Named after the debut single by Teenage Fanclub.
1,000+ blogs!
This blog is all about being a music lover in Glasgow; reviews, interviews, memories, old faves, new discoveries (past & present) and more. Thanks for visiting - I hope you discover something amazing you've never heard before, or that you rediscover an old favourite.
Regular features/playlists; Never Ending Mixtape / Cover Version of the Month/ Trust Me.
Twitter - @murrayeaston
Email - murrayeaston {AT} gmail {DOT} com
Marvin Gaye's I Don't Have To Get High To Do It is a relatively recent discovery of mine. If you dig into his back catalogue on Spotify (or a streaming/download platform of your choice) you'll find all kinds of deluxe edition albums that have demos, instrumentals and alternative takes.
It really is an absolute treasure trove of riches and I have found myself regularly coming back to Marvin's discography which has resulted in me compiling this 80-minute mix of blissed out instrumentals, alternative mixes, deep cuts, demos and ending with a pure classic and the sublime rhythm 'n' strings mix of What's Going On.
Check out some sensational soul jams with the Funk Brothers and the many incredible musicians Gaye was fortunate to work with. I previously blogged on Song #3HERE back in 2019. The instrumental songs on the deluxe edition of Lets Get It On are absolutely out of this world, Perfection is aptly named!
Search for 80-minute Marvin Gaye mix on Spotify or CLICK HERE
Tracklist
I Don't Have To Get High To Do It (instrumental)
I Want You - Jam - Alternate Mix
Song #1 - Instrumental
Song #3 - Instrumental
Song #4- Instrumental /partial vocal)
Perfection (instrumental)
"T" Plays It Cool (soundtrack version)
Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology) - Detroit Mix
Right On - Detroit Mix
Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler) Detroit Mix
Cover version of the month #98 BMX Bandits (with The Wellgreen) and Lighships cover Moondog
I had never heard of Moondog until 2022 when I caught Gerard Love playing a string of Autumn shows in and around Glasgow. Gerry introduced a cover of Do Your Thing which had had a slow, dreamy, flowing and gorgeous melody that melted hearts. It seemed to have been written for him!
I found out that Gerry released a version on the b-side to Lightships Sweetness In Her Spark single in 2012. I later learned (quite recently) that BMX Bandits had recorded a version back in 2009 with friends Marco Rea and Stu Kidd (The Wellgreen) that came out on YouTube in 2012.
Moondog's original sets his beautiful melody over some stunning piano and he delivers solid advice for just over 3-minutes over 2 verses, including;
Do your best
And opportunity will do the rest
Don't give in
Capitulation is the greatest sin
And in the second verse;
Learn to wait
And while you're waiting, learn to concentrate
Moondog's voice, melody and words feel and sound effortless. Almost like a hushed and dreamy nursery rhyme. The piano is delightfully playful and I'm guessing that (like me) you'll play this song a few times in a row.
BMX Bandits with The Wellgreen recorded a loving cover back in 2009 (see below for an interview with Duglas T Stewart) when they had a couple of spare hours in the studio. Duglas, backed by the talent of Marco Rea and Stu Kidd, remain pretty true to the original. The fact that the trio had limited time helps create a very organic feeling, the little keyboard solo sounds beautifully lofi and pure. Stewart's voice works so well with Rea and Kidd doing backing vocals and harmonies. Kidd's military style drumming is a delight and the fact that both Stuart and Marco are exceptionally talented multi-instrumentalists means that a couple of studio hours can be extremely productive. You can hear the love for the song in this recording. I'd been planning a blog on Do Your Thing for some time, but only discovered the BMX Bandits version very recently.
Photo by Mark Gilles
Do Your Thing is already pretty dreamy, but on the Lightships cover, Love and co add a psychedelic sleeping pill to slow it down and stretch it to 5 minutes 35 seconds, replacing the piano with gentle xylophone, guitar, brush strokes on the drums. The melody really suits Gerry's voice and style. This is pure gorgeousness, beautifully hypnotic, you can get lost in the music. If the original is a dreamy nursery rhyme, Lightships version is a psychedelic lullaby. Close your eyes and drift away. The last two minutes are exquisite.
