alsoperson

Can you hear them crying?

This is a serious one. I am not sure you could even release this today. The Specials were famous for Too Much Too Young and other ska-based tracks that were part of the 2 Tone movement. Then they released Ghost Town – a haunting view of inner-city desolation in the inner cities of 1981. TheContinue reading “Can you hear them crying?”

Have You Ever Had It Blue?

The mid 80s turned into a pretty barren period musically. After the regular injections of innovation from Punk, New Wave and New Romanticism mainstream popular music moved towards a fairly middle of the road approach. Do not even mention Jazz/Funk dance music – no one ever does because it is like muzak. The Style CouncilContinue reading “Have You Ever Had It Blue?”

School’s In

I never really thought about having a good memory. I knew that exam revision was pretty easy for me and once I had studied a subject at school I could remember most of it and only have to polish up on details. What made me realise that it was not normal it was that myContinue reading “School’s In”

Poor Man’s Moody Blues

“Home taping is killing music”. Except it didn’t. Neither did Napster, of course that was on an industrial scale compared to home taping. Home taping was a gateway to music when you were young. I taped from the radio (for about a month and came to loathe DJs who talked over tracks) and then fromContinue reading “Poor Man’s Moody Blues”

The Hut of Baba Yaga

I have said that Brightlingsea was a couple of years behind Royston musically. There were few people into older 70s rock. I was quite happy to listen to punk, prog rock, heavy metal and New Romantic. So, it was great to connect with Steve. He had an older brother and had really been infected withContinue reading “The Hut of Baba Yaga”

There’s a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears He’s Elvis

Kirsty MacColl is now most famous as one half of the vocals on Fairytale of New York. She had a solo career too, at least she did until she died in 2000 in a powerboat accident. The circumstances of her death were murky. The powerboat should not have been in the area and was ownedContinue reading “There’s a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears He’s Elvis”

I Wish For My World of Make Believe

It is really hard to pick a favourite Toyah track. I love Thunder in the Mountains and it would be easy to write about Toyah’s reinvention of herself as a cross between Boudicca and Mad Max. Toyah was the punk princess who had been in the movie Jubilee. Her music was more New Wave thanContinue reading “I Wish For My World of Make Believe”

Then it all went black

One of the most modern tracks and groups here. My boss at work is a really big music fan. When he started at Monoux I had been acting Principal for nearly a year, which may have made it difficult for him. It shouldn’t have, as I was suffering from ME and desperate to go backContinue reading “Then it all went black”

But you know that there’s a fever

There was a show in the early 80s called Entertainment USA. It was fronted by Jonathan King, who was Radio One’s man in America and had been reporting on Top of the Pops. Neil and I both watched it and it was a good way of being ahead of the trend. In those days, ifContinue reading “But you know that there’s a fever”

In the State of Ecstasy

This song is odd. It was a hit years after it was made and if you listen carefully you can tell. One minute and four seconds in there is an instrumental break that is so 1991 that it might as well be flashing up a neon sign flashing – “We are ripping off the Prodigy’sContinue reading “In the State of Ecstasy”