Kill City... Iggy Pop & James Williamson & Show # 343

In 1975, Iggy Pop teamed up with James Williamson to write and record the album that was to become Kill City. Initially intended as demos for them to shop around for a record deal, the album was recorded at a mid-point in Iggy Pop’s career. He was at the time in a mental hospital dealing with heroin addictions, released on weekends to record vocals for Kill City. The album is often cited as the missing link between Raw Power and Iggy Pop’s 1977 album The Idiot. Musically it was unlike anything in Iggy’s catalogue, the album incorporates an undeniable Rolling Stones influence often at times reflecting soulful elements, but at the same time it also includes electronic synthesizers that can be seen as a pre-cursor to future Iggy Pop solo material. Looking at the musicians that contributed to the album there is Scott Thurston on bass and keyboards, he would later appear on the Iggy Pop album New Values before going on to play with Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers in the 90s. There is also the Sales brothers (Tony and Hunt) on the last two tracks, who would be featured as musicians on the 1977 album Lust For Life.

The album features songs such as “Beyond The Law” a song heavily drenched with soul horn sections and energetic guitar riffs, drum fills and vocals, “I Got Nothin’”, and “Johanna” two songs which were played with James Williamson-era Stooges in 1973-74, “Consolation Prizes” a stand out heavier track with its country fried Rollng Stones style riffs, and “No Sense of Crime” which is a slower track. There are also instrumental tracks “Night Theme” and “Master Charge” which is a heavy synthesized track written by Scott Thurston. There is also the title track “Kill City” which sets the mood for the album from the get-go, with its saxophones, guitar riffs and lyrics which depict a fallen metropolis. Out of the eleven tracks found on Kill City three of them are instrumentals, eight of them feature lyrics. While it is obvious that the music is different from The Stooges, it sounds like a natural progression and lyrically “has something to say” as Iggy Pop states in the albums linear notes.

While an original demo mix was created in 1975, it was never released in its complete form, but some of the tracks surfaced on bootlegs. In 1977, Bomp! Records, an independent label showed interest in Kill City and the album was released. At this point Iggy Pop was now working with David Bowie and James Williamson was working at a computer company as an electronics engineer in LA, removing himself from music. Williamson would return to work with Iggy Pop on his album New Values in producer form in 1979. Before the album Kill City was released proper, Williamson added some additional overdubs to the songs and then it was mixed and released on green vinyl. But there were some problems with the release, it suffered from a bad pressing and as a result it suffered from a sludgy or muddy sounding mix. The original distributor of the album went out of business and the master tapes were lost, which resulted in all subsequent releases of the album using the green vinyl as a master, and the muddy mix remaining for many years. The album went on to cult-like status resting in between the grooves of lost classic albums, until 33 years later.

In October 2010, Kill City was re-released after being remixed, restored and remastered by James Williamson and engineer Ed Cherney at Capitol Records in Hollywood. Now Kill City sounds as guitarist James Williamson states “like it should have sounded all along”. Since the Raw Power–era Stooges reunion featuring James Williamson on guitar, many of these songs from Kill City are now being played live for the first time. With the album restored fans can now re-appreciate Kill City as it was originally intended to sound.

The Play List:

1. Iggy Pop & James Williamson - Consolation Prizes
2. The Bamboo Kids - Nothing To Do
3. Northern Primitive - Space Traveller
4. Rambos - Arrows
5. Mink Deville - She's So Tough
6. The Action - TV's On the Blink
7. The Bureaucrats - She's An American
8. The Negatives - Echoes
9. The Beladeans - 1000 Mile House
10. Flying Fox & The Hunter Gatherers - Vanity
11. Iggy Pop & James Willaimson - No Sense of Crime
12. The Blue Stones - I'm A Stereo
13. Dum Dum Girls - He Gets Me High
14. My Dad Vs Yours - Carry That Weight
15. Crystal Stilts - Shake the Shackles
16. Jesus and the Mary Chain - Blues From A Gun (Live)
17. Fang - The Money Will Roll Right In
18. Iggy Pop & James Williamson - I Got Nothin'
19. The Vaccines - Blow It Up
20. Public Image Limited - The Cowboy Song
21. The Hives - Nasty Secretary
22. The Hellacopters - Where The Action Is
23. Orange Juice - Blue Boy
24. Iggy Pop & James Williamson - Kill City

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for March 15. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

NOTE: If you are looking for this show, check the comments section.

Love To Release Lost Album Black Beauty (FREE MP3)

Perhaps best known for their 1966 hit single 7 and 7 Is and their 1967 critically acclaimed album Forever Changes, Love was an American Rock band that helped to define the Psychedelic Rock-era. The two main song writers in the group were Arthur Lee and guitarist Bryan MacLean. MacLean left the group in 1968. They were signed to Elektra Records that were initially active from the mid 60s until the mid 70s. Before Love disbanded, an album was recorded in 1973 titled Black Beauty, but it was never released because the label that was due to release it went bankrupt and the album never saw official release. The album that was produced by Paul Rothchild, who is known for his work with the band Love and other Elektra artists such as The Doors, is said to have a “steamy R&B sound with a heavy guitar punch” by Rolling Stone writer David Fricke. Now, High Moon Records are going to issue the album in June 2011 in all formats. They have also provided me with a FREE mp3 for download from the upcoming release. Enjoy!

Love - Skid

Siouxsie & The Banshees... Hong Kong Garden & Show # 342

Siouxsie and The Banshees originally formed in 1976 in England, at first the two main members in the group were Siouxsie Sioux on vocals and Steven Severin on bass. The band went through a few line up changes before they found Kenny Morris on drums and John McKay on guitar, an early drummer for the group was John Simon Ritchie who you may know better as Sid Vicious. After playing several sold out venues in London in 1978, Siouxsie and The Banshees signed to Polydor Records and began recording their first single.

Hong Kong Garden was recorded with band manager Nils Stevenson producing and Steve Lillywhite on engineering duties over a two day period. Initially the song, which was demoed the previous year as a song called “People Phobia”, was not intended to be recorded as a single at all. The song would become known as “Hong Kong Garden” and it became a popular live favourite. Prior to the band signing with Polydor, they decided to record this song as a single on their managers suggestion. The songs origins came from a Chinese food take out restaurant in England. Siouxsie Sioux explained the song in detail during an interview with Pop Top Ten Interview in August of 2001:

“I'll never forget, there was a Chinese restaurant in Chislehurst called 'The Hong Kong Garden'. Me and my friend were really upset that we used to go there and like, occasionally when the skinheads would turn up it would really turn really ugly. These gits were just go in en masse and just terrorise these Chinese people who were working there. We’d try and say 'Leave them alone', you know. It was a kind of tribute”.

While the song and band has often been associated with several other late 70s Punk acts, the song was quite different, falling into the Post-Punk genre. “Hong Kong Garden” featured choppy and erratic guitar work with a throbbing bassline that at times sounds like a speeding train. Along with its unique narrative style, the song came off as an exhilarating original song and an important Post-Punk single. It would go to number seven on the UK singles charts. The B-side to this track was a song “Voices (On The Air)”. The Banshees released their debut full length album The Scream later in the same year, but “Hong Kong Garden” was not included. It would eventually be released on the CD re-issue of The Scream in 2005 and on a variety of compilation albums, the first being Once Upon A Time: The Singles in 1981.

