I like it when people from the world of ‘serious music’ collide with the more Pop-tastic end of things. I’m sure everyone reading this knows that Pete ‘King Crimson’ Sinfield wrote ‘Land of Make Believe’ for Bucks Fizz and indeed the very premise for my post is played out daily in the Fripp/Wilcox household. Listening to the preposterously brilliant Chart Music Podcast recently reminded me that Tim Friese-Greene was not only born into a family of pioneering photographers and filmmakers and was a virtual member/producer on those majestic and powerful Talk Talk albums (from It’s My Life to Laughing Stock) but he also produced Tight Fit. There must be more?
Unlikely Pop Crossovers?
Mr Friese-Greene not pictured -but he’s on the haunting organ/mellotron stuff in the background – like a sleeping Lion
Dream team of Taylor Parkes and Simon Price this week. Did BA Robertson steal Parkes’ girlfriend or something? He is rather harsh on him.
Two quick asides…
1) Chart Music podcast is the finest thing to be found on the t’interweb. If anyone here hasn’t tried it, you really should (unless you have no interest in 1970s or 1980s pop music, or an aversion to sweary words)
2) Tight Fit’s Fantasy Island is a fantastic pop song isnt it….
With regard to point 2. I thoroughly enjoyed the performance. I have no recollection of the song whatsoever.
What is going on at the beginning of that clip? Looks like they were caught in the middle of a quick round of paper/scissors/stone when they lights came up for showtime.
MH in this period always reminded me of Curly Watts.
What a great clip. That drummer makes Animal from the Muppets look like Charlie Watts.
Mike Batt? Always a risible figure, I have thought, but the Wombles to Hawkwind seems a broad palette. (Mind you, wasn’t Herbie Flowers a Womble?)
Chinnichap from Mud to Blondie? Arguably all disposable first class pop, but tell that to purist me in 1980.
Why was Batt risible?
Well, he made me ris.
Trevor Horn, unashamedly and rapaciously commercial as a producer, leapt from low-brow to high-brow, Video Killed The Radio Star to Owner Of A Lonely Heart. I think Yes are grateful but I’m not sure.
Hmmm, not sure about the direction of the brows…
Good to hear that again!
Bill Sharpe was the piano player in Shakatak, the 80s jazz-funk band that sounded like the demo song on a Casio keyboard. Gary Numan was a robot in human form who made edgy goth pop on synthesizers. When they met it was murder.
Sharpe & Numan – Change Your Mind
As unlikely as that pairing was it’s bettered by Bill Sharpe going on to work with Jah Wobble a few years ago on the album Kingdom of Fitzrovia
Gary Numan and bloke from Shakatak.
https://youtu.be/pu-mbcwKds8
If I can find it, I will post that song My Bloody Valentine did with Martii Caine.
Marti Caine’s joke “yesterday I put my bra on backwards and it fit me better” was the inspiration for all of Kevin Shields’ car-ayzee musical experiments..
Unlikely but fabulous, De La Soul and The Fannies together on ‘Fallin”
https://youtu.be/R6rxsp82OvM
“Helmet and House of Pain”… oh dear, I don’t go for that BDSM stuff…
What a treat for the viewers! Two different clips of Sharpe and Numan!
But monsieur with this Sharpe & Numan double whammy you’re spoiling us!
I was listening to Owen Pallett’s brilliant Heartland album this morning. I knew he’d worked with the likes of Arcade Fire and Grizzly Bear, but not that he’d done orchestral arrangements for Taylor Swift, Robbie Williams and Haim.
This great clip from Whistle Test features the folky chanteuse and Fairground Attraction chart-topper Eddie Reader thumping a drum and shouting with socialist guitar botherers Gang of Four…
Gotta love those genre sections they used to have in Selectadisc:
Surf Music
Psychobilly
Grebo
Socialist Guitar-Botherers
“It’s got to be-ee-ee-ee Permanent Revolution Organised Autonomously By The Proletariat,
It’s got be-ee-ee-ee Working Class Overthrow Of The Petite Bourgeoisie,
Too many People Of The United Revolutionary Movement take second best
But I won’t take anything less…than Anarcho-Syndicalism Via Direct Action….”
How about KMHM Stephen “Tin Tin” Duffy, also of the Lilac Time and Robbie Williams songwriter, teaming up with geezer-accented classical wunderkind Nigel Kennedy for an entire album? “Music In Colours” not only features Kennedy’s violin in the background of many tracks, but Nige also contributes solo “transitoires” between each song, actully rather nice…
I tell you what. Tight Fit wore interesting outfits, didn’t they.
Surprisingly loose and ill-fitting as well. The girls’s tops and skirts look like they could fall off at any moment. Shockingly poor wardrobe.
The bloke looks like Donald Trump Jnr. Which is nice.
His clothes are too small. Just like Trump Jr. Have you noticed that he is physically unable to button his jacket?
Lack of opposable thumbs would be my guess.
These people will catch their death of cold. Then who’ll be sleeping tonight eh, with all that sneezing and snuffling?
Think on!
Did Tight Fit sleep together?
Well there’s no need to be crude.
Only when they were in the mighty jungle.
This is a rather obvious choice, but the keyboardist from Egg ( aka “not that Dave Stewart”) and the singer from Spyrogyra do New Wave pop cover version.
https://youtu.be/fC3g0JmKceU
Got fed up of being skint and saw a way of not being so without being bland, I imagine. More Art Rock than New Wave, I would say. Sort of Flying Lizards on steroids.
Their association went back to 1971 at least. Barbara Gaskin, Amanda Palmer and Ann Rosenthal were working with Dave Stewart & Chris Cutler in Ottawa Music Company, before becoming The Northettes, with Hatfield And The North.
After the 3 girls stopped singing together, Barbara later sang with National Health and Bruford before forming her pop partnership with Stewart.
And is that Thomas Dolby as “Johnny” in the video?
Van and Cliff
People thought they didn’t need Sting & Shaggy together.
Then when they got Sting & Shaggy together they KNEW they didn’t need it.
Funnily enough, the young Stewart Copeland reminded me of Shaggy out of Scooby Doo.
For this vital information, you’re welcome.
Ah!, just been reminded of this Lemmy/Nolans crossover
The Smiths and Sandie Shaw (doing her bestest ever mum dancing)