Regular readers will know that I have two blogs. As adversity always brings out the best in people, on morethanmyblogsworth, during the first two lockdowns I shared some of my friends’ humour to brighten the long days in isolation. We had all hoped that there would be no need for another but, like all trilogy franchises, although the first one was quite successful, the follow-up was hopeless; meaning the third has come-along quite quickly. So welcome to Lockdown 3 – Attack of the Variants!
This time I have decided to try something different to lift spirits through what could be a long winter. So, taking the cue from my favourite DJs Radcliffe & Maconie, I started a Lockdown Chain on my Facebook page – every day a live video of a track with a tenuous link to the previous day until we are finally free again to go to real live gigs. Below are the daily choices if you want a catch-up:
Tuesday 20th April 2021
As the status quo is the current situation, the obvious link is to ‘The Time is Now’
And that, folks, brings us full circle to a 2010 performance by Roisin Murphy on Jools’ Hootenanny, whose performance on this New Year’s programme was where we started way back on January 1st, 110 days ago. Which, as we appear to be coming out of the other end of this third lockdown with some prospect of live music starting up again, seems like a good place to stop this Chain. Thanks for listening, I hope you enjoyed some of the tracks featured – but not as much as I hope to never have to provide lockdown entertainment ever again!!
Stay Safe.
Monday 19th April 2021
‘Shout’ came from Tears for Fears’ second album ‘Songs from the Big Chair’. So taking the furniture link, we move on to Status Quo:
Sunday 18th April 2021
And today’s link is to the other half:
Saturday 17th April 2021
Yesterday we had a band who were Half Man, Half Biscuit. Today’s link is a very local one to a Bath band who were extremely popular locally in the early 80s – a band where, after they spilt-up, the two halves each formed the basis of a different chart-topping band. One half teamed-up with members of another local band, Stackridge, to form the Korgis. You should be able to spot who the other half became:
Friday 16th April 2021
More riots – this time in Trumpton:
Thursday 15th April 2021
UB40 were named after an unemployment form. Kaiser Chiefs’ debut album was titled ‘Employment’, and this track was on that album:
Wednesday 14th April 2021
The driving force behind Soul II Soul is Jazzie B, who is also a producer. One album he produced was the soundtrack for the 1989 film Black Rain, and one of the tracks on that was this Temptations cover by UB40:
Tuesday 13th April 2021
Todays link is roman numerals in the band name. So from Classics IV we move to Soul II Soul:
Monday 12th April 2021
There’s a much older song with the same title as yesterday’s. It was originally an instrumental written by saxophonist Mike Sharpe, then Florida band Classics IV put some lyrics to it and had a hit. It was later covered by Atlanta Rhythm Section. This is the original Classics IV version from 1968 – with Mike Sharpe playing the instrumental break. Groovy!
