Putting a Polka-Dot Bow on This Series

It's a story we read all the time. From smash in 1985 to split in 1986, Strawberry Switchblade's time came and went in the blink of an eye. There were clearly thoughts of a second LP, and you only need to look as far as the band's appearance on John Peel's show in the spring of '85 as evidence. "Sixty Cowboys" was a new song, and "Cut With the Cake Knife," we would later learn, was already in line as Strawberry Switchblade's next single. Alas, it was not meant to be.

Rose McDowall took some of those last songs and recorded several others between 1986 and 1988. If you followed McDowall's career in the late '80s, you may also know she was performing with a new band of Creation alums that included, among others, Lawrence of Felt fame and the rhythm section of the Weather Prophets... a real time machine moment if there ever was one. If you caught them, I would love to hear about it.

The songs from this era would finally see the light of day in 2004 and be reissued again in 2015. For fans like myself, 'Cut With the Cake Knife' was like a gift from the gods. Some of the songs are not a world away from the sounds of Strawberry Switchblade, but you can hear McDowall going in a different direction in others. She did just that after these sessions. Here is a particular favorite of mine. "Tibet" is a sad lament about a friend leaving masked by some pretty sounds and melodies. You must know by now I'm a sucker for that combination.

Tibet

Thank You, Pete

We lost one of our heroes this week. I say "our" because I can't imagine there are any visitors out there who didn't spend many a night in their formative years listening to 'Singles Going Steady' by Buzzcocks. I have said it many times on these pages, but once more won't hurt: I have never owned a better band compilation... period. You'll agree those first three albums were pretty special too.

I have spent the wee hours of this Friday night/Saturday morning listening to my favorite songs from Buzzcocks and the solo career of Pete Shelley. I didn't, however, go to the golden age. This will be inexplicable to all, I imagine, but my favorite long player from beginning to end is the virtually unknown comeback album 'Trade Test Transmissions' from 1993. I was working at a record store when it came out, and I just couldn't get those songs out of my head. I played it in the shop every day for weeks. I had just graduated from college and was completely confused about the future. Looking back, I think this album was the soundtrack to my final efforts at staying the kid that grew up listening to 'Singles Going Steady' over and over again. That rebellious spirit was desperately trying to hang on in the nooks and crannies of my soul, but time was running out.

In remembrance of the recently departed Shelley, here is a little mix of songs a bit off the beaten path of the most well-known albums. Thanks for everything, Pete. You will continue to live on in our hearts and on our stereos.

Breakdown
Howard Devoto on vocals in '77, but that's Pete on guitar. From the EP "Spiral Scratch."

Everybody's Happy Nowadays
Live at the Hammersmith Odeon in March of '79. The entire show can be found on the album 'Entertaining Friends.'

Homosapien
Clocking in at more than nine minutes, here is the Elongated Dancepartydubmix found on the flip side of the 12", circa 1981.

Telephone Operator
A minor hit from his 1983 solo album 'XL1. Like 'Homosapien, it was produced by Martin Rushent.

Innocent
I know what you're thinking, but I can't recommend 'Trade Test Transmissions' enough.

Totally From the Heart
It took three years to follow 'Trade Test Transmissions,' but it was worth the wait.

Short Stack of Strawberry Switchblade B-Sides

I sense the natives getting restless. I'll put a polka-dot ribbon on this obsession with all things Jill and Rose this weekend. I promise. The synth-heavy songs "Since Yesterday" and, to a lesser extent, "Let Her Go" are the hits from the duo's self-titled long player, and the B-sides from these singles are of quality stock. The cover of "Sunday Morning," as well as "By the Sea," come from the 12" of "Since Yesterday" and have that early lo-fi vibe like you would find during the band's "Trees and Flowers" era. These were produced by indie legend David Balfe. My copy came with a gorgeous poster of the gals that's still in pristine condition. I seem to recall not hanging it because I was worried my dad would freak out. Seems pretty tame now.

Sunday Morning
By the Sea

The two songs on the flip side of the "Let Her Go" 12" are from a Janice Long session first broadcast on BBC Radio 1 in October 1984. Nary a duff note on these gems. Speaking of radio sessions, that brings me to my plea. If there is anyone out there who can hook me up with Strawberry Switchblade's sessions for John Peel or David Jensen from Oct. 1982, I would be most grateful. I have wanted those for about as long as I can remember.

Beautiful End
Michael Who Walks By Night

Too Hot, Too Cold, Just Right (Not in That Order)

In the blog's infancy, I used to do a series called Fables of the Deconstruction. It was basically a listen to an early version or demo of a song put up against the final released version found on a single or album. So often, too many cooks in the kitchen would mean the unpolished bedroom recording was the superior take. That's more or less the way I feel about today's pick from Strawberry Switchblade. There are a few versions of "Go Away" to compare and contrast, but the beautiful 1983 B-side to "Trees and Flowers" is the definitive version for me. By the time the song became a deep cut on the band's debut album, it's almost unrecognizable. The time period, however, is not. As with the previous post, the 1982 demo is from the band's days as a quartet, and the feel is decidedly post punk... and awfully good too.

