Squirrel in a Park in Cape Town, originally uploaded by asteri design.
I'm off to London for the weekend! I shall do my best to get inspiration for further delicious posts next week.
In the meantime, here's a nice picture of a squirrel that my pal David took.
Toodles….
I do like a good cover version, me. I don't go much for photocopies, though, as they invariably end up a paler version of the original (Liberty X seem to be some of the worst offenders c.f. their limp version of Shalamar's 'A Night To Remember'). And frankly, I'm rather bored of artistes doing Leonard Cohen's 'Hallelujah' - OK, you can sing already, now shaaaadup! I want a cover that does new and exciting/scary things to the original.
So, imagine my delight when I happened on the intermittently wonderful Saint Etienne and their rather fucked up version of 'I'm Too Sexy'. In 1992 some artists on the Heavenly label released a tribute to UK cheesemeisters Right Said Fred. Saint Etienne, The Rockingbirds and Flowered Up did one song each and The Fred EP hit the Top 30 and made some money for the Terence Higgins Trust. Hurrah!
Back to the track. Right Said Fred's version topped the US charts in 1991 and was pretty much ubiquitous for a couple of years. It was rather silly to begin with : "I'm too sexy for my cat… poor pussy, poor pussycat" etc. Then those arch retro Saint Etienne types put squelchy early-90s sequencers all over it, changed the lyrics a bit {"I'm too Shaky for my Stevens" indeed} and got Richard Fairbrass from the Freds in to reprise his vocal alongside Sarah Cracknell's breathy warbling. The whole this is equal parts cool and weird. This is (not) helped by it constantly turning into 'David's Song' (Theme from the tv series Kidnapped) for absolutely no reason. At the end someone repeatedly chants 'I'm a male stripper and a go-go boy' (a homage to 'Male Stripper by Man 2 Man feat. Man Parrish, I presume).
What on earth is it all about? And I would have paid a great deal of money to have seen this on Top Of The Pops that week in 1992.
As Minge might say, it's fabulous.
Download I'm Too Sexy - Saint Etienne (4.8MB)
Like this? Buy The Fred EP here.
His stance on immigration.
There's plenty of room for everyone here. And I love Eastern European men, so I say, tear down the borders, they can camp out in my yard.
More George wisdom in this article from the Guardian.
Alas, his website isn't hectic. Pity, his would be an unmissable blog.
It looks like it's 'chips' [red]. Pity, I've always had a soft spot for Daddy [blue].
You can compare Google searches and news references for things over at Google Trends. Hours of fun guaranteed!
The ever-fabulous Minge (love your work, darling) compiled his list of PSB 'b-sides' as we used to call them back in the day. In the 'hood.
Anyway, here's mine. (Note predominance of post-Alternative tracks, and disregard for PSB's preference for literary capitalisation.)
…. The Number One Songs In Heaven.
Hello London Lee! I’ve decided to start another occasional series. This time I shall pretend to be one of my favourite blogs, starting with The Number One Songs In Heaven which is maintained by Lee, who is, I presume, in London, and features lovingly-rescued soul and dance tracks. Lee unearths obscure Northern Soul, 70’s funk and 80s synclavier goodness. And every one’s a winner.
Anyway, here’s one he hasn’t done (I think!).
Supremely Yours
In 1970, having lost Diana Ross to her solo efforts, nobody would have been surprised to see the remaining Supremes quietly dissolve and make solo albums with diminishing results. Instead, Mary Wilson and the appropriately-monikered Cindy Birdsong recruited Jean Terell and enlisted the aid of the legendary Frank Wilson (he of “Do I Love You (Indeed I Do)” fame).
Together they recorded three albums in 1970 and managed to score three more top thirty hits in the US. The largest of those was “Stoned Love”, taken from the New Ways But Love Stays album, the second of the three.
As well as having a remarkable cover (the Supremes in Black Panther style black turtlenecks), it consists of some remarkable covers (”Bridge Over Troubled Waters”, “Na Na Hey Hey (Kiss Him Goodbye)” and “Come Together”), but the real gems are the original tracks such as this example of ‘dusty groove’. Terell’s breathy vocals are far less shrill, perhaps, than her predecessor and the ditching of Holland-Dozier-Holland led the Supremes into a more knowing (and sexual) style.
This track is available on some of the myriad Supremes compilations, but is very much at home on the Saint Etienne-curated The Trip collection.
Hee hee! That was fun. Now, whose blog shall I do next?
Download It’s Time To Break Down - The Supremes (mp3 7.2MB)
Like this? Why not purchase It’s Time To Break Down on iTMS?
Ok, here's a link for you to download that absolutely shockingly vile song that didn't make me laugh out loud at all.
Enjoy it, you butt hot greasy sluts….
Download (Let Me Be Your) Dirty Fucking Whore - Machine Gun Fellatio mp3 (1.5MB)
Like this? Buy the album Paging Mr Strike.
Popbitch ask if this is 'the greatest, gayest video ever'.
There is a sense that they were asking for it, now that I actually see the cover.
This reached the lofty position of no. 39 in the UK singles chart, which was a major flop seeing as only the Top 30 got attention back then. And this was ABC's first single to miss the Top 30. Ooops. Apparently, Martin Fry felt uncomfortable with their Lexicon Of Love success, flushed his gold lamé suit down a toilet in Japan and decided to go a bit 'rawk' on Beauty Stab.
Which is why the lack of success is somewhat of a pity as the track is, like the Lexicon stuff, still wonderfully produced (Gary Langan instead of Trevor Horn, although both men were to become the Art of Noise along with Anne Dudley). It has unclear lyrics (fine), but still manages some glamour (something about millionaires and caresses). It all sounds darkly romantic and conspiratorial and urgent. As all good misunderstood pop should.
And THEN they decided to become cartoon characters and recruited Shannon's producers and a little bald guy
and a lady in a wig 
. Commercial suicide complete - yay!
But executed in style…..
Like this? Buy the album Beauty Stab.
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