Dr Feelgood - Sneakin' Suspicion

 

After their live album "Stupidity" was a surprise number 1 in the UK album charts, Dr Feelgood's follow-up album was eagerly anticipated, both for the new songs from guitarist Wilko Johnson ( real name John Wilkinson, and not to be confused with the English Rugby Union World Cup hero ! ) as well as the next batch of R&B classics to be covered. However, just before the new album was about to be released, news came out that Johnson had quit/been fired, depending on which source you read.

The music press reported that the split had arisen by the insistence of the other Feelgoods that Lew Lewis' "Lucky Seven" should be included on the album, although when we finally got to hear the song it was hard to see why they took this a stance over such an ordinary song, apart from perhaps some solidarity ( and potential royalties ) to a fellow Canvey Islander.

Matters looked even stranger when Dr Feelgood made their Top Of The Pops debut, but rather than play the single "Sneakin' Suspicion" they gave, an admittedly energetic, performance of the B-Side "Lights Out" rather than promote the Wilko composition.

The album was greeted with generally poor reviews, mostly along the lines that it was already consigned to history, with the focus on what the Feelgoods would do next without their song-writer. The fact that the producer of the album was Bert de Coteaux, an American with a track record in disco/soul didn't help and led to the accusation that the Feelgood's rough edge had been smoothed away. The album contained 5 Wilko compositions and 5 covers. 

The tour to promote the LP included a performance at the Crawley Leisure Centre, the first time the venue had ever been used to host a pop/rock gig, but the set-list was essential "Stupidity" plus the new covers, although "Sneakin' Suspicion" was also played. It was a great concert though !

I was disappointed with the album. Although there were a handful of highlights, there were also several ordinary songs, so it was going to be interesting to see how they sounded 45 years later.

Side One is by far the best side and opens with the title track. "Sneakin' Suspicion" was always the one stand-out song on the album. A mid-paced stomper with the trademark choppy guitar, slide guitar solo, a typically gruff vocal and piano increasingly prominent as the song progresses, it was the obvious choice for both the title track and the single from the album. It still sounds good.

Next-up is "Paradise", one of the two songs sung by Wilko. It's hardly typical Feelgood fare and almost psychedelic or even rockabilly. It the hands of a more versatile singer it could be great but Wilko's monotone delivery spoil this version for me. That said, some critics reckon this to be Wilko's finest ever song !

"Nothin' Shakin' ( But The Leaves On The Trees )" is the first and best cover, with the song having first being recorded in 1958. Lee Brilleaux gives a great vocal and harmonica, the bass and drum performances are probably the best on the LP, and there is an energy missing from many of the other songs.

"Time and The Devil" is the other song with a vocal by Wilko. It's almost a whimsical boogie and again features the slide guitar, there's more piano in the background and is perhaps the second best song on the album. Wilko sings "Time and the devil's gonna bring me everything I need", and as one reviewer at the time remarked, "Let's hope so !"

Side One ends with the frantic cover of "Light's Out" which has a great vocal from Brilleaux, and is one of the better songs on the album. It wouldn't be out of place on "Stupidity".

Side Two opens with "Lucky Seven" which actually sounds quite decent now, but could easily be part of the Chuck Berry back catalogue. It's followed by "All My Love", which is the least interesting Wilko song on on display here despite a nice guitar riff and solo and Lee gives the harmonica some gusto. 

The cover of Willie Dixon's "You'll Be Mine" is in the album filler category, a routine R&B song with very little originality to be make it memorable.

The highlight of side two come next. Wilko's "Walking On The Edge" has the trademark choppy guitar missing from most of the album, more slide guitar and another top vocal from Brilleaux.

The final track "Hey Mama Keep Your Big Mouth Shut"goes on too long and is a waste of vinyl.

Overall this was a better listen than I had expected, with a couple of songs sounding better now than I remembered. It was noticeable though that the bass was much lower in the mix than the previous Feelgood albums, and will never know how the change of direction hinted at in "Paradise" would have mapped out.