Go Away (1982 demo)
Go Away (1983 B-side)
Go Away (1985 album version)

Polka Dots and Moonbeams

I finally caught 'Teenage Superstars,' the brilliant follow-up to 'Big Gold Dream,' and even though there was no music to go along with the in-depth interviews on Glasgow's indie scene of the '80s and '90s, I found the documentary at least as interesting as the look at labels Fast Product and Postcard Records in its predecessor. Watching Rose McDowall's input lit a fire under me, and I have spent the past couple of days ripping all of my vinyl from Strawberry Switchblade.

It would be easy to stick to the really early material to make it seem like I only liked the cool stuff that had more in common with the Velvet Underground than the drivel the pop charts were churning in the early '80s, but that wouldn't be honest. I bought into the hits too. We will, however, start with one of the more accepted songs... according to the music intelligentsia. "Trees and Flowers" was the band's first A-side and Jill Bryson's admission she suffers from agoraphobia:

Can't you see
I get so frightened
No-one else seems frightened
Only me, only me

There are some pretty impressive names associated with this single on both sides of the glass, including Bill Drummond, David Balfe, Will Sargeant and Roddy Frame, but Kate St. John and her oboe is the real standout among some other interesting instrumentation, including the French horn. Do yourself a favor and follow the "Just Music" B-side with St. John's work on the the Dream Academy's instrumental version of "Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want." These two songs back to back are pure bliss. As for the 1982 demo, this was when they were a female four piece, and their sound has more of a post-punk feel. As for the extended mix, you know my weakness for 12" singles. I have read in places the band had little or nothing to do with the extended versions that appeared on the 1985 Japanese release called 'The 12" Album.' This is the best of the lot.

For you trivia lovers, "Trees and Flowers" featured at No. 47 on John Peel's 1983 Festive 50.

Trees and Flowers (1982 demo)
Trees and Flowers (1983 single)
Trees and Flowers (Just Music) (1983 B-side)
Trees and Flowers (extended mix)

Got Me By the Short Hairs

As we are wrapping up a wonderful four-day holiday weekend, I'm filled with dread at the thought of the 6:00 alarm bell tomorrow. Waking up this morning to 'My Long-Haired Life,' the 1996 album from Marti Jones,' however, was a mellow contrast to the start of this day. I saw Jones at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C., on this tour, and even 22 years later I remember her putting on a good show as the opener for Marshall Crenshaw. Her husband, the legendary Don Dixon, was on guitar. I think Jones' best albums are the ones that mix her originals with inspired covers. You'll find songs by Nick Lowe, Aimee Mann and Otis Redding on 'My Long-Haired Life,' but this one from Squeeze sounded the best this morning as I was stretched out in my own bed.

Black Coffee in Bed

Jones is also quite an accomplished painter, and this is her work on the cover above. It depicts a big change in her life when she cut her own locks and became a new mother. Here's my favorite of the Dixon/Jones compositions.

It's Not What I Want

Just What You Always Wanted

I was checking out some clips of Soft Cell's "Say Hello Wave Goodbye" 40th anniversary farewell show from September and was tickled to see Mari Wilson performing a duet of "Last Chance" with Marc Almond. I haven't followed Wilson's career with the same passion of uber fan Post-Punk Monk, but I do adore her early work, particularly during the Compact Organization era. Here's the extended mix of her smash (well, not here in America, but you folks across the Atlantic will know it), as well as one of my favorite B-sides. Please excuse the scratchiness of my 12", but this is among the first dozen or so pieces of vinyl from my collection. As for the B-side of the 1980 single "Love Man," I'm opting for a cleaner sound from the highly recommended 2016 double-disc comp of female indie pioneers titled 'Sharon Signs to Cherry Red.'

Mari Wilson - Just What I Always Wanted (12")
Mari Wilson With the Imaginations - If That's What You Want

Tuesday's Not-So-Long Song

Here's a nod and a wink to my blogging pals and their inspiring series of long songs each Monday. I have a whole room chock full of three-minute pop songs but not nearly enough long tunes to play along... that is, unless I start pulling out my '80s 12" singles. That would certainly put a damper on what is already the most depressing day of the week. Here's one you know quite well in its seven-minute form. It won't surprise you to know this version didn't make it on Joe Strummer's '001' compilation that came out earlier this year. I opted for the relatively inexpensive two-CD set of that one, and I will probably end up regretting that choice. What can I say? My list of record wants is a mile long.

For you Strummer completists out there, it might interest you to know the U.S. version of this 12" came with a dub and instrumental version of "Love Kills" that doesn't seem to be on the UK version. Not sure how it happened, but this silly Yank somehow ended up with the UK version.