This Week's Play List:

1. Yeah Yeah Yeah's - Our Time
2. Shoneen Knife - Twist Barbie
3. Sleater-Kinney - I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone
4. The 5.6.7.8's - I Walk Like Jayne Mansfield
5. Love Me Nots - Come On Over
6. Blondie - X Offender
7. The Dears - Blood
8. The Yulas - Tiny Head
9. The Babies - Meet Me In The City
10. The Swallows - Shoot Out the Sparks
11. The Dishrags - Past Is Past
12. The Runaways - Cherry Bomb
13. Destroy All Monsters - Bored
14. X-Ray Spex - I Am Cliche
15. Lost Patrol - Blow Me Away
16. The Cinch - Mystery Train
17. The Vaselines - Jesus Wants Me For A Sunbeam
18. Velvet Underground - I'm Sticking With You
19. Hotels - Smith Lands on the Casino Planet
20. Young Rival - All I Have To Do Is Dream
21. Sloan - Follow The Leader
22. New York Dolls - Trash
23. Siouxsie and the Banshees - Hong Kong Garden
24. The Cramps - Teenage Werewolf

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for March 8. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Or it can be downloaded here.

I Found That Essence Rare... The Story of Gang of Four & Show # 341

In 1977, Jon King (vocals), Andy Gill (guitar), Dave Allen (bass) and Hugo Burnham on drums formed a group that would be known as Gang of Four. Meeting at Leeds University in England, (although King and Gill knew each other from their school days in Kent) the group would have a very definitive sound that would be eventually described as Post-Punk. The sound of the band can be best described by their jagged guitar like sounds, which has been said to have been influenced by the guitar stylings of Wilko Johnson (of Dr. Feelgood). Combined with elements of Funk, the Staccato playing of Andy Gill would be coupled with the prominent bass and drum combo of Dave Allen and Hugo Burnham for quite a unique sound. There was also a large political element attached to the bands lyrics, their music could perhaps be best described as political essays with musical backdrops. The bands name originates from a newspaper article about the intra-party coup Gang of Four, that was decided upon while driving around with a member of The Mekons, who has been said to have named the band.

The bands first release was the Damaged Goods EP, which featured the songs “Damaged Goods”, “Anthrax”, and “Armalite Rifle”. The songs were recorded in June 1978 and produced by Bob Last, Tim Inman, and The Gang of Four. When the single was released in December 1978 on the Fast Product label based out of Edinburgh, it went to number one on the UK indie charts. The title track on the EP, “Damaged Goods” is a slow, Funk rhythm fuelled song, mixed in with Andy Gill’s Staccato, Jagged guitar sounds. It differs from the version that would be later found on their full length debut Entertainment! The song is essentially a love song lyrically, but with words dealing in sexual politics. “Anthrax” is the second track on the EP. It is a song with primarily bass and drums, and noise filled distortion floating in between the rhythm at varying points. The song starts off with Psychedelic feedback before setting into the funky bass and drum rhythms of Allen and Burnham, it also features Jon King singing in one channel, and Andy Gill in the other causing a dizzying effect for the listener. The third track on the EP “Armalite Rifle” is the anti-gun, anti-violence song which contrasts deep Soulful basslines with ragged Post-Punk guitar chords.

In 1979, Gang of Four began making recordings for what to was become their first full length album, Entertainment! The album was released in September of 1979 on EMI Records in the UK and on Warner Brothers in the US. Entertainment! addressed many issues of a political nature, often attacking the commercial media. Musically, the album harnessed the energy and influence of 70s Punk while incorporating elements of Funk, and subtle influences of Dub and Reggae. As with the bands debut Damaged Goods EP, bass is very prominent in the mix, there is also the unique angular staccato guitar style of Andy Gill that at times sounds like jagged shards of glass, coupled with Jon King’s politically charged lyrics.

Songs such as “Natural’s Not In It” adheres to themes of anti-consumerism, “Not Great Men” discusses Great Man Theory, which is a concept that relates to history being impacted by “great men” or heroes resulting in control over the average person, “Return The Gift” poses the problem of what do with ones leisure and the commercialisation of it, and “I Found That Essence Rare” deals with the selfishness of media and politicians. The album also features re-recordings of the songs “Damaged Goods” and “Anthrax”, which ends Entertainment! in its Psychedelic noise and lyrics which compares love to being “Like a beetle on its back”. The first single released form the album, “At Home He’s A Tourist” features lyrics addressing youth culture, fashion, and its commercials aspects that dance amongst the heavy bass, drums and harsh guitar tones. It went to number 58 on the UK singles charts, but caused some conflict when the band was asked to appear on the Top of the Pops television program. They were asked to change the word “rubbers” to “rubbish” to avoid offending others, Gang of Four refused to change the lyrics and as a result their appearance on the program was cancelled.

The artwork to Entertainment! was designed by Jon King and Andy Gill. It emphasizes the lyrical content harnessed on the album, but also at the same time makes a point in describing the social political conflict often found in mainstream media, using the metaphor of “Cowboys and Indians”. In addition to the political themed lyrics on Entertainment!, it also draws on common relationships, but they are brought up in a different way. The album also conveys how a lot of things in life can be seen as entertainment whether it is war or politics, which the band alludes to with an insightful nature. Entertainment! lives up to its title. It went to number 45 on the UK album charts, and in 1980 the second single from Entertainment! “Damaged Goods” was released. It went to number 39 on the US singles charts. In 1980, Gang of Four also released a four track EP that is referred to as the Yellow EP. The four songs featured on this album are “Outside the Trains Don’t Run On Time”, “He’d Send in the Army”, “It’s Her Factory” and “Armalite Rifle”. The last track is a re-recording of the song the same name originally found on the bands Damaged Goods EP in 1978.

With 1981’s Solid Gold, Gang of Four drove deeper into to a Funk and Dance based musical groove with radically charged political lyrics. There are songs such as “What We All Want” that questions the consumption of consumer based products, with lyrics like “Could I be happy with something else?/I need something to fill my time” that float in amongst the funkified basslines and chugging guitar work. The song would also go to number 30 on the US Hot Club Dance Play charts in the US when released as a single. “Cheeseburger” is a song that attacks the consumerisation of American fast food chains with its stop and start rhythmic patterns and razor sharp guitar parts, “A Hole in the Wallet” tackles the monotony of the 9 to 5 job and adheres to a slower groove musically, “He’d Send in the Army” is found in re-recorded form here with its military like intro and guitar parts that sound like rifles, lyrically it addresses questions posed by warfare. Other tracks such as “Why Theory?” and “Paralyzed” help to define this album. As a whole Solid Gold further develops the ideas that were introduced on Entertainment! in an intelligent, uncompromising manner with a new Dance like musical palate. Solid Gold would go to number 52 on the UK album charts and to number 190 on the US Pop charts.

In January of 1982, the Another Day/Another Dollar EP was released in the US. The EP featured two tracks that were previously only available in the UK (“To Hell With Poverty”, “Capital (It Fails Us Now”), "History's Bunk!" the B-side of the “What We All Want” single and two live recordings. “To Hell With Poverty” is an extremely catchy track with an unavoidable groove to it, while lyrically it contextualizes the frustration of the working classes. The melodic elements of this song can be seen as a sign of things to come for the band musically. Following an American tour, bassist Dave Allen exited the group, he was replaced by Busta “Cherry” Jones who would only be in the group briefly before being replaced by Sara Lee, who was a bassist in Robert Fripp’s League of Gentlemen. With Lee’s bass and singing ability, which would be evident on the bands next release, Gang of Four moved forward with their third full length album, Songs of the Free that was released in 1982.

With Songs of the Free, Gang of Four created what many have said to have been their most commercial sounding effort. Produced by Mike Howlett, the album brought more of a Pop based nature to the bands sound while at the same time further incorporating Dub and Funk into their already established hard edged sound. The album contained songs such as “Call Me Up (If I’m Home)”, “It Is Not Enough”, “The History of the World”, and “Muscle For Brains” that contribute to the albums unique atmosphere. “I Love A Man In A Uniform” is a standout track contained on this album. It is the ultimate Pop song Gang of Four style, with its off kilter drum beats, soulful bass and female back up vocals and Andy Gill's guitar that lurks in the background. Lyrically is just as vicious as any of the bands songs. When released as a single in the UK “I Love A Man In A Uniform” went to number 65 on the UK singles charts, but the song was banned very shortly after its release due to its lyrical content and due to the fact that Britain went to war in the Falkland Islands. When released in the US, the song went to number 27 on the US Hot Dance Club Play charts.

