Words of Wisdom and Hope

Back in 2002 Teenage Fanclub & Jad Fair released the Words of Wisdom and Hope album on Stephen Pastel's Geographic label. 

In a classic Fanclub tale, Fair stayed with Norman and his family in Glasgow and it was over a game of scrabble and a glass of wine that they got talking about making an album together. 

Within days, a studio in France had been rented and once they got over, Jad and the Fanclub recorded 16-songs together in just 2-days, all improvised, often with the band switching instruments and with Fair recording all his lyrics in one take.

"We recorded about 16 tracks over two days and had the album. Everything was completely improvised. It was very liberating to do something so quickly." Norman Blake

As a result, there is a raw charm across the 12-songs, with plenty of moments that are almost guaranteed to warm your heart and make you smile. If not, you might want to visit your doctor.

Fair improvises over Teenage Fanclub instrumentals that range from fuzzy and scuzzy garage guitar pop, to gentler and tender moments that follow on from the Howdy! album in 2000.

Norman went on to record with Jad a couple of times; releasing the Yes album in 2015 (check the gorgeous Add Your Name) and Raindrops with Jad and Tenniscoats in 2017. I also have a Japanese import called How Many Glasgow that I got in 2015. You can read an old blog on that album HERE

But back to Words of Wisdom and Hope.

Jad Fair oozes love, hope and positivity in his lyrics, while his voice is all warm and gooey in just the right way. Like a marshmallow toasted on a campfire. He brings out a side of the Fanclub that I'd love to hear more of, particularly with Euros now being on board. Euros strikes me as a musician who can create something from thin air. Could Norman invite Jad back over for another game of scrabble and book a few days in a wee studio like La Chunky or Green Door and knock something out?

Fair is a romantic and soul and that comes out in every single song. Given the spontaneous nature of the album, some are stronger than others. My favourites include;

Behold The Miracle which opens the album, the Fanclub work up a cool garage groove on top of a 3 note keyboard riff, that allows Jad to wax lyrically over the top.

The wondrous wonder of your smile

There is wonder in your eyes

Behold the miracle

Near To You rides in on a riff that sounds very Gerry Love, chiming melodic rushes that create beautiful urgency.

Jad keeps coming back to the song title on Crush On You and after every time he says it he goes on to clarify exactly why and what that feels like. The Fanclub rock out at times, the guitar is gorgeously fuzzy and the band sound loose but also locked in the groove. 

I am certain of our fate

I am certain of our future

Sunshine knocking at our front door

You Rock is slow, dreamy and beautiful;

Love's taken over, taken over my life

And I'm glad

The Good Thing is a tender acoustic album closer with Katrina Mitchell from The Pastels on backing vocals, while Jad sings about not giving up.

Those that dig deep into the Teenage Fanclub discography, beyond the albums and the singles off them, are richly rewarded. Here are a few other releases to check out;

• Ballad of John & Yoko - 7-inch only, released in October 1990 on Paperhouse Records. Limited to 5,000 copies, b-side features etchings of the bands signatures. Recorded in Fun City Studio NYC and released on John's birthday.
• The Peel Sessions EP - released in 1992 on Strange Fruit, a record label run with love from someone's shed. Includes a glorious live version of Alcoholiday.
• Free Again - 7-inch only, released in May 1992. I remember stumbling across this in the old Virgin Records on Argyle Street. A rip roaring cover of the Alex Chilton song. A real favourite of mine.
• Mine Exclusively / Patti Girl - Ltd 7-inch released with NME. This is Teenage Fanclub playing and recording with Alex Chilton. I recently picked up this gem from eBay.  Check them playing together on this Scottish Tee Vee footage. There is also a bootleg of their show at 13th Note HERE.
• Teenage Fanclub Have Lost It - EP released at the end of 1995 (peak Britpop). See my feature length blog HERE.
• Association - Teenage Fanclub covered their friends International Airport (led by Tom Crossley of The Pastels/Lightships) for the b-side of their gorgeous song Association. Look out for a blog on this in the near future.

The legendary Jad Fair

Monorail Music 20th Birthday Party

20 years of Monorail Music. 20 years of popping in for records, cd's, tickets and books. Not to mention meeting friends, beers, food, events and gigs in Mono.

The record shop, venue and the people involved in both have left an incredible imprint on the Glasgow music scene. The splash they have made has generated ripples that have spread across the world.

Musicians playing in Glasgow will seek out the venue, friends who have come to the city from further afield have the store earmarked and ask 'does Stephen Pastel really work there'. Music fans worldwide benefit from the knowledge and taste of Dep, Michael, Russell, Stephen and co from their weekly newsletters and Twitter musings. And their end of year lists are always so lovingly compiled. In fact everything about the store oozes a warm love and genuine passion that you can't help fall for.

