Mr. Mondo

I do not remember the broadcast but I remember travelling further into Cheshire, a few weeks later and seeing a few toppled trees that still needed removing from the fields. I also remember the dent in the car that could have seen the death of a friend, when a tree branch just missed their car.

Yes that is correct. In fact I think they actually were awarded a ‘best band’ of ‘In The City’ award, though I cannot remember if that was given by Tony Wilson or the press.

Were ‘Hear’say’ and ‘Girls Aloud’ created on the same ‘Popstars’ show or was one an ‘Idol’ group? I cannot remember as all these ‘X-Factor’ shows look the same to me. If they both came from the same show, are they both associated with Simon Fuller and does that mean that Betty Boo is managed by ‘19’ as well?

I came to the show after the second series and so I did not like the first one as much, because it was, in essence, a different show with all the character roles reversed. The last series was good but it seemed very much like a ‘Best of’ compilation at times, with the ideas harking back to some of the themes that had been explored within the previous two series. The last episode I liked a lot and was upsetting at the time but now has dated badly, whilst I think my favourite episode is still the one with ‘the While Adders’

25 ‘Electribe 101’: Billie Ray Martin and ‘the Groove Corporation’ Looking like they had come from Detroit or Berlin, the ‘Groove Corporation’ was actually a group from Birmingham, England, who had previously recorded under the name of ‘Electribe 101’. As ‘Electribe 101’, they were fronted by a German vocalist called Billie Ray Martin, and played a new kind of dance music that was heavily influenced by the techno and house music sounds of 1980s urban America. Recently I was reminded of the brilliance of ‘Electribe 101’ when, in a number of record stores in Manchester, I heard ‘snatches’ of the great new album by the former Moloko’ member Roisin Murphy. Whilst some of the album’s tracks sounded like what would happen if Annie Lennox decided to reinvent herself as a ‘Street Sounds’ Electro diva, a great deal sounded uncannily like tracks, that could have been taken straight from the early 90s ‘Electribe 101’ album called ‘Electribal Memories’. It was a pity that ‘Electribal Memories’ was the bands only ‘proper’ album as ‘Electribe 101’ as it was brilliant. It is an album to rank alongside The KLF’s ‘White Room’, The Beloved’s ‘Happiness’ and Pet Shop Boys’ ‘Introspective’ as one of the great dance albums of that early period in ‘modern dance music’ (post-disco). In fact, this was not the only link to Neil and Chris as the two acts also shared the same management and even though he is mostly known for ‘teenybopper’ acts like ‘2wo Third3’, ‘East 17’ and ‘Bros’, it was Tom Watkins who also managed the band. I cannot remember if Billy Ray Martin ever performed a duet with Neil Tennant, though I think it would have been a wonderful contrast to have Neil’s very English deadpan vocals along with the German vocalist, whose vocals would usually ‘soar’ to the heights. On ‘Electribal Memories’ those vocals would soar all over and in my mind, position Billie Ray Martin as a female Billy Mackenzie, a comparison aided by the ‘Circa Records’ release of the former ‘Associates’ man’s ‘Outernational’, a year or two later. Another comparison I could make here is with ‘Propaganda’, another Anglo-German band operational in 1990 and one that had evolved from the iconic Germanic band of the mid 1980s. Remembering how they had sounded on ‘ZTT Records’ and how they ended up on ‘1234’, I thought that the sound of ‘Electribal Memories’ is where they should have progressed to, rather than ending up as a better version of ‘Wilson Phillips’ with various ex-members of ‘Simple Minds’ Whereas singles, such as ‘Tell Me When The Fever Ended’ and ‘You’re Walking’, may end up on those ‘Greatest Ever Dance’ compilations, it is worth searching out and buying the original ‘Electribal Memories’ album. In addition to the hit singles there are great tracks such as ‘Diamond Dove’ and ‘Lipstick On My Lover’ whilst a fantastic version of the old Jesse Rae song ‘Inside Out’ really makes the song their ‘own’ (I do not know if the ‘Funk Braveheart’ recorded the original or it was just given to ‘Odyssey’).

