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Archive 02
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26 - 50
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Here
you will gain exclusive access to my own personal record collection! I
try to bring you mp3s of rare tracks, deleted material, long forgotten
artists, total flops and down right obscure shit. Often, my choices were
only available on vinyl or were just plain unreleased, the aim being to
indulge an old fan or inspire a new one. I try not to post up
forthcoming releases or anything that's too readily available. Honest,
Gov!
There's a tenuous thread running through the tracks but
your requests are always welcome and I'll try and squeeze them in amongst my
own fancies... eventually.
Do read all the blurb, as there's often links to extra tracks lurking in
there... ; )
Tracks are only available for a 'limited
time' folks (sometimes months!), so get them while you can!
Now for the science bit! To access the music, please click on 'Download' and
you'll be whisked off to those nice people over at Sharebee.
Tracks are ripped at 192 kbps and wherever possible taken from the
highest quality source available. All of the music offered here has been
purchased by myself and is part of my own collection. Tracks are for
evaluation purposes only and wherever possible, purchasing is always
encouraged. If you own any of the material posted here or anywhere else
on this site and are very cross with me, please
email me with threats and such like...
That stench you can smell is the
scent of a very crap band indeed. That was Allstars.
A Steps-a-like group who seemed to have
been knitted and brought to life via a terrible vomit-inducing kids telly
show (was it called 'Star Street'? I think it was y'know!).
Steps seemed complex and intellectual by
comparison and these five idiots lasted about a year (ie. 12 months too
long). But there is a 'but' to this cruel attack of words... and that 'but'
is this one recording. Not wanting to give them too much credit here, it's
all down to the song writing genius of Duran Duran,
for this is a cover of their number one hit single from 1983. It could be
anyone providing the vocals, but I really like this electro-dance-rock
monster which genuinely makes me want to dance. Allstars' members included that twat off
of 'Hollyoaks' who plays Darren, who returned to the show last year after his flop pop
career move. "Please, please tell me now, is there something I should
know?"... errr, yes there is guys - you're shit and not even a further
cover version of a tired old Bucks Fizz
single can save you now...
No, not that big, fat berk from
'Eastenders', Minty were in fact a living, breathing, fearsome musical troupe
of freaks who used art terrorist tactics to rock and shock the music scene
briefly in the 1990s. Whether or not they were successful is another matter
entirely but with core members Nicola and
Leigh Bowery
at the wheel, this lot
were always going to get attention. 'That's Nice!' is just
fucking nuts. Juvenile, pretentious, annoying... but fun. "Camel toe and
boob tube? That's nice!". Their other works include the vacuous yet
chirpy 'Nothing' and the genuinely funny 18 certificate-rated
'Useless Man'. 'Useless Man' was actually my
first choice of upload but I bottled it at the last minute! However, if
anyone would have preferred this track, with it's filthy lyrics that mention
'spunk-loving', 'cock-sucking' and 'shit-stabbing' by all means send us an
email to -
Imani
Coppola disappeared almost as quickly as she arrived back in
1997. One minute, 'Legend Of A Cowgirl' was getting heavy
rotation on 'The Box', then next her album
'Chupacabra' was two-a-penny in high street bargain bins... and it's
still there! I always thought she was pretty cool with those green wigs and
crazy violins, and the album is bloody good too. Her second single was to be
this, 'I'm A Tree', but it never happened. It samples
The Doors' 'Soul Kitchen'
to marvellous effect. Imani was last
seen lending vocals to a Baha Men
single
('You All Dat') and also as part of US Comedien
Sandra Bernhard's touring act,
The
United Colors Of Benetton Band. I just learned of a second album
which came out in the States last August! Who knew?! It's called 'Afrodite'
and you can hear clips and order it
'Wordy Rappinghood'
would have been way too obvious a choice and besides, the whole of their
self-titled debut LP from 1981 is a masterpiece anyway. Spin-off groups and
side-projects aren't always so hot, but little Tina
Weymouth and Chris Franz
of
Talking Heads pulled a blinder with
Tom Tom Club. They have a funkier, artier
sound than the parent group and cover a much broader scope of sounds -
urban, rap, hip-hop, soul, dance... They're pretty hard to collect here in
the UK, one of their albums has never been issued on CD and another never
got released here at all but thank god for eBay.
