4 eps by epsThis compilation is in 4 eps (for no other reason than to make the eps by eps gag work) and should be presented as a 12” vinyl quadruple-gatefold.
A front cover is provided for your delectation.
I’ve also included a pop-tastic quiz question for each track or band to tax your brain (or googling skills!)
EP1
1. Another Sunny Day – I’m in love with a girl who doesn’t know I exist
I probably don’t need to say too much about this here, as I mentioned it on more than one occasion in the original CHUMS thread. Suffice to say, I was the archetypal floppy haired, shoe-gazing indie kid – and a bit of geek when it came to alternative bands. The list of girls I admired from afar is as long as it is tragic. The soundtrack to my school days. And no compy of mine would be complete without a representative from Sarah Records, one of the greatest indie record labels of all time.
Another Sunny Day is also a song title by which Scottish indie band? 2. Falling (Twin Peaks Theme) – Angelo BadalamentiInstinctively I should go for any number of tracks from Giant Steps by The Boo Radleys, but I’m actually going for a track associated with a TV show. Angelo Badalamenti composed the theme tune to Twin Peaks, which was THE major TV series of my youth. The first must-see TV box-set. It was important to never miss an episode, something I never did thanks to the trusty VCR (did anyone else have a blank tape per family member for taping your own stuff?) It’s the theme tune that invokes the memories, but I’m going for ‘Falling’ sung by Julee Cruise, whose haunting vocals were perfect for the series.
Who wrote the words to Falling?3. Cocteau Twins – Cherry Coloured Funk
Ah, the heavenly Elizabeth Fraser. She is so heavenly she doesn’t seem to use any recognisable language – it’s more sounds and textures. Her swooping vocals create songs which are full of emotion and atmosphere. Fraser had such chronically low self-confidence that she wouldn’t sing proper words, so invented words and noises. She always, however, wrote proper lyrics. There are so many songs, but this is my favourite. No idea why it’s called Cherry Coloured Funk or what the song is about (
Beetles and eggs and blues and pour a little everything else…) but its luxurious brilliance is stunning. Deliciously otherworldly. This is the first song on their 6th album, Heaven or Las Vegas released on the 4AD label – one of the most important record labels of the 80s and 90s with a string of amazing artists.
Who said: “You can’t understand the words of Cocteau Twins songs but their harmonies put you in a dreamlike state.”4. Delicious Monster – In You In Me
Another female fronted alternative band (a bit of a theme here…). Delicious Monster appeared in 1993 and then pretty much disappeared the same year. But they definitely left their mark and another, I’m bound to say, that didn’t receive the recognition they deserved. I love their Sundays-esque sound and Rachel Mayfield’s voice which can go from delicate to devastating in one line. I could have chosen any from the album or eps, but In You In Me is my favourite today.
In just one year, 1993, Delicious Monster released all their material: one album and how any EPs?5. Electronic – Getting Away With it
One of the first three vinyl records I bought and what sparked my love / obsession with vinyl. The song is as close to pop perfection as you can get. I also love the aesthetically pleasing sleeve with the lovely picture of a glass of whiskey on a black background – has to be the 12” vinyl sleeve to be really appreciated. Released on Factory Records, with the famous FAC numbering system – even Anthony H ‘Tony’ Wilson’s coffin was FAC 501. Factory had some of the biggest names in town in the 80s and 90s, helping to define the music of a generation.
Which three artists perform on this single, and from which bands?6. The Family Cat – Wonderful ExcuseSaw these supporting Shed Seven in York, which gives you some indication as to where they sit in the pantheon of musical greats! The reality is that they are pretty ordinary band, but I love this song. I think it’s the opening line and chorus line that do it for me. The opening line is:
The revolution starts tomorrow / Some time in the afternoon. I’ve used that phrase, in a tongue in cheek way, with several of my managers over the years who have ‘all talk and no action’ tendencies. The chorus line is:
I had a wonderful excuse / I wasn’t there and I’m not use. Another line I’ve used with my managers who don’t seem to be able to grasp what is required of them. So far, I’ve yet to meet anyone who’s got the musical reference. Overall it’s a catchy, lightweight, indie-pop bit of fun.
