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INVESTIGATIVE REPORT & REVIEW: Spastic Phono Band – “Wings Under Japan” 7″ single – What’s the story behind this band?

SPASTIC PHONO BAND – “Wings Under Japan” (1980 7″ single, Slipped Disc Records)

INVESTIGATIVE REPORT – 45 years ago…

[Editor’s note:  the authors of this report have asked to retain their anonymity.] 

The year:  The harsh winter of 1980, remembered for its deep cold and snow.   In the realm of popular music, all four Beatles were still alive, even though the band had been broken up for a decade.  One of the Beatles soon found themselves in a wee bit of trouble.  This trouble would spill all over the world news, causing rippling effects and ramifications far beyond the shores of England, for that winter in New York State, a band would go on to record a song….

The Beatle in trouble was the still-babyfaced Paul McCartney.  It was no secret that he was already known for enjoying the green leaf.   Back in 1972, McCartney was arrested in Sweden for possession of Lady Ganja.  He was released without charges at that time, but his reputation was now cemented.  McCartney wanted to book a Japanese tour in the mid-70s, but the country was very strict about illegal substances and refused Paul permission to play.  The fans in Japan would have to do without.

Finally, in 1980, Japan had a change of heart and granted permission for Paul McCartney and Wings to tour in the Land of the Rising Sun.

He just needed to make sure he packed appropriately for the trip.

Paul McCartney is an undisputed musical genius.  His songs will last 100 years.  That does not mean that Paul always used his head.  Despite the scrutiny he was bound to experience upon entering Japan, he decided to bring a stash with him.  He was arrested upon discovery at the Narita Airport with 220 grams of Hawaiian green.  Reportedly, he didn’t even attempt to hide the electric lettuce, just packing it in his carry-on bag with his clothing.  Paul subsequently spent 10 days in the keiji shisetsu (刑務施設); actually the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department.  Teenage girls numbering about 50 serenaded the station during Prisoner 22’s incarceration.

Unfortunately for Paul, the nature of this arrest and jailing far away from home meant headlines all over the world.  “PAUL IN CHAINS” and “EX-BEATLE ARRESTED IN JAPAN” went the articles, along with a photo of McCartney being escorted by Japanese officials.  It was huge news, especially in the UK where it became a bit of a media circus.

The judge in the case determined that McCartney brought the drugs for personal use and not trafficking, and decided that Paul had spent enough time in jail.  He was taken to the airport, and flown to Holland, where he was (perhaps surprisingly) refused entry.  He still had time for a chat with the press.

“How did you get out?” asked the reporter.

“Walking on foot,” answered Paul in typical cheeky Beatle humour.

The experience was “a drag” for Paul.  “I was woken up at six in the morning, then had to sit cross-legged for a roll-call. It was like Bridge on the River Kwai. They shouted out ’22’ in Japanese, and I had to shout back, ‘Hai!'”

The 11 date Japanese tour was cancelled at the cost of 2.5 million dollars and 90,000 tickets.

Did he learn from his experience?

“Now I have made up my mind never to touch the stuff again. From now on, all I’m going to smoke is straightforward [cigarettes]. No more pot.”  He later acknowledged his own stupidity.  “Well, to this day I have no idea what made me do it. I don’t know if it was just arrogance or what. Maybe I thought that they wouldn’t open my suitcase.  I can’t put myself back into that mindset now…to this day I have no idea what made me do it.”

Over in America, shortly after shoveling out from a massive dumping of overnight snow, a young songwriter named “Vic Trola” was inspired to write a song.  At least that’s how the credits read on the actual record.  A recent online theory postulated that “Vic Trola” was indeed a pseudonym, but these writings are mostly found in conspiracy theory discussions.  A fringe group that splintered off the main conspiracy theory group added that “Vic” was short for “Victoria”, not “Victor” as previously assumed.   These theories are largely dismissed by the other groups.  Our own extensive research has failed to unearth any other compositions written by Trola; just the one that you are reading about today.  We do know, thanks to documents obtained in the process of researching this article, that after catching their breath from shoveling the drive on that cold winter day, Trola went inside and began writing.  The surviving notes from Vic Trola’s respirologist confirm these facts.

