Showing posts with label New Wave. Show all posts
Showing posts with label New Wave. Show all posts

January 30, 2025

45 RPMs 87: Marianne Faithfull ~ Broken English 12" single

  ~  
 
 
Today, one of my Immortals (link below) proved to me she wasn't! I never learn but love makes ya CRAZY!       
 

 
 
To me the album this song came from was the pinnacle of her work. It is as close to perfection anyone can attain. And these two songs are the crown of perfection!             
 

 
 
Broken English is a mid-tempo rock song with a strong influence from new wave. The song is set in the simple time signature of 4/4, with a tempo of 122 beats per minute. It is built around a simple rhythm guitar motif and synthesizer effects. Faithfull's vocals sound lower and cracked compared to her earlier work due to severe laryngitis coupled with heavy smoking and drug abuse during the 1970s. This gives the song a raw, more tavern-like feeling which was perfect for dancing in nightclubs.     
 

 
 
Why'd Ya Do It? is one of the most "X Rated" songs I've ever heard with a popular song and she hits it completely out of the park with this driving dance song! The sexually explicit lyrics by Heathcote Williams caused a walk-out by the female workers on the EMI production line.         
           

Marianne Faithfull ~ Why'd Ya Do It?
 
 
     Why'd Ya Do It?
 
Marianne Faithfull
When I stole a twig from our little nest
And gave it to a bird with nothing in her beak
I had my balls and my brains put into a vice
And twisted around for a whole fucking week

"Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you let that trash
Get a hold of your cock, get stoned on my hash?

"Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you let her suck your cock?
Ah, do me a favour, don't put me in the dock
"Why'd ya do it", she said, They're mine all your tools
You just tied me to the mast of the ship of fools

"Why'd ya do it", she said, when you know it makes me sore
'Cause she had cobwebs up her fanny and I believe in giving to the poor
"Why'd ya do it", she said, Why'd you spit on my snatch?
Are we out of love now, is this just a bad patch?

"Why'd ya do it", she said, Why'd you do what you did?
You drove my ego to a really bad skid

"Why'd you do it", she said, ain't nothing to laugh
You just tore all our kisses right in half!

"Why'd ya do it", she screamed, after all we said
Every time I see your dick, I see her cunt in my bed
"Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did?
"Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did?
Betray my little oyster for such a low bid

The whole room was swirling
Her lips were still curling

"Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did?
"Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did
"Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did
"Why'd ya do it", she said, "Why'd ya do it", she said
Why'd you do what you did?

Oh, big grey mother, I love you forever
With your barbed wire pussy and your good and bad weather

("Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did)
("Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did)
("Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did)
("Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did)
("Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did)
("Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did)
("Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did)
("Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did)

("Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did)
("Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did)
("Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did)
("Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did)
("Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did)
("Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did)
("Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did)
("Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did)

("Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did)
("Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did)
("Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did)
("Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did)
("Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did)
("Why'd ya do it", she said, why'd you do what you did)

Songwriters: Marianne Faithfull, Terry Stannard, Joe Mavety, David York Stephen, Heathcote Williams, Barry (gb) Reynolds.
    
     



        
Tracklist:

Side 1:

A - Broken English, written by Barry Reynolds, Joe Mavety, M. Faithfull*, Steve York, Terry Stannard - 5:59

Side 2:

B - Why D'ya Do It?, written by Barry Reynolds, Heathcote Williams, Joe Mavety, M. Faithfull*, Steve York, Terry Stannard - 6:35

Companies, etc.

    Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Island Records Ltd.
    Produced For – Airstream
    Published By – Airstream Music Ltd.
    Published By – Zem Sounds, Inc.
    Lacquer Cut At – Sterling Sound
    Pressed By – Columbia Records Pressing Plant, Santa Maria

 Credits:
 
      Producer – Mark Miller Mundy
 
Notes:

Special 12" Single

"1S" etch in runouts denotes a Santa Maria pressing variant.

Antilles, a division of Island Records Inc. New York, N.Y.
Printed in U.S.A.

[labels]
℗ 1979 Island Records, Ltd.

A: Published by Airstream Music, Ltd.
B: Zem Sounds, Inc. (BMI)

Runout details are etched except STERLING stamped.

Barcode and Other Identifiers
        
        
    Rights Society: BMI
    Matrix / Runout (Runout side A): I S AN-801-A-CS1 A2 STERLING
    Matrix / Runout (Runout side B): \ S AN 801-B-CS2 A1 STERLING
        
        
        
        
Viewfinder links:       
         
Marianne Faithfull        
Immortal Loves        
     
Net links:       
         
         
         
        
     
YouTube links:      
        
Broken English        
Why D'ya Do It?        
      
