Search This Blog. Wednesday, December 24, It's Christmas! Have a very merry one Posted by Hannes A. Saturday, November 22, The Rubinoos Turn 45! The Rubinoos' goofy, Monkees-like humor is also never too far from the precedings, which might be one of the reasons why "Earth 1" was also recorded for their children's album!
The wheel isn't exactly being invented here but who cares. Only unnecessary cover "Black is Black" and novelty children's? Four years later and we're up to date with the brand-spanking-new Rubinoos album "45". Off the bat, it's obviously not quite as energy-driven as its predecessor. The guitars have been turned down a tad, there's balladry a plenty and the Rubes' love of early pop styles such as Doo Wop is very well served indeed - especially in the sole cover here which comes in the form of Lou Christie's "Rhapsody in the Rain" their cover of Christie's "If My Car Could Only Speak" from a good decade back is excellent and far exceeds the original IMHO.
But it wouldn't be a proper Rubinoos album without the pure pop hooks and here they are in abundance. Unfortunately there don't seem to be any videos to songs from the album on the otherwise almighty YouTube, so you, much like I did, just have to head over to www.
And yes, the T-shirt's very comfy. And just in case you aren't entirely convinced of the Rubinoos proper '70s Teen Pop credentials, here are a few minor, near and non-hits they scored during the latter part of that fabulous decade.
Update, February 10th I received the following e-mal from Rubinoo Tommy Dunbar yesterday:. Thanks for the nice review of our recent recordings, glad you liked them! I only wanted to mention that our drummer Donn Spindt has been with us since He was off doing other things for a moment in the 80s, but he's been with us almost all of that time.
Our bass player Al Chan has been with us since He's the NEW guy! Sunday, October 26, Alvin Stardust R. Well, to make a long story short, we lost Alvin this past week. And, according to all accounts, he was an all around professional and a nice guy to boot. He will be sorely missed. While researching the Child discography a couple of years ago I made the personally unnerving discovery that their apparently misleadingly entitled "The First Album" was in fact their second.
Disturbing as that was, it wasn't the first time I had come across such blatant And even more astoundingly, in both cases the reputable German Hansa Records label was at fault. And to add insult to injury it was the second album of his to bear the title "It's a Game", the first one being the BCR's magnum opus.
But let's get back to that "lost" very first, eponymous Child album. Issued only in Germany in by a little something called Honeybee Records, but manufactured and distributed by the small European giant Bellaphon. And having previously only heard the other two Child albums, the aforementioned "The First Album" , as well as "Total Recall" , it's nothing short of a revelation!
Having had their first couple of singles in the U. Which seems to have brought them in search of something bigger and better abroad. And seemingly very rightly so, since "Child" surpasses its successors on all artistic fronts, thank-you-very-much!
It's grittier, better produced, better played and has better songs on it. From all that I can only assume guitar player Dave Cooper's departure was something of a loss to the band. With that, in my opinion, the band lost their heart and soul while gaining what little commercial success eventually came their way with, primarily, covers "It's Only Make Believe" UK 10, and "Only You And You Alone " U.
Opening with Child's most exciting and probably best track ever, the inexplicably German-only single "Public Enemy Number One" , the very first album is up for a good start. A clean and dynamic production, not to mention what is probably Graham Bilbrough's best vocal performance on record.
A lost '70s teenpop classic indeed. Mabel's "Hey! I Love You" also springs to mind. Another nice and crisp production with subtle keyboard flourishes. Now, why was this never a hit? The self-penned "Love and Let Go" sports a nice guitar riff although it lacks something resembling a strong chorus, while the infectious "Hurdy Gurdy" is reminiscent of a late '60s fare from the Kasenetz-Katz school of bubblegum music A couple of years later the old KK stalwart "Yummy, Yummy, Yummy" became one of Child's last single releases.
And that's a compliment. Well, in conclusion, and after becoming belatedly acquainted with the truly first Child album, the other two subsequent LP's are rendered somewhat unessential soft, sell-out samples of what should-never-have-been. And although not entirely bad, the first, real Child album is just so much better IMHO, as always. Saturday, May 24, The King of U.
And another flop as far as chart non action went. The Japanese were somewhat impressed. And perhaps rightfully so.
Brendon, yet another JK protegee, fared a bit better than both Wilde and Turner, since at least he managed to score a sole, belated Top 20 U. Further single releases, such as a cover of a strong ABBA album track "Rock Me", failed to ignite interest and Brendon inevitably faded back into obscurity Of Brendon, Jonathan King himself has this to say:. Or, if you're feeling especially adventurous Friday, May 16, Shorty. After all, was the year Rollermania swept Great Britain.
And, consequently, since all things Scottish were all of a sudden "in", it didn't seem like a bad idea at the time to go looking for talent north of the border. Soon another lad, Owen Mullen joined on bass, but he was later replaced by Rob Ainsley. Then, after being signed by State Records in , Alan Campbell joined on keyboards. By Shorty had fallen off the radar. Then, you had be either punk or disco, and Shorty, clearly, were neither.
So I am guessing they broke up around this time. Whatever happened to individual members, I do not know. But, as always, readers of this blog are welcome and encouraged to enlighten the rest of us. It's also available streaming on Spotify. Monday, March 17, Glam Rock Cinema. The single flopped, and a year or so later the Arrows also had a crack at it, albeit with similarly underwhelming results.
The late Dave Mount, drummer of MUD, had a starring role in "Side By Side" and really holds his own compared to some of the "real" actors appearing alongside him. Plot wise - as if that matters any - "Side By Side" has little more going for it.
Release dates, labels and catalog numbers are those of the country where the song in question was first released - largely, but not invariably, the USA non US releases are noted as such. The term 'guest appearence' covers a multitude of sins, from the band's very obvious presence on "The Monkey's Uncle" to Brian's all but inaudible contribution to the California Music Also included in this list are guest appearences by the band on each other's solo or side projects, noted by a different background color.
Three further observations: this list is without doubt incomplete Additions, comments and corrections to the usual email address, please. Apache Mike spoken - "Salesman". Cass Elliott Carl - "Disney Girls".
Hat Trick Carl - "Hat Trick". Heart Carl - "Heart". Hard Ticket Ent. Wildflowers Carl - "Honey Bee". Vertical Man Brian - "Without Understanding".
Disney Girls", "? Darlin'", "? All Surf". Human Nature Carl - "Hidden Talent". Here And Now California Girl Brian - "California Girls". Grief Never Grows Old - Brian [24]. United States of Dist.
Chocabeck Brian - "Chocabeck". Falling Apart - Brian. Any Emotions - Brian. Beach With Ya Baby - Alan. Love And Mercy - Brian. Dirty Computer Brian - "Dirty Computer". High Road Brian - "Resentment".
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