The great fashion crimes of the Irish Republic...

Back in 1975, when Northern Ireland was up to it's eyeballs in blood and thunder, it seems the fellas in the Irish Republic were fighting their own heroic struggle, only their fight was with the twin evils of prog rock and glam fashion!!! Looks like the bass player has lost his particular battle...it's The Horslips of ...course. The snakes were obviously frightened out off Ireland by the flute players trousers and platform shoe combination! A nice piece off music and all that...

Should Animals Wear Trousers?...a short history of Vivian Stanshall.

Viv with the ever faithfull Bones in the 1970's.

Stanshall was born on March 21, 1943 in East London, England before World War II forced him and his mother to evacuate to Oxfordshire. While attending art school under the well-known pop artist Peter Blake (the designer of the Beatles' famed Sgt. Pepper album cover), Stanshall formed the Bonzo Dog Dada Band with flatmate Rodney Slater and fellow student Larry Smith in 1962.

Dubbed the "court jester of the underground rock scene in the 1960s" by influential DJ John Peel, Vivian Stanshall earned his greatest notoriety as the original tenor in the absurdist Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band, although he was also a noted artist, writer, bon viveur and comedian.

Later shortened to simply the Bonzo Dog Band, the satirical became highly successful before creative differences triggered their break-up in 1970. Stanshall quickly resurfaced with a series of short-lived and diverse projects: the first, the Sean Head Showband, issued the single "Labio Dental Fricative," while his second solo release, under the guise of Vivian Stanshall and His Gargantuan Chums, was a parody cover of Terry Stafford's "Suspicion." "Blind Date" was recorded as biG Grunt, a group also comprised of Bonzo Dog Band auxilliary members Roger Ruskin Spear, Dennis Cowan and "Borneo" Fred Munt; while the group did play a handful of live gigs, they met their premature demise when Stanshall, a heavy drinker and drug user, suffered a nervous breakdown and was hospitalized.

In 1974, Stanshall emerged with his debut solo LP Men Opening Umbrellas, recorded with Steve Winwood; Stanshall later returned the favor, collaborating with Winwood on his own self-titled debut and contributing significant lyrical ideas to 1980's Arc of a Diver. After narrating Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells, Stanshall was tapped to guest host the BBC Radio 4 program Start the Week, where he developed his monologue Rawlinson End, which later inspired his own 1978 release Sir Henry at Rawlinson End as well as a film of the same title which starred Trevor Howard.

In 1981, Stanshall issued the autobiographical Teddy Boys Don't Knit, followed three years later by the spoken word project Henry at Ndidis Kraal. The Rawlinson saga continued with Rawlinson Dogends, a 1991 play staged at London's Bloomsbury Theatre complete with musical backing from Rodney Slater and Roger Ruskin Spear. Another autobiographical radio play, Essex Teenager to Renaissance Man, followed in 1994, along with film and voiceover work. Vivian Stanshall died in a house fire on the morning of March 5, 1995.

For a full biog. track down the brilliant book "Ginger Geezer, The Life of Vivian Stanshall" by Lucian Randall and Chris Welch.

Also, check out this brilliant short film from 1974/75. Jack De Maniac!!

Malcolm Mclaren 1946 – 2010

A youthful Malcolm Mclaren...

I have to admit that as famous as Malcolm McLaren was, I know little about him beyond his media persona. He seemed to be a man with his finger on the pulse, throughout his careers both in fashion and the music industry.

Of course, he was best known as manager of The Sex Pistols and later Bow wow wow. He was often painted (especially by the endlessly bitter John Lydon) as a schister and con man who purposely set out to profit from The Sex Pistols with ill regard for them or their welfare, monies owed etc. But, isn't that the way every music manager/mogul from Uncle Tom Parker to Alan Klein? Was he any worse than say Brian Epstein who manipulated The Beatles by grooming their image, puting them into neat suits thus securing them household acceptance the world over? Lydon eventually got the royalties rightly owed, but never forgave McLaren.

Well as I said I know little about the man apart from his various music projects. I do know that "Buffalo Girls" was a great song as was "Double Dutch", the world would've been a duller place without The Pistols and Annabella Lwin sure looked good on that  Bow Wow Wow album cover (itself 'stolen' from a painting by Manet).

