Really the title explains it all. I would like a list of brilliant, obscure songs, from people who are incredibly well known.
I will start with Dolly Parton, someone who I suspect has more deep cuts than most. However this one, Gettin’ Happy is just bloody brilliant and I didn’t hear it till I was well into my forties.
A group, Genesis.
Inside and Out, from the ‘Spot the Pigeon’ EP.
Sounds like it came in between Trick of the Tail and Wind and Wuthering.
Superb underrated tune – and a bit of a swan song for Hackett before he left the band.
The last decent thing they released, IMHO. A few tracks after, but once Hackett was gone, they’d lost me.
‘It’s Yourself’, from around the same period, is another great deep cut that went AWOL from TOTT, although some of the instrumental bits were salvaged for ‘Los Endos’. Some fans think this missing track was originally intended to precede ‘Mad Man Moon’. A version of the song appeared as a B-side of ‘Ripples’ and later, ‘Your Own Special Way’.
Steve Hackett’s ‘Please Don’t Touch’ was written around the time Wind & Wuthering was being recorded, but wasn’t used, and I’ve seen people saying parts of that were intended to be used within Wot Gorilla? There’s YouTube mashups which don’t sound very convincing to me.
I don’t think Steve’s done Wot Gorilla? in recent years; shame, it would be brilliant live.
I seem to remember reading that Wot Gorilla? was chosen instead of Please Don’t Touch, contributing to the bad feeling which eventually resulted in Hackett leaving. I don’t believe he played WG? on the 2018 Wuthering Nights tour, so I suspect it still rankles…
If you haven’t seen them, the John Edginton interviews with the individual band members from about eight years ago are worth watching. All available on YouTube. I think this story might be touched upon. Banks (I think) also relates that Hackett didn’t show up at the start of the TOTT sessions because he was still recording/promoting his first solo album Voyage of the Acolyte. Given the parlous state of the band at this point, in the immediate wake of Gabriel’s departure, this didn’t go down well with the others.
Alternatively portrayed as sour grapes from Banks, as the only member of Genesis not to be invited to contribute and/or play on Voyage…
Banks Minor – bit of an arse, by all accounts…
Extremely famous is relative of course, but at least on this list Richard Thompson must qualify. He recorded DONOVAN’s Season of the Witch for the US TV series Crossing Jordan, and especially when he rips out the guitar solos it’s glorious.
Who plays on th’original? I can’t be arsed looking it up. Mr Beck?
Not he, nor Jimmy Page, but one Don Brown. It was recorded in LA, and was one of I think three songs that Shawn Phillips co-wrote but never received any credit/royalties for. As he said “the man’s name is Leitch – that should tell you something.”
@Gatz that is fantastic – hadn’t heard before- thanks for sharing.
For Springsteen you could have Lift Me Up, which doesn’t even sound like Bruce and was only available on the soundtrack to a film called Limbo which no one ever saw (and later on The Essential compilation).
It’s a good song, though I’d choose his cover of Suicide’s Dream Baby Dream myself, one of my absolute favourite Bruce songs, especially the live versions on YouTube.
Alice Cooper – Pain
The best thing on 1980s Flush The Fashion. An album that marked the start of his blackout period (which lasted about 3 years), and pretty much got panned by the critics at the time.
I’m a disco Alice fan myself:
When he has a fringe AC looks rather too much like Derek Smalls.
@rigid-digit God shout with Pain, I’d say the Coop’s real deep cut is No tricks a duet with Betty Wright , recorded during the sessions for From The Inside, astoundingly it didn’t make the album, they just ‘threw it away’ on the b-side to How You Gonna See Me Now*.
it’s only other outing being on the Life and Crimes boxset.
*It’s possibly the only none album/live track that Cooper has ever put on a single.
Have a vinyl copy of the soundtrack to Salvation but never seen it.
It’s rubbish!!!
Seconded
@fentonsteve @sewer-robot how about this – not quite as deep but more substantial. B-side of non-album single Here To Stay and not I think collected. Fun fact: was an unsuccessful bid for the theme music to ITV’s football show that replaced MOTD in the 90s.
tbc @moseleymoles, I was referring to the movie as you said you’d not seen it..
Ah the second track is still better!