Sunday 11th April 2021
Dub is not a music style that exists easily outside of the studio mixing desk, because of the amount of delay and reverb it uses. But I wanted to maybe link to a live version of something from Boy George’s recent album, or from another dub album I found a few years ago by Hollie Cook. In looking around, I came across this little gem when Hollie Cook teamed-up with the band Gentleman’s Dub Club, which fulfils the link on a number of levels:
Saturday 10th April 2021
Today’s link goes from National to International:
Friday 9th April 2021
Taking the ‘darker’ theme, today’s link is to The National and The System only Dreams in Total Darkness. Check out the album it comes from, ‘Sleep Well Beast’ – one of their best:
Thursday 8th April 2021
Today we go from a Leonard Cohen song written for somebody else to one he wrote for his final album, in essence a self-penned epitaph released just 19 days before he died. Obviously, there is no live performance, but this tribute by the Montreal Symphony is as close as it gets:
Wednesday 7th April 2021
Spandau is a suburb of Berlin, which gives several options for a link. I have gone for a Leonard Cohen song – First We Take Manhattan – where the title line continues with “Then we Take Berlin.” However, I have gone for the Jennifer Warnes version from her 1987 album ‘Famous Blue Raincoat’ which was her take on a number of Cohen songs, of which this was one he wrote specially for her:
Tuesday 6th April 2021
A raconteur is very good at telling anecdotes. Sometimes these can be a bit long, so it is perhaps better:
Monday 5th April 2021
Simple title link today from Tin Soldier to Broken Boy Soldier:
Sunday 4th April 2021
Today’s link is to another artist using two identical initials in their stage name. So from JJ Cale to PP Arnold, here appearing with the Small Faces on their single Tin Soldier:
Saturday 3rd April 2021
There’s not much that can be said to the subject of yesterday’s link, except perhaps:
Friday 2nd April 2021
This blog isn’t all about rock music, so taking the theme of three from yesterday’s track by the Brian Auger Trinity, we move to Il Trittico by Puccini, a set of three one-act operas. From the second of those, ‘Suor Angelica’, this is the aria Senza Mamma:
Thursday 1st April 2021
Kashmir is an area originally part of Northern India that is reputed to be where the Indian Rope Trick was first performed for a western audience. Hence the link is:
Wednesday 31st March 2021
The single release of Joe Cocker’s ‘With a Little Help from my Friends’ featured Jimmy Page on lead guitar. So today’s link is to Jimmy performing ‘Kashmir’ with ex Led-Zep mate Robert Plant during their superb Unledded gig back in 1994:
Tuesday 30th March 2021
Only one way to go from yesterday and that’s to the best cover from Sgt Peppers – no make that the best Beatles cover ever:
Monday 29th March 2021
The name Rita is the obvious link to ‘Lovely Rita’ from Sgt Peppers. Problem is that the Beatles never performed any tracks from that album live. There are loads of covers, of course, including Paul McCartney’s but I have chosen the one produced for the 40th Anniversary celebration at Abbey Road, by Travis:
Sunday 28th March 2021
I was thinking that, for today’s link, I might either use 42 – as in the secret of the universe and all that – or Level 42’s lead singer and bass player Mark King. Then, barely an hour after posting yesterday, a friend (also named Mark) made a recommendation unconnected with this chain that I listen to a new band he has discovered. So with cosmic forces like that in play, it seems today’s link was preordained to the Marcus King Band:
Saturday 27th March 2021
The B-side on the original single issue of Bernadette was a song called ‘Something About You’. Whilst that particular track went on to be a Northern Soul Classic, today’s link is to another song with the same title that was a breakthrough hit for the band Level 42:
Friday 26th March 2021
Dusty Springfield’s full name was Mary Isobel Catherine Bernadette O’Brien. There’s one name in there that stands out as an ideal link:
Thursday 25th March 2021
Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart were originally in the Tourists, who had a top ten hit with a cover of Dusty Springfield’s “I Only Wanna Be With You”. Today’s link is to the original:
Wednesday 24th March 2021
Simple title link today, from Sweet Little Lisa to Sweet Dreams:
Tuesday 23rd March 2021
One of the founder members of Heads, Hands & Feet was Albert Lee, who over the intervening fifty years has gone on to be one of Britain’s legendary guitarists. As well as having his own band, he has been a member of the Crickets, Emmylou Harris’ Hot Band and Bill Wyman’s Rhythm Kings, among others. He has also played live with everybody from Clapton to Willie Nelson – watch almost any jam session on YouTube with millions of views and you will almost certainly see his shock of grey hair up there. Here’s why:
Monday 22nd March 2021
Taking the body-parts link, we move from Elbow to Heads, Hands & Feet. They were a British band that were around briefly in the early seventies before they succumbed to the ubiquitous ‘musical-differences’. They played country-rock before most of us had really discovered what that was, and this was their one and only appearance on OGWT (where else?) fifty years ago:
Sunday 21st March 2021
The Bowie track is from his ‘Station to Station’ album, so the link is to a track from Elbow, who I described for years when talking about their albums and gigs as the most underrated band in the country – until everybody finally discovered them! This is ‘Station Approach’ filmed in the best place to see them, a small venue – although good luck with that these days:
Saturday 20th March 2021
The Transformer album that the previous Lou Reed track came from was produced by David Bowie. Apparently, their relationship got pretty wild at the time, so taking that word link as well:
Friday 19th March 2021
Second Hand News contains a section with wordless lyrics sung by the lead instead of backing singers, so here’s a link to another track where there is a similar section:
Thursday 18th March 2021
Propaganda normally only comes from Rumours or Second Hand News:
Wednesday 17th March 2021
The sabre was the weapon of choice for early Victorians seeking to resolve matters of honour, so the link today is to ‘Duel’ from Propaganda:
Tuesday 16th March 2021
Simple title link today, from ‘Feel the Need’ to ‘I Need’ from Maverick Sabre:
Monday 15th March 2021
Jamo Thomas had a fairly short recording career in the ‘sixties. According to his bio on All Music, he made a brief reappearance on record ten years later when he provided the spoken intro to the obscure track ‘Scream’ by Graham Central Station. Here’s one of their better-known tracks:
Sunday 14th March 2021
Staying with the spy theme, we move on to a Northern Soul classic with Jamo Thomas pretending to be Felix Leiter:
Saturday 13th March 2021
Sheriffs tend not to be shot in movies, so one of the more memorable film cameos was Sheriff J W Pepper in two 007 movies. So here is the theme song from the first of those:
Friday 12th March 2021
Al Capone was a notorious gangster from Chicago, and doubtless had a run-in with local Sheriffs from time to time. So the link today follows that line, plus a link to reggae, with Eric Clapton’s cover of the Bob Marley track, ‘I Shot the Sheriff’ performed in Chicago:
Thursday 11th March 2021
From one Prince to another:
Wednesday 10th March 2021
From Give a Little Sign to Sign O’ the Times:
Tuesday 9th March 2021
KWS is from Shreveport, Louisiana, as was ‘sixties R&B star Brenton Wood:
Monday 8th March 2021
Double link today – a continuation of ‘Voodoo’ in the title, plus probably the best of the newer generation of rock guitarists – Kenny Wayne Shepherd. KWS was introduced to me by my old drummer mate Nigel back in 1995, handing me the Ledbetter Heights album that this track comes from and saying ‘believe it or not this guy is only 18, and he’s self-taught’:
Sunday 7th March 2021
OK, there’s only one way that a link can go from a guy named Fender. And it’s difficult to do without starting a debate. So who do you think is the greatest exponent of that make of guitar? It’s not a hugely-long list, but it’s a highly-distinguished one, including the likes of Clapton, Gilmour, Townsend, Beck, Blackmore, Harrison, Knopfler, and so on. But for me, one stands above them all:
Saturday 6th March 2021
Simple title link today, from someone who appeared at the first Glastonbury to someone who will headline it one day:
Friday 5th March 2021
