Wednesday, August 03, 2005

Classic 12"s - You Gave Me Poison


Ah, the Happy Mondays. Another icon of the baggy scene, they were a shambolic, drug addled crew of thugs who somehow managed to create a racket that was both experimental yet danceable. Nobody could tell what singer Shaun Ryder was talking about half of the time - the mush mouth delivery and the accent were no help at all. First album Bummed was produced by madman Martin Hannett, who gave it that cold, echo laden Factory Records sound. Second album Pills & Thrills... was "the big one", produced by Oakenfold and Osborne, full of funkiness of a much warmer variety. Then the label sent them to an island in the Caribbean to record third album ....Yes, Please! with Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth. They discovered crack and scooter crashes and the record stank and sent the label into bankruptcy. Wrote For Luck (Club Mix) is taken from Bummed, and this version is mixed by Laurence Diana (who engineered the original sessions). A slightly slicker take on the song, I particularly love Shaun's ranting on this track -

You used to speak the truth
But now you're liar
You used to speak the truth
But now you're clever
.



News! - Football!
It's only the beginning of August but the NFL is back in action, with most teams having reported to training camp last weekend. My boys the Minnesota Vikings have had a good off-season, drafting wisely and also spending some serious $$$ on defensive free agent talent and are the favorites to win their division this season. Live From Mankato is the local paper's training camp blog where you can catch up on all of the day's events, and read a lot of silly comments from other readers. I have to say that it should be an interesting year - no Randy Moss + a real defense = ?

7 comments:

DJ durutti said...

I assume you've seen 24 Hour Party People (right?). If you've missed it for some reason, definitely check it out on DVD! -- great posts recently (loved the 12" classics).

Michael said...

Yeah, I've seen it. It's brilliant. I would have to say that it's definitely one of my fave rock movies ever.

DJ durutti said...

agreed. in fact, it'd prob make my top 20 (or 15?) list of favorite films, period.

DJ durutti said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Anonymous said...

This is great Michael! This is where it all started for me. Happy Mondays were the best. great to see you are posting those Madchester classics. Looking forward to what will come next.

If you have Perfume by Paris Angels: please post. ;)
A great track that should be heard.

JOE GILLIS said...

Yeah, okay, your Vikings MIGHT be favored (by some) this year. But watch out for my on-charging Lions. With their 10-year rebuilding program, they're due to hit 7-9 this year! Wildcard, here we come (in two years).

Michael said...

@molotov - "With their 10-year rebuilding program, they're due to hit 7-9 this year! Wildcard, here we come (in two years). "

HAHAHAHA! How many games are you giving Joey Harrington before Jeff Garcia gets the job?

@LondonLee - despite having lived in the UK for 6 years I never acquired the taste for, as you say, REAL football. My bro on the other hand is a die hard Liverpool supporter.