Old News
Winter 2013: Ugly Things #36
Ugly Things #36 with part 2 of Brian Neavyn's Radiators
From Space story is now available.
8 October 2013: Philip Chevron RIP
Philip Ryan AKA Philip Chevron passed away today.
20 September 2013: Roy Abbott RIP
I was very sad to read of the death of Roy Abbott in Perth, Australia on August 31st.
He contacted the website in May about his time in The Interns and Cheese,
but he was due for major surgery so we never got a chance to go into it in detail.
9 May 2013: Eric Kitteringham RIP
Eric Kitteringham, bassist in the original lineup of Taste, died on May 7th.
notice on rip.ie
Update 21 April 2013: LIMERICK ON RECORD RE-PRESSED
Despite being almost impossible to locate outside of a number of outlets in Limerick City,
the first edition of the 'Limerick On Record' 3xCD set mentioned below sold out almost immediately. I've just read
(see here)
that it has been re-pressed to meet demand, so get your skates on. It really is worth tracking down.
Alas, there still appears to be no online source for this set, you need someone
in the Limerick area to get it for you . . .
20 April 2013: YES WE'RE STILL HERE STOP ASKIN FERFUGSAKE!!!.
The new Ugly Things (issue 35, due in May) contains a feature on
The Radiators From Space
by Brian Neavyn. They even made the cover. Order it from their website . . .
Email is being answered ruthlessly at present.
Yes that's right, your email from 2011 may yet receive a reply one of these days . . .
Attention bands sitting on 30+ year old demo tapes - what are you waiting for?
What do you think is going to happen?
Don't you think it would've happened by now?
Release them! Make them available as downloads! . . .
A recent Limerick 3XCD compilation titled Limerick On Record features what I believe is
the first ever appearance
on CD of both sides of the first Granny's Intentions single. Both tracks sound fantastic (thanks John!) . . .
THis begs the question: why haven't all the Granny's Intentions singles been comped?
Surely there's a stunning archive CD to be compiled from the vaults? . . .
I added a Baby Snakes scrapbook page
to the site to accomodate a load of scans sent to me, check it out . . . Also check
out the South African single by The Movement on
what-looks-like Transatlantic Records, who were strongly opposed to apartheid and refused to
release any records there, in which case how
did this single come about? . . .
Finally, it seems my moans about second-hand vinyl prices in Dublin
is possibly evidence of my good self receiving 'special treatment' from evil dealers who know who I am
and figure I'll pay through the nose for any Irish record that takes my fancy.
For this reason I've been forced to adopt a disguise wheneve I enter the Temple Bar area. So, if you see a rotund
Korean gentleman bearing an uncanny likeness to Kim Jong-un coming out of a shop with an
old Golden Discs carrier bag under his arm don't be alarmed, it's just me, the supreme leader.
12 February 2013: WE ARE STILL HERE. Where are you?
Yes it's 6 months since our last news post but many exciting things have been
happening... the Release Records singles discography actually approaches
completion, unthinkable 3 years ago... never have so many dodgy records
occupied so many people's attention... a well-known Irish record dealer
tried to sell me a shit copy of a shit LP for €10, indicating this website
has precipitated seismic shifts in the thinking of the scavangers of the popular
culture landscape... an obscure band with a fantastic 1977 punk rock demo
continue to sit on it and do NOTHING with it! Why? ... the latest Ugly Things contains
an excellent feature on The Blue Aces by Brian Neavyn (I thought I'd already
posted about that, guess I over-wrote it).... I came acrss a Dermot O'Brien LP in
a shop in Azerbijzan listed under Unnatural Accordion Wizzardy. Naturally I
bought it.
14 August 2012: Bob Bolton article
See the online version of the article on Robert Bolton's current health problems
in todays Irish Times here.
If you wish to help raise the funds Bob needs for proper treatment,
see robertbolton.org and the
sponsor.ie page.
17 April 2012: Where Were You back in print
Garry O'Neill's Dublin youth culture book is back in print and in selectred bookshops now.
I'm told mailorder copies shipped April 12th. You can order it here.
It will be available in some Dublin bookshops from Thursday April 12th. More details on the website.
16 April 2012: Blaze X is here!!
Having suffered the crushing disappointment of securing a copy of Blaze X's essential "Some
Hope" single only for it to mysteriously disappear into the ether somewhere in transit between
Australia and here, I was gobsmacked when someone much closer to home offered me a
replacement copy. What can I say? . . . above and beyond call of duty . . . eternal rewards, etc . . . and here it is:
6 March 2012: Where Were You reprint
Garry O'Neill's Dublin youth culture book Where Were You which sold out immediately when it was published
late last year is due for reprinting in April. You can pre-order a mailorder copy now here.