Track Listing :

Side One :

1. Sneakin' Suspicion
2. Paradise
3. Nothin Shakin' ( But The Leaves On The Tree )
4. Time And The Devil
5. Lights Out

Side Two :

1. Lucky Seven
2. All My Love
3. You'll Be Mine
4. Walking On the Edge
5. Hey Mama, Keep Your Big Mouth Shut

Released 1977
UK Chart Position : 10

Singles :

Sneakin Suspicion ( No 47 - 1977 )

Dr. Feelgood - Stupidity

 

Stupidity was one of the most unexpected number 1 albums in 1976. Despite critical acclaim, Dr Feelgood's first album "Down By The Jetty", in cricketing parlance, failed to trouble the scorers, and the follow-up "Malpractice" manage to lurk around the lower reaches of the album charts.

Nevertheless, thanks to constant touring around the UK, the Feelgoods had managed to build up a reputation for their tremendous live shows and were the only band to have properly broken out from the pub-rock scene to a level of mainstream recognition. They proudly flew the flag for Canvey Island.

Thanks to some clever marketing, to whip up enthusiasm for the new live album and then delaying its release, when the LP finally hit the stores the demand was such that Stupidity became the first ever live album to go to the top of the charts in its first week of its release in the UK. The Feelgoods were never to have it so good.

I would like to say I was there, but unfortunately this all past me by !

It was only sometime in 1977 that a school friend lent me his copy of the album, and don't tell anyone, I taped the LP and then played it constantly, trying to work out the lyrics. "Soda pop on the floor", "Got a whistling clover" etc, well, at least I think that is what he said !

It was only three or four years later that I shelled out for my own copy, which as the label states was £3.49 at Our Price Records, so it was probably when I was at College in Cardiff. However, Dr Feelgood were the second major band I saw live ( after Pink Floyd in Berlin on their Animals tour ) when they played Crawley Leisure Centre in 1977.

"Stupidity" is one of the rare albums where I can remember all of the songs on it, and remembered it as a truly outstanding album with only one duff track, and at most two ordinary songs, with the rest being from the top drawer.

Out of the 13 tracks present, 6 were covers of R&B classics, but the majority of the better songs were Wilko Johnson compositions, especially with "She Does It Right", "Going Back Home", "Back In The Night" and "Roxette" being outstanding, although the title track, "I'm a Hog For My Baby" and "Walking The Dog" giving them a fair run for their money.

The Feelgoods were unlikely looking stars. Lead singer Lee Brilleaux looked like a squadie dressed up for a rough evening, drummer The Big Figure and bass player John B. Sparkes looked like night club bouncers and guitarist Wilko Johnson strutted around like Frankenstein, so they were hardly pin-ups, but the energy and menace of the music drew the crowds.

Musically, they combined traditionally R&B with clever modern day lyrics that to some extent were the pre-cursor of Punk Rock, and according to some critics, Dr Feelgood were Punk's elder brother. Indeed, most of Punk's founder members expressed their admiration for Dr Feelgood at some point.

Side one, recorded in Sheffield in 1975, opens with Chuck Berry's "Talking About You", a short introductory number to set the tone with  driving bass, a choppy guitar and menacing vocal. It's quickly followed by one of only two songs where Wilko sings the main vocal, "20 Yards Behind", which has some of his trademark lyrics "There's so much confusion in the town when she's passing through, all the cars are going backward and the traffic light change to blue, I'm walking 20 yards behind her cos I am frightened about the damage she do". Brilleaux also delivers a harmonica solo which was famously described as "suck, blow, suck, blow", which fortunately was a reference to the musical playing !

The title track, Solomon Burke's "Stupidity" is up next, with a big build up, then becoming toe-tapping mid-pace number with some great guitar.

"All Through The City" has a great riff but a fairly ordinary tune, but makes reference to their Canvey Island beginnings -  "I've been searching all through the city, see you in the morning down by the jetty"

Bo Diddley's "I'm A Man" is the low point of the album, the second Wilko vocal, and plods on for over 5 minutes, and even Brilleaux's frantic harmonica can't save it.

The mood changes with a brilliant cover of Rufus Thomas' "Walking The Dog", waking up all those who had fallen asleep during "I'm A Man" "Mary Mary, quite contrary how does your garden grow, with silver bells and cockle shells and pretty ladies all in a row !" 

