AND we're back...who's for some "Swedish Melodic Death Metal"?

Well, me niether, really, but this computer today has made me want to KILL, so let's break this one
out, it's decent, if you go for this thing sometimes when you feel like killing your computer......it's still acting crazy, but I think I can get by for a while, frustrating as hell though.

OK, Sweden has given us some metal and stoner rock, and seem to be the forerunners of Viking/Death rock (you KNEW I had to get a VIKINGS reference in there......I  have no idea why my font just changed for no reason, try to deal with it for the rest of the post and I'll try to correct it later.......just ONE of the insane things this machine has been doing of late, why I'm in a "death metal" mood.......anyway, anyone watch the VIkings decapitate the Falcons yesterday? Teddy Bridgewater!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Lets get to the track list before my font changes to Greek or something, I continue to try to get this damn thing operational so I can continue my ALMOST daily posting, at least admire  tenacity.........and my font changes back in mid-word.......shaking my damn head. TRY to be back tomorrow, maybe with some Donovan or something to ease my frayed nerves (no not REALLY)

01 THE DUSKFALL-Agoraphobic/02 AT THE GATES-Slaughter of the Soul/03 SOILWORK-Razorlives/04 IN FLAMES-Biosphere/05 ABLAZE MY SORROW-Heartless/06 DARK TRANQUILITY-Dry Run/07 BLINDED COLONY-Legacy (Slaves In the Name of Christ)/08 ARCH ENEMY-Dead Eyes See No Future/09 AMON AMARTH-The Hero/10 SLUMBER-Rapture/11 HYPOCRISY-Weed Out the Weak/12 SONIC SYNDICATE-My Soul at #000000/13 DARKANE-Contaminated/14 SCAR SYMMETRY-Seeds of Rebellion/15 CIPHER SYSTEM-Complete/16 MARAMON-Why/17 SKYFIRE-Patterns/18 SYSTEM SHOCK-Engine Failure/19 SKILLER-Castle of Flame/20 AVATAR-Queen of Blades

Not a lot of stuff I have a WHOLE lot of, I just dabble in this stuff a tiny bit.......I DO have a whole
bunch of stuff from In Flames if any of ya are interested in that.........we'll see what happens, but again, if I am gonna disappear for a day or two I'll leave a message via my Kindle!

Vikings 41-Saints 28...........yep.

Overground's 1980 Punk Compilations

Spider just sent me this one yesterday, and while I am fairly certain I already have one around here
somewhere, and just to be sure it's available on the Bay, so it's readilly available, BUT it also comprehensive and most enjoyable for what it is supposed to be..........many little known singles here, as well as some demos and I'm sure there's some stuff even punk afficianados may be lacking.......4 discs here, all with the theme of Anarchy! which you will remember was quite the concept in those early 80's......in general and on paper it (anarchy) doesn't really work out all that well, but ohhh, we were all zany, know it all tykes back then. Enjoy this music, as I said, I bet at least SOME of it is new to you, and thanks to Spider for sending it to me as well as thanks to Overground records for comiling this monster.

Volume 1 "Anti War", includes one I've always really enjoyed, Flowers in the Dusbin's "November's Song", as well as notable anti-war numbers such as "The Blood Is On Your Hands" from the Insitagators, Youth-In-Asia's "When the Wind Blows", "Government Lies" by Anti System and a total of twenty three shotgun blasts of pure 1980 punk, just the way it was1

The Second Volume, "Anti-State" is loaded as well, how about "Progress" from A Flux of Pink Indians, "Bully Boys" from the fab Poison Girls, noted anarchists Chumbawumba chip in with "Revolution", and "The Plague" by Synyx.......a fine conceptual piece (as is the entire 4 disc package), strange it isn't better known, at least here in the USA.

Volume 3 "Anti Society", is also loaded with middle-finger flips to the world, Alternative us the strangely titled "Where are Your Hiroshimas?", "Our Gods Are Falling Down By Thatcher on Acid", "Your Military" is presented by Icons of Filth, and "Stop Vivisection Now" from Oi Polloi to cherry pick a few......

Fianlly we have Volume 4, "Anti Capitalism", yet another 20-some blasts of 2:00 minute trashes, to name a few, Slaughter of the Innocents "A Dark New Age",  Conflict's "Mighty and Superior", The Cravats "Xmp", and Kulturkampsf's "We Need No More........

Just my kind of comp......cohesive, not all over the place, tightly consructed, many, many obscure bands, which always leads to unexpected treasures..........you'll like this one, I don't doubt.