The Moondog original and Lightships cover version are added to my Everything Flows Cool Cover Versions playlist on Spotify which also features all of the songs listed below an interview with Duglas T Stewart. Search for the title or CLICK HERE
You can download the BMX Bandits version from Bandcamp
Thanks to Duglas for answering a few questions about Moondog and creating a playlist.
1. How did you discover Moondog? Did someone introduce you to his music, or did you stumble across it yourself?
I discovered Moondog's in Japan in the early 1990s while in Tokyo with BMX Bandits. My girlfriend at the time, later my wife, Midori introduced me to lots of incredible music and she recommended that I should buy a CD that featured two of his albums, Moondog (1969) and Moondog 2 (1979).
John Hogarty, who was playing guitar with us at that time also bought a copy. I had never heard anything like his music before. The rhythmic patterns with so quirky and brilliant. Some of it was like jazz, some of it was more like orchestral soundtrack music and then there were almost nursery rhyme like vocal rounds and songs with simple truths at the heart of them sung by Moondog and his daughter. Although I am making some comparisons there it still felt totally unique. It sounded as though it was created by an original thinker.
2. What attracted you to cover 'Do Your Thing'? How important were The Wellgreen to the recording?
We recorded our version of Do Your Thing in just a couple of hours on June 1st 2009. I had thought for a long time that I could imagine it as a BMX Bandits track. The melody sounded like it would suit BMX bandits and I had an idea of how I wanted to approach it, a bit like a School House Rock song meets BMX Bandits (School House Rock was an American educational animated series that featured cool songs with an educational twist. Two of the most famous examples are 3 is the Magic Number and Unpack Your Adjectives).
Marco & Stu from back in the day.
I was at Marco Rea from the Wellgreen's studio with Stuart Kidd, who was the other half of The Wellgreen at that time, and Brian McEwan, who was one of BMX Bandits then. We were recording another song for a tribute album that was never released. I suggested since we had recorded the other track so quickly that we should have a go at Do Your Thing. I explained my concept for it and I really wanted to utilise the magical vocal blend Marco and Stuart have together.
The original Wellgreen vocal blend and Stuart and Marco's incredible ability to work really quickly and instinctively was key to how the track turned out.
3. Are there any other songs by Moondog that you are fond of?
Moondog is a major musical figure for me and for a number of my musician friends. Bill Wells is a major Moondog fan and was meant to be collaborating with Moondog and then sadly Moondog died before it could happen. Norman from Teenage Fanclub is a fan and recorded a version of another Moondog Song (My Tiny Butterfly) with Bill Wells. The first V-Twin single, a collaboration with Bill Wells, used a sample of a Moondog rhythm as its backbone. David Scott of The Pearlfishers is also a major fan.
David and I organised a tribute concert to Moondog featuring a set of versions of some of our favourite pieces written by him. I think The Trashcan Sinatras have covered a Moondog song in the past and Gerry Love's band Lightships also recorded a version of Do Your Thing. Gerry took the song in quite a different direction from us and it is really effective, testament to the strength of the original song. The Pastels are also Moondog fans.
I helped put together a reissue of an album that Moondog made in 1957 with Julie Andrews. He is a unique musical figure. He was blind and lived and performed on the streets of New York dressed like a Viking playing music on his own home made instruments but found an audience for his unique music and in later life he moved to Europe. I am going to make a playlist of some of my favourite Moondog music to go along with this piece.
4. BMX Bandits have covered a number of songs over the years. Do any (apart from this one) stand out for you?
There's too many to mention but one of my personal favourites is a cover version of a song by a Hong Kong duo My Little Airport called You Don't Wanna Be My Girlfriend, Phoebe. It is such an incredible song, our version's arrangement/ instrumentation is very different from the original. It was recorded by Stuart Kidd, James McEwan and me, again very quickly and it was also recorded in 2009. I'd like to play it live sometime.
5. My own favourite cover version is probably Richie Havens cover of Lamont Doziers Going Back To My Roots. Could you choose a favourite (or a few if you can't narrow it down)?