Vic Trola’s song, as it evolved into its final form, was the product of on-stage gigging by the mysterious Spastic Phono Band, and that is where our story really begins.  Though their names are now lost to time, and their relationship to Vic Trola is clouded, we do know that they consisted of a tight rhythm section.  Both the drummer and bassist were exceptional.  They boasted a dual guitar configuration, and multiple lead singers including one female vocalist who appears prominently on their sole recording called “Wings Under Japan”.

The Spastic Phono Band had experience.  They had already been working on a set of originals and comedic covers.  Favourite hits by Santana and the Might Zep were endowed with new witty words, and they found an audience who shared their sense of musical comicality.  Encouraged by the audience reception to these songs, the Spastic Phono Band turned their attention to the hot news of the day:  Paul’s arrest in Japan.  Presumably with Vic Trola’s lyrical input, they started playing bits of his Beatles and Wings hits in a medley.  Egged on by the crowd, and adding throwaway lyrics here and there, the song “sort of wrote itself”, according to a maraca player who claims to have been there at the time (and requested complete anonymity).  It took only three or four shows for the song to come together as we know it today.  The Paul medley became an instant live hit.  The crowds ate it up.  They learned the words, sang along and shouted for more!  Clearly, the song needed to be recorded in a studio, and put out on a record.

Unfortunately for the band and Vic Trola, who were based out of Liverpool (New York, pop. 2400), there were few studios around within the reasonable driving distance of a beaten-up touring van.  Their studio of choice would be unavailable for three weeks, and time was of the essence.  The Paul story was hot now, not later!  Even if they recorded the song immediately, it would have to be mastered and pressed at a record plant, meaning they had to act immediately.  The scarcity of nearby studios presented a challenge.  Would these young musical minds be able to publish their Paul pastiche in time?

As they used to say, the Spastic Phono Band let their fingers do the walking:  They picked up the phone and eventually connected to something that somehow passed as a recording studio.  The old schoolhouse that they booked was certainly was not conceived as a studio when it was built in the last decade of the 1800s.  The top floor housed the recording space, but in a decidedly inconvenient design and safety choice, it was only accessible via an outdoor fire escape.  All the band’s equipment had to be hauled up the emergency exit:  drum after drum after drum, followed by amp after amp.  Bags were passed from vehicle to musician and up the fire escape, which wobbled with every tentative step.  Also, it was winter.  Members of the band were not sure if they were going to survive the combination of snow and ice, metal steps, and gravity.   To our great fortune, they did.

The studio owner was also the engineer, and his soul still lived in the 1950s.  He didn’t grasp the nuance, or understand the Spastic Phono Band’s particular brand of humour.  He did, however, have a friendly personality and got along with the band.  A good sounding record began to take shape on tape.  The band nicknamed the engineer “Eddie”, a reference to a classic Leave It To Beaver character, Eddie Haskell.  Eddie’s studio had all the necessary equipment (minus an elevator).  He even had an ARP synthesizer which can be heard on two segments of the recording: “Silly Drug Laws“ and “Banned in Japan”.  Though the band did not have the budget to spend more time in the studio to do some further work on the guitars, the band climbed down the fire escape holding in their mittens a reel-to-reel tape of their hard-earned work.  Physicists specializing in the behaviour of water at low temperatures speculate that the tape was almost dropped once on the way down, but saved from an icy fate in the snow.

The schoolhouse was demolished in 2025 at 131 years old.

Though recorded, the song still had to be mastered and cut to vinyl.  With time slipping away, and Paul McCartney finally starting to experience a decline in the media frenzy over his Japanese vacation in the big house, the Spastic Phono Band were in an ever-increasing time crunch.  Their song, heavily dependent on McCartney’s imprint in the public consciousness, had to make its way to a physical record that you could buy.  Their preferred manufacturer was fully booked and the band could not wait any longer.  The track was complete, mixed and ready to be mastered…but where?