This album is still available (the US import boasts a slightly different
track listing with extra remixes, I must point out!) so do
PWL
had their fingers in many pies and some of them weren't very
successful. Point in case being Scarlet Fantastic
(great name!). Even I don't really get what was going on here. A male/female
duo, Lovelady and
Captain Pleasure (what?!), slightly dance-orientated but with
a shade of rock on top, a lot of leather, a motorcycle, some dodgy
prose-heavy lyrics and they were off. 'No Memory' faired ok in
our beloved singles chart, reaching number 24 in 1987, but they didn't go
any further. Their album '24 Hours' is a patchy and confused
affair but interesting for the time. This mix is their best track by far.
Fan site
Salad
were always the indie underdogs. It didn't matter how many
formats of their singles I bought, they never quite made it. I still play
them a lot today. I hope Island or whoever it is who owns their material
packages up a nice retrospective/best of album one day. That would be nice.
Many of their best tracks were B-sides and I don't even think their albums
are in print any longer (checks Amazon
just to be sure...). No, they are not. 'I Want You' is a
short, sharp stab of psychedelic, twang-pop and didn't feature on any of
their albums which just makes it more special. If anyone is interested in
picking up some Salad records, 'Singles Bar'
cleans up the first 3 EPs and I must recommend the
(world's first!) triple AAA-side 'Your Ma/Plank/Open'. These
days, singer Marijne Van Der
Vlugt is
fronting a spiffing new band,
Does anyone else remember
Strawberry Switchblade giving away one
of their ra-ra skirts in a 'Saturday Superstore'
competition circa 1985? Well, I do... I'm wearing it right now! No,
I'm not, just kidding. But I surely would be if I'd won/entered. Point
being, that's kinda what Strawberry Switchblade
are remembered for most these days (if at all) - their 'look'. What people
forget is how absolutely beautiful the music was! Their debut album is
filled with delicious pop confectionaries and though the hit count was low,
I'm sure they had more to give... 'Jolene' is a cover version
that works, a rare thing, but it was to be the last we heard from
Rose and
Jill.
No follow up album was to come. Sad. However, thanks to the world wide web,
you can now hear rare demos, outtakes and sessions courtesy of a great
Strawberry Switchblade site
The
Sundays are lovely. Lovely but lazy. They've been around for
years, assuming they are still going, and yet they have only mustered 3
albums - 'Reading, Writing & Arithmetic' (1989), 'Blind'
(1992) and 'Static & Silence' (1997). Still, quality
not quantity, right? 'Don't Tell Your Mother' is a B-side from
their debut single 'Can't Be Sure' and isn't so easy to find
these days. It's nice. Download it.
In 1988,
'Joe Le Taxi' dropped Vanessa Paradis
off at
number 3 in the UK charts, quite a feat for a foreign language pop record.
There was a bit of a hissy fit over the fact she was just 16 yet wearing
next to nothing and singing about some old Taxi driver who'd picked her up.
I recall her 'Top Of The Pops' performance
well... But scandal aside, she returned 4 years later with 'Be My
Baby' and an album produced and co-written by then-squeeze
Lenny Kravitz. A beautiful 60's girl group
number, 'Be My Baby' sounds like a cover version of an old
Supremes song. It's that good.
Vanessa still records and remains popular
in France though she's given up bothering us Brits. And of course she still
acts and has a child to Johnny Depp.
Which is nice.
This track has me all confused.
Younger Younger 28s were one of those
bands who had a load of hype but not really enough good tunes to back it up.
