i think that jtq borrowed quite a lot from ccs when they recorded their version of this song. i like the flute.
30 Jun 03 ·n-jeff: Could even be 196? Familiar to those of us from theUK of a certain age as the theme to "top of the pops". Great hair and Sideburns on your man Alexis Corner, too.
In fact don't they use it on TOTP 2 now? 30 Jun 03 ·shaka_klaus: i don't know. i'm from sweden. i guess i'm not of a certain age either :). 28 Jan 04 ·tinks: it's from 1970. and it was produced by mickie most, even!
Lots of Cilla's earlier material was top quality, this Lennon/McCartney song (never actually recorded by the Fabs) knocked me out when I first heard it on my cousin's Dansette in 1964. Spooky melody which almost strays into jazz territory in the instrumental break. Sophisticated pop of the highest order.
A brilliant psychedelic dance record mixing over-the-top orchestration and brilliant harmonized vocals. Plus the kind of innocent-meets-intense vocal that I find immensely attractive in pop. Pity it's not officially available on CD, but that could change...
01 May 07 ·artlongjr: Never heard "Birds and Bees", it sounds interesting. I have a 45 by Warm Sounds that I may do a write-up on, it's called "Night Is A-Comin'/Smeta Murgaty", from 1968 on Deram Records. The reason I mention it is because it is one of the most totally "out-there" psychedelic numbers I've ever come across. Features the wonderful lyric "In my head the Grateful Dead are peering through the bars!" Unfortunately I don't think it's on CD either. 08 Jan 10 ·Sadman: it's amazing! heard it from "A Walk in Alice's Garden" compilation.
I was never a Pulp fan, and I'm still not exactly a huge one. I never quite got why songs like 'Do you remember the first time' and 'Common People' were so great. I don't mind those songs now, but they never hit me in the way that 'This is Hardcore' did.
It's hard to explain why the dramatic, slightly ridiculous tone of the song appeals to me so much. The song is built around a sample from 'Bolero on the moon rocks' by Peter Thomas, the German film composer, and I think it's used very well - the sample adds texture and atmosphere, but doesn't dictate the song. I enjoy the way things develop at a slow pace, with new musical sections still being introduced late in the song. I'm very fond of all of these, but the slow, dreamy section that comes in at around 4:15 is particularly appealing, with its lush and strangely 80s sounding backgrounds.
Utter, utter genius!
from This is Hardcore, available on CD
03 Sep 04 ·scrubbles: Totally agree ... I remember that the video for this song was equally fantastic - a tribute to '50s technicolor melodramas, but with an added dose of sleaze. 07 Sep 04 ·olli: dammit. just rediscovered this myself and was about to rcommend it. didn't appeal to me the first time around,
but then again i probably have a slightly better/ more diverse taste in music now. besides, the years have been kind to it. you're spot on about the use of the peter thomas sample, i have to agree that it's pretty tastefully done. 07 Sep 04 ·olli: if you can use the word "tasteful" about this song, that is:)
Acoustic summery song. Very 60's sounding with great harmonys and really odd guitar out of one of the speakers. A must hear for fans of Teenage Fanclub
