Camera Obscura's Ode to San Fran Friends

Here's a cool tune (and deep track) from Glasgow's Camera Obscura. It's said to be a tribute to their pals, San Francisco band the Aislers Set. The song was originally on the 2004 EP 'Keep It Clean,' but it also showed up that year on the must-have compilation 'Old Enough 2 Know Better: 15 Years of Merge Records.' If you don't already own this one, it's a 61-song set comprised of Merge classics on the first two discs, followed by a third disc of rare and previously released tracks. When it was physically in print, the price was a ridiculously cheap $14. I felt like I was getting the birthday present. I play this one as a walk up to some great songs from the Aislers Set that I'll get to next week.

Camera Obscura - San Francisco Song (mp3)

Cover Me Impressed: 'The Harder They Come'

In the impressive and expansive discography of Joe Jackson, his three-song 'The Harder They Come' EP, from 1980, is probably considered a minor footnote. After all, the EP didn't chart (unless you count Holland and Sweden), and the single was a cover. I'm here to argue if you're a fan of early Jackson, the 12" is well worth owning. This isn't just Jackson. This is Joe Jackson Band... a classic lineup featuring Dave Houghton on drums, Graham Maby on bass and Gary Sanford on guitar. You know them from the early albums 'Look Sharp', 'I'm the Man' and 'Beat Crazy.' The single may be a cover, but the other two songs on this EP, "Out of Style" and "Tilt," are Jackson compositions that would have fit in nicely on 'Look Sharp.'

As for the original, although I'm not really a fan of the genre, I'm educated enough to realize Jimmy Cliff's "The Harder They Come" is considered one of the all-time greats. The song, taken from the 1972 soundtrack and film of the same name, starred Cliff himself. In 2003, Rolling Stone ranked the album No. 119 on its 500 greatest albums list. The song came in at No. 341 on the magazine's 500 greatest songs list. I could list accolades like this for several more sentences, but let's skip all of that and just get to the music.

Incidentally, Madness covered this song and released it as a single in 1992. Like Jackson's take, it did not chart. Nineties-era Madness is a little beyond my fandom, but you can find a live version on the band's 'Madstock!' album. It's a pretty good cover and well worth your time. Listen below.

Jimmy Cliff - The Harder They Come (mp3)
Joe Jackson Band - The Harder They Come (mp3)

12 Inches of Love: 'Together in Electric Dreams'

By the time the film 'Electric Dreams' hit the big screen in 1984, my "fascination" with the Human League had already passed, but Philip Oakey had one last hurrah for me with this Oakey/Giorgio Moroder-penned song from the soundtrack. Oakey's brief involvement on the soundtrack didn't spring from any past relationship with Moroder. Rather, it was because the film's freshman director, Steve Barron, was the chap behind the brilliant video for the Human League's biggest smash, "Don't You Want Me." When Moroder asked him who he thought should sing it, Barron remembered his old mate. Oakey and Moroder must have had a fine time the day of the recording because they would go on to make an entire album together in 1985. Believe it or not, I just picked that one up for the first time earlier this year.

As for the film, I loved it as a kid, and it still holds a soft spot, but I'm quite sure it's just nostalgia. If I saw it for the first time now, I imagine seeing a wide-eyed and beautiful young Virginia Madsen would be the only thing keeping me from picking up the remote.

You can find this extended version on the Human League's much maligned import compilation 'Original Remixes & Rarities.'

Philip Oakey & Giorgio Moroder - Together in Electric Dreams (Extended) (mp3)

Curtain Call: Aztec Camera From '88

I know for some Aztec Camera fans the 'Love' period is a painful one, but when I listen to these two live songs from the flip side of the "Somewhere in My Heart" 12" single, I always imagine a good time was had by all. It's just Roddy, a guitar and a couple of tunes from the glory days. Enjoy part of this homecoming show from the Barrowlands, circa Jan. 30, 1988.

Aztec Camera - Down the Dip (Live) (mp3)
Aztec Camera - Jump (Live) (mp3)

Almost Whatever It Takes to Possess Care 12"

I love vinyl, but I don't really consider myself a record collector. Some of us obsess about a wrinkle in the corner of a cover (and how it will alter the album's grade)... and some of us have no problem with a few pops and some surface noise (and maybe even prefer it... adds character!).

Still, there are a few pieces of vinyl I would really like to own. One of them is, from 1984, the 12" of Care's third single, "Whatever Possessed You." I have never seen it in a record store. Never. Believe me, I look every time. I watch eBay with regularity, and it does show up there from time to time, but it always seems ridiculously expensive. There is one copy for sale there now for $72.50. It has been there for weeks... taunting me. Truth is, I have wanted it for so long that acquiring it in this fashion and at this price seems defeatist. I really want to pick it up in a brick-and-mortar store. Better yet, I want to find it at a shop where the person who priced it had no idea of the treasure he briefly possessed. OK, maybe I am a collector.

