I Am Damo Suzuki

Celebrating Damo Suzuki, 16th January 1950 to 9th February 2024.

 

This one damn near broke me. And I don't mean on an emotional level, but physically trying to get today's selection and post up here. I like to think that in some other plane of existence, Damo is aware of my amateurish efforts and chain of mishaps this morning and is having a belly laugh at my expense, before turning his attention to things of greater cosmic import.

 

I had another post lined up for today, but I woke this morning to the news of Damo's passing and decided that I wanted to post a tribute to him instead.

 

To be honest, I didn't expect it to be a very big job: I have relatively little by Can to begin with and Damo was with them from 1970 to 1973 which narrowed the selection further. I have absolutely nothing of Damo's post-Can career. 

 

And the news that I could have seen Damo play a gig with Fuzz Against Junk in the intimate surrounds of Fiddlers Club in south Bristol in March 2004 is a non-story as I decided not to get a ticket. In retrospect, I should have gone and taken the following day off work.

I then got it into my head that, in the spirit of Damo's improvisational style, I should actually try and cut-and-paste collage of all of the entire longlist, throwing in cover versions and remixes of Damo-era Can songs to boot. So I suddenly had about 20-odd songs and about 3+ hours of material to work with. Okay, so it was going to take a big longer than usual, but I was game...

I was about 3 songs in and thinking that it had got off to a reasonably good start when the Apple Music app which holds my digital music collection starting acting weirdly, shortly followed by the on-screen announcement that the wireless mouse has 1% charge left. Closing down and re-opening the app completely wiped the working playlist that I'd created. No problem, I said through gritted teeth (okay, I did swear a bit too), I'll start over again.

I do have a 'backup' wireless mouse. Unfortunately, it's the 'original' one whose increasingly impaired performance resulted in the purchase of the 'current' one, which had less than 1% at this point and promptly lost connection. The 'backup' had 20% charge which would be fine. However, one it's quirks is unpredictable cursor action, usually resulting in you getting the complete opposite of what you're trying to achieve. Cue lots of examples in the Audacity app of highlighting, moving, editing and cutting  anything but the bit of the music that I was actually working on. 

I could see the job doubling and trebling in length. Thankfully, after an hour there was sufficient charge on the 'current' mouse to abandon the 'backup' and have some hope of completing and posting this selection before Sunday is over.

Another 'improvised' decision as a result of my tech woes, but which may be a blessing to you dear readers, is that the selection is a mere 14 songs. I decided to cut my losses after Halleluhwah and tacked the intended closing song Turtles Have Short Legs at the end. 

So you are denied/spared (delete as applicable) Future Days, Moonshake, Paperhouse, Sing Swan Song, Mighty Girl*, Vitamin C and Yoo Do Right. What you do get is two hours of music edited down to roughly 66 minutes, all giving a nod to Damo's brilliance.

Mother Sky switches between the Can original and the Pilooski edit. On Mushroom, you'll hear Damo duetting with Jim Reid for the first and last time. Mark E. Smith inevitably gets in on the act with The Fall's own tribute from 1985. 

 

Oh Yeah appears in three increasingly shorter sections, courtesy of Can, Kris Needs and Mute label maestro Daniel Miller. There's the wonderfully titled Tape Kebab from a John Peel session* and three versions of Can's masterwork Halleluhwah.

 

First up is the 1995 version by Spirit Feel, featuring Claudia Brücken and Susanne Freytag formerly of Propaganda. This is followed by Damo fronting the original album version. Both of these push beyond 18 minutes; you get much less here, but the addition of a third, closing section from - who else? - The Orb, released a couple of years after the Spirit Feel cover version.

The closer, Turtles Have Short Leg, is incredibly short by Can standards, but one of many examples of their lighter, poppier moments. Well, relatively speaking.

Neither the words nor the selection really do justice to Damo the man, the musician, the uniquely talented individual and front person, be it Can, Damo Suzuki's Network or the numerous collaborations and improvisations that he's been responsible for. 

 

But in reading about my amateurish efforts and chain of mishaps to get this out here today, I hope you'll join Damo in a chuckle, a laugh or a full-on belly laugh. And then go and play some more of his music, long and loud.