Through furious searching and some tense bidding on eBay, we have obtained some of the logs, unfortunately anonymous, detailing the following sequence of events of the recording:

Monday.

Tempus is fugiting.  Much to our dismay, the cute Beatle’s troubles in the Far East are rapidly becoming old news.  Also with windchill, it is about four degrees today.

The Paul story was soon displaced by other current events.  The Iranian Revolution made fresh headlines, and soon came the hostage crisis.  Front pages were dominated by the tense 444 day crisis, during which 66 Americans were held hostage at the US Embassy in Tehran.  As it happens, another band in the same area as the Spastic Phono Band, a trio, were working on a song referencing these events.  One of the songs in their regular set, popular in some of the local Irish venues around the area, was Jerry Jeff Walker’s “London Homesick Blues”.  It featured the unique chorus of “I wanna go home with the armadillo.”  (Who wouldn’t?)   This was easily adapted into “I’ve had enough of the Ayatollah”.  The clever lyrical substitute worked, and the band approached the club owners documented only as “The Brothers Three”.  The Brothers actually owned three clubs, which seemed poetic.  The Brothers Three liked the song, feeling that it tapped into the sentiment of the day.  The reached into their pockets and financed a studio recording of the Walker cover.  They were now in the record business.

The Spastic Phono Band, who were familiar with the trio in question, learned of this.  Realizing it was a good idea, they decided to make their own pitch to the Brothers Three.

Wednesday.

They went for it.  Sure, they argued a bit and the oldest one may have smacked the youngest one, but we did get a unanimous decision.  The Brothers Three are going to allow us to use the disc maker where they pressed the Ayatollah record.  

The record would be made in a little postage-stamp sized record plant (if you could call it that) in Connecticut.

Tuesday. 

One of the Brothers Three picked me up in his MG convertible today.  We took the tape to a dumpy little record pressing company.  Mission accomplished.  We ordered 300 copies to be made.   Then headed home, but my companion driving the convertible decided to put the top down.  It may be February thaw, but it was so cold I still don’t have feeling back in my nose.  Considering calling an otolaryngologist.

Frozen noses aside, when the boxes containing 300 copies of “Wings Under Japan” finally arrived, the McCartney story was equally cold.

Friday.

Believe it or not, there isn’t a lot of demand for a record by a band that nobody’s heard of.

The records were delivered to stores, who tried their best to push it, but were fighting an uphill battle. The record was not a hit.  The 300 copies did eventually end up in the hands of the public.  There are no documents detailing any sales, so we do not know if the band sold them at shows, or by mail order, or any of the other quaint methods available in 1980.   Mr. McCartney never stumbled upon the record, as far as the evidence suggests.  At least, we know he hasn’t sued.  But could he even locate the Spastic Phono Band if he wanted to?  We could not.  Vic Trola has pulled a DB Cooper:  Taken the money (if any) and flown.

Though only the original 300 copies were made, we were able to track one down for this article.  It was clearly loved in its previous home.

Housed in a yellow-brown sleeve (the original?), the 45 has a nice maroon label, stating this is on Slipped Disc Records.  Charmingly, the song “Wings Under Japan” is split over the two sides…sides 3 and 4.  (It has been suggested that this release, with sides 3 and 4 instead of 1 and 2), gave George Lucas the idea to number The Empire Strikes Back as Episode V instead of Episode II as expected.  With that film releasing in May 1980, we cannot completely dismiss the claim.)

The track is just over seven minutes combined.

Leavin’ on a Japanese roadtrip,
Headin’ down a London runway,
Paul said ‘I need to bring along some good weed,
Because it helps me relax when I play.’