Malcolm's most famous pronouncement was..."Be reasonable, demand the impossible" again stolen from the French situationists of the late 1960's, nothing's original and all that...anyway here's the Sex Pistols at the top of their game and actually looking like they're having a bit of fun...


Mojo Magazine On line Obituary...
Malcolm McLaren, the man who - if his own outlandish publicity is to be believed - birthed punk as a cultural force during his tenure as the manager of the Sex Pistols has died at the age of 64. The punk svengali had been diagnosed with cancer which finally claimed his life on Thursday April 8, 2010, in Switzerland.

Born in Stoke Newington in North London on January 22, 1946, McLaren enjoyed a middle class education and eventually attended art college in the '60s before embarking on a life in fashion and music as the '70s dawned.

Influenced by teddy boy culture and retro American rock'n'roll - most notably the likes of Gene Vincent and Elvis Presley- he and his partner Vivienne Westwood opened Let It Rock, a shop on the King's Road, in 1971. A year later he headed to New York to buy stock for the shop when he encountered the New York Dolls and, intrigued by their trashy aesthetic, he began managing them.

Renaming his shop Too Fast To Live, To Young To Die, McLaren was clearly influenced by the Dolls' nihilistic attitude but both parties went their separate ways after a three year struggle. By then he'd developed his shop further and, now called Sex, it became the epicentre for what would become the UK punk scene which was centred around another band he was managing. That band would eventually become the Sex Pistols.

McLaren was largely credited with engineering the Pistols' controversial career - much to singer John Lydon's eternal annoyance who later sued him for unpaid royalties and won in 1987. In hindsight, however, McLaren's ability to create controversy also ended up destroying the band itself after their one and only proper studio album Never Mind The Bollocks, claiming the life of bass player Sid Vicious along the way.

Post-Pistols, McLaren managed Bow Wow Wow fronted by the teenage Annabella Lwin before launching his own musical career drawing on everything from hip hop (Buffalo Gals) opera (Madame Butterfly) to Franco-pop (Paris Paris) along the way.

Ever an outspoken figure, McLaren's endeavours and sloganeering contributed hugely to punk's cultural resonance and will outlive a man who enjoyed nothing more than self-mythology. (source, MOJO magazine).

The Groundhogs – Split

Just thought I'd sing the praises of this much overlooked classic slab of English guitar madness by the mainly unknown British blues/psych band the Groundhogs. The Groundhogs were (and possibly still are) a three piece, formed in New Cross, London in 1963. I'm not going to write a whole biography of the band and members, for that go to:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Groundhogs

Their album 'Split' is possibly their most well known and in my humble opinion their best. The single 'Cherry Red' is a true lost guitar mayhem, buzzsaw, fuzzbuzz, mania, distorto, gonzo, psych, three piece blues masterpiece. Check it out, you won't be disappointed.

THX 1138

Cool film poster for the 1970, George Lucas directed Science Fiction movie 'THX 1138'

End of the Century...

Great Documentary about the equally great Ramones.

It's still hard to imagine, watching this, the sheer impact they must have had on the stodgy music industry of the early seventies. Well no, I take that back because they didn't have a massive impact on the music industry, but they did on the few at the time and the many legions of fans who came later. Like The Velvet Underground before them, at the time their records sold next to nothing, but seemingly, everyone who saw them, especially early on went on to form a band of their own such was their impact.

It's easy to write The Ramones of as three chord wonders who followed a simple plan throughout their career, but their is a depth to The Ramones music that at first isn't evident. Joey for one was a gifted and brilliant singer, not just some punk yelper. The melodies matched anything The Beachboys (who were a huge influence) came up with. Dee Dee who was the bands main song writer delved deep into personal experience to come up with some completely raw and emotive rock lyrics, and Johnny's guitar style was completely his own copied by many but bettered by none.

At the end of the film we see them being inducted into the Rock 'n Roll hall of fame. Afterwards there's a cocktail party. Johnny is predictably missing, but it's Dee Dee who stands out. Welling up with pride but equally looking lost in all the attention. As he walks away alone down the hall tears filled my eyes, knowing of course that he died of a drug overdose only a few months after the film was finished, but that's Dee Dee I guess and that was The Ramones.

