Forty Five Minutes Of Tim Burgess

Tim Burgess is an instantly recognisable figure as frontman, singer and lyricist of The Charlatans, the young man with the pudding bowl haircut of Indian Rope and The Only One I Know who has weathered the fads, phases and storms of the music industry and life and who still looks barely a day older than he did back in 1990. Outside The Charlatans he's written three books (including the brilliantly titled Tim Book Two), all three showing him to be a considered, thoughtful and witty writer. He has made six solo albums, from 2003's countryfied I Believe to the synths and FXed sax of Same Language, Different Worlds with Peter Gordon, with songs written and recorded with Lambchop's Kurt Wagner in between. He has a record label O Genesis which has put out solo albums by members of Factory Floor, by Martin Duffy and by The Membranes, among others. There is, it is fair to say, more to him than met the eye when he first shook his fringe with The Charlatans in January 1989. 

Today's mix is a selection of Tim Burgess solo/ with others/ outside The Charlatans that starts out with some gloriously frazzled, hazy ambient drift and ends with some block rocking beats and industrial thump. 

Forty Five Minutes Of Tim Burgess

• Stoned Alone Again Or (Seahawks Remix)
• Tobacco Fields
• Another Version Of The Truth
• Hours (Tandy Love Remix)
• Begin (Carter Tutti Remix)
• The Economy II (Prince Fatty Remix)
• Life Is Sweet (Album Version)
• White (Factory Floor- Gabe Gurnsey Remix)

Stoned Alone Again Or was a 2012 one off 12" single, remixed by Seahawks as a ten minute ambient epic, indie rock taken as far away from its roots as it can go. Seahawks are ambient/ Balearic duo Jon Tye and Pete Fowler, who have released umpteen albums and singles since 2010- I recommend Escape Hatch, Starways and Paradise Freaks as good starting points. 

Tobacco Fields is from Tim's 2012 solo album Oh No I Love You. It is a beauty, with barroom piano, a frazzled vocal and an ambient backdrop, co- written with Kurt Wagner. 

Another Version Of The Truth was on As I Was Now, a solo album recorded between Christmas and New Year in 2008 but not released until 2018- music that is experimental, krauty and pop. The group for the album consisted of My Bloody Valentine's bassist Debbie Goodge, Josh Haywood from The Horrors, Martin Duffy and Ladyhawke. 

Hours was on Oh No I Love You. Some editions of the CD came with a disc of remixes- the Tandy Love remix is by Andy Votel. Others on the second disc were by Tom Furse of The Horrors and Gabe Gurnsey of Factory Floor, whose remix finishes this mix. At the time Nik Void of Factory Floor was Tim's partner.

Begin is from Same Language, Different Worlds, an album made with New York avant garde composer Peter Gordon, a member of the legendary Love Of Life Orchestra. Begin was remixed by Carter Tutti, Chris Carter and Cosey Tutti of Throbbing Gristle/ Chris and Cosey fame/ infamy. Oh Men, also on the album, was remixed by Stephen Morris and Gillian Gilbert, Peaking Lights, Grumbling Fur and Carter Tutti- that's quite the line up. 

The Economy II is also from Oh No I Love You, dubbed out in 2013 by the superb Prince Fatty.

In 1995 The Chemical Brothers released their debut album Exit Planet Dust. Tim had been a regular at The Social, the Sunday afternoon/ evening party thrown weekly by Heavenly Records and Tom and Ed at The Albany on Great Portland Street. Tim sang on Life Is Sweet, a song which became the album's second single. On an album not short of bangers, Life Is Sweet still stands out- a furious synth riff, crunching beats, whooshes, sirens and a dirty bassline, and Tim's vocal, a celebration of mid- 90s hedonism. The Chemical Brothers returned the favour by working with The Charlatans on 1997's Tellin' Stories, most notably on One To Another.

Forty Minutes Of Seahawks

Since 2010 Seahawks, a duo made up of Pete Fowler and Jon Tye, have released a hatful of albums, singles and EPs, plus done multiple remixes of other artists- dreamy, drifting, brightly coloured ambient/ Balearic/ cosmic music that ebbs and flows in waves. The mix below is a sample of some of their own tracks with a couple of remixes stitched in, perfect for the heat that's arrived this weekend and which promises to be something else next week. Music to do nothing to. 

