2012 Meetings
RPM Record Club first ever meeting; Tuesday 3rd July 2012.
Theme for the night: My First Single
Bring along the very first single you bought…….or think you remember buying…….it might have been a while ago.
Records in order of play.
1. The Clogg Dance by Violinski…………………………….…........brought along by Tim
2. Guitar Tango by the Shadows……….............................brought along by Kathy
3. All My Lovin by The Beatles……………………………………...brought along by Piers
4. Golden Brown by The Stranglers………………….…… ….Brought along by Jackie
5. Revenge Of The King by Kula Shaker………………………....brought along by Ewan
6. Don’t Bring Me Down by The Pretty Things……….….…..brought along by John
7. Sheila by Tommy Roe…………………………………………………brought along by Judy
8. They’re Coming To Take Me Away by Napoleon XIV…..….brought long by Tony
9. The Laughing Gnome by David Bowie………………………brought along by Morra
10. A Girl I Used To Know by Danny Wilson……………………….…brought along by Jen
11. Heart Of Glass by Blondie…………………………………………brought along by Sean
Guest Biscuit: Jaffa Cakes.
Mystery Album: Levelling The Land by The Levellers chosen by Tim.
“I chose Levelling The Land because, of all the records I’ve ever bought, it’s the one I feel most connected to both musically and lyrically and it’s one of a few albums which I still play regularly each and every year since being released.
Post Thatcher Britain; 1991. The Conservatives are still in power. There’s plenty to protest about and this album, for me, continues the tradition of mixing “folk music” and “protest song” which has a heritage which can be traced back to the likes of Bob Dylan and to Woody Guthrie before him. I’ve been playing this album for 21 years now (!...where has the time gone) and I still find it’s themes as relevant today as I did when the album was first released; themes of freedom or the lack of it, the striving for individualism and self expression, the misuse of power by the authorities, the failure of modern politics, and the struggle of the common man against an unfair and uncaring world. Underlying this is a wistfulness and a yearning for a simpler and more carefree existence away from modern constraints, an invocation for a past England that in truth probably never existed but is now ingrained into the psyche as the English pastoral idle. During all this protest, though, there is the feeling of a great party going on conjured by the lively fiddle and mandolin instrumentation. There is also no pretence that singing about injustice will make a better world. “The problems of the world won’t be solved by this guitar”, is stated within the first track of the album. We can, however, have a damn fine time and 40 minutes of stomping fun complaining about the powers that be, wishing for a little bit of freedom and a fairer society. If we want to make this a reality, however, it’s down to us, the listener, to affect a change………….an overdriven guitar, chiming mandolin and frenetic fiddle ringing in our ears. I give you Levelling The Land by The Levellers.”
Tim
Club: Tuesdy 7th August 2012.
Theme for the night: A New Discovery
Bring along a song which acted as a catalyst in discovering a band or artist.
Records in order of play.
1. She Sells Sanctuary by The Cult…………………………………….brought along by Tim
2. Friends Like You by Dan Donnelly………………………….…brought along by Morra
3. The Night We Nearly Got Busted by The Alabama 3…... brought along by Jayne
4. Weed Bus by The Stairs………………………………………….…. brought along by Dave
5. I'm An Old Cowhand From The Rio Grande by Dan Hicks and the Hot Licks………brought along by Piers
6. No Woman No Cry by Bob Marley……………………………. brought along by John
7. Le Reste Du Temps by Francis Cabrel…………………………… brought along by Paul
8. A Forrest by The Cure…………………………………………………. brought along by Sarah
9. Winter Coat by Martin Harley………………………..……..…. brought along by Simon
10. Goodnight by Babybird…………………………………………………… brought along by Sal
11. All Of Me by Louis Armstrong………………………………………. brought along by Gilly
12. Mr Fantasy by Traffic…………………………………..………………. brought along by Alan
13. HÙg air a’ Bhonaid MhÒir by Julie Fowlis……………………. brought along by Ewan
14. Lightning Bolt by Jake Bugg…………………………………….. brought along by Andrew
15. Jultanz by Schelmish……………………………………………………brought along by Ange
16. Hells Bells by AC/DC………………………………………………….... brought along by Luke
17. Hungry Heart by Bruce Springsteen……………………………. brought along by Jackie
18. All Of The Day And All Of The Night by The Kinks……….. brought along by Doug
Guest Biscuit: Jammie Dodgers
Mystery Album: The Head On The Door by The Cure chosen by Sal.