The side ends with the fabulous "She Does It Right", arguably Wilko's finest song, with perhaps his best riff and guitar solo, and a superb vocal from Brilleaux. It's hard to believe the single disappeared without trace, as it is possibly one of UK's finest R&B moments.

Second two, the Southend side, opens with "Going Back Home" jointly written by Wilko and Mick Green of The Pirates. It has a great rhythm section, a searing guitar solo and great Harmonica. "Got a brand new motor and I'm waiting for a loan, so I can fill her up and start her, then I'm going back home" & "I got a girl a man's best friend, I'd have her now if she'd just come back again. But she left me in the fog, told me that I treat her like a dog.The last time that I saw her she was burying a bone. Got a six-leaf clover now I'm going back home"

"I Don't Mind" is not to be confused the Buzzcocks song of the same name. It has more of the usual choppy chords and is the category of good, but not outstanding.

 

"Back In The Night" is another highlight of the album, featuring Brilleaux on slide guitar. 

 

Lieber and Stoller's "I'm A Hog For My Baby" follows and is a fun sing-a-long with a great bass line. It famously has a lengthy two note guitar solo from Wilko. Brilliant !

 

The cover "Checking Up On My Baby" is perhaps the album's other low point, not that there is too much wrong with it, but it is not as good as most of the other material on the LP.

The encore is "Roxette", their most well-known song at the time, and is apparently from where the Swedish pop-duo of the late 80's/early 90s and "It must have been love fame" took their name. Another song with driving bass, a choppy riff, harmonica and a growling vocal with menace. 

 

There's more great lyrics from Wilko "Roxette, I gotta go away and leave you for a couple of days. Roxette, I don't want no more of your tricks. I'm gonna get some concrete mix and fill your back door up with bricks, and you better be there waiting when I get my business fixed".

 

In conclusion, nearly 40 years later, Stupidity remains a fantastic album, and their can't be many live albums better than this.

Track Listing :

Side One :

1. Talking About You
2. 20 Yards Behind
3. Stupidity
4. All Through The City
5. I'm A Man
6. Walking The Dog
7. She Does It Right

Side Two :

1. Going Back Home
2. I Don't Mind
3. Back In The Night
4. I'm A Hog For You Baby
5. Checking Up On My Baby
6. Roxette

Released 1976
UK Chart Position : 1

Dollar - The Dollar Album

 

When the question of the most embarrassing album in your collection comes up, my instinctive reaction is to point at my Dollar album. It’s true at college this LP used to be well hidden below my Stranglers, Jam, Cure and plenty of other trendy punk/new wave albums at the time.

Dollar were formed as an offshoot of Guys And Dolls, a cheesy three girl/three boy line up that made The Brotherhood of Man seem edgy, and when Thereza Bazar and David van Day split to form Dollar it initially seemed to be a recipe of more of the same.

However, the release of the ballad “Love’s Got A Hold Of Me” featuring the soft, fragile vocal from Thereza rather than the dominant vocals from Van Day was an eye-opener, and hinted that there was something promising lurking under the surface.

After a couple more throw-away singles, Dollar teamed up with ex-Buggles song-writer/producer Trevor Horn, who contributed four songs to their third LP, and also brought along Bruce Woolley ( ex-Buggles ) and Anne Dudley ( who went on to work with a whole cornucopia of artistes from ABC, Lloyd Cole, Elton John, Paul McCartney, Rod Stewart and Wham amongst others ).

The result was four stunning singles from the pop/synth, vaguely new wave genre, all of which charted in the UK Top 20, after which Bazar and Van Day then recorded additional material to complete an album. This produced another hit single and several other songs which remained in my consciousness, and looking at the track listing, there was only two songs I couldn’t remember.

My copy of the LP still had a £5.99 sticker on the cover from Our Price.

The track listing of the album was structured so that the strong Trevor Horn songs were to the fore on each side. Therefore, side one begins with “Mirror Mirror ( Mon Armour )” the second single from the LP. A mid-tempo song, lyrically it could be David declaring his love for himself " I've been looking at you you've been looking at me, And I want you to know that I like what I see" !

