Listening to Black and White by the Stranglers I was reminded of the old rock tradition that is the ‘Introducing the Band’ number, as in the amazingly crass, sexist and quite entertaining number here. It shares many of the defining characteristics of this curious feature of the gig:
It’s not really a song is it, more a throwaway riff with the frontman demonstrating his wit and charisma over the top.
Musical genre – riffy blues-rock.
Each band member introduced in turn with a hilarious quip that sounds just as spontaneous on the 93rd date of the tour as the opening night (‘Dave Greenfield on his huge swelling organ’)
Solos by instruments and players that were never meant to solo (check out Jean-Jacques Burnels ‘bass solo’ here, a masterpiece
Some call-and-response riff here (She’s got 36-24-36 hips etc) for the crowd to sing along to.
Baby Drives Me Crazy on Live and Dangerous is another classic of the genre. It’s testament to the power of the seventies double live lp that many of these were committed to vinyl to torment those far away from the front row at the Hope and Anchor or Glasgow Apollo. The Stranglers track was originally on a bonus 7” with Black and White, and photos of gigs at the time reveal that a young lady would join the bank onstage to make the message of the song even clearer. Charming. Photographic evidence on the youtube clip – so slightly NSFW.
So let’s have them then – your ‘Introducing the band’ classics. One rule only – must have been on a commercial release. It’s the hubris in recording what is a throwaway live moment for all posterity that makes them often so compellingly cringeworthy. Particularly interested in modern ones, in the era of the click-track and programming does anyone still record these numbers?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dbJeNeenpSs
Rigid Digit says
How not to do it:
Bad News
(may contain some of the more “fruitier” words of the English language)
Black Celebration says
I’m not exactly bang up to date here – but I grew up being confused at the hushed respect afforded to Chuck Berry -when all I knew of his work was My Ding A Ling.
H.P. Saucecraft says
Are you feeling quite well, Mr ‘Sleb?
Black Celebration says
Oh right. I think I have missed the point. I thought it was more about throwaway/silly live numbers that have made it on to a record. Don’t mind me.
Skirky says
Eric Clapton’s “Further On Up The Road” from Just One Night follows the tried and trusted “Join in when I call your name” formula perfectly. “Albert Lee!!!”
H.P. Saucecraft says
Bruce Springsteen does (or did) the best, and certainly the longest, band intros I ever heard. His epic, poetic, and moving introduction of the Big Man was a high point of his shows. Available on many contemporary bootlegs.
GCU Grey Area says
Jonathan Richman introduces his band in ‘Morning Of Our Lives’ by asking them what they think of the question he’s just posed in the song.
‘So I asked Asa and Leroy and D. Sharp, and they said . . .’
Kid Dynamite says
The middle verse of All Things Good And Nice by Jets To Brazil goes
“i love my drummer and all the things he plays
i wrote this in half-time just to say thanks
i love my bassist, represent the Western states
i think they sent an angel from the old Salt Lake
i love my guitarist, his chops from outer space,
he can make my three chords sound like eight”
Aw
Junior Wells says
Van Morrison -Caravan
Carl says
Van gave up introducing the band.
A few years back we saw him at Shepherd’s Bush Empire where he just walked off stage and delegated the introductory duties to someone, I suppose we’d call him ‘the band leader’, to do the chores.
ganglesprocket says
Sometimes these type of tunes just work though…
Sometimes they do tip near the brink…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j2jjvwOgyPk
chiz says
“Ronnie Wood’s gay”
“Bill Wyman just wants to take photographs of girls legs”
“Keith of course is completely straight”
“An’ ol’ bums rush Jagger ‘ere…”
(Can’t remember how Charlie was introduced)
Fin59 says
“Charlie’s good tonight, in’e” ?
chiz says
Well yes, but not on this occasion
aging hippy says
Introducing the band Canned Heat style.
Warning – contains bass and drum solos (not good ones either).
nigelthebald says
Did I get this right?
Sewer Robot says
..AND GUESS WHAT!
What?
I Wanna be straight
muffler says
wilco
Rigid Digit says
I’m standing here with my four men
let’s start that rapping thing again:
I got Marco, Merrick, Terry Lee, Gary Tibbs and Yours Truly
and then something about the troublesome North, the eye pleasing south, and owning a mouth
Sewer Robot says
“The naughty north and the sexy south”
I remember cos that record was about as naughty or sexy as I ever got..
Fin59 says
Are you ready Steve?
– Uh huh
Andy?
– Yeah
Mick?
-OK
Alright fellas, let’s go!
Mike_H says
Frank Zappa, my trusty all-purpose standby, from “You Can’t Do That On Stage Anymore Vol.1”.
“Diseases Of The Band” from the start of a live concert at Hammersmith Odeon, February 18th 1979.
…A few of the boys are sick tonight, but they’re still gonna GIVE YOU THEIR ALL.
I wanna introduce you to the members of the rocking teenage combo and tell you which ones are sick and what they’ve got…
retropath2 says
Does this count?
atcf says
Starts at 2:23. Lovely warm groove.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3MoGzFD92s
Rigid Digit says
Introducing The Instruments in The Band.
Cue Vivian Stanshall
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCRR5L_sFuA
(from about 20:00)
ganglesprocket says
Talking of whom…
Black Type says
“Ziggy played guitar/Jamming good with Weird and Gilly/And the Spiders from Mars”
Mike_H says
…and by the way, which one’s Pink?
Uncle Mick says
ABC do it twice!!
Mousey says
There’s a great Frank Zappa bootleg of him at The Oval with the Wazoo band, they actually do the soundcheck (which consists of “is this microphone working?”) as part of the gig, so that he can introduce the band before they’ve played a note of music. The audience in happy generous probably stoned 1974 mode lap it all up – they have no idea what they’re in for as this was a one-off ensemble playing mostly new music.
Declan says
Zappa again. On Peaches 3 from Tinseltown Rebellion, some poor bastard in the band suffers the ignominy of being introduced thus: “..don’t remember your name even though you’ve been in the crew for a while..”
Ground opens.
Styrofoam plates says
S Club 7 assure us of the following:
Tina’s doing her dance
Jon’s looking for romance
Paul’s getting down on the floor
While Hannah’s screaming out for more (ooh hoo!)
Wanna see Bradley swing
Wanna see Rachel do her thing
Then we got Jo, she’s got the flow
Get ready everybody ‘cos here we go!
So there you go.
Bingo Little says
Still can’t believe I forgot to post this on the “One favourite hip hop track” thread.
Black Celebration says
From what I recall, the Spice Girls introduce themselves on their first song:
So here’s a story from A to Z, you wanna get with me you gotta listen carefully,
We got Em in the place who likes it in your face,
We got G like me who likes it on an (redacted)
Easy V doesn’t come for free, she’s a real lady,
and as for me…ahh you’ll see!
Bingo Little says
I enjoy the coyness of this post “BC”. “From what I recall”, followed by a verbatim quotation of the entire lyric!
Black Celebration says
Verbatim is it? You must know all the words too, then! eh? eh?
duco01 says
“The rock n’ roll circus is in town
Buffin’ lost his child-like dreams and Mick lost his guitar
And Verden grew a line or two and Overend’s just a rock n’ roll star”
(the “Ballad of Mott”)
Johnny Concheroo says
Uh-uh, it was The Manfreds.
Note the soon-to-be-redundant line “Tom McGuiness lays it down on the bass”. Following the departure of Mike Vickers, McGuinness moved to guitar and first Jack Bruce and then Klaus Voorman took over on bass.
ernietothecentreoftheearth says
ernietothecentreoftheearth says
Memphis Soul Stew