Tuesday, January 14, 2020

Going For The Jangular

Students of Rock endlessly debate the first rebirth of jangle. The Soft Boys often get the nod for 1980's Underwater Moonlight. But Big Star recorded #1 Record way back in '72 - so was that jangle redux or a continuation of the Byrds, who most likely copped the sound from ur-janglers the Searchers? However you parse it [incorrect use of term - Ed.] the Searchers' return in the late seventies/early eighties is noteworthy. Love's Melodies was the second, and best, of their we're-still-here albums for Sire, and suffered from an uncharacteristically dreadful cover from John Van Hamersveld, desultory promotion, confusing versions, and an overall feeling that nobody cared much. A shame, because the album is a pop masterclass from beginning to end, with more hooks than a butcher's back room.
Fast-forward into the past to '87. The Searchers are back to playing working mens' clubs and the scampi circuit in the north of England (which is like Seattle without the coffee) and Flying Color record their sole album, for Frontier Records. It was the year when everybody wanted to have fun with Wang Chung, and George Michael wanted your sex - those fabulous eighties - so it's no surprise this low-key but achingly gorgeous set of tunes didn't fly.

 But if you missed either of these, it's never too late to jangle.

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32 comments:

  1. MrDaveJanuary 14, 2020 at 6:54 AM

    First One In!!!! Yes!!! No curse for me -- suk it lusers! (may I have the link pretty please?!?)

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    1. FiveGunsWestJanuary 14, 2020 at 7:10 AM

      Dang it.........I had a rather large reply here but we're experiencing high winds and another three to six feet of snow.....on top of the twelve or so feet outside the FGW lineman's shack. I hit enter and it was gone. I'll reprise briefly. I waited......now I am preparing my mojo hand, black cat bones and John the Conqueror root in an attempt ease the effects of the curse of the Foam. Flying Color was demo'ing out of Tom Mallon's studio at 3rd x Bryant in San Francisco while I was there in the Ophelias and the Catheads. For some reason I think I remember Tom playing with Flying Color. He had been in Angry Samoans for a time. SF was cool in that you could pretty much meet & hang with everyone on the scene at some time or another.

      Delete
    2. MrDaveJanuary 14, 2020 at 7:14 AM

      I'm willing to share my link with you since you've always generously shared your link with the other four of us. You probably have enough karma to counter-balance most of the curse.

      Delete
    3. FiveGunsWestJanuary 14, 2020 at 12:54 PM

      HAHHAHHAHAHA Thank you MrDave. You are too kind. I appreciate your generosity.

      Delete
  2. KelJanuary 14, 2020 at 6:58 AM

    Searchers!

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  3. Jack Kerouac's CatJanuary 14, 2020 at 6:59 AM

    C'mon man, how about a jangley link?

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  4. Farquhar Throckmorton IIIJanuary 14, 2020 at 7:08 AM

    I'm going to have to do at least three things before I shovel the links up, and the first of those is - remember what the second and third are, and hope that the fourth comes to me.

    "Soon, Zoltan! You mus have patience!"

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  5. Farquhar Throckmorton IIIJanuary 14, 2020 at 8:05 AM

    Okay - I was going to re-tag the Searchers album, because it's untidy and there is LITERALLY NOTHING WORSE than untidy tagging, but what th' hey.

    !New file host for our suffering citizens of Brexitannia!

    Down In The Jangle


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  6. Farquhar Throckmorton IIIJanuary 14, 2020 at 8:06 AM

    Wupes - forgot th' CURSE OF FOAM. Today - surprising earwax build-up in one ear.

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    1. MrDaveJanuary 14, 2020 at 8:26 AM

      Thank you Sir III the Third! It's going to be some sweet dreams tonight knowing that my earwax will not be unbalanced! I'm still working on getting those socks sorted out! Fortunately I got two lucky curse-free freeloading link loopholes earlier today so I'm curse-free!

      Delete
  7. art58koenJanuary 14, 2020 at 9:25 AM

    Thank you for The Searchers, nice albums.

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  8. Crab DevilJanuary 14, 2020 at 2:13 PM

    OK, fine: I'll just have to listen with whichever lughole happens to be spared.

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  9. FiveGunsWestJanuary 14, 2020 at 4:02 PM

    Somebody say something?

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  10. 1851January 14, 2020 at 6:51 PM

    Most excellent musical taste as usual

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  11. sambgodotJanuary 14, 2020 at 8:23 PM

    I bought the first several Searchers singles back in the day and then threw them over for the Byrds, though Jackie De Shannon's When You Walk In The Romm must rate as one of the great pop songs of all time. So I shall listen to the Searchers album with much interest. Thank you Mr T.

