Muzical Mystery Tour

Strawberry Switchblade were a Scottish new wave duo formed in Glasgow in 1981 by Jill Bryson and Rose McDowall, best known for their song " Since Yesterday " from 1985, and their flamboyant clothing with bows and polka-dots. They also did a cover of the Country classic 'Jolene', which I particularly liked. Never a 'big' band in the UK but an archetypal Big in Japan band....

The Piranhas were a British ska-influenced punk band from Brighton. They are best known for their cover version of the song " Tom Hark ". Again this is a band that I saw in my days at Reading University, I first came across them on an album that showcased punk and new wave bands form the Sussex area, the name of the album escapes me.

The Tourists were a British rock and pop band. They achieved brief success in the late 1970s before the band split in 1980. Two of its members, singer Annie Lennox and guitarist Dave Stewart, went on to international success as Eurythmics. As the Tourists they released a number of track as singles and had quite some success, I saw the band at Reading Uni, and they were a firm favourite at the time. The tracks I want to list here are a cross section of their output... ' The Loneliest man in the World ' and the Dusty Springfield cover " I Only Want to Be with You " both from 1979. And from 1980  " So Good to Be Back Home Again "

The Skids are a Scottish punk rock and new wave band, formed in Dunfermline, Fife, in 1977 by Stuart Adamson (guitar), William Simpson (bass guitar), Thomas Kellichan (drums) and 16 year old Richard Jobson (vocals).  Their biggest success was the 1979 single " Into the Valley " and ' Working for the Yankee Dollar '

Simon & Garfunkel  were an American folk-rock duo consisting of singer-songwriter Paul Simon and singer Art Garfunkel.  They were one of the best-selling music groups of the 1960s, however, my fondness for them really boils down to the ' Bridge over Troubled Waters ' album, which was a world wide hit and included many of the tracks that were later to be featured in the film ' The Graduate ' on of my favourite films. Their biggest hits—included the wonderful " The Sound of Silence ",  " Mrs. Robinson "  " The Boxer " " Bridge over Troubled Water " all of which I believe were worldwide hit singles. All of these videos are taken from a recording of their concert in Central Park New York in the very early 1980s, I remember watching this on TV or a video around that time and thinking that some of it was a bit self indulgent but these tracks were great.

 I've never been a great fan of country music but sometimes a song or artist is bigger than the genre that they are associated with, one such artist is Glen Campbell and one such track is Jimmy Webb's ' Galveston ' I remember seeing the video fir the track on TOTP as a kid and thinking I'd like to see it some day, on reflection, as an adult - it looks a pretty grim place! I love the plucky guitar on the track, its stuck with me forever.

The Mamas and the Papas were an American folk rock group theat were around in th emid to late 1960s, the were archetypal of  'Hippie' scene of the time and in my mind can be group with a who bunch of their piers who produced some really good music. In America they were thought of as radicals, here in the UK they were popular with many and on the radio all the time. The group featured 'Mama' Cass Elliott,  John Phillips, Denny Doherty, and Michelle Phillips and their sound was built around complex harmonies Some my favourite tracks include " California Dreamin ", " Monday, Monday ", and " Creeque Alley ". The group split in the late 1960s, each attempting a solo career but only Cass Elliott had real success, she died in the early 1970s in the UK whilst on tour, if I remember correctly

Wreckless Eric , was an English rock/new wave singer-songwriter, best known for his 1977 single " Whole Wide World " on Stiff Records, which is widely acclaimed as one of the top 40 new wave era singles and has been covered by numerous artists. I had a Stiff compilation cassette (I think) album, on which this featured - and I loved it. His other stand out track has to be ' Reconnez Cherie '

The Proclaimers were a Scottish rock duo formed in 1983 by twin brothers Craig and Charlie Reid, who came to attention with their 1987 single " Letter from America ", which reached No. 3 in the UK and the 1988 single " I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) ", which topped charts worldwide. The Proclaimers' style draws from a mixture of influences, including country, folk and punk rock and their music is typified by their Scottish looks and accents. They also did a cover of Wreckless Eric's " Whole Wide World ", which endeared them to me even more. I first got to be fan of theirs after hearing Letter from America and their classic album ' Sunshine on Leith ', released in 1988, I also recommend the film of the same name - largely based upon the album.

The Associates  were a Scottish post-punk and pop band, formed in Dundee in the late 1970s by singer Billy Mackenzie and guitarist Alan Rankine.  The group first gained recognition after releasing an unauthorized cover of David Bowie's " Boys Keep Swinging " as their debut single in 1979, which lead to a contract with Fiction Records. They followed with their debut album ' The Affectionate Punch ' in 1980 and the singles collection ' Fourth Drawer Down ' in 1981. The following year they scored hits with  " Party Fears Two " and " Club Country ", during which time they were associated with the New Pop movement. Rankine left the group that year, leaving MacKenzie to record under the Associates name until 1990. I've also included their cover of ' Heart of Glass ' made famous by Blondie.