Points/Act/Record: 20 Associates - Party Fears Two 19 Soft Cell - Say Hello Wave Goodbye 18 Blancmange - Living On The Ceiling 17 Adam Ant - Goody Two Shoes 16 Haircut 100 - Fantastic Day 15 Trio - Da Da Da 14 Clash - Rock The Casbah 13 Duran Duran – Rio 12 Jam - Beat Surrender 11 Japan – Ghosts 10 Madness - House Of Fun 09 Madness - Our House 08 Clash - Should I Stay Or Should I Go? 07 Kid Creole & the Coconuts - Annie, I'm Not Your Daddy 06 Duran Duran - Save A Prayer 05 Hall & Oates - Maneater 04 Iron Maiden - Run To The Hills 03 Tears For Fears - Mad World 02 XTC - Senses Working Overtime 01 Yazoo - Don't Go Missing tracks: ABC – Valentine’s Day Associates – Gloomy Sunday

Oh yes ‘Flirting’. I forgot all about that film. Did you ever see the previous film called ‘The Year My Voice Broke’? I think both films were directed by John Duigan, the director who also did that odd gated community film with Sam Rockwell as the ‘lawndog’ working from in his trailer. Even though I never got round to watching ‘Flirting’, I liked ‘Lawndogs’ and used to love the first film a lot.

Did you watch it from the start or come to it from the second series?

McAlmont and Butler were great, perhaps even better than some of the ‘Suede’ records put out at the same time. Actually, I loved those ‘Thieves’ records that McAlmont put out before ‘Yes’ on ‘Hut’, I think he is one of the best vocalists of the last 10 years and probably one of the most under-rated. I’ve not heard Brett’s solo album yet, but if it is as good as the ones I’ve got by Butler solo, it should be worth purchasing.

They were alright, though I preferred people like ‘Snap!’, ‘Jam & Spoon’, ‘Nightcrawlers’, ‘GGM/Blackbox’ and a lot of the Italian ‘Media Records’ output at the time.

I would not say that ‘Bottom’ is as bad as that, but on the other hand, where it is true that ‘Mr Bean’ is no ‘Monsieur Hulot’, and Rowan no Jacques Tati, I thought that the show was not complete comedy wasteland and actually had a few comic moments to raise a ‘titter’. ‘Mr Bean’ may not be even on a ‘high comedic level’ as the old Benny Hill show slots, but “I will tell you this, I will tell you this” it worked better than ‘The Baldy Man’. Also remember how bad ‘the Black Adder’ was at first before they revamped the production for the second series.

I would not like to say that one is better than the other, as each has got strengths and weaknesses within each medium that they work, or have worked, in. Definitely in the field of radio comedy, Spike is one of the greatest that ever lived, though maybe like ‘Cuddly Ken’ his genius may not have completely transferred to any of the more visual mediums. On the other hand, I think Sykes adapted very well to television and in particular the situation comedy format. Even though those original shows are now very dated to look at, I think they would be still very funny if remade for television now and, as they are not as iconic, would end up better than remakes of ‘The Blood Donor’ or ‘The Radio Ham’. Also whilst I am on the subject of remakes, I think I would like to see ‘Rik & Ade’ team up for a remake of ‘the Plank’. I think it may be more interesting than having an American version of Frank Spencer.

I have not actually heard any records by ‘Client’, so I will have to take your word for it in regards to the sound that they produce, though I think that I’ve heard their name before in relation to ‘Depeche Mode’, who as you may know became one of the biggest alternative/indie acts of the late 1980s and 1990s. If they are more left-field than ‘Goldfrapp’ then they must be very ‘alternative’ as ‘Goldfrapp’ are an act who should be considered alongside people like Bjork and ‘Moloko’ rather than Kylie and Dannii. If the new Kylie Minogue single sounds like ‘Goldfrapp’, then I guess it just shows how long their ‘sounds’ have taken to filter though to a commercial pop level. On the other hand one of the best Kylie records is ‘Confide In Me’, which sounds like Edward Barton’s ‘It’s A Fine Day’ channelled through Billy Mackenzie’s ‘Breakfast’ by the ‘Brothers In Rhythm’.