Guffaw!  The song begins with a spoof of “The Ballad of John and Yoko”, now called “The Ballad of Paul and Linda”, with a similar structure, but words about Paul.  “The way things are gooooin’, they’re gonna scrutinize me!”  And they did…but not long enough for the Spastic Phono Band.  The song continues.

Staring at the man with the baggie.
Paul said, ‘Maybe I’m amazed!
It only amounts to less than half an ounce,
Why do you have to get so carried away?’

In perhaps the most obvious yet fun twist, the song then goes into Wings’ “Hi Hi Hi”…but re-written as “High High High”.  This is funny because it’s so obvious, it had to be done.  It’s amazing nobody else did it.  Incidentally the harmony vocals in this section are rich and excellent.

Next up in the Paul medley is “Silly Love Songs”, redone as “Silly Drug Laws”.  “What’s wrong with drugs, I’d like to know, ’cause here I go again!  I’m in jail…”  Another example of great singing by the Spastic Phono Band, but listen to that 1970s groove and the dexterous bassline!  This is some serious playing.

Side “3” ends, and so we flip to side “4”.  Fortunately in the modern era, we can use our digital capture software to seamlessly edit the two into one track!  Next is “Band On the Run”, revised as “Banned In Japan”.  In this case, the original song is almost a medley of different sections itself.  The Spastic Phono Band do several of them here.  “Stuck inside these stone walls, might be here forever!”  There is a poignant moment coming here, frozen in time.  Little did they know that John Lennon had only months to live, for in December of 1980, he would be murdered in New York.  So to hear the line, “I’ll join with Ringo, and George and John and we’ll put the reunion on,” reminds us that finite period of time when such a thing was indeed possible.

A brief pause and then, just like on Abbey Road, wait for a Beatles-y coda.

“Wings Under Japan” is, quite frankly, one of the best parody medley songs (or however you want to describe it) you’ll ever find, for three reasons.

  1. The mystery.  Who are the Spastic Phono Band anyway?  We may never know.  (Or, more accurately…we may never tell.)
  2. The musical prowess.  There is some serious playing and singing on this brief single, and your life would be richer if you heard it.
  3. Though depicting events before some of you were born, the lyrics are still hilarious due to the timeless nature of weed jokes.

5/5 stars.

 

REVIEW: Ginger Baker’s Air Force – “Man of Constant Sorrow” single (1970)

GINGER BAKER’S AIR FORCE – “Man of Constant Sorrow” (1970 ATCO 7″ single)

When Blind Faith broke up in 1969, Ginger Baker formed the Air Force featuring musicians such as Steve Winwood, Alan White and Denny Laine.  They released two albums, Air Force and Air Force 2, with the debut being a live album recorded at Albert Hall.  They also released one single, a studio version of the traditional “Man of Constant Sorrow”.  Its live counterpart was on the debut Air Force album, but the 3:31 studio version was only on the single.  Today you can buy several compilations and additional live albums, but in 1970 this single would have been one to seek.

Most people today are familiar with the version of “Man of Constant Sorrow” that was released as a single from the soundtrack O Brother Where Art Thou.  Based on the same traditional music, Ginger’s version is vastly different, though clearly the same song.  Opening with soft electric guitar picking by Denny Laine, Ginger soon comes in with a pitty-patter that is distinctly him.  Fiddles join in, and ample soulful backing vocals.  Aside from Laine’s emotional lead vocals, the defining characteristic of this song is the bombastic (but not out of place) drum pounding of Ginger Baker.  Horns join in at the halfway point, lending the song a celebratory Mardi Gras kind of feel.  Though it starts quiet and unassuming, it ends as a magnificent folk-soul monolith.

The single B-side is an instrumental live cut of the original song “Doin’ It” from the debut Air Force.  It was recorded 15 January 1970 at the Albert Hall with a ten-piece band including three saxophones and Hammond organs.  This is a tribal but funky jam, with the bass by Ric Grech blazing the trail.  Like “Man of Constant Sorrow” it builds louder and louder as it goes.  This short 3:47 (fade out) jam is in and out before you know it, but works as an intense but fun workout from some of the greatest musicians ever to hit the stage.  Certainly, the drums and two additional percussionists are a main focus and worth paying attention to.