It will be available in some Dublin bookshops from Thursday April 12th. More details on the website.
12 December 2011: Huge E-mail Backlog . . . Again
Again my apologies to all who have emailed me in recent weeks and months.
I have unanswered emails stretching as far back as July. I simply have not had time to
deal with them. Work has kept me far too busy since the summer and constant worry
about the insanity of politicians and bankers has kept me distracted. As my Zen master
used to say to me as he beat me senseless, 'Stop worrying about things outside your control,
you stupid prick'. I am trying, Sensei, I am trying. So, I plan to tackle the email backlog over
the coming weeks. Thank you for your patience.
December 2011: Reekus 30th Anniversary collection
Reekus Records celebrate their 30th anniversary with a double-CD set titled It's
Too Late To Stop Now. Of particular
interest to old people like myself are both sides of the cancelled Micro Disney
single from May 1981, a previously unreleased Blades tracks and Paul Cleary's
original recording of "Stumble Into Love". Nice to have
CD quality versions of single-only tracks by Camino Org and Some Kind of
Wonderful too. The first disc covers the original 1981-86 period, the second
disc the labels re-emergence in the noughties. Order it on the Reekus wesbite.
25 November 2011: Dublin Youth Culture book published
Garry O'Neill's Dublin youth culture book is finally out. Now titled Where Were You,
it contains a staggering 800+ photos. Finding yourself in it's pages will
become a badge of honour. Check out the website here.
Update: Completely Sold Out!
16 July 2011: Eddie Kelly RIP
notice on rip.ie
May 2011: BEWARE LIZZY 'FARMER' BOOTS on eBAY
Bootleg reproductions of Thin Lizzie's "The Farmer" single are currently selling on ebay for ridiculous amounts.
The fact that 3 have been offered within the past month doesn't seem to have made bidders suspicious.
This repro came out last year and everyone knew what it was: a bootleg reproduction of the first Thin Lizzy
single, pressed in a variety of colours, in a facsimile Parlophone sleeve. The creator of this bootleg was not
trying to mislead anyone. If you've seen an original, it's clear this repro is not the real thing.
Fast forward a few months and what do we find: unscrupulous (or stupid) sellers offering it on ebay without
explaining what it is. Oh none of them claim it's an original, of course, but no-one is saying
it's a reissue either. And if you claim it's on Parlophone Records and is DIP 513, then you are implicitly misleading
the public, as this bootleg is NOT an official Parlophone release, and is not a real DIP 513. It is a fake.
So caveat emptor, and let karma take care of the money-grubbing scumbags.
above: The Farmer, a genuine original.
below: the bootleg reproduction
15 April 2011: STILL ALIVE AT 55
The original lineup of the Mod-ls play the Turk's Head in Parliament St in Dublin on Friday May 27th in
celebration of Paul King's 55th birthday.
15 April 2011: RORY GALLAGHER FESTIVAL 2011
The Rory Gallagher Festival takes place between the 2nd and 5th June 2010 in Ballyshannon
Co.Donegal. This years headliners are Jan Akkerman and the Eric Bell Band. See the website
for details: www.goingtomyhometown.com
6 February 2011: Gary Moore RIP
Gary Moore (58) was found dead in his hotel room in Spain today.
January 2011: Tony Koklin RIP
Tony Coughlan AKA
Tony Koklin, from Ballyfermot, died in Wales just before Christmas.
Coughlin recorded two excellent singles and a very decent LP during 1979-81.
January 2011: Paul Ashford RIP
Paul Ashford of The Chosen Few,
The Miami, Emmet Spiceland (formed lineup 1973), Casanova OK,
Stepaside and The Sharks, died on 10 January 2011.
December/January 2011: Loserdom #21
I picked up issue 21 of Loserdom
in Dublin over christmas. It contains an interesting history of the Dalkey punk scene.
Well worth your €3.
December 2010: Kaught At The Kampus reissued
Haven't seen or heard it yet but I hear Reekus have reissued Kaught At The Kampus on CD.
No bonus tracks, alas [surely there were usable recordings??] Check Reekus' site for details.
Meanwhile, I finally got hold of a copy of . . .
November 2010: Clive Culbertson new LP
Clive Culbertson released a solo album last month titled 'Still Havin' Fun'.
It's available from Amazon, Ebay, I-Tunes & CD Baby.