VOLUME 1 ANTI WAR-01 DIRT-Antiwar/02 ZOUNDS-War /03 METRO YOUTH-Red Rifles /  
04 FLOWERS I THE DUSTBIN-  November's Song /05 KRONSTADT UPRISING-  Blind People   
06 POLITICAL ASYLUM-  Disarm Or Die /07 ASTRONAUTS-Typically English Day/08 ANTHRAX-Introduction To War/09 A-HEADS -Forgotten Hero/10 THE SYSTEM- Dogs Of War /11 SANCTION- Unknown Soldier /12 INSTIGATORS- The Blood Is On Your Hands /13
 BLOOD ROBOTS-The Valley/14 LOST CHEEREES- Why Does It Have To Be A Dream/15 RIOT/CLONE-Neu-vestation/16 YOUTH IN ASIA-When the Wind Blows/17 PSYCHO FACTION-Threat/18 NAKED-What a Way To Die/19 OMEGA TRIBE-Duty Calls/20 ANTI-SYSTEM-Government Lies/21 FACTION-Obligatory War Song/22 RUBELLA BALLET-Bellfast/23 THE SNIPERS-I Know


VOLUME 2 ANTI STATE-01 A TOUCH OF HYSTERIA-The Rulers/02 URBAN DECAY-
Severalls/03 THE MOB-Gates of Hell/04 FLUX OF PINK INDIANS-Progress/05 BLYTH POWER-Hurling Time/06 AMEBIX-Axeman/07 SUBHUMANS-So Much Money/08 FAMOUS IMPOSTERS-Fighting Again/09 POISON GIRLS-Bully Boys/10 DECADENT FEW-Lowlife/11 TOXIC WASTE-Traditionally Yours/12 TOXIK EPHEX -Nothing's Permissive/13 DISRUPTERS-Stonehenge/14 DECADENCE-Within a Breath of Fresh Air/15 NO DEFENCES-Willing Cripples/16
CHUMBAWAMBA-Revolution/17 CIVILISED SOCIETY-So I Can Be Free/18 SINYX-The Plague/19 ASSASSINS-From the Gutter/20 POLEMIC-Deceptive Ideals/21  THE ERATICS-Captial Punishment


VOLUME 3 ANTI SOCIETY-01 REALITY CONTROL-Forgive Us/02 ICONS OF FILTH-Your Military/03 SEARS-Not Prepared/04 AOA-Who Are they Trying To Con?/05 LIBERTY-Revenge/06 DAVE ASGROVE BAND-I Rebel/07 KARMA SUTRA-Fantasy Ball/08 ICON AD-Seeing Is Believing/09 EXIT-Stance Christian Militia/10 ALTERNATIVE-Where Are Your Hiroshimas/11 LOOK MUMMY CLOWNS-Sell Your Dreams/12 REALITY-Acceptable Death Loss/13 THATCHER ON ACID-Our Gods Are Falling Down/14 PART 1-Salem/15 ANDY T-Exploitation/16 REVULSION-Out of Touch/17 APOSTLES-Berserker/18 UNTERMENSCH-Ashfield Valley Highkick/19 HAGAR THE WOMB-Dressed to Kill/20 STALAG 17-Doomsday Machine/21 OI POLLOI-Stop Vivisection Now/22 ANTI STATE CONTROL-M.U.S.E./23 MENTAL-Attack

VOLUME 4 ANTI CAPITALISM-01 CONFLICT-Mighty and Superio/02 LIVING LEGEND-Island Wars/03 CRASS-What Do You Want/04 ATOMIC FILTH-Atomic Filth/05 ANARKA AND POPPY- If It Dies We Die/06 D&V Comeback/07 COLD WAR-The Machinist/08 LEGION OF PARASITES-Massacre/09 EPILEPTICS-What Have You Got To Smile About/10 RUDIMENTARY PENI-Teenage Time Killer/11 TEARS OF DESTRUCTION-Death of a nation/12 DANBERT NOBACON-A Million Wat Tylers/13 KULTURKAMPF-We Need No More/14 DOMINANT PATRI-Death of Thomas/15 CRAVATS-Xmp/16 SLAUGHTER OF THE INNOCENTS-A New Dark Age/17 FREEEDOM-I Want My Life To Begin Again/18 CULTURE SHOCK-Ten Per Cent Off/19 ANATHEMA-Your Ulster /20 COMMITTEE-Ring the Bell/21 NIK TOCZEK-Road Crash/22 HEX-Decide/23 ANTISECT-Heresy


There ya go.......not exactly a bunch of "get down and party" type shit is it.......some of it is amusingly dated, some of it still rings true.......this is a very fine set for my money, let me know what you think about it!

Ducks DeLuxe

But a single album today, but a good and fairly scare one, from 1974 the self titled debut from Ducks Deluxe....The Ducks were guitarists Martin Belmont and Sean Tyla, bassist Ken Whaley, and drummer Magic Michael.......some blazing pub-rock, they went through various personnel shifts including Brinsley Scwhartz on vocals........these guys were like a who's who of "future" pub-rock stuff, as there are future members of The Rumour, the Motors, The Tyla Gang and more.......but let us focus on this 1974 gem,

Leading off with the stomping "Coast ot Coast", the whole thing is PURE pub rock, as true a sampling as one could dish out......narly every track goes pretty hard, "Fireball", "West Texas Trucking Board", "Don't Mind Rockin' Tonight"..........slipped by just before the New Wave era or it (along with, say the Motors or Brinsley Schwartz) may have become a bit more well known than they did.