The second song is for me, the most memorable on the whole LP, as again Thereza had a rare prominent part on “Give Me Back My Heart” especially in the coda, which gives the song an almost heavenly feel. Starting as a slow ballad with a catchy chorus, there is an urgent piano break before the pace almost comes to a halt. However, it is just temporary before launching into the soaring finale.

“Hand Held In Black And White” was the first single released and is another fine example of electronic/dance pop, and has a great bass line submerged beneath the synths and piano." On a ticket Tokyo return, colour evening palaces that burn"

Written by Theresa, the dreamy "Pink And Blue" shows Dollar were not totally reliant on Trevor Horn material as it has one of the strongest hooks an the whole album,

Van Day's "I Got Your Number Wrong" continues the formula of a slow verse followed by a big chorus, and whilst suitable for a bland Saturday Evening family entertainment show, there is nothing memorable about it.

"Guessing Games" has an electronic beat intro similar to New Order's Bizarre Love Triangle but its the strong chorus that takes the track out of the mundane. "Tell me why your face won't fit the frame, its not a guessing game." 

The Van Day/Bazar "Give Me Some Kinda Magic" opens side two which again has the slow verse/big chorus and was the one non-Trevor Horn hit from the album. It also has a great synthesizer break before another big finish "You give me some kinda magic, and I don't wanna lose my hold on you"

"Videotheque" is as far away from cheesy pop as it is possible for electronica to get, bold, confident and futuristic. Duran Duran, Ultravox, The Pet Shop Boys and their ilk would have been proud to have released this song. Bucks Fizz eat your hearts out ! "At the videotheque we can dance forever......Ghosts are only lovers on the screen"

"Dangerous Blondes" is very much an album filler, a little silly and whilst inoffensive, instantly forgettable.

"You Made Me Love You" is another slow ballad, it's quiet nice, whereas "Anyone Who's Anyone" is a lively toe-tapper with a strong hook "Had a date last night, now I've got me a brand new boyfriend"

The LP closes with "The Second Time Around", which is perhaps the only dud track out of the 12 on show here.

Overall, The Dollar Album remains a very good album from a seriously under-rated duo.

Track Listing :

Side One :

1. Mirror Mirror ( Mon Armour )
2. Give Me Back My Heart
3. Hand Held In Black And White
4. Pink And Blue
5. I Got Your Number Wrong
6. Guessing Games

Side Two :

1. Give Me Some Kinda Magic
2. Videotheque
3. Dangerous Blondes
4. You Made Me Love You
5. Anyone Who's Anyone
6. The Second Time Around

Released 1982
UK Chart Position : 18

Singles :

Hand Held In Black And White ( No 19 - 1981 )
Mirror Mirror ( Mon Armour ) ( No 4 - 1981 )
Give Me Back My Heart ( No 4 - 1982 )
Videotheque ( No 17 - 1982 )
Give Me Some Kinda Magic ( No 34 - 1982 ) 

Dire Straits - Dire Straits

 

 I guess like many people I bought Dire Straits first album on the basis of the outstanding single "Sultans of Swing" expecting more of the same, and was then disappointed as the only other track with a similar sound was the LP's opening track "Down To The Waterline". Forty plus years later, together with "Wild West End" these are the only songs on the track list that I remember .

It is fair to say that my musical exposure has widened significantly since being a teenager who had moved on from the progressive rock dinosaurs to punk/new wave, so I have a bit more appreciation to the styles on display here rather than dismissing it as mostly boring, or to borrow a phrase "It ain't what they call Rock N'Roll" !

That said, it is still not the type of music I would consciously choose to play again in full.

"Down To The Waterline" has just a sparse plucked guitar intro before launching into an up-tempo song with a "Sultans of Swing style guitar lick, and some of the best lyrics on the album "No money is our jackets and our jeans are torn. Your hands are cold but your lips are warm". It could have been the second single from the album.

"Water of Love" is a bluesy type number which I would now equate to something that could be found on a JJ Cale album,, not that JJ Cale appears anywhere in my record collection ! For me it is harmless background music, nothing to be offended by but not exactly memorable.

"Setting Me Up" has more of a country feel to it and is what you expect to hear on many a bland US radio station, with perhaps the music being something from a TV show set in the Southern region of the USA when some crazy chase is happening. Or it could be a perfect song to be covered by Eric Clapton. Apparently the song was a hit for Dire Straits in the US and Canadian country charts !