Sutherland Brothers & Quiver were an amalgam of folk duo The Sutherland Brothers, plus the rock band Quiver. Quiver’s lead guitarist Tim Renwick also played with another leading folk singer, Al Stewart, as he does here:
Thursday 4th March 2021
Staying with the train connection, over to Sutherland Brothers & Quiver from their 1976 album “Reach for the Sky” (great album, incidentally, if you’re not familiar with them):
Wednesday 3rd March 2021
Nearly 50 years earlier the ‘friends’ in yesterday’s video were part of one of the first supergroups. Taking the connection, all aboard the train:
Tuesday 2nd March 2021
Simple title link today, from ‘Islands’ to ‘On an Island’ from Dave Gilmour (and friends). Had the pleasure of meeting Dave Gilmour a few years ago when his wife, Polly Samson, was appearing in the local Literature Festival. I was on duty when they were leaving after her event, and went to show them out when she was called away to speak to an organiser, which left me alone to chat with Dave for about five minutes. They say you should never meet your heroes, but he was an exception – lovely man:
Monday 1st March 2021
Time for an obscure link again – unusual pairs of letters at the end of a band name. This takes us from Avicii to The xx:
Sunday 28th February 2021
Today’s link is to ‘Wake Me Up’, written by Aloe Blacc, which was the biggest hit for the late Swedish DJ Avicii:
Saturday 27th February 2021
‘Good Things’ was the title of the 2010 debut album by Aloe Blacc. This track is from that album:
Friday 26th February 2021
After The Beat dissolved in 1984, Andy Cox and Dave Steele decided to form a new band. The eventually teamed-up with Roland Gift creating Fine Young Cannibals. This is from 1989:
Thursday 25th February 2021
From The Beat Goes On, to The Beat:
Wednesday 24th February 2021
Lawrence Brown recorded under several names before adopting his final persona. When he was Larry Dennis, he was spotted by Sonny Bono, who directed him to a new record label, and they persuaded him to change his name to Dobie Gray. So the link is to a song written by Sonny Bono which was his second largest hit with Cher:
Tuesday 23rd February 2021
From Crowded House to Dobie Gray. Special track for me as the very first time I went to a ‘proper’ club, as a teenager, this was playing as I walked-in – the bit about having ‘our own way of walking’. Never looked back after that!!
Monday 22nd February 2021
You need hot chocolate to make a chocolate cake – and, if you make it as well as my wife does, then once this damned lockdown is over, we’ll doubtless get a Crowded House waiting for it once more:
Sunday 21st February 2021
Etta James was one of the stars on Chicago’s Chess label, which was the subject of the biopic Cadillac Records – named as such because early production was sold from the boot of Leonard Chess’ old Caddy. So taking the car link:
Saturday 20th February 2021
From a cover of a Dr John track to the man himself – plus friend:
Friday 19th February 2021
Taking ‘walk’ as the link today, the selection is the Modfather himself with a cover of Dr John’s ‘Walk on Gilded Splinters’:
Thursday 18th February 2021
Foals are from Oxford, so the link today is to another artist from there. There were several to choose from, so I went for Gaz Coombes (ex lead singer of Supergrass) who was also performing live in Oxford. Looks, and sounds, like a great venue too:
Wednesday 17th February 2021
From Thunderstruck yesterday to London Thunder today. This is Foals:
Tuesday 16th February 2021
Tom Jones hails from Pontypridd, as does drummer Chris Slade who played on Tom’s early records, including ‘Delilah’ and ‘Green Green Grass of Home’. He had a spell with AC/DC in the 1980s/90s, and rejoined that band a few years back. So the link is to:
Monday 15th February 2021
Yesterday was a Janis Joplin cover, so the obvious link is to the real thing – plus a friend:
Sunday 14th February 2021
Artist link today today to Joss Stone – somewhat apt track as not only did she fool all the judges on Masked Singer, but also because of the date:
Saturday 13th February 2021
An elemental link today. Earth, Wind (air) and Fire are three of the natural elements, so the missing one is Water:
Friday 12th February 2021
Another title link today, from Traffic to Earth, Wind & Fire:
Thursday 11th February 2021
