The Afterword

Musings on the byways of popular culture

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Nick Cave 2008 BBC4 session

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As a fair-weather Cave admirer, I loved this when I last saw it in 2008. It was repeated at 2am.

*Fires up Get_iplayer*

“Series of unique concerts featuring musicians from around the world at St Luke’s in London. Nick Cave and his band perform a set drawn from their latest album Dig!!! Lazarus Dig!!! and a 20-year repertoire including The Mercy Seat, Red Righ Hand and Deanna.

By turns menacing and hilarious, Cave comes on stage like a Southern preacher in the festooned, converted church and soon has the appreciative crowd hanging off his every word, while the Bad Seeds are at the top of their game behind him.”

https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00byjjd/bbc-four-sessions-nick-cave-and-the-bad-seeds

Elias! Ana! Heredia! Pol! klaxon

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Your summer like ours may have been enlivened by grippy absurd bizarre ultra-Spanish psycho-melodrama I Know Who You Are. Hey it’s on BBC4 so it’s educational as well right. After ten episodes of twisty amnesiac drama things came to an abrupt end. Very abrupt as it turns out the final episode was not the end at all but only two-thirds of the way through the series. Well it is back back back baby this week so we can see what has happened to Ana, Alicia et al. so if it’s slipped your attention (we had the Guardian listings to thank for the alert) then get on the iplayer right now. Best not to start two-thirds of the way through but I think the whole glorious shebang is available. There are many things to love about this series, but the penchant for the entire Spanish legal system to go to work in Zara’s best smart casual wear is both easy on the eye and mystifying.

Wookalily doco this Friday on BBC4

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Okay, there may be an element of exaggeration there, but the Wookaladies are featured in this Friday’s first episode of ‘The UK’s Best Part-Time Band’ on BBC4.

The episode apparently features the NI-Scotland-Wales semi-final (filmed at the Limelight, Belfast), which was great fun (I was there, though I didn’t see @Johnny-Concheroo, who is traditionally at everything).

The Wookas get that far – do they get further? We shall see…

Received Wisdom from BBC4 music documentaries

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I do love a BBC4 music documentary. My favourites include the Bonzos one, the Dennis Wilson one, The Fall one, the Factory Records one, Synth Britannia, Prog Britannia – so many more…However, they do sometimes get things wrong – that picture is David Hepworth telling Danny Baker about the first LP he bought – to be fair maybe whoever was in charge of subtitles wasn’t up to speed on the Fabs discography – but you get the point. They also hammer home some tired old clichés and bits of received wisdom that are in danger of becoming the truth. Here are my favourites and I’m sure the Massive can suggest some more… 1. In 1976 the music scene was dominated by ELP and Rick Wakeman and lots of other really boring music. There was nothing to listen to..until the Sex Pistols swore on the Bill Grundy show (which everyone watched – and brought the country to a standstill) and then everything changed overnight 2. In the 80s everybody was either unemployed and living in a squat, on strike or had a massive mobile phone and made Loadsamoney in the stock exchange. 3. When Acid House started » Continue Reading.

25 minutes of Winter Wookalily

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I mentioned recently that I’d been to a couple of Wookalily TV recording events for a show that was inexplicably Not Allowed To Be Talked About. Now that the series in question has gone overground (advertising itself on BBC ticketing outlets), we can kick all that cloak and dagger guff into touch.

The wonderful Wookalily will be appearing on a forthcoming BBC4 series called ‘Britain’s Best Part-Time Band’. It seems to be some sort of competition, though not open to the public – all filmed in advance of broadcast. Comedian Rhod Gilbert and various music legends get to travel around the UK, see some bands, have a laugh and decide who they like best at a regional level and then, presumably, at a national level.

The Wookaladies are through from NI, and will be filmed again on January 15th at a live open-to-the-public thing in Belfast along with regional winners from the Celtic fringes. Tickets from the link herein.

Meanwhile, line up those mince pies and a steaming flagon of mulled wine, put your feet up and watch the Wookas on the considerably lower-budget NVTV performing six songs (some of their best, plus one real turkey). There are four chairs » Continue Reading.

Psychedelic Britannia

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Friday 23rd October, 10pm on BBC4:

“Documentary exploring the rise and fall of the most visionary period in British music history. Five kaleidoscopic years between 1965 and 1970 when a handful of dreamers re-imagined pop music.

When a generation of British R&B bands discovered LSD, conventions were questioned. From out of the bohemian underground and into the pop mainstream, the psychedelic era produced some of the most ground-breaking music ever made, pioneered by young improvising bands like Soft Machine and Pink Floyd, then quickly taken to the charts by the likes of the Beatles, Procol Harum, the Small Faces and the Moody Blues even while being reimagined in the country by bucolic, folk-based artists like the Incredible String Band and Vashti Bunyan.

The film is narrated by Nigel Planer with contributions and freshly-shot performances from artists who lived and breathed the psych revolution – Paul McCartney, Ginger Baker, Robert Wyatt, Roy Wood, the Zombies, Mike Heron, Vashti Bunyan, Joe Boyd, Gary Brooker, Arthur Brown, Kenney Jones, Barry Miles, the Pretty Things and the Moody Blues.”

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b06jp24b

Kate Mossman Documentary Klaxon

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I’m sure a lot of us remember Kate Mossman’s Word article about her teenage obsession with Queen. She has used this as the basis for a documentary on obsessive fandom, to be shown on BBC4 at 9pm tonight. More details here http://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2015/may/29/when-pop-ruled-my-life-preview

Je t’aime: The Story of French Song, with Petula Clark (BBC4)

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This BBC4 documentary was shown on terrestrial last week, and is currently on the iPlayer.

It ‘explores the story of the lyric-driven French chanson and its greatest artists, including Edith Piaf, Charles Aznavour, Juliette Greco, Anna Karina and Jane Birkin’, according to the BBC’s blurb.

And it did. Most enjoyable. There’s a playlist associated with the programme within the iPlayer window. Tetes Raides and Zaz were new to me (though I am a bit of a ‘civilian’).

http://i1060.photobucket.com/albums/t449/GCU_Grey_Area/Jetaime-2_zpsymcertod.jpg http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b05vnhz1/je-taime-the-story-of-french-song-with-petula-clark

Tales From The Tour Bus

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Did anyone else see this on BBC4? It’s on iPlayer. Very entertaining but good grief, life in The Damned has taken its toll on Rat Scabies and Brian James. The first wave of rockers such as Marty Wilde look in much better shape although Rick Wakeman seemed to have swerved hair and makeup before going on camera. Nice to see Kim McAuliffe of Girlschool giving the female perspective.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b05rjc9c/tales-from-the-tour-bus-rock-n-roll-on-the-road