20 From '80 (14) The Vapors Boston 11th September 1980

The Vapors were a well respected and well connected four piece from Guildford, managed by John Weller and Bruce Foxton of all people. The Vapors had that distinctive style that produced a contemporary new wave sound infused with the musical sensibilities of mod (sorry... went a bit Paul Morley for a moment there!).

I sometimes wonder whether, in the spirit of kinship, Bruce and lead singer/guitarist, Dave Fenton did each others hair.

 

 

Here's a cracking radio broadcast from the band.

 

FLAC: https://rapidshare.com/files/1028497671/vaporsboston80FLAC.zip

 

MP3: https://rapidshare.com/files/1550282300/vaporsboston80MP3.zip

 

Artwork: https://rapidshare.com/files/2790351198/vaporsboston80AW.zip

 

 

01.  Somehow

02.  Prisoners
03.  Bunkers
04.  Johnny's In Love Again
05.  News At Ten
06.  Cold War
07.  Letter From Hiro
08.  Galleries For Guns
09.  Waiting For The Weekend
10. Sixty Second Interval
11. Spring Collection
12. Turning Japanese
13. Trains
14. America
15. Secret Noise

 

 

'Turning Japanese'

The Vapors Top of the Pops 1980

 

 



 

 

 

Ruts DC Steppin' Out

The brilliant Ruts DC are playing a couple of rare gigs. If you can get yourself along.... you'll be thanking me later!!

The Coal Exchange, Cardiff 29th September 2006

Could this really be six years ago!? Well, the dates tally and it is so. A good Suite XVI set and a reasonable sound, a bit muted perhaps.

FLAC: https://we.tl/t-W1IaTCs8QC

Artwork: https://we.tl/t-yDXuJnZDAD

01. Waltz in Black
02. 5 Minutes
03. (Get A) Grip (on Yourself)
04. Spectre Of Love
05. Nice n Sleazy
06. Death & Night & Blood
07. Unbroken
08. Peaches
09. Always The Sun
10. Golden Brown
11. I Hate You
12. Lost Control
13. Summat Outanowt
14. Walk On By

01. Relentless
02. Threatened
03. Burning Up Time
04. All Day & All Of The Night
05. Thrown Away
06. Duchess
07. London Lady
08. Nuclear Device
09. Dagenham Dave
10. Hanging Around
11. No More Heroes

Manchester Apollo 21st February 1985

Here's one from the Aural Sculpture tour at the request of Paul D. This recording comes with a bit of a health warning in that it seems to run slow at times (tape stretch at the time of original transfer?). It is what it is. That it was recorded in Manchester is evidenced when Hugh informs the crowd that the Liverpool audience was better. You can imagine the reaction!

FLAC: https://rapidshare.com/files/1534665696/Manchester210285FLAC.zip

MP3: https://rapidshare.com/files/2582902148/Manchester210285MP3.zip

1. Intro
2. Something Better Change
3. Nuclear Device
4. Uptown
5. Dead Ringer
6. No Mercy
7. Nice"N"Sleazy
8. Thrown Away
9. Let Me Down Easy
10. Midnight Summer Dream
11. European Female

1. Ships That Pass In The Night
2. Golden Brown
3. Peaches
4. Death And Night And Blood
5. Threatened
6. Punch And Judy
7. Hanging Around
8. I Feel Like A Wog
9. Down In The Sewer
10. Nubiles (Cocktail Version)
11. Toiler On The Sea

Hugh Cornwell - Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again

Here's another from one of those freebie cover CDs. Hugh's appreciation of the work of Bob Dylan is well known and is documented in the track '24/7' on 2004's 'Beyond Elysian Fields' album.

Hugh Cornwell - Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again

Pete Shelley - Think For Yourself

'Tonight Matthew, I'm going to be ..... John Lennon'

Pete Shelley on 'Stars In Their Eyes' 1993

This morning, I was set to the task of sorting through piles of magazines that I have amassed over the past 18 months or so. I have a terrible habit of buying magazines only to give them a cursory flick through before casting them aside. One of my regular purchases is the 'NME' for the middle aged, that goes by the name of 'Mojo'. In this sorting process I also looked through 20 or so cover CDs (invariably still attached to the front cover of the magazine) and this track caught my attention.

On an album of covers in celebration of The Beatles 'Yellow Submarine' album, Pete Shelley of Buzzcocks fame has covered 'Think For Yourself' with the assistance of the current Buzzcocks line up minus Steve Diggle (i.e. Chris Remington on bass and Danny Farrant on drums).

By virtue of their pop sensibilities in the face of the late '70s punk snarl, Buzzcocks were on occasion referred to as 'the punk Beatles' or 'Manchester's Fab Four'. Listen to 'Singles Going Steady' and it kind of makes sense.

So here it is:

Pete Shelley - Think For Yourself

20 From '80 (13) Buzzcocks Amherst University of Massachusetts 18th November 1980

It would be unthinkable to have a list of 20 of the best live bands of 1980 in which Buzzcocks weren't represented. So here they are in America. Take a look at the set (a full set) and the whole spectrum of their material is here, from the first thrash of 'Time's Up' to later experimental songs such as 'Are Everything' and 'Strange Thing' (some of their best material was produced as heavy substances altered their ways of thinking!). In between these two extremes are multiple slices of brilliant pop punk that Buzzcocks crafted better than any other band of the day... and the competition was stiff indeed.

Back in May, as reported in these pages, this line up came back together for one final fling and the musical chemistry that the Manc Fab Four had was apparent for all to see and hear once more.

FLAC: https://rapidshare.com/files/961232994/buzzcocks181180FLAC.zip

MP3: https://rapidshare.com/files/2568948114/buzzcocks181180MP3.zip

Artwork: https://rapidshare.com/files/1932881299/buzzcocks181180AW.zip

01. Why She's A Girl From The Chainstore
02. What Do I Get?
03. Fast Cars
04. Fiction Romance
05. Harmony In My Head
06. Are Everything
07. Lipstick
08. Ever Fallen In Love?
09. Something's Gone Wrong Again
10. Airwaves Dream
11. Strange Thing
12. Noise Annoys
13. What Do You Know?
14. I Believe
15. Love Battery
16. Love You More
17. Oh Shit!
18. Time's Up
19. Boredom