Now, here's a shout out to Doug from Northern Ohio (owner of every piece of vinyl known to man), or even to my UK punk/new wave go-to guy Just Johnny, anyone have a copy of album # "Taxi To the Terminal Zone".....used to be one around here, no idea what happened to it, but can't find it on the web anywhere........really like to complete the set, but this one stands on it's own well enough, enjoy and report back, especially if you can run down a copy of "Taxi!"

DUCKS DELUXE-01 Coast to Coast/02 Nervous Breakdown/03 Daddy Put the Bomp/04 I Got You/05 Please Please Please/06 Fireball/07 Don't Mind Rockin' Tonight/08 Hearts On My Sleeve/09 Falling For that Woman/10 West Texas Trucking Board/11 Too Hot to Handle/12 It's All Over Now


Hope ya like this one, I always did, and I'd pretty much forgotten about it...........full report? Sweet Jane Richards, perhaps you will enjoy this one!

Ian Dury

Ian Dury was born the the same year as my father (!), 1942, hacked around the UK for a while before
gaining some notoriety in the 1970's punk/new wave scene, most notably as leader of Ian Dury & the Blockheads. To describe the Blockhead's sound would be somewhat difficult, as they blended reggae, rock, funk, soul, and Dury's love of music hall stuff......he compiled his initial lineup out of drummer Charley, bassist Norman Watt-Roy, keyboardist Mick Gallagher, guitarist John Turnbull, and saxaphonist Davey Payne......it took a while for the band to find a lable, finally landing at the most obvious place all along, of course, Stiff Records.

The resultant release is one of the semi-forgotten semi-classics of the era,"New Boots and Panties",  the great singles "Hit Me With Your Rythm Stick" and "Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll" are the standouts, other great stuff here, such as "What a Waste" and "Superman's Big Sister" and more a solid 3.5 to 4 star release as this is something of an aquired taste.

The next release was "Do it Yourself", a double disc which I would consider his best work by far, this one actually creditted to the Blockheads and not just to Ian........great stuff: "Inbetweenies", "Waiting For Your Taxi", "Sink My Boats" and PLENTY more, that is just Disc 1......Disc 2 has some fun demos, live cuts, alternate takes......I recommend the entire package if you wish simply dabble, this is where you'd wanna start.

He released a few more albums in his lifetime, and I am not crazy about them.......I know his more rabid fans will jump on me for this, but they just don't do it for me, and i don't have em anyways.....perhaps you could look to Pirate Bay, or maybe a blog friend will check in.......I jut don't find the remainder of his work to be "for Me".......

What I do have is a good live set from Licianatta, 1980, which features a fine version of "Fucking Ada", as well as "Rythm Stick" and "Sex and Drugs", really a good set, haven't seen it around all that much......."Pinkpop Festival 1981" covers a good bit of the same turf, (good version of "Clever Trever")......fans are gonna want these, dabblers may settle for "Do It Yourself".

WHile I'm at it, why not throw on "Stiffs Live", which I've probably posted here somewhere before, but Dury gets a couple tracks here, as well as Nick Lowe, Wreckless Eric, Elvis Costello, et al......

Well that's about all I GOT......hopefully someone from abroad will take interest and contribute some other things.......I was never a HUGE Ian Dury fan, but in small doses DID  find him amusing.....my knowledge of him is pretty lacking as well, although I do know he died a few years back from colorectal cancer (2000, at age 57........RIP)

NEW BOOTS AND PANTIES-01 Wake Up and Make Love With Me/02 Sweet Gene Vincent/03
I'm Partial to Your Abracadabra/04 My Old Man/05 Billericay Dickie/06 Sex & Drugs& Rock & Roll/07 Clever Trevor/08 If I Was With a Woman/09 Blockheads/10 Plainstow Patricia/11 Blackmail Man/12 What a Waste/13 Hit Me With Your Rythm Stick/14 There Ain't Half Been Some Clever Bastards/15 Common As Muck/16 Superman's Big Sister

DO IT YOURSELF DISC 1-01 Inbetweenies/02 Quiet/03 Don't Ask Me/04 Sink My Boats/05 Waiting For Your Taxi/06 This Is What We Find/07 Uneasy Sunny Day Hotsy Totsy/08 Mischief/09 Dance of the Screamers/10 Lullabye For Franci,es/11 What a Waste/12 Hit Me With Your Rythm Stick/13 There Ain't Half Been Some Clever Bastards/14 Reasons To Be Cheerful, Part 3/15 Common Is Muck/16 Reasons to Be Cheerful Part 3 (12" Version)

DO IT YOURSELF DISC 2-01 This Is What We Find/02 Boogie Woogie (Duff Em Up)/03 Quiet/04 In Betweenies (Backing Track)/05 Babys Kept Quiet (Uneasy Sunny Day Hotsy Totsy)/06 Blow (Instrumental)/07 Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll/08 I'm Partial To Your Abracadabra/09 Wake Up and Make Love With Me/10 Clever Trever/11 Sweet Gene Vincent/12 Billericay Dickie/13 My Old Man/14 If I Was With a Woman/15 Blockheads/16 Plaistow Patricia/17 Blackmail Man

