At number 23 this week, it`s Showaddywaddy !

Yes, it WAS number one, it WAS Top of the Pops

For ages now, I`ve been going to write a piece about "Top of the Pops" and how sorry-arsed it has become; how for those of us of a "certain age", it holds some golden memories, but truth-be-told, we`re probably more in love with the idea of "Top of the Pops" still being on the telly than the programme itself.

Well, the BBC has announced today that the final edition of TOTP will air on 30 July. It hardly comes as any surprise; it has been relaunched more times than anyone cares to remember, and been sidelined in the schedules to a point where no one can remember when it`s supposed to be on. No matter how much you feel you`re putting an old dog out of its misery, it still hurts like hell.

I might still get round to writing that piece.

Pop Idol

I`ve never really been one for any of those "Pop Stars", "Pop Idol" or "X Factor" shows; the only thing usually worth watching are the audition stages, but I have to say once in a while, they do seem to pick out some gems.

Girls Aloud have had great success. I`m not too sure what level of input the various members actually have (surely, it can`t just be Louis Walsh`s ideas ????!!!!), but they`ve had some stonking singles in recent years ("Sound Of The Underground", "Biology", and even their cover of the much-hated -by me- "Jump" had a real ballsiness about it).

I think I maybe haven`t given too much credit to Will Young, but it now occurs to me that he`s had some good tunes recently, and consistently inventive videos.

This is the latest....



...it`s a bit weird, but somehow really good.

It`s quite a nice song really; he seems to be quite creative, and always comes across as being very genuine (I think I must be going soft in my old age - I can hardly believe I`m writing this !!!!).

I think I better leave right now !

Right now we don`t have much choice....

The following takes place between 12am and 1am on the day of the Californian Presidential Primary...

At the turn of the century (jeez - doesn`t that make you feel old ?), who would have imagined that Kiefer Sutherland would be someone you ever gave a shit about again ?
2002 saw Sutherland appear on UK screens as Jack Bauer for the very first time - and most of us would never see him in the same light again.

That first season (as the Americans would call it) of "24" was a complete surprise hit. Each week we`d have cliffhanger after cliffhanger, and we`d never be sure just exactly who the goodies and the baddies were. What was evident, was that it could not be missed !

Looking back on it now, it`s quite clear to see that Season One is split into two very distinct halves. As with most US shows, the networks are never sure how these things will take off, and are very often cancelled at a moment`s notice if things don`t look too positive. Thus we had Jack finally rescuing his wife Teri (bad, close cropped "do" - deserved to die) and daughter Kim (surely the unluckiest girl alive ?) at the end of episode 12, before going on to chase the real bad guy (Dennis Hopper as it turned out) for the next 12 episodes. It was almost as if someone from CTU phoned Jack Bauer up at the end of that episode to say "Hey ! The first 12 episodes have been so successful, we`ve been given the full season !!!!!".

I make no bones about it. I love "24". I will always watch it. Don`t ever doubt that.

I have now seen Season Five in its entirity (don`t worry - I`m not about to spoil any future storylines for those currently watching it on Sky One). Seasons Two to Four saw the franchise get progresively better, but what has started to grate about "24" in Season Five, is the way we as the audience (and it doesn`t really matter which Season you refer to here, I suppose) spend about four episodes following Bauer chasing one baddie, before finding out there`s an even bigger baddie after that, and then (guess what), there`s an even bigger baddie after that ! Why can`t we just chase after one baddie for the whole Season ?

Perhaps because at the end of Season Nine, or whenever it`s supposed to end, we`ll finally discover the identity of the biggest baddie of all; the person who has orchestrated everything that has happened up to that point `cos its all part of some huge conspiracy about who really runs the world, or something.

In its own right, Sesaon Five is outstanding. Some of its bravest moments come from the bumping-off of very established characters; nothing, or no-one is sacred. However, when you compare it to Seasons Two to Four, it treads very similar ground. I`ve started to laugh out loud everytime a member of the cast (and it`s usually Sutherland) are required to say "Hurry up, we don`t have much time !", or "Right now I/we don`t have much choice"; it`s usually one or the other, and you hear it frequently. The constant twists and turns in the plot, and the inevitable cliffhangers are the things which hook you in; they are the televisual equivalent of a "page-turner".

