Femme Fatale

Cover version of the month #117
Big Star cover The Velvet Underground

The Velvet Underground and Big Star are two majestical, mythical and magical bands that have influenced (and have been consistently highlighted by) Scottish bands like Orange Juice and Teenage Fanclub through to bands bursting on to the scene at present. 

Art-rock NYC cool, melodic vulnerability, quintessential guitar power pop and vocal harmonies. You could easily argue that the two bands stand as the ultimate patron saints to the Glasgow independent guitar pop scene. Throw in Love, The Byrds, punk bands like Buzzcocks, The Clash and Subway Sect and that's the bones of your top 10.

One song that links both of these legendary bands is Femme Fatale, written by Lou Reed and inspired by a throwaway Andy Warhol comment about Factory 'it-girl' Edie Sedgwick. New info for me - I always thought it was about (and for) Nico!

"Oh, don't you think she's a Femme Fatale, Lou?"

The Velvets recorded the song in 1966 and it was released as the b-side to Sunday Morning in December of that year and then as the third track on their debut album, the mind blowing The Velvet Underground & Nico in March 1967. It's an album that everyone with a vested interest in the history of guitar music seems to be magnetically drawn to as a teenager.

It's well documented that the album was a flop, entering the charts at number 199 upon release and then leaving the month afterwards. Check this excellent feature article by Scottish writer Grant McPhee for Into Creative.

McPhee takes a deep dive into the myth of The Velvet Underground and Nico, particularly around the sales figures, stemming from a famous quote by Brian Eno about the album only selling 30,000 copies in its first five years.

... everyone who bought one of those 30,000 copies started a band. Brian Eno

Enjoy Grant's blog. But back to Femme Fatale. Listening again, I can't help but wonder who (if anyone) Nico was thinking of whilst singing the song. Edie? Or herself? 

Here she comes

You'd better watch your step

She's going to break your heart in two

It's true

The Velvets recording is icy cool. Nico’s vocals are famously flat, off-key and the way she pronounces clown as clun at the end of the second verse is quite funny. Funny, but ridiculously cool!

She'll build you up just to put you down

What a clown

Almost 60-years on and The Velvet Underground remain a blueprint for independent guitar music. Femme Fatale is a prime example why. Short (2-minutes 39 seconds), seemingly simple, impossibly cool and utterly beautiful. Pop music can be both a hook and a heartbreak simultaneously.

Lou Reed's NYC drawl in response to Nico's rise for the chorus is sublime.

Cause everybody knows, (She's a femme fatale)

The things she does to me, (She's a femme fatale)

She's just a little tease, (She's a femme fatale)

The closing two lines of the chorus are left to Nico, over the chiming guitar riff. They are, for me, the two coolest lines of the song, sung as if Nico is in admiration of the girl she is singing of.

See the way she walks

Hear the way she talks

In the next verses, Nico (using Lou's words of course) is clearer about her warning. The guy is merely number thirty-seven in her book. She's from the street, so already has all the guys beat and is going to play you for a fool.

Alex Chilton recorded his version for the legendary Third/Sister Lovers album sessions. The Big Star version is stripped back and fragile. Chilton sounds like he is singing from the experience of having his heart broken by the femme fatale, warning others, yet still infatuated.

Big Star are in no rush here, everything is slow, the intro longer, it all feels darker, as if Chilton is barely holding it together. It's beautiful.

Others have covered this gem of a song too. Among them - I've just found the Duran Duran version ... and ... I'm not a fan! Teenage Fanclub covered it with tender care on the b-side of Ain't That Enough. And Fatale, who I have written about a number of times over the last 6-months or so, took their name from the song and recorded it as their first demo. The way the crowd sing-a-long with Lou's she's a femme fatale line at the Fatale gigs is incredible - like they are breathing new life into the song and turning it into an anthem.

Fatale - Femme Fatale (demo)

The Velvet Underground & Nico original and the Big Star cover of Femme Fatale are added to my Everything Flows Cool Cover Versions playlist on Spotify which also features all of the songs listed below. Search for the title or CLICK HERE