They were marketed as a new Human League
but that was due to geographical location as well as any musical
similarities. I first heard them on an old 'Melody
Maker' cover mounted freebie CD. The track 'Lipstick,
Cigarettes, Packet Of Three' sounded great - witty, boy-girl action,
lots of samples, fresh, etc. - yet once they'd gotten signed with V2 Records, they totally changed the track,
calling it 'We're Going Out', adding an awful chorus and
extracting any humour! Disgrace. Follow up single 'The Next Big Thing'
was more of the same and I approached the debut album 'Soap' with caution. Thankfully, the next single was to be their safe but certain
hit 'In Between Days', a cover of The
Cure song. It was around this time that this one track promo CD
surfaced. It is not on the album, despite being better than most of the
tracks that are. 'In Between Days' never came out. I had
always thought that this was maybe a new track intended to either re-promote
the album or was just a stand alone single, but then this never came out either.
And then just the other day, I found a finished promo copy of the 'In
Between Days' CD single, with 2 B-sides, one of which is this track.
So, seems it was just a lowly B-side... or was it? Anyone know? Anyway, it's
a great track! Lost until now...
A bit like
Blondie's 'Heart Of Glass', this track, or so I
like to think. Gloss' story is another
tragedy. They were signed to Nude Records
(Suede, Sharkboy,
Goya Dress) and
were to become a casualty of the labels subsequent folding. On the eve of
this, their third and finest single, and the album that was set to follow,
Nude went bust. Thankfully, 'This
Is All I Need' and the album 'Gloss' had been pressed
up as promos and sent out to the press, but both records were never to get
an official release. I had hoped they'd salvage the recordings and move to a
new label but it seems they just split up instead. Lead singer, blonde
Icelandic beauty Hiedrun Bjornsdottir,
turned up on 2003's self-titled Pleasure
album (which was a flop in the UK), singing a track she co-wrote called
'All I Want', and that's as much as I know. I think fan's of
Annie
should look this band up, definitely. Listen to this track and you will hear
it's obvious hit potential. Just a shame it's moment of glory was snatched
away... 
Donna
Air may well be married to a millionaire twice her age these
days, without any need for a job, but once upon a time in between 'Byker
Grove' and 'MTV Select', she had a bash at a pop
career. Her band Crush
also originally
included fellow Grover Jayni but was
swiftly replaced by one Luciana.
She's currently still trying to make it in the pop arena with new band
Portobella (think Republica
meets The Divinyls).
'Covered In 
Their hearts weren't in it if
you ask me... Dubstar's second album,
'Goodbye' just isn't very good. Over the years since it's
release, I've returned to it to see if I was mistaken or if perhaps time has
been kind to it's content, but I rarely make it through the whole album.
Instead, I skip to track 11, 'Ghost'. It's beautiful. I've
heard that Sarah actually broke down and
cried when they tried to perform the song live or something. It is very sad
and remains the albums only genuine heartfelt piece. 'Cathedral Park'
comes across like a Right Said Fred
big brass band 90's love-in and stuff like the fillers 'Inside'
and 'Say The Worst Thing First' sound stale and like a
'Smack The Pony' piss-take. A third album came but, despite
being better than this one by a smidgen, the damage was already done and the
group imploded. Sarah Blackwood is now a
component of Client, along with ex-Technique
member and Mrs Alan McGee,
Kate Holmes. A Technique
mp3 is imminent. Dubstar
rarities available
I never liked
Kenickie... I was always engulfed in a
fog which clouds so many, the dense fog of jealousy. You see, I went to collage
with them. They were in the year below me and I had the pleasure of getting
the same bus to and from collage with them. They were very loud and always
seemed to have more fun than me. My eyes were like slits. Then they were
suddenly very famous and in the 'NME'
and 'Melody Maker' every week and for a
brief moment, they were my sworn enemies... then their bubble burst. That's
when I became interested. It was over, they were no longer a threat, they
had split. I then bought their singles and albums and really liked what I
heard. So, sorry Kenickie. This is my
favourite song of theirs...