Forty Minutes Of Seahawks

I've listened back to this mix several times since putting it together and have to say it sounds really good- that's all credit to Seahawks. Making a lovely sounding mix from their music was not difficult at all. Islands, Missed and Rainbow Sun are all from the Paradise Freaks album, released in 2014. The Pye Corner Audio remix of Sky Is You comes from a remix EP the same year that also featured a Prins Thomas remix that I couldn't fit on here but is very much worth checking out. Escape Hatch is from their 2016 album of the same name. The remix of Tim Burgess, every gloriously broken and wasted eleven minutes of it came out in 2012 and their remix of Private Agenda was one of last year's highlights from a six track remix mini- album called Submersion.

• Seahawks: Islands
• Private Agenda: Malanai Ascending (Seahawks Remix)
• Seahawks: Rainbow Sun
• Seahawks: Escape Hatch
• Seahawks: Sky Is You (Head Tek Pye Corner Audio Mix)
• Tim Burgess: A Gain/ Stoned Alone Again (Seahawks Remix)
• Seahawks: Missed

Isolation Mix Five

Five weeks into these isolation mixes already- doesn't time fly when you're socially restricted? There is a higher BPM count on this mix but also some folky darkness and post punk dread from Nick Drake and A Certain Ratio respectively, some dance grooves from Ellis Island Sound and Scott Fraser, the ultra Balearic vibes of Richard Norris' Time And Space Machine remix of A Mountain Of One, some 1990 class from World Unite when Creation Records went all E'd up and dancey, Andrew Weatherall remixing Moby and Wayne Coyne in epic style, half of The Clash with Frank Ocean and Diplo plus the West Los Angeles Childrens' Choir (brought to you in association with Converse) from 2014 and a very long Seahawks remix of Tim Burgess, some headspinning ambient noise set against Harry Dean Stanton's monologue from Paris, Texas. 'Yep, I know that feeling'.

Tracklist:

Nick Drake: ‘Cello Song

A Certain Ratio: Winter Hill

Ellis Island Sound: Intro, Airborne, Travelling (Scott Fraser Remix)

A Mountain Of One: Ride (The Time And Space Machine Remix)

World Unite: World Unite

Moby Ft. Wayne Coyne: Another Perfect Life (Andrew Weatherall Remix)

Frank Ocean, Mick Jones, Paul Simonon and Diplo: Hero

Tim Burgess: A Gain// Stoned Alone Again Or (Seahawks Remix) v Harry Dean Stanton, Nastassja Kinski and Ry Cooder: I Knew These Two People, Paris Texas soundtrack

Impulse Begin

Some forward thinking electronica from 1982 from the combined talents of Chris And Cosey, then fresh out of Throbbing Gristle and enjoying the freedom of their independence. Chris Carter pioneered the use of all kinds of equipment, not least the Roland 303 bassline synth and Roland 808 drum machine, back before most people had even heard of either.

Impulse

They've never really stopped and in recent years have made some wonderful remixes. This one is a case in point, a sweetly euphoric version of a Tim Burgess and Peter Gordon collaboration from 2016.

Begin (Carter Tutti Remix)

I'm part way through Cosey Fanni Tutti's autobiography, titled art sex music, and without giving too much away she has lived an eye-opening life, a life lived as art, and in the 1970s put up with some very shitty behaviour from Genesis P. Orridge.

Rising

This bit between Christmas and New Year is actually the best bit of the festive season, not quite sure exactly what day it is or what you're supposed to be doing. Into this blur of overdoing it and the general fug that surrounds us I'm going to chuck these random pieces of pop culture. The picture above shows Kirk Douglas, a Christmas film kind of bloke if ever there was one (The Vikings, Paths Of Glory, Spartacus) relaxing in his mid-century modern style home. Kirk recently turned 102 years old.

One of the best presents I got this Christmas was Beastie Boys Book, a book by the two surviving Beastie Boys and their associates that is no ordinary rock autobiography and all the better for it. In one chapter Ad Rock describes his Toyota Corolla and the mixtape that sound-tracked that period of his life in the early 90s. Ad Rock says that The Humpty Dance by Digital Underground is the greatest record since the invention of recorded sound (or something similar) and let's be fair, it is a classic golden age of hip-hop, crossover dance hit. Based around a Sly and The Family Stone drum sample rapper Humpty Hump (rapper Shock G's alter ego) brags about his amazing sexual prowess, attained despite his comical appearance, the boring uniformity of other rappers and the Humpty Dance, a loose, anything goes, just-get-down-and-do-it kind of dance as opposed to the drill formation dancing of MC Hammer. Sure, there may be aspects of the song that are a little dated but we could all do with a little bit of doing the humpty hump...