Though Joey, Dee Dee and Johnny aren't with us anymore, they of course live on through their music and through this brilliant and touching documentary and, the three dearly departed are probably in rock n roll heaven having a massive punch up as we speak.

If you haven't seen it, see it today. Go out and by their first album, the self titled The Ramones,  and revel in the energy and joyousness of being young, dumb and beautiful again. If you're still young, turn off your blips and beeps, trash your 'My Chemical Romance', burn your 'Fall Out Boy' and 'Green Day' and stick this on your turntable instead, you'll be doing your self a great favour.
God bless you boys...

Original Big Star Line up..

In memory of the recently departed Alex Chilton and the long gone Chris Bell, here's a picture of the boys in their Big Star glory days...(photo courtesy of John Fry).

Original Big Star line up with Alex Chilton (left), Chris Bell (seated), Jody Stephens (middle) and Andy Humell (right)...

Hawkwind Space Ritual Article from 1973...

I am an unashamed Hawkwind fan. It took me a while to get what they were about, and some of their later stuff is truly dire, but everything in this article from Strait magazine, published in 1973 is bang on the nail. "Space Ritual", recorded live in Liverpool and London in 1973 is their masterpiece. Anyway, here's the article, courtesy of www.Freekly.com...

Hawkwind's Space Ritual and Kosmik Muzak

Gary Sperrazza!, Strait, 1973.

AS YOU ALL KNOW, the prime force, the "essence" if you'll permit, of good rock has always been Energy. Rock Energy is created through two different methods. One is Energy through enthusiasm: an excitement and freshness created humanly through youthful, joyfully unrestrained vocals and fresh pop arrangements, things like the Beach Boys, Wackers, Big Star, early Hollies, Blue Ash, early Stories, Stealer's Wheel, etc.

The second method is Energy through electricity: raw electric rock power which, in its throbbing pulse and relentless, continuous drive forces you to react, groups like the Stooges, Black Sabbath, Dust, Groundhogs, early Grand Funk, Pink Fairies etc. The electricity that seeps into your system can be absorbed and channeled, which supercedes you initial reaction to it. The fact that voltage enters your system is much more important than whether you belch, tap your feet or sit frozen, mesmerized by the sound itself. Embracing this electrical umbilical cord are Hawkwind, innovatively neanderthal, obscurely familiar and radically redundant. All in a positive sense, you understand.

Hawkwind have been together four years and Space Ritual makes their fourth album. Noted as a people's (read "hippie") band, they've attracted a wide following in England through their concerts (many of them free) and two singles, 'Silver Machine' (No. 3 in England; not on any album) and 'Urban Guerilla' (a new release; not on any album). The first three albums, Hawkwind, In Search of Space and Do Re Mi Fa So La Ti Do, while not always following a storyline as often as they'd have us believe, were conceptual in their initial inspiration, dealing with space themes, cosmic battles and intergalactic voyages.

The line-up of Hawkwind fluctuates as often as Marvel Comic's Avengers, but the basic five are: Dave Brock (guitar), Lemmy (bass), Simon King (a truly inhuman drummer), Nik Turner (sax) and Del Dettmar (synthesizer). Playing a crucially important role in the presentation is DikMik, whose audio generator creates a range of sounds from subsonic to ultrasonic frequencies; it is DikMik who helps one to feel the music so much more kinestheticly. Icing on the cake, are Stacia, whose extraordinary costumes and seductive dancing serve to cement those urges the music stimulates and Bob Calvert, a poet and narrator whose worthiness in the band is questionable.

Hawkwind is space muzak, oscillated heartbeats; an energy level that seeps into your body as well as into your ears. At first, they were regarded as a poor man's Pink Floyd, but Hawkwind has surpassed any physical impact Pink Floyd has foisted on us with swipe of Brock's guitar. Comparing Hawkwind to Pink Floyd is like comparing Fellini to Walt Disney. Pink Floyd gives the impression of being elitist in their conservatism; even their free form playing was highly structured. Pink Floyd programs their electricity so as to almost expect a certain reaction from their audience; but they know when to stop whereas Hawkwind doesn't. Pink Floyd is far from being an approximated risk which is one way of talking about Hawkwind.