Previous covers of the month blogs

1. You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin' 

2. Going Back To My Roots

3. Nirvana play The Vaselines

4. Slip Inside This House

5. Top 10 covers by Teenage Fanclub

6. Only Love Can Break Your Heart

7. Time For Livin' 

8. Sound and Vision 

9. All Along The Watchtower

10. I Am The Walrus 

11. Guiding Star

12. You’ll Never Walk Alone

13. Hurt

14. This Guy's In Love With You

15. I Wish I Never Saw The Sunshine

16. California Soul

18. Wonder wall 

19. Dancing In The Dark

20. Always On My Mind

21. Ceremony

22. Heroes

23. Different Drum

24. Wild Horses

25. Respect

26. Mr Tambourine Man

27. I Heard It Through The Grapevine

28. Superstar

29. Twist and Shout

30. Purple Rain

31. Baker Street

32. Not Fade Away

33. Stop Your Sobbing

34. I Don't Want To Grow Up

35. Serious Drugs

36. Dancing With Myself

37. How Does It Feel To Feel?

38. Love Buzz

39. ABBA-esque
40. Jumpin' Jack Flash

41. Discoland

42. Varshons 2 by The Lemonheads

43. The Langley Schools Music Project
44. Witchi Tai To
45. Our Lips Are Sealed
46. Sunshine Of Your Love
47. Here Comes The Sun
48. I Think We're Alone Now
49. Don't Let Me Down 
50. It's Oh So Quiet
51. Alcoholiday 
52. Summer Holiday
53. Who Do You Think You Are?
54. Head On
55. Nothing Compares 2 U

56. Hey Jude

57. Seven Days Too Long

58. L.O.V.E Love

59. Into Your Arms

60. Heart Of Glass

61. Take Me To The River

62. We Can Work It Out 

63. Talking In My Sleep

64. Lola

65. Lost In Music

66. My Little Red Book

67. Isn't It A Pity

68. Walk On By

69. Walk Away Renee

70. Tainted Love

71. Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

72. Listen The Snow Is Falling

73. Mrs Robinson

74. He's Gonna Step On You Again

75. In My Life

76. Caravan Of Love

77. The Only Way Is Up

78. Dancin' Round & Round

79. With A Little Help From My Friends

80. Killing Me Softly

81. Ain't No Mountain High Enough

82. Drop

83. Sittin' On The Dock Of The Bay

84. Sympathy For The Devil

85. I Bet That You Look Good On The Dancefloor

86. Love Will Tear Us Apart

87. Indian Rope Man + bonus Strawberry Fields Forever + This Wheels On Fire

88. Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You

89. Love The One You're With

90. Cum On Feel The Noize

91. Addicted To Love

92. Valerie

93. Ride On Time

94. Let's Dance

95. It Must Be Love

96. I Fought The Law

97. For What It's Worth

98. Do Your Thing

99. I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself

100. Don't Leave Me This Way

101. Shout!

102. God Only Knows

103. The Last Time

104. Bridge Over Troubled Water

105. How Can You Mend A Broken Heart

106. Louie Louie

107. Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head

108-110. I'm A Loser, Yesterday and Beware of Darkness 

111. So You Say You Lost Your Baby

112. Kelly Watch The Stars

113. Association

114. Some Velvet Morning

115. If I Had A Boat

116. Vapour Trail

I Am The Cosmos

Trust me #62
I Am The Cosmos by Chris Bell

I Am The Cosmos was an almost mythical song that I used to read about in interviews by some of my favourite artists. Norman Blake, Tim Burgess, Bobby Gillespie all mentioned the song with a sense of awe. It kept cropping up.

Back in those days, it wasn't a case of searching on YouTube, Spotify or Apple Music. You had to try and track down the record or CD. Easier said than done for some records that my heroes referred to - many were long out of print and hadn't received a CD reissue.

Eventually I heard I Am The Cosmos on the album of the same name. I can't remember where I got the CD, but I'd hazard a guess that it was Missing Records. I was a regular in my teens, popping in to their Oswald Street store a couple of times a week after work; buying 7-inch singles, the odd album and making mental notes of what I'd buy after the next payday. 

I found out that the CD (issued in 1992) was the first time the album had been released! Chris Bell died in a car accident in 1978 at the age of only 27. His only solo material released in his lifetime was the I Am The Cosmos b/w You and Your Sister single, also in 78.

Previously, Chris Bell had formed Big Star with Alex Chilton in 1971. I got into Big Star after the many references made to the band in Teenage Fanclub articles. The beloved power pop band never really made it while they were together, but their music still leaves a mark on many to this very day. I guess it always will. 

The bands debut album #1 Record, released in 1972, only sold 10,000 copies on release and Bell left the band, disappointed by the sales, despite considerable and consistent good reviews.

Post Big Star, Bell struggled with depression. The album took him 3-years to record. Alex Chilton played and sang on some of the songs. Bell also produced (and played) on an album by a band called Prix that I intend to check out. 

I Am The Cosmos is a truly beautiful album that tugs on the heart strings through songs like Speed Of Sound, You And Your Sister and There Was A Light. Check them out - total gems. The guitar on There Was A Light is sublime, really gets me, raw emotion. 

On to the song I Am The Cosmos though. Rolling Stone described it as being; utterly transcendent, a lush, spine-tingling number in which megolomania and vulnerability come together in these unfathomable lines;

Every night I tell myself I am the cosmos

I am the wind

But that don't get you back again

What can I add? Well, it's a song that grabs my attention every time I hear it. And when I do, I will always play it more than once. 

Bell starts singing immediately, there is no intro. The guitars are gloriously soaked in reverb and Bell's voice sounds a little broken as he sings never want to be alone. 