Two apologies- I don't have an mp3 of The Humpty Dance at the moment so it's video only and also the video is TV friendly so bleeps out the profanities.

Tim Burgess is a good Twitter follow and always seems like a really nice bloke. He recently tweeted this clip, The Charlatans in October 1990 at an amphitheatre somewhere on the West Coast of the USA playing their debut single Indian Rope- loose limbed, organ led garage shuffle. There's a really nice breakdown section in this live version...



Indian Rope is a fine song, a sign that from the start this group were not bandwagoneers at all and had a winning way with a tune.

Indian Rope

Lastly, for no reason other than it needed to go somewhere and this post is as good a palce as any, here is Robert Palmer, live at San Diego State University in 1987, the man from Addicted To Love and Some Guys Have All The Luck, covering Husker Du's New day Rising, the righteous blast of hardcore punk that opened the album of the same name.



Have a moment to let that sink in. And here's Bob, Grant and Greg cleaning your ears out back in 1985.

New Day Rising

I Liked You Before

Tim Burgess has recently released a solo album he recorded and then forgot about. At a loose end between Christmas and New Year ten years ago and having only just given up the booze he gathered a few mates around him at The Charlatans studio in Northwich- Martin Duffy on keyboards, Debbie Googe on bass, Josh from The Horrors on guitar and Steffan from The Klaxons on drums. They recorded ten songs and this one, Clutching Insignificance, is the opener to the album (As I Was Now), a little bit ragged but insistent and intent on sticking in the memory.

Begin

In 2016 Tim Burgess (Charlatan) put out an album he'd recorded with Peter Gordon (Love Of Life Orchestra and Arthur Russell collaborator). It was a funny record, full of hidden treasure- synths, drum machines, saxophone and Tim's sweetly sung vocals. This remix of the opening song by Carter Tutti (formerly Chris and Cosey and of Throbbing Gristle) is lovely, gliding by, leaving you better than it found you.



It was on free download on Soundcloud for a while but isn't any more (but you might find it here).

Around

Tim Burgess and Peter Gordon's Same Language, Different Worlds album is full of low key pleasures, little analogue synth parts burbling away, sax drifting in, Tim's hazy vocals. This remix of Around by Sonic Boom adds further tension, loops and some chopped up, repetitive parts.

Unguarded

Tim Burgess has done an album with Peter Gordon, due out on Tim's O Genesis label in early September. Tim's work outside The Charlatans is full of surprises, from various guest vocal performances to his solo album written with Lambchop's Kurt Wagner. This is the furthest from Madchester and Britpop yet- and it seems unfair to continue to pigeonhole both Tim and The Charlatans with those two labels. Peter Gordon is a New York based composer, experimental jazz, film scores and so on. He worked closely with Arthur Russell and his own Love Of Life Orchestra recordings are well worth checking out. The first song from Same Language Different Worlds came out digitally in June and is a little wonder, pitter-patter drumming and a drifting sax, swirling aquatic melodies and Tim's hazy vocals floating along on top.



A second song, Begin, has appeared online this month- metallic percussion, some synths and more phased vocals. All in all, it's a long way from Knebworth 1996.

Life Is Sweet

Today is the first day of my summer holidays- school finished yesterday and now seven weeks off beckons, with a fortnight in France coming up. I'm starting a completely new role in September so will have to go in for a few days here and there but still, seven weeks off.



This Chemical Brothers with Tim Burgess song from Exit Planet Dust has been getting repeated plays round here this week- cracking rhythm and noise and Tim's nasal vocal. Tim went on to work with Ed and Tom several times, best perhaps on The Charlatans' One To Another single.

Lot To Say

Yesterday was quite eventful in its own way. I didn't get up early and go to queue up outside Piccadilly Records for Record Shop Day. I went for a bike ride and managed 45km in the sunshine. Very nice. Then at about 2.00 pm I went into town and popped into Piccadilly Records where I got the Andrew Weatherall remix of Noel Gallagher's In The Heat Of The Moment and the Timothy J Fairplay and Scott Fraser remixes of Finitribe's 101 (on bright orange vinyl), both of which I wanted. The 7" single of Johnny Marr's cover of Depeche Mode's I Feel You had long since sold out.



In a way I wasn't too bothered. I expected it would be sold out and I'm not sure I like it that much anyway. The mechanical guitar riff is good but I was never very fond of the stadium rock Depeche Mode and don't especially like the song.