For now, I have to settle for "Whatever Possessed You," along with the flip side, "Besides 1 & 2," from the out-of-print Care CD compilation 'Diamonds and Emeralds' that came out on the Camden label in 1997. Incidentally, I found that a second-hand book shop for $5. That was a smile. If you have an absent album that haunts you, feel free to share.

Care - Whatever Possessed You (mp3)
Care - Besides 1 & 2 (mp3)

Curtain Call: The Mighty Lemon Drops

In case you're new to this blog, Curtain Call is an occasional series where I present one of my favorite live albums for, well, a curtain call. Today's selection isn't a live album per se, but the Mighty Lemon Drops 1987 eight-song EP 'Out of Hand' concludes with three head-boppin' performances recorded at London's Astoria Theatre on Nov. 22, 1986. Back in the day, I played the hell out of this EP. I had not listened to it in many years, but I have kind of rediscovered it as bonus tracks to a reissued version of the band's first album, the fantastic 'Happy Head.' All three of the following songs can be found in their studio form on that LP.

I was fortunate enough to see the Mighty Lemon Drops on Feb. 3, 1990, at Cabaret Metro in Chicago. Wow, that was half a life ago! Since they were touring in support of their new album, 'Laughter,' some would say I showed up a wee bit late for the party. Based on that night, I would disagree. The opener was the Ocean Blue, a new band from Pennsylvania that showed a lot of promise with a stellar self-titled debut album they were on the road supporting. Somehow, they sounded an awful lot like all the British groups I was attracted to. In hindsight, although the best days were already behind both of these bands, I count the Ocean Blue/Mighty Lemon Drops show among the best concerts I have ever attended.

The Mighty Lemon Drops - My Biggest Thrill (Live) (mp3)
The Mighty Lemon Drops - Hypnotised (Live) (mp3)
The Mighty Lemon Drops - The Other Side of You (Live) (mp3)

Cover Me Impressed: 'I'm Not Sayin''

In order to to salvage what little cool cred I may have, it would be easy to pass off the Primitives as little more than a guilty pleasure, but that would be dishonest. Fact is, I really dig them. Now, usually when I do one of these Cover Me Impressed posts, I provide mp3s of the original and the newer take (or two). In this case, however, I don't actually own the cover... at least not in the physical sense.

In case you missed it, a few weeks ago the Primitives released an entire album of covers, the well-received 'Echoes and Rhymes.' It's the band's first LP in 21 years, and I was mildly excited about it when, back in April, I saw the video for the single "Turn Off the Moon." So much so, in fact, I did something I almost never do. I bought the song from iTunes. I like owning records I can touch. What I didn't count on at that time was I would end up seeing another video for a song from the album I would like even more. The dilemma became whether I should buy the second song from iTunes, complete the entire album in download form or try and find the actual CD. Since the album is an import that would cost me $22.16, for now I have chosen to buy the second song for a buck. I hope you like it as much as I do and you find your own method of buying it.

The song, "I'm Not Sayin', is a Gordon Lightfoot composition made popular by Nico in 1965. Big fan. The song can be found on her 'The Classic Years' compilation. Obviously, this single CD barely scratches the surface of her fascinating career, but it includes some great songs from 'The Velvet Underground & Nico,' 'Chelsea Girl,' 'The Marble Index' and more. I consider all three of those records essential buys.

The Primitives made a curious choice when covering "I'm Not Sayin'." Guitarist Paul Court takes lead vocals. Don't worry. Tracy Tracy does show up later on the song, albeit in a supporting role. It totally works for me. Check out the video below. It's a great song, and the video has a cool Nico, circa 1960s, vibe.

Nico - I'm Not Sayin' (mp3)

How Do You Follow Up Shop Assistants?

With Chin Chin, of course. The female Swiss trio knew the Shop Assistants quite well. They toured parts of Europe together back in the day and, for a spell, were peers on the legendary 53rd & 3rd label, run by Stephen Pastel and others. Chin Chin's sound owes a bit more to first-generation punk bands like Ramones and the Clash, as well as '60s girl groups, but their sound is only a tad left of Shop Assistants and others among the C86 movement.

Chin Chin is another one of those bands whose work was damn near impossible to find... until two years ago when my heroes at Slumberland reissued the 1985 'Sounds of the Westway' album. Here's what I had to say about it then. If you don't have this one, you may be out of luck. It appears to be out of print again. Give these a listen and think about the bevy of bands out there right now that owe a lot to this nearly forgotten record.

