Celebrity Jukebox #139: Brian Wilson (Part 3)

We conclude our tribute to the late Brian Wilson today with a few lyrical tributes...

Let's start with some Jon By Jovi... because we don't hear his name enough around these parts...

You always lose the girl (Ooh)
In a Brian Wilson world

Bon Jovi - Last Cigarette

The Beta Band are up next, with a spot of critical evaluation...

I listened to the Beach Boys just a minute ago

"Wild Honey", it's not their best album but it's still pretty good

They've got some funny little love songs on there

But its not mainly a Brian Wilson production

So it's probably not as good as something like "Pet Sounds"

The Beta Band - Round The Bend

Elton's Postcards From Richard Nixon is a song about his first experiences of the USA, but Brian makes a fine contrast to Tricky Dicky...

And all around us suntanned teens, beauty like we’d never seen

Our heroes led us by the hand

Through Brian Wilson’s promised land

Where Disney’s God and he commands

Both mice and men to stay

Elton John - Postcards From Richard Nixon

And that's not the only time Elton has dropped Brian's name...

Now I know what Brian Wilson meant

Every time I step outside

I see what heaven sent

There may be seven wonders

Created for this world

But one is all we need

Since God invented girls

Elton John - Since God Invented Girls

Brian Wilson is a good name to throw into a list song, and in this track from The Church, he's in legendary company...

Brian Wilson and William Tell

We welcome you

Harry Belafonte and Alexander Bell

We welcome you

Archangel Gabriel and Richard Hell

We welcome

And Tom Miller

The Church - Welcome 

Brian finds his way into another list here, but among far less obvious company. Clear evidence though that his influence crosses all genres...

Paul Johnson

DJ Funk

DJ Sneak

DJ Rush

Waxmaster

Hyperactive

Jammin Gerald

Brian Wilson

George Clinton

Lil Louis

Ashley Beedle

Neil Landstruum

Kenny Dope

DJ Hell

Louis Vega

K-Alexi

Daft Punk - Teachers

More evidence of that from The Beastie Boys...

Made a noise invented a sound

When Brian Wilson used it 

A hit was found

Beastie Boys - Square Wave in Unison

Quite a few songwriters choose Brian as a metaphor for the fine line between genius and madness. Take this one from Brendon Urie...

She said, "You're just like Mike Love
But you wanna be Brian Wilson, Brian Wilson"
Said, "You're just like Mike Love
But you'll never be Dennis Wilson"
And I said
(Hey! Hey!) If crazy equals genius
(Hey! Hey!) If crazy equals genius
Then I'm a fucking arsonist (Hey!)
I'm a rocket scientist (Hey! Hey!)

Panic At The Disco! - Crazy = Genius

Or this from Will Toledo...

I used to think there was an answer
In the music of my youth
But I just read Brian Wilson's biography
And now I know the truth
Because his father never loved him
And the band just wanted the money
And Dennis was an alcoholic
Who drowned looking for treasure
And everyone who was around him
Just gave him drugs and took his money
He was dependent on social acceptance
Just like every other human

Car Seat Headrest - Kimochi Warui (When? When? When? When? When? When? When?)

Here's one of Ben's favourite songwriters, Jeff Rosenstock...

I've never been in love but I saw Brian Wilson once

I was drunk and screamed too loud over the falsetto in "You Still Believe in Me."

And I thought about the way his catastrophes made everything okay

Bomb The Music Industry! - You Still Believe in Me?

And one of my favourite songwriter, Stephin Merritt...

Brian Wilson, 1960 and Vine

Summer kisses

In a Pendleton shirt, songs and gentle words

Granted wishes

The Magnetic Fields - You and Me and the Moon

Richard and Karen, on the other hand, saw Brian as the living personification of summer...

Bare foot, coconut and super mild

Jamaica, take a look at your own child

Forget not

Brian Wilson songs are never left behind

Don't you worry, baby, you're a friend of mine

For so long

The Carpenters - Boat To Sail

Not to mention the sea...

Seahorses

Sharks circling

Brian Wilson, inspiration

Smart dolphins

Waves crashing

Jill Sobule - Palm Springs

And love... Brian always represents love, in all its forms...

