IT DON'T MEAN A THING IF YOU AIN'T GOT THAT SWING, Vertigo PRICE 62 / 818 671-1, 5/1984, UK
|
IT DON'T MEAN A THING IF YOU AIN'T GOT THAT SWING, Vertigo PRICE 62 / 818 671-1, 5/1984, UK |
PRICE 62 |
|
IN THE EIGHT or so years since the first Graham Parker album 'Howlin
Wind' had it's surface worn flat by Dave Barnes and myself in our attempts to thrust it
into the hands of unwilling customers, it's good to be able to say that Graham Parker's
music really has lasted.
In fact there are many who would say that a portion of his commitment and incisive delivery would not go amiss in the narcisstic onanism of the 1984 chart, but even though writers like Melody Maker's Allan Jones and SOUNDS' Chas de Whalley attempted to spread the word about his apperance on the scene, it was some time before GP's talent was acknowleged. The story has been well-chronicled - yes, he was a petrol pump attendant, though only for a very short time, and Stiff supremo Dave Robinson did find him a ready-made group in the Rumour who were all set to record on their own until the alliance with Graham Parker created a force that was hard to stop. Anyone seeing Graham Parker and The Rumour in those early days couldn't imagine any one member of the team without the others. The power of Martin Belmont and Brinsley Schwarz on guitars, Bob Andrews (keyboards), and the rhythm section of Andrew Bodnar and Steve Goulding couldn't be disputed, and it was expanded a couple of years down the line with the addition of brass for live performances: Dick Hanson (trumpet), John 'Irish' Earle (baritone Sax) and Ray Beavis (tenor). This album is a necessarily personal choice of what we consider the 'best' of Graham Parker and the Rumour, but it is also intended to show the breadth of material recorded by the band over the years. No apologies are offered for taking four tracks from what is arguably the most consistent Parker album, 'Howling Wind'. 'Soul Shoes', 'White Honey', 'Silly Thing' and of course 'Between You and Me', (reproduced on the album in the original form with which he scored his deal with Phonogram) still sound as powerful today as when they were recorded, though some slight justification for the contemporary Springsteen/ Morrison/ Dylan comparisons is present. The second album 'Heat Treatment' was received at the time with the customary disappointment - it seemed that 'Howling Wind' was too outstanding to be easily followed - but the inclusion here of 'Fools Gold', (later recorded by Rachel Sweet) shows that conclusions about the album were perhaps too swiftly arrived at. After several singles, the first real chart action came with the 'Pink Parker' EP pressed on pink vinyl. Sad that it couldn't be a Parker original, but this version of the Trammps' 'Hold Back The Night' still shows plenty of what was making the band an increasingly strong live attraction. Thin Lizzy's Brian Robertson replaced an incapacitated Brinsley Schwarz on two of the four tracks on the EP. 'Stick to Me' followed at a time when acceptance for Graham Parker was led and broadened by his live performance. The band were now headlining European tours, and had to release the album to fit in with a string of dates. Mechanical problems with recording ruined the entire completed first version, and the whole thing had to be re-done in a matter of days by Nick Lowe. The title track shows however that speed does not necessarily equal sloppiness. The obvious next step was a live album, the obligatory attempt to show the band's live muscle. 'The Parkerilla' the title somewhat explained by the phrase 'He's Part Gorilla', was more memorable for Barney Bubbles' sleeve graphics than for an accurate reproduction of the band's explosive performance, but it at least hints at the front-row experience. The album ran for three sides, and the fourth was taken up with a reworking of 'Hey Lord Don't Ask Me Questions' from the first album. It kept Graham Parker in the public eye, reaching number 32 in the UK chart, and remains his best remembered number. The last, and possibly most intense, Phonogram album was 'Squeezing Out Sparks'. Graham Parker had been managed all through this time by Dave Robinson, who had his own experience of running Stiff to guide him in what he considered a record company's actions should be, and the album had the distinction of being promoted by two record companies at once - the Stiff Art Departement designed the sleeve and Dave Robinson paid for adverts and posters publicising the album in addition to Phonogram's own marketing campaign. The single was 'Protection' and its B-side (appearing here on album for the first time) was another Parker showstopping cover 'I Want You Back', which galvanized a capacity audience into dancing on tables at the opening night of The Venue. Also from the album is 'You Can't Be Too Strong' one of Graham Parker's most moving songs, produced with suberb understatement by Phil Spector's arranger, the legendary Jack Nitzsche. Relations with Phonogram's American arm had been strained, to say the least, and 1979 saw Arista America release 'Squeezing Out Sparks', followed by a 12" grey vinyl promotional item entitled 'Mercury Poisoning', a denounciation of Parker's US company, mercury Records. It remains a matter of debate how fair the accusations were, but it is nevertheless a great rock song. With some glee the Stiff Press Office anonymously mailed 200 US copies of the record to the British media. To our chagrin, no-one took a blind bit of notice. 'Mercury Poisoning' was the last official Phonogram recording. Graham Parker moved to Stiff for the Jimmy Iovine - produced 'The Up Escalator' album, tantalising Springsteen fans by the paticipation of the master on one track, but neither it nor its two successors on RCA, 'Another Grey Area' and 'The Real Macaw' made much of an impact internationally. Which brings us up to date, and this new collection. If you want emotion, depth and the ability to burn, you need look no further than Graham Parker and The Rumour. But don't forget 'It Don't Mean A Thing If You Ain't Got That Swing'. Andy Murray April 1984 |
SIDE ONE WHITE HONEY SOUL SHOES STICK TO ME FOOL'S GOLD HEY LORD DON'T ASK ME QUESTIONS I WANT YOU BACK SIDE TWO PROTECTION HOLD BACK THE NIGHT THE NEW YORK SHUFFLE BETWEEN YOU AND ME SILLY THING YOU CAN'T BE TOO STRONG MERCURY POISONING
Album compiled by Andy Murray & Dave Thorne
This compilation (P) 1984 Phonogram Ltd. (London). |
|
Back to GP album discography |