SF0197 Self Referential Songs

SF0197 Self Referential Songs

Show Podcast Information

Quite the upbeat selection this time round. The idea is songs with the name of the band in their title; or songs about the band themselves.

The mood is set right off the bat with Helen Love. She’s been played once before, and I was delighted to discover a previously unsuspected reservoir of deep affection for the Welsh songstress. It’s a great hand-clappy start to proceedings.

The second band up is Pigbag, one of two bands that I saw gig live on the same evening back in Coventry in 1982 (the only time I’ve actually attempted that). The other were B-Movie and I had to hotfoot it across town to see both. As it turned out I only really knew one track from each band – in B- Movie’s case it was ‘Remembrance Day’ – so there was quite a lot of standing around waiting for the one I knew.

Art Brut pop up with the quintessential track for this episode: called ‘Formed a Band’.

Then three tracks from well over half a century ago and all debutants on the programme. Mr Bloe enjoyed a smash hit in 1970, and then Bo Diddley from 1958, one of the few men or women in popular music history who invented their own riff. You can still hear it around today. Plus proto-punk influencers, the Monks, from 1964.

We’ve got 3 tracks which stress the third beat in the bar from Madness, Lee Perry and Augustus Pablo in this episode.  All, as ever, very welcome.

And even more tracks from the 1970s with 10cc and Devo, making their debut on the programme. Up until recently you could catch both outfits live  – admittedly in 10cc’s case with only one original member – but still a testament to their stamina. And the imperative to make money from live performance.

We’re a little closer to our spiritual homeland, so to speak, with Pavement and Horsegirl; and, with this year’s Festive Forthy just around the corner, I took the opportunity to dust down last year’s Number 2 from Kassie Krut, which happens to be bang on brief.

A couple of other genres we don’t always hear from round out proceedings. Jeffrey Lewis, although who can say what genre he does in fact occupy. He’s more or less in a category of one, although maybe people like Jonathan Richman and Jonathan Coulton could be jostling for position there. And, finally, the return of Algernon Cadwallader, essentially an emo outfit, but back after a decade long absence, now with added political shadings. If you’re wondering why they’re on the show they have a lyric which says “There is no I in Algernon Cadwallader”.

I hope you thoroughly enjoy these meta offerings.