B.E.F.
(British Electronic Foundation) was an occasional side project of
Heaven 17 members
Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh.
They collaborated with various vocalists on cover versions of well known
songs. The 1982 album 'Music Of Quality And Distinction Volume 1'
features Billy MacKenzie,
Sandie Shaw, Gary Glitter,
Tina Turner and
a Nolan. Oh! And of course, the lovely
Paula Yates! Paula
wasn't exactly a vocalist and this track is the only thing
she ever committed to vinyl. I'm sure her aura is present on a few
Bob Geldof/Inxs
recordings, as she floated round the recording studios doing what
she did best... ie. not very much. But I really like
Paula Yates. And I miss her. This track is just a silly bit of
nonsense but that's what she was all about. 
Madonna,
Madonna, Madonna... What could I possibly say that hasn't been said
before? Sod all. When she assembled her chocolate box selection of greatest
hits for 'The Immaculate Collection' and gave them all a
polish in 1990, many of her hits were ditched along the way. She could have
easily stretched to a nice double album and included them all, but she's a
tireless perfectionist. We didn't get 'Everybody', 'Burning Up',
'Angel', 'Dress You Up', 'True Blue', 'Who's That Girl?', 'Causing A
Commotion', 'Dear Jessie'... and one of my personal favourites,
'Gambler'. Considering it was a number 4 hit and stayed in the
charts for 11 weeks here in the UK, I felt cheated. You can pick it up on
the 'Vision Quest' soundtrack CD (is it still in print?) or
the rarer 'La Isla Bontia' Australian maxi CD single import,
but 'Gambler' is a track Madonna
would rather forget. Well sorry Madge, I
love it...
Tara's
second appearance here. After her collaboration with
E-Zee Possee, ZTT
took her on board. This is her only release, a patriarchs ambient
lullaby to mother nature. Sounds like a demo for Madonna's
'Ray Of Light' album (or am I being too
kind?). As previously mentioned, more material exists on a shelf in a deep,
dark vault but chances of it seeing the light of day are scarce.
ZTT could knock out a box set of curios
I suppose? They also have unreleased albums by the likes of
Seal and
Wendy
& Lisa, or so the story goes... Anyway, here's proof that talent
doesn't always run in the family...
Slimcea was a loaf of bread for
the weight conscious woman in 1960's Britain. 'Slimcea Girl' is a
beautiful song by a band called Mono.
Mono were
not very successful. Have a listen to this track and you will be dumbfounded
as to why not. I am. Siobhan
sounds like
a young Dusty Springfield as she wearily
recounts the tale of a sad and lonely lady full of regret. The soaring
gospel-esque backing vocals are genius. The minimal ripples of soft
electronics conjure up a dream world where this pretty lady rattles around a
wet weekend in sixties London. Mono were used in a car ad for TV a few years
back ('Life In Mono') and despite their debut album, 'Formica Blues', being (re)released a total of three times, fame
and fortune didn't come knocking. They released a few singles either side of
this track along with the album, all of which are of such a high quality
that I beg you to track their material down and listen to it. The last thing
they released as far as I am aware was a track called 'Madhouse' on the soundtrack to the
mediocre re-make of 'Psycho'. Now missing, presumed disbanded.
"I can't stand the madness
here...", sing Tiny Monroe on this
shimmering indie-pop treat. It was all so very promising. Sigh. Not only was
this one of the best singles of 1994 but it also laid claim to the best
sleeve artwork of the year, and possibly the best ever full stop! A four
piece band fronted by the striking NJ,
Tiny Monroe
had a brief innings on the
Brit Pop circuit, offering up more glamour and attitude than
Louise Wener
could ever possibly hope to
achieve with rivals Sleeper
and then
some. I wanted 'Select' magazine to be
right - they were a Banshees
for the
1990s! But after 4 singles and an unsuccessful album ('Volcanoes')
for new indie label Laurel (who later
brought us Menswe@r), they were no more.