She made lasagna

And I sang her a song by Brian Wilson

Cause I knew her favourite band was The Beach Boys

Bowling For Soup - Rhonda Lasagna

As well as happy times though, Brian can also remind us of sad times...

This was the summer of your dad at the UN

And the voice of Brian Wilson

And the rain

Maybe she'll come back to you now

She could turn around on Friday

Maybe she'll realize it then

Shouldn't your friends know better now?

Maybe they say these unkind things

Never dreaming they hurt you

And she may turn around

And see a clearer day

The Innocence Mission - She May Turn Around

Love and lost love...

God only knows

What Brian Wilson meant

Pick out your clothes

With some real intent

You don't seem to care

That I've been waiting here

Pulling out my hair

For you to come

My dear

Snow Patrol - Batten Down the Hatch

The sun and the rain, light and darkness...

It's coming down in sheets of rain

Water's running in the drain

I lie with candles by my bed

Brian Wilson in my head

Dennis Wilson, Sharon Tate

Dark Pacific Palisades, yeah

Wait for the summer

It'll come round again

Ash - Pacific Palisades

And to close, a track which would have fit very well into Snapshots #400... Brian Wilson singing Brian Wilson, a cover of the Barenaked Ladies song...

Snapshots #371 - A Top Fifteen Songs About Film Stars (By Other Names)

It's a rather cumbersome title to this week's quiz... but I'm sure you all know what I mean.

Here are fifteen songs about what Ray Davies called Celluloid Heroes...

15. He allowed Zoe to get all messed up.

"He allowed Zoe" was an anagram...

Lee Hazlewood - The Performer

14. Invisible violet growing in the mountains.

If violet is invisible, it's ultraviolet. Montane means, "of or inhabiting mountainous country".

The Ultra Montanes - Aging Starlet

13. Birmingham City are a temperamental bunch.

Birmingham City are the Blues, or so I'm told.

The Moody Blues - The Actor

12. Found in Labradors and just outside Glasgow.

LaBRADors from Paisley.

Brad Paisley - Celebrity

11. Get high in a South End amusement park.

Kursaal Flyers - The Great Artiste

10. Frizzy.

Split Enz - Matinee Idyll

That's not how I'd spell "idol", but the song fits.

9. Paranoid, like a pig.

Marvin was paranoid. Like a pig could be Ham-lish.

Marvin Hamlisch - The Entertainer

8. Secret panther is well hidden.

"Secret panther" is an anagram...

The Carpenters - Superstar

7. Elaborately ornamental furnishings.

Rococo - Blue Movie Star

I included that one just for George.

Because it's prog! No other reason...

6. Carson pulled a few.

"That's a cracker," said Frank Carson. Not Johnny.

Cracker - Movie Star

5. Once had to deal with a sneezing baby, a broken toaster and a burnt soufflé, all in the same day.

Those are the lyrics of Coming Around Again. This is a lesser known offering...

Carly Simon - Actress

4. How much do you want for this commotion?

Name your Price for Lloyd (Cole).

Lloyd Price - Personality

3. Michael and Marti's rat meets #4's Stagger. 

Michael and Marti both sang about Ben, the rat. Lloyd Price sang about Stagger Lee.

Ben Lee - Household Name

2. LGBTQ party doesn't get a passing grade.

The LGBTQ party, so I'm reliably informed, would be a Kiki. D is not a pass.

Kiki Dee - Star

1. Pursue Dean Martin to find the answer.

Pursue Dean Martin...

Suede - Filmstar

You're nominated for another starring role next Saturday...

Self-Help For Cynics #19: Playing It Safe

Iggy Pop - Play It Safe

I clearly remember the first time I walked into a classroom as a trainee teacher. It was an adult Functional Skills English workshop, and all the students were quietly getting on with a variety of tasks in groups. It wasn't at all what I'd expected, and when the teacher I'd come to shadow said to me, "just go round the groups and see if anyone needs any help", I was suddenly terrified. 

Just... walk up to complete strangers who didn't know me from Adam - many of whom were older than me, and of a variety of different ethnicities - introduce myself and offer them help? I'd prepared myself for standing at the front of a class and delivering a lesson to a group of teenagers. I had lots of experience in performance and presentation and making myself heard or noticed... but a quiet, casual chat with a gentle offer of assistance to grown-ups... that was well outside my comfort zone. 