Love Kills (Extended Mix)

Dusted Off and Visible Again

I found myself in one of those YouTube rabbit holes the other night, and a wonderful and relatively recent clip of Pauline Murray performing "Dream Sequence" unplugged popped up. That immediately took me to the shelves to pull out 'Pauline Murray and the Invisible Girls.'

This came out a couple of years before my time, but I understand it was a hit in the UK, reaching No. 25 on the album chart in 1980. I, however, was an ocean away, and I bought it later in the decade without ever hearing a note or even knowing the name Pauline Murray. Her previous group, the punk band Penetration, had not been on my radar either. What attracted me to it was the cover. Remember when we used to see an album in the bins and take a risk like that? I miss that mystery, but at the vinyl prices these days, I'm not going to complain too much about Soundcloud and the like. Uh-oh, here comes a tangent. Focus, Brian, focus.

There was a Factory look to the image and, sure enough, the cover was credited to two giants, photographer/designer Trevor Key and graphic designer Peter Saville. It didn't hurt to see Martin Hannet's name on there as producer and band member too. As you can see, Vini Reilly was part of the Invisible Girls as well, but I had not discovered the charms of the Durutti Column just yet.

All these years later, I enjoyed listening to the album this week more than I thought I would, but "Dream Sequence" remains a level above the rest. I don't know if I completely buy into this description from Melody Maker, but I do wish I had said it. They called it "an exciting new area of electronic pop where Motown meets the modern world." Rolls off the tongue.

Dream Sequence

Ring-a-Ding-Ding

Earlier this week, I went to my son's middle-school band concert. To some of you I imagine this sounds like a fate worse than death, but it's different when you have someone to root for from the uncomfortable bleachers of the gym. Obviously, my son was the best one. Ha! For Halloween, they played three movements from 'Darklands Legends,' and there is a part when one of the percussionists really gets to go to town on the tubular bells. Man, do I love bells. I have always wanted to take vibraphone lessons. Why haven't I just done it? Inertia, I guess.

Anyway, as this kid is wailing on the bells, a couple of pop songs popped into my mind. Here's one of them. Perhaps they are best known for backing Captain Sensible on a couple of smash hits, but Dolly Mixture was a female trio I knew from their short time on Paul Weller's Respond label. In fact, the "Been-Teen" single was the very first release. This is RESP 4, released in 1982, and I hope you like your bells. This makes the fourth Respond act featured here in the last couple of years. A Craze, Tracie and the Questions were the others. Can Vaughan Toulouse be far away?

Everything and More

Born to Be Together

In the late '80s, producer, writer and girl-group aficionado Alan Betrock had a dream come true. He got studio time at Record Plant Studios in New York with the legendary Ronnie Spector. Betrock showed Spector several songs she might want to record, and the singer really took to the work of Marshall Crenshaw. Betrock and Crenshaw went way back. The former had even produced the latter's first single, "Something's Gonna Happen," in 1982. Her backing band would be Crenshaw on guitar, Graham Maby of Joe Jackson Band fame on bass and, just like the early days of Marshall's career, Crenshaw's brother Robert on drums. The nouveau girl group the Pussywillows provided backing vocals.

Due to the assets of the Record Plant being seized in a bankruptcy, these songs sat on a shelf until the turn of the century. Ronnie and her husband/manager finally gained control of the tapes and put them out themselves in 2003. By then, sadly, Betrock had died of cancer at age 49, breaking the hearts of Crenshaw and the other participants. Crenshaw loves these versions of some of his best-known songs, calling them in one interview "by far the best covers of my songs that anybody has ever done." In another interview he said, "I think they're just beautiful. I was really into everything on the Philles label, so it was exciting to cross paths with her." This really was a match made in heaven. Here are a couple that originally came from Crenshaw's second album and my personal favorite, 'Field Day.'

For His Love
Whenever You're on My Mind

I'll Meet You By the Third Pyramid

My plan was to have more posts of Lush covers last week, but I got caught up in a perfect storm of children's homework. We aren't talkin' a few math problems either. When did kids start getting all of these massive projects, anyway? I certainly don't remember having this much to do when I was 12. I got this song stuck in my head on Sunday as we created a travel brochure through a period of history.

The B-52's - Mesopotamia

First and foremost, Fred sings a lesson for us all: "I ain't no student of ancient culture. Before I talk I should read a book." Listen, I know this EP is considered a misstep by most. After the self-titled debut and 'Wild Planet,' one critic had the witty line the B-52's were trying to take the "p" out of "party," but I remind you there was more than enough blame to go around for this hiccup, from the band's manager to the label bosses to a certain highly respected artist who maybe shouldn't have taken on producer duties when he was more interested in working on his solo project. All of that aside, I must admit I quite like this song, and it was fun to dig out and play for an apt pupil in the LTL household today. That's what I call getting a good education.