Then there is the genius bit where he sings no, no, before going on to sing yeah.

Wanted too much to say no, no

Yeah, yeah, yeah

Yeah, yeah, yeah

After a drum roll, a glorious piercing (yet warm) guitar solo (with handclaps and tambourine lying beautifully under the surface) takes listeners on a 40-second journey that they'll want to experience again and again.

Bell comes back in full confessional mode, don't know what's going on inside, before closing with the mantra; I'd really like to see you again, I really wanna see you again

Just before the song fades, Bell changes things to sing; I never wanna see you again.

WOW - what a song! This Mortal Coil and Scarlett Johansson have both covered the song, but this blog is all about Bell - check the song and album.

I Am The Cosmos - Chris Bell

I Am The Cosmos 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.

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

22. Your Love Is The Place Where I Come From 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

37. How High by The Charlatans

38. I Can't Let Go by Evie Sands

39. Pop Song 89 by R.E.M.

40. Summertime Clothes by Animal Collective

41. There She Goes by The Las

42. We're Going To Be Friends by White Stripes

43. Autumn Sweater by Yo La Tengo

44. Sister Rena by Lomond Campbell

45. Revolution by The Beatles

46. Lazarus by The Boo Radleys

47. Wrote For Luck by Happy Mondays

48. American Trilogy by The Delgados

49. Loser by Beck 

50. Silent Sigh by Badly Drawn Boy

51. Comedy by Shack

52. Take The Skinheads Bowling by Camper Van Beethoven

53. Freakscene by Dinosaur Jr

54. Thank You For Being You by The Pastels

55. I Think I'm In Love by Spiritualized

56. Chestnut Mare by The Byrds

57. Cannonball by The Breeders

58. Like A Rolling Stone by Bob Dylan

59. You Make Me Weak At The Knees by Electrelane

60. Lucky by Radiohead

61. Strange Currencies by R.E.M.

Top 10 Teenage Fanclub covers

Cover(s) of the month #5

Teenage Fanclub have never been shy in terms of wearing their influences on their sleeves. The band have released countless cover versions on b-sides or one-off singles and played them regularly at their shows.

I got into the band as a 15-year old, thirsty for discovering all kinds of music. I couldn't have picked a better band than the Fanclub to fall in love with - and they were from Bellshill, just up the road from Carluke! The Byrds, Dylan, Neil Young, Big Star, Alex Chilton, The Beatles, Madonna,  The Velvet Underground, Yo La Tengo, Sebadoh....all artists covered by TFC.

My favourite? - well it is either Free Again which they released on an extremely limited 7-inch (and I have one) or this - an absolute romp through The Byrds Feel A Whole Lot Better on the White Room.

I decided to compile my favourite ten cover versions performed by Teenage Fanclub. Here they are with links to the Fanclub version and also the original.

Unfortunately there were no links to their cover of Association by International Airport (details here) so that isn't included but it is well worth tracking down if you can.

Top 10 Teenage Fanclub covers

1. Feel A Whole Lot Better
Norman and Gerry take turns on lead vocals, the Fanclub at their joyous best. The Byrds released this as the b-side to Mr Tambourine Man - also covered by Teenage Fanclub.

2. Free Again
What a tune, a romp through the Alex Chilton song, an artist truly loved by the band.

Norman on stage with Alex

3. Don't Cry No Tears
A Neil Young song released on the b-side of the Everything Flows CD single. One of the first songs I ever learned to play on the guitar.

4. I Heard You Looking
Absolutely f**king beautiful. Almost 13-minutes of instrumental genius on this cover of a Yo La Tengo song. Released on the Neil Jung (alternate version) CD single.

5. Burned
Multi-format releases in the 90's was the perfect excuse for Teenage Fanclub to record a cover version or three. This, the original was by Buffalo Springfield, was on one of the Sparky's Dream CD's and Gerry Love just sounds like he is loving singing it.

Gerry Love - back in the day

6. He's Be A Diamond
This just flows superbly - perfect for Teenage Fanclub. Originally by The Bevis Frond.

7. Take The Skinheads Bowling
I used to have a couple of Fanclub cassette bootlegs, including a brilliant one from the Reading Festival when the band played this. A cover of a Camper Van Beethoven song. Just brilliant.

8. It's So Hard To Fall In Love
A brilliant Sebadoh song that the Fanclub covered on the bonus disc released with Thirteen. This disc also featured a cheeky romp through Goody Good Gumdrops by The 1910 Fruitgum Company.

9. Mr Tambourine Man
I loved the Reading Festival bootleg I had. Teenage Fanclub came on stage, played an instrumental and then introduced themselves by saying 'Hi we're called Teenage Fanclub and this is a song by The Byrds.' I bought The Byrds greatest hits that week and subsequently discovered Bob Dylan.

10.  Like A Virgin
Guitar pop punk rip through the Madonna classic - what's not to like?!