So was I. Salvation (the film) also featured instrumental Let’s Go, which turned up years later with vocals on a 1963 CD single.
On the theme theme, as it were, how about the b-side of Round & Round, Best & Marsh?
Iron Maiden – Burning Ambition
B Side of their first single – not available on album until 2002 B Sides compilation
Bryan Ferry – When she walks in the room
A deep cut from an album which doesn’t get the recognition it deserves. The breakup with Jerry, in six minutes…
From the very greasy fag-end of the 90s, a b-side from a deep dark hole when almost no-one was listening to Suede, long after they’d been fashionable and long before they’d be fashionable again.
May appeal to people who don’t like Suede. Contains alcoholism and whistling.
I was never listening to Suede before it became fashionable.
A U2 b side! Alex Descends Into Hell For A Bottle Of Milk was the surprisingly striking instrumental flipside to comeback single The Fly in 1991. I would have loved a whole album of this kind of stuff.
Just been reading up on the origin of this track. Tantalisingly, it seems to be part of a soundtrack Bono and The Edge did for an RSC play of A Clockwork Orange, which was never commercially released. And doesn’t seem to have surfaced on YouTube either, as far as I can see.
Burgess hated it, predictably. In response the ‘2 said he should stick to writing novels rather than music criticism (fair enough, he’d just dropped Any Old Iron which was bostin’)
AB was not a fan of any kind of pop or rock music. Putting it very very mildly.
Folks, NOT THE IRISH BAND.
I will not listen.
Ah go on go on go on.
There are no vocals if that helps! (Apart from a choir)
For U2 I’d choose either Robbie Robertson’s Sweet Fire of Love (but Robbie Robertson isn’t really, technically speaking, U2) or Daniel Lanois’ Falling At You Feet (Daniel Lanois isn’t U2 either, but he’s more so than Robbie Robertson, sort of). Both excellent tunes.
If U2 are The Irish Band and they-who-shall-not-be-named are The Scottish Band, who are The English Band and The Welsh Band?
U2 are only 50% Irish. It’s like referring to Peters and Lee as “the blind duo”.
Well the 2 not born in Ireland moved there when they were 1 and 5, so I think it is fair to call them an Irish band.
* One of my best friends (a Welshman) is a 2nd cousin of Edge
More than fair, dai, it’s eminently reasonable. However, I will not permit it.
@Sewer-Robot
Which one was blind then – Martin Peters or Franny Lee?
Neither of those @jaygee. That Azerbaijani linesman in the ‘66 World Cup final on the other hand..
The English Band must be the Albion Band, the clue’s in the name.
Welsh Band – Stereophonics? The Alarm?
Maybe Badfinger at a push, although there’s no hint of an accent
The Welsh Band who’d get my vote for never hearing, or hearing of, again is Stereophonics. Meat and potatoes stodge rock.
For The English Band, I nominate Kasabian. Tur(d)gid.
Yes! Both your answers are perfect. I think some other people are missing the point and nominating bands who are actually all right…
Ah I see what you mean Arthur, but in mitigation I’ve not heard anything by the Irish and Scottish bands in about thirty years.
Manic Street Preachers…?
The English Beat and Super Furry Animals.
England
I’ll link my choice to yours. Two megastars combined. I love this track more than almost anything the two of them have done as individuals.
How odd, like U2 from a parallel universe.
The original Wonderful Remark. Leave your prejudices behind and surrender to the fact that this man is, or perhaps was, a sublime genius.
It’s, er, wonderful.
Another Van one from the much maligned (there are three classic Van tracks on there) PoT
I love this particular version https://youtu.be/G9TO2scbKDU of St Dominics Preview…
Where would Van be without that old 1-5-4 chord sequence, eh?
Ah but it’s what he does with them, innit? Here’s a dizzying series of chords, a huge pop hit, but does it make for a better listen?
I think ‘it’s what he does with them’ was my point, really….
Oh dear. I knew that, Mike. I was, you know … agreeing with you?
But I was commenting on the sheer boredom. Were you?
No. I was adding content value to the thread by posting, by way of contrast, an extremely complex song structure which, to me, doesn’t save the melody from being uninteresting, whereas Morrison’s more freewheeling approach over a very basic chord sequence does manage to hold my attention. I do hope this clears things up for you, Mike, re my intent! If there are any other points you’d like to make (or clear up! or score!) please do go ahead. But right now I have some social engagements that will prevent me from dignifying any further comment with a response, alas!