        
         
        
        

Styrous® ~ Monday, September 7, 2020






      

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

February 1, 2021

45 RPMs 55: Rick James - Super Freak 12" 45

  ~      
Rick James ~ Street Songs
 album front cover detail 
logo design by Norman Moore 
photo by Ron Slenzak
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®
 
 
Rick James was born in Buffalo, New York on this date in 1948; he was an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and record producer. He is best known for his hit single, Super Freak. I remember dancing madly to it at discos in the early eighties.                 
 
 
Side 1, in album sleeve 
photo by Styrous®


In 1981, James released his most successful album, Street Songs, which included career-defining hits such as Give It to Me Baby and this song, Super Freak, which became his biggest crossover single, mixing elements of funk, disco, rock and new wave.      
 

Side 1, in album sleeve 
photo by Styrous®


James also had a successful career as a songwriter and producer for other artists including Teena Marie, the Mary Jane Girls, the Temptations, Eddie Murphy and Smokey Robinson.        


Side 2, in album sleeve 
photo by Styrous®


 
 
James' mainstream success had peaked by the ttime of the release of his album Glow in 1985 and his appearance on the popular TV show, The A-Team. His subsequent album releases failed to sell as well as their predecessors.      


Rick James ~ Super Freak Pt. 2 12" 45 
Side 2, in album sleeve 
photo by Styrous®
        
Rapper MC Hammer sampled James' Super Freak for his 1990 hit, U Can't Touch This which won Best R&B Song at the 1991 Grammy Awards. James received his only Grammy for composing the song. By the early 1990s, James' career was hampered by his drug addiction and he was embroiled with legal issues. In 1993, James was convicted for two separate instances of kidnapping and torturing two different women while under the influence of crack cocaine, resulting in a three-year sentence at Folsom State Prison. James was released on parole in 1996 and released the album Urban Rapsody in 1997. James' health problems halted his career again after he had a mild stroke during a concert in 1998, and he announced a semi-retirement.                             
 
 
photo by Mark Weiss/WireImage
 
 
On the morning of August 6, 2004, James' caretaker found him dead in his Los Angeles home at the Oakwood Toluca Hills apartment complex, just outside Burbank. He had died from pulmonary failure and cardiac failure, associated with his various health conditions of diabetes, a stroke, pacemaker, and heart attack.     
 
 

 
Tracklist:

Side 1:

A - Super Freak (Disco Mix) - 7:05

Side 2:

B - Super Freak (Pt. 1) - 3:18

Companies, etc.

    Phonographic Copyright (p) – Motown Record Corporation
    Manufactured By – RCA Ltd.
    Distributed By – RCA Ltd.
    Published By – Jobete Music (UK) Ltd.

Credits:

    Arranged By – Rick James
    Arranged By [String] – Daniel LeMelle, Reggie Andrews, Rick James
    Executive-Producer – Alonzo Miller
    Producer – Rick James
    Written-By – A. Miller*, Rick James

Notes:     

From The Album "Street Songs" G8-1002M1
        
Rick James ‎– Super Freak
Label: Motown ‎– TMGT 1241
Format: Vinyl, 12", 45 RPM
Country: UK
Released: 1981
Genre: Funk / Soul
Style: Disco, Funk     
      
      
      
  
Viewfinder links:       
         
Rick James        
Smokey Robinson                 
The Temptations        
     
Net links:       
         
Rick James website        
     
YouTube links:      
         
Music ~    
Rick James ~  
   Super Freak (12" Version)         
   Super Freak (live)        
   Give It To Me Baby (12" Version)                 
        
The Insane Story Of Rick James (documentary)    
        
        
         
        
        
        

 
 
 

              
      

Styrous® ~ Monday, September 7, 2020






      

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

January 18, 2021

New Wave/punk on the Viewfinder

 ~       
Adam & the Ants          
Au Pairs         
B-52s        
Big Black ~ Bulldozer     
Boris Blank         
Benjamin Bossi         
Steven Brown        
David Byrne         
John Cale        
Chrisma ~ Chinese Restaurant         
Wayne Coyne         
DAF         
Dalis Car       
Deerhoof         
Dead Kennedys       
Depeche Mode      
Devo          
Jane Dornacker         
earRotator            
Richard Edson           
Eraserhead    
Extrabreit         
Frankie Fix         
The Flaming Lips        
Peter Gabriel          
Ron "The Ripper" Greco         
Nina Hagen        
The Halibuts         
Icehouse          
INXS        
Billy Idol        
Jello Biafra       
Jubilee soundtrack        
Laibach         
Cyndi Lauper        
Leila And The Snakes       
John Lydon         
Madness           
Thurston Moore        
The Nails      
Klaus Nomi        
PIL ~ Metal Box      
Blaine L. Reininger          
The Residents         
Sheila Rock       
Roxie Theater         
Sonic Youth         
The Stip         
Johnny Strike        
Thoth         
Winston Tong          
Ricky "Tractor" Williams        
Tuxedomoon           
Yello     
The Yobs - Auld Lang Syne     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

August 19, 2020

45 RPMs 47: Joe Jackson ~ I'm the Man (box set)

~
45 RPM box set front cover 
front cover photo by Bruce Rae
photo of album box by Styrous®


Last week was the birthday of David Ian "Joe" Jackson. He was born on August 11 in 1954. To celebrate this event, I've selected the I'm the Man album and because of its layout design, I have entered it in the “Just the cover, ma’am!”  vinyl LP category (link below).    