Big Country were a Scottish rock band formed in Dunfermline,in the early 1980s, Big Country comprised Stuart Adamson (formerly of Skids, vocals / guitar / keyboards), Bruce Watson (guitar / mandolin / sitar / vocals), Tony Butler (bass guitar / vocals) and Mark Brzezicki (drums / percussion / vocals). The height of the band's popularity was in the early to mid 1980s and the band incorporated Scottish folk and martial music styles, and they engineered their guitar-driven sound to evoke the sound of bagpipes, fiddles and other traditional folk instruments. Their biggest hit and my favourite track is ' In a Big Country ', also 'Look Away' and their first single ' Fields of Fire '

Belle and Sebastian were formed in Glasgow, in the mid 1990s by Stuart Murdoch and Stuart David, both of whom had enrolled in a  programme for unemployed musicians. Together, with music professor Alan Rankine (formerly of The Associates), they recorded some demos, which were picked up by the college's Music Business course that produced released one single per year on the college's label, Electric Honey.  As the band had a number of songs already and the label was extremely impressed with the demos, Belle and Sebastian were allowed to record a full-length album, which was recorded mostly live over three days, entitled ' Tigermilk '.  The warm reception the album received inspired Murdoch and David to turn the band into a full-time project, recruiting Stevie Jackson (guitar and vocals), Isobel Campbell (cello/vocals), Chris Geddes (keys) and Richard Colburn (drums) to fill out the group. Their second album ' If You're Feeling Sinister '  was released in 1996...

Deacon Blue are a Scottish pop rock band formed in Glasgow during 1985. The line-up of the band consists of vocalists Ricky Ross and Lorraine McIntosh, keyboard player James Prime and drummer Dougie Vipond.  The band released their debut album, Raintown in 1987 and their best known track is " Real Gone Kid " which became their first top ten single in the UK Singles Charts, prior to their all time classic ' Dignity '. The band split in 1994, following which Vipond began a career in television. Five years later, the band held a reunion gig, and this led on to a new album and the band working part time over the next twety years.

The Dream Academy were a British band consisting of singer/guitarist Nick Laird-Clowes, multi-instrumentalist (mostly oboe, cor anglais player) Kate St John, and keyboardist Gilbert Gabriel.  The band is most remembered for their 1985 hit single " Life in a Northern Town " and 1985 cover of The Smiths' song " Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want, " which was featured in the film Ferris Bueller's Day Off. At the time, I particularly liked their tracks ' Love Parade ' 

Orange Juice was a Scottish jangle pop band founded in the Glasgow by Edwyn Collins formed the Nu-Sonics with his school-mate Alan Duncan, and was subsequently joined by James Kirk and Steven Daly,  They became Orange Juice in 1979, best known for their only UK Top 40 hit hit " Rip It Up ," which reached number 8 on the UK Singles Chart in early1983. The band released their first singles on the independent Postcard Records label founded by Alan Horne, along with fellow Scottish bands Josef K and Aztec Camera. 

Edwyn Collins was a Scottish musician, producer and record label owner from Edinburgh.  Collins was the lead singer for the 1980s post-punk band Orange Juice, which he co-founded. After the group split in 1985, Collins started a solo career. His 1995 single " A Girl Like You " was a worldwide hit. Collins was the co-founder of the indie record label Postcard Records and co-founded a second label, Analogue Enhanced Digital, in 2011. Collins has also worked as an illustrator, television actor, television producer and record producer. 

Aztec Camera were a Scottish pop/new wave band formed by Roddy Frame, the group's singer, songwriter, and only consistent member. The band garnered popular success for the songs " Oblivious ", " Somewhere in My Heart " and " Good Morning Britain " which featured a duet with former Clash guitarist Mick Jones. The band released a total of six albums between 1983 and 1996, they first appeared on a Glasgow cassette-only compilation of local unsigned bands on the Pungent Records label, affiliated with the Fumes Fanzine run by Danny Easson and John Gilhooly. Fumes. Pungent Records championed several Glasgow bands before they achieved popular success. The band's first United Kingdom (UK) single release was sold in a 7" format by Postcard Records, a Glasgow-based independent record label cofounded by Edwyn Collins and Alan Horne