A terrific single that is not too hard to find.

4/5 stars

EPSON MFP image

REVIEW: Def Leppard – “Just Like 73″ (7” single)

DEF LEPPARD – “Just Like 73” (7″ Mercury single)

This is Def Leppard’s first 7″ single in 30 years – since “Action” in 1994!

I’m bored of Def Leppard’s glam throwback songs.  I know that seems hypocritical, given that many of their biggest hits (“Pour Some Sugar On Me”) are basically that.  “Just Like 73″ is their latest single, a standalone without an album, issued on various coloured 7” singles this year.  While we applaud Leppard for releasing new music on a physical format, the song is not one of their greatest to date.

The coolest aspect of “Just Like 73” is the surprising guitar solo by Tom Morello.  Rage Against the Machine and Def Leppard were diametrically opposed in 1993, but I suppose back in ’73, those guys were listening to a lot of the same records.  On the B-side is a version without Mr. Morello, which is valuable to the collector, but the song is lesser without him.

Sometimes Def Leppard seem bent upon recreating their past, and not always hitting that mark.  “Just Like 73” pushes those big “Hey!” vocals that are so commonly associated with Leppard.  It has the Gary Glitter kind of beats that they are so fond of.  Really, the only thing new here for Def Leppard is that Morello squonk all over the A-side.  That’s a great mix and they should collaborate further.

3/5 stars

REVIEW: Bruce Dickinson – “Resurrection Men” (2024 CD single)

BRUCE DICKINSON – “Resurrection Men” (2024 BMG CD single)

The Mandrake Project is a dense album.  It takes a lot of time to absorb and understand.  The concept goes way over my head, but the songs are heavy and the direction is metal.  Bruce Dickinson is nothing if not ambitious, and of course that means taking the new album on the road.  His live band this time out includes the always reliable Dave Moreno on drums, and Whitenake bassist Tanya O’Callaghan.  Bruce has released two singles from the album with exclusive B-sides, and the second is “Resurrection Men”.

“Resurrection Men” is long for a single, at almost six and a half minutes.  It is loaded with drama, and the acoustic intro really sets a mood.  Then it goes into something more western, like from a Clint Eastwood film, with interesting percussion.  That soon subsides and we go full electric.  This song lunges all over the place, from slow grinding verses to quiet bass-driven parts, and a powerhouse chorus.  Ultimately it’s not really single material, but that’s one thing that makes this release so interesting.  It’s also impressive how Bruce continues to sing with such lung power.

Live from Sao Paolo comes “Afterglow of Ragnarok“, the first single from The Mandrake Project.  A song about “what happens after the end of the world,” according to Bruce.  It is tight, and does not deviate far from the original cut.  The live setting is unforgiving, but even without multitracked vocals, Bruce nails it.  The stage energy is palpable, and Moreno kills it on drums.

The most exciting track is the very first live version of “Abduction” from Tyranny of Souls.  This one absolutely smokes, with breakneck pace, lightning drum fills, and melodic guitar harmonies.  A lot of solo Bruce stuff could almost be considered Iron Maiden made modern, louder and more intense.  “Abduction” falls into that category.  This live version has some really cool guitar solo work, very different from Roy Z’s on the album.

It is truly wonderful to see artists such as Def Leppard, Deep Purple, and Bruce Dickinson releasing physical singles with actual B-sides in 2024.  Keep it up.