You, and I say this with the deepest respect and affection, can be such a plonker sometimes.
One tries. *simper*
That 1-5-4 arrangement only really worked when you had a big, reliable, target-man up-front, eg Martin Chivers, say.
Kiddie TV show theme DataRun. supplied by Yazoo.
And another kids show theme. This is an entire song. Get Set was written for the BBC’s summer Saturday morning show Get Set for Summer.
Totally brilliant – particularly Alison’s voice and early Depeche Mode sound – but unreleased until a few years ago.
From one of Andy Partridge’s Fuzzy Warble series.
‘I Don’t Want To Be Here’.
Andy and Colin, no Dave, but I can imagine this being on Wasp Star.
This is a good live recording of Depeche Mode doing Gerry & the Pacemakers “l Like It!”
Note Dave Gahan singing in his natural Essex accent, which I don’t think he ever does again.
It was still on their set list when I first saw them.
Terrible song, not redeemable
Bunch of herberts.
I give you Frank and Van.
A charming song, written to spite the women Frank thought were groupies but wouldn’t put out for him. Van identifies with the sentiment.
Lindisfarne/Don’t Ask Me
Is this any good? I don’t usually click on YouTube links (who does?), but I remember wearing loon pants to a Lindisfarne gig.
I love it. I remember the front page spread in Melody Maker, as the album came out, citing they had been listening to the aRolling Stones.
I can understand why the Melody Maker had been listening to the Rolling Stones instead.
Roxy’s Bitter Sweet – I can think of two or three further tunes on Country Life that might be classed as deep cuts…
This is really an extraordinarily good extended remix, and so deep they never recorded it. ANNNND – unlike the dreary Brits above, the Dan were genuinely extremely famous.
How wholly splendid.
It is a satisfyingly marvellous way of spending nine or so minutes. I’ve tagged it onto the Japanese extra tracks version of the album, which it now bookends thrillingly nicely with the original.
A little too long.
The guitar solo inserted into the middle meanders towards the end and loses energy. I would cut it out, or shorten it, personally.
If you put in a bit of work you could get it down to 5:56 – The Mike_H Mix.
Another one on a Roxy theme…
From the Frantic album, co-written with Eno. One of Wor Bryan’s best-ever songs.
Duke Ellington: “Long Time Blues”
Track 15 on the Duke’s “Private Collection Volume One”
Very much a deep cut.
And very fine.
Bliss.
Thanks, @duco01 – that’s the best new (to me) music I’ve heard in a long time…
Yeah, even by the Duke’s high standards, “Long Time Blues” is an absolute gem.
I’m not sure who’s playing that wonderful alto sax – it’s either Johnny Hodges or Russell Procope. Both are listed as playing alto sax on the album.
My thanks also, @duco01, that is goose-pimplingly gorgeous.
Rainbow Bridge was the first Hendrix music I heard my older brother playing so I knew your track, Hey Baby, Earth Blues and Room Full of Mirrors before I heard the better known stuff. I still rate it, the hippier stuff.
Thanks for your comment,forgot to say it sounds great on headphones in particular..
Brian Eno & Snatch – R.A.F.
B-side of the “Kings Lead Hat” single
McCartney B-side
Roxy Music – Sultanesque (B-side of Love Is the Drug). Byron Ferrari goes Eno.
Relatively high proportion of Roxy/Ferry/Eno in this thread…
Only one Richard Thompson, with Kate Bush and Elvis Costello and the Beetles no-shows!? Come on, Afterbrowners!
One from La Bush, then. Thrown away on the B-side of RUTH, which goes to show how much A-grade material she was churning out at her peak, Under the Ivy:
A B side (but they made a video)
Can ANYTHING by The Beatles (or former Beatles, for that matter) still be described as deep cuts?
It’s all relative. Rain is pretty well known now, but didn’t appear on an album until 1978 and I believe 1988 in the US
Perhaps not – but at least they satisfy the “extremely famous” half of the equation, unlike several artistes mentioned on this thread..
Fair enough.
Out of interest, who did you have in mind?