Songs of the Free displays a version of the Gang of Four that was evolving that could be described as being more soulful. The lyrics are at times poetic, the songs are longer, the guitar is at times low in the mix and the album does feature a bigger production sound that has been often associated with the 80s, but as a whole Songs of the Free is just as interesting as the bands first two musical outputs despite being negatively received by critics, and it is often cited by fans as one of their favourite albums from the band.

Hard, released in 1983 was the first Gang of Four album to be released without Hugo Burnham on drums. With Burnham leaving to form Illustrated Man in the Spring of 1983 and Allen leaving the previous year going onto play with Shriekback, Andy Gill and Jon King moved forward with the band adding a drum machine to serve as a replacement for Burnham’s absence. Hard was panned by critics and fans alike upon its initial release. The album further developed the sounds found on 1982’s Songs of the Free, adding synthesizer Pop and Disco based sounds into the bands grooves. The political aspect that was predominately in all of the bands previous releases is less prominent on this album. Hard’s sound and lyrical prowess can be best described by the songs “A Man With A Good Car”, “Woman Town”, and the ballad “Is It Love”. The album went to number 190 on the US Billboard Pop charts and around 1984, The Gang of Four fizzled out.

Gang of Four returned to music with the 1991 album Mall. The album was smoothly produced by King and Gill (who were the only original members of the band to return at this point), and emphasized synthesizer and Funk based rhythms while adding more of their classic Political lyrical output to the songs. Shrinkwrapped was released in 1995, it built on the bands previous sounds, standing different from 1991’s Mall. In 2004, the original line up of Gang of Four, featuring Hugo Burnham on drums and Dave Allen on bass reunited for some live shows. In 2005 a new album appeared, but not an album composed of new material. An album was released featuring re-recordings of songs that were originally found on the albums Entertainment!, Solid Gold, and Songs of the Free, it was entitled Return the Gift, it was well received. The band continued to tour intermittently until 2008, where bassist Dave Allen left the group following Hugo Burnham who left the group in 2006. With Mark Hearny on drums and Thomas McNeice on bass, Gang of Four continued to tour off and on.

In January 2011, Gang of Four unleashed their seventh full length album titled Content. The album has been exclaimed as a return to form for the band, and that’s exactly what it is. The razor sharp jagged guitar playing of Andy Gill is there along with the many rhythms and lyrical content that helped the band to define Post Punk, which for the past three decades has gone onto to highly influential proportions in the Indie and Punk music genres. Several of the songs found on Content can be identified with previous markers that Gang of Four have set in the sands of the past, “I Party All The Time” has been compared to song structures originally found on the song “I Love A Man In A Uniform” from the album Songs of the Free, minus the 80s production, “Who Am I?” evokes a Motown influence and features lyrics such as “You can’t steal when everything is free”. “You’ll Never Pay For The Farm” is a standout track on the album,sounding like an outtake from Entertainment! The song questions the ludicrousness of everyday life in traditional Gang of Four social satire. Content while it does have elemental features of work the band has become known for in the past, it does not sound like another band going through the motions, instead it shows Gang of Four doing what they do best making music their way with their own style.

This Week's Play List:

1. Gang of Four - I Party All The Time
2. Luger Boa - Paralyzed
3. Motorhead - Rock and Roll Music
4. Eve Hell & The Razors - Big River
5. Johnny West - Purgatory Waltz
6. Johnny West - Everything Matters, Everyone Cares
7. Crissi Cochrane - Separate Cities
8. Dinosaur Bones - Royalty
9. Mother Mother - Simply Simple
10. Cut/Copy - Where I'm Going
11. Radiohead - Little By Little
12. Wire - Now Was
13. Gang of Four - I Love A Man In A Uniform
14. Gang of Four - Return The Gift
15. Tim Ray & AV - Quarter To Eight
16. The Subway Sect - Rock and Roll Even
17. The Prefects - Things in General
18. The Teardrops - Teenage Vice
19. Bok Bok - Come Back To Me
20. The Police - Truth Hits Everybody
21. The Adverts - One Chord Wonders
22. Gang of Four - Damaged Goods (EP Version)
23. Gang of Four - You'll Never Pay For The Farm

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for March 1. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Surfers Choice...Revolution Surf! Show # 340

Dick Dale is known as “The King of Surf Guitar” for a reason. In the early 60s, Dick Dale incorporated non-Western based scales into his music drawing on an Eastern cultural influence that would be embedded into many of his well known songs. Dale’s desire for a particular sound resulted in a number of things. One, was his use of guitar reverb that resulted in a “wet” guitar sound that would become a definitive sound in Surf music. Two, he pushed the limits of his equipment. Often blowing up guitar amplifiers for his hunger of loud sounds, Leo Fender would work with Dale to redefine not only guitar, and amplifiers, but also volume which until Dale came around wasn’t particularly that loud. Another interesting fact is that Dale is known for stringing his guitar in reverse since he is left handed. He often plays the chords upside down and backwards. Even when he has a left handed guitar in his possession it is stringed upside down.

Dick Dale quickly attracted attention locally for his wild live shows, drawing thousands of fans weekly for his live shows, which were usually at the Rendezvous Ballroom in California. With the Del-Tones as his backing band, Dick Dale released Surfers’ Choice in 1962. Recorded live at the Rendezvous Ballroom in Balboa Beach, California, with some studio overdubs, the twelve track album helped to define the Surf music genre. With songs such as “Let’s Go Trippin’” which is often called the first Surf Rock instrumental recording, it helped to bring the concept of Surf music to parts of America. It should also be noted that “Let’s Go Trippin’” was initially released as a single in 1961 on Deltone Records, where it eventually reached # 60 on the national charts and even higher on local charts. Two more singles followed on Deltone “Jungle Fever” and “Surf Beat”. Following the release of Surfers' Choice, which was released on Deltone (Dick Dale’s own label) he acquired a recording contract with Capitol Records, which garnered him further distribution nationally. Word spread and Dick Dale began appearing on television shows and in films. In 1962, Dick Dale and His Del-Tones released “Misirlou”, which went to # 1 in Los Angeles. The song which is now his signature is a highly influential song and originates from a Folk song that has been played in numerous different languages and has ties to music origins such as Greek Rebetiko, Middle Eastern Belly Dancing, and Jewish Klezmer.

Dick Dale had this to say of the song in the Los Angeles Times in February 1981:

“I still remember the first night we played it ("Misirlou"). I changed the tempo, and just started cranking on that mother. And...it was eerie. The people came rising up off the floor, and they were chanting and stomping. I guess that was the beginning of the surfer's stomp.”

Dick Dale and His Del-Tones recorded King of Surf Guitar for Capitol Records, it was released in 1963. The album featured covers and originals and was named after Dale’s stage name “The King of Surf Guitar”. There are even vocals on some of the tracks by Dale (although there has been vocals on album every Dale album), the album features stand out tracks such as “King of Surf Guitar”, “Have Nagila”, and a cover of “(Ghost) Riders in the Sky”. Dick Dale’s next album on Capitol would be the album known as Checkered Flag. Released in 1963 this is the first album that Dick Dale recorded in the “Hot Rod” style of Surf music. At the time racing, cars, and surfing was deeply embedded in American culture. Many of the songs on the album featured themes relating to car racing and hot rods. Several of the songs actually feature car noises in them. The album was also a shift in Dale’s style. While his first two albums with The Deltones were known as Surf music, his “Hot Rod” Surf music differed with slightly different beats mixed in with elements of his earlier Surf style of music. Checkered Flag’s follow up was Mr. Eliminator in 1964. This album continued the theme of hot-rod’s and cars, but also showed off Dale’s Eastern music influence on the track “The Victor”. Following the release of Mr. Eliminator, Dale would record one more album with His Del-Tones backing him 1964’s Summer Surf.