“I first saw The Cure live at UEA, Norwich in the early eighties and have been a huge fan ever since. They were different to a lot of the bands that were around at the time and their strong visual image appealed to me. Although their music has often been described as depressing, I don’t agree. I prefer to think of them as atmospheric and mesmerising, having created a unique sound and style that is instantly recognisable. The predominant bass, together with the drums, provide a solid background for the keyboards and guitars, and of course, Robert Smith’s unmistakable voice. I chose The Head on the Door as the mystery album for a number of reasons. Firstly, it hasn’t dated at all. It sounds as fresh today as it did when it was released in 1985; and I never tire of hearing it. It features one of my favourite tracks, A Night Like This, which still gives me goose bumps every time I hear the opening keyboards. I feel that the album is a good overall representation of The Cure’s varied musical style; from the opening track of Inbetween Days, which dare I say, is a ‘happy’ pop song, to the final track Sinking, which is laid-back and features their trademark bass and atmospheric keyboards. Finally, I thought it was probably a more accessible album for those who were hearing the band for the first time”.
Sal
RPM Record Club: Tuesday 4th September 2012.
Theme for the night: At The Movies
Bring along a favourite song or piece of music featured in a film soundtrack.
Records in order of play.
1. It’s A Long Way To The Top If You Want To Rock and Roll by AC/DC
from School Of Rock………brought along by Tim
2. Girls Just Want To Have Fun by Cindi Lauper
from Girls Just Want To Have Fun……brought along by Teri
3. Let’s Get It On by Marvin Gaye
from High Fidelity……brought along by John
4. Mr Blue Sky by Electric Light Orchestra
from Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind………..…brought along by Andrew
5. Blue Savannah by Erasure (not from a film)……………. brought along by Richard
6. Now We are Free by Hans Zimmer and Lisa Gerrard
from Gladiator……..brought along by Sal
7. Bad Moon Rising by John Fogerty
from American Werewolf In London…………brought along by Jayne
8. Hard Working Man by Captain Beefheart
from Blue Collar………………… brought along by Piers
9. You Never Can Tell by Chuck Berry from Pulp Fiction……………. brought along by Jackie
10. Perfect Day by Lou Reed from Trainspotting…………. brought along by Collette
11. The Riders Of Rohan by Howard Shore
from Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers…………brought along by Ewan
12. Gethsemane by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice
from Jesus Christ Superstar…………….brought along by Ange
Guest Biscuit: Wagon Wheels
Mystery Album: Back To Black by Amy Winehouse chosen by Sarah.
“A soulful, melancholic, powerful story of the highs and lows of toxic love and addiction. The emotions are played through the lyrics which are deep and heartfelt accompanied by a fantastically produced soulful, jazzy, blues back beat courtesy of Mark Ronson. Back To Black has overtones of Ella Fitzgerald, Nina Simone and Billie Holliday; it’s hard to believe such a voice and writing ability could emanate from a Jewish girl who had barely lived her life. You can connect with this album on various levels and this, I believe, is what makes the record appealing to young and old alike. Back To Black is not one for the party list (with the exception of “Rehab” perhaps}, it’s best enjoyed alone, post break-up with alcohol, candle light and possibly a tissue or two”.
Sarah
RPM Record Club: Tuesday 2nd October 2012.
Theme for the night: Cover Versions.
Bring along a record of a band or artist performing someone else’s (well known or not) song.
Records in order of play.
1. All Along The Watchtower performed by Jimi Hendrix……brought along by Tim
2. Don’t Leave Me This Way performed by The Communards……brought along by Teri
3. La Vie En Rose performed by Grace Jones……………………..brought along by Jen
4. Teardrop performed by Newton Faulkner……………………brought along by Sarah
5. Rock The Casbah performed by Rachid Taha…………………brought along by Piers
6. Please Let Me Get What I Want performed by She & Him……brought along by Sean
7. Your Song performed by Ewan McGregor……………………brought along by Ange
8. Walk On By performed by The Stranglers………………………brought along by John
9. 5 O’Clock World performed by Julian Cope………………………brought along by Sal
10. The Man Who Sold The World performed by Nirvana…………brought along by Andrew
11. White Wedding performed by The Murder Dolls…………………brought along by Tyrone
12. Smooth Criminal performed by 2 Cellos………………………….brought along by Phil
13. Dancing In The Dark performed by Jim Eldon………………brought along by Jayne
Guest Biscuit: Viennese Chocolate Melts
Mystery Album: Delicate Sound Of Thunder Live (Disc 2) by Pink Floyd chosen by Collette.