4.5/5 stars

 

REVIEW: Brighton Rock – “Can’t Wait For the Night” (Remix) (1986 single)

BRIGHTON ROCK – “Can’t Wait for the Night” (Remix) / “We Came To Rock” (1986 WEA single)

Niagara Falls’ Brighton Rock had a knack for rockers and ballads in equal measure.  Though “ballad” was often whispered as if it were a dirty word, Brighton Rock released a couple as singles over their career.  “Can’t Wait For the Night” was the first.  With a soft keyboard backing, the guitar melody by Greg Fraser sketches out the hook of the song.  Gerry McGhee shows a tender side to his voice, while unleashing the scream on the chorus.  His voice takes on a third texture as the chorus goes out, a grittier version.

On the 7″ vinyl format, the song was given a remix and an edit.  It was taken down from 4:25 to 3:56, and labelled as the “single mix with guitar solo”.  Presumably all that means is that the guitar solo wasn’t chopped for the edit, since the album version seems to have the same solo.  The edited music is mostly outro, and it’s hard to discern exactly what the remix adds.  Keyboards and guitars seem to be the same.  Vocal is the same.  But here it is; the “single remix with guitar solo”!

On the B-side is the rocker “We Came to Rock”, which to me was always the “first single” because of the great music video they used to play on Much.  This dramatic little number mesmerized us as kid.  It began soft and ballady, with keyboards and the sound of violins seemingly being plucked on the verses.  Then, Gerry McGhee released the beast that was his scream on the captivating chorus.  McGhee’s voice had tremendous diversity within single songs, and this is a prime example.  Finally you get to Greg Fraser’s solo, which as always was a composition unto itself.  This is the standard album version.  Simply awesome as-is!  It is one of those rare songs that is a treat to play on repeat.

This awesome little picture sleeve single isn’t hard to find nor expensive to buy.  Highly recommended.

4.5/5 stars

Tomorrow on a Grab A Stack Special Edition, new co-host Len Labelle and I go through our entire Brighton Rock collections. Don’t miss this!

REVIEW: Helix – “Brother From A Different Mother” (2022 single)

HELIX – “Brother From A Different Mother” (2022 download single)

In 2021, Helix recorded a new song called “Brother From A Different Mother”, about a good friend of singer Brian Vollmer.  It was released in 2022 as a download, complete with “NFT’s” which…I don’t know what you do with that, but the mp3 file can be downloaded and played like any other!

The song “Brother From A Different Mother” is one of the heaviest Helix tunes.  Fast as a shark, and heavy as a rock!  The chorus is as memorable as any other Helix single, but the guitar playing is stellar.  From solo to riffs, the guitar provides the undeniable hooks.  There’s a slow breakdown in the middle with piano, and amazing gritty backing vocals by Cheryl Lescom.

Brian’s lyrics are heartfelt and sincere.  You can tell this was a friendship he really valued.  Let us hope for a physical release, be it a single or an album.

4/5 stars

REVIEW: Marillion – Christmas 2020 (single)

MARILLION – Christmas 2020 (2020Racket Records CD single)

For those who love the numbers (hands up, both of you), here are some Marillion 2020 statistics for you:

  • This is the third Marillion single in 2020, after the “Easter” and “Made Again” home recordings.
  • This is the sixteenth Marillion Christmas CD.  A full list of them can be found at bottom.

This year it’s a simple two-track CD single, instead of a live album, and it’s better that way.  Not that a double live CD isn’t a fine way to spend Christmas, but this just feels more…Christmas-y.

Both tracks are produced by Michael Hunter.  “All I Want for Christmas is You” features jingle bells, and the full band givin’ ‘er.  Nice to hear Marillion just rocking!  This is what I want to hear this Christmas — a party.  Ian Mosely doesn’t get to pound a simple one out like this much anymore.  This is good time Marillion Christmas dance party track — and there are not many of those!  They even managed to squeeze in a so-cool Steve Rothery guitar solo without losing the fun.

For the sentimental type, enjoy a lovely “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”.  Hard to believe Marillion haven’t covered this one yet, but they have now!  They do it with piano, keyboards and light accompaniment.  It’s done just the way you want to hear it, around the fire after the kids have been tucked in.  Listen for Steve Hogarth’s Christmas message at the end.