Summer Surf is often cited as a return to Dick Dale’s early Surf style of music, but it also featured many new elemental features that were not as prominent on early Dick Dale recordings. The album has more of a production based nature, often sounding glossier than previous Dale recordings, reflecting a Phil Spector and Brian Wilson based production style. There are also numerous experimentations stemming from a variety of multi-cultural musical styles. “Spanish Kiss” exercises a Spanish guitar style of music, “The Star (of David)” reflects a Hebrew musical nature, the Gospel stylings on “Glory Wave” and Dale’s own Trumpet lead song “Never On A Sunday” all add to the experimental side of Summer Surf. The song “Banzai Wash Out” is a track amongst the songs found on this album, with its traditional Dick Dale guitar leads, keyboards and vocal harmonies it is undeniably a stand out track found here along with a few others. “Tidal Wave” incorporates an almost Waltz-like sound into Surf, and “Surfin’ Rebel”, and the title track “Summer Surf” all feature elements of classic Dick Dale Surf Rock with horn sections and fascinating guitar leads.

Dick Dale continued to perform live, in 1964 the British Invasion began to take over the charts and America. While a live album was released by Capitol in 1965, Rock out with Dick Dale and his Del-Tones: Live at Ciro's, Dale was dropped from Capitol Records. He remained popular, but in 1966 he was diagnosed with rectal cancer forcing him to temporarily retire from music. Dick Dale beat the cancer and began pursuing other interests, becoming an environmental activist. Dick Dale came back to music in 1986 by recording a benefit single for the UC-Irvine’s Medical Center Burn Unit, he also recorded an album Tigers Loose, which was released in 1986. Dale was also in the beach movie Back To The Beach. While Dale returned to music, his return would take off to greater proportions when his song “Misirlou” was featured in the 1994 movie Pulp Fiction by Quentin Tarantino. Being used as the movies title track, Dick Dale was instantly exposed to a new and wider audience. Most recently Dick Dale’s music has been featured in the Guitar Hero video game series.

It should also be mentioned that today's episode of Revolution Rock (or Revolution Surf if you prefer), was co-hosted by Derk Brigante of CJAM's weekly Surf show Surphony of Derstruction.  It can be heard every Tuesday night at 7 PM on CJAM 99.1 FM and streamed/downloaded via http://www.cjam.ca/



Revolution Surf Play List:

1. The Lively Ones – High Tide
2. Huevos Rancheros – Huevosaurus
3. PJ & Artie – Squad Car
4. Dick Dale & His Del-Tones – Night Rider
5. The Hot Rodders – The Creamer
6. Blue Demons – Apache
7. The Squires – The Sultan
8. Les Jaguars – Guitaire Extrodinaire
9. The Rhythm Surfers – 502 (Like Getting Pinched on 502)
10. Dave Myers Effect – Speed International
11. The Revelairs – San-Ho-Zay
12. The Avengers VI – Heartbreak
13. Looney Tunes – Desert Bound
14. Dick Dale & His Del-Tones – The Victor
15. Taekshi Terauchi – Kuroda Bushi
16. Fifty Foot Combo – Ali Baba
17. Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet – That Was Ear Me Callin’ A Horse
18. Atomic 7 – Stab It & Steer It
19. The Surfdusters – Chill Out
20. Mark Broadie & The Beaver Patrol – Theme From the Old West
21. The Von Drats – Church Key
22. The Robots – Stinky Juliens
23. The Challengers – Volcanic Action
24. The Tornadoes – The Gremmie
25. Dick Dale – Ho-Dad Machine
26. The Wipeouters – Shut Up, Little Man!
27. Los Straitjackets – Tempest
28. Link Wray – The Shadow Knows

If you are interested in the program you may want ot check the comments section.

Back To The Archives!

Anyone who has visited this website or CJAM's official website in hopes to download an archive of one of their shows will have come up short. CJAM's archives were down for a few weeks, but I am happy to say they are now back and available for your mass consumption!

Here's a look at what you may have missed on some recent episodes of Revolution Rock:

Lost and Found - The Saints Radio Special & Show # 339

This show aired on February 15th and it focused on the Australian Punk legends The Saints. They have since gone onto cult like status, the show focused on the bands first three albums ((I'm) Stranded, Eternally Yours, Prehistoric Sounds) and a variety of outtakes and live recordings.

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The Godfather of Soul...Mr. James Brown & Show # 338

On February 8th, Revolution Rock celebrated Black History Month, by playing a selection of songs within the genres of Soul, Funk, Jazz, R&B, Reggae, and Blues.  Two songs were featured on the show from the James Brown album James Brown Sings Raw Soul. 

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Revolution Derk ... Show # 337

On February 1st, Derk Brigante of CJAM's Surphony of Derstruction filled in for Revolution Rock mixing in Surf, with Punk, New Wave and Garage Rock.  The show can be seen as a taste of my annual Surf special which will air on CJAM February 22nd, 2011 from 10L30 AM - 12 PM. 

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Citzen Freak...The Story of 49th Parallel Show # 336

January 25th, featured a spotlight on the Canadian Garage Rock band 49th Parallel.  Also in the same broadcast there was music from U2, The Diodes, Rah Rah, The Micronite Filters, The Black Angels, Wavves, Modern Superstitions, The Misfits, The D4 and more!

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Lost and Found ... The Story of The Saints & Show # 339

Coming from Brisbane, Australia The Saints formed in 1974. They would take their influence from 50's bands such as Elvis Presley, Little Richard, 50's R&B, 60's Soul music and bands such as The Stooges, and The MC5. Before being named The Saints, the band was known briefly as Kid Galahad and The Eternals. The group consisted of Chris Bailey (vocals), Ed Kuepper (guitar), Ivor Hay (drums) and Kym Bradshaw on bass. The Saints decided to record the single "(I'm) Stranded" in August of 1976 independently after Kuepper, who was working at a record store at the time kept seeing boxes and boxes coming in of songs recorded by truckers and Country artists for promotional purposes. Inspired by the do it yourself ethic, "(I'm) Stranded" was recorded quickly in the studio. It came off sounding like nothing else in Australia at the time. The song featured the buzz saw sounding guitars of Ed Kuepper and the soulful singing stylings of Chris Bailey. The single (which was backed with the song "No Time") was released initially to a limited 500 pressing by The Saints on their own label, Fatal Records.

Shortly after its release, "(I'm) Stranded" was voted as "The Single of The Week" by Sounds Magazine in the UK. The single was on import and made it all the way to the UK, yielding a positive response. The song is seen as an important part of the history of not just Australian music, but in the beginnings of Punk pre-dating bands such as The Clash and Sex Pistols. The Saints were then offered a three album deal with EMI in the UK, which they accepted based on the response of the single. In June of 1976, the band headed into Window Studios in Brisbane, Australia to record their first full length album (I'm) Stranded.

With Rod Coe in the producer seat, the song writing team of Chris Bailey and Ed Kuepper converted their compositions into a ten track album. For the album the songs "(I'm) Stranded" and "No Time", were taken from the 1976 single (I'm) Stranded". The album sounded like a mix of Stooges Rock, The Missing Links, and 60s Soul music. The album received bad reviews upon its release in February 1977 in Australia. The album is now seen as a classic album and is often deemed as important and influential as albums by Sex Pistols and The Clash. There were songs such as "Messin' With The Kid" and "Story of Love" (slower soulful sounding tracks), "Demolition Girl", and "Erotic Neurotic", "Nights In Venice" (a wonderful fuzzy distorted song). The album also featured two cover songs, one "Wild About You" (originally by The Missing Links) and "Kissing Cousins" (originally by Elvis Presley). The Saints were then exported to Britain, where they played a show with Ramones and Talking Heads and The Roundhouse in London. Theoretically they should have done well, but The Saints were negatively received.