These solar beings are pulsating, raw, blood-red energy. Hawkwind are the ultimate heavy metal urgists with cosmic frills transmitted through oscillators and synthesizers. As there is a sense of morbidity and an attempt at escapism in their themes (lyrics); there is this same morbidity evident in the, seemingly redundant sound they throw at us. Even the packaging for Space Ritual has a cold, inhuman quality about it. A six-part cover that folds out to the size of six album jackets (one up on Blue Cheer's Outsidelnside) is covered with mid-60's acid-rockfreakism photography, cosmic fantasy drawings and a nude Stacia (a space goddess indeed) with Andromeda Strain computer printout type for related phrases over the pictures.

Space Ritual, recorded live in England, is a musical representation of a story so ambiguous that it forces the listener to do all the work in interpreting it. As a double, album of heavy attacking rock and formless experimentation (a minor part), it implies a conflict between their two styles. But it is the heavy metal aspect that dominates and it's Hawkwind's mastery of it that makes them so special. Space Ritual is helped along by fantasy writer Michael Moorcock who contributed themes, passages and poetry. Calvert's readings sound a bit ridiculous in context with the energy of the music, but supply quiet breaks from which Hawkwind's dramatic song openings can blast off of (some of the material is from older albums).

'Lord of Light' comes across as the most melodic of their heavier material. A fine bass line and solid drumming set the groundwork for a plea by Brock, keeping an attempt at consistent vocalization rather than the spontaneous tokenistic grunts that usually accompany Hawkwind's music. 'Space is Deep' is a space chant creating images of surviving Earthlings reflecting on their planet, long since dead. 'Orgone Accumulator' is a return to the Earth in the form of a cosmic boogie, a plutonian Canned Heat, possibly Disneyland's Pluto. 'Brainstorm,' taken from DoReMi, is my personal favorite, possibly creating a new energy level in its own right. Dave Brock sets up a slicing guitar riff as the band plays their bodies out, giving the song the full treatment it deserves. The flip of the 'Silver Machine' single, '7 X 7' is given a desperate feel as Brock casts his attacking view of Earth onto the audience, who, at this point, must be so intoxicated by the unreality of the whole Space Ritual that it passes unnoticed. The many other tunes are a furthering of the basic electric theme set down previously.

Surprisingly, Space Ritual is recorded well; Hawkwind, during the mixing, miked the drums and bass upfront to add the physical impact lacking in home seclusion, that is, versus a concert setting. That's why Hawkwind, in some of their incredibly long passages, can sustain interest because of drive, you really feel the music.

Lemmy deserves special mention as he is the best power bassist around; he brings Hawkwind back to the ground which defies their basic policy of ascension. Lemmy's bass chording is so rich and full that it, at times, functions as a rhythm guitar when Dave Brock goes through cosmic-menstruation. Drummer Simon King must have a stand-in ... or the drums play themselves; to sustain such energy and tightness throughout this double album is indeed astounding.

Dettmar and DikMik, while enhancing the special effects and giving Hawkwind a distinctive style, fall short of their potential at times in light of other's accomplishments on the synthesizer. For example, M. Frog (alias Jean Yves Labat, who accompanied Todd Rundgren on his spring tour) and Eno (late of Roxy Music) funneled their respective group's sound and acted as a coating while still shining in their own right; if there is a purpose in Hawkwind's synthesizer effects other than to accent the chaotic feel that Hawkwind preoccupies themselves with, it's generally lost.

Hawkwind's saga is what you want it to be. The more you get involved with them, the more you believe – it becomes elaborate. If they are as dumb as they look, their stupidity is probably instinctive. If they're doing this on purpose, if it all does make sense in some elevated fashion, they're definitely poking fun at us. Seemingly paradoxical is the fact that Hawkwind make Pink Floyd sound like the DeFranco Family and most heavy metal bands like Black Sabbath sound like classical composers.

As for Space Ritual, it's doomed to become a lost masterpiece. But if they're consistent with their philosophy, they won't care if no one buys it, right? Hawkwind have adhered to a simple formula: rather than help the audience to accept an image, they create their own and dare you to accept it. It's worked in England (as has David Bowie) but in America, the general audience is not tuned into experimentation; look at the charts. What amazes us is how rock Energy via pop, which is formula-based, is not accepted and rock Energy via electricity isn't accepted either. American kids don't like formulas and they don't like experimentation. What's left? Groups like Hawkwind, the definitive heavy metal masters of the '70s, left out because of no exposure. Space Ritual isn't for everybody, obviously, but it's hoped that those who crave this kind of Energy blast will find it themselves: I've done all I can.