Edit: reading back over the compilation, this track really does feel out of place – a bit like Cheech and Chong getting an Oscar nomination. But so what, I’d rather watch Cheech and Chong over the terrible Birdman, and that won 4 Oscars.
One of their tracks is called ‘Bring me the head of…’ which famous politician?7. Goya Dress – Sweet Dreams for YouHow this band didn’t reach superstar status is a mystery. The 3 EPs released in the early-mid 90’s are just brilliant and the album Rooms is one of the best unacclaimed albums ever released. Astrid Williamson’s vocals are spine-tingly stunning and defy anyone to listen to Sweet Dreams for You and not feel a tingle down your spine. Think of PJ Harvey, Tori Amos and Throwing Muses mixed together in a musical whirlwind of delight.
This album was produced by John Cale, who was bassist for which band?EP28. Kristen Hersh(ish) – Bright Yellow Gun
I’m going to cheat on this one. Kristen Hersh, along with Tanya Donnelly (who went on to form Belly), was the driving force behind Throwing Muses. Hersh went solo and must have performed this song live, or something… University was released whilst I was at, erm university and this song reminds me of my second year. A song that goes from standing still to 100mph in two words, and never lets up. Kristen Hersh’s vocals and intensity just hooks you in. The whole album is fantastic, but Bright Yellow Gun is the winner. Another from the 4AD stable.
How are Kristen Hersh and Tanya Donnelly related?9. Inspiral Carpets – Find out why
Still one of my favourite bands. Really hard to pick one track as I love them all. In the end I’ve gone for ‘Find Out Why’. The combo of Tom Hingley’s crystal clear vocals and Clint Boon’s magical farfisa mean it’s an effervescent gem. This was the first Inspirals vinyl I bought and the second of the three that sparked my love / obsession with vinyl. Find Out Why is also the second track on the Cool as F*** EP – one of my favourite EPs of all time – and one that, when purchased, the sleeve had to be kept well hidden from the parentals!
This tune was used as the theme to which TV programme?10. James – Jonny YenEasy choice for the band, trickier narrowing down a track. I love their early stuff and Stutter is a fine, fine album. I’m going for ‘Jonny Yen’, but taken from One Man Clapping, their live, third album. Amazing rock-folk energy – it almost sounds improvised. Sadly James seem to have replaced quality with quantity, but their earlier folky stuff is genius. Released on Rough Trade Records, another historically significant label with a mighty impressive list of artists.
What was the name of the third EP released by James, completely unrelated to a single they would later release?11. The Kinks – I'm Not Like Everybody ElseRay Davies is the greatest song writer in pop history, so choosing one track is almost impossible. Sunny Afternoon, Lola and Waterloo Sunset are three of the finest songs ever written. In the end I’ve gone for a less well known song, but historically significant. I’m Not Like Everybody Else is regarded by many as the song that started the punk movement – which had, and continues to have, a huge impact on music today. It was the B side to the much more famous Sunny Afternoon.
Sunny Afternoon spent 13 weeks at number 1. Of those 13 weeks, one day was particularly special. Why?12. Lush – HypocriteTheir most well-known song from the Split album. Almost the perfect band for me – musically shoegazing-ish, like Ride…with female vocals. I somehow missed them out from Week L, opting for the much weaker Lemonheads. Neither would have won, but now is my chance to correct the mistake. Now they are back in my mind, they are back on in the car. Hypocrite is one of the harder, punkier – almost abrasive – songs on the album; more surging rock than gazing shoes. Yet another gem from 4AD.
Lead singer Miki Berenyi’s mother, Yasuko Nagazumi, made an appearance in which James Bond film?13. Morcheeba – The Sea
Skye Edward’s voice is so enchanting that the whole album ‘Big Calm’ is irresistible. The Sea is the opening track on the album. This came out in my second year at uni and takes me straight back there. My mate Alex got me into them and the song reminds me of happy Saturdays with 3 or 4 of us going for a 30-40 mile bike ride and then collapsing back at our student house with beer and Morcheeba as we stripped our bikes down, cleaned them, and put them back together again (all on the living room carpet, obviously!)