‘In The City’ Showcase Disasters Whilst the previous thread details all the success stories of the ‘In The City’ conference showcases, I am now wondering if anybody has ever gone to see any bands perform at one of the ‘I.T.C.’ promotional events and rather than be being beneficial to the acts performing, it has just turned out to be a disaster. In addition to this, did anyone else end up in a showcase that looked like it was going to be good, but actually turned out to be awful. Whilst I have seen a lot of average and weird acts in my time at ‘In The City’; and managed to stay put through a lot of odd showcases, I think the worst showcase that I ever ended up at, was an event promoting ‘the great new sounds of the Irish music scene’, which happened about ten years ago at a bar in ‘Deansgate Locks’. As ‘In The City’ was associated with an ‘indie legend’ in the shape of ‘Factory Records’ Tony Wilson and took place in a city that had been at the centre of the ‘Madchester’ scene, a great number of acts would be of an alternative nature. Even though this was where all the main focus in the press would be, a lot of other musical ‘happenings’ were going on as part of the conference, but these would be events that would be marginalised out towards the ‘fringes’ of ‘I.T.C.’. When it came to the Irish music showcase, we should have realised sooner that this was not going to be the most amazing night out, when the venue turned out to be a near empty bar, rather than say ‘the Roadhouse’, midweek at ‘the Locks’. In addition, to this we should have noticed that there was no stage and no instruments for the ‘bands’ to play. We asked if this was the right place for the Irish music showcase and we were told it would be starting there shortly but the acts needed to set up first. We were reassured by the bar staff that it would happen within the next hour and so bought another round of drinks. I was expecting the gig to be like a ‘Mother Records’ showcase, where I would find the next ‘Hothouse Flowers’, the new ‘Toasted Heretic’ and the next ‘Frank & Walters’, though when the stools came out it was perfectly clear what type of acts where going to come on. The first act was called ‘inFOCUS’ and when the five of them, rather than ‘the 4 of Us’, walked out it was obvious that they were ‘Boyzone’ clones and rather than being ‘the hottest new thing in Irish music’ like the advertisement said, they were very ‘wet’ indeed. Even though they were singing live, they were using backing tracks pumped through the bar’s ‘in-house’ speakers, backing tracks that to us, seemed to be used not only for them but the other couple of ‘bands’ we saw that night. We would have left earlier but we wanted to make sure that this had not been a ‘one-off’ and that someone like ‘The Pale’ were not going to come on with their mandolins afterwards. However the next ‘band’ were just like ‘InFOCUS’, apart from the fact that it was a group of girls this time, and so after all of our drinks had been drunk, we gave up on ‘I.T.C’ and went to play pool somewhere instead.

‘In The City’ Showcases – Acts Before They Were Famous As anybody who is living in the Manchester area or involved in the music industry will know, it is time again for the annual ‘In The City’ conference, an idea that came from the late ‘Mr. Manchester’, Tony Wilson. I do not know if anybody has been to any of the showcase concerts that have been organised for these events in the past, but if you have, I wonder which famous acts you saw at ‘I.T.C.’ in the early 1990s, before they sold large amounts of records and became the ‘premier’ acts of today.

He wrote the majority of them but others were involved as well, especially Eric Sykes, whose contribution to British Comedy is slightly under-rated.

Both are great 1980s acts with fantastic ‘pop-soul’ voices.

‘The Counterfeiters’ Has anybody seen the new World War Two film ‘The Counterfeiters’. Even though the film is a German language film, it is being shown at many multiplex cinemas and so, I guess there might be more a chance of people seeing this film than if it was just on at ‘the Cornerhouse’ for a week. If you have watched this film, how does it compare to wonderful films such as ‘Downfall’ and ‘The Lives Of The Others’. Thank you.