Beth Orton - Safety

Those of you who have been following this series from the start will know that we've identified the main culprit of our stress, anxiety and other mental health concerns... the amygdala or monkey brain. To recap...

Whenever the amygdala senses any kind of threat – from a bus about to run us over in the street to somebody gossiping about us behind our back in the office – it sets off our spider-sense, various hormonal and neurological warning signals that in turn cause us to feel the symptoms of stress. These will vary depending on the individual and the situation, but they include all the old favourites – physical stuff such as increased heart rate, changes to breathing, hot or cold sweat, and mental reactions such as fear, anger and shame. Stress hormones basically prepare us to fight the threat or flee from the danger: fight or flight. But they often override our normal, logical human brain, and let our monkey brain take over. 

The problem comes in the modern world, where the monkey brain finds it increasingly difficult to work out what's an actual threat to life... and what's merely a difficult problem to be overcome. So it looks to us for understanding... and we don't help ourselves by playing it safe.

The Airborne Toxic Event - Safe

In theory, any new experience contains danger. Meeting new people, starting a new job, going out on a first date, trying a new hobby or club... life would be so much easier if we just stuck with the stuff we know and are comfortable with. Anything new - well, we don't know how to deal with it or what problems we might encounter along the way. And that's scary.

Emmy The Great - Bad Things Coming, We Are Safe

Writing this particular blog series is a bit like that. Every time I sit down to do it, I'm forcing myself out of my comfort zone. I'm not really an expert on this subject, I'm just fumbling my way through. It would be so much easier when I open up my computer to just cobble together another edition of Saturday Snapshots or Namesakes. I know how to do those now. They might take time and research and a bit of head-scratching, but they're familiar and comforting and safe. 

Or, I might put off writing the blog altogether and go watch some TV. Read a book (if only!). Watch some more music videos on youtube from bands I've never heard of. 

Hot Rod Circuit - Safely

If I do any of these things rather than writing the post that's causing me a bit of anxiety, I'm confirming the monkey's perception of threat.

Massive Attack - Safe From Harm

New experience? !!Amygdala sends out warning signals!!

Result: I feel anxious.    

Strategy? Play it safe. 

Safety strategies are the things we all do to minimise risk or avoid tackling anything new. They include distracting ourselves with other (safe) activities or avoiding any situations that make us feel remotely uncomfortable. 

Thea Gilmore - When Did You Get so Safe?

However... whenever we do this, we tell the monkey that it was right - its perception of threat was bang on the money. As a result, it'll double its efforts to warn us about getting into that situation again. 

If I stop writing this blog series because it's difficult and it makes me a little anxious, then next time I try, it'll be even harder.

If I avoid going out to a gig because there will be a lot of strange people there, and it'll be a late night, and I might not get home till after midnight... if I decide to stay at home instead and watch TV... then chances are, next time the opportunity arises, I probably won't even bother to buy tickets.

The House Of Love - Safe

These are pretty mild examples, but I'm sure you can extrapolate them to cover more serious anxiety-causing situations in your own life. Playing it safe, avoiding problems or distracting ourselves from things that are worrying just confirms to our monkey brain that these things are threats to be avoided. It'll scream even louder next time. 

The Chameleons - A Person Isn't Safe Anywhere These Days

Taken to an absolute extreme, this is where OCD comes from: you can't leave the house until you've completed these safety rituals. It's where alcohol and drug dependency starts: you feel less anxious when you have a drink. The monkey brain experts believe that even positive behaviour like exercise, meditation and structured relaxation techniques can be used as an escape strategy to help us avoid facing up to the things we fear... because when we do these things, we only confirm that the monkey was right to be afraid.

Graham Parker - Fear Not

The answer? "Feel the fear and do it anyway." 

Back in the 90s, a former colleague of mine used to swear by a self-help book with that exact title... and I used to mock it as namby-pamby mumbo-jumbo. Yet from a brain science point of view, it seems like this is the best advice you can get. If we refuse to let our anxiety get the better of us - if we embrace the situation the monkey is screaming at us to avoid - and we do this repeatedly... then, we break down the cycle of anxiety and we teach the monkey that it's something we don't have to be afraid of. 