See you, Damo.

 

1) I'm So Green: Can (1973)

2) Mother Sky (Album Version): Can (1970)

3) Mother Sky (Pilooski Edit By Cédric Marszewski): Can (2007)

4) Mushroom (Album Version): Can (1971)

5) Mushroom (Live In Nuremburg): The Jesus & Mary Chain (1986)

6) I Am Damo Suzuki: The Fall (1985)

7) Oh Yeah (Album Version): Can (1971)

8) Oh Yeah (Secret Knowledge Mix By Kris Needs & Henry Cullen ft. Jah Wobble): Can (1997)

9) Oh Yeah (Sunroof! Mix By Daniel Miller & Gareth Jones): Can (1997)

10) Tape Kebab (John Peel Session): Can (1974) 

11) Halleluhwah: Spirit Feel ft. Claudia Brücken & Susanne Freytag (1995)

12) Halleluhwah (Album Version): (1971)

13) Halleluhwah (Halleluwa Orbus II) (Remix By The Orb aka Alex Paterson & Andy Hughes) (1997)

14) Turtles Have Short Legs: Can (1971)

 

I Am Damo Suzuki (1:06:16) (KF) (Mega)

Whatever Lurks In Your Mind

Side 1 of a mixtape, compiled October 1996 and featuring Secret Knowledge aka Kris Needs and Wonder Schneider.

 

I posted the previous side of this cassette compilation back in January, so it seems only right that the flip side appears as I again find myself in need of some bangers to blast away the cold, dark wintry days.

Side 1 starts as Side 2 ended, with One Dove and the wonderful vocals of Dot Allison. Why Don't You Take Me originally appeared on the soundtrack to the film Shopping, starring Sadie Frost, Jude Law and Sean Pertwee.

 

Dave Ball and Richard Norris aka The Grid get a thorough rinsing from Kris. It was only when researching this post that I realised to my surprise and delight that Diablo's Spanish vocals are provided by none other than Vanessa Contenay-Quiñones, who is long overdue a Dubhed selection of her own.

 

Nan Vernon used to perform with Dave Stewart & The Spiritual Cowboys and released one album and a clutch of singles on his Anxious label. Elvis Waits... was the last of these and features great remixes from Kris Needs and Steve B-Zet/Recycle Or Die. These days, Nan is better known for her film and TV soundtrack work, including Guardians Of The Galaxy, Bates Motel and Rob Zombie's Halloween.

Morgan Fisher first came to prominence in Mott The Hoople and has gone on to carve a varied and individual musical path. Humtone #4 was a one-off 12" single released on Cherry Red's dance spin-off label, MFF, in 1994 with a Kris Needs remix up front on the A-side.

 

Delta Lady was a side project for Kris and Wonder in 1993/94, releasing two singles on Leftfield's Hard Hands label, Swamp Fever and Anything You Want, the latter closing out this selection. Neil Barnes & Paul Daley join Kris on the mix for this belting remix, eleven and a half minutes of club dub to bring things to a satisfying conclusion.

 

I have had to tweak the tracklist for this recreation. The original cassette featured the six-minute Volume Vocal Mix of Anything You Want, which featured on the Volume Seven and Wasted: The Best Of Volume compilations in 1993 and 1995 respectively. 

 

The mixtape then finished off with Nuttin' Dub, a version of Too Much Of Nuttin' from Secret Knowledge's album, So Hard. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find my copy of The Serious Road Trip CD which features the dub and the album vocal version just wasn't a good fit.

 

So, I've removed the final track and included the Delta Dub Charge remix of Anything You Want. I didn't own this back in 1996 but if I had, I may well have gone for this version instead. 

 

I hope this goes some way to banishing the November blues and sets you up nicely for the weekend.

