Wildly influential proto-electronica/post-punk (oh, yes!) from Alan Vega and Martin Rev.
Suicide started performing in the early 197os in the New York scene of the New York Dolls which then prohed into the classic ear of The Ramones, Blondie, Talking Heads, et al.
This track was recorded in 1979 and appeared on the reissue of their second LP often known as “The Second Album” …. Pop perfection as the boys employ a rudimentary drum machine to become the Transatlantic counterparts to the Kraftwerk revolution.
Subsequently covered in his live shows by Bruce Springsteen (for example, here).
The studio version then a very rough live version from the ROIR sessions of the 1970s then an even sketchier live version from 2010. The first is the one to go for!
The first Devo LP “Q: Are We Not Men? A: We are Devo” remains one of my all time favourites.
So many great tracks to choose from … from the definitive reading of the Stones’ “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” through “Space Junk”, “Mongoloid” (killer bass line) and “Uncontrollable Urge”.
The best track of all has to be “Jocko Homo”, perhaps the closest post-punk ever got to a Bohemian Rhapsody …. not really thought through the parallels but, rest assured, they will be many and convincing.
However, I wanted to start with Come Back Jonee on the blog. Mainly because the twangy guitar reminded me of a chum’s recent comment on my B-52s “Give Me Back My Man” post (here) that without the vocals, the B-52s backing music could have been Devo ….. here is evidence to support this thesis.
An old friend just posted the classic “Love My Way” by the Psychedelic Furs on Facebook. That is a fantastic track which will merit an appearance on this blog in due course.
But I felt honour bound to post “Forever Now” before I moved onto “Love My Way”.
“Forever Now” is the title track from the Furs’ third LP and was released in 1982. Sure, it might slightly fall victim to a bit of 80s overproduction but I am prepared to forgive anything for that bassline!
Three versions: original LP version; live in Berlin from 1981, then; live in Barcelona from a reunion in 2008. The original is peerless!
After a bit of a break, it’s time to resume the blog and what better way to do it than by returning to the relentless genre of which I am so fond.
Killer driving bass and drums with a wonderful twangy guitar riding on top. Cindy Wilson adds a shouty vocal that proves to be the missing link between 1960s bubblegum pop and the post punk new wave …..
A perfect pop single. How good were things in 1980?
As I have developed this blog, it has become clearer and clearer that Talking Heads are my favourite band of all time.
It has also become apparent that “Remain in Light” is the best record ever made.
“Crosseyed and Painless” is another example why.
The LP version, then an unbelievable live version from New Jersey 1980! Then …. a euphoric version from Wembley Arena in 1982 and, finally, the version from Stop Making Sense!
Wire released three seminal LPs in the late 1970s – “Pink Flag” in 1977; “Chairs Missing” in 1978, and; “154″ in 1979. Each one of these is a work of genius and, in due course, I’ll get some tracks onto the blog.
After this purple patch, all went quiet until the late 1980s.
“Kidney Bingos” was the stand out track on their second comeback LP “A Bell is a Cup”.
I’ve always loved this record but, just strumming my guitar now, I stumbled upon a chord that I struggled to place … but it’s here! Around 2 mins 34 secs to 2 mins 37 secs into the original record. Possibly the great 3 seconds in musical history.
The original LP track from 1988 then a wonderful live studio clip from 2011!
Following the previous impLOG post, it was inevitable that James Chance and the Contortions had to be next.
A fantastic cover version of the James Brown classic, “I Can’t Stand Myself” was one of the outstanding tracks of the “No New York” compliation LP recorded and released by the legendary Brian Eno.
I taped this off the John Peel Show in the summer of 1980 and it was one of my favourite songs for years. Finally tracked it down on CD in the mid 1990s and now, seemingly, it is recognised as one of the, ahem, “classic” releases of the New York “No Wave” scene of the late 1970s and early 1980s (now easily available on the superb Soul Jazz compilation “New York Noise Volume 3“).
impLOG were Don Christensen with help from Jody Harris. They were both in The Contortions (with James Chance) and released just two records as impLOG.
Someone’s made a nice home made video for the track on Youtube.
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