On the Monorail website they mention they pride themselves in being independent, focused and friendly. And I think everyone who visits is proud of those qualities and all they have achieved.

I wonder how many times I have visited over 20-years. Nowhere near as often as some of the store regulars, but a decent enough amount to be on nodding or name terms with most people who work there. I don't think I have ever left the store empty handed. Does browsing exist in Monorail? It's going to lead to the purchase of something! 

Monorail encourages and supports the arts in so many ways. The store is effectively a base for record labels like Geographic, Night School and Monorail's own sometime label. The Pastels and Sacred Paws are two of the many bands that work, or have worked, in the store.

And so, time to celebrate a landmark. 20-years. The party arrives at a good time, everyone needs escapism and a reason to celebrate something good. Monorail is good, in fact Monorail is great. 

As a possible sign of age, I opted to drive in. Freezing temperatures, an ongoing lack of taxis and the fact Glasgow Central would be crazy with Christmas party goers were the reasons. Shout to Mono for having an excellent selection of no-alcohol beers, the Brooklyn Special Effect lager was lovely.

I arrived in plenty of time to see Water Machine setting up on stage and immediately recognised the artist Flore de Hogg who is (or has been) in a number of cool bands. I caught her at Mono on a Record Store Day a number of years ago in a brilliant band called Wet Look. I don't think they ever got to the stage of releasing, but they were super cool.

Water Machine were a bundle of fun and nervous energy. Opening song Water Machine 'we have at least 3 songs called Water Machine' set the tone. A lofi groove, synth melody and catchy vocals (with ace use of backing vocals) quickly won the room.

A song about the drummer always being late for rehearsals was fun, with a pop (almost playground) hook and melody that had people dancing and even singing on first listen.

Trying to find a website or social page to link to the band is proving impossible! I'm rarely on Instagram but you might get some info from Flore's page.

The LH DJ set before Gerry Love was excellent, paving the way for Gerry, Noel (guitar and backing vocals), Paul (percussion), Jamie (bass) and Tom (all kinds of things) to take the stage and begin with the heavenly chiming guitar of December.

This apt opener from the seminal Bandwagonesque LP generated a heart response from the crowd. Gerry and his band then took us on a musical journey the setlist weaved through Lightships and Fanclub songs. 

Gerry's voice on Silver & Gold was exquisite, Sweetness In Her Spark was gentle gorgeousness, Starsign was flowing and dreamy and Take The Long Way Round was euphoric guitar pop, even when stripped back.

Paul Quinn's percussion skills really came to the fore on Every Blossom while the whole room seemed to sing Don't Look Back, the Mono choir. It was a wonderful moment and the ovation afterwards was long and heartfelt. 

Sunlight To The Dawn is one of my very favourite Gerry Love songs. The opening guitar riff sends warm tingles down my spine, a second layer is added and the band fall in, creating a great groove. 

Slow, contentment to your soul

A golden sun sets in your eyes

When love's in your willing heart

Gerry and Noel warned the band were running out of time and could fit in a couple more. There were cries of play them all and I don't doubt that the crowd would have settled in for the night if that was possible.

As it was, closing with Ain't That Enough and Sparky's Dream, was quite enough! Two incredible songs that had the backing of the Mono choir again. Gerard Love and friends left the stage to huge cheers and cries for more. I can't wait to hear what Gerry records next year. 

Before long Stephen Pastel was playing records including September Gurls and Daytripper to keep the good vibes going.

The party was just getting started, but it was time to head home to my Mum and daughters. 

I hope everyone who stayed to party to Apostille (a brilliant live act - check this blog) and DJ's had a goo time and got the dancing started.

10 from The Pastels

Katrina Mitchell and Stephen Pastel - the core of The Pastels
Picture by Blair Young

The Pastels have curated the line-up for the Maryhill Community Central Hall section of The Great Western, a new multi-venue one day festival organised by promoters 432 presents. Tickets are on sale now. Gerry Love's Lightships and Sacred Paws are among the bands joining The Pastels. FULL INFO

So I thought I would blog on 10 of my favourite songs from the band, following on from similar blogs on The Vaselines and The Lemonheads.

I fell for The Pastels as a teenager and in many ways I am still falling as I learn more about the band, appreciating them even more with each and every passing year. They are the kind of band I wanted to be in as a teenager and they are the kind of band I wish I was in at the age of 43.

The Pastels just do their own thing, in their own way, at their own pace and they do it exceptionally well. The Pastels are cool without wanting to be cool, they have inspired and supported so many bands from Glasgow and beyond.