Where is NJ now? Tears in my eyes.
Sniff.
Nan
Vernon originally came from Canada I think and she somehow ended
up as a Spiritual Cowboy with
Dave Stewart in the early 1990's. This
lead to a recording contract with Dave's
own label Anxious Records (also then
home to Curve) and a series of beautiful
releases, which failed to ignite any real interest at the time. 'Elvis
Waits...' is a beautiful, haunting, timeless piece of pop which I
often turn to when I'm needing a good rousing. It was her fifth and final
single release here in the UK and I hope you all enjoy it. It's taken from
her only album, 'Manta Ray', from 1994 (it came out in the USA
a year later after a bit of remixing). I just found out a bit more on Nan
'Blonde pop' was almost a genre
around the late 1980s which basically applied to any indie/jingle jangle
combo with a blonde female singer (The Primitives,
The Darling Buds,
Transvision Vamp, etc.) who to varying
degrees vaguely sounded like Blondie.
The Motorcycle Boy
were often lumped
into this category due to the beautiful Alex
(ex-Shop Assistants) and that's how I
came to prick up my ears. Theirs is a sad tale, a clutch of smashing indie-pop
singles and an album in the can for major label Chrysalis (1989's
'Scarlet'), but sadly, it just
was not to be. The album never got a release and it slowly just came to a
close after another couple of lost singles (
Joan Collins
and Antony
Newley got married, had sex and had a kid. That explains
Tara Newley, but what about
E-Zee Possee? Well, they had that crazy
Ecstasy anthem 'Everything Starts With A E' featuring
MC Kinky out on
Boy George's More Protein
label in 1989, followed by some less popular singles and a funny album.
Basically, Jeremy Healy and a host of
other producers and musicians made up E-Zee Possee
and they drafted in the odd guest vocalist. So, we're back to
Tara. I can't explain why I
love this song
so much, it kind of stuck in my brain when I rescued it from a charity shop
a few years back. It sounds a little like Deee-lite,
too. Tara herself went on to record for
the ZTT label and released the eco-friendly single
'Save Me From Myself' in 1994 (may include that as an mp3 at a
later date BTW). Apparently, she recorded a whole album but it remains
unreleased except for a promo cassette sampler. I'd kill to hear it...
anyone got it?
Saint Etienne-esque with a drizzle of
Dubstar, Day
Behaviour just couldn't get a look in back in the day. I dunno
what the problem was, they were perhaps a little too inoffensive or chilled
out to make a lasting impression in 1997, but I have a soft spot for their
little bit of musical output. Check out the album 'Adored',
currently cheap as chips around the net and there abouts. It's quite
special... epic, swirling, bright and breezy. The ideal soundtrack to...
errr, summer. May I also recommend Peach
for all the same reasons. More Pims, anyone?
The
Raincoats were one of Kurt Cobain's
favourite bands. This is well documented. He was the catalyst for getting
their 3 late 70s/early 80s femme-punk albums re-issued on CD and their
subsequent reformation for 1993's patchy 'Looking Through The Shadows'
album. I wonder what he made of the spin-off group formed by
Gina Birch and Vicky Aspinall, though?
Dorothy were a super-polished, sophisticated pop duo, like a posh
Voice Of The Beehive, who offered up a
few flop singles in the late 1980's on Chrysalis.
I adore this, their take on Prince song,
'Still Waiting'. There's very little information around on the
whys and where's of Dorothy, but
sometimes, all you need to know is the music... Oh I must mention the
forthcoming solo album from the other Raincoat,
Ana Da Silva - it's great! Out on
Chicks On Speed Records in February
2005!
One of the most underrated girl
groups ever, (We've Got A) Fuzzbox (And We're Gonna
Use it!) captured my imagination as an 11 year old boy and they
still have a firm grip. This track is a fantastic B-side to the
puppet-praising 'International Rescue' single from 1989. I
heartily recommend the great new 'best of' set, 'Look At The Hits On
That'. Buy it