LICIANATAN 12/13/80-01 Billy Jean and Me/02 Clever Trevor/03 Sink My Boat/04 Superman's Big Sister/05 Patricia-Yes and No/06 Uncoolohol/07 Delusions of Granduer/08 What a Waste/09 I Wanna Be Straight/10 Fucking Ada/11 Oh! Mr. Peanut/12 Plaistow Patricia/13 Hit Me With Your Rythm Stick/14 Sweet Gene Vincent/15 Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll

PINKPOP FESTIVAL 1981-01 Wake Up and Make Love With Me/02 Clever Trever/03 I Was With a Woman/04 Superman's Big Sister/05 Dance of the Crackpots/06 Plaistow Patricia/07 Sink My Boats/08 I Wanna Be Straight/10 Yes and No (Paula)/11 Billericay Dickie/12 Oh Mr Peanut/13 Hit Me With Your Rythm Stick/14 What a Waste/15 Sweet Gene Vincent/16 Blockheads/17 Sex and drugs and Rock and Roll

STIFFS LIVE-01 NICK LOWE-I Knew the Bride/02 NICK LOWE-Let's Eat/03 WRECKLESS
ERIC-Semaphore Signals/04 WRECKLESS ERIC-Leconnze Cherie/05 LARRY WALLIS-Police Car/06 ELVIS COSTELLO-I Just Don't Know What To Do/07 ELVIS COSTELLO-Miracle Man/08 IAN DURY & THE BLOCKHEADS-Billericay Dickie/09 IAN DURY & THE BLOCKHEADS-Wake Up and Make Love With Me/10 ALL (NICK LOWE, WRECKLESS ERIC, LARRY WALLIS, ELVIS COSTELLO, IAN DURY & THE BLOCKHEADS)-Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll & Chaos


Let me know wnat you think and what you'd like to see/hear......working a huge post on the Japanese metal band Loudness, STILL trying to figure the best way to sort the massive Yo La Tengo, just so much still more to do, it'll happen when I get to it........for know I hope you enjoy these!

Tool, Part 1

I am pretty excited about this one, Tool is one of my very favorites, gloom-rocking, artistic metal
geniuses of the1990's-early 2000's, taking Nine Inch Nails' self-loathing hatred and combining it with some absolutely stunning artsy-metal, I think they were GREAT, wonderful, and I mised their concert here because of it's scheduled date: September 11, 2001......what are ya gonna do? I've seen videos of their live shows and they are disturbing and incredible, their videos are freakish, and they are/were one brilliant and incredible band.......a perfect representative of the era from whence they came......the basc lineup was singer Maynard James Keenan, guitarist Adam Jones, bassist Justin Chancellor, and drummer Danny Carey.......if you are unfamiliar and are a fan of ANY "gloom rock", OR of any metal, you are doing yourself a disservice if Tool is not in heavy rotation......there ain't much bad the Big Boy can say about them, they have not made a truly bad album and HAVE released a couple of essential classics.....they also have spawned the (featured here, long, long ago) A Perfect Circle, who are/were great, as well as Pucsifer, basically Maynard's solo project, which I may or may not tack onto the end of this post, depending on the response.

OK, Tool......formed in LA in 1990, this was something different, in my view, right away.....downright frightening material, set to a "different" kind of metal, structured, really, somewhat like classical music (IMO) with "movements",etc, in thier amazing long pieces.......bottom line, I have loved Tool from the minute I first heard them, today we will present their "proper" releases, and then in part 2 we will get to the live stuff and rarities......also, I need your input.....shall we do a "part 3" with Pucsifer? It is YOUR call......a few years ago I was in Jerome, Arizona, where Maynard lives  or at least lived then, and there was a bizarre store there which specialized in selling Pucsifer material.....strange but true (Jerome AZ is what used to be a mining town, it's pretty amazing to visit, whether or not the Pusicfer thing is still there or not)....

OK, how about the music? Well, the early EP's, "72826" and "Opiate" are essential, wonderful
previews of what was to come......"72826" includes early versions of the classics "Sober" and "Crawl Away", while "Opiate" is great as well, giving us a couple of fine live tracks, notably "Jerk Off" and "Cold and Ugly".....I cannot say enough about the greatness of even these early EP's, if you are unfamiliar, THIS IS BAND YOU NEED TO KNOW......a MUCH more "metal" Nine Inch Nails? With the artistic allusions of, God knows who? This was an INCREDIBLE bnd, one whom I think will be more appreciated in the future than they are in thier own time (it happens)

OK, the first full length is the five-star classic "Undertow" (1993)......an absolutely brilliant album, I don't know if my words cn do it any justice.....suffice to say that "Prison Sex", "Sober" "Bottom" and "Crawl Away" are ALL masterpieces, the rest of the album is great as well, and it is 1000% essential.