While their record company tried to sell the band along with the other bands in the UK Punk scene, the band did not agree with the labels tactics and did things their own way musically and in the fashion sense. They also lost bassist Kym Bradshaw around this time, he would be replaced by Algy Ward. The single "This Perfect Day" was released next in July of 1977. The single did very well showing commercial potential for the band, but unfortunately the single was out of stock for two weeks, which resulted in stalled success for the group. “This Perfect Day" did however make it to #34 on the UK singles charts. This did not stop the band, they proceeded back to the studio to record the One Two Three Four EP. It was recorded at AIR Studios in London, England in July of 1977 with Bill Price engineering. The blistering EP featured two cover songs and two re-recordings of songs found on the (I'm) Stranded album. The EP showed the evolution of the band, who were expanding their sound. The versions of "River Deep Mountain High" and "Lipstick On Your Collar" are raunchy and catchy. "Demolition Girl" and "One Way Street" rival the versions originally found on (I'm) Stranded. The One Two Three Four EP was originally released in October 1977 in Australia and September 1977 in the UK.

In the fall of 1977, The Saints began recording the album Eternally Yours. at Wessex, Roundhouse, and London Studios. The album was produced by Chris Bailey and Ed Kuepper with Bill Price and Mark Dearnley working the engineering duties. Eternally Yours showed off a more R&B sound reflecting their roots, sounding original and different from the other albums being released in London at the time. "Know Your Product" is a perfect example of the bands change in musical direction. The song while it featured song structures similar to other Saints songs, it also had a Stax influenced brass horns section. Lyrically the song reflected the bands situation in London and how they were trying to be forced into being lumped in the Punk scene at the time. Other great tracks include "Lost and Found", "A Private Affair", "Run Down", "Orstralia" and "(I'm) Misunderstood". “A Private Affair” also addresses the bands issues with being associated with the hype and commercialism of the London Punk scene at the time. There were other musical elements such as harmonica and more brass horn sections throughout the album. Acoustic based songs "Memories Are Made of This", "Untitled", and "A Minor Aversion" all add to the albums 13 song repertoire. The album ended with the song "International Robots", which was also originally going to be the title for the album. Eternally Yours was originally released in May of 1978 in Australia and April 1978 in the UK. It is one of the finest albums The Saints ever recorded.

After a European tour, with all the rising tensions amongst the band and their lack of success Chris Bailey quit the band. Wanting to go into a different music direction, he began assembling his own group, while the rest of The Saints began working on material for another album. Since the record company was losing faith in the band, they would not record the band if Chris Bailey was not in the group, so The Saints came to an agreement. In 1978, shortly after the release of Eternally Yours, they began work on what was to become Prehistoric Sounds. The album was drastically different than any of their previous efforts. The album was influenced more by Avant Garde Jazz, R&B and once again produced by Chris Bailey and Ed Kuepper with Bill Price and Jeremy Spencer Green Engineering. Combined with Rock and elements of the Saints early Punk sound, Prehistoric Sounds was an album ahead of its time.

The album art for Prehistoric Sounds, which depicts tall buildings sticking out of the water of a flooded city, is a distinctive example as to how different the album is. While the band may have been more experimental with this album, it is by no means a flimsy album. The song structures and arrangements are just as strong as any other Saints album. With songs such as "Swing For The Crime", "All Times Through Paradise", "Everyday's a Holiday, Every night's a Party", "Church of Indifference" and "Everything's Fine", the album was top notch. There were also cover versions of Aretha Franklin's "Save Me" and Otis Redding's "Security". Finally this album also featured the first solo song writing credit of singer Chris Bailey. "Take This Heart of Mine", featured lyrics and music written by Bailey, it reflects a Blues based influence. Lyrically the album as a whole addressed issues relating to alienation and as Kuepper has stated was written primarily from an Australian perspective. The album while it does have darker based lyrical themes, it often reflects a smooth, mesmerizing, hypnotic experience. The record company insisted that the first single to be released from the album was to be “Security” a cover of a song originally by Otis Redding. The album was not released in America and had a limited release. It was released in October of 1978 in the UK, but the cards had already been dealt and by the time Prehistoric Sounds hit Australia in February 1979, The Saints had imploded. Chris Bailey remained in London, while Kuepper moved back to Australia.

Chris Bailey would continue on with The Saints name only, while Kuepper pursued other music avenues such as The Laughing Clowns, The Aints and a solo career. Drummer Ivor Hay would go onto to play in a variety of bands even playing on a few later Saints album's, he would eventually form his own group Wildlife Documentaries. Bassist Algy Ward would go onto play bass in The Damned briefly and form his own Punk/Metal group Tank. Since then The Saints have gone onto influence numerous Australian bands and recently in 2007 and 2009, they reunited for some live shows. In 2008 Ed Kuepper joined Australia’s Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds as their touring guitarist when original guitarist Mick Harvey left the group. On January 2009, Kuepper, Bailey and Ivor Hay reunited to play the album (I’m) Stranded in its entirety as part of the All Tomorrow’s Parties Festival in Melbourne, Australia (Archie Larzza provided the bass).

 

While The Saints went virtually under the radar at the time of their first incarnation, they released three, wonderfully crafted albums of music that captures the essence of Rock, Soul and R&B music with the raw essence of Punk. With each album The Saints recorded their sound progressed and developed from their early Soul and Punk stylings of (I’m) Stranded to the bigger R&B driven sound of Eternally Yours to the sophisticated and intense Jazz, Blues, and Soul of Prehistoric Sounds. In 2005, All Times Through Paradise a four disc box set featuring the first era of The Saints was released. The album features all three Saints albums, B-sides, outtakes and live recordings. The box set is now out of print, but as of 2007 all of The Saints albums (with their original line up) have been reissued with the bonus tracks that were featured on the box set.

Saints Play List:

1. (I'm) Stranded ((I'm) Stranded Single 1976)
2. No Time ((I'm) Stranded Single 1976)
3. Lost and Found (Eternally Yours 1978)
4. This Perfect Day (Eternally Yours 1978)
5. Lipstick On Your Collar (One Two Three Four EP 1977)
6. Knock on Wood (The Most Primitive Band In The World - Live Brisbane 1974)
7. Kissin' Cousins ((I'm) Stranded 1977)
8. Story of Love ((I'm) Stranded 1977)
9. Know Your Product (Eternally Yours 1978)
10. Memories are Made of This (Eternally Yours 1978)
11. All Times Through Paradise (Prehistoric Sounds 1978)
12. Brisbane (Security City) (Prehistoric Sounds 1978)
13. Church of Indifference (Prehistoric Sounds 1978)
14. River Deep Mountain High (One Two Three Four EP 1977)
15. (I'm) Misunderstood (Eternally Yours 1978)
16. Save Me (Prehistoric Sounds 1978)
17. Security (Prehistoric Sounds 1978)
18. Looking For The Sun (Prehistoric Sounds Outtake)
19. Champagne Misery (Eternally Yours Outtake)
20. Demolition Girl (One Two Three Four EP 1977)
21. A Private Affair (Eternally Yours 1978)
22. One Way Street (Live @ Hope and Anchor London 1977)
23. Nights In Venice (Live @ Paddington Town Hall Sydney 1977)

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for February 15. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Saints Videos:

Coming up on Revolution Rock in February

Coming up in the remaining weeks of February Revolution Rock will feature more special programming.  Last week Revolution Rock celebrated Black History Month playing a mix of Soul, Jazz, Funk, and R & B.  Since CJAM’s archives are currently down, the shows can only be heard live on Tuesdays from 10:30 AM until Noon on the 99.1 FM dial in the Windsor/Detroit area or streamed online at http://www.cjam.ca/ .  Check back if you missed the show, when the downloads are available again they will be posted on this site. 