 

1) Why Don't You Take Me (Secret Knowledge Remix): One Dove (1993)

2) Diablo (Secret Knowledge Atomic Bidet Mix): The Grid ft. Vanessa Contenay-Quiñones (1995)

3) Elvis Waits... (Secret Knowledge Aaron Mix): Nan Vernon (1994)

4) Humtone #4 (Sea Diver Mix By Kris Needs): Morgan Fisher (1994)

5) Anything You Want (Delta Dub Charge) (Remix By Kris Needs & Leftfield): Delta Lady (1993)

Side One (45:30) (Box) (Mega)

Side Two here

Peeping Through The Hole In My Soul

Spotted outside Gloucester Cathedral yesterday. The first two kind of have a logical connection, but the third? I mean, I can understand the conspiracy theories about the moon landings, but faking the whole of space? Was someone so incensed that poor Edwin Hubble has been consigned to the dusty basement of history now that there is a brand shiny new space telescope named after NASA Johnny-Come-Lately James Webb? These important questions and answers of the day should at least demand page 7 in the Gloucestershire Echo, surely?

 

On a completely unrelated note, today's selection is inspired by artists, tracks and themes featured in Dubhed's current Top 10 most popular posts. Where else would you find The Sisters Of Mercy and New Order shacking up with One Dove, David McAlmont and Little Simz?

 

1) Deadline For My Memories (Album Version): Electribe 101 (1992)

2) Long Train (12" Version): The Sisters Of Mercy (1984)

3) Paris (Cover of Friendly Fires): The Anchoress (2012)

4) Woman (Live @ Later... With Jools Holland): Little Simz (2021)

5) Paradise (Remix By Robert Racic & Nick Mainsbridge): New Order (1987)

6) Breakdown (Secret Knowledge Light Mix By Kris Needs): One Dove (1993)

7) Blind Vision (Album Version By John Luongo): Blancmange (1983)

8) Parade (Cover of Magazine): Dave Formula ft. David McAlmont (2010)

9) Half A World Away (Nicky Campbell Session): R.E.M. (1991)

10) This Woman's Work (Album Version): Kate Bush (1989)

1983: Mange Tout: 7

1984: Walk Away EP: 2

1987: True Faith EP (Australian 12" single): 5

1989: The Sensual World: 10

1993: Breakdown EP: 6 

2010: Satellite Sweetheart: 8

2012: Reprise: The Covers Collection: 3

2018: Best Of At The BBC: 9

2021: Woman EP: 4

2022: Electribal Soul (previously unreleased 1992 album): 1

 

Peeping Through The Hole In My Soul (52:45)

In Wob We Trust

Jah Wobble today, or at least songs that he has either remixed or been a guest on. He's been on my mind (and playlists) a lot recently, in part due to the excellent In Dub compilation that I purchased just after Christmas. 

I've a couple of mix CDs that I did for my friend Dave in 2004 as a companion piece to the (also excellent) I Could Have Been A Contender anthology, so I've avoided using any tracks that appeared there. Even so, you get an eclectic, unusual and one or two downright bizarre selections, all featuring that unmistakable Wobble bass.

In 1997, record label Mute decided to invite a number of artists to remix Can's back catalogue, including Brian Eno, Sonic Youth, A Guy Called Gerald, Pete Shelley, U.N.K.L.E. and Bruce Gilbert, as well as usual suspects The Orb and System 7. The Secret Knowledge Mix closes the Sacrilege remix album, Kris Needs drafting in Jah Wobble to add his loping bass magic, to great effect.

I was reminded of En-Tact, without a doubt my favourite album by The Shamen, in a post by The Vinyl Villain last week. I'm talking here about the original UK CD issue, rather than the good-but-not-as-good En-Tact USA that superseded the original a year later. In part, this because the former includes the full length version of Evil Is Even, a 13+ rumbling monster of a track, featuring a sonic duel between Darren Millhouse on didgeridoo and Jah Wobble on bass. The winner? The listener.