On the album cover, Jackson appears in the guise of a particular type of petty criminal known in the United Kingdom as a spiv, a character who, in Jackson's own words, "always wears a gross polka-dot tie and a pencil-thin mustache, and he's always trying to sell you a watch or something like that real cheap. I think people always want to put a label on what you do, so I thought I'd be one step ahead of them and invent one myself - spiv rock." Jackson later explained, that the spiv character is "a silly image that I thought appalling. It's not intended to be a new musical revolution               


45 RPM box set
photo of album box by Styrous® 


This is the second vinyl LP album by Jackson released in 1979. There was also this 45 RPM (box set) version which is the complete vinyl LP album released as 5 x 7"-singles in a 7"-box.       


45 RPM box set interior
photo of album box by Styrous® 

The box set included a 12¼" x 18¾" poster with an elongated Jackson image.                


Joe Jackson ~ I'm the Man poster
poster photo by Bruce Rae
photo of poster by Styrous®
       

The interesting thing is the sleeves of each of the 5 45s has a different image on it . . . 



45 RPM record sleeves
photo details by Bruce Rae
photos of record sleeves by Styrous®








When they are arranged in the proper order they form the image on the poster. Pretty cool, eh? The packaging is ALL this article is about. So, this is the reason why even though it is a 45 RPM, it's going in the “Just the cover, ma’am!”  vinyl LP category.                    



45 RPM sleeves assembled in poster order
Sleve photos by Bruce Rae
photo of 45 RPM sleeves  arranged by Styrous®

                    
Tracklist:

A - On Your Radio - 4:00
B - The Band Wore Blue Shirts - 5:05
C - Geraldine And John - 3:14
D - Don't Wanna Be Like That - 3:41
E - Kinda Kute - 3:30
F - Amateur Hour - 4:03
G - It's Different For Girls - 3:42
H - Get That Girl - 3:02
I - I’m The Man - 3:56
J - Friday - 3:33

Personnel:     
Musicians:
Production:
Companies, etc.

    Phonographic Copyright (p) – A&M Records, Inc.
    Copyright (c) – A&M Records, Inc.
    Published By – Albion Music
    Published By – Almo Music Corp.
    Pressed By – Columbia Records Pressing Plant, Santa Maria

Credits:

    Producer – David Kershenbaum
    Written-By – Joe Jackson
    Photography By [Back Covers] – Sheila Rock
    Photography By [Front Cover] – Bruce Rae
    Producer – David Kershenbaum

Notes:

Complete album released as 5 x 7"-single in 7"-box with poster.
Album A-side-tracks on single A-sides
Album B-side-tracks on single B-sides
Barcode and Other Identifiers

    Rights Society: ASCAP
    Matrix / Runout (Side A): A+M SPO1800 A-S2
    Matrix / Runout (Side B): A+M SPO1800 B-S1
    Matrix / Runout (Side C): A+M SPO1800 C-S1
    Matrix / Runout (Side D): A+M SPO1800 D-S1
    Matrix / Runout (Side E): A+M SPO1800 E-S1
    Matrix / Runout (Side F): A+M SPO1800 F-S1
    Matrix / Runout (Side G): A+M SPO1800 G-S1
    Matrix / Runout (Side H): A+M SPO1800 H-S2
    Matrix / Runout (Side I): A+M SPO1800 I-S2
    Matrix / Runout (Side J): A+M SPO1800 J-S1

Joe Jackson ‎– I'm The Man - The 7-Inch Album (box)
Label: A&M Records ‎– SP-18000
Format: 5 × Vinyl, 7", Album Box Set
Country: US
Released: 1979
Genre: Rock, Pop
Style: New Wave, Power Pop

       
       
       
       
Viewfinder links:      
  
“Just the cover, ma’am!”         
       