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    1. Farquhar Throckmorton IIIJanuary 15, 2020 at 5:10 AM

      I've tried to enjoy those early Searchers discs, but nope. Doesn't happen. Instagram influencers of their day.

      Delete
    2. sambgodotJanuary 15, 2020 at 4:11 PM

      Just noticed I typed 'romm'. I wonder what that song sounded like...... Chris Hillman did a version (of Room) on his Like a Hurricane album 20 (??!!) years ago, remembering how the Byrds performed it at Ciro's. Perhaps they should have done a version for the first album as well as Don't Doubt Yourself.

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  12. AnonymousJanuary 14, 2020 at 10:39 PM

    The Searchers had an unhappy relationship with LP and EP covers going right back to the dreadful "Meet The Searchers" sleeve on Pye in '63.

    Their first "comeback" disc on Sire was released in the UK in November '79 with a strange cover pic of some shiny chrome objects flying over a black sea towards a golden sunset. The group was billed as "Searchers". (The shiny objects were not space craft, as some thought, but hood ornaments from US '50s cars, pointlessly.) The US version used the same picture but with much lighter colours and the "The" was reinstated.

    A good single was released ("Hearts in Her Eyes" - co-written by The Kursaals / Records' Will Birch, whose recent Nick Lowe biography is an enjoyable read) but flopped as did the follow up. Strangely, Sire then pulled the album, added a couple of songs, including "Love's Melody", and re-released it in March with the band's least worst ever cover, altho' they still look like a band of ageing rockers auditioning for Miami Vice.

    And so to the next LP which was released in May '81 as "Play for Today" with a bland but acceptable cover of an old wireless radio tuner. (This one and the Miami Vice one are the two albums I've got.) For the US Sire jumbled up the track order and gave it the shockingly bad cover that you've displayed here.

    Cheers, Peanuts Molloy.

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    1. Farquhar Throckmorton IIIJanuary 15, 2020 at 5:02 AM

      I'm not sure you've got this quite right, Peanuts. Loves Melodies was pressed up as an acetate in the US Dec 1980 with this track order, and released early 1980. Play For Today was the UK version, released in '81, with the "jumbled up track order".


      The "Miami Vice" album (which I remember as being called "Silver", but apparently it wasn't) gets this at Discogs : "1980 UK reissue [of the first Sire album] with new cover art, a remixed version of "It's Too Late," early mixes of "Love's Melody" and "Silver" (which would subsequently appear in new mixes on their 1981 album, Love's Melodies), and "Back To The War" (which would later be used a b-side of Another Night). The track "Coming From The Heart" from the original 1979 release is omitted."

      Like I said, it's confusing, but the featured album is the original second sire album with the original cover.

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  13. AnonymousJanuary 15, 2020 at 5:50 AM

    Oops. I got my detail from Frank Allen's memory as quoted from his book in the 4 CD box set called "Hearts in Their Eyes". It's quite possible and even quite likely that I read it wrong!

    Still, what we got is two sets of songs in various sequences with four different covers. No wonder my head hurts. Anyway, I like the sleeves I've got best and much of the music within.

    Cheers, Peanuts Molloy.

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  14. Jack Kerouac's CatJanuary 15, 2020 at 7:27 AM

    Scampi in a casket sounds pretty good!

    Thanks!

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  15. sambgodotJanuary 15, 2020 at 4:03 PM

    For anyone who is a completist nerd like me, the whole of the hood ornament album can be found on youtube, using a little patience, plus some b- sides and alternat(iv)e mixes.

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  16. pontyboyJanuary 16, 2020 at 12:13 AM

    Thanks for this...but what is it about The Searchers that brings out the trainspotter? Interesting information though...

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  17. sambgodotJanuary 21, 2020 at 2:34 PM

    Mike Pender's last hurrah. After the above Sire recordings they went back to Pye and issued a single https://pixeldrain.com/u/TR2t2EeM which flopped. The projected LP therefore never materialised. Pender left and the remainders added a new vocalist and recorded one final album, HUNGRY HEARTS, which included a couple of less than felicitous re-records.

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    1. Farquhar Throckmorton IIIJanuary 21, 2020 at 7:25 PM

      Thanks for all the uploads, Sam!

      Delete
    2. sambgodotJanuary 24, 2020 at 6:16 PM

      In fact after listening belatedly some 30 years after it appeared to Hungry Hearts I wish I hadn't. No 12 string, just dreadful late 80s production. Could be any 3rd rate band. One to be avoided at all costs.

      Delete
  18. B.B.January 31, 2020 at 10:21 AM

    When You Walk In (To) The Romm . . .

    There's a MITT joke here, some place...

    Yeah, so impeach me.

    Anyhow, thanks for leaving us Stranded in the Jangle.

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