November 2010: Trevor Fleming RIP
I just heard the sad news that Trevor Fleming of Sweet Savage died last month.
November 2010: More Sing Sing reissues
• Rip Off Records compilation LP (Sing 021)
• Strike - Radio Songs 7" (Sing 022)
See the Sing Sing Records site
for further details of these and earlier releases, including the Tinopeners and Blaze X reissues.
October 2010: More Sing Sing reissues
Protex - Strange Obsessions LP (Sing 016). The aborted Polydor LP
finally sees the light of day. Hats off to Sing Sing for getting this out.
Any chance of a Tearjerkers LP?
Also imminent (due Nov 2010):
A Rip Off Records compilation LP (Sing 021)
Strike - Radio Songs 7" (Sing 022)
See the Sing Sing Records site
for further details of these and earlier releases, including the Tinopeners and Blaze X reissues.
September 2010: Creatures video on youtube!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XbbpSzpe5B4
Is that Paul Brady at 1:43?
September 2010: Steppes back catalogue reissues.
Cherry Red will be reissuing The Steppes albums on CD in the
near future. They've been OOP since Delerium ceased trading in
the late 1990s.
30 March 2010: Foxrock Folk Club tapes.
According to this blog,
a fantastic tape archive of live recordings made at the Foxrock Folk Club exists.
I've emailed the address on the site but received nothing back. If anyone has
better contacts, please get in touch.
There are some tantalising shows listed including:
Horslips 6.2.72
Mellow Candle 20.2.72
Louis Stewart 20.12.70, 11.4.71, 19.12.71
Supply, Demand & Curve 29.2.71, 5.12.71, 2.4.72
Tara Telephone 19.10.69, 20.12.70
24 March 2010: Still looking for Vox backissues.
I'm looking for issue #1, #12 and #13
(13 pictured above).
If you can help me get copies of any of these, please get in touch.
I'd also be grateful for a photocopy or scan (300 dpi please) of #1.
5 February 2010: Another New Book
• The Complete Guide to Ireland’s Top Ten Hits 1954 – 1979
by Eddie Kelly. This is a greatly expanded version of Eddie's earlier book
on the charts of the 1960s. I haven't seen it yet but I can't imagine
it being anything less than essential. My only wish is it covered the full top 20,
if for no other reason than to have the opportunity to read bios of the many
obscure Irish artists who only managed one single which barely scraped into the top
20. But such a book would undoubtedly have been unfeasibly large. Publishled in hardback
last month by originalwriting.ie
14 January 2010: Dave Kearney RIP
Dave Kearney, lead guitarist with The Movement (1967-68), died on January 14 in Canada,
where he'd lived since the 1980s. Dave's fuzz solo on the A-side of the band's debut single "Tell Her"
(Target/Pye 7N 17443, January 1968) is simply outstanding.
He died in January 2010.
January 2010: Recent CDs I Need
• 051 Compilation CD. Can't find it anywhere, can't mailorder it.
• Sunflower Nights CD. Made several arrangements to get this and all fell through.
December 2009: Another Shop Closure
Cork's only independent music retailer Plugd Records is due to close on the last day of the year.
The hope is they'll reopen in new premises in 2010.
December 2009: Two New Books
• Holywood Star: The Life and Times of a Rock & Roll Misadventurer
by Eamon Nancarrow is an account of Eamon's adventures in the music
business as lead singer for Guilt Edge, No Hot Ashes, Nellie Dean and others.
Reputedly highly entertaining though I haven't read it myself. It is available from
Amazon.
• Cork Rock by Mark McAvoy details the city's rock & roll history and
considers the many
quirky bands it produced. Again, I haven't read it myself yet but it looks interesting.
Available directly from Mercier Press.
17 November 2009: Freebird Records to close
The recent spate of record shop closures in Dublin contines with latest victim
Freebird Records announcing its closure this month. According to the Evening Herald
(who managed to turn it into a U2 story --nice one lads-- claiming Freebird
made the band's name, by stocking their records perhaps? Hmm.. )
the shop will close on Saturday 28th. This means both branches,
the Secret Book & Record Store branch on Wicklow St and the old Comet
shop premises on Cope Street. Correction/Update: it seems only the Cope Street branch
is closing, the Secret Book & Record Shop part will remain in business.
Freebird has been around since 1978 and I first
remember visiting the shop up the rickety stairs on Grafton Street somewhere.