Two Christmas songs done so perfectly that even a Grinch-like curmudgeon can enjoy them.  What else do you want for a free Christmas CD?

5/5 stars

Marillion Christmas CD collection

REVIEW: Blue Rodeo – “Day After Day (Rose-Coloured Glasses)” (1987 Remix single)

BLUE RODEO – “Day After Day (Rose-Coloured Glasses)” (Remix) (1987 Warner 7″ single)

Blue Rodeo were off to a hell of a start.  With a debut LP produced by Terry Brown (Rush), the uncategorizable band eventually went four times platinum in Our Home and Native Land.  Their first single, “Outskirts” didn’t do much, but the followup singles sure did.  Because of its unforgettable chorus, “Rose-Coloured Glasses” was renamed “Day After Day”, with the original title in parentheses.  It was also remixed for the 7″ format.  The 7″ remix remains exclusive to the single, despite a massive Blue Rodeo box set released not that long ago.

Purchased for 99 cents by Dr. Kathryn Ladano somewhere out in the boonies (possibly Radio Shack in Port Elgin), this copy looks like it was marked for clearance.  There is a telltale burn mark on the inner ring of the record.  Anything with non-album tracks or versions was on our radar for collecting and we didn’t care about little burn marks if the record was 99 cents!

The remix isn’t drastically different; some minor changes.  The song didn’t need any help.  As one of Blue Rodeo’s best from the early days, it’s still pure delight.  Greg Keelor’s lyrics are that of a lovestruck poet, something he does very well.  He often finds himself entranced by new love.  “But there’s something in those eyes that keeps me hanging on, I’m hypnotised.”  Still he’s always grounded in his own reality.  “See a world that’s tired and scared from living on the edge too long.  Where does she get off telling me that love could save us all?”  I love everything about it.  The music is full of joy and hope just like the object of Greg’s affection.

The B-side, “Floating”, is an unlisted edit version.  Cut down from 7:53, this version runs at 7:28.  There’s about 7 seconds of noise missing from the opening, and the rest seems to be taken off of the end.  That’s means you’re not getting all of Bob Wiseman’s nutty organ soloing, but who are we kidding, you already have the album anyway.  In contrast to the A-side, this is one of Greg’s more nocturnal explorations.  Are those waves crashing that I hear?  Blue Rodeo jam on this long bomber, the title of which is descriptive of the music.  “And I feel like William Holden floating in a pool,” goes the line that gives the song its name.

This is a band that has it all:  writing, playing, and singing.  They don’t use outside writers and their live shows feature jams that go on for days.  I’m going to get a little preachy here.  If you’re going to jump on the Blue Rodeo train, may as well start at the beginning with songs like “Rebel”, “Try” and of course “Day After Day”…or “Rose-Coloured Glasses”.  It doesn’t matter as long as you get it in your ears.  Hell, Bob Wiseman on his own is a brilliant and entertaining artist.  Throw in the rest of the original lineup and you have a formidable contender for Canada’s greatest band.  Greg Keelor’s guitar playing has always been underappreciated, though Jim Cuddy’s golden voice gets all the praise it earns.  Basil Donovan’s bass is in-demand due to his innate sense of rhythm and melody.  And Cleave Anderson, the former punk drummer who went country, just has a “sound”.  It’s simple and it’s his, just like Johnny Fay.  Though the band today is larger and more versatile, original Blue Rodeo was a special thing.

5/5 stars

 

REVIEW: Chickenfoot – “Divine Termination” (2017 single)

CHICKENFOOT – “Divine Termination” (2017 Edel coloured 7″ single)

For a band with only two albums, Chickenfoot sure do milk it.  After a single debut album, they did a live DVD called Get Your Buzz On.  Two albums in came a live album called Chickenfoot LV.  (Get it?  LV can mean both “live” and “55”, Sammy’s notable hit.)  Then another package called Best + Live, mixing the “greatest hits” with a new song and an audio release of Get Your Buzz On — which, by the way, was mined for five songs already on the previous LV album!

