Friday 3 June 2022

How High


Trust Me #37

Tim Burgess - "The question I get asked the most about The Charlatans isn't 'How does it feel to headline a festival?', or 'How does it feel to write a banger like The Only One I Know?', it's 'Where's the jacket from in the How High video?'" WATCH HERE

I'm not the only one to have wondered this over the years!

It turns out that the original was a prototype and Tim had to hand it back to the stylist. The jacket hadn't been launched and the stylist promised to send one. It never arrived.

Well, 25-years down the line, Tim has teamed up with Hikerdelic to create the jacket.

How High's 25th anniversary is on 9th June, so from 11am on that date until 11pm on June 12th, you can order one from the Hikerdelic website for £125. You get the added bonus of this super cool postcard


Anyway, I thought I'd revisit the classic single for my Trust Me series.

Starting at 100 mph and quickly increasing speed, How High captures the energy and the essence of The Charlatans in 3 explosive minutes.

Tim Burgess is in full flow, barely coming up for air, even when his band slow down, he keeps on going. There are a couple of short instrumentals where Tim has time to recharge before bursting back in.

Seeing The Charlatans live in 1997 was an incredible experience. I've often reflected on their regular Barrowland shows from this period as being like cup finals. And Burgess was the conductor, the midfield playmaker, absolutely on one. He still is. So are the band.


My favourite line is probably when Tim sings hang on to your hopes my darlin' don't let it slip away. I love the way the band slip in and out of this section before coming crashing back in again. 

Signing off with yeah, too high, gonna pledge my time 'til the day I die, the song is over in under 3-minutes, but instruments are allowed to fuzz and fade out. I like to imagine the band absolutely nailing it and looking round at each other in the studio as they allow this to happen.

A list of all previous songs I've blogged about in my Trust Me feature are listed below the lyrics to How High, along with links to each blog.

I've also collated them all into a playlist on Spotify that you can find by searching for Everything Flows - Trust Me , or you can CLICK HERE


How high?
Oh I can kiss the sun
Run a minute mile
While you hitch hike
Love shines a light
I'll be a winners cup
And I'm lookin' for the one who cut you up
You're not having me
You know the skies are mean
And I'm hopin' for a way to free you

Love I'm fixin' holes
The ones you break up
Come in from your drive
And the hand that rocks you
Cuts you up, like lyrics of your life

I can't buy
What I've done before
I wanna open up another door
I'm gonna let you pass
I'm on another path
I wanna be the king
While you zig zag
On a holy road
Like Caine from Kung Fu
How high, oh I can kiss the sun

Hang on to your hopes my darlin'
Don't let it slip away
And the hand who holds you
Keeps you warm
And helps you live today

Love shines a light
And it takes and it hurts
I know I'm right
I can bend 'til I burst
And love shines a light
And repays you with us
Yeah too right
I'm gonna pledge my time until the day I die

How high?
Oh I can kiss the sun
Run a minute mile
While you hitch hike
Love shines a light
I'll be a winners cup
And I'm lookin' for the one who cut you up
You're not having me
You know the skies are mean
And I'll be lookin' for a way to free you

Love I'm fixin' holes
The ones you break up
Come in from your drive
And the hand that rocks you
Cuts you up, like lyrics of your life

Love shines a light
And it takes and it hurts
I know I'm right
I can bend 'til I burst
And love shines a light
And repays you with us
Yeah too right
I'm gonna pledge my time until the day I die


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
14. The Man Don't Give A F**k by Super Furry Animals
15. All Flowers In Time Bend Towards The Sun by Jeff Buckley and Liz Fraser
16. Are You Lookin' by The Tymes
17. A Real Hero by College & Electric Youth
18. Feelings Gone by Callum Easter
19. Sunday Morning by The Velvet Underground
20. Did I Say by Teenage Fanclub
21. Don't Look Back by Teenage Fanclub
23. Belfast by Orbital
24. Clouds by The Jayhawks
25. Dreaming Of You by The Coral
26. Everlasting Love by Love Affair
27. Walk Away Renee by The Left Banke
28. Teenage Kicks by The Undertones
29. Shaky Ground by Sneeze
29. Rill Rill by Sleigh Bells
30. I Can Feel Your Love by Felice Taylor
31. The State We're In by The Chemical Brothers w/ Beth Orton
32. Sunshine After The Rain by Ellie Greenwich
33. Losing My Edge by LCD Soundsystem
34. Mondo 77 by Looper
35. Les Fleurs by Minnie Riperton
36. Rat Trap by The Boomtown Rats


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