The obvious choice for me is one that you have featured on here, Harpers Bizarre's version of Jim Pepper's song Witchi Tai To (Duglas kindly answered some questions on this incredible song HERE) but I will give you another one, which is an album of cover versions by Laura Nyro and LaBelle called Gonna Take a Miracle. I know that your sister also loves that album. I think I recommended it to her. When I first saw the tracklisting of the album I thought it was crazy. It features all of these versions of classic songs that I thought had untouchable original versions . I couldn't understand anyone having the audacity to cover these classics but I decided to buy it because I was curious as well as outraged. When I listened I couldn't believe what I was hearing, it is so incredible, so life affirming from start to finish and it remains one of my ultimate favourite albums to this day.
6. Lastly, if you could choose someone to cover one of your songs, who would it be, why and what song would you like them to sing and play?
My favourite new artist to emerge this Century is a singer, songwriter, multi instrumentalist and arranging talent called Sofie Royer. Please check out her incredible album Harlequin if you don't already know it. Well, of course I would love for her to cover one of my songs and I would be delighted for her to make her own choice of any of my songs that I have written or co-written. That would be such a thrill but she has enough great songs of her own so that's just an idle dream.
I love recording and playing live cover versions of songs that I love by other artists because I am a fan and also it's a great way to learn new ways of doing things that you can bring to your own music in the future.
UPDATE - on Friday 21st June Duglas watched The Cords and said; "The Cords were fantastic at the Glasgow launch for Grant McPhee's Postcards from Scotland book. I loved their whole set, which they finished with a beautiful cover of BMX Bandits I Wanna Fall In Love. I had tears in my eyes."
30-years ago this month I caught Oasis for the second time in the old Cathouse in Glasgow when it was based on Brown Street. The band were beginning to break as they released second single Shaker Maker, working their way towards the release of debut album Definitely Maybe in August.
Even though Noel, Liam, Bonehead, Guigsy and Tony were aware that they had songs like Live Forever, Cigarettes & Alcohol and Slide Away ready to go, I doubt anyone on the Cathouse stage or in the crowd that night could have predicted how life changing the band, those songs and that album would become.
Or maybe Noel knew. In the legendary Wibbling Rivalry interview (recorded in a Glasgow hotel after their April show at The Tramway in April 94), Noel hammers home;
Rock n roll is about music. Music, music, music. It's not about you, it's not about me, it's not about Oasis. It's about the songs. Noel Gallagher
Noel was always confident his songs would live on. Before long, buskers were on Buchanan Street playing D'yer Wanna Be A Spaceman, Live Forever and Take Me Away. Gallagher seemed to generate a spike in both acoustic and electric guitar sales. Along with his brother, they no doubt pushed the sales of anoraks and cagoules as well!
Tonight I'm a rock n roll star
It's just rock n roll
It's just rock n roll
Liam Gallagher's mantra at the end of his blistering take on Oasis' Rock n Roll Star really hit home last night. His brothers words are almost casually tossed away in the outro. But .... as 13,000 fans will testify, it's not just rock n roll.
30-years on, it is about; the songs, the attitude, the swagger, the hair, the hope, the dreams and the sense of optimism that Oasis heralded in 1994 with the release of 5 singles and Definitely Maybe. It's more than all that, it's the sense of community Oasis created. It's jubilation, it's punching the sky, hugging and singing with strangers and having the time of your life.
5 lads from a Manchester council estate were mad for it, they were having it, and they blew absolutely everyone and everything away. The ripple effects are still there, they are still growing.
13,000 Oasis fans were in the Hydro last night, but the biggest fan of Noel Gallagher's songs was on stage singing them, with every fibre of his body, every bit of his heart and soul.
Liam was in his element. This is what he was born to do. Sing his brothers songs about dreaming, escapism and love. And of course, Liam Gallagher was born to be a total star.
Look at you now, you're all in my hands tonight
We were gladly in his hands. We were mad for it, like it was 1994 all over again. The stage set up was loosely based on the Definitely Maybe cover, but everyone's eyes were on Liam.
Rock n Roll Star set a high bar, the menacing groove of Columbia followed. Shaker Maker didn't reach those highs, the guitars seemed to go lower and Liam's voice was pushed even higher in the mix. But Up In The Sky sounded super fresh with everyone feeling it.
I can feel you
Can you feel me?
Bring It On Down was searing punk soul and old b-sides Cloudburst and I Will Believe were greeted like long lost friends on stage and in the crowd.
