Category: Drugs

Posted on // 7 Comments

“Here Comes the Night … Oh! Oh!”

I consider myself a hopeless sucker for vocal pop.  But even I have my limits.  This was produced by the once-great master of sunshine pop, Curt Boettcher.  For more on him, listen to Andrew Hickey’s excellent episode on “My World Fell Down” by Sagittarius.

Disco was an odd phenomenon.  For a year or two people couldn’t get enough, then a massive “disco sucks” reaction set in.  I struggle to think of another popular genre that lost so many of its fans so quickly and vehemently.  I also struggle to think of a genre where so many artists from other genres so spectacularly made asses of themselves trying to cash in.

There’s also an extended club mix of “Here Comes the Night” posted on YouTube, if you really must.

Fun fact (just learned from Hickey): that’s Glen Campbell singing the lead on the verses of “My World Fell Down.”

Posted on // 9 Comments

Seeds Documentary!

Not sure how a doc about some of my favorite proto-punks got past me.  This goes straight to the top of my list if it’s available anywhere.

Posted on // 4 Comments

I’m Not Trying to Be Elvis

I noticed this was leaving the Criterion Channel, and figured I’d watch it. I never really knew much about Orion (Jimmy Ellis) or listened to him at all, dismissing him as an Elvis impersonator. I know y’all aren’t Elvis (RIP PBUH) devotees like I am, so I don’t know if you’d find it as fascinating, but I was transfixed. Also, there is a ZINGER about 3/4 in, that they focus on for about 5 seconds, that discusses who his real father is (you can guess), and why he may sound EXACTLY like Elvis when he sings. As someone who has listened to a lot more EP than you have, I mean Exactly.
Continue reading “I’m Not Trying to Be Elvis”

Posted on // 6 Comments

And Now For a Bassist Who Sucks

Who’s the opposite of Jamerson or McCartney?  Phil Lesh, of course.  I could not listen to all of this, I just sampled here and there.  What I did hear sounded like the noodlings of a tin-eared fifteen-year-old who recently took up bass.  There is nothing remotely interesting going on musically or technically.  What he needs is a nun to slap his hand with a ruler.

Posted on // 2 Comments

The War on Sugarlumps

“Here Come the Nice” was Marriott/Lane’s ode to their dealer.  The song clearly says, “he’s always there / if I need some speed,” but this one got past the Beeb censors, peaking at a respectable #12.  But sugarlumps?  Forget it. Maybe they were so busy looking for metaphorical drug references that they missed explicit ones.

Posted on // 5 Comments

Honeybus

For whatever reason, I found myself revisiting cult faves Honeybus over the weekend.  If you’re unfamiliar and craving some late 60’s psychedelic/baroque/folk/pop, they could be your fix.  I recommend streaming the anthology pictured above.  Some good hooks and harmonies throughout, though I found myself skipping a good amount of songs.  Your mileage may vary.  Perhaps due to the drug-addled times, there are some oddities, such as this otherwise good song marred by a fucking kazoo.  They had a top ten UK hit with this, which almost, just-about sounds like it could be a parody of the baroque pop of the time.

Speaking of twee pop parodies, nothing will ever surpass this masterpiece (said to be a parody of Ray Davies’ “Funny Face”) from Neil Innes, the man who would one day compose the entire Rutles catalog in something like a week.