Great news, pop pickers! The new Beatles E.P. Has come into my possession. I can tell you side one has a couple of John Lennon numbers, contrasting the rambunctious Revolution with the gentler, more melodic Dear Prudence. Side two showcases the songwriting talent of George Harrison, kicking off with While My Guitar Gently Weeps. The last song, Back In The U.S.S.R. betrays a playfulness which is explored extensively on the memory stick of bonus tracks which early purchasers of the single can get for free. Being The Beatles, it’s not entirely without merit – the noisy Helter Skelter is quite thrilling and I can imagine them returning to the I’m So Tired melody to re-record this song properly for a future album. Non-fans may lose patience with what, for the most part, is just some whimsical blowing off of steam and cul de sacs of recording desk experimentation. The lads even toss off what appears to be their (parody of a?) future Eurovision entry Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da.
Another exciting new release is the new E.P. From The Clash. Side one has Safe European Home and English Civil War. Side two has Stay Free and Tommy Gun. The band are apparently in a rich songwriting vein – they tell me they left several other songs in the vaults which they felt weren’t good enough for release. They even joked their next two albums might be a double and a treble, before reasssuring me they’d both have “about fourteen excellent songs” each.
Controversy surrounds The Verve, whose new E.P. now has only three songs – The Drugs Don’t Work, Lucky Man and Sonnet. The band are providing an Internet link to another song Bittersweet Symphony, which they have decided not to release, fearing the attention of Andrew Loog Oldham. Also on The Verve’s site are a number of tedious space rock tunes under the banner of “Quasi-religious songs of praise from built-up inner city areas”. (This band really needs to learn the virtue of brevity!)
In other news, earlier in the week I received a package which I believed was the long-awaited second Stone Roses album, until a precocious child, upon listening to the disc, pointed out that “there aren’t any songs on it”…
The Emperor’s New E.P.
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Okay, my bad I should have finished with a question. Some of the disappointing albums I’ve bought down the years would have made fantastic E.P.s or double A sided singles. Perhaps you have also found this to be the case? If so, please add an example..
I’ve said before that Springsteen’s The River, far from being a double album would have been a far stronger set as an E.P.
On the A side – The Ties That Bind & The River
On the B side – Point Blank & Jackson Cage.
And please don’t anyone say “But, but, but… what about Independence Day?” A maudlin crock is what it is.
But, but, but…what about ‘Stolen Car’? What about ‘The Price You Pay’? The former is better than ‘Point Blank’, the latter, one of the best songs of his career.
Stolen Car? Take it to the breaker’s yard please.
The Price You Pay? Too much.
I notice you’ve got a lot of tracks from The White Album even without Happiness Is A Warm Gun and Long, Long, Long, the two *best* tracks. The Beatles album that would be improved as an EP is obviously Abbey Road; Come Together, Something, Here Comes The Sun and … er …. go on, then …. You Never Give Me Your Money.
The Band: “Stage Fright”
Side 1
“The Shape I’m In”
“The W.S. Walcott Medicine Show”
Side 2
“Daniel and the Sacred Harp”
“Stage Fright”
Voilà. It’s a cracker!
I’m sorry Duco, you’ve gone too far.
A single will do. “The Shape I’m In” c/w “Stage Fright”. No-one needs anymore than that.