Welcome to the ramblings of a man who really should have grown out of listening to "that sort of music" a long, long time ago...A place to share thoughts and photographs on music and related paraphernalia.
Following our feature on Duncan Reid & The Big Heads final bittersweet show at The Lexington, I thought I'd invite Duncan into the Retrosonic Podcast virtual studio to get the lowdown on the shock decision to hang up his purple Duncanbacker bass for the very last time. The announcement came just as he released his fifth and arguably best album to date "And It's Goodbye From Him..." calling time on a musical career that started off in 1976 with spells in The Matinee Idols and The Hollywood Killers before a move to London at the very start of the U.K. Punk explosion in 1977 to join the melodic Punk Pop legends The Boys. In this episode, Duncan picks five songs from the new LP that cover the reasons behind his decision and we take a look back at each of the rest of his albums with The Big Heads, discussing some of his favourite hidden gems and overlooked tracks along the way. He also praises his Big Heads bandmates who contributed to making them one of the most visually exciting live acts of recent years. You can subscribe to Retrosonic Podcast at Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iTunes, Amazon Music or download/stream direct from our SoundCloud site below.
Bill Gates (Finland Is a Myth) from "And It's Goodbye From Him..."
They're Dreaming About Me from "Little Big Head" (2019 reissue bonus track)
Would I Lie To You from "And It's Goodbye From Him..."
Just As Good As I Used To Be from "The Difficult Second Album"
It Rains On The Good from "And It's Goodbye From Him..."
Confetti from "Bombs Away"
Gilded Cage from "And It's Goodbye From Him..."
Don't Blame Yourself from "Don't Blame Yourself"
Real Good Time from "And It's Goodbye From Him..."
To Live Or Live Or Live Not from "Don't Blame Yourself"
Our previous Retrosonic Podcast with Duncan, Episode 5 in the "Lockdown Lowdown" series, is still available in our archive and is a thoroughly entertaining romp through Duncan's life from his earliest childhood musical memories to his first exposure to Rock & Roll, the first record he bought and the first gig he went to. Along the way he picks some of his favourite singles and albums along with the Artists and gigs that had an impact and influence on him over the years.
For more info on Duncan Reid & The Big Heads back catalogue and merchandise, please check out his official web-site here. You can see our feature with photos and videos from the final show at the Lexington in the Retro Man Blog archive here. Podcover photo of Duncan with Sophie and Karen of The Big Heads copyright Retro Man Blog. Retrosonic Podcast has a valid PRS licence. Here's a superb (but sad) reminder on what we will be missing from now on... All the best to Duncan and his Big Heads on whatever comes next.
It's not often a musician will announce their retirement at the very top of their game - certainly not hot on the heels after the release of what could possibly be their best album to date. Definitely not when they look as fit, healthy and energetic as many people half their age (let alone most of their contemporaries) and have a young, charismatic