Thank You For Being You was the first Pastels record I bought. I also had a red Pastels t-shirt from that era and the 1993 Truckload Of Trouble LP that is full of all kinds of gems ranging from singles to a glorious cover of Different Drum and a a brilliant instrumental Kitted Out.

Not surprisingly, there are a few songs from this era of The Pastels that feature in this blog.

I first caught The Pastels live at King Tut's Wah Wah Hut in 1994. I love the band on record but I probably love them even more live. There is something about the way Stephen plays his guitar (a beauty) and the way the band gel. I love how the line-up and sound has expanded. I love Katrina's drumming that sounds and looks so effortless and carefree at times and her voice is all kinds of melodic gorgeousness. And I love that live and on record, The Pastels music still has a loving, soulful, homegrown, could fall apart at any moment, type of immediacy and quality to it.

The Pastels are an incredibly important band to (and in) Glasgow. Stephen Pastel formed and released music on the legendary 53rd and 3rd Records and now runs the Geographic label. They have put on bands (and most probably put up bands), championed bands from Teenage Fanclub and The Vaselines through to bands like Spinning Coin and The Orielles from further afield. And they have shared their impeccable taste and knowledge via the support bands they cherry pick to play with them, their social media postings and through Stephen's work at Monorail Records.

Here are 10 of my favourites by The Pastels.

Classic line-up
Three minutes and 20 seconds of glorious guitars and gushing lyrics about sunshine, Glasgow and love. Stick this song on the next time you are walking about Glasgow (or any city) in the sunshine and your life will instantly improve.

See the sunshine split those buildings

And I'll feel my heart uplifting

Cause the city casts a magic spell

And my life seems so special

Glasgow is a brilliant city, it has so much to offer and Pastel's love for it comes pouring out in melodies and a love letter in a song.

When the tenement world reveals it's charm

You better grab it fast with both your arms

Crawl Babies
From the seminal Up For A Bit With The Pastels album this is brilliant. Everything seems to just come together, the guitars, the melodies, Stephen's vocals.

Says she's open like a book

She's got everything I need

Even wants to take the time

To teach me how to read

I wanna build her up, up as tall as a church

Just to to watch her, just to watch her falling down

Vivid Youth w/ Tenniscoats
How gloriously mellow and gorgeous is this? Just so beautiful, sublime and in the moment. Katrina's voice is so gentle and pure. I love the way the melody picks up so naturally for the all ashes are grey in the day section.

Check My Heart
Pure guitar pop perfection. This could warm the coldest of days. Katrina takes lead vocals that are melodic, catchy and sing-song-y. Check My Heart is upbeat and completely infectious. I was overjoyed when The Pastels returned from a long absence with this as the lead single. Sublime!

Katrina sings of grabbing life and love we're on a mountain top and I wanna leap out and get it

And Stephen comes in with the gorgeous I wanted a lifetime, not just to fall in your arms.

Million Tears
I only discovered Million Tears when I came across a YouTube playlist of every single Creation Records release a few years back. I couldn't believe I hadn't heard it before!

This is a pure two minute and 40 second rush of guitar pop brilliance. There is still time for a 30-second intro

Oh if I can't have you I don't want nobody else

And if I can't have you I won't take nobody else

I'd tear myself apart 

And cry a million tears

Break down the walls of pain 

And fall into the heartache scene

By 1 minute 20 we have reached a little breakdown and instrumental and then we're straight back into the verse and chorus. In truth this song is just one big chorus for me. It is perfect.

Truck Train Tractor
I love the humour and also the urgency in this song. It drives along (pardon the pun) and it always makes me smile.

Comin' Through
More incredible guitar pop! When you listen to songs like Comin' Through it is no wonder The Pastels made such an impression, such an impact and created such love from music fans all over the world.

I particularly love the closing 40-seconds or so. The Pastels are absolutely on it, everything collides beautifully as extra layers are added.

Nothing To Be Done
Pastel and Aggi (Annabel) duet and melt hearts. The song flows, crashes and tumbles beautifully as Stephen and Aggi take it in turns to trade verses before their vocals gel towards the end.

Take my hand and take my heart

I shiver when you're near

Baby Honey
Baby Honey thrills, it grooves, it drones, it ignites, it excites, it is utterly captivating. Baby Honey is young Glaswegians discovering The Velvet Underground and the thrill of finding out what sounds can be coaxed from an electric guitar.

