, and huge Cuban cheroot  ,bellowing 'The Jesus of WHAT!!!??..... I got it, we'll call it "Pure Pop For Now People"...now get outta here!'.
Out of all the different industries why is the record industry run by complete Twats!?
I also notice mention of the word "Hitler" in the track listing, which in the modern day politically correct world can give cause for different kinds of Twats to accuse you of antisemitism or worse. In fact just saying that could leave your author open to accusations of Holocaust Denial!?
I prefer to call it historical revisionism anyway.(more post-truth?)

Tracklist:

Music For Money 2:03
(I Love The Sound Of) Breaking Glass 3:05
Little Hitler 2:51
Shake And Pop 3:13
Tonight 3:45
So It Goes 2:23
No Reason 3:25
36 Inches High 2:50
Marie Provost 2:41
Nutted By Reality 2:46
Heart Of The City (Live) 4:15

DOWNLOAD the hipster jesus HERE!

Eddie And The Hot Rods ‎– "Live At The Rainbow 1977"

The thing about Eddie and The Hot Rods was they looked like us 'real' kids, not the posh kids from Bromley , or the cliques from The Kings Road and Camden.Well at least before they started to wear expensive Ramones style biker jackets. It was impossible to buy drainpipe trousers anywhere, never mind designer bondage gear,
In Southend and the other provinces, we never had any art school drop out pop Svengali to introduce us to French Situationists, and the concept of Anarchy. We were angry and wanted an outlet, and if it rocked we wanted to hear it, bedecked in flared jeans, seventies polyester shirts and football scarves. So we definitely identified immediately with groups like  The Hot Rods and Slaughter and the Dogs.It helped that they had records out before the punks too;but,It took time to see that the Punk groups were in fact just like us too, but with less silly clothes on.
Here's the boys in their preferred environment, live, fast and sweaty, cranking it out for the kids. Although the Rainbow was a bit too big for them to be as intense as they could be in a small club or a pub; nevertheless, a shit hot performance, albeit a badly mixed soundboard recording.

Tracklist:

1 Get Access To You
2 96 Tears
3 Keep On Keepin' on
4 All I Need Is Money
5 Show Me
6 Woolly Bully
7 Horseplay
8 Why Can't It Be
9 The Kids Are Alright
10 Teenage Depression
11 Been So Long
12 Hard Drivin' Man
13 Double Checkin' Woman
14 On The Run
15 Get Out Of Denver
16 Gloria
17 Writing On The Wall

DOWNLOAD from over the rainbow HERE!

Eddie and the Hot Rods ‎– "The Curse Of The Hot Rods" (Hound Dog Records ‎– But 002)

A bunch of previously unreleased demo's and out-takes, recorded by the 'Classic Line Up' from the peak of the Hot Rods between '76 and '78. A few of these turned up on their later albums, like 'Fish'n'Chips', and 'Hit Or Miss' was covered by the Damned (mark II).
Not quite as electrifying as Live Rods, or stuff from their first two magnificent albums, but still better than half of the also-rans from that golden period.
I suppose 'The Curse' is how inexplicable it is that such an intense and hard working band as this never got the rewards they deserved when dross like U2 and Dire Straits became world beaters?
In fact No, it's not inexplicable, its totally expected that John and Janet Q. Public automatically lean towards the crap and the bland, rather than the excitement and unpretentiousness of some honest Rock'n'Roll. 

Tracklist:

At Night
I See The Light
Wide Eyed Kids (Different Version)
I Got Mine
Romance In A Used Car Lot
You Better Run
Making The Body Respond To The Brain
Observations Of The 2nd 2nd Time Around
Hit Or Miss
Looking Round
Red Light Blue Light
Act Sharper
Boxes

DOWNLOAD to release the curse HERE!