Net links:             
           
Joe Jackson website         
New Yorker ~ Joe Jackson, Past, Present, and Fast Forward        
NPR ~ Joe Jackson Pays Tribute To 'The Duke'       
NY Times ~ Joe Jackson Fuses Pop and Salsa         
Rate Your Music ~ I'm the Man (review)       
       
YouTube links:             
   
The Band Wore Blue Shirts          
I’m The Man   
It's Different For Girls          
        
     
     
"Rock & roll is too narrow & limiting."  
        ~ Joe Jackson - 1982, NY Times
      
     
     
Styrous® ~ Wednesday, August 19, 2020       
   




       
        
       
       
            
      
     
      
     














October 21, 2015

RoboCop takes a bubble bath










photos by Styrous® 




RoboCop is a 1987 American cyberpunk action film directed by Paul Verhoeven and written by Edward Neumeier and Michael Miner. The film stars Peter Weller, Nancy Allen, Dan O'Herlihy, Kurtwood Smith, Miguel Ferrer, and Ronny Cox.     

RoboCop was released in American theaters on July 17, 1987. The film was a commercial success and grossed over $8 million in its opening weekend and $53,424,681 during its North American domestic run, making it the 16th most successful movie that year.       

The film generated a franchise that included merchandise (the RoboCop bubble bath was one of them), two sequels, a television series, a remake, two animated TV series, a television mini-series, video games, and a number of comic book adaptations/crossovers. The film was produced for $13 million.   



 
1990 RoboCop Bubble Bath in Specialty Bottle
front views (8.5 Fl. oz.)




RoboCop design

Rob Bottin created the RoboCop suit. He had just finished doing the special effects for John Carpenter's The Thing. A budget of up to one million dollars was allotted to the completion of the suit, making it the most expensive item on the set. A total of six suits were made: three intact and three showing damage.       

 
1990 RoboCop Bubble Bath in Specialty Bottle
back view (8.5 Fl. oz.)




Cast

S. D. Nemeth was also in the film, Lobster Man from Mars, a spoof of B-movie sci-fi films from the 1950s. It had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in 1989.
  


 



1990 RoboCop Bubble Bath in Specialty Bottle
base view (8.5 Fl. oz.)





Film Score

The soundtrack score for the movie was composed by Basil Poledouris, who used both synthesized and orchestral music as a mirror to the man-versus-machine theme of the movie. The soundtrack initially was released by Varèse Sarabande, and has been reissued and remastered several times since.       

The song Show Me Your Spine by P.T.P. was played during the nightclub scene. P.T.P was a short-lived side project consisting of members of the band Ministry and Skinny Puppy. However, this song was not available in any official form and could only be heard in the film. It was eventually released in 2004 on a compilation album called Side Trax by Ministry.

Skinny Puppy is a Canadian industrial music group, formed in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, in 1982. The group is widely considered to be one of the founders of the electro-industrial genre.    

Ministry is an American industrial metal band founded by lead singer Al Jourgensen in 1981. Originally a new wave synthpop outfit, Ministry changed its style to industrial metal in the mid-1980s.  






1990 RoboCop Bubble Bath in Specialty Bottle
directions




RoboCop was written by Edward Neumeier and Michael Miner. Neumeier stated that he first got the idea of RoboCop when he walked with a friend past a poster for Blade Runner. He asked his friend what the film was about and his friend replied, "It's about a cop hunting robots". For him, this sparked the idea about a robot cop. Allegedly, while the two were attempting to pitch the screenplay to Hollywood executives, they were accidentally stranded at an airplane terminal with a high-ranking movie executive for several hours. Here, they were able to speak to him about the project, and thus began the series of events which eventually gave rise to RoboCop the movie.



1990 RoboCop Bubble Bath in Specialty Bottle
base view (8.5 Fl. oz.)




 Oh, that's right. The RoboCop Bubble Bath was produced in Gardena, California, in 1990 and distributed by Cosway Company, Inc.  From RetroThing (see link below for more info):

"But bubbles and bubble bath? An allegorical fantasy about the triumph of human spirit against encroaching technology in a world that had lost its soul... immortalized by bubbles. The bubble bath is just that. Pry off Robo's head and wash behind your ears. "RoboCop The Series Bubble Buddies" includes scented bubbles (long since evaporated), a bubble wand built into the cap of the bottle, and a "removable pocket pal". That's right. You can pull Robo off (complete with his flamethrower arm) the top of the bottle and stuff it in your pocket. Fun. He's your pal."  
As I've never opened by bottle of bubble bath, I didn't know about the wand nor the "removable Pocket pal." Thanks for this info, Retro.    


1990 RoboCop Bubble Bath in Specialty Bottle
base view detail (8.5 Fl. oz.)




Links to RoboCop topics on the Net:     
              
Sony Pictures RoboCop Official website    
More info on RoboCop on RetroThing      
    
    
RoboCop trailer on YouTube         
Ministry ~ Show Me Your Spine on YouTube              
     
      
      
The RoboCop bubble bath is for sale on eBay                         




 Styrous® ~ Wednesday, October 21, 2015
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