If I wish upon a star

Take you just the way you are

There is magic in her fingertips

There is magic in the lips I kiss

There is magic in her beautiful eyes

Justify the tears I cry

Thank You For Being You
And we end 10 from The Pastels with the first song of theirs that I fell for. I hope you can hear why! This is guitar pop perfection, Pastel is so in love he needs four words rather than three.

Permo by Spinning Coin

If I was 20 odd years younger I would probably be a little jealous of Spinning Coin; releasing on Stephen Pastel's Geographic label with support from Domino, recording with Edwyn Collins and touring with Teenage Fanclub and Dinosaur Jr... the stuff of a young indie guitar fans fantasies.

And as I approach 42 it still is a kind of fantasy of mine to put together an indie guitar band and have loads of fun. I can't afford the mid-life crisis sports car, so that might happen!

It is a reality for Spinning Coin, they are playing great shows, they have recorded a great indie guitar album that is at times; fragile, raw, rough n ready and full of harmonies, humour and playfulness.

Photo by Stuart McIntosh

Spinning Coin have released a number of singles from the album over the last couple of years; drip feeding their sound on to record tables and into hearts.

Only 5-songs (one by a mere 2 seconds) across the 14 on Permo break the 3-minute barrier. They don't mess about with the two songwriters Sean Armstrong and Jack Mellin displaying their talent in many ways.

Fuzzy melodic guitars and beautiful strained vocals usher in Armstrong's Raining On Hope Street, while there is pace, power and more frantic riffs to Mellin's Tin.

We then have two songs referencing money in the title; Money For Breakfast and Money Is A Drug. The first has some beautiful lyrics and has a great melancholic vibe to it, a kind of stoned groove.

So soothing, it's so soothing when the sunlight reaches your bed

Armstrong's fragile and melodic tunes with his storytelling lyrics that somehow fit into a song are pretty special. It almost kind of should't work, but it really does as evidenced on Metronome River.

Floating With You is a gorgeous tune, possibly my favourite from the album. Did I mention stoned groove earlier on? Well this is the sound of someone in a special place, just happy, gloriously so.

Everything you say just gets me higher

I'm happy just floating with you

Sides punky pop urgency has delightfully simple lyrics that we can all relate to and a brilliant guitar break/riff halfway through that propels the song towards a great conclusion with Mellin and Armstrong's voices combining deliciously.

Telling lies all the time

Telling lies is a waste of time

I've blogged about Sleepless before and it is another fave; melodic, fragile, heartfelt and soulful with lovely chiming guitars.

There is definitely an element of Collins and Goddard to some of Mellin's songs in his style, phrasing, lyrics and delivery. Powerful is an example of the raw yet melodic punk pop racket he demonstrates throughout the album.

These words just can't express

Just how much I have been blessed

Starry Eyes has an unexpected political tone, while Running With The World is another of my favourites before the album closes with the gorgeous I Feel The Need To Be An Actor.

Well I sure love the rain

I love the way it defeats me

I try to explain

But I don't have the brains to

You can order the vinyl from Monorail's website with a signed print, or pop into the store.

Sleepless by Spinning Coin

I've mentioned Spinning Coin in a number of blogs over the last couple of years..Their short (most are under 3-minutes) melodic and heartfelt guitar tunes with fragile and soulful harmonies have won my heart.

Permo, their debut album, is set for release on 10th November on The Pastels Geographic label and I am really looking forward to it. The band recorded at Edwyn Collins Helmsdale studio in the far North of Scotland and closer to home at Green Door Studio in Glasgow. You can pre-order the rather gorgeous looking vinyl HERE

To keep the momentum going Spinning Coin have released a video for the song Sleepless, with footage taken on their European tour in June.

Chiming guitars and soulful harmonies flow and combine effortlessly. The five-piece; Cal Donnelly, Chrish White, Jack Melin, Sean Armstrong and Rachel Taylor, just gel. Like all good bands do. They make it sound fun and easy. Enjoy the video below and check the string of live dates planned - dates with Girl Ray, The Pastels and Dinosaur Jr and their album launch at Mono on 17th November.

Raining On Hope Street

We have experienced all kinds of weather in Glasgow recently. This time last week it was snowing, at the weekend we had glorious sunshine and the previous week brought torrential downpours.

That week, I walked through central Glasgow as the rain poured from grey skies, the streets shimmered with car headlights bouncing off the water and people scurried to cars, buses and trains. I trudged down to Central Station and was reminded that I had a blog to finish and publish.

With a title that instantly connects with Glaswegians, Raining On Hope Street, is the latest single by Spinning Coin, available digitally and on lovely 7-inch vinyl by the good folks at Geographic.