In spite of this feeling of deja-vu, episodes 23 and 24 of the latest season are truly wonderful, and have some really unexpected moments; I can`t wait for all of you to see them because they contain some of the most gripping scenes of the franchise to date. One of the funniest things about episode 24 is that something happens that I thought would have happened in episode 1 !!! The scene is set for Season Six.

Long may it continue !

By Popular Request....

I give you Boothby Graffoe.

Some fucker you only hear about at "festival-time !".

Erse !

What The World Was Waiting For

1990 - Time for the Guru ???

Watched a programme on BBC2 last night called "The Summer of... 1989", and very good it was too.

There can be no doubt that 1989 was one of those years "that was". The sun shone almost all summer long, and my soundtrack was provided by The Cure ("Disintegration" - still stands out today), The Cult ("Sonic Temple" - bleuch), All About Eve (the eponymous `88 debut album - twee shite - nobody`s ever gonna forget the classic "performance" of "Martha`s Harbour" on TOTP), The Mission (everything they`d done to that date - hmmm - still like "Tower Of Strength"), and Sisters of Mercy (fuckin` yeah !) et al.

Yes, I was quite Gothy in 1988/1989, but I didn`t let that get in the way of liking the odd chart classic such as Transvision Vamp`s "Velveteen". Wendy James - what a pile o` shite - if only she`d stuck to bringing out albums full of "spunky" (!) singles instead of proclaiming that one day she`d win an Oscar, things could have been quite different. Anyway, any band with a drummer called Tex Axile is doomed to fail. I mean, really. (We`ve Got A) Fuzzbox (And We`re Gonna Use It) had a fab summertime hit with "Pink Sunshine" - still love that song.

As experimental as I got in 1989 (and I`m pleased to say this), was buying Mudhoney`s "Superfuzzbigmuff" mini LP (which, if you look closely enough, appears in the background of T.Vamp`s "Velveteen" sleeve) and their "Burn It Clean" 12" single. For me, this was the start of it. I had previously experimented in Indie; I loved The Smiths (and still do), but I bought some truly lamentable records. Primal Scream`s "Sonic Flower Groove" is one example. I bought this in 1987 and was instantly disappointed. Piss weak wouldn`t even begin to describe it. Thankfully I never bought anything by groups like The Mighty Lemon Drops, or the Mint Juleps, just because their names sounded "a bit Indie". They were probably pish. I wouldn`t know - I`ve never knowingly heard any of their songs. The Jesus and Mary Chain did offer the type of sound I was interested in, but it was finally delivered to me in the shape of Mudhoney.

Mudhoney are still on the go today, but I haven`t heard any of their stuff since their "Suck You Dry" single which came out in 1992 or 1993 (can`t remember). They were part of the burgeoning Seattle "grunge" "scene" of the late 80s, and to my mind were the ones who should have hit the big time instead of their friends and contemporaries, Nirvana. For anyone wishing to check out their music, I would recommend "Superfuzzbigmuff" as a great starting point.

So aside from my Goth-ness and tentative steps into Grunge, it cannot be said that I had really bought into the Second Summer of Love that was 1989. What a mistake - missed it, missed out.

For me, 1989 happened in 1990. I had left school in 89 and soon after, enrolled at college. I made a friend for life who (not only shared my passion for Goth-dom), but introduced me to what by then had become known as Madchester. I didn`t take to it at first. I`d heard The Stone Roses` "She Bangs The Drum" in the Summer, but it didn`t leave too much of an impression on me. However, bit by bit, it started to grow on me. By the time they released their "What The World Is Waiting For" / "Fools Gold" double a-side, I was hooked. I hadn`t heard anything like "Fool`s Gold" before. What an incredible sound.

I finally bought their eponymous first album in 1990. It`s a true classic. Such a glorious sound. It has this amazing "spacey" feel to it. The citrus-soaking sunshine finally hit me in Summer 1990, and began to chase away the darkness of Goth-dom. Happy Mondays` "Hallelujah" single and remix finally sunk into my conscious in 1990, as did De La Soul`s "3ft High and Rising", and Soul II Soul`s classic 1989 singles. Not bad - only a year late.

Although it kicked off in 1988/1989, 1990 was the year when "dance", pop and rock truly did crossover. Primal Scream`s "Loaded" was probably the best, and most outstanding example of this, but there were some real stinkers too. Most notably, The Soup Dragons.