Dave Mason was originally a member of Traffic (he wrote the single ‘Hole in My Shoe’). So today’s link is to another track from the same era of the band:
Wednesday 10th February 2021
Simple title link today, from Pearly Spencer to Pearly Queen:
Tuesday 9th February 2021
Ruby and the Romantics recorded on the Kapp label, which was the label that handled the release of Irish singer/songwriter David McWillams’ only hit:
Monday 8th February 2021
The Black Keys are from Akron Ohio, as were Ruby and the Romantics. From 1963:
Sunday 7th February 2021
This is where it starts to get difficult, because we already had the word “eyes” as a link earlier in this chain, and a colour link was used yesterday, so can’t be used two days running. But there is also a ‘boy’ link that can be used to today’s track – Lonely Boy by The Black Keys:
Saturday 6th February 2021
Moving on from Lebanese Blonde, Texas’ fourth (and possibly best) album was entitled “White on Blonde”. So, doubling-up with a colour link as well, from that album here is Black-eyed Boy:
Friday 5th February 2021
Yesterday’s track came from Cold War Kids’ album ‘Robbers & Cowards’. So moving from robbers to thieves, today we have Thievery Corporation with ‘Lebanese Blonde’:
Thursday 4th February 2021
Yesterday’s track came from The Jam’s album ‘Setting Sons’, the cover of which features a sculpture of WW1 figures by Benjamin Clemens entitled “St John’s Ambulance Bearers”. So today’s link is to ‘Saint John’ by Cold War Kids:
Wednesday 3rd February 2021
Another title link, this time from Subterranean to Going Underground:
Tuesday 2nd February 2021
Today we move from artists using Bob Dylan’s lost lyrics to Bob Dylan using his own:
Monday 1st February 2021
Today’s link is to a track called Kansas City from ‘The New Basement Tapes’ one of the best albums of 2014. The opening of the video gives an overview, and the link is because one of the five artists taking part was Elvis Costello:
Sunday 31st January 2021
Today’s link is from Don’t Go to I Don’t Want to Go – in Elvis Costello’s case to Chelsea:
Saturday 30th January 2021
Double-link today. Depeche Mode hail from Basildon, as do Yazoo; Vince Clarke was also a founder member of Depeche Mode, but left to form Yazoo with Alison Moyet:
Friday 29th January 2021
Straightforward link today using ‘Eyes’ to Depeche Mode from their 1990 album Violator:
Thursday 28th January 2021
Title of that 22nd Gary Numan album is ‘Savage (Songs from a Broken World)’. So, taking the ‘broken’ link, today goes to Doves’ ‘Broken Eyes’ from their latest album:
Wednesday 27th January 2021
The sample used on the Sugababes track is Gary Numan’s ‘Are Friends Electric’ from the second Tubeway Army album released in 1979. So the link is to 2018 performing a track from his 22nd album with his daughter on backing vocals:
Tuesday 26th January 2021
The link today goes from The Faces to the title of Sugababes’ first album ‘Angels with Dirty Faces’. This is the opening track:
Monday 25th January 2021
When the Mamas & Papas lived on Creeque Alley, round the corner was Gasoline Alley where the Faces were still a rock band and had a new lead singer:
Sunday 24th January 2021
The obvious link is to the Beach Boys because Wendy and Carnie Wilson are Brian’s daughters. However, the third member of the band, Chynna Phillips, is the daughter of John & Michelle Phillips, hence:
Saturday 23rd January 2021
Heart included two sisters, Ann & Nancy Wilson. Another band with a different set of Wilson sisters in it was Wilson Phillips. This is the track that started their career:
Friday 22nd January 2021
Simple link today to Magic Man. Heart were one of the great rock bands of the mid-70s – can’t believe this is 45 years old!:
Thursday 21st January 2021
On the original T Rex version of ‘Get It On’, the piano run was played by none other than Rick Wakeman. So here’s one of my favourite tracks of his, first recorded nearly 50 years ago, but as he never plays them as originally recorded anymore, this is one of his classical interpretations from 30 years ago:
Wednesday 20th January 2021
Robert Palmer was briefly a member of Power Station, a supergroup also including two members each from Duran Duran and Chic. He sang on their first single, a cover of the T Rex hit ‘Get it On’ then left the band. In his place they recruited ex-Silverhead lead singer Michael Des Barres to replace him, and this is the band’s performance of the track at Live Aid in 1985:
