Want to impress your 50-something friends, well look no further than this instant record collection. Like the previously released Gary Crowley’s Punk & New Wave, broadcaster, TV presenter and DJ Gary Crowley, along with radio producer Jim Lahat dive into their record collections to bring listeners 77 tracks, some 20 tracks longer than the previously released compilation. Some of these tunes you might have heard, or perhaps bought, whilst others are rare gems that span the genre.
‘The Vibrators started the previous set, whilst this time even heavier weights The Clash begin proceedings, with a number not necessarily considered high on anyone’s Clash playlist. This time b-side to 1978’s ’Tommy Gun’, a superb a-side, but how many of us bothered to play the flip side? A track that speaks of where the genre originated, ‘1-2 Crush On You’, a rock’n’roll telling and is Joe Strummer through and through. From here the set continues in superb form, a fine set of tunes that crosses continents, as we learn that ‘Suzy Is A Headbanger’, a track that like its more famous sibling, ‘Judy is a Punk Rocker’, was written by Jeffrey Ross Hyman (aka Joey Ramone) and performed by The Ramones. These are two bands, that would come to mind if Punk Rock were the subject, but with their lesser-known songs, as the album’s curators show their metal, in what they have selected. I love that X-Ray Spex ‘Warrior In Woolworths’ has been chosen instead of the band’s debut, or any one of their more popular singles and remembering the store with affection from my earlier years brings it all back. Leyton Buzzards, whose name was taken in part from their hometown of Leyton, an area of East London, but is also a pun on the Bedfordshire market town have ‘I’m Hanging Around’ included, a lovely slice of just how punk was the pop of its day and not some dirty anti-establishment poke. Two of my favourite bands have been included, in the form of Americans Devo, with their ‘Uncontrollable Urge’ while Magazine have ‘I Love You, You Big Dummy’, rather than the too well-known ’Shot By Both Sides’, just as Devo’s ‘Whip It’ would be the track usually pulled out whenever these bands are mentioned. I think these are great selections of new-wave and with Magazine, begs the question of who vocalist Howard Devoto was singing about.’The Vibrators started the previous set, whilst this time even heavier weights The Clash begin proceedings, with a number not necessarily considered high on anyone’s Clash playlist. This time b-side to 1978s ’Tommy Gun’, a superb a-side, but how many of us bothered to play the flip side? A track that speaks of where the genre originated, ‘1-2 Crush On You’, a rock’n’roll telling and is Joe Strummer through and through. From here the set continues in superb form, a fine set of tunes that crosses continents, as we learn that ‘Suzy Is A Headbanger’, a track that like its more famous sibling, ‘Judy is a Punk Rocker’, was written by Jeffrey Ross Hyman (aka Joey Ramone) and performed by The Ramones. These are two bands, that would come to mind if Punk Rock were the subject, but with their lesser-known songs, as the album’s curators show their metal, in what they have selected. I love that X-Ray Spex ‘Warrior In Woolworths’ has been chosen instead of the band’s debut, or any one of their more popular singles and remembering the store with affection from my earlier years brings it all back. Leyton Buzzards, whose name was taken in part from their hometown of Leyton, an area of East London, but is also a pun on the Bedfordshire market town have ‘I’m Hanging Around’ included, a lovely slice of just how punk was the pop of its day and not some dirty anti-establishment poke. Two of my favourite bands have been included, in the form of Americans Devo, with their ‘Uncontrollable Urge’ while Magazine have ‘I Love You, You Big Dummy’, rather than the too well-known ’Shot By Both Sides’, just as Devo’s ‘Whip It’ would be the track usually pulled out whenever these bands are mentioned. I think these are great selections of new-wave and with Magazine, begs the question of who vocalist Howard Devoto was singing about.