The Soup Dragons had spent the previous four years, jumping on every bandwagon in the wake of Primal Scream (which until that point wasn`t something to shout about); they had been jangly in `86 ("Hang Ten"), fuzzed-up and rocky in`89 ("Crotch Deep Trash", "Backwards Dog"), and then `E`-d up and dancey in `90 ("Mother Universe", "I`m Free"). The music press went for them. Quite rightly so when lead singer, Sean Dickson procalimed "There`s always been a dance element to our music". Once everyone had stopped laughing, the knives were out. "There`s always been a {add music style here} element to our music" became the phrase of choice wherever accusations of bandwaggon-jumping could be levelled. Ha ha, The Soup Dragons were complete pish.

There were some other true classics of the 1989/90 era, unrelated to the "Madchester" / "baggy" scene such as Chris Isaak "Wicked Games", Depeche Mode "Enjoy The Silence", Julee Cruz "Falling", Sinead O`Connor "Nothing Compares 2 U", Adamski`s "Killer" and Saint Etienne`s "Only Love Can Break Your Heart".

So here I am in 2006, and I still listen to all that stuff regularly. The Second Summer of Love has lasted a long time !

Pish

Found some more examples of the shite you`re likely to find at the Edinburgh Fringe.

Needless to say this bunch of fuckers are comedians (in every sense, except they`re unlikely to make you laugh).

The intense-looking guy is Dan Evans (who ???), and the muppet show are known as The Explainers (they`ve got some Glasgow-based radio show now - yeah, like I`ll be tuning in !)

Fuckin` painful.

Points of View

Apologies to all those thousands of people who have tried add comments to this Blog. I had unwittingly put certain restrictions on placing comments, which meant that practically no-one would be able to voice an opinion.

These restrictions have now been removed, so now it`s open season. Let`s hear your views !

Nitty Gritty

Well, Primal Scream`s "Riot City Blues" has been out for a week now, and you know what ? It ain`t all that bad after all !

There really are some shocking moments in there ("We`re Gonna Boogie" / "Boogie Disease" being the worst by a stretch), but on the whole, I think it`s a bit of a grow(l)er.

Those crossing their fingers for another "Higher Than The Sun", "Accelerator", "Kowalski" or "Deep Hit Of Morning Sun" would be advised to forget it. For those hoping for a no-brainer, good-time Summer album, look no further.
Most of the fears I expressed in my earlier post have not been realised. The sound of "Riot City Blues" is not that far removed from their 1989 "Primal Scream" album rather than `94`s woeful "Give Out But Don`t Give Up".

`89`s "Primal Scream" was very MC5 (which, in itself, was a welcome departure from the C86/Byrds-influenced "Sonic Flower Groove" in 1987 - floppy-fringed-tambourine-sunshine-band). "Riot City Blues" treads similar ground, but this time with a "countrified" edge. Now, from the outside looking in, that might sound a bit of a horrifying concept, but it`s a more accurate description than "southern fried blues", and when taken as a whole, "Riot City Blues" is a surprisingly-robust offer.

Okay, so what are the standout tracks ?

"Country Girl" - Everyone`s heard this by now. Stones pastiche, maybe, but it`s catchier than crabs, and a Top Ten single to boot !

"When The Bomb Drops" - The-one-with-Wil Seargent. This is the only track reminiscent of the "Vanishing Point"/"XTRMNTR"/"Evil Heat" era. Bit of a psychadelic edge to this one.

"Little Death" - The-other-one-with-Wil-Seargent. This one is also a bit psychadelic. Puts me in mind of "Eight Miles High" (which is the type of Byrds song I`d sooner listen to than the sickeningly-twee "Mr. Tambourine Man").

"Dolls (Sweet Rock And Roll)" - Dreadful title, but comes with a nice stomp-along Glam beat and chant-along "LaLa LaLa LaLa La" chorus. I`d imagine this is a likely contender for the next single. Could easily have been a Top Ten hit in 1973.

"Sometimes I Feel So Lonely" - The obligatory introspective last-track-on-the-album (see also "Jesus Can`t Save Me" from "Primal Scream", "Shine Like Stars" from "Screamadelica", "Long Life" from "Vanishing Point", "Space Blues #2" from "Evil Heat"). This one`s got a nice gospel feel to it, and really puts me in mind of "Lord Can You Hear Me" from Spacemen 3`s "Playing With Fire" album.

So I would recommend "Riot City Blues" to you after all. Just don`t expect to be challenged by it.