Howie Beck - Don´t Be Afraid

Those early teaching experiences were really quite terrifying. I'd already pushed myself way out of my comfort zone by going back to university in my late 30s and retraining at something so different from anything I'd ever done before. I'd prepared myself for all kinds of problems and scenarios and figured out ways I might deal with them... but a workshop of adult learners, something that should have been far less scary than standing in front of a class of 17 year olds... that was almost my downfall. I came out of that first shadowing session and seriously asked myself if I'd made the right decision. Maybe teaching wasn't the right choice for me. Except it was too late to drop out now... and what else could I do?

The Carpenters - Don't Be Afraid

The following week, I went back to the same class and was put in the same situation again. And it wasn't immediately easier. It took me a good few weeks before I worked out how to handle myself there, but eventually I did... and my anxiety subsided. Because I'd taught my monkey brain that it was OK. It wasn't something to be afraid of. 

Boston - Don't Be Afraid

In her book, Don't Feed The Monkey Mind, Dr. Jennifer Shannon explains...

The monkey mind is like a small child or a pet watching you for guidance. I emphasize the word "watch". You cannot tell this part of your brain anything. The monkey can't be reasoned with, comforted, or distracted from its mission. The only way we can get what we want in live is to override its warnings with our behaviour.

Stop playing it safe, in other words. Playing it safe only reinforces our fears. 

Easier said than done...?

Snapshots #280: A Top Ten UFO Songs

As a wave of UFO sightings sweeps the world, surely we must ask ourselves whether shooting them out of the sky is really the smartest option? 

The objects in the sky may be unidentified, but I'm sure you had no problem identifying this lot...

10. Inside next issue: dead pigeons!

Inside next isSUE: DEad pigeons!

Suede - UFO

9. Persson of interest found near Dortmund.

The Persson of interest would be Nina Persson. Hagen is a German city near Dortmund.

Nina Hagen - Flying Saucers

8. Killers from Barking.

Slaughter & The Dogs - UFO

7. Joel + Arthur + Lard.

Billy Joel + Arthur Lee + Mark 'Lard' Riley...

Billy Lee Riley - Flyin' Saucers Rock 'n' Roll

6. John, Harry & Charisma.

John Carpenter, Harry Carpenter and Charisma Carpenter...

The Carpenters - Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft

"We are your friends..."

5. You can't argue with this lot.

The Undisputed Truth - UFOs

The Undisputed Truth is out there!

4. The Sound & The Fury, relatively.

William Faulkner wrote The Sound & The Fury. 

Isaac Newton had a theory of relativity.

Newton Faulkner - UFO

3. Gloating goat found in cut price store.

The gloating goat would be Billy Bragg, here pictured in Wilko... sorry, Wilco.

Billy Bragg & Wilco - My Flying Saucer

2. Valet, can be green or golden.

A valet can park your car. Grahams can be Golden or Greene.

Graham Parker - Waiting For The UFOs

1. Stolen Bounty.

A Bounty is a chocolate bar. If it's stolen, then it becomes hot property.

Is this song about Errol Brown's very own close encounter? No doubt about it...

Hot Chocolate - No Doubt About It

More unidentified photographic objects for you next Saturday...

Snapshots #211: A Top Ten Bacharach & David Covers

Earlier this week I was leafing through Sam's notebook (largely full of made up football scores) when I saw he'd scribbled a name on the inside front cover...

Not because he's been watching Blue Velvet, Easy Rider or the Sicilian scene from True Romance recently. No, because he's become quite a fan of a song I've featured here previously, Dennis Hopper by The Waterboys. 

I continue in my mission to teach Sam as many out-of-date pop culture references as I possibly can.

All of which has nothing to do with this week's Snapshots, which featured ten songs written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David. No, I couldn't find a photo of either of those gentlemen holding a camera... 

10. Jerry's neighbour, associated with Walrus home.

On Seinfeld, Jerry's neighbour was Kramer...

John Lennon lived in (and was sadly killed outside) The Dakota Building.

Billy J. Kramer & The Dakotas - Trains & Boats & Planes

9. Speaking clock gets spicy.

Remember when the only way to find out the exact time was to ring TIM, the speaking clock?

Tim Curry - Anyone Who Had A Heart

8. Roger Whittaker... or mother-painter?

Roger was famous for whistling. 

The painter Whistler is famous for this image of his mother...