You can read a previous blog on their debut single and interview with Sean Armstrong HERE

On to Raining On Hope Street - Fuzzy and chiming reverb-y guitars combine with strained and soulful vocals over a shuffling beat to create the kind of song that I love. The lyrics are playful and heart warming; statements of advice, intent, friendship and love. The poetic every day line about milk and tea is genius. The advice to just walk at dawn is heartfelt beauty.

don't go racing cars out on the ridge

just walk at dawn instead

if you're coming home can you bring some milk?

i want to make a brew

if I had a love heart, I'd give it to you
I would give it to you

surely giving it away is a start

I'm giving away my heart
As we go out
Don't be scared
I'm your friend

The promo film by Blair Young is just perfect; shimmering sunshine like the shimmering guitars.

Spinning Coin have been super busy in the year since I first blogged about them; playing a number of headline shows, touring with Teenage Fanclub, recording with Edwyn Collins and really gearing up for the release of their debut album, due in August.

A late summer release will be perfect timing for the Spinning Coin sound. It feels like an age since I fell hook, line and sinker for a Glasgow guitar band and all the signs are pointing to this being a lasting relationship.

Spinning Coin

Spinning Coin are a relatively new band from Glasgow made up of Cal Donnelly, Chris White, Jack Mellin and Sean Armstrong.

The 4-piece have just released Albany on 7-inch via The Pastel’s Geographic Records.

Spinning Coin have produced something that equally sounds like they really care about what they are doing and like they don’t give a f**k and are making music for no-one but themselves. That, at least for me, is usually a good place for a band or artist to be.

In a little over two-and-a-half minutes, Spinning Coin deliver a beautiful, raw gem. The guitars are gloriously scuzzy, fuzzy and soulful, the drums and cymbals keep things going and the vocals are pure, dreamy and true.

There are so many things I’ve never even considered

Stephen Pastel is always good for a quote and has said; ‘Albany reminds me most of a feeling I had at the end of the Boy Hairdressers and the beginning of Teenage Fanclub. There was never enough of that. Spinning Coin, so good.’

Sean Armstrong from the band was kind enough to answer a few questions I emailed over. Read on for a little more info and forthcoming live dates.

Spinning Coin - Interview

1. How did Spinning Coin form?

Spinning Coin formed and mutated from a band billed as 'the sean armstrong experience': a group formed to showcase the songs of one of our members within a bassment gig type scenario.

2. How quickly did you start to write/create songs/music? 

The band very quickly became a collaborative project creatively. We had some things we made up and would play on each other's songs and then we would meet in the middle sometimes.

3. You released some material though Fuzzkill Records who are becoming vital in helping bands develop. How did you get involved with them? 

We met Ross at music shows around Glasgow. We just sort of became friends i guess.

4. What other current bands from Glasgow do you like? 

breakfast muff, seconds, rapid tan, big boys' karaoke, hans greene, smack wizards, sharptooth (rip), anxiety, happy meals, antique pony, chump, in posterface, vital idles, leacher, mordwaffe, sick of talk, the modern institute, the yawns, psychic soviets, the pastels...to name a few. there are so many. glasgow is currently where the magic is at.

5. What kind of stuff are you listening to at present?

Stuff that focuses in on, attempts to explain or accentuates the grey areas in life and the cosmos: I (Sean) have been listening to a lot of friends' music. Also Kate Bush, some Subway Sect...Swell Maps.

6. You’ve just brought out your new single on Geographic/Domino. How much of a step up does that feel like?

Perhaps it feels like a step out rather than just a step up. What we have been doing up til now feels just as important, but it feels like this part of our journey will help us to reach a wider audience.

7. Stephen Pastel has been promoting and helping young bands for over 30-years, including the likes of Jesus and Marychain and Primal Scream. Has he given you any advice? 

Stephen's not really the sort to break out with big rules to live by, or with universal truisms...a calming and nurturing influence for sure. He told me to get a tuner pedal!

8. What’s next for Spinning Coin? Are you working towards an album?

Practice practice practice, with some experimentation thrown in, and some live appearances. We are looking forward to releasing our first album, and have 20 songs recorded, provisionally labeled as demos. For now we are preoccupied in building a rocket to launch ourselves into space.

9. Any shows coming up?

24th April - Glasgow, 13th Note

12th of May - Glasgow, The Poetry Club

13th May - Glasgow,13th Note Restless Natives Festival

14th May - Manchester, Fuel Cafe Bar

15th May - Brighton, Hope and Ruin (matinee gig)

16th May - London, New River Studios

17th May - Cardiff, Joy Collective

4th June - Inverness, Brew at the Bog Festival

25th June - Glasgow, CCA w/ Vic Godard and The Subway Sect