Here is a list of what is to come:

Lost and Found - The Saints Radio Feature
February 15th, 2010
10:30 AM - Noon
CJAM 99.1 FM (www.cjam.ca)

The show this week will focus on the music of the Australian band The Saints. The Saints mixed elements of Soul, R&B, and Proto-Punk, for a unique sound that was often defined as Punk, but it was also a sound with much more. Following their break up the band has gone on in a more cult like status often being cited as being as influential as bands such as The Clash and Sex Pistols. The show will focus on the bands first three albums ((I'm) Stranded, Eternally Yours, Prehistoric Sounds) and a variety of outtakes and live recordings.

Revolution Surf
February 22nd, 2010
10:30 AM - Noon
CJAM 99.1 FM (www.cjam.ca)

This show will mark my annual Surf show that occurs at the end of every February. This year will mark the fifth annual Surf show that I have done on the CJAM airwaves. Last year's show focused on the music of Link Wray, this year’s show will showcase a few of the songs from Surf legend Dick Dale. The show will also feature a mix of older Surf based groups mixed in with newer groups. Derk of CJAM's Surphony of Derstruction will join me as co-host.

The Godfather of Soul....Mr.James Brown & Show # 338

James Brown is known as The Godfather of Soul. He released single after successful single taking over the R & B Charts with his style and groove, but his songs didn't just have the music the also had a message. Known for being prolific and releasing numerous songs that affected not only the music buying public, but also future musical artists, two songs in particular will be discussed here. They are both from his mid 60s period, which reflected an R & B/Soul sound. The first being a track entitled "Don't Be A Drop-Out". This song promoted education and stressed to young African American students to stay in school. At the time of the songs release in 1966, it spoke to a generation of young Americans during the Civil Rights movement, something that Brown would address on more than just this occasion.

The song “Money Won’t Change You Pt.1” was released as a single in 1966, but it did not chart and was not as well received as “Don’t Be A Drop-Out”. With lyrics like “Money Won’t Change You, But Time Will Take You On”, Brown weaves a story with a message in between this Soul stomper of a track. Part two of “Money Won’t Change You” was the B-Side to this single and both versions of the song with “Don’t Be A Drop-Out” can be found on the 1967 album James Brown Sings Raw Soul. The backing R & B vocal group for these songs and for a good part of James Browns’ early music career (from 1958-1968) were The Famous Flames. The band were usually not listed on album covers, which prevented them from being more well known at the time (they are more well known now). The band was founded by Bobby Byrd and lasted with Brown for the early part of his career. The band were on songs such as “Please, Please, Please”, “Think”, “I’ll Go Crazy”, and “Shout and Shimmy”. While the band stopped playing live with Brown in 1968, Bobby Bryd would rejoin James Brown in the 70s in a vocal based role as Brown gravitated from his early R & B sound to a Funk direction.

Brown’s hit singles coupled with his live performances which were beyond energetic, the hardest working man in show business was like no other. The songs mentioned here are just a small sample of the many great songs that James Brown has released throughout his decade spanning career and that have solidified him as the iconic Godfather of Soul.



This Week's Play List:

1. John Legend & The Roots - Compared to What
2. Booker T - Hey Ya
3. Otis Redding - Look At The Girl
4. The Supremes - Uptight (Everything's Alright) (Alternate Vocal)
5. Etta James - Street of Tears
6. Grant Green - Innercity 
7. Fats Waller - Louisianna Fairytale 1935
8. Jimmy Cliff - You Can Get It If You Really Want
9. Scotty - Draw Your Brakes
10. Mikey Dread - Break Down The Walls
11. Bob Marley - Trenchtown Rock (Live at the Roxy 1976)

12. Chuck Berry - I Want To Be Your Driver

13. John Lee Hooker - It Serves You Right To Suffer

14. Solomon Burke - Detroit City

15. The Meters - The Hand Clapping Song 

16. Sam & Dave - Don't Make It So Hard On Me

17. Bo Diddley - Gun Slinger 

18. James Brown - Don't Be A Drop-Out

19. James Brown - Money Won't Change You

20. Bad Brains - Don't Bother Me

21. Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears - Gunpowder

22. Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings - 100 Days, 100 Nights

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for February 8. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Revolution Derk Show # 337

Today Revolution Rock became Revolution Derk, when host of CJAM's Surfphony of Derstruction Derk filled in for me.  He provided an excellent mix of Punk, Garage, New Wave, and Surf music.  He also pulled double duty hosting his own show later the very same evening.  Surphony of Derstruction can be heard on CJAM FM every Tuesday night from 7 PM - 8 PM.  Be sure to check out the Surphony of Derstruction Blog for some cool videos and other surf related information. 

This week's Play List:

1. Dave & The Customs - Ali Baba
2. Boomtown Rats - Wind Chill Factor (Minus Zero)
3. The Blue Demons - Squad Car
4. The Dictators - Slow Death
5. The Pogues - Boys from the County Hell
6. Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet - Good Cop Bad Cop
7. The Fleshtones - This House is Empty
8. The Robots - Ride the Surf
9. The Eradicators - Love or Money
10. B-52's - Lava
11. Devo - Social Fools
12. The Treblemakers - Exploding Bikers from Hochelaga
13. Jeddah - Eleanor Rigby
14. The Deadlies - Pier Pressure
15. The Demics - 400 Blows
16. The Clash - Charlie Don't Surf
17. Takeshi Terauchi - Riders in the Sky
18. Fifty Foot Combo - Italian Fuzz
19. The Diodes - Tired of Waking Up Tired
20. Kenny & The Sultans - With Vigor
21. New York Dolls - Personality Crisis
22. Ian Dury & The Blockheads - Sweet Gene Vincent
23. Fingerprintz - Nervz
24. Boomtown Rats - Nothing Happened Today

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for February 1. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Citizen Freak ...The Story of 49th Parallel & Show # 336

49th Parallel was a Garage/Psych outfit from Calgary, Alberta. The band was initially known as Shades of Blond upon their formation in 1966 and released one single entitled “All Your Love”. Due to line up changes something that would plague the band until the end of their short career, the band changed their name to 49th Parallel. The name could have come from a variety of places. One being the obvious 49th Parallel in the geographical sense, which is a circle of latitude that 49 degrees North and South of the Earth’s equatorial plane. It also forms part of the Canadian US border. The other possible source in which the band could have gotten its name is from the 1941 British film of the same name. Over the course of a year, the band developed into a steady line up featuring Dennis Abbot (vocals), Bob Carlson and Dan Lowe (guitars), Mick Woodhouse (bass), Terry Bare (drums), and Dave Petch on organ. The band released three singles through Gaiety Records, which was an Ontario subsidiary of RCA Records. The bands first single was released in 1967, it was the song “Labourer” backed with “You Do Things”. The single displayed a sneerful hard edged fuzz guitar filled Garage Punk ethic, which would do well on a small scale. “She Says” was released next and it offered a more Pop based offering, the single was backed with the Psychedelic Punk track known as “Citizen Freak”. The bands third single was “Blue Bonnie Blue” in 1968 which displayed Folk-like elements lyrically, while musically it still harnessed the Garage sound that the band was known for. In the late spring of 1968, Dave Petch and Mick Woodhouse exited the group. Dave Downey was added as the group’s new bassist, while an Organist/keyboardist Jack Velker was eventually brought in to replace Petch.

During 1968 and 1969, The 49th Parallel embarked on a North American tour, with an ever changing band line up. During their tour the band would stop in and make recordings on the go. In 1969, the group had a successful single with the song “Twilight Woman” backed with the swirling Garage/Psych Punk "Close the Barn Door", the Pop, Folk and Psychedelic number stayed for seven weeks on the CHUM charts reaching a peak position of number 17, the single also had some moderate chart success in the US. This single was released for Venture Records, it was followed by the band’s second single for Venture Records in September 1969, “Now That I’m A Man”. The song with its Psychedelic Pop sensibilities went on to peak at number 22 on the CHUM charts, it remained on the charts for three weeks.