What is the origin of the band name?EP314. Neds Atomic Dustbin – Kill Your Television
This song was a big part of my youth. Kill Your Television was the track that got that got me and my mates headbanging. Also favourite band of a girl I loved (who didn’t know I existed). The album God Fodder is an anthem of youth, despair, hope, joy and pure teenage abandon. I’d describe them as brit-garage-grunge-pop. Ned’s have simplistic, almost immature, lyrics rather than inviting you to contemplate the complexities of life. It means Ned’s cause you to go outside with a pogo stick than go inside to a darkened cellar with a copy of Nietzsche. I’m looking at you Cobain.
The band takes its name from an episode from which famous radio show?15. Beth Orton – She Cries Your Name
Another artist I came across at uni in York. Trailer Park is a lovely album. A splendid intro of strings and plucked acoustic guitar is uplifted further by Beth’s vocals. A folk-pop sound which still puts Beth a long way short of Joni, but at least, in my opinion, she is worthy of being mentioned in the same sentence.
Before her solo career, Beth collaborated with which music producer under the name The Spill?16. Pixies – Caribou
The easiest and the hardest letter. Pixies by a country mile for the band. I’d struggle to only pick 26 Pixies tracks for a collection. They are a unique band who produce short, fast, punk rock – but manage to sound happy at the same time. They don’t do ideology or politics; Black Francis tackled topics few songwriters touch: incest, genital mutilation, STDs, alien abduction, a spate of Japanese businessmen committing suicide – all to a sound full of infectious, catchy choruses. In the end, I’ve gone for what was originally my favourite Pixies song: Caribou, the track that still defines the band to this day: quiet and loud, sweet singing and screaming, light and loud – it covers the whole spectrum of what the band is all about – including the typically obscure subject: an abstraction of native American animism and reincarnation. Say what now, Charles? Taken from their first album, Come on Pilgrim, this (and Surfer Rosa and Doolittle) explain why 4AD are so important.
What is the name of the Pixies songwriting publishing company and from which song does it come?17. Quickspace – Gloriana
Fairly limited for Q, Quickspace is my only option, although the Gloriana is by no means out of place on the album. It starts as a quiet sing-along before a gradual build into a frenzy of guitar, theremin, and keyboard. It sounds a bit like spaced-out pop music with strange instruments. They also eschew the typical verse-chorus-verse format. The whole album comes across as more of a jam session, giving it a playful quality and a catchiness that I can’t quite my finger on.
Why did Quickspace’s founder and leader, Tom Cullinen, name their fourth, and final, album ‘The Death of Quickspace’?18. Ride – Drive Blind
‘Drive Blind’ is not my absolute favourite song (that’s a toss-up between Vapour Trail and Leave them all Behind), but it’s the memory of a gig that get the track on this album. If I could, I’d bottle the live version of the gig in Manchester in the early-90s. They played the first 3 minutes of the song as normal, and then went into a mass swell of guitars which lasted over 10 minutes – going up and down in speed and volume before returning to finish the song. As we know, waves of quiet / loud, fast slow is a big tick in the box for me: 15 minutes of moshing ecstasy. Sadly, I can’t bottle it, but they did a similar thing Live at the Roxy, L.A. 10th April 1991 – this is the second CD on the Nowhere 20th Anniversary Edition. So the 12th and final track of this live recording is the one on the record. Incidentally, at the LA gig Ride were supporting Lush. Now, I dearly love my children, but if someone offered me tickets and a time machine in exchange for them… Released on Creation Records, another hugely influential record label.
Ride were one of the original ‘shoegaze’ bands. What is the origin of the term and when was it first coined?19. Stone Roses – Sally Cinnamon
The third of the three vinyl purchases that got me hooked. This is one as much for the reminder of the physical 12” as the song. The B Sides of Here it Comes and All Across the Sands on the 1987 release are also great tracks. I was fully paid up member of Madchester for a while, and The Stone Roses were the epitome of it all.
Why did the Stone Roses have to cancel their appearance at Glastonbury 1995?EP420. Teenage Fanclub: What you do to me
Another sunny, hooky tune that is almost Beatlesesque. Specifically the track is from the 1992 promo EP (or live) where, at the end, they break into the much heavier instrumental ‘Satan’ from the same album. And as you now know, any song that swings from quiet to loud and slow to fast is a winner with me. Another Creation Records release.