It’s all too much.  We like Chickenfoot here; really we do, but enough is enough.  Instead of buying all that stuff, we decided to just go for a 7″ single for the one “new” song called “Divine Termination”.  That seemed the most logical purchasing option, all things considered.  It’s a nicely packaged 45, on clear pink coloured vinyl.  The side A label depicts Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony.  Side B has Joe Satriani and Chad Smith.  It feels nice and heavy in hand.

Unfortunately, it’s not all rose-coloured.  These guys had five years to come up with one good new song.  “Divine Termination” is not it.  Although it does have a neat, vintage sounding Deep Purple riff, the Chickenfoot hooks and harmonies are missing.  The chorus has no meat.  “Divine Termination” is forgettable even though Joe Satriani plays as brilliantly as ever.

On the flipside is another release of “Highway Star”, the Deep Purple cover.  It’s available on Best + Live, but its first issue was on Re-Machined, the Deep Purple tribute album.  Too bad the B-side isn’t something exclusive, but it does blow away the A-side.  Listen to Joe somehow make his guitar resemble Jon Lord’s Hammond Organ.

Maybe Chickenfoot were too creatively spent after years of solo and other projects to come up with a memorable new song.  There’s talk of a third Chickenfoot album in the future.  If so, it has to be better than “Divine Termination”.

2/5 stars

 

REVIEW: Guns N’ Roses – “Patience” (1989 12″ single)

GUNS N’ ROSES have announced an APPETITE FOR DESTRUCTION deluxe edition coming in June.  While “Rocket Queen” will certainly be on it, it’s highly unlikely the interview track below will.

GUNS N’ ROSES – “Patience” (1989 Geffen 12″ single)

Fans of vintage Guns N’ Roses (what other kind are there?) should always be alert and eyes open for old singles.  Whether CD or vinyl, some of those old Guns singles have buried treasure on them.  One is “Patience”, released several months after the Lies EP from which it sprang.

Here’s some truth for you, and it’s rather strange.  “Patience” simply sounds better with the crackle of vinyl.  I can’t explain it but I sure can testify.  Just a little bit.  Just enough to transport you back in time to 1989 when people were spinning Lies on vinyl (or at least cassette tape) nightly.  The delicate strum of acoustics accentuate one another, and hot-damn, it’s hard to deny the timelessness of “Patience”.  The missus and I played it at our wedding reception and it was a highlight of the evening.  Almost every couple dancing to it that night is still together.  Magic, people!  It’s real.

But no, the real treasure is on side two, and it’s not “Rocket Queen”.  Don’t get me wrong!  “Rocket Queen” is an amazing showcase and could still today be the best tune Guns have ever laid to vinyl.  It’s heavy, it’s soft; it has a bit of everything.  I’d put it in my top five.  But you already have Appetite for Destruction, so you know this already.  What you have probably never heard before is the second track on the B-side, a vintage interview (7:44 long) with the elusive W. Axl Rose himself.

Conducted in his apartment among his broken platinum albums, Axl is asked some point-blank questions.  Did you know Duff had his own comedy version of “Patience” that could have come out at some time?  Axl even dropped lyrics from a new Izzy Stradlin song still two years down the road.  “Double talking jive, get the money motherfucker, ’cause I got no more patience…”  He also revealed they had a lot of ideas…anything from “10 songs to 30 songs”.  (Turns out, it was 30.)

Axl confessed that his violent streak comes from frustration and stress, and that he has always smashed his things.  It’s clear that this guy, sitting at the very top of the rock pile, needed some mental health care.  Bon Jovi, after all, didn’t smash his platinum albums.  He even went as far as to warn psycho fans to stay away or deal with the consequences of getting in his face.

It’s an odd interview, and revealing.  That’s why it’s a treasure worth seeking.  A single like this is valuable to fans who need to know these bits of trivia and minutia.

4/5 stars