Rain, and I had to check having never owned it, appeared on the Hey Jude U.S. album – a kind of Past Masters before Past Masters.
I wouldn’t over-estimate the general public’s knowledge on the Beatles, especially if they are now cherry-picking the tracks off streaming sites… “streaming sites” – that is right, isn’t it?
I suspect you’d have to talk to quite a few of them before one could hum a few bars of, say, Thank You Girl, I Call Your Name or Blue Jay Way.
I would say “they know who they are”, but, in some cases, I’m not sure even they know who they are..
(reply to @fitterstoke)
Arf!
Not including it on the red album was insane.
Further proof that Allen Klein was a fool
The track-listing to both the Red/Blue albums is fascinating.
Five Rubber Soul tracks and the Day Tripper/We Can Work It Out 45 and… erm… the two 45 sides from Revolver!
Pretty sure Michelle, With a Little Help from My Friends, and Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da would not now make the cut.
The connection? All No. 1 singles by other acts.
That’s why they were there.
Until I saw one (Red) in a skip (true), I’d never owned either.
Even on vinyl, Red had plenty of room. It ran to 62 and half minutes. Blue was just under 100. Klein could have added three tracks per side.
They really missed a trick when they reissued them on CD to expand them. The Red album also totally ignored some early cover versions which were really important to their story – in 1963 Twist & Shout was arguably their best known song.
I expect they “missed” that trick because it was hard to see or hear straight with the dollar signs in their eyes and all the KER-CHING!! noises going off in the room..
@dai
On side one of the 1970 US-only comp, Hey Jude
Yes, correct. Realised after I posted. So even more obscure (relatively) in the UK, I was unaware it existed until Rarities
Hey Jude (album) was pressed up and released in 1970 in many countries, not just the US. Discogs is your friend.
Rain has its proper home here:
Okay here’s a Beatles one which very few people have heard and which is genuinely a deep cut. It’s some psychedelic thing called Carnival of Light. Hope this link works:
I think I’ve shared this on here before but this is beautiful. Mike Oldfield’s The Path was a little piece he did in the couple of years when he was finding his way into his next phase after Ommadawn, and was used in a strange little documentary film in 1977. Then he stuck it on a b side in the 80s. It’s a fascinating glimpse into what could have been if he had stayed on the folky path and not gone disco.
Not only but also…
You had to ruin it!
Arf!
For many years only available as a B-side of a single – one of the good reverend’s best tunes:
Wow, @Morrison – lovely. Thanks for sharing that.
Nick Mason’s Fictitious Sports.
A collaboration with Carla Bley and some of her band from 1981, with Robert Wyatt and Chris Spedding on board.
Nick was contracted to bring out a solo album but, not being a songwriter or composer, he turned the job of writing it over to his friend Carla Bley.
Got airplay on Alexis Korner’s show, hardly the world’s greatest Pink Floyd fan.
For HP, although EC is tucked away on backing vocals.
Guess what was on the flip, again credited to Nick Lowe?
This one came up in the TV Cream Newsletter last week. It was used (or part of it was) over the end credits of Top Gear before it was revamped 20 years ago or so.
Elton John – Out of the Blue (no not the music from Sports Report).
Yes, I’ve always liked “Out of the Blue”.
For space reasons, the original single-CD release of “Blue Moves” dropped 4 tracks from the double LP, including “Out of the Blue”. An absolute travesty!
A deep cut from Los Lobos:
Not sure if the recent ‘finding’ of Jackie Leven now makes him extremely famous, but he has many many deep cuts, some are even deeper as they only appeared on the albums he released as Sir Vincent Lone….
Much as i love him, Jackie’s entire career was effectively one big long deep cut
One positive thing we can take from this thread is the welcome redefinition of “extremely famous” which was always too exclusionary. Ditto “brilliant”.
I heard this over the weekend and had to add it to this thread. WARNING: This might be a bit overpowering for some of the Afterword demographic. Approach with caution…
Can’t see it, @Bamber – what was it?
Kate Bush singing Sexual Healing. Love the idea, but something unsexy about her overprecise (secksyual) enunciation of sexual.
Probably just me..
Ooo-err!
But the uillean horn, sorry pipes, are good!
Recorded for a Davy Spillane album apparently – the legendary uileann pipes player.