Everyone's Hot (And I'm Not) - Lynks

Heard this new 'queercore' anthem on Tom Robinson's 6 Music show last night and it really tickled my fancy...as it were. I wonder if the lovely Lynks really is 'a librarian from Wigan'...?

If I Only Knew - Tom Jones

Heard this track last night for the first time in years, only Sir Tom could get away with rapping in his 50s eh? I can well imagine what his 'forest of the holy places' might be...ahem. 

Madness - (Waiting For) The Ghost Train

After last night's 'lockdown' announcement I've had the words 'madness' and 'waiting' going round and round in my head, so what better track than this late period classic from Madness' first incarnation. Quite what will be left of the hospitality sector which is, let's face it, pretty much the only 'industry' we have left in this country now, come the end of June (at the earliest) is anyone's guess. 

The Kinks - When Work Is Over

Sounding a little like The Lemon Twigs on a bender (to my ears anyway) here's the perfect shot of 70s era Kinks. Of course few of us work in offices anymore and there's bugger all chance of hitting a bar this side of Easter but other than that the song's lyrics are pretty Friday friendly. Cheers! 

Tilly and the Wall - Rainbows in the Dark

In a bit of a Tilly and the Wall mood today. What a great - and unique - live band they were. How many other groups use tap dancing as percussion eh? Exactly. Bloody nice bunch of people too. 

Robert Lloyd - The Part Of The Anchor

 

Watched King Rocker, the Robert Lloyd and The Nightingales doc, yesterday and loved every second of it. Lloyd's a national treasure who's lived the kind of life it would be difficult to make up, from sleeping under cars at Bristol Street Motors to supporting The Clash, from becoming Peel faves through to directing pop videos and almost landing a sitcom deal and on to a few years in the wilderness as a postie, boozing away the afternoons and discovering a talent for making a bob (or Rob in this case) or two on the horses. I had no idea he'd come dangerously close to becoming a genuine pop star too but Lloyd was always destined for cultdom, hopefully this doc will add a few more loyal followers though. 

Chick Corea RIP

I'm ashamed to say that my knowledge of Chick's output's minimal but I've been doing a some catching up this morning and I've picked this little funky gem out. If it wasn't used on an episode of Starsky and Hutch or some other cool 70s cop show it darn well should've been. 

And here's another funky number with more of an 80s Miami Vice vibe. Niiiiiiice.

Klaus Nomi - The Cold Song

 Any excuse to post a bit of Klaus Nomi but bugger me it's COLD. -22.9 in Scotland last night apparently. 2021's going well so far innit eh? 

Cockeyed Shame - Fifth Avenue Band

Here's a little funky 70s rock from Fifth Avenue Band to warm yer cockles...or any other part of you that might be deep frozen by the arctic conditions blighting Blighty right now. 

The Bluetones - Marblehead Johnson

Dug out The Bluetones singles compilation album the other night and I was reminded (as if I needed reminding...mind you I'm cracking on a bit) of how good they were. Coincidentally after months of 'lockdowns' I'm starting to resemble the band in this video too. 

Steven Jesse Bernstein - No No Man (Part I and II)

Lordy this is coooooooooooooooooooooool. Dark (oh so dark) spoken word + classic jazz soundtrack = all kinds of awesome. Sadly Jesse never got to hear the finished version, having stabbed himself in the throat during a dinner with friends back in 1991. Apparently he opened for Nirvana and several other Sub Pop bands back in the day and once performed with a live rodent in his mouth. You don't get that on Britain's Got Talent do you eh? 

Steven SantaCruz RIP

Sad news to start the week with the passing of Pink Grease's guitarist Steven SantaCruz. I had the very great pleasure of seeing the band play a memorably sweaty gig at The Bar Academy back in the noughties and told anyone who'd listen that they were going to be massive. Sadly it wasn't to be but I reckon their tracks are absolutely ripe for rediscovery (or maybe just plain discovery for most people).