After the success of their first album, Eddie and the Hot Rods became a five piece with the addition of ex-Kursaal Flyers guitarist Graeme Douglas. Although not from Canvey Island, Kursaal Flyers hailed from Southend-on-Sea, so were still Essex Boys, and were known for the cheesy hit "Little Does She Know" and its famous line "Little does she know that I know that she knows, that I know she's two-timing me".
Jumping on the punk bandwagon, the single "Do Anything You Wanna Do" was released under the shorter moniker "The Rods" although the song itself was more of a classic power-pop anthem rather than punk, and it gave the band their best ever chart placing, peaking at number 9 in the charts.
"Teenage Depression" was essentially a collection of songs penned by guitarist Dave Higgs, plus three covers, of raw, loud, in-your-face hi-energy R&B and a precursor of punk rock. Ironically, the release of "Life On The Life" led to Eddie and the Hot Rods being labelled as a punk band by many, despite the album being much more radio friendly. The change in style was also indicated by only one song being written by Higgs, the 8 minute long psuedo-psychedelic "Beginning Of The End".
Indeed, the majority of the tracks were written by Douglas and producer Ed Hollis, with also occasional contributions from the other three members of the Hot Rods. Rather than moving more to punk rock, the impact was instead actually, a move to the mainstream. Not that this was detrimental, and I liked the album, although not as much as "Teenage Depression". Despite there being nothing worthy of the label "R&B", I still thought it was good, but I couldn't say I like the cover art-work.
After a gap of nearly 40 years since I last played the album, I could still recognise six of the songs on the track listing, with only the last three songs on side one being a blank.
The outstanding "Do Anything You Wanna Do" is lyrically still as relevant today as it was back in 1977. "Tired of doing day jobs, with not thanks for what I do, I'm gonna be someone now, I'm gonna find out who". It remains a pop classic, with Byrds' like guitars, hand-claps and sing-a-long verses, never mind the chorus. The only surprise was it that it wasn't a top three song in the charts.
I bought a copy of the single "Quit This Town", albeit from a shop that sold surplus ex-Jukebox records at dirt cheap prices after songs were no longer in the charts. It's a fantastic short pop song, with a great guitar break, and a memorable chorus that clearly inspired The Jam's "Going Underground" three years later.
The reason I couldn't remember the last three tracks on side one was fairly clear, they are the weakest songs on the album. "Telephone Girl" is a fairly standard boogie and like "What's Really Going On" has a funky guitar part. It's hardly Punk, or even R&B for that matter.
"Ignore Them ( Still Life )" was a return to the bass, drum and guitar rhythm from the core of "Teenage Depression", and seems to be an auto-graphical tale of troubles they got into on a tour of Belgium. As a result, it sounds like they probably would have voted Brexit.....
The title track "Life On The Line" opens side two. It has a slightly slower tempo, some great guitar and a good hook for the chorus.
"( And ) Don't Believe Your Eyes" is another pretty pop song with angst lyrics, much in the vein of "Quit This Town". It has a tasteful guitar solo but listening to it now the drumming seems to be trying to inject some unnecessary urgency where it isn't need, and out of touch with the feel rest of the song, and frankly a bit irritating. However, it's still a good song despite that.
"We Sing.....The Cross" is a mid-tempo guitar led instrumental with a gradual increase in pace as the track progresses. I remember it was heavily criticised at the time of it's release, but it sounds fine to me.
The closing number is "Beginning Of The End" which has many similarities to "On The Run", which was the last track on "Teenage Depression". It's the only Dave Higgs contribution and lasts over 8 minutes, but has a better middle eight to make it more memorable.
In conclusion, "Life On The Line" is still a good album. Despite some reviews, it isn't Punk, but has three outstanding power-pop songs, and several other track hard to categorise but still worth a listen,
Track Listing :
Side One :1. Do Anything You Wanna Do
2. Quit This Town
3. Telephone Girl
4. What's Really Going On
5. Ignore Them ( Still Life )
1. Life On The Line
2. ( And ) Don't Believe Your Eyes
3. We Sing...The Cross
4. Beginning Of The End
UK Chart Position : 27
Singles :
Do Anything You Wanna Do ( No 9 - 1977 )
Quit This Town ( No 36 - 1977 )
Life On The Line ( No 55 - 1978 )
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