One of many highlights was Liam singing Half A World Away along with every single person inside the Hydro. A beautiful and moving moment, his voice was outstanding.
My favourite Oasis song is probably Fade Away and it was incredible last night, delivered with power, pace and passion. The band ripped through it and it felt electrifying. Another b-side!
But before long, Liam and his band were bringing out the real big guns. Whatever felt like a real anthem, the Hydro felt like a church and everyone was singing this huge Oasis hymn. The melodies of Whatever are really strong, the lyrics are universal - everyone was singing from the bottom of their hearts.
Then it was Cigarettes & Alcohol and the place was absolutely bouncing, seeming to give Liam an extra shot of energy as he stretched out sssssuuuuunnnnnssssshhhiiiiiinnnnnneeee.
After Married With Children, the band regrouped quickly for a BOOM, BOOM, BOOM encore. Supersonic sounded very aptly named and threatened to take the roof off the Hydro. Slide Away was euphoric and Live Forever was spine tinglingly gorgeous. Liam was in fine voice.
I Am The Walrus sent the crowd home deliriously happy. What a show. What a night.
Morning Glory 30th anniversary shows next year please!
Welcome to part 91 of my Never Ending Mixtape which has almost reached the 4,000 songs landmark as we jump from 3,859 songs to 3,896!
There is the usual mix of recent discoveries, new releases and old favourites. How did I get to almost 4,000 songs without adding Once In A Lifetime by Talking Heads?! I must do a feature blog on that soon!
Anyway, as always, I hope you find a song you love or that you rediscover something you haven't heard in years. Play from the start, the middle, the end of click shuffle and see where it takes you.
Search for Everything Flows Never Ending Mixtape on Spotify or CLICK HERE
Recent discoveries
Bored by Waxhatachee
Hannah by City Parking
Soul Sister by Allen Toussaint
Every Time The Sun Comes Up by Sharon Van Etten
New releases
The Human Race by Michael Head & The Red Elastic Band
Haven't You Heard by Arab Strap
Keep Your Secrets Close by The Reds The Pinks & The Purples
Rather weirdly, I got into Swift through my old 7-a-side football friend Craig who manages Mogwai's Rock Action label! Craig has superb taste in pop music and highlighted We Are Never Getting Back Together on his social channels many years ago. 1989 was my eldest daughter Zoe's first album!
Like many other fans of pop music, I've fallen for Taylor Swift. What an incredible artist, songwriter, performer and role model Swift is.
Now, my youngest daughter Rosie (age 9) is a proud Swiftie and I love when she tells me that what she was up to at playtime and lunchtime at school - "Me and my friends were talking about Taylor Swift's albums."
I recently walked behind Rosie and her friend on the way to our local coffee shop and listened in to one of their conversations. I wanted to join in! Swift is inspiring young kids to buy and discuss albums. Incredible!
As a family, we debated about trying for tickets to see Taylor play Murrayfield. I did log on, but there were only 600 quid tickets left. Pretty much on the stage! But 4 tickets would be 2,400! Going on holiday over a one-off night out (no matter how good that night out might be) won over.
Now, with Taylor's run of Murrayfield gigs coming up this weekend. I kind of wish we'd just bought the tickets ... although we'd be paying for them for quite some time!
Recently, Rosie introduced me to new song I Can Do It With A Broken Heart and we have been playing it pretty constantly in the house and in the car.
Somehow this incredible slice of pop perfection didn't make the 'normal' version of Taylor Swift's latest album (her 11th) The Tortured Poets Department. For most artists, this would be a lead single. However, Swift is so prolific that I Can Do It With A Broken Heart is tucked in on the Anthology version which contains 31 songs and over 2-hours of music. Taylor has now released a remarkable 274 songs in her career. Incredible!
Starting slow and then kicking in with what feels like two sets of choruses, I Can Do It With A Broken Heart deserves a doctorate in pop music. There are count-in's, clever lyrics, hooks galore and shimmering synths and beats that work so well with Swift's melodies.
A video has been released with professionally shot tour footage and the lyrics at the bottom. It works perfectly as Swift sings of having to go on tour post break-up with a broken heart.
A short first verse has Taylor reflecting on what her fans are thinking - she's having the time of her life, touring the world, playing sold out shows, making millions ... but the kiss off line is I can show you lies and then a 1, 2, 3 , 4 count into the pre-chorus.
