Diving For Pearls

Side 1 of a CD-R compiled by Atom Boy @ Metropolis Studios, Shizuoka, Japan, for me and Mrs. K in November 2004.

I've split this 20-track compilation into two vinyl facsimile sides as tracks 10 and 11 feel very much like the close of one side and the start of another. Also, I'm recreating this mix and writing this post very, very late on a Friday night-into-Saturday morning and I'm likely to fall asleep at the keyboard if I attempt the whole mix in one go...

So, this was a gift from my sibling, who was living on the other side of the world at the time. I'm not quite sure what the occasion was - it was out of synch for an anniversary, birthday or Christmas gift so it may well have been a random act of generosity.

On paper, this side is a great mix of alternative classics from the 1980s, nudging into the 1990s, with a ton of teen favourites. The only thing that marred the original CD-R was that the compilation coincided with Atom Boy's discovery of open source mixing and editing software, so every track was cross-faded into the other, without exception to unfortunately irritating effect. My recreation has ditched that for a more traditional, but hopefully more sympathetic segue from one song to the next.

But I can't deny that the track listing is really very wonderful. Side 2 is equally beautiful and you won't have to wait too long to find out why.

1) Bedbugs And Ballyhoo (Single Version): Echo & The Bunnymen (1985)

2) Down On Mission Street (Album Version): Lloyd Cole & The Commotions (1984)

3) Life In A Northern Town (7" Mix): The Dream Academy (1985)

4) Powderfinger (Cover of Neil Young): Cowboy Junkies (1990)

5) An Elegant Chaos (Album Version): Julian Cope (1984)

6) Rainy Season (Album Version): Howard Devoto (1983)

7) Shipbuilding: Robert Wyatt (1982)

8) The End Of The Affair: Weekend (1982)

9) The Last Dictator I: Crime & The City Solution (1990)

10) For One Moment (Cover of Lee Hazlewood): Marc Almond (1986)

1982: La Varieté: 8

1982: Shipbuilding EP: 7

1983: Jerky Versions Of The Dream: 6

1984: Rattlesnakes: 2

1984: World Shut Your Mouth: 5

1985: Bring On The Dancing Horses EP: 1

1985: The Dream Academy: 3

1986: A Woman's Story EP: 10

1990: Paradise Discotheque: 9

1990: The Caution Horses: 4

Side One (40:10)

Plague Songs

In 2006, 4AD released an album called Plague Songs, where a variety of artists perform songs based on the ten biblical plagues described in Exodus. The songs were originally commissioned and performed as part of Exodus Day on 30th September 2006 and you can read more about this on The Margate Exodus website.

The line-up is impressive: Brian Eno & Robert Wyatt, Laurie Anderson, Cody ChesnuTT, The Tiger Lillies, Imogen Heap, Scott Walker, Rufus Wainwright, King Creosote, Stephin Merritt/The Magnetic Fields and Klashnekoff; the reality is that the album is a hit-and-miss affair. I picked up my copy from a bargain bin at Fopp in Bristol many years ago for a couple of quid, so it was worth the punt.

 

You can listen to the entire Plague Songs album on YouTube. Rather than picking a "favourite" tune, I've mashed Scott Walker's acapella with Brian Eno & Robert Wyatt's layered 'human fly' swarm, with a little bit of tweaking and editing here and there to create a composite sampler. 

 

Normal service will hopefully resume on Friday. 

 

Flies / Darkness (Khayem's Phlegmatic Mash-Up): Brian Eno / Robert Wyatt / Scott Walker (2021)

 

Forever Green

On 27th August 2020, I had the privilege of having my first guest posting on The Vinyl Villain, part of the long-running and always excellent Imaginary Compilation Album series. I chose to feature Scritti Politti aka Green Gartside, in my opinion one of the finest voices and songwriters there is. The ICA featured 10 songs, spanning 1979-2020, plus a bonus EP with 4 Green Gartside collaborations and guest spots. 

 

To celebrate - and in growing excitement at the prospect of seeing Scritti Politti live in concert at the Shepherd's Bush Empire in London in 5 weeks' time - here's both sides of a mixtape that I recorded on 24th April 2000. I'm pretty sure I did a previous version of this for a girlfriend in the early 1990s, with a fairly similar tracklist. The mixtape title is a play on Gartside's name but it would also have been inspired by the completely unrelated song by Finitribe. 

 

This selection focuses very squarely on the 'pop' period, covering the albums Songs To Remember (1982), Cupid & Psyche 85 (1985) and Provision (1988), plus a few 12" mixes thrown in for good measure. Several tracks have been taken from vinyl rips and earlier CD issues, so please excuse the variable quality across each side but turn up the volume and enjoy some perfect pop sounds for the next hour and a half.

Today's post is dedicated to JC, for his encouragement and positive feedback with each guest post, and The Vinyl Villain family, who have been a constant source of inspiration and motivation, particularly in the pandemic years, both on TVV and their own music blogs. Thank you!

 

Side One (46:23)

1) First Boy In This Town (Lovesick) (Extended Remix) (1988)

2) A Little Knowledge (Album Version ft. B.J. Nelson) (1985)

3) The 'Sweetest Girl' (Album Version ft. Robert Wyatt) (1982)

4) Sugar And Spice (1988)

5) Faithless (Triple Hep 'n' Blue) (Part I) (12" Edit) (1982)

6) Overnite (1988)

7) Philosophy Now (Album Version) (1988)

8) Perfect Way (Album Version) (1985)

9) Gettin', Havin' And Holdin' (1982)

Side Two (46:28)

1) Absolute (Version) (Remix By Gary Langan) (1984)

2) Best Thing Ever (Album Version) (1987)

3) Jacques Derrida (Extended Version) (1982)

4) Sex (1982)

5) Hypnotize (Long) (Remix By Gary Langan) (1984)

6) Asylums In Jerusalem (Album Version) (1982)

7) Wood Beez (Pray Like Aretha Franklin) (Album Version) (1985)

8) Boom! There She Was (Sonic Property Mix By Steve Thompson & Michael Barbiero) (UK Edit ft. Roger Troutman) (1988)

9) Oh Patti (Don't Feel Sorry For Loverboy) (12" Version ft. Miles Davis) (1988)

Side One (46:23)

Side Two (46:28)

If that's whetted your appetite for more Scritti Politti goodness, I posted another item in July, featuring a selection of radio sessions.

 

Scritti Politti's official website lists the upcoming UK tour dates in September and October and available tickets and (as yet) nothing else. In November, Scritti Politti will be supporting O.M.D. on 6 dates of their Architecture & More UK tour

Happy Land

From 1993, Ultramarine with Robert Wyatt on vocals and lyrics adapted from a parody of the popular patriotic Victorian song of the same name.

My favourite version is the remix by Aswad's drummer & founding member Angus Gaye aka Drummie Zeb, with it's vocal and dub halves. You'll find it on the Barefoot EP from 1994 and 2011's expanded digital version of the United Kingdoms albums.

Happy Sunday!

 

Ultramarine - Happy Land (promo video) 

Ultramarine - Happy Land (Remix By Drummie Zeb)