Looking at the list of releases for Record Shop Day 2015 it looked to me like at least half of them were re-issues, in some cases of albums which really don't need re-issuing as they're widely available anyway. Stuff that is actually new was in a minority. Piccadilly records was extremely busy, large numbers of young folk, make and female. I hope they keep buying records and that this isn't just a retro-fad.

Tim Burgess of The Charlatans was in the record shop, just hanging about. He was interviewed by Sky News roving vinyl news team and was due to dj in store at 5. A few people asked for pictures and autographs. I browsed a little bit and then went for a cup of tea at the Manchester Coffee Co. just down Oldham Street towards Piccadilly Gardens. As I ordered my brew I noticed Tim having a coffee at the back and ten minutes later as he left we had a chat- about me seeing The Charlatans at The Albert Halls a few weeks back, me seeing them in 1989 ('wow' he said, 'long time ago'), Record Shop Day and my purchases, and the fact that he was djing while United play Chelsea (we lost, one-nil. Weakened team due to injuries, away from home, played fairly well, not too disappointed). I have to say, he seemed like a lovely fella.

This is from The Charlatans recent Modern Nature lp. If you haven't got it, you're missing out.

Lot To Say

By the time I wanted to go home the tram system southbound was down so I had to get a bus. A bus. I haven't been on a service bus for years.

This is a Charlatans single from 2008, when no-one was interested anymore. Oh Vanity is Time Is Tight crossed with New Order and there's nowt wrong with that.

Be My Spiderwoman I'll Be Your Spiderman

I got a late offer of a ticket for The Charlatans last night and took it, having deliberated for a second or two. They played Albert Hall, an old Methodist Chapel on Peter Street in town, a stunning venue as this picture I borrowed from the band's page shows- stained glass windows, a proper balcony, a good size, enough bar staff and really good sound.

I first saw The Charlatans in 1989 at Liverpool Poly and have seen them three or four times since. With twenty five years behind them they've got a proper greatest hits set, sprinkled with songs from the new lp (Modern Nature), none of which sounded out of place, especially So Oh (played early on) and Come Home Baby (played near the end). The organ is out the front, on stage and soundwise, especially on the groovers like opener Forever and wiggy Weirdo. Mark Collins guitar playing dominates on some of the 90s songs, How High  and a raucous North Country Boy (a song that always hits me- a friend bought me the 7" when Isaac was born and I always associate the two). But behind the organ and guitar is the much under-appreciated bass playing of Martin Blunt, pushing everything on, 60s mod style. Tellin' Stories is wonderful, a singalong cut through with sadness. The Only One I Know causes mass dancing. Set closer Just When You're Thinking Things Over is glorious and ragged and One To Another, with those huge multi-tracked pianos, pounding rhythm and stream of consciousness lyrics, sounds more and more like it was written for us, y'know for me and you.

Tim Burgess, blonde hair and black leggings (!), is all smiles all night, waving to the balcony and raising hands and fists to the crowd and sings his heart out. The reception this band get is amazing, for a group who could easily have been washed up and finished several times during the last two and a half decades. The last song of the night at the end of the encore is Sproston Green. I have no end of love for this song- I saw them play it at the Royal Court in Liverpool in 1990. It took the roof of then and it does now, the tension building intro and then the explosion of organ, guitar, bass and drums. A mini psych-classic and proof that even right back at the start there was a bit more to this band.

Oh Men

Stephen Morris and Gillian Gilbert, the two members of New Order who don't hate each other, have done a remix of a Tim Burgess solo song, Oh Men. Tim co-wrote the song with Kurt Wagner (Lambchop) and Peter Gordon (Love Of Life Orchestra). The Other Two remix sounds a bit late era New Order, a bit Kraftwerk. It is sprightly and out now on vinyl (along with the wonderful Peaking Lights remix and versions from Grumbling Fur and Carter Tutti). There are only 500 copies worldwide. They've still got some at the ever brilliant Piccadilly Records.

No-one falls out quite like Manchester bands do they? Bernard and Hooky, Morrissey and Marr, Morrissey and Rourke, Morrissey and Joyce, Ian Brown and John Squire, Ian Brown and Reni, all of Happy Mondays, Liam and Noel... I'd like to see an Mcr loathing-each-other supergroup. Put them all in a rehearsal room and see what happens.

Look At The Sun

This is just the sort of thing for a Sunday morning, a blissed out, sun drenched song from Seahawks with Tim Burgess on vocals. When I first saw The Charlatans at a tiny venue in 1989 doing Indian Rope I wouldn't have put much money on Tim Burgess still being around twenty-five years later but here he is, a survivor as has been said many times before, and doing stuff that is much better than many of his contemporaries are currently doing.