It was followed up with "Aenima", as good as "Undertow" and more creative (!), there is amazing stuff here: "Pushit", "Stinkfist", "Hooker With a Penis", "Die eir Von Satan".....a truly terrifying and brilliant album, along with "Undertow" ABSOLUTELY to of the best releases of the decade of the 90's, which, frankly, is high praise as a LOT of fine music was coming out around this time.

The EP "Salival" was released in 2000, it is essential as well, in partcular the phenominal live version of "Pushit".....an essential listen as well....I realize this is a "fan" talking, but this was simply an AMAZING band.

In 2002 they released "Laterallus", which sounds to me, a bit less "gloomy" and a bit more "Angry", and it works absolutely perfectly....."Laterallus" is brilliant as well, I'll say 4.5 stars, there is GREAT SHIT all over this disc ("Mantra", "Parabol", "Parabola", and especially the fab "Ticks and Leeches" ("Hope this is what you wanted....hope this is what you had in mind....'cause this is what you're GETTING".........brilliant lyric).......this is also an essential, tremendous, an fantastic album, one of the best of ITS decade as well

The final (as of now) "official" release was 2006's "10,000 Days", which I would personally call their weakest full length, maybe clocking in at 4 stars......trust me, it's only a "weak" release in comparison to the earlier ones, in fact, it is brilliant as well in it's own right.......

OK kids, that is all yer uncle is gonna put up for tonight.......in a day or 2 we will get to the meat of
this, the demos, the rarities, the live shows and all, but as you may be able to see, this is a favorite modern day band of mine......so I have already DONE A Perfect Circle (I'm sure the links are dead by now), but if you want some more material of this ilk, please TELL ME you'd like to see the Puscifer stuff as well (I have a good bit) and we'll pop that up also.......Tool is one of my very favorite bands of the latter-day era, I find them to be amazingly creative, innovative, frightening, and motherfucking HARD ASS ROCKING......GREAT band.......let me know what you think, I don't see Tool on the blogs a lot, why? I don't know, but here's a starter set for the novices.....Got lots and lots of live/rare/demo stuff, I HOPE you guys wanna hear it, it would disappoint yer uncle tremendously if you don't appreciate a phenominal band like Tool!

72826 EP-01 Cold and Ugly/02 Hush/03 Part of Me/04 Crawl Away/05 Sober/06 Jerk-off

OPIATE EP-01 Sweat/02 Hush/03 Part of Me/04 Cold and Ugly (Live)/05 Jerk Off (Live)/06 Opiate

UNDERTOW-01 Intolerance/02 Prison Sex/03 Sober/04 Bottom/05 Crawl Away/06 Swamp Song/07 Undertow/08 4 degrees/09 Flood/69 Disgustipated

AENIMA-01 Stinkfist/02 Eulogy/03 H/04 Useful Idiot/05 Forty Six & 2/06 Message to Harry Manback/07 Hooker With a Penis/08 Intermission/09 Jimmy/10 Die Eir Von Satan/11 Pushit/12 Cesaro Summability/13Aenima/14(-) Ions/15 Third Eye

SALIVAL (EP)-01 Third Eye (Live)/02 Part of Me (live)/03 Pushit (Live)/04 Message To Harry Manback II/05 You Lied (Live)/06 Merkaba/07 No Quarter/08 L.A.M.C.

LATERALUS-01 The Grudge/02 Eon Blue Apocalypse/03 The Patient/04 Mantra/05 Schism/06 Parabol/07 Parabola/08 Ticks & Leeches/09 Lateralus/10 Disposition/11 Reflection/12 Triad/13 Faaip De Oiad

10000 DAYS-01 Vicarious/02 Jambi/03 Wings For Marie (Part 1)/04 10000 Days (Wings Part 2)/05 The Pot/06 Lipan Conjuring/07 Lost Keys (Blame Hofman)/08 Rosetta Stoned/09 Intention/10 Right In Two/11 Viginiti Tres


OK, fuckers......this shit is BAD FUCKING ASS......maybe you are too old to have been there, or too
young to have been there, but this is ONE OF THE GREATEST BANDS EVER, I am not fucking joking......I will gauge the response and see how far I delve into this (Puscifer), but for God's sake, PLEASE check the next post which is BLOATED with demos, live shows, rarities, and all THAT good shit.......Tool were the motherfucking SHIT and deserve our respect if we claim to love TRULY demented ROCK N FUCKING ROLLL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

BigScott 62 OUT after maybe 18 Michelob Ultras!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Just to say......

THANKS to everyone who reads, listens, contributes, or even just visits here......YOU are what the
blog is about, NOT me.....it's about sharing what we have, and sharing our lives........it's a community, rather than a stodgy blog that feels it is superior to everyone else (TRUST ME they exist)......with footbal season starting, I may not get to tell you guys how much I appreciate you that I truly do.....but, REALY I do, you are the life blood of this project! Thanks 1000x over!