A full length album was compiled featuring the bands recorded single output and a variety of studio outtakes. This was done due mostly to the fact that the band’s line up was in constant flux and recording proved to be rather difficult. The result was the 1969 album 49th Parallel. This collection, released through Gaiety Records captured the bands early cutting Garage Punk sound with their Psychedelic and Pop influences into a single package. Immediately following the release of this amongst the battle of the ever changing band line up, singer Dennis Abbot left the group. Replaced by Doran Beattie, it was no surprise that the band’s sound changed with the addition of a new singer. With Beattie at the group’s helm, the band which then consisted of Lowe, Velker, Downey, and Bare began working on a full length album that was never completed, however a single was released from the sessions. 49th Parallel released its last single “I Need You” backed with “Goodtime Baby” in 1970, it failed to chart. This was essentially the end for the band. Later on in 1970 the band changed their name to Painter, releasing one album with two moderately successful singles “West Coast Woman” and “Crazy Feeling”. The band would then morph into the 70s Hard Rock band Hammersmith. With yet another name change and sound change the band released two singles “Feelin’ Better” and “Late Night Lovin’ Man” and two full length albums on Mercury before they broke up.

In the mid 90s, 49th Parallel started to receive a lot of airplay on classic Rock radio stations in the prairies which resulted in a best of collection to be released in 1995 on Pacemaker Records. This collection contained 19 tracks featuring the bands early singles plus further material of interest, in 1999 the song “Citizen Freak” was featured on the best of Gaiety Records compilation. In 2005 the bands self titled 1969 release was remastered and released with several bonus tracks, bringing the track total from ten songs originally to twenty one. Following the bands music career, Beattie would create All The Rage in Paris and would then go on to become a successful Country singer. Guitarist Dan Lowe would go into the producing field of music and invent the Q-Sound producing technique. While 49th Parallel was a short lived band, their music still stands as compelling Garage music with elements of Psychedelic, Pop, Folk music and what would become known as Punk Rock. They are often described as an unusual breed of Garage/Psych band to come out of Canada, they are an example of a unique Garage band that is not as well known as they should be.

The Play List:

1. The Diodes - Noise
2. U2 - Streetmission
3. The Stranglers - Hanging Around
4. My Dad vs. Yours - En Plien Soleil
5. Rah Rah - Waltz
6. Micronite Filters - In Search of Delights
7. Shilpa Ray and The Happy Hookers - Heaven In Stereo
8. The Veils - Bloom
9. Mean Creek - Sunlight
10. 49th Parallel - You Do Things
11. 49th Parallel - Close The Barn Door
12. Hot Nasties - Fashion Show (Live)
13. The Misfits - Attitude
14. The Rapture - Out of the Races and onto the Tracks
15. Second Head - Starglow
16. Wavves - Mutant
17. Blondie - In the Sun
18. Roxy Music - All I Want Is You
19. King Khan & BBQ Show - Crystal Ball
20. The Standells - Sometimes Good Guys Don't Wear White
21. MC5 - Back In The USA
22. Modern Superstitions - Beck & Call
23. Black Mountain - Radiant Hearts
24. The Black Angels - Sunday Afternoon
25. Action Makes - Sandworms
26. The D4 - Little Baby

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for January 25. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Sex Pistols: Sub-marine Mission & Show # 335

In 1977, The Sex Pistols were recording what was to become their only official full length album and ultimate statement, Nevermind The Bollocks, Here’s The Sex Pistols. One song in particular on this album was "Submission". The song was written after Sex Pistols manager Malcolm McLaren told the band to write a song called "Submissive". Instead Rotten suggested a song about a sub-marine mission which generated the song "Submission", with the first line being "I'm on a submarine mission for you baby". The whole band is credited on this track (Cook, Jones, Matlock, Rotten) it was written rather early in the bands career. Drummer Paul Cook stated in the linear notes to the 2002 Sex Pistols Box Set: "Submission' had a classic riff that's been done millions of times before. We slowed it down. It was similar to that Doors riff in ‘Hello I Love You’, The Who’s ‘Can’t Explain’, and the early Kinks. We made it more subversive."

"Submission" was recorded numerous times in the bands career, but there are three definite versions that fans have come to identify with. The first being the album version found on Nevermind The Bollocks which was recorded at Wessex Studios in 1977, the second being found on the infamous Spunk bootleg album featuring original Pistols bassist Glen Matlock on bass, the third version is referred to as "Submission (Version # 1). This version is a more experimental version that was in fact mixed by Rotten himself and it features Sid Vicious on bass. While he was the Pistols bass player after Glen Matlock was kicked out of the band, guitarist Steve Jones recorded almost all the bass tracks for the album. Sid is credited as playing bass on the song "Bodies", while Glen Matlock, plays bass on "Anarchy in the UK". "Submission" was originally found as a B-side on the 1992 single release of "Pretty Vacant", but can now be found on the Sex Pistols Boxed Set. The album version also appeared as a B-side on the US release of the single "Pretty Vacant" in 1977. Another interesting note on the song "Submission" is that initial copies of Nevermind the Bollocks did not feature this song. About 50,000 copies were printed without the "Submission" track, but included a free one sided 7" single with the album containing the song and a poster upon the bands insistence. All future pressing of the album would have twelve tracks, featuring "Submission".

This week's play list:

1. Undertones - More Songs About Chocolate and Girls
2. Jerry Nolan - Take A Chance With Me
3. Quinn Marston - Can You Hear Me See Me Now?
4. Twilight Hotel - Ham Radio Blues
5. Lonesome Lefty - River Blues
6. Meat Puppets - Plateau
7. Broken Records - Modern Worksong
8. Jonathan Richman - These Bodies That Came to Cavort
9. Johnny Cash - Luther's Boogie
10. The Weirdies - DIY Lobotomy
11. The Ex-Boyfriends - Still Kicking the Slow Birds
12. Cut Throat Brivita - Pink Pills
13. The Mongrels - Play My Guitar
14. 14th Wray - Let It Out
15. Johnny Kannis - King of Surf
16. Guided By Voices -Teenage FBI
17. Radio Birdman - I-94
18. Soundgarden - Never Named
19. The Doors - Land Ho!
20. Nick Lowe - I Love My Label
21. Bob Dylan - Tombstone Blues (Alternate Take)
22. Bob Dylan - It Takes A Lot To Laugh, It Takes A Train To Cry (Alternate Take)
23. Sex Pistols - Pretty Vacant (1976 Denmark Street Demo)
24. Sex Pistols - Submission (Version #1)
25. Deja Voodoo - Call Link Wray

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for January 18. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Beatles Outtakes from 1969,1964 & Show # 334

On today’s program I featured a version of The Beatles song “I’m So Tired”, but the version played was one quite different than the one found on The Beatles 1968 White Album. This version was sung by Paul McCartney not John Lennon as it normally is. Recorded in January of 1969 during the Get Back/Let It Be album sessions, this version of the song is obviously not meant to be taken seriously and is just the band having some fun in the studio. During the Get Back/Let It Be album sessions the band played and recorded over a hundred hours of material. This included covers, jams, and material that would be bootlegged from a variety of sources. Some of the bootlegged songs include “Watching Rainbows”, “Commonwealth”, The Palace of the King of the Birds”, “All Things Must Pass”, “Gimme Some Truth”. The later three songs were re-recorded by Paul, George, and John for future solo projects.