“I chose Pink Floyd’s Delicate Sound of Thunder as it brings back lots of memories for me. Music to me is something that holds you together, through the good times and bad. It lifts you up when you’re down; it prepares you for a night out when you’re feeling low and need that "kick up the bum"; it gets you through the stormy patches life throws at you. This album certainly makes me feel alight and alive. Without music; I could not imagine. Certain songs remind you of happy times and can give you a feeling of self belief. Sometimes, when the world is hard to please, one song can inspire you and things seem better than you think. Music, therefore, is your soul and has always been my best solution. For me there is nothing is more certain than music I’ve chosen for myself through my own freedom of choice.”
Collette
RPM Record Club Tuesday 6th November
Theme for the night: Guilty Pleasures;
Time to compromise your street cred, dude! A song you really enjoy by a band or artist perceived as not being the coolest on the block. (Of course, one person’s perception is different to another’s.)
Records in order of play:
1. Last Train To Clarkesville by The Monkees……………………revealed by Tim
2. Love Machine by Girls Aloud…………………………………..…..revealed by Sarah
3. Happy by Max Sedgley………………………………………….……revealed by Collette
4. Lollipop by The Chordettes…………………………………………...revealed by Alex
5. Who Were You With In The Moonlight? by Dollar……………revealed by Sal
6. How Can You Mend A Broken Heart? by The Bee Gees…….revealed by Mary
7. I Left Her Standing There by The DeZurik Sisters………………revealed by Jayne
8. The Wall Street Part Of Town by Ry Cooder……………………..revealed by Piers
9. Razom Nas Bahato by Greenjolly……………………………………revealed by Ange
10. Mmm Bop by Hanson…………………………………………………..revealed by Andrew
11. The Hedgehog Song by Incredible String Band…………..…revealed by Jonathan
12. Moonlighting by Leo Sayer………………………………………….revealed by Morra
13. The Chosen Few by The Dooleys……………………………………revealed by John
Guest Biscuit: Crunch Creams
Mystery Album: Music Fu Ya' (Musica Para Tu) by Taj Mahal chosen by Jayne
“Unusually, I don't have much of a story to go with this; it's just a lovely record. Music Fu Ya' (Musica Para Tu) by Taj Mahal is a record that has been part of my life for over 30 years. I first heard it in the early 1980s and at the time I had the idea that Taj Mahal was 'difficult' (which of course was ridiculous). I've loved it from that first hearing and think that it is a real feel-good album and every track is a gem. It goes without saying that the musicianship is superb, and as an album I believe that it is successful in producing a very rare thing - a really relaxed atmosphere with a live 'vibe' that allows the barrier between the listener and the record to be transcended.
Steel drums and a calypso influence permeate the album and give it a Caribbean flavour, rendered through an American blues sensibility. It was released in 1976/7 and was Taj Mahal's 10th studio album; he wrote five of the eight tracks, and mastered and produced it himself. Whenever I hear it, it never fails to bring a smile to my face.”
Jayne
Film Review.
Last Shop Standing Screening, Friday 16th November, Elsing Village Hall.
Last Shop Standing is a new film based on the book, now into its 6th reprint, by Graham Jones and is a nostalgic, funny and thought provoking investigation into the rise, fall and rebirth of the independent record shop. Graham has been promoting the film at venues throughout the UK; Birmingham, Sheffield, Manchester, London and Cardiff being just a few of the cities chosen, so it was with excitement and a little trepidation that The RPM Record Club and Sounds Music jointly promoted the event in the rural depths of Norfolk at Elsing Village Hall. We needn’t have worried, however, and were knocked out at the response, some people having travelled from Stowmarket in Suffolk and Spalding in Lincolnshire to attend the evening. The audience enjoyed a film which explained how the record shop first appeared upon the high street, the shenanigans record companies got up to during the 70s and 80s to hype their artists to the public and manipulate the chart, and how modern technology and buying habits have affected the small independent retailer. It wasn’t a film ending on a gloomy note, even though during the making of the film another two independent record shops had gone out of business, as in the last couple of years, more record shops have actually opened than have closed. Vinyl has also made a come back and those of the younger generation who really care about music now seem to want something physical to treasure rather than an invisible download. The shops that have survived are the ones which have responded to the modern market place; perhaps specialising in musical genres which are not available in the CD section of the supermarket, stocking new and second hand vinyl or branching out into other forms of musical paraphernalia such as instruments. If there was a message to be drawn from the film, it was that possibly over used but still true maxim; if you don’t use it, you’ll loose it, a fact that can be transposed onto all small local independent businesses as well as facilities like a local village hall. Thanks and appreciation to helpers and all who supported this event.