Ian Hunter

One would have assumed that Mott the Hoople sans Ian Hunter would be a disaster, and one would be right, "Drive on" and "Pointin' and Shoutin'" are positively ghastly epics, reminiscent of the time the Yule brothers tried to make a Velvet Underground album without Lou Reed, just a horirble idea..... however, Hunter still had a lot of material in him, rounded up backing band led by guitarist Mick Ronson, and cranked out a few albums of at the very least 3-star quality..... I think any fan of Mott will enjoy these, it is MUCH more the logical extension of  Mott the Hoople than the two instant cutouts mentioned before.

The solo debut, "Ian Hunter", is spectacular, Hunter sounds liberated and blasts out great tunes (the ferocious "Once Bitten Twice Shy" was covered by some hair-brained hair band who at the very least should have been publicly flogged), "I Get So Excited" is pure sleazy Hunter rock n roll, "Lounge Lizard" had been a fairly regular Mott concert staple for a while......"Who Do You Love", is also an excellent rocker, "Shades Off!" and "Boy" are the kind of lyrical insight Hunter always did so well (think "Hymn for the Dudes")......all this without even mentioning what may have been Hunter's best song ever, the psychotic "The Truth, The Whole Truth, Nothing But the Truth" features some positively brain bending slide guitar and some "no one but Ian Hunter" lyrics ("God's little baby got nothin' to shoot"), GREAT song, fabulous album too, pure 4-star effort.

The follow up "All American Alien Boy" is not quite a good, but is still loaded with some fine stuff,
the ballad "Irene Wilde", the insightful "Letter to Britannia From the Union Jack",actually all of side two is really solid as well ("Rape", "You Nearly Did Me In", "Apathy 83 (sample lyric: "There ain't no rock n roll no more just music of the rich"), and the album's highlight, the Dylanesque "God Take 1", a conversation between Ian and God, which gets pretty deep ("Oh, God said to me:'Gonna kick your ass'")......not quite as rocking or quite as good as the debut, but easilly a three star effort.

He had one more great one in him.....the soundtrack of my senior year (1979) included tons of stuff from "You're Never Alone With a Schizophrenic", leading off with the great "Just Another Night" and of course including "Cleveland Rocks", made more "famous" later on as the theme from "The Drew Cary Show".....there are some good, quieter tracks here,"When the Daylight Comes, "Standin' In My Light", and the unfortunate "Ships", which was actually covered by Barry Manilow (!) ad became a huge hit, from which Hunter earned more money than he did in both his solo career an his career with Mott the Hoople in total......sometimes I have VERY little faith in the rest of our species.......

Anyway, he cranked out several more, don't have them and haven't heard a lot of them, I DO have one of them here "Overnight Angels", I'll include it here because I have one, can't say too much to recommend it.

"Welcome To the Club" was a 2 record set with three live sides and a studio side with four new tracks.....covers a lot of ground, as far back as "Laugh at Me" and as recent as stuff off of "Schizophrenic"......all in all, the live sides are perfectly acceptable, and the studio side offers two good ones ("We Gotta Get Out of Here", which finds Hunter trapped in a discotheque, and "Man O War" which gives us choice lyrics like "the demon in my semen").......all in all, for Mott/Hunter fans, I think vinyl rips of it are fairly hard to locate.

From 1975 we have a poorly recorded Detroit show,which at least provides a live version of "The Truth" (also strangely "White Light White Heat"(LATE EDIT: The Detroit disc is defective and does not apear here it is awful anyway) .......from 1981 comes a Hunter/Ronson set from Central Park NY, which features a few efforts from the latter solos that I don't have ("Gun Control", "Lisa Likes to Rock N Roll", really pretty good stuff, somewhat to my surprise......a 1979 show from Cleveland from the "Schizophrenic" tour REALLY brings down the house, of course, with "Cleveland Rocks".....and one more I've found, a 1989 BBC session with stuff old and new, good and bad, see what you think.......

Gonna about wrap up my week of Mott/Ian, always a favorite of mine and I hope you've enjoyed it.... going to see the Black Keys tonight, so maybe we'll do something for them tomorrow, we'll see! Till then, please enjoy these.

IAN HUNTER-01 Once Bitten Twice Shy/02 Who Do You Love/03 Lounge Lizard/04 Boy/05 3000 Miles From Here/06 The Truth, The Whole Truth, Nothing But the Truth/07 It Ain't Easy When you Fall/08 Shades Off/09 I Get So Excited

ALL AMERICAN ALIEN BOY-01 Letter to Britannia From the Union Jack/02 All-American Alien Boy/03 Irene Wilde/04 Rape/05 You Nearly Did Me In/06 Apathy 83/07 God (Take 1)/08 Restless Youth

YOU'RE NEVER ALONE WITH A SCHIZOPHRENIC-01 Just Another Night/02 Wild East/03 Cleveland Rocks/04 Ships/05 When the Daylight Comes/06 Life after Death/07 Standin' In My Light/08 Bastard/09 The Outsider

