Showing posts with label ABC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ABC. Show all posts

Saturday 13 October 2018

An Appreciation of Half Man Half Biscuit on National Album Day


I'm not a fan of National anything Day, and I'm sure Nigel Blackwell is of the same opinion, he did write "National Shite Day", the closer on "CSI Ambleside" . When people say "Oh I'm only into 80's or 90's" music , if you mention Half Man Half Biscuit they just gawp and go on about ABC or Duran Duran (both fine bands).

I cant't remember the first song of their's I heard , whether it was "Trumpton Riots" or "All I Want For Christmas Is A Dukla Prague Away Kit", but the latter made me go out and buy their their first album, and I just loved "Dickie Davies Eyes" and was disturbed when they split after that hit number one in the Independant Charts.

There is a lot in the Guardian about the band and until I read this I didn't know Nigel did advert voice overs, the article is here but there are quite a few see here. This is the bit about how the first album came about.

"Their record label then, as now, is Probe Plus - as ramshackle and free-spirited an independent as one could find anywhere. Probe operates from the Liverpool home of its proprietor, Geoff Davies, whose rambling Sefton Park manse is cluttered with Biscuit ephemera. Some of HMHB's more celebrated merchandise includes collectors' item teatowels (Some Call It Godcore tour - six dates in eight weeks) and the almost unobtainable McIntyre, Treadmore & Davitt mugs. They are an unusual pop group. Blackwell is a most unusual fellow.

Davies vividly remembers him coming into the Probe shop with his demo tape. "I looked at the back of the cassette and it was full of things like The Len Ganley Stance and Venus In Flares. I said to him: 'If the songs are half as good as the titles, we'll do it.' I was listening to the tape with my partner that night as we drove home and neither of us could believe what we were hearing. The lyrics and the subjects were astonishing, and probably actionable - but I called Nige the next day to say that we'd do an album."

To Davies's astonishment, Blackwell turned up on his doorstep a couple of days later with the finished master tapes of the album. "He just said to me: 'This is it. I've done it. That'll be £40, please.'"

"I might've told him it was 40," concedes Blackwell, "but I think it was more like 30. We recorded at Vulcan Studios. They'd just got in this eight-track studio upstairs and Half Man Half Biscuit were the guinea pigs. We went in. We did it. We put it out." "

Their site here has a list of a lot of radio sessions , and the Brampton one contains the definitive version of "24 Hour Garage People" and a three way interview between Andy Kershaw, Geoff Davies and Nigel Blackwell, in which Andy describes them as England's premier folk band. These were available for free download but removed when people started selling them when John Peel passed on, but I do have copies of the sessions and if you want a copy please contact me.

I love their very black humour "Blood On The Quad" , social observation "Lord Hereford's Knob" and pure charm "What Is Chatteris" and they always leave you with a smile on your face.

The lyric project here allows you to read their lyrics and enjoy the sheer poetry of Nigel's penmanship.

If there's a record of their's missing from your collection today is a good day to fill that hole.

Have a good one.

Thursday 22 January 2015

Disaster Can Be Fun



This week has been a bit of ups and downs and today had it's share of potential disasters, starting with my phone company disconnecting with no notification with flagrant disregard  for OFCOM guidelines. I'm not going to name them but you will know who they are.

Then I had a 10AM interview so decided to get a taxi to ensure I got to the place on time. Half way there I realised I'd forgotten my wallet and bus pass. The guy from ABC said I could owe him the money , but I said I also had to get back and wasn't sure when the interview would finish so I needed to go home and get my stuff. While it turned out costing me about three times as much as expected, I'd allowed plenty of time which was useful as Cobalt Business Park has lots of nameless numberless buildings making it difficult to find the place , but we sorted it out and we got there with ten minutes to spare.

Then I got a Facebook message asking about my availability from a great friend with a very tantalising and interesting scenario, so there is a call tomorrow top discuss that which will be followed by another afternoon at Oxfam which I am looking forward to.

The music has to be Van Der Graaf Generator's beautiful "Afterwards" from "I Prophesy Disaster". Some people seem to things going wrong as the end of things and an excuse to give up, I just see it as a reason to give it another go and try harder. Preparation and contingency does help, but you should never give up and always take the positives out a situation. It's nearly weekend now, so go and enjoy your tea.

Saturday 30 August 2014

Unwashed and Somewhat Slightly Dazed and Lots of Blood



When you wake up, feel a ping in your elbow and look down and you are lying in a (small) pool of blood, it's probably not the best way to actually start the day. So you get up , run to the tiled bathroom , bleeding all the way, looking at the gaping wound thinking , what do I do? There's no pain just blood. Then lots of toilet roll and Fiona got me a tea towel as the blood started to subside.

I knew I had to go to casualty, but I was fine apart from the blood, so do I call an ambulance, get a bus or get a taxi. We found a big plaster given as a spare from a previous hospital visiABC taxi.
t and that seemed to stem most of the blood, so thought I'll get an

Space Oddity
The thing is as when your bleeding like that your priorities go all askew, so I couldn't wash , shave or shower, so hence the title taken from David Bowie's 1969 album Space Oddity, a song that I've always loved.

Five minutes later they're at my door , then half there I'm thinking "Have I got any money?" . It wouldn't have mattered as I had my wallet and there is a cash machine at the RVI.

Anyway gets in , and there's no damage done, lots of sterri strips applied and a new big plaster and now I'm back home. Walked through Leazes Park and the weather this morning is glorious. So the weekend has got off to an interesting start to say the least.

I hope yours is excellent , just without the blood.

Saturday 4 January 2014

ABC DB


Got a taxi home last night and David Bowie's "Space Oddity" was playing on the radio. It's nice to have something decent playing while you are going home. The taxi was an ABC one , who are my preferred taxi in Newcastle.

We were talking about favourite tracks and "Life On Mars" and "Changes" were mooted , though my favourite is probably "Station To Station". I said that I couldn't argue if anyone put forward "Heroes" as his best song , and the driver remarked that that song has Bowie, Brian Eno and Bob Fripp all bringing stuff to the table on that one , and it doesn't get muche better than that.

Any I hope you all have a great weekend. Enjoy yourselves.

Friday 22 November 2013

Slippin' And A Slidin' into Leningrad



Well looks like winter is coming. I was coming home tonight, cars were frosted up and the footpaths had a layer of frost and were , in parts very slippy. Had been out to The Strawberry and caught up with a lot of friends before getting a taxi home via ABC .

So this is just a short post before I go to bed as the frost bites outside.

The eponymous video is by may favourite Finnish Rock band , the wonderful Leningrad Cowboys featuring Maya Paakari. I was going to go for the Little Richard original or maybe the John Lennon or Buddy Holly cover but you can't knock back the Leningrad Cowboys. Brilliant stuff. Have a brilliant weekend , really pleased at discovering this!!