X-Ray Spex were an English punk rock band formed in 1976 in London, they were " deliberate underachievers " and only released five singles and one album. Nevertheless, their first single, " Oh Bondage Up Yours! ", is now widely considered to be a classic punk rock single as is the album ' Germfree Adolescents '. The band's first line-up featured singer Poly Styrene, Jack Airport on guitars, Paul Dean on bass, BP Hurding on drums, and Lora Logic on saxophone. The Saxaphone wa one of the group's most distinctive features, altohugh Lora played on only one of the band's records, ass she was only fifteen years old and playing saxophone was a hobby, she left the band to complete her education. Of the five singles, ther other one I'm particularly fond of is ' The Day The World Turned Day-Glo '

The Smiths were an English rock band formed in Manchester in the early 1980s, they consisted of vocalist Morrissey, guitarist Johnny Marr, bassist Andy Rourke plus drummer Mike Joyce. They are one of my all time favourite bands, although after their split in 1987 Morrissey's solo career has been marred by some dodgey political stances... The band released a self-titled album in 1984 and later that year had success with a couple of singles - " Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now " and " William, It Was Really Nothing " Early in 1985 the band released their second album, ' Meat Is Murder ', this was followed in 1986 with, ' The Queen Is Dead '. The album was released in June 1986, shortly after the single " Bigmouth Strikes Again ", " There Is a Light That Never Goes Out " and " The Boy with the Thorn in His Side ". Rourke was fired from the band in early 1986 due to his use of heroin. He allegedly received notice of h...

Bronski Beat were a British electro-pop trio which achieved success in the mid-1980s, particularly with the 1984 chart hit " Smalltown Boy ", from their debut album ' The Age of Consent '.  All members of the band were openly gay and their songs reflected this, often containing political commentary on gay issues. The initial line-up, which recorded the majority of the band's hits, consisted of Jimmy Somerville (vocals), Steve Bronski (keyboards, percussion) and Larry Steinbachek (keyboards, percussion). A notable track was ' I Feel Love ', a version of which was recorded with Marc Almond, formerly of Soft Cell. Somerville left Bronski Beat in 1985, and went on to have success as lead singer of the Communards and as a solo artist.  He was replaced by vocalist John Foster, with whom the band continued to have hits in the UK and Europe through 1986. Foster left Bronski Beat after their second album, and the band used a series of vocalists before dissolving in...

The Communards were a British pop duo, active from 1985 to 1988. They formed in 1985 after singer Jimmy Somerville left his earlier band Bronski Beat to team up with  Richard Coles. Somerville often used a falsetto singing style, that combined with Coles, classic music background produced a unique sound for the band.  Although mainly a pianist, Coles played a number of instruments and had been seen previously performing the clarinet solos on the Bronski Beat hit " It Ain't Necessarily So ".  The band was also joined by bass player Dave Renwick who had also played with Bronski Beat. The band are most famous for their cover versions of " Don't Leave Me This Way " which was released in 1986 and was a  they had their biggest hit with an energetic  Hi-NRG   cover version  of  Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes '  soul  classic.. ... the other was  " Never Can Say Goodbye " a version inspired by Thelma Houston's version which spe...

Billy Bragg is an English singer-songwriter and left-wing activist, most remembered for his leadership of the Red Wedge collective.  His music blends elements of folk music, punk rock and protest songs, with lyrics that mostly span political or romantic themes. His music is heavily centred on bringing about change and involving the younger generation in activist causes. HIs first album was ' Life's a Riot with Spy Vs Spy ' and this contained the track ' A New England ' which is arguably one of his best of his career, in my opinion. His second album 'Brewing up with Billy Bragg ' gave us ' Between the Wars '

Malcolm McLaren   was an English visual artist, performer, musician, clothes designer and boutique owner, most remembered for his management of the Sex Pistols. McLaren attended a number of British art colleges and adopted the stance of the social rebel in the style of French revolutionaries. He realised that a new protest style was needed for the 1970s, and largely initiated the punk movement, for which he supplied fashions from the Chelsea boutique SEX, which he operated with girlfriend Vivienne Westwood.  After a period advising the New York Dolls in the U.S., McLaren managed the Sex Pistols, the issue of a controversial record, " God Save the Queen ", poking fun at the Queen's Jubilee in 1977, was typical of McLaren's shock tactics, and he gained public notoriety by being arrested after a promotional boat trip with the band outside the Houses of Parliament. McLaren performed with acclaim as a solo artist, initially focusing on hip hop and world music and later div...