Tuesday 19th January 2021
Triple-link today (four if you include leaving us too early). The obvious ‘Love’ link in the title, both are named Robert and both recorded on the Island label:
Monday 18th January 2021
Marcia Griffiths went on to be a member of the I-Threes, Bob Marley’s female backing singers. So today’s link is to this track from 1980 (Marcia is the one on the right):
Sunday 17th January 2021
Lorraine Chandler formed a record company with one of the Funk Brothers, Jack Ashford, called Pied Piper Records. So today’s link is to the Bob & Marcia version of ‘Pied Piper’ with OGWT-style synched-video:
Saturday 16th January 2021
Again, a simple title link today back to 1966 and a great piece of Northern Soul. Lorraine Chandler and I Can’t Hold On:
Friday 15th January 2021
The Bryan Ferry track was from his 1986 No.1 album ‘Boys & Girls’. Another album with the same title was released in 2012 by Alabama Shakes. From that album this is ‘Hold On’:
Thursday 14th January 2021
The Mac video was from their 1997 tour “The Dance”. Another track they performed from Rumours was ‘Don’t Stop’. So combine the two and you get Bryan Ferry – Don’t Stop the Dance:
Wednesday 13th January 2021
I guess if you’re not Gonna Go My Way, instead you’ll Go Your Own Way. Fleetwood Mac 20 years on from Rumours:
Tuesday 12th January 2021
The Orb headlined the NME stage at Glastonbury in 1993, while on the Pyramid Stage as a late replacement for the Red Hot Chilli Peppers was Lenny Kravitz. So that’s the link, but as there is no Glasto footage of his set, here is another festival appearance from the same year::
Monday 11th January 2021
Simple Cloud link today, from the Temptations to The Orb and ‘Little Fluffy Clouds’ at Glasto ’93:
Sunday 10th January 2021
The Contours had a constantly-changing line-up, and one of their lead singers was Dennis Edwards, who went on to replace David Ruffin as the lead singer with the Temptations in 1968. So the link is to Cloud Nine, which was one of their first hits utilising Edwards’ more hard-edged voice:
Saturday 9th January 2021
Today’s link uses the ‘Boots’ reference to go to Bootsy Collins of Parliament/Funkadelic fame. A few years back he took part in the fabulous Funk Brothers tribute gig/film ‘Standing in the Shadows of Motown’, and from that this is his version of the Contours’ “Do You Love Me”:
Friday 8th January 2021
Yesterday’s track sampled the theme tune from the 1967 Bond movie, “You Only Live Twice”. Nancy Sinatra sang that theme song, so from the year before some classic ‘sixties from her:
Thursday 7th January 2021
Yesterday we had Downside Up from Peter Gabriel. That track was part of the music he wrote for the regular show in the main arena at the Millennium Dome, Ovo, which you would have seen if you had a day out there during 2000. So the link is to Robbie Williams and Millennium:
Wednesday 6th January 2021
Moving on from Odyssey, a simple directional link from Inside Out to Downside Up from Peter Gabriel. Went to a gig at Wembley on this tour, and it was just amazing:
Tuesday 5th January 2021
A more obscure link today. In 2015, the Boston track was used for a trailer for the Pixar movie Inside Out, but not in the movie itself. So from that, we get to Odyssey’s 1982 hit:
Monday 4th January 2021
A simple geographic link from the J Geils Band, who originated in Boston Massachusetts, takes us to the band Boston:
Sunday 3rd January 2021
Yesterday’s Bowie cover came from his very-underrated Pin Ups album. So taking the photographic reference from that we move to Centrefold by the J Geils Band:
Saturday 2nd January 2021
So first link – from a cover of Bowie, to a Bowie cover:
Friday 1st January 2021
Happy New Year everybody, and here’s to better times. Plus, in case you missed it, a great cover to start the year:
Regular readers will know that I have two blogs. As adversity always brings out the best in people, on morethanmyblogsworth, during the first two lockdowns I shared some of my friends’ humour to brighten the long days in isolation. We had all hoped that there would be no need for another but, like all trilogy franchises, although the first one was quite successful, the follow-up was hopeless; meaning the third has come-along quite quickly. So welcome to Lockdown 3 – Attack of the Variants!