Whistler - I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself

7. Steven or Johnny or Andy or Mike... but only one of them.

Together, those guys were the Smiths. So one of them would just be...

Smith - Baby, It's You

6. Could be a stranger, a battlefield or a wonderful colour.

Love Is A Stranger.

Love Is A Battlefield.

Love Is A Wonderful Colour.

All of which lead us to...

Love - My Little Red Book

5. Parchment secretaries.

Anagram!

Manic Street Preachers - Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head

4. Upmarket joiners.

Posh joiners call themselves carpenters. (I say this as the son of a joiner.)

The Carpenters - Close To You

3. The apples are falling, but there's still time to gather in the crops while the sun is shining.

The falling apple denotes Isaac Newton. The rest is about making hay while the sun shines.

Isaac Hayes - The Look Of Love

Or you could have had...

Isaac Hayes - Walk On By

Isaac Hayes - I'll Never Fall In Love Again

2. Lima found inside people you don't know.

Lima is the letter L in the phonetic alphabet.

Put an L into Strangers (people you don't know) and you get...

The Stranglers - Walk On By

1. Royal bassist down.

The bassist in Queen was John Deacon.

If he was down, he would be blue.

Snapshots will be back-arach new Saturday!

Conversations With Ben #10: The Happy Bench

I was out walking with Sam the other day when I came across the "Happy Bench". Something about it really wound me up. Apologies, my reaction below gets a little extreme - but it was for humorous effect. I'm not really the sort of person who would ever consider micturating on public property. Still... I often present the best side of my nature on this blog. Whereas Ben gets the darker side.

(That said, when I posted a picture of the Happy Bench on my facebook feed, I was amazed by how many of my FB friends reacted in a far grumpier way that I did. It's good to know you're not the biggest misanthrope in the room. And that I chose my friends wisely.)

Rol: Well, I won't be sitting here then...

Ben: Or you could rip it off and set it alight at your feet?

Send a strong message.

I pissed on it. Will that do?

Only if you then sit in it. Commit to it.

If I did that, some happy person might come talk to me.

You could start growling? And yipping, like a small dog.

The yip is even more unexpected than a bark.

Flashback to my 20s.

Did you used to be a furry? Get up to a little bit of yipping?

The great dichotomy of my life is how much of it I've spent fighting chronic loneliness... and yet I hate people.

I'm not surprised if you go around pissing on park benches.

I Am Jack's Inflamed Sense of Rejection.

You might want to call a doctor and get that seen to.

What's the best Paul Simon song that's not on Graceland?

Train In The Distance.

Or Still Crazy...

Or 50 Ways...

Or Mother & Child Reunion

 Or Me & Julio

Or Kodachrome

Or Loves Me Like A Rock

Or St Judy's Comet

Or Late In The Evening

Or Duncan...

Wrong.

All wrong.

Rene and Georgette Magritte.

That's the correct answer.

I was saving that one for the end because there's a gag attached.

Weird name for a dog.

"After The War."

That actually made chuckle.

I've achieved SOMETHING today then.

AC12 ought to investigate Vicky McClure's taste in music...

That is the mixtape of someone who has never made a mixtape in her life.

Or bought a record.

T'Pau!

I had a crush on Carol Decker, but still.

Even the "deep cut" by Dead Prez is still their most radio friendly one.

Are you sure the playlist isn't titled "Songs that I like when they come on the radio"?

Exactly. Never bought a record in her life.

Also. I thought it was an unwritten rule you didn't put the Beatles on mixtapes.

Or The Carpenters.

There seems little point in putting together a mixtape of songs everybody knows off by heart, to the point of being sick of them.

I mean, Respect is a classic, but I've heard it too much now.

Exactly.

Deep cuts only.

But there's no Beatles or Carpenters deep cuts.

Same with Nirvana.

Etc.

I'd put Carpenters on as a palette cleanser after something really out there. And maybe some really early, raw Beatles. I'd never say no to anything. But that playlist is just like they asked the Family Fortunes audience to name ten pop songs from the last 60 years.

Maybe it's a cover up. Maybe she has a huge Gary Glitter and R Kelly collection and doesn't want Hastings to find out.

Acceptable Beatles: Michelle, Mr Postman, Twist and Shout, Here Comes The Sun (covered by Paul Simon).