 

If Love City Groove sound vaguely familiar, but you can't quite place them (or too embarrassed to admit it), they represented the UK in the 1995 Eurovision Song Contest. With the hindsight of a quarter of a century, finishing tenth was a relative success. The single also did well in the UK, reaching #7 and shifting over 200,000 copies, although this proved to be their one and only hit. There were 7 mixes in all, mostly by the band, and there's no obvious reason why Jah Wobble was approached. However, he transforms the rather cheesy original into an 11-minute beauty. Another bit of trivia: rapper Q-Tee aka Tatiana Mais (who featured with Saint Etienne in Friday's post) has a songwriting credit. She was originally approached to provide a rap for the song, but on the record this was subsequently picked up by incoming band member Yinka Charles aka MC Reason. Yinka also performed as The Voice Of Reason, collaborating with Paul Haig on his 1991 single Flight X (as featured by The Vinyl Villain in 2019).

Holly Valance will of course be forever remembered by many as Felicity 'Flick' Scully in legendary Aussie soap Neighbours from 1999 to 2002. Like Kylie Minogue before her, Holly left to pursue the pop star dream. Unlike Kylie, she had released her second and final album by 2003. Kiss Kiss was her debut single, reaching #1 in it's first week and spending 8 weeks in the Top 20. Again, Jah Wobble is an unusual choice of remixer alongside the more obvious Stargate and Agent Sumo, and it's unlikely that the rush of Wobble completists contributed in any way to the chart position. However, it's a good remix and - on this promo only version, you get relatively little Valance and plenty of Wobble, so again it's a win-win.

I know very little about Evil Eye, other than than it appears on a USA compilation, Ambient Extractions, Vol. 2, that I picked up secondhand in a record shop (probably Replay in Bristol) in the late 1990s. It's worth tracking down, including No Man, His Name Is Alive, Steve Jansen & Richard Barbieri and Boymerang. Divination is another collaborative project/alias for Bill Laswell. The compilation includes an edit of a 1993 track, featuring Jeff Bova (Material) and Mick Harris (Napalm Death, Scorn) as well as The Wob.

I know next to nothing about Madredeus, having discovered them via the 1997 Worlds Collide: Global Remixes compilation. They are one of Portugual's most successful bands apparently and are still a going concern.

Closing the compilation, Jah Wobble has collaborated with The Orb on many, many songs over the years, and Blue Room remains a highwater mark. Rather than go for the 40-minute original, I've opted for the rarer Blue Lamp Mix by The Orb, taken from the various artists album Taking Liberties, released as a protest against The Criminal Justice And Public Order Act 1994. No prizes which political party was in government when this was introduced. 

 

More Wob to follow in the not-too-distant future...

1) Oh Yeah (Secret Knowledge Mix By Kris Needs & Henry Cullen): Can ft. Jah Wobble (1997) 

2) Evil Is Even (Album Version): The Shamen ft. Jah Wobble (1990)

3) Love City Groove (Seek Understanding Beyond Immediate Perception Mix Long Version By Jah Wobble): Love City Groove (1995)

4) Kiss Kiss (Jah Wobble Remix) (Promo Full Length Version): Holly Valance (2002)

5) Evil Eye (Edit By Bill Laswell): Divination ft. Jah Wobble, Jeff Bova & Mick Harris (1993)

6) Pregão (Moçárabe Mix By Jah Wobble): Madredeus (1997)

7) Blue Room (Blue Lamp Mix): The Orb ft. Jah Wobble & Steve Hillage (1994)

1990: En-Tact: 2 

1994: Taking Liberties: 7

1995: Love City Groove EP: 3

1996: Ambient Extractions, Vol. 2: 5

1997: Sacrilege: 1

1997: Worlds Collide Global Remixes: 6

2002: Kiss Kiss EP (promo CD): 4

In Wob We Trust (1:13:43) (GD) (M)

What Are You Thinking Of?

Side 2 of a mixtape, compiled October 1996 and featuring Secret Knowledge aka Kris Needs and Wonder Schneider.

 

Kris Needs is a journalist and author who edited legendary music magazine ZigZag from 1977 to 1981, contributed to numerous other publications and has written several biographies and music history tomes, including 2021's Babble On An' Ting: Alex Paterson's Incredible Journey Beyond the Ultraworld With The Orb. Wonder is an American singer/songwriter, fittingly born on 4th July (Kris was born on 3rd July) and currently based in Cleveland, Ohio.