© Gary Sperrazza.

More Who!!

Does anyone out there remember when Top of The Pops really meant something? 7.30pm on a Thursday night heralded the almost beginning of the weekend, only one more day of school then freedom for a whole 48hrs.

You'd had your fill of Grange Hill, you'd had your dinner and it was time to settle in for a half hour of God only knows what. Maybe Kate Bush in her Babushka gear, maybe The Smiths outraging dads the land over with bunches of flowers and hearing aids, The Jam singing "Town Called Malice" with Paul Weller in a kitchen apron, Iggy pop pulling the heads of doll's, pan's people dancing to "In the Summertime" in frighteningly short shorts as your dad sent you out of the room to ask your mum something, Dave Lee Travis, Jimmy bloody Saville...Ohh I could go on.

Well of course you could spend your life reliving it all on Youtube and in a recent interview it sounded like that's exactly what Johnny Marr is doing with himself these days, but for all you TOTP fans of old and even older, here's the Mighty Who doing "Won't Get Fooled Again".

Imagine this bunch of psychopathic looking hairies blasting out on a frigid Thursday December evening in 1971..Sure as hell beats the pants of what passes for pop music in "The Industry" (says it all really) these days. Kid's of today are getting fooled and they don't even know it. Oh God I sound like some 40 year old!! Enjoy...

The Who, "Won't Get Fooled Again"

Le Freek, free music articles from yesteryear...

Delivered straight to your inbox. Just go to this link, http://www.freekly.com/
Some of the articles are a bit hit and miss, but there's some classic interviews, reviews etc.
All the articles are downloadable as PDF's...
This weeks issue:

The Who – The Seeker.

Despite the dodgy  sound quality..this is a great clip from 1971 of The Who at their hairiest best. The Seeker is a bit of a lost Who classic in my mind. I mention it in conversation and people tend to look at me blankly, I mean they do that anyway, but more blank than usual! Anyway. It's a great track, love those sarcastic lyrics... Strangely for The Who, they all look really fit and healthy here, even Keith. Great seeing the boys doing their thing. Enjoy.

Free Interview and "Mr Big" live...

Free in Australia wayyyyyy back in the seventies, 1970 to be precise. The boys looked tired and emotional, shattered.
One of the most overlooked bands of the era,  known predominantly for the single "All Right Now", Free had a totally unique soulful sound, minimalist at times when compared to the zeppelins and deep purples of the time.

Guitarist Paul Kossoff was a master, rightly spoken of in the same breath as Peter Green, Jimmy Page and Eric Clapton. His playing was tight, full of feel, fire and bite, but could be beautifully mournful and understated. His use of vibrato and sustain was beyond compare, just listen to the title track from there 1970 album "Fire and Water" or the later track "Come together in the Morning" from the album "Heartbreaker". His untimely death from a heart attack at the age of 25 was a complete tragedy.

The rhythm section made up of Simon Kirke on Drums and the incredibly talented Andy Fraser on bass were like none other of the time. Kirke's playing was heavy but, again deceptively simple sounding. Fraser's bass playing was intricate, melodic and powerful, building a solid foundation for the guitar, drums and vocals with huge, resonant, fat  sounding chords. Rather than filling up the sound with unnecessary noodling he relied on feel and sustain, although he could play a mean solo when called upon, (check out the clip below).

Singer, Paul Rodger's was unique also for the time's. His voice was bluesy, coarse, gimmick free, clear and natural sounding, filled with soul power. He wasn't a screamer like say Robert Plant, and could belt it out all the same, draining emotion from the song. In the quieter moments his voice is beautifully bluesy filled with sorrow, with out being put on. He was a natural..

Their career may have been short, but what they left behind more than makes up for there lack of years. The band were a perfect fit, all four members coming together with an incredible understanding of each other musically. And, let's not forget how young they were. I think Fraser was only 16 when they recorded the first album and the rest barely 18!! Roll on...


Free..."Mr. Big" live on T.V.broadcast. 1971



Free Interviewed in Australia, 1970