It moved several
times over the years and I must admit I assumed they'd weather the
current storm best and be the last to go, but their second-hand policy was odd
[who keeps boxes of records on the floor that are 'not for sale'??] and in truth
I hadn't bought anything in there in ages. They are having a 50% off sale until
closure. Comet, Smile, Record Collector, Rhythm, Borderline, who's next?
From Freebird's myspace page... "it would seem that the music store as a exciting
place and dare we say it, a holy place, is hopelessly out of fashion. Maybe as
everything is free and people get fed up having such randomness of 13,000 songs
on their walkman just maybe the record store will be an excuse to actually go
outside and become a fan of something, you never know pin badges and posters on
the walls may be the new in.........we'll see. WE LOVE MUSIC, WE LOVE VINYL, WE
LOVE NOT HAVING THE MONEY TO BUY EVERYTHING."
1 October 2009: Blaze X, Rudi, Tinopeners reissues
New York reissue specialists Sing Sing Records have reissued several Irish punk singles
including The Tinopeners, Blaze X and the first two by Rudi ("Big Time" and "I Spy").
These can be ordered directly form the label's website www.singsingrecords.com.
21 September 2009: New Golden Horde site
Check out the new site at www.thegoldenhorde.org.
2 September 2009: New DIY Irish Hardcore Punk Blog
In fact it's been active since February this year but I just discovered it now.
Lots of
vintage and more recent punk and hardcore downloads. Grab the
early Paranoid Visions stuff while you can, and the 1977 fanzines too.
Isn't it time someone
did a fanzine archive blog? I've got time to PDF some zines but thats about all.
Someone else will have to organise this (maybe Loserdom?)
Meanwhile, check out the blog here.
16 August 2009: LOOKALIKES one-off reunion gig
Saturday 5th September at the Button Factory in Dublin.
Check the Button Factory site for more details.
9 August 2009: If you're not straying out of doors this eve........
ROGHA JOHN SPILLANE - RADIO NA GAELTACHTA (RTE) - SUNDAY 9TH AUGUST - 9PM
Two hours of eclectic Irish music with sage commentary compiled by John Byrne,
including Roger Doyle, Pumpkinhead, Skid Row, Sonny Condell, peridots,
Dr.Strangely Strange, Mick Hanly, Supply Demand and Curve, etc.
Also available online for the next 7 days.
4-5 August 2009: More Restructuring.
Through some site restructuring it's possible some old links don't work anymore.
Hopefully the structure is now easier to navigate. Comments and criticisms welcome.
1 August 2009: youtube now officially a pain in the arse.
Videos are being removed (or expire) from youtube as fast as I add them to the
video channel account, so I've given up on it. Expect administration of the youtube
video list to be as bad as with the message board from now on (sorry).
July 2009: Fanning Archive Blog!
Check out the new Fanning sessions archive.
Unofficial, of course, but how else could it exist?
Contributions are welcome, so start digitizing those old tapes of yours and add to the archive.
18 June 2009: Popup Annoyance Removed
The webcounter service I was using recently changed hands and the new operators
endorse annoying popups, so I've deleted it. If anyone still experiences popup adverts while browsing
this site, please let me know ASAP. Between 29 January 2004 and June 2009, the web counter
registered 163623 page views, most of those in the past year. Not bad...
Spring 2009: Hot Press Website
Thanks to those who responded to my request. This is now sorted.
+++ STOP TEASING ME YOU BASTARDS+++
I regularly receive offers of stuff which sounds brilliant and incredibly
useful but unfortunately far too few people actually follow through
on these promises.
So please, if you've offered me something, then get it sorted out!
Get it down from the attic and send it to me to the address(es) opposite.
12 January 2009: You Tube video channel
I've created a youtube account to gather together Irish rock videos.
The username is irishrockorg and if you look at the favourites you'll find
them. The following link should do it: irishrock.org youtube favourites.
Of course I have no control over videos being removed, etc.
I realise I could probably do the same for myspace pages but it's such an irritating site!
|
28 October 2008: Lookalikes CD+DVD
Finally got the The Lookalikes set and it looks fantastic!
The CD is a little disappointing as it is not
a complete discography and the versions used sound like outtakes/alternate versions
to me. But the DVD disc makes it worthwhile.
The
quality is rough but it's the long lost Campus Rock performance and if you think
RTE will ever release this [never mind repeat it] you're deluded!
Each package
contains 3x stickers (there are 6 variations altogether) and a badge.
The CD remastering is very bright as is the fashion these days so turn
up the bass during playback is my advice.