Bow Wow Wow  were an English new wave band, created by manager Malcolm McLaren in 1980. McLaren famously recruited members of Adam and the Ants to form the band behind 13-year-old Annabella Lwin on vocals.  At one stage John O'Dowd (later Boy George) was a co-vocalist in the band. They released their debut EP ' Your Cassette Pet ' in 1980, which I played endlessly from this they relased  their first single, " C·30 C·60 C·90 Go !", shortly thereafter.Initially released only on cassette, it was the world's first-ever cassette single (a 7" vinyl version was released several months later). EMI did not promote the "cassingle" due to its lyrics, which promoted home taping at a time when music piracy was a hot issue. In 1981, after splitting from EMI, Bow Wow Wow signed with RCA Records. In October of that year, their first full-length album was released: ' See Jungle! See Jungle! Go Join Your Gang Yeah, City All Over! Go Ape Crazy! '  The cove...

Tenpole Tudor formed in 1977 when Tudor-Pole (vocals/saxophone) met guitarist Bob Kingston, bassist Dick Crippen, and drummer Gary Long.  They played regularly for several years until Tudor-Pole himself (under the moniker of Eddie Tenpole) came to prominence by appearing in the 1980 film, The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle (filmed in 1978).  He was originally billed as a replacement for Sex Pistols singer Johnny Rotten — performing the songs " Who Killed Bambi ?", " The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle " for the film and subsequent soundtrack. However, manager Malcolm McLaren and the remaining Sex Pistols instead decided to abandon the group and go their own ways. The band released their début album, ' Eddie, Old Bob, Dick and Gary ', in 1981. It sold well, and in addition to the popular " 3 Bells in a Row ", launched two additional hit singles " Wünderbar " and " Swords of a Thousand Men ". 

Talking Heads were an American rock band formed in the mid 1970s in New York City and active until 1991. The band was composed of former art school students David Byrne (lead vocals, guitar), Chris Frantz (drums), Tina Weymouth (bass), and Jerry Harrison (keyboards, guitar). they were a pioneering new wave group who drew inspiration from punk, art rock, funk, and other stances. They released their 1977 debut album, ' Talking Heads: 77 ', to positive reviews and one of my favourite albums of the year They collaborated with producer Brian Eno on a trio of experimental and critically acclaimed album releases: ' More Songs About Buildings and Food ' released in 1978, ' Fear of Music ' from 1979 and ' Remain in Light ' released in 1980. In 1981 they had eth track ' Once in a Lifetime '. After a pause, during which time husband and wife Frantz and Weymouth, formed the Tom Tom Club, they returned with a great tracks like   " Burning Down the House ...

The Tom Robinson Band  (aka TRB) are a British rock band, established in 1976 by singer, songwriter and bassist Tom Robinson. The band's debut single " 2-4-6-8 Motorway " was a popular anthem and top five hit on the UK Singles Chart in 1977, and their third single, " Up Against the Wall ", is one of the great singles of the period. They released their debut album, ' Power in the Darkness '  in 1978, a gain a classic album of the period. The band began gigging in London in 1976 with Robinson on vocals and Bass, guitarist Danny Kustow, drummer Brian "Dolphin" Taylor and keyboards Mark Ambler. The band hit the club scene right in the middle of London's punk explosion. TRB made leaflets and fliers about their political views and sent them to everyone who attended their gigs. They gave away badges and made up T-shirts emblazoned with the band's logo and they appeared regularly at Rock Against Racism concerts. They were joined at these gigs b...

Stiff Little Fingers are a punk rock band from Belfast, Northern Ireland. They formed in 1977, at the height of the Troubles. The band was, Jake Burns, vocals and guitar, Henry Cluney, guitar, Ali McMordie, bass, and Brian Faloon, drums. It was while doing a gig at the Glenmachan Hotel that they first met Gordon Ogilvie, who had been invited along for the evening by Colin McClelland, a journalist who Burns had been corresponding with. Ogilvie suggested they play material based upon their experience of the Troubles. McClelland arranged to get the band some recording time at a local radio station, and in the studio normally used to record jingles, they recorded " Suspect Device ". The single was packaged in the form of a cassette, with a cover depicting a cassette bomb, apparently causing great hilarity in the group, when one record company phoned them and asked for another copy, as they had thrown the first one in a bucket of water for fear that it was a real bomb. A copy of t...

Prince was an American musician. He was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, I liked much of his early music and it was fun to later move to live in Minnesota, where he had legendary status! Famously, due to contractual issue with his record label, Prince changed his name to a glyph. Since this symbol was impossible to pronounce, people began calling him " The Artist Formerly Known As Prince. " He died at his Paisley Park recording studio in Chanhassen, Minnesota at the age of 57. In 1982 Prince released his fifth album ' 1999 '. " Little Red Corvette " was released as the second single. Prince had his first number one single, in addition the title track ' 1999 ' was a superb piece of music in my opinion. " When Doves Cry ", was released in 1984.  He released after that, " Let's Go Crazy " In 1985 the album ' Around the World in a Day ' was released. The album's first single " Raspberry Beret " was a worldwide...