The pre-chorus builds beautifully, it is classic Swift, a nice use of swearing, tumbling flowing melodies and Taylor pouring her heart out.
Cause I'm a real tough kid
I can handle my shit
They said - 'babe you gotta fake it 'til you make it' and I did
Lights, camera, bitch smile
Even when you wanna die
He said he'd love me all his life
But that life was too short
Breaking down I hit the floor
All the pieces of me shattered as the crowd was chanting - MORE
I was grinnin' like I'm winnin'
I was hittin' my marks
'Cause I can do it with a broken heart
Shimmering synths and beats kick in for the chorus proper. Be warned - this is SUPER CATCHY AND COOL!
I'm so depressed I act like it's my birthday, every day
I'm so obsessed with him but he avoids me, like the plague
I cry a lot but I am so productive, it's an art
You know you're good when you can even do it, with a broken heart
BOOM! All delivered in precisely 1-minute 36 seconds. So good that it's time to do it all again. Another short verse has Swift still searching for her ex's belongings to ensure she didn't imagine the whole relationship.
COUNTDOWN
That stunning pre-chorus
COUNTDOWN
BOOM
The super catchy chorus again (honestly - how good is this?!!)
Swift is in the zone and isn't quite ready to finish, the beats keep going, the synths still bubble and shimmer as Taylor realise how good she is at doing it in spite of everything. There is humour but also exceptional honesty as she declares;
I'm miserable
And nobody even knows
Before another beautiful kiss off ah, try and come for my job
WOW! Pop perfection.
Taylor Swift plays Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh on June 7th, 8th and 9th. She is a pop superstar. Enjoy if you're catching here in Scotland or elsewhere.
I Can Do It With A Broken Heart is added to my Trust Me playlist; search for Everything Flows - Trust Me on Spotify or CLICK HERE
Check below for all previous blogs in my Trust Me series.
The first time I heard The Orb's Little Fluffy Clouds was in my friend Reddy's bedroom, which somehow packed in; a tropical fish tank, technics decks and speakers, a HiFi set up for CD's, CD stand and record storage. The walls were plastered with posters including Anna Friel, Bjork, The Future Sound Of London and Pop Will Eat Itself.
As the posters suggested, Reddy had (and has) rather eclectic taste in music. It was in this room that I'd get turned on to more electronic based sounds like the aforementioned Future Sound Of London, Jam and Spoon and .... The Orb.
Hearing The Orb's Little Fluffy Clouds for the first time was a genuine 'what the f**k is this?' moment when everything stopped to allow me to soak it all in. We may have been a little spangled when this happened - quite the trip!
Beginning with the question - what were the skies like when you were young? The American singer Rickie Lee Jones goes on to paint a vivid picture in her answer. Jones' voice is beautiful and trippy, enhanced by all kinds of bubbling and squelching synths underneath that eventually come to the surface to take over.
They went on forever
We lived in Arizona and the skies always had little fluffy clouds in them
They were long ... and clear .... there were lots of stars at night
The sunsets were purple and red and yellow and on fire
You don't see that. You might still see them in the desert.
It turns out that The Orb didn't have permission to sample Jones voice and later paid $5,000. Jones, allegedly wasn't happy about the sample. The Orb also sampled drums from Nilsson's Jump Into The Fire, slowing them from 45rpm to 33rpm.
The Orb playing chess on Top of the Pops!
Little Fluffy Clouds is an absolutely perfect record. A perfect song. A perfect 10. Ambitious, cool and absolutely timeless. So timeless, it still sounds ahead of its time. Does that make sense? I don't care. I'm almost lost for words trying to describe its beauty.
Layering different sounds, layering different sounds is one of the samples. The Orb layer the sound with imagination, precision and skill. The production is atmospheric, the lush synths, sounds of nature, lawnmowers and planes is trippy and beautiful. Somehow it all works and the production is key to that. Close your eyes and you could be floating among the clouds with Rickie Lee Jones as your guide and The Orb as your pilots.
The Orb, led by Alex Paterson formed in 1988 and it's safe to say that Little Fluffy Clouds laid the foundations for them to still be recording and touring all these years down the line.
Quite simply, it doesn't get any better than this.