Due to a manufacturing error, my copy arrived with the CD disc stuck
to the packaging. As the glue is quite soft, I was able to peel it
open and the CD came off without causing any damage to either the
packaging or the CD. I then carefully rubbed the excess glue off the disc
and it now plays perfectly. If your copy arrives this way then I suggest some
careful manoeuvering to sort it out. If this doesn't work, then
contact http://www.snapsmusic.com.
2 October 2008:
RIP Derrick Dalton (Hey Paulette, Mexican Pets, Crumb)
1 October 2008: Site Reorganization
Site reorganization is complete. The 60s/70s side of the site is open.
Perhaps a master A-Z Artist Index for the whole site would be a useful now.
Speaking of the Seventies, if you have any unique or obscure material on
Skid Row (Brush Shiels band)
please get in touch. A massive update is being assembled but we need more photos
and other ephemera. Personally I also need the first Song label 45 so start
sending them in please. I could also use a copy of Time Machine's "Railroad"/"Going Down, Down, Down" 45
released on Play Records. In fast my need for this disc is severe.
Sept 29th:
The Lookalikes CD on the Italian Snaps Music label is just out. I haven't got
it yet so I can't comment on it's contents. However, it looks tasty: a CD Rom
with an audio part and a multimedia part containing band dicography, history
and photos; and a DVD disc containing vintage videos. Only 200 copies have
been made so get your skates on: www.snapsmusic.com
July 29:
A new label called Beat That Records is looking to release archive material by Irish bands,
either reissues of obscurities or previously unreleased material. Any Irish bands
with vintage recordings should get in touch.
July 14:
Site reorganisation drags on; the 60s/70s side is open soon, a preview is now
available; a blog
for news/updates is under consideration.
June 7:
From Frank Rynne:
Brian Jones 40th Anniversary Festival Joujouka, Morocco, 29th July 2008
See site for details.
June 5:
Site reorganisation nearing completion; the 60s/70s side will be open soon; a better
news/updates section so you can see whats changed on the site will also be available
soon. Stay tuned.
May 14:
A much needed site overhaul is nearing completion (2 days ago I said it was finished
but then I discovered something else to tinker with). The upshot of all this restructuring
is that each band now gets it's own page.
This change has been a long time coming. Some of the alphabet pages were getting very big
and becoming difficult to maintain. I kept running into problems keeping track of updates.
This should now be a lot easier.
There are no broken links thanks to Xenu, but if you spot
any continuity errors please let me know.
2007 News
 Oct 10:
The Fuze release a retrospective CD this week (Friday October 12th). For more details see fuzesounds.com or click the flyer.
Note this is a PDF file which needs Adobe Acrobat.
 Oct 3:
The Sweat and Clive Culbertson retrospective CDs are now out on 1977 Records (Japan) on LP and CD and they sound terrific!
See www.1977records.com for more details.
 Sept:
Mario Panciera's 45 REVOLUTIONS book is out. This lists every punk, mod, powerpop, new wave, NWOBHM and indie single issued in the UK and Ireland between late 1976 and 31.12.1979
It's not cheap but the quality really shows in the finished product. Esssential.
Co-conspirator Steve Mitchell has also started a blog.
Sept 4: Discography releases of The Lookalikes and The Sweat are in the pipeline.
With regard to the latter, does anyone have vintage photos of Clive Culbertson and/or The Sweat?
There don't seem to be many around. I'll have more news about both these comps shortly.
July 25: Sincere apologies again for taking so long to answer email.
I've just finished a backlog that dates back to April. The site has now
passed the 50,000 hits marker, measuring since January 2004. Not bad...
May 10:
The second edition of Joachim Gaertner's discography of indie labels is out now. They Could Have Been Bigger Than EMI
contains over 4200 label listings. If like me you used to wonder about the gaps in the Teen Beat discography,
then you need this book.
Click the cover for more details.
Mar 20: I apologise to everyone who has emailed me over the past few weeks.
What little free time I have has been spent on relocating the site and
fixing problems. I've also been busy uploading the backlog of photos and
scans I was prevented from using in the past due to space restructions.
I intend to tackle the email backlog ASAP.
I've also been busy with Kevin Fitz's Golden Horde site which is now
almost complete apart from some backgrounds and looks great (even if I do say so myself!).
Kevin has generously loaned me lots of material for this site so
helping with the Horde site was the least I could do.
Feb 21: I've added a page of video links here
 Jan 19:
Garry O'Neill is looking for contributions for a book on Dublin youth culture from the 60s-90s.
Click the flyer for more information including contact details.
|
