Phil Collins, Robert Fripp, Keith Tippett, Sandy Denny and Peter Gabriel: not a bad little backing band.
So who is the lead singer that inspired this extraordinary gathering of talent? Charlie Drake!
It’s rather like Miles Davis, Beyonce, Eric Clapton, Sigur Ros, Duke Ellington, Nils Frahm, Richard Thompson and Rhianna gathering in a studio to play on a track by Ken Dodd and the Diddymen.
Thanks to @ip33 who posted this gem on the AW and describes Charlie as “The man who invented Novelty Prog”.
Any other examples of an extraordinary gathering of musicians to play on a single or album by a rather unexpected singer? For example, Daniel Johnson’s album, The Late Great Daniel Johnson from 2004 certainly attracted some major names.
But is novelty prog a one-song genre? Beany is probaly the only one whp knows the answer.
Beany says
I knew this was just a ploy to get me back on here. I’m not hiding, just a tad busy. My dogs still have fleas and my washing machine has just packed up. Anyway let me think for awhile. In the meantime here is the original demo of the Charlie Drake song.
minibreakfast says
No wonder the washing machine conked out. You’re meant to put the bedding in it, not the dogs!!
Jeff says
Arf! My thought too on reading Beany’s post – came here to comment and was delighted and entirely unsurprised to see that you’d already done the business. A grateful nation salutes you, £13 of Luncheon Vouchers in the post tomorrow, ect ect.
retropath2 says
Charisma sort of specialised in adding fading comics to the musics of the day, didn’t they, fully expecting this corker to be on it. But it was on Stiff.
Max Wall
Beany says
Dave Stewart & Barbara Gaskin were also responsible for much of the musicianship on the Neil’s Heavy Concept Album, alongside Pip Pyle, Gavin Harrison & Jakko Jakszyk.
Busy Doing Nothing
Heavy Potato Encounter & My White Bicycle
Kaisfatdad says
Nice work Beany. That line up certainly gives Mr Drake a run for his money.
This thread has unearthed several interesting oddities.
Actors, footballers, comedians: the kind of people who excel at novelty records.
Raymond says
Does this one get in?
garyt says
A terrific single, I still don’t know what prompted me to buy this when I saw it in Good Vibes back in the day.
Locust says
Does this count?
Nobody (well, very few people) knows who they are, but they are of course rumoured to be well known for other music under their real names…
Black Celebration says
I get a bit confused over when folk music turns into prog – but if we count Lindisfarne as Prog, then they provided the quintessence-cial (geddit???) novelty prog hit
Kaisfatdad says
Nice work, BC. Novelty is one word for that. Travesty is another!
Twang says
By no definition are Lindisfarne prog.
Johnny Concheroo says
It’s a moot point. The early Lindisfarne records are avidly collected because they appeared on the pink “scroll” Charisma label, which is heavily associated with prog acts like VdGG, Genesis etc . Plus they looked authentically prog with their lank hair and beards.
So like Nick Drake, John Martyn and Cat Stevens on Island, Lindisfarne tend to be regarded as “prog by association”.
By the way, this album was produced by Bob “is it rolling Bob” Johnston. I wonder if the American could understand a word that was being said in the studio?
“Why aye man Bob, that wuz a canny good Dylan LP yuz produced last year, like”
“Excuse me?”
http://i.imgur.com/VkyOtGs.jpg
Black Celebration says
Meet Me on the Corner makes me think of Mr Tambourine Man – not sure if this an original thought – but I could easily merge the two songs I think into one seamless item.
Kaisfatdad says
Thanks JC. That made me laugh.
That sounds like a legal term used by a bewigged judge at the Old Bailey. “The defendant has been found prog by association and is sentenced to 80 hours of community service and a Grateful Dead Boxset.”
And Bob Johnson and those Geordie accents too. There’s a sketch waiting to be written there. He certainly did wonders for them.
http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/whats-on/whats-on-news/lindisfarnes-ray-laidlaw-remembers-producer-9912708
Johnny Concheroo says
That’s a good read KFD. I was reading it in character too.
“None of us had really met a proppa American, high flying music personality befawa, like”
Kaisfatdad says
I was wondering how Bob linked up with an unknown but promising act from Tyneside. According to this article, he heard them in his lawyer’s office in New York.
http://www.thejournal.co.uk/news/north-east-news/lindisfarne-40-years-on-4421296
Some interesting other titbits in it too:
“The album (FOTT) went to No.1 and went on to become the second biggest-selling album of the year, behind Simon & Garfunkel’s Bridge Over Troubled Water.
Ray said: “People used to joke you weren’t allowed to be a student unless you had a copy of Fog On The Tyne under your arm.”
Johnny Concheroo says
We forget just how big Lindisfarne were 1971-73.
Rumours of a split made the front cover of NME in 1973 but although some members left to form Jack the Lad that year, the Meet Me On The Corner hitmakers didn’t actually split until 1975.
And of course it was Lindisfarne man Ray Jackson who played mandolin (cruelly uncredited) on Rod Stewart’s Maggie May, also in 1971.
http://i.imgur.com/IqS5bbf.jpg
Mike_H says
Genesis had form for this sort of thing.
(Harold the Barrell)
Colin H says
I imagine most people thought ‘Hocus Pocus’ was novelty prog, given the yodelling, until it became a huge hit and part of The Canon of classic prog.
Kaisfatdad says
Hats off to those daring Dutchmen. No small achievement for a song which features yodelling to escape the novelty label.
pencilsqueezer says
I consider all Prog a novelty. It saves me a lot of bother.
Beany says
I love you y’know. In a manly way of course. Amber says hello big boy.
moseleymoles says
Circulus I think are a full-time comedy/loving parody of the folky whimsical end of prog.
Kaisfatdad says
I know nothing about Circulus but you could well be right. They do sound very promising.
Rigid Digit says
Thotch – Land Of The Crab
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FkHrr0VOjZk
Brian Pern – Day Of The Triffids
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KAwVaa1DLyQ
Kaisfatdad says
Hilarious! What fun they must have had doing those tracks.
Freddy Steady says
Jon and Vangelis…Find my way home?
Kaisfatdad says
Certainly quite a novelty for Jon Anderson to find himself in the charts. It’s a sweet song. I’m sure it did him no harm at all to enjoy a little crossover success.
Declan says
Well, from the depths of time, this lot tended to take themselves quite seriously but came up with the occasional oddity: Audience
https://youtu.be/mpDoliQWFEw
Would also have liked to post Traffic’s Berkshire Poppies, but “not available in your territory”. Features Steve Marriot as cheeky Cockney chappie too
Edith says here it is, jump to 4.20
Oh yes, and then there was buggered if I know Oldfield
Beany says
Very short. So is the song.
Beany says
WTF! The McPink Floyd.
Beany says
I really did think this was the whole of King Crimson. I am disappoint.
Beany says
Don’t worry…I’m off to bed now. It’s so exciting but tiring to take delivery of a new washing machine. I’ve been laundering money all day…
Kaisfatdad says
Thanks Beany! You really dug deep into the archives for those four gems.
Happy Washing! This should get your suds rocking.
Declan says
Indeed Beany. Here’s r’n’r sung in Cologne dialect (not prog but washy)
Plus Can’s hit single (note: nowt to do with washing)