WELCOME TO THE CLUB-01 FBI/02 Once Bitten Twice Shy/03 Angeline/04 Laugh at Me/05 All the Way From Memphis/06 I Wish I Was Your Mother/07 Irene Wilde/08 Just Another Night/09 Cleveland Rocks/10 Standin' In My Light/11 Bastard/12 Walkin With a Mountain/Rock N Roll Queen/13 All the Young Dudes/14 Slaughter on Tenth Avenue/15 We Gotta Get Out of Here/16 Silver Needles/12 Man O War/13 Sons and Daughters

OVERNIGHT ANGELS-01 Golden Opportunity/02 Shallow Crystals/03 Overnight Angels/04 Broadway/05 Justice of the Peace/06 (Miss) Silver Dime/07 Wild N Free/08 The Ballad of Little Star/09 To Love a Woman

CENTRAL PARK 1981-01 Once Bitten Twice Shy/02 Gun Control/03 Central Park and West/04 All the Way From Memphis/05 I Need Your Love/Honky/06 Lisa Likes Rock N Roll/07 Violence/08 Noises/09 Is Your Love In Vain/10 Standin in My Light/11 Bastard/12 Just Another Night/13 Cleveland Rocks/ 14 Irene Wilde/15 All the Young Dudes/Ships

CLVELAND 1979-01 FBI/02 Once Bitten Twice Shy/03 Life After Death/04 Laugh At Me/05

Bastard/06 Just Another Night/07 Standing I My Light/08 Cleveland Rocks/09 When the Daylight Comes/10 Angeline

BBC 2/15/89-01 Once Bitten Twice Shy/02 How Much More Can I Take/03 Big N Little Love/04 Following In Your Footsteps/05 Just Another Night/06 Sweet Dreamer/07 (Give Me Back My) Wings/08 Standin' In My Light/09 Bastard/10 The Loner/11 You're Never Too Small To Hit the Bigtime/12 All the Way From Memphis/13 Irene Wilde

Mott the Hoople Part 1

Arguably my favorite of all bands, one of a handful anyway.... once did a "rarities" post on them, this
time I am going to give them the "XTC/Hendrix" treatment and throw ya pretty much everything I got.

The wonderful 1969 debut album proudly wears its influences, namely Dylan and the Rolling Stones, covering material as diverse as The Kink "You Really Got Me" (done as an overpowering instrumental), Sonny Bono's "Laugh at Me", and Doug Sahm's "At the Crossroads".....all of which are fantastic interpretations, and the original material "Rock N Roll Queen" and in particular they Dylan-esque "Backsliding Fearlessly" sparkles as well......the classic lineup was guitarist Mick Ralphs, drummer, Dale Griffin, bassist Overend Watts, keyboardist Verden Allen, and, most notably, vocalist/pianist/resident genius Ian Hunter. The album is brilliant and not nearly appreciated enough.

The follow-up, "Mad Shadows" is something of a letdown, although it does include a good one in "Walkin' With a Mountain", and a great one, one of the heaviest rockin tracks of the era, "Thunderbuck Ram".......likely one wishing to dabble could find these on one of the comps I am going  unleash the next few days, the album is for fans........

Speaking of.....album #3 "Wildlife", is in a word, awful......partially acoustic and hardly rocking in the least, it contains the respectable "Angel of Eighth Avenue" and NOTHING else of merit......if ever a band looked as if its run were over, this was it.......I was/am a huge fan of the group and rate this disc as  1/2*, being charitable.

The comeback, part , was "Brain Capers" a flatout

tremendous maturation and honestly one of the best and hardest rocking albums of the mid-70's......not only do you get titles such as "The Wheel of Quivering Meat Conception", and of course "Death May Be Your Santa Claus", but great numbers such as "Darkness Darkness", "The Journey", "Sweet Angeline", and one of the greatest hard-rock songs of them ALL, "The Moon Upstairs".......one of the first songs to use the word "fuck" in a non-shocking context ("We ain't bleeding you, we're feeding you, but you're too fucking SLOW!" (another great lyric: "For those of you who always laugh, let this be your epitaph", among others, this is one GREAT song on one spectacular hard rock album. NOT to be missed under any circumstances.

Then along came Bowie......Bowie saw something he liked in them, and with his input, they became leaders of the glam rock scene......Bowie got them Lou Reed's "Sweet Jane", also a favorite song of mine which works perfectly in this context, and gave them the wondrous "All the Young Dudes", which features' Hunter's spoken bit near the end which seemed to give the band credibility in the gay community ("Hey you up there......you in the glasses......I want you".......a tremendous song and an anthem for a movement/era, the album also includes other gems, "Jerkin' Crocus", "One of the Boys", "Sucker"........one of the finest albums of the 1970's.......(note: I once read that the band preferred Bowie's "Drive In Saturday" to "All the Young Dudes".......I hear  version exists SOMEWHERE, not sure, but wouldn't THAT be amazing, and it might have changed musical history for better/worse.)