 

Secret Knowledge debuted with the 12" single Your Worst Nightmare/Make Me Scream, in 1992 before releasing a couple of 12"s on Andrew Weatherall & Nina Walsh's Sabres Of Paradise label, including the legendary Sugar Daddy. A move to Deconstruction saw the sole Secret Knowledge album, So Hard, in 1996. Needs was also a prolific remixer in the mid-late 1990s, transforming tracks by The Boo Radleys, Primal Scream, Jah Wobble's Invaders Of The Heart, The Prodigy, The Grid, Alabama 3, Transglobal Underground and Hurricane #1, to name a very few.

 

This selection manages to squeeze a mere 5 tracks onto one side of a cassette, but they are personal favourites. Hug My Soul is underpinned by the inspired use of a sample from Reach Out I'll Be There by Four Tops and ends with someone blowing a raspberry. Breakdown was released as a standalone 12" featuring 'light' and 'dark' Secret Knowledge remixes, both excellent. The Nitzer Ebb and Love And Rockets remixes vastly improve on the originals. The Afterworld was originally submitted for inclusion on the Volume compilation, Trance Europe Express², and resulted in conflict when the wrong version was used. The press release accompanying the subsequent 12" release of Afterworld tells the story. It was only when reading the press release again that I realised The Afterworld 12" was issued on 4th July 1994, Wonder's birthday.

Kris and Wonder reconvened Secret Knowledge in 2019, in a collaborative single with Sendelica, with remixes by The Orb. Windmill was written as a tribute to Kris Needs' soul mate Helen Donlon, who passed in 2018. A digital version of the EP is still available on Bandcamp.

Kris also collaborated on a remix for The Orb's excellent Abolition Of The Royal Familia (Guillotine Mixes) album in 2021 and is currently writing a Silver Apples biography. Wonder continues to perform and collaborate on musical projects. There's a great interview with Kris from May 2021 on the Strange Brew website.

1) Kick It (The Secret Knowledge Velvet DM's Mix): Nitzer Ebb (1995)

2) This Heaven (Secret Knowledge Mix): Love And Rockets (1994)

3) Hug My Soul (Secret Knowledge Limbo Mix): Saint Etienne (1994)

4) The Afterworld (Backing Track For PAs): Secret Knowledge (1994)

5) Breakdown (Secret Knowledge Dark Mix): One Dove (1993)

 

Side Two (46:06)

Your Consciousness Is The Only Censorship

Ten long songs, all bubbling under the ten minute mark and mostly from the mid 1990s, before leaping into the 21st century. The opening track was originally released as a Mark Van Hoen side project, though I first heard the remixed versions released under his more familiar Locust moniker in 1998. I really like the Biff & Memphis remix of New Order for the nod to Blue Monday and the cheeky cameo from Divine tucked away in the mix. The Apollo 440 song is from their excellent first album, Millennium Fever, was co-written with Howard Devoto, and provides the title for today's post. Underworld deliver a brace of excellent remixes, of Dreadzone and themselves, whilst Wet Signals aka Coventry DJ, musician and producer Carl Platt released a self-titled EP back in April, which I'm currently enjoying very much. I (re)discovered Archive relatively recently, having only previously been aware of their 1996 debut Londinium. They've had at least a dozen albums since and this selection's closing track is taken from their (I think) sixth album, Noise. Immerse yourself and enjoy.

 

1) No-One In The World (Edit): W.F.O. ft. Wendy Roberts (1993)

2) Touched By The Hand Of God (Biff & Memphis Remix By Richard Stannard & Matt Rowe): New Order (1995)

3) Pain Is A Close Up: Apollo 440 (1994)

4) Tong Poo (Planet Of The Crossing Mix By The Orb): Yellow Magic Orchestra (1993)

5) Zion Youth (Underworld Mix): Dreadzone (1995)

6) I Dig Your Ass (Remix By Derrick Carter & Luke Solomon): Secret Knowledge (1996)

7) Born Slippy.Nuxx (Deep Pan): Underworld (1996)

8) Crimes: Wet Signals (2021)

9) Blue Drive: Oneohtrix Point Never (2009)

10) Waste: Archive (2004)

 

Your Consciousness Is The Only Censorship (1:39:14)