 "Six Blade Knife" has a bass line that hints at Fleetwood Mac's "Dreams and is a song I could listen to again.

Side One closes with "Southbound Again" which frankly, I had to double check it wasn't "Setting Me Up" playing again.

 "Sultans of Swing" opens Side Two and remains a masterpiece,. It still gets regularly played on radio stations such as Virgin Anthems and there can't be many people who don't know the lament about a jazz, trumpet playing band that is unappreciated by the modern youth.

"In The Gallery" commences in a vaguely reggae manner before slipping into some more JJ Cale influences, and it goes on way, way too long.

For me "Wild West End" is one of the highlights on the album, with the slowest tempo out of this collection of songs. It is wistful and dreamy, there is a hint of piano, and it is one of only two tracks with backing vocals. It reminded me a little of the Rolling Stones' "Fools To Cry" or even "Angie".

"Lions" closes the albums. It also has some backing vocals but plods on to no specific purpose.

Overall, I found "Dire Straits" to be less dull that I thought it was, and it was good to listen again to "Down To The Waterline" and "Wild West End" "Six Blade Knife" was pleasantly surprising. Whilst I didn't dislike any of the other songsthey didn't particularly do anything for me. Although growing up in Newcastle and living in London, Mark Knopfler's heart at the time was probably in Oklahoma !

 

Track Listing :

Side One :

1. Down To The Waterline
2. Water Of Love
3. Setting Me Up
4. Six Blade Knife
5. Southbound Again

Side Two :

1. Sultans of Swing
2. In The Gallery
3. Wild West End
4. Lions

Released : 1978
UK Chart Position : 3

Singles :

Sultans Of Swing ( 8 - 1978 )

 

 

Depeche Mode - The Singles 81-85

 

Having bought "Construction Time Again" I already had an interest in Depeche Mode and despite liking their subsequent singles I hadn't indulged in the follow-up album "Some Great Reward". However, when the Greatest Hits compilation was released it was an ideal opportunity to update my record collection.

I had liked the three subsequent singles to those from "Construction Time Again" so looking at the track listing I was already familiar with all the songs included here except for the first single "Dreaming Of You" plus the two new, unreleased songs. The songs all appear in chronological order.

It was slightly disappointing that two singles had been omitted from this compilation, as the beautiful double A-side piano ballad "Somebody" was perhaps considered to be "unrepresentative" of their sound, but the exclusion from a singles collection of "The Meaning Of Love", which had reached number 12 in the UK charts, didn't seem to make much sense, even if it wasn't a great song.

The one feature that I liked with the album was the sleeve notes, where each song had a positive and negative comment from the UK press, and in particular there was a memorable statement for "Master and Servants" where the Time Out correspondent had commented "What do you expect from this lame bunch of dickheads ?" 

Hearing "Dreaming Of You" for the first time was quite refreshing as it was a catchy pop song, or candi-floss as described by one reviewer, whilst "Shake The Disease" and "It's Called A Heart" were consistent with the band's sound at that point in their career.

The Vince Clarke penned "New Life" and "Just Can't Get Enough" are also lightweight electronic pop songs, and after his departure from the band, the follow-up, "See You" written by Martin Gore, was in a similar vein. However, "Leave In Silence" and "Get The Balance Right" indicated a move to a more darker sound, which was brought to fruition with the string of outstanding hits that followed.

If I had to select a favourite song from the album it would be "Blasphemous Rumours", although as  mentioned in the review of "Construction Time Again" I highly rate "Love, in Itself" and "Everything Counts".

All in all, this is a great collection of songs from a very important band.

