The Man Don't Give A Fuck

Trust me #14

Written around a sample from the Steely Dan song Show Biz Kids, The Man Don't Give A F**k was originally intended to be a b-side to the Furries song If You Don't Want Me To Destroy You.

Fate ensured that the sample wasn't cleared in time, with the band then deciding to release it as an a-side in December 1996. A move that generated lots of press and attention, ending a fantastic year for the band following the release of debut album Fuzzy Logic in May. 

Fuzzy Logic was a lovingly messy experimental pop record with Beach Boys style harmonies, psychedelic grooves and (at times) punky guitars, all with lots of hooks.

In 1996 Creation Records, once famed for releasing innovative leftfield music by the likes of Teenage Fanclub, My Bloody Valentine, Primal Scream and Ride, had become  Oasis' record label and set about signing bands like Heavy Stereo and Hurricane No 1 in an attempt to ride on the Gallaghers coat tails, forgetting that Oasis had captured hearts cause they were so different from anyone else when they burst on to the scene.

Meanwhile, as a band who truly were different, it was the Super Furries who benefited from the millions Oasis were generating. All of a sudden Creation (and the band) had a budget to indulge in fantasy ideas like buying an old tank to blast out techno music at festivals, buy yeti costumes and 50 foot inflatables, or fly to Columbia for a week to shoot a promo video. 

I've just finished reading The Rise Of The Super Furry Animals by Ric Rawlins and it is thoroughly entertaining. 

Super Furry Animals were on a different path from any other band and this has been highlighted in many, many ways throughout their career. The release of The Man Don't Give A F**k as a single certainly lay down a marker.

The studio version of this single is beautiful psychedelia before transforming into a poppy thrash. Live, the Super Furries take this to far off places, allowing keyboard / synths / samples whizz Cian Ciaran to play and his band mates to improvise and jam along.

Stretching the song to beyond 10-minutes, sometimes to closer to 20, the Super Furries play on the chorus / mantra sample, taking the beats out and adding them in to create something stunningly hypnotic.

It's psychedelic techno. An 11-minute version from Glastonbury 2015 is included below, as is an insane 22-minute live recording from Hammersmith Apollo allowing the Super Furries to be as playful and experimental as they like before bringing it back to the euphoric chorus.

In my dreams I imagine a Labour back bench chanting the refrain across parliament to the Tories! Or a crowd massed outside parliament chanting this for days on end.

The full lyrics are below,  alongside the aforementioned Glastonbury and Apollo versions. You'll also find links to the previous Trust Me blogs and the Trust Me Spotify playlist.

Oh and check this demo as well which is glorious!

Spent some times in stormy weather

Under clouds of my dilemma

Now there's nothing much to do

Except for sitting in front of televisions

Staring back at me

I'm just waiting for the microwaves

To wash me into the sea

You know they don't give a f*ck about anybody else

You know they don't give a f*ck about anybody else

You know they don't give a f*ck about anybody else

You know they don't give a f*ck about anybody else

Our focus ideology

Keep the masses from majority

Experts blame my stupid plan

Left to bleed while vultures glide

You know they don't give a f*ck about anybody else

You know they don't give a f*ck about anybody else

You know they don't give a f*ck about anybody else

You know they don't give a f*ck about anybody else

You know they don't give a f*ck about anybody else

You know they don't give a f*ck about anybody else

You know they don't give a f*ck about anybody else

You know they don't give a f*ck about anybody else

If you use Spotify you can find a playlist of all the songs from the Trust Me series of blogs by searching for Everything Flows Trust Me or clicking HERE

Previous Trust Me blogs

1. Something On Your Mind by Karen Dalton

1A. Crimson and Clover by Tommy James and the Shondells

2. I Am, I Said  by Neil Diamond

3. Where's The Playground Susie?   by Glen Campbell

4. If You Could Read My Mind by Gordon Lighfoot

5. Gimme Some Truth by John Lennon

6. Gone With The Wind Is My Love by Rita and the Tiaras

7. In The Year 2525 by Zager and Evans

8. The Music Box by Ruth Copeland

9. The Ship Song by Nick Cave

10. Sometimes by James

11. I Walk The Earth by King Biscuit Time

12. Didn't Know What I Was In For by Better Oblivion Community Centre

13. When My Boy Walks Down The Street by The Magnetic Fields