Michelle!?

Are you on crack?

Ma belle.

No one would expect it.

That's why it's perfect.

That or Piggies.

Stop now. I think I'd rather listen to Vicky McClure's mixtape than any more of this.

This is under the assumption that I'd include the Beatles.

I wouldn't.

Never make me a mixtape if you think Michelle has a place in the universe.

I have to know a theme or purpose for the mix.

Here, I made you a Beatles playlist.

Guest Post Thursday 11: GUITAR!!!

Some time ago (back in March 2018) I started a new series on the blog called Anyone Can't Play Guitar, which was supposed to be an ongoing tribute to my favourite guitar solos. There was only ever one post. I may argue because it couldn't be beaten... although I did intend to follow it with a post about Richard Thompson, the best guitarist I ever saw play live.

The baton may be very dusty, but Rigid Digit just picked it up and ran with it...

RIGID DIGIT’S TOP 10 GUITAR SOLOS THAT DON’T SEEM TO MAKE THE USUAL BEST OF ALL-TIME LISTS:

Not those 9,473 notes a minute shredding solos so beloved of poodle-haired rockers who believe Eddie Van Halen is God.

These are (in my mind) perfectly captured moments of musical brilliance using 6 steel strings and a plank of wood.

And these – brilliant though they are – rarely get the plaudits they deserve.

Well, I am here to right (write?) that wrong.

10. No Regrets – Walker Brothers (Alan Parker)

This song, like many other Walker Brothers tracks is dominated by Scott Walker’s moody baritone.
The arrangement and that vocal would usually be enough, but then the solo arrives and takes the track to another level.

The internet, not always the most reliable of places, cites many options for the provider of this solo, including Big Jim Sullivan, Jeff Skunk Baxter (later of Steely Dan), and John Walker  - who was actually a Walker Brother, but what are the chance of a member of a 60s band actually playing on their own song?

Popular opinion suggests the widdling was by Alan Parker -late of Blue Mink, and whose guitar work was heard once a week for nigh on 10 years as a member of CCS who did the “Whole Lotta Love” version that introduced Top Of The Pops

9. Dead Flowers (Live At The Marquee 1971) – Rolling Stones (Mick Taylor)

Mick Taylor joined The Stones in 1969 replacing Brian Jones, and within a month had provided overdubs and guitars for ‘Let It Bleed’ and was sitting at Number One with “Honky Tonk Women”.
Taylor’s musical chops were never in doubt – he was a member of the Blues Guitarists' finishing school (John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers) at 16, and is a key player on the Stones ‘Sticky Fingers’ album.

“Sway” from that album ranks as a high point, but the solo on the album version of “Dead Flowers”, great though it is, falls just short.  Not when played Live however (as seen here) – Mick Taylor is effectively soloing all the way through the song.  It’s cool, laid-back, laconic even, but fills every gap required to be filled.

With Brian Jones, they were the second greatest pop singles band in the UK.  With Mick Taylor, they were (probably) the greatest Live Rock n Roll Band standing on a stage.

8. Kid - Pretenders (James Honeyman-Scott)

Hereford may not be the Rock n Roll Capital of the World, but it did provide half of Mott The Hoople, and three quarters of The Pretenders.  And it was one of those Pretenders with a blond mane and a Mott The Hoople and Cream fixation that came up with (on the spot in the studio) this sublime solo which elevates the song to one of the finest in The Pretenders catalogue.

James Honeyman-Scott died in mid 1982 leaving a legacy of two very good albums with The Pretenders, containing his intricate guitar work.  We will never know if “Kid” was a one-off, or would there have been more to come?

7. Boredom – Buzzcocks (Pete Shelley)

How many notes does a guitar solo actually need?  More than two is surely just an extravagance.
Pete Shelly obviously thought so, providing a bare-bones “cheeky two note solo”.  Any more than that would surely just inspire boredom in the listener.

Lifted from their first EP, which is held as the first independent single, and the last Buzzcocks outing before Howard Devoto parted for the more progressive sounding Magazine (almost denouncing Punk, and inventing Post Punk before Punk had even got going).  Post-Devoto, Buzzcocks went on to release a string of the finest singles of 1978/79.