However, not even the best Mott the Hoople album of the 1970's, because these guys their stride with the classic "Mott".....nearly every track here is a wonder......leading off with the classic "All the Way From Memphis" ("It's a mighty long way down rock n roll, and your name gets hot so your heart grows cold") (some lame ass hair band covered it in the late 80's or so, chnging the lyric "Some spade" to "some guy" or something, Good Lord).........."Whizz Kid" is a fine one, "Hymn for the Dudes" is majestic ("you ain't the Nazz.....you're just a buzz......some kinda TEMPORARY")......."Honaloochie Boogie" shoulda been a hit single, "Violence" is a sort of overlooked "semi-classic", "Drivin' Sister" is a great track with some excellent drumming (also referencing Mott's all but unknown "Half Moon Bay".......the autobiographical "Ballad of Mott the Hoople" is quite insightful as Hunter lays out his soul as well as those of hi mates in just a few lines, and finally, the Dylanesque "I Wish I Was Your Mother" ........THIS IS ONE OF THE GREATEST ALBUMS, NOT JUST OF THE 1970's, NOT JUST HARD-GLAM ALBUMS, THIS IS ONE OF THE GREATEST ALBUMS EVER PRODUCED......I give out only 5 star ratings, this is one of those albums I think deserves more........

Well, all good things come to an end.......Allen and Ralphs left (Ralphs to form Bad Company), the
bad took on Morgan Fischer and Ariel Bender to replace them for "The Hoople" (these guys did NOT lose a lot of sleep on album titles).......not a horrible album, but after the past two, what could we realistically expect.....It contains one really great one "Marionette" ("I ain't one yet!"), "Crash Street Kids", "Born Late '58", and a few more are passable.......this is though the end of the road for stdio work.....Hunter departed, and the leftovers issued "Drive On" and "Pointing and Shouting" which I don't have and wouldn't post if I did, they are simply awful......we do have a vinyl rip of a decent live (commercially available) album, it features the Bender/Fischer lineup, really does rock hard, in particular "Sweet Angeline"........there was a 30-year double disc reissue which we'll get to eventually, with some of the other live stuff.....what were doing today is 1) getting the basic discography out of the way, and 2) establishing my love for the band. LOTS and LOTS of live stuff, comps, demos, Hunter solo stuff, etc, yet to come, probably most of the week.......I love this band, always did, and if you have anything to contribute that you think I may be lacking, PLEASE, now is the time.......

Remember I used to title my posts "The Best _________ Post Ever"?  I stopped doing that because someone from another blog (who never did like me or my blog anyway) took offense to it and didn't understand the sarcasm/self deprecating humor.......point being, if you can find a BETTER Mott the Hoople post than you will see here the next 3-4 days, I'll eat Drew Barrymore's undergarments.

Be well, LOTTS of MOTT to come this week, I am excited, if you are a fan, I hope you are too..... tomorrow: LOTTS of COMPS crammed with rare stuff!

"Some spade said rock n rollers, yer all the same.... man, that's yer instrument, I felt.... SO ASHAMED!"

MOTT THE HOOPLE-01 You Really Got Me/02 At the Crossroads/03 Laugh at Me/04 Backsliding Fearlessly/05 Rock and Roll Queen/06 Rabbit Foot and Toby Time/07 Half Moon Bay/08 Wrath and Wroll

MAD SHADOWS-01 Thuderbuck Ram/02 No Wheels to Ride/03 You Are One Of Us/04 Walkin' With a Mountain/05 I Can Feel/06 Threads of Iron/07 When My Mind's Gone

WILDLIFE-01 Original Mixed Up Kid/02 Angel of Eighth Avenue/03 Wrong Side of the River/04 Waterlow/05 Lay Down/06 It Must Be Love/07 Whiskey Woman/08 Home Is Where I Want To Be/09 Keep a Knockin'

BRAIN CAPERS-01 Death May Be Your Santa Claus/02 Your Own Backyard/03 Darkness
Darkness/04 The Journey/05 Sweet Angeline/06 Second Love/07 The Moon Upstairs/08 The Wheel of Quivering Meat Conception

ALL THE YOUNG DUDES-01 Sweet Jane/02 Momma's Little Jewel/03 All the Young Dudes/04 Sucker/05 Jerkin Crocus/06 One of the Boys/07 Soft Ground/08 Ready For Love/After Lights/09 Sea Diver

MOTT-01 All the Way From Memphis/02 Whizz Kid/03 Hymn For the Dudes/04 Honaloochie Boogie/05 Violence/06 Drivin' Sister/07 Ballad of Mott the Hoople/08 I Wish I Was Your Mother

THE HOOPLE-01 The Golden age of Rock N Roll/02 Marionette/03 Alice/04 Crash Street Kids/05 Born Late 58/06 Trudi's Song/07 Pearl and Roy (England)/08 Through the Looking Glass/09 Roll Away the Stone

LIVE-01 All the Way From Memphis/02 Sucker/03 Rest In Peace/04 All the Young Dudes/05 Walkin' With a Mountain/06 Sweet Angeline/07 Rose/08 Medley: Jerkin' Crocus/One of the Boys/Rock N Roll Queen/Get Back/Whole Lotta Shakin/Violence