Yes, at some student clubs, the playlist was so static from week to week that you could know it was nearly drinking up time when ‘the Monkees’ came on. I think enough time has passed to re-visit all those old records now, and think of all the places you used to go that are not there any more.

Martin Fry is performing under the name of ‘ABC’. In fact, I think the only time in the last twenty years he has not been listed under ‘ABC’ would be on something like on an old ‘Arthur Baker and the Backbeat Disciples’ or ‘King Britt’ album. I put Martin Fry down rather than ‘ABC’ as it looks like it will just be him performing solo with the ‘Here and Now’ backing band. I do not think there will be any other former members like Glenn Gregory, Mark White, ‘Eden’ or ‘ickle’ David Yarritu. Last time I heard anything about ‘ABC’ they, Martin Fry and David Palmer, were about to go into the recording studio to record an album called something like ‘Tourist’ or ‘Tourism’. On the other hand, you might know that Glenn Gregory and Keith Lowndes from the 1997 ‘ABC’ album, on ‘de/Construction Records’, now record as ‘Honeyroot’. Re: Ben VP & ‘Johnny Hates Jazz’ It looks like the man named ‘Benjamin Vol-au-vent Parrot’ by ‘Smash Hits’ will also be performing solo too, whilst three people were shown in the ‘Johnny Hates Jazz’ picture, though due to the fact that I only briefly looked at the advert, I cannot remember which vocalist it will be.

I actually like that ‘Landscape’ record even though some might think it is just a bad ‘Devo’ rip-off. I think the singer was Richard James Burgess and I think he was the same person who produced a lot of those great ‘dance-pop’ records for ‘Living In A Box’.

I do not mind it, even though it is not a record I would search out in my collection. On the other hand hearing ‘One to another, sister and a brother’ always makes me nostalgic for ‘50p a pint night’ at ‘the Venue’ and so this is a record that I like to hear.

I do not know what it is called as I only briefly looked at the single in the shop. I think it is on the ‘Gut Records’ records label, though they might have gone back to having a one label for one act policy (‘Tug’ for ‘Right Said Fred’, ‘Hug’ for Stan’s ‘Suntan’, ‘Bubblin’ for ‘Aswad’ and so on)

It is hard to say whether he was actually the ‘Godfather of Alternative Comedy’ or whether this was just a lot of ‘hyperbole’ that fitted nicely into the script of a comedy retrospective. True, for surreal comedy he was an important figure, whilst ‘the Goon Shows’ were iconic scripts, though maybe it was important that all of ‘the Crazy People’ were involved in the production rather than just him. It is also true that his ideas have filtered down though out the year. You can see some of his humour even in the work of a ‘more post-modern’ comedian such as Leigh Francis, who you might think is just deconstructing the ‘notions of celebrity’ (If you have a set of ‘Q Magazine’ back issues from the late 1980s, please see the interview that featured Spike and Van Morrison). The only problem that I can see with prematurely awarding him the honour of ‘Godfather’ is that I am only in my thirties and so it is only ‘the Goons’ that I really know about, as that is the material that has been repeated the most. Since the 1980s ‘alternative comedy’ boom a lot of Spike’s material has been categorised as being politically incorrect and so has been seen as being strictly off-grounds by the ‘taste-police’. Even though, ‘Curry and Chips’ might be a long-lost comedy masterpiece, I think that the notion of ‘blackface’ will be at odds with the ideals behind the 1980s alternative comedy boom, even though now, in a 2000s programme such as ‘Little Britain’, ‘blackface’ would be a valid form of ironic expression. . Do not get me wrong, I am a big fan of Spike’s work and to this day, find humour in all ‘the Goon shows’, though maybe he was just one of a number of ‘Godfathers’ along with people like Lenny Bruce and Peter Cook .

He was brilliant doing ‘George’s Marvellous Medicine’, though some might say that this was because his act was childish to start off with and so fitted well into the confines of children’s television