6. Reelin’ In The Years – Steely Dan (Elliott Randall)

Although this may be unfair to Dan members in the early days, the band was basically Donald Fagen and Walter Becker, plus a supporting cast.  The parent album (‘Can’t Buy A Thrill’) did feature guitarists Jeff "Skunk" Baxter and Denny Dias as full time members, but the guitar work on this was supplied by session guitarist Elliot Randall – a man who has been offered many full time band positions (The Blues Brothers and Toto to name two) but turned them down to remain a gun for hire.  And with this on your CV, the work may not be thin on the ground.

(I refer the honourable gentleman back to a previous post on this very blog. - Rol.)

5. Wuthering Heights – Kate Bush (Ian Bairnson)

When this track is played on the radio, it always seems to cut before the solo starts – a real shame that.  The solo is an integral part of the song and provides the perfect coda.

Not, as often believed, played by Dave Gilmour (although Gilmour was a key figure in Kate Bush’s signing to EMI), but supplied by a session guitarist (and Kate’s now full time band member) who’d previously appeared on Bay City Rollers records, and would later play with Bucks Fizz.

4. Another Girl Another Planet – The Only Ones (John Perry)

A sublime solo providing counterpoint to Peter Perret’s weathered and withered vocals.
John Perry delivers another solo almost the equal on “The Beast” (from the same debut album), but in the context of this song it lifts it to another level.

They may only be truly known for this one song, but it’s not a bad legacy, is it?

Who said Punk and New Wave should have no guitar solos or standout musicianship?

3. Another Nail In My Heart – Squeeze (Glenn Tilbrook)

Guitar solos usually pop up about 2/3 through the song – either just after the middle eight, or just after the second chorus.

Not this one – Glen just can’t wait to get it out – one verse and chorus, and let it out.  Oddly placed perhaps (55 seconds in), but lets the song grow and tell the story whilst you’re still marvelling at the musical dexterity.  No screaming notes, fretboard divebombs, just pure understated brilliance.

See also “Some Fantastic Place” for another example of Tilbrook’s fretboard dexterity

2. Baker Street – Gerry Rafferty (Hugh Burns)

Think of “Baker Street” and the stand-out memory has to be the saxophone (not played by Bob Holness, but a great urban myth nonetheless).  But vying for attention is the minimal, almost-skeletal, understated, yet oh so powerful guitar solo.  It’s played so cleanly it could almost be a squealing Hank Marvin meets Mark Knopfler affair.  It is also (apparently) a big influence on Slash and the basis of the solo in ”Sweet Child O’ Mine”, and once you know that you can, sort of, hear it.

1. Goodbye To Love – Carpenters (Tony Peluso)

I’m not a fan of the MOR stylings of this lot, and I’m not going to call this a Guilty Pleasure, but that fuzzed-up Guitar solo is a mighty fine thing.

He plays it straight first time round (still fuzzed, but basically the melody line), and then later gives it a bit of welly.

Tony Peluso may not have done anything as notable before or since, but surely he could dine out on this one solo forever.

And (snobbily?) if it wasn’t for the fact it was for The Carpenters, this solo would sit alongside the work of Jimmy Page, Eric Clapton, and (the sainted?) Eddie Van Halen in the list of All-Time Great Widdly Bits.

I've got to hand it to you, RD, that was one fine collection of tunes. Particularly that live version of Dead Flowers. Excellent stuff. 

I wonder if anyone can beat that...?

My Top Ten Sing Songs

Sing something simple. Here's ten songs where singers tell us to sing. Lazy buggers: they want us to do our job for them. Or... maybe they just want to remind us how good it feels to sing sometimes.

Ten songs that celebrate singing. Go!


10. Mel Tillis - Come On & Sing

A recent discovery... from the distant past... by a country songwriter perhaps more famous for the songs he wrote than for singing them.

9. My Chemical Romance - Sing

A much-missed band. Well, by me, anyway.

8. Stylistics - Sing Baby Sing

A song celebrating the fact that the world is getting better every day...

Wait, come back!

7. Blur - Sing

From the soundtrack to Trainspotting.

6. Kevin Ayers - Sing A Song In The Morning

Kevin Ayers' backing band on this track is The Whole World. It's nice to have friends.

5. Travis - Sing

Travis at their most singalong.

If you can't handle that, you may prefer the Glen Campbell version. If I were Fran Healy, I'd consider my job done once Glen Campbell had recorded one of my songs.