Chin Chin - Dark Days (mp3)
Chin Chin - My Guy(mp3)

Are You Being Served? Two From Shop Assistants

Are you free, Mr. Lucas? Wait, wrong shop assistants. These Shop Assistants weren't on the floor very long, but their small stock of songs have left a lasting impression on this customer.

The first song I heard from the Edinburgh band was "It's Up To You" on the legendary 'NME C86' compilation. Like many tunes of that ilk, it was fuzzy and catchy, but I didn't run out and look for more from the band. I have no excuse. I didn't hear anything else from Shop Assistants until two decades later when they showed up on the often criticized (but not by me, I can assure you)
'CD86: 48 Tracks From the Birth of Indie Pop' compilation. One great song could have been a fluke. This second song, "Safety Net," finally got me off my duff. There was but one full-length album to be had, a 1986 self-titled affair sometimes called 'Will Anything Happen,' but it was in and out of print for years. It took me quite a while to track it down, but then I found out that Four Men With Beards, a reissue label with damn good taste, had dusted off the classic and released it on 180 gram vinyl. It was worth the wait. Here is a quick look at the label's offerings.

Here are a couple of singles from Shop Assistants. "Safety Net" was released as a 7" in February 1986. "I Don't Wanna Be Friends With You" was the first single from the band's one and only album. The single came out in September 1986, and the LP followed in November.

Shop Assistants - Safety Net (mp3)
Shop Assistants - I Don't Wanna Be Friends With You (mp3)

If, by some slim chance, you were expecting this post to be on more B-level American power pop from the late '70s and early '80s, as I mentioned last time, I apologize. My USB turntable is acting up again. The plan was to have obscure tunes from the Pop and the A's, but it will have to wait.

The Elvis Brothers Have Entered the Building

If my USB turntable continues to work, I'll stick with the early '80s power pop for a couple of more days. I have a soft spot for the Elvis Brothers because they come from the cow pastures of Illinois, the same as myself. The real reason to like them, however, is they released three very solid albums that have held up quite nicely. I highly recommend them all, but the trio's debut,
'Movin' Up,' is probably my favorite. Here are a couple of fun tracks from side one. Let's take the way-back machine to 1983... a time when the fellas were on a major label, were recording at the legendary Power Station in New York, were being produced by the same guy that handled the debut records of Ramones and Talking Heads and were opening for the likes of Big Country, Billy Idol, INXS and Cheap Trick. Glory days, indeed!

The Elvis Brothers - Hidden in A Heartbeat (mp3)
The Elvis Brothers - It's So Hard (mp3)

No Trouble With Classic Any Trouble Single

Whenever I listen to early Joe Jackson, Rockpile, or 'My Aim Is True'-era Elvis Costello, I almost always think about following it up with 'Where Are All the Nice Girls?' by Any Trouble. That's exactly what happened last night after playing Jackson's "The Harder They Come," and it was such a nice fit. If you don't know the band's story, in a nutshell, Any Trouble was part of Stiff Records' glory days. The lads made two critically acclaimed albums (including the 1980 debut 'Where Are All the Nice Girls?') for the label. Inexplicably, the public didn't take to either one of these works. Any Trouble stuck around a few years beyond those first two albums, and there was even a reunion album in 2007, but I don't own anything beyond the Stiff output. Is any of the post-1981 material worth my while? If you have any thoughts, let me know.

Let's listen to Any Trouble's first single. The B-side of the power-pop classic "Yesterday's Love" was a slightly different (and more lo-fi) version of the album track "Nice Girls." If you can't find the 7", this take can also be found as a bonus track on the
2007 reissue of 'Where Are All the Nice Girls?'

Any Trouble - Yesterday's Love (mp3)
Any Trouble - Nice Girls (mp3) (single B-side version)

New Single From The dB's

Ah, I just opened my email, and my day has been made. Thank you, dB's. This song, "That Time Is Gone," will be on the impending release of 'Falling Off the Sky,' out June 12. It's the dB's first album with the original lineup in 30 years. So, yes, kind of a big deal. I can't wait. And in case you missed it last fall, click here to get a newish song from the dB's that doesn't appear to be on the album.



'Falling Off the Sky' Tracklist
1. That Time Is Gone
2. Before We Were Born
3. The Wonder Of Love
4. Write Back
5. Far Away And Long Ago
6. Send Me Something Real
7. World To Cry
8. The Adventures Of Albatross And Doggerel
9. I Didn't Mean To Say That
10. Collide-oOo-Scope
11. She Won't Drive In The Rain Anymore
12. Remember (Falling Off The Sky)