The recordings took place from January 2nd -14th at Twickenham Film Studios and at Apple Studios from January 20th-30th (these recordings would be the ones used for the Let It Be album). In addition to the audio recorded during these sessions, there was also video recorded for a movie that was released in 1970 entitled Let It Be, which currently remains out of print. The recordings were documented in the film Let It Be, it also showed heated arguments and the creative process for what would be the final Beatles album. The film would culminate with songs from the famous rooftop concert. Initially the album was intended to be released in 1969 as Get Back, but the band weren’t satisfied with the results. There were several versions of the album mixed by Glyn Johns that are available in bootlegged form. Prior to the release of the Let It Be movie, Phil Spector was brought in to do some remixing. The album was released in 1970 after the Beatles had broken up and renamed Let It Be. While Let It Be was technically the final Beatles release, it was pushed back several times until Phil Spector came in and the theatrical release of Let It Be.  Abbey Road was recorded after this album and released first.

Another Beatles track featured on today’s program was the song “Leave My Kitten Alone”. This song was initially recorded in August of 1964 during the Beatles For Sale recording sessions. The original version of this song was done by Little Willie John and Johnny Preston. When it was released in 1959, it went to # 13 on the Billboard R&B Charts and #60 on the Pop charts. The Beatles version of this song was recorded in five takes. The fifth take was deemed the best and overdubs were added for the song, but it was never mixed. It remained unreleased until the 1995 Beatles Anthology series, which documented several outtakes and alternate versions of songs from The Beatles career.



This Week's Play List:

1. The Almighty Defenders - Over the Horizon 
2. Ugly Duckings - I Ain't Gonna Eat Out My Heart
3. The Modernettes - Femme Fatale
4. Lost Patrol - Tell No Lies
5. The Blood Lines - Song Salvation
6. Geronimo - Hope and Fear 
7. The Government - Gunshot Wound
8. The Nurotics - Shark
9. Spectrals - I Ran With Love But I Couldn't Keep Up
10. No Age - Fever Dreaming
11. Swell Maps - Read About Seymour
12. Regurgitator - Making No Sense
13. Middle Brother - Me, Me, Me
14. Wire - Two Minutes
15. Clap Clap Riot - Don't Want Your Baby
16. The Mint Chicks - Welcome To Nowhere
17. AC/DC - High Voltage (BBC Session 1976)
18. The Beatles - Leave My Kitten Alone
19. The Beatles - I'm So tired (Sung By Paul McCartney)
20. Richard Hell & The Voidoids - Love Comes in Spurts
21. Ramones - I'm Affected 
22. The Only Ones - Another Girl, Another Planet
23. The Ride Theory - Motel Woman 
24. The Pretty Things - Midnight To Six Man 

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for January 11. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Real Life...Now & Show # 333

In 1976, Howard Devoto who was then a member of the Manchester band Buzzcocks, stepped away from the band and the Punk scene that was to follow in 1977 after the release of the Spiral Scratch EP and just twelve live shows. Later on in 1977, he re-emerged with a new band Magazine. The band would be careful to not fall into the entrapments of what other Punk bands were doing at the time, Howard wanted to do something different citing David Bowie's Low and Iggy Pop's The Idiot as the bands musical background references. With a line up in tact featuring John McGeoch (guitar/saxophone), Barry Adamson (bass), Bob Dickinson (keyboards), Martin Jackson (drums) and Howard Devoto on vocals the band recorded their first single, “Shot By Both Sides”/”My Mind Ain’t So Open”. The song has its origins in Devoto's Punk/Buzzcocks past, it was an old riff that Pete Shelley gave Devoto (the very same riff would resurface in the Buzzcocks song "Lipstick") the result was a powerful song that would eventually be defined as Post-Punk. The song while it contained the energy and urgency of Punk, also featured seemingly experimental/darker elements. Lyrically, the song stemmed from a political argument between Devoto and a friend in which she said "You'll end up shot by both sides". This song was also a step in a new intellectual based direction in which Devoto wanted to incorporate into the bands lyrics. This style can be heard in its infant stage on Buzzcocks Spiral Scratch EP. Following the release of this single, which reached # 41 on the UK singles charts and the recording of one more single "Touch and Go/"Goldfinger", Magazine signed to Virgin Records. They then began work on their full length debut as the "Touch and Go" single hit the shelves.

Prior to the recording of the bands "Shot By Both Sides" single, keyboardist Bob Dickinson left the group, to be replaced by Dave Formula who would be added just before the recording of the bands first full length album, which would appear in June of 1978. The album which would be titled Real Life was recorded by John Leckie and would be recorded partly in Abbey Road Studios. In the 41 minutes and 24 seconds that are contained on this album, there are nine songs. Within these nine songs, there are complex often experimental musical elements and intellectual thought provoking lyrics that define the album and make a strong statement. There are outsider oriented lyrics and words that drift in amongst the textual and swirling keyboard sounds of Real Life. Some of the interesting tracks on the album include “Definitive Gaze” which lyrically draws on sci-fi filmic elements and starts the album with its hypnotising basslines and encircling keyboards, “My Tulpa” which touches on spirituality, “Shot By Both Sides” a re-recording of the song fleshed out more, it is less bass and thrashy than the original single version.

Also included on the album are the songs “The Light Pours Out Of Me”, a song which identifies with a sense of detachment and can be seen as anthemic and defining as “Shot By Both Sides”. The song “Motorcade” is almost six minutes and is a haunting pieces that picks up and slows down throughout, while lyrically it has been said to have been influenced by an article written about a South American dictator. “The Great Beautician In The Sky” is an almost demented Circus sounding song which heightens the element of outcast-based lyrics evident on this album, while “Parade” ends the album. This track is slower paced and sounds directly influenced by the songs featured on David Bowie’s Low album, and is an ill-sounding track that has lyrics such as “Sometimes I forget, we’re supposed to be in love, sometimes I forget my position”, which can be seen as relating to Devoto’s experience with his Punk beginnings and a sombre way to end out the album, drenched with synthesizers, piano, and keyboards. Real Life is at times a complex album that addresses music intellectually and captures the essence and urgent nature of Punk, while drawing on other influences without wavering. It is unpredictable with a dynamicism that would redefine Howard Devoto musically, artistically and it stands as unique now as when it was originally released in 1978.

The musicians in the band should be taken note of as well, besides Devoto, guitarist John McGeoch who Howard Devoto met prior to Magazines formation, would go on to play with numerous Post-Punk oriented groups such as Visage, Siouxsie & The Banshees, and Public Image Limited. He has often been called "The New Wave Jimmy Page". Bassist Barry Adamson has been involved with bands such as The Birthday Party, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Visage, Pan Sonic and Depeche Mode. In addition to releasing several solo albums/recordings, Adamson also has been involved in a great deal so soundtrack work on films such as David Lynch's Lost Highway, Natural Born Killers, and The Beach. Martin Jackson would later join The Chameleons and Swing Out Sister.

The Play List:

1. Queens of the Stone Age - Turning of the Screw
2. Black Sabbath - Evil Woman (BBC Session 1970)
3. Pavement - Sunset
4. The Reducers - Things Go Wrong
5. The Rowdies - Negative Malfunction
6. Notekillers - Eyelash
7. The Cheap Speakers - Alibi
8. The Psychic Alliance - Tri-Scare-A-Tops
9. The Poly Shores - Llama
10. The Unsettlers - Cincinnati Shakedown
11. New Country Rehab - Log Train
12. Olenka & The Autumn Lovers - Odessa
13. The Kinks - Holiday
14. The Deadlies - Save the Waves
15. The Surfdusters - The Reef
16. The Cramps - I'm Cramped
17. Link Wray - Scatter
18. Big Star - She's A Mover (Alternate Version)
19. Talking Heads - 1.2.3 Redlight (Live San Francisco 1977)
20. Elvis Costello & The Attractions - I Stand Accused
21. Orange Juice - Lovesick
22. Magazine - The Great Beautician In The Sky
23. Magazine - Parade

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for January 4th. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.