4. Aretha Franklin - Sing It Again - Say It Again

Funky in the extreme - sounds like the theme to a 70's cop show with added Aretha.

3. Martin Rossiter - Sing It Loud

The other day, Martin (not Rossiter) was lamenting the fact that this Martin has only ever recorded one solo album. I couldn't agree more. This was a cracker. We demand more!

2. Morrissey - Sing Your Life

Could this be the happiest song Morrissey ever recorded?

Don't leave it all unsaid

Somewhere in the wasteland of your head, 

And make no mistake, my friend

Your pointless life will end

Well, maybe not...

But before you go

Can you look at the truth ?

You have a lovely singing voice

A lovely singing voice

And all of those

Who sing on-key

They stole the notion

From you and me

So, sing your life...

It always makes me happy though.

1. The Carpenters - Sing

Come on, it had to be, didn't it?

(What else were you expecting? REO Speedwagon?)


Sing to me in the comments, if you will...

Saturday Snapshots #48 - The Answers

Don't Ask Me Why Saturday Snapshots has become the most clicked-on post on this blog. Probably because there's much less of me wittering on than on all the other posts and far more top tunes.

This week there was a photo-finish between Lynchie & Rigid Digit, both on 3 points, both typing the words "Joe Walsh" at 8:58 on the dot, but RD took the crown by a nose. Nailbiting stuff, though Charity Chic had to drop by and identify the song in question later.

Anyway, here are this week's answers... Would I Lie To You?


10. Motown records go twang, dude.

Motown was Detroit.

Records spin on a turntable.

Rubber bands go twang.

Dudes are men.

The Detroit Spinners - Rubberband Man

9. Listening to Louise's old band in the early hours of 11.12.06.

Louise was in Eternal.

The early hours would be 3am.

11/12/06 are the numbers corresponding to letters K/L/F in the alphabet.

Took a while to get the song, but C identified it first.

KLF - 3am Eternal


8. What The Beatles did after She Loves You to show off their genetic male dominance.

After She Loves You, The Beatles sang Yeah Yeah Yeah.

Y is the male chromosome.

Dominance is control.

The Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Y Control

7. As easy as Burt Bacharach.

As easy as ABC.

Burt Bacharach wrote (a different song called) The Look of Love.

Top Ten cheesy 80s videos of all time? Go!

ABC - The Look of Love

6. Butch Cassidy feels more than a few raindrops on his head... probably the result of changing wind patterns.

Butch Cassidy was Paul Newman.

More than a few raindrops would be a Thunderclap.

Changing wind patterns would be Something In The Air.

(I'm glad you guys worked that one out because it's a couple of weeks since I wrote that clue and I couldn't remember who it was!)

Thunderclap Newman - Something In The Air

5. One particular smooch on a religious street of blues.

Religion is faith.

Hill Street Blues.

Well done, Chris.

I wish Americans would learn to pronounce "centrifugal" properly.

Faith Hill - This Kiss 

4. Not a bad innings for a Jamaican cricketer who likes his coffee.

"Not a bad innings" is what people say when someone's had a good life.

Courtney Walsh was a Jamaican cricketer.

Coffee is "a cup of Joe". (Though I appreciated Lynchie's attempt at getting to Rocky Mountain Way via Blue Mountain Coffee.)

Joe Walsh - Life's Been Good

3. Blimey, Gordon! Reykjavik is a now a matriarchy.

"Gordon Bennet!" is an expression which means, "Blimey!"

Reykjavik is in Iceland.

A matriarchy... that's your mum, that is.

Hometown heroes for Rigid Digit! Lost Britpop classic...

Bennet - Mum Has Gone To Iceland

2. Jesus and Harrison Ford try for a close encounter.

Jesus and Harrison Ford were both carpenters.

A close encounter may be the result of trying to get in touch with beings from outer space.

The Carpenters - Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft

(How long till I can use Klaatu here now?)

1. I know this place like half a big cat (or car).

Half a jaguar is a jag.

I know this place like the back of my hand.

Amazed it took till 9:45 to get this one. I was about to comment on that yesterday morning when CC saved me the trouble...



There Must Be An Angel Playing With My Heart, because Saturday Snapshots will be back next week.