(Note: The Last Shop Standing book and DVD can both be obtained from Sounds Music, Dereham.)
RPM Record Club Tuesday 4th December
Theme for the night: Review of the year; Choose a favourite song released in 2012.
Records in order of play:
1. Death To My Home Town by Bruce Springsteen………………………chosen by Tim
2. Summer Nights by Fun……………………………………………………………chosen by Alex
3. Ho Hey by The Lumineers………………………………..…………………chosen by Andrew
4. 21 by Adele…………………………sneaked in by Collette (actually released in 2011)
5. Gangnam Style by Psy………………………………………………….…………chosen by Ange
6. Slippin’ Shoes by Tindersticks………………………………………….………….chosen by Sal
7. Hold On by Alabama Shakes………………………………………..…………chosen by Jayne
8. Read All About It by Emeli Sande…………………………………………chosen by Richard
9. Nowhere Is Home by Dexys……………………………………..……………….chosen by John
10. London Irish by Anto Morra…………………………………………………….chosen by Piers
11. Milk White Dove by Kate Denny………………………………………..….chosen by Morra
12. Hello Cruel World by Gretchen Peters…………………………………..chosen by Philip
13. Lightning Bolt by Jake Bugg…………………………………………………..chosen by Jackie
14. Yours Until Tomorrow by Carol King………………………………………..chosen by Alan
15. No Hope by The Vaccines………………………………………………………chosen by Sarah
Guest “Biscuit”: Mini Marzipan Butter Stollens
Mystery Album: Dixie Chicken by Little Feat chosen by Piers.
“By the time of their third album, ‘Dixie Chicken', Little Feat had grown beyond their Country/Rock/Blues roots into a much more rounded band. In their music Country, Rockabilly, Cajun, Blues, Boogie-Woogie, Southern Soul and R&B, fuses with polyrhythmic inflections from Afro Cuban, Voodoo, Latin, Freeform and Dixieland jazz. They managed to produce a sound at once eclectic, virtuosic, undoubtedly funky and instantly recognisable as Little Feat. 'Vanilla Grits' the band called it. Produced by the fastidious Lowell George, utilising what he described as ‘a cracked mosaic’ approach, the album ‘Dixie Chicken’ is a record of a band at the very top of their game. Every member of the band was a master musician. Each played his part to the full and every track is informed by a different musical intelligence but never is the undoubted skill and musicianship of the contributing musicians allowed to detract from the song. This ethic is exemplified by, what is for me, the stand out track, ‘Roll Um Easy’, a show case for the playing of LG. The piece opens with acoustic guitar and vocal. The slide guitar joins at the end of the first verse with gentle subtlety and leaving a great deal of space he leads with long, sustained, sliding notes and chords which inform, complement and enhance the vocal harmonies and react to the other instrumentation whilst providing sparse rhythmical movement. Instead of a showy parade of strutting flash and thrash, which he was perfectly capable of demonstrating, LG plays the part with minimal ornamentation, concentrating on his control of tonal colour to enhance and underline the emotion of the song. I consider this single track the finest recorded example of the art of slide playing. With ‘Dixie Chicken’, Lowell George's songwriting abilities were at a peak. Rather than choose to perform all original songs they elected to also interpret material from the New Orleans master song writer Alan Tousaint and ‘Pure Prarie League’s’ Fred Tacket, who later joined the band as a replacement after Lowell George’s untimely death in 1979. Since then, Lowell Georges vocal style and his signature licks have been imitated by many artists though none have ever matched his taste, verve and vitality.
Just an aside
In June 1979 I had just begun working on a new site in the centre of Norwich on which excavation had just started. None of the work force knew each other. On the fourth day of the job 'The Melody Maker' carried the news of Lowell George's death. When I returned from lunch I was visibly shaken. A colleague asked what was wrong. When I explained he also went into shock. The news spread and the two other muso's on site and I went to the pub to commiserate!”