 Track Listing :

Side One :

1. Dreaming Of Me ( 1981 - No 55 )
2. New Life ( 1981 - No 11 )
3. Just Can't Get Enough ( 1981- No 8 )
4. See You ( 1982 - No 6 )
5. Leave In Silence ( 1982 - No 18 )
6. Get The Balance Right ( 1983 - No 13 )
7. Everything Counts ( 1983 - No 6 )

Side Two :

1. Love, in Itself ( 1983 - No 21 )
2. People Are People ( 1984 - No 4 )
3. Master And Servant ( 1984 - No 9 )
4. Blasphemous Rumours ( 1984 - No 16 )
5. Shake The Disease ( 1985 - No 18 )
6. It's Called A Heart ( 1985 - No 18 )

Released 1985
UK Chart Position : 6

 

Depeche Mode - Construction Time Again

 

I am not sure where I purchased "Construction Time Again", Depeche Mode's third album, but the label on the LP cover shows I paid £5.49 in WH Smith. I think bought it after liking the two hit singles from the album, which I thought signaled that the band had moved away from being purveyors of candyfloss electro-pop to having a lot more gravitas and became someone to be taken more seriously. 

Indeed, the first single "Everything Counts" had been a revelation, with the chorus being sung by Martin Gore, who's higher voice was in stark contrast to the more dead-pan tone of lead singer Dave Gahan, With lyrics about corporate greed, the video featuring the Wuppertal mono-rail and the use of woodwind & horn instruments giving the music a quirky, slightly Arabic feel, it was a far cry from "I Just Can't Get Enough" ! Gahan's dancing in the video was clearly the blue-print for Rick Astley though........

The follow-up "Love, in Itself" also demonstrated a greater maturity, with a rich layer of sound, the occasional use of real instruments such piano and acoustic guitar, as well as again featuring the horns, and an uplifting chorus despite the gloomy lyrics.

Now however, I had no recollection of any of the other songs on the album and my memory was that I'd liked a couple of the album tracks, although I couldn't remember which ones, and that overall it was a patchy LP with the two singles being the highs, but with some low moments.

"Love, in Itself" opens side 1, and remains a classic piece of music, and I had forgotten about the almost jazzy-like piano in the middle eight.

"More Than A Party" has a frantic piano and synths intro which could be used in a chase scene in a horror movie but the rest of the song is terrible.

"Pipeline" is the longest song on the LP at nearly six minutes, and has the line from which the album takes its title. It is extremely slow, with a vaguely Chinese style rhythm, the sounds of a hammer on a pipeline and ghostly backing vocals. Its unusual and hardly catchy, but worth a listen.

The side closes with the outstanding "Everything Counts". I still like the lines "The turning point of a career in Korea being insincere. The holiday was fun-packed, the contract still intact" from the first verse.

Side 2 begins with "Two Minute Warning", which actually goes on for over four minutes. With underlying toe-tapping Kraftwerk style rhythms and a strong hook for the chorus it is one of the better moments on the LP.

"Shame" also features the sound of a hammer on a pipe and has an eerie synth sound, but it is slow and plodding, and whilst it is could only be Depeche Mode, it is instantly forgettable.

"The Landscape Is Changing" sees the return of the horns in the intro ans is one of the better tunes on "Construction Time Again" as Depeche Mode show the eco-friendly credentials, but although the lyrics are well intended they come across as trite. "I don't care if you are going nowhere, just take good care of the world"

"Told You So" is perhaps the best of the rest on "Construction Time Again" in that it is the most straightforward danceable electronic/pop song on the album with a sing-along ending of the verse into the chorus "Everybody's waiting for judgement day, so they can go, told you so". Had there been a third single from the album, this would probably have been it.

"And Then....." is slow and dull but saved by a reasonable chorus. A hour later though I had totally forgotten it and had to play the track again. I can now say the synth riff if vaguely similar to the bass riff in Jonathan Richman's "Egyptian Reggae" whilst the melody hints at "Leave In Silence". Despite saying that though, I am still struggling to remember how it goes !

The album ends with a one minute reprise on "Everything Counts", just in case you had forgotten how it went, with one tinny synthesizer playing notes of the chorus, accompanied with the vocal.

In summary, "Construction Time Again" isn't a bad album but my original view essentially remains. Two classic singles, a couple of decent album tracks and some interesting moments mixed with the bland.

Track Listing :

Side One :

1. Love, in Itself
2. More Than A Party
3. Pipeline
4. Everything Counts

Side Two :

1. Two Minute Warning
2. Shame
3. The Landscape Is Changing
4. Told You So
5. And Then....

Released : 1983
UK Chart Position : No 6

Singles :

Everything Counts ( No 6 - 1983 )
Love, in Itself ( No 21 - 1983 )