This could be a who’s who in Punk and New Wave, as not only titles with the fantastic subject matter are included, the likes of ‘Somebody’s Gonna Get Their Head Kicked In Tonight’ by The Rezillos, but The Members tearful, whilst hilarious ‘Phone In Show’ is offered and I’ve only just completed the first disc. I have to mention the final track and probably my favourite inclusion of the whole set. This is Poet And The Roots ‘Dread Beat An’ Blood’, a simply brilliant slice of dub reggae, where Linton Kwesi Johnson had the opportunity of performing his poetry, against the backing of a thick dub soundtrack. A completely alternative number soon follows the number, as The Jam perform ‘Away From The Numbers’, a tune lifted from the band’s 1977 debut In The City, is full of Weller’s power chords, whilst telling a story of the individual, a simply brilliant track. This leads into the swirling, almost psychedelic musical offering as Siouxie and The Banshees perform ’Desert Kisses’, this is followed by Golinski Brothers ‘Bloody’, with their familiar story of love and loss and to quote Darris Golinski, “…what am I bloody well supposed to do, got my bloody well self bloody stuck on you…”, a number which John Peel noted as his “best record of the week”, back in the day and you can’t say fairer than that.
I’ve listened to this whole album, multiple times, and must say just how easily the numbers included slip down. That’s the case, even when you hit Liquid Stone’s mono version of ‘Here Comes The Weekend’. It possesses a certain charm, not to mention a relevance, that is as poignant now as it was then. Altered Images ‘Love And Kisses’ is included, a cracking tune that featured on the band’s debut album and Clare Grogan’s vocal still does for me now. Killing Joke’s ’Tension’ displays all the chaos that was felt in cold war Britain in the early ’80s. The band illustrated this, as both vocal, bass, crunching guitar and solid drum play their part in building this post-punk classic. Where would any collection of this fashion be, if it didn’t include the wailing vocal and deft hook of The Cure and here it’s ‘Play For Today’‘ from Seventeen Seconds that’s been lifted into the spotlight, with its Lo-Fi presentation, thumping bass line and riding rhythm guitar. A sign of how times were changing from a pre-computer age to one where computers would be part of the everyday, was Basement 5’s ‘Silicon Chip’. Almost naive in its presentation, coming from my 21st-century position. The song from this London reggae-punk-fusion band, proceeds “Silicon chips, ain’t fish and chips…”, evident to us now, but in 1981 came as something of a shock, that these you don’t add salt and vinegar to and certainly wouldn’t consider consuming a plate-full. A band I would be none the wiser of, had I not happened upon this collection.
The final disc continues with tracks, from bands like Suicide’s ‘Ghost Rider’, during which vocalist Alan Vega sings above the ghostly electronic drone is produced by instrumentalist Martin Rev. Their minimalist sounds were an inspiration to many, who without the ’90s might’ve been a very different place. The infamous Pete Wylie appears, as Wah! Heat perform ‘Better Scream’. His debut single, which in this guise Wylie performed as Wah! Heat, although was perhaps better known as the Mighty Wah, when he released the single ’Sinful’ in 1986. As a lad raised on everything Liverpool, Peter Wylie was something of a legend and everything Wah went along with it. His vocals raise the hairs on the back of my neck and hearing this is like being back in my formative years. On a punk/new wave set, you might be asking, where are the Sex Pistols? Although songs by the band have not been chosen, that would be too easy, Crowley and Lahat have included The Professionals ‘Just Another Dream’, a band formed post-Pistols by Steve Jones and Paul Cook. Both artists had sung for The Pistols, following Johnny Rotten’s departure from the band in 1978 and when the Sex Pistols finally split, had got together to form The Professionals. This song was the band’s debut single in July of 1980 and is far more grounded and less showy than anything released by their former masters, who were more anti-establishment than the rock’n’roll this band performed. With Malcolm McClaren in mind, Bow Wow Wow finish up this set with ‘Golly! Golly! Go Buddy!’. When creating the band McClaren had persuaded Adam and the Ants drummer David Barbarossa, guitarist Matthew Ashman and bassist Leigh German to leave their former outfit and had embarked on a six-month recruitment process, resulting in selecting vocalist Annabella Lwin, who had gained notoriety for being only 13. The cynic would ask, was this McClaren’s idea, but whichever is the truth, I, like many, enjoyed the sights and sounds the band had produced. I would suggest a fitting way to end this journey and another winning playlist brought together by the pairing of Crowley and Lahat.