There is also a very nice Prins Thomas remix if you fancy a version with a bit more shimmy shimmy.



The Seahawks album is out in September, which might be a little too late to do much looking at the sun. Mind you, we spent two weeks in the Loire valley in August and we didn't see too much sun there. This was the view from our tent more than once. Our neighbours were flooded out and started digging a levee before they were moved.

When the sun did come out it was lovely- this is the Medieval bridge at Beaugency. The Loire valley is beautiful and we met lots of very nice people on the campsite. French roads are amazing for cycling on- great condition, little traffic and motorists that don't try to run you off the road. It's just good to be away from home sometimes, especially when the wine, cheese and bread are so cheap.

The Loire valley is beautiful and we met lots of very nice people on the campsite. French roads are amazing for cycling on- great condition, little traffic and motorists that don't try to run you off the road. It's just good to be away from home sometimes, especially when the wine, cheese and bread are so cheap. We found the time to do a bit of exploring. This is Grande Pierre, a menhir in a farmer's corn field in the middle of nowhere, north of Blois. Not everyone in our party got on the prehistoric tip. Our eldest refused to get out of the car to look at it and child number two was fairly unimpressed. 'It's just a stone in a field'.

And this is Special Sport, my favourite shop in the village of Mer. In France the shops open at about 9.30 and stay open as late as midday. Then everyone shuts up shop and takes a two and a half hour lunch break before ambling back to work at around three, going through until about half six. No-one looks particularly stressed out, no-one rushes anywhere, things get done eventually. I think they may be onto something. Although I'm not sure Special Sport has survived the recession.

Duffy

Not that Duffy, this Duffy- Martin Duffy, keyboard player for Primal Scream since the late 80s and before that in Felt (and briefly a Charlatan following the death of Rob Collins). Duffy has a solo album coming out, not coincidentally on Tim Burgess' O Genesis record label, and some of the tracks have begun to appear on line. This one is a spooky piece with some minor key tinkering and sawing noises and bodes well for the lp, Assorted Promenades (out on Monday).




Duffy has done solo recordings before. This song, a beautiful piece of hushed, end-of-the-night gospel was sung and played by Martin, and closed Primal Scream's electro-rock/terrorism album Evil Heat in 2002.

Space Blues #2

Lit Up

Tim Burgess remixed by Peaking Lights. This is hot off the press and sounding very nice indeed, gorgeous summer pianos, a stomping electronic beat and Tim's vocals. It won't cool you down but will put a smile on your face as you cross wearily back to the fridge for something cold. Eight minutes and fifty three seconds of lovely stuff and you can listen to it here.

Spent The Summer Holed Up In A Room

A Christmas song for you- hey, it's the twelfth of December, in two weeks it'll all be over. In 1993 St Etienne joined up with The Charlatans' Tim Burgess to record this song, a festive Europop duet. St Etienne's own Bob Stanley was born on the 25th of December 1964. I'm hoping somebody has bought me Bob's new book Yeah Yeah Yeah for Christmas.

I Was Born On Christmas Day

Oh No He Loves Us

Tim Burgess' still-really-good-sounding album from last year Oh No! I Love You, co-written and recorded with Kurt Wagner from Lambchop, has already had some remixes released. I posted the Factory Floor and Andy Votel ones and there was a Django Django one I might have done too. Memory fails me at times. There are a few more just floating about the internet at the moment, and cos Tim loves us, they're free downloads. I'm still trying to convince people that Tim's solo album is worth their time- go on, give it a go.

Seahawks have done this slow, stately, ambientish one which hangs around very pleasantly for eleven minutes plus. Anton Newcombe from top underground rockers Brian Jonestown Massacre has done two, one of which- The Doors Of Then- is here. It is on a psychedelic tip.

You Are Going To Relax

Prince Fatty has dubbed out Tim Burgess in very fine style. I don't know if this has been released, possibly for Record Shop Day (?) but if it hasn't it should be. Summer bottled in a Soundcloud file.

Vortex

Vortex by Cyril Power.

And a connection to yesterday's postees The Charlatans, whose front man Tim Burgess was invited to sing with The Chemical Brothers on their Exit Planet Dust album- stands up pretty well I think. Some Chemical Brothers stuff has dated a bit to my ears, the huge drums and so on but this is good. A song that sounds like it's title and looks like this linocut.

Life Is Sweet