Who described the Fannies as ‘the best band in the world’? Who described the Fannies as the second best band in the world?21. The Undertones – Teenage Kicks
I'm a huge admirer of John Peel, and this is his favourite song of all time – and with some good reason. So, in homage to the great man, it’s on. Enough said.
What iconic words are on John Peel’s grave stone?22. Velvet Underground with Sunday MorningFrom The Velvet Underground and Nico, one of the most famous album covers of all time, this song is just wonderful; the very definition of ‘dreamy’ that transports you to another world. Sadly, such dreamy Sunday Mornings are a distant memory, but I can send the kids down the pits as soon, so not long to wait now…
Why did Billy Yule replace Mo Tucker on drums for the recording of 'Loaded'?23. The Wonderstuff – Golden Green
I know they sold out, but their earlier folky stuff is still great. Golden Green is a fun, light pop song. It’s also a fabulous song live: ‘And if she loves me, she’ll say that she loves me…’ sung unaccompanied by the crowd is awesome. Probably now classed as a not-so-secret guilty pleasure – but it’s my collection and I’ll sell out if I want to!
How was the band’s wonkily-lettered logo created? (As seen on the HUP album cover)24. Pixies – Levitate MeNothing for X, so it’s going to mark the spot for a bonus treasure. I’ve changed my mind on this track about 10 times, but settled on the final track of Come on Pilgrim: the album that changed my world, musically and defined (and is still defining) my musical tastes. I could have picked any track from the first Pixies albums, a most from their fourth and a couple from their fifth! This track is specifically the Peel Sessions version found on Live at the BBC. Levitate Me is classic Pixies: It starts with thumping drums and grinding guitars, turns almost soft and melodic before ramping back up again. Overall the sound is energetic, but not at all menacing. Listen to the lyrics, however, and it’s an acrid story of sex and catholicism. The chorus is slurred, as if Charles was drunk, adding to the sense of distress and despair when you really get into the song – contrasting starkly with your first impressions (again, classic Pixies)
I’d better stop now before I change my mind and choose…
The video to Velouria is 23 seconds of the band running through a quarry towards the camera, shown in slow motion to last the duration of the song. Why?25. Young Marble Giants – N.I.T.A
I first came across YMG at Tom, a schoolmate’s house. His older brother had loads of music and we looked up to him as the definition of musical cool. Tom would often sneak into his brother’s bedroom and nick records and CDs. And this was one of them. We’d never heard of them before. Tom thought they were awful, I was entranced. Tom got me a copy on tape, which I had for years before getting the CD. Really hard to categorise or describe the band – unlike anything else I’ve got: I imagine that they are the primordial soup from which Sterolab evolved. N.I.T.A is a seriously depressing song about a relationship break up (
It's nice to hear you're having a good time / But it still hurts 'cause you used to be mine / This doesn't mean that I possessed you / You're haunting me because I let you). The N.I.T.A stands for
Nature intended the abstract / For you and me. As intelligently subtle as it is desperately sad. Musically it has a mesmerizing drum beat, wonderful scratchy bass, a lovely background organ and Alison Statton’s beautiful voice. The track is from the album Colossal Youth, one of the most influential albums you’ve probably never heard of. Another Rough Trade release.
From where does the band derive its name and album title?
26. Zero 7 – I have seen
Having started off in a chilled out state, and gone on a musical ride, we’re almost back where we started with chilled out Zero 7 – the only song post 2000 on the compy. Not the greatest band in the world, but my favourite beginning with Z. Echoes of Morcheeba and Portishead (not as good as either, but then they aren’t as good at starting with the letter Z) so Zero 7 closes out the collection. I’ve gone for ‘I have seen’ from the album Simple Things which has a hypnotic base line that slows your right down. After this one, it’s time to turn off the lights, put your head on the pillow and head off to dreamland.
Henry Binns and Sam Hardaker started off as sound engineers and engineered for which band in the 80s (who are listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the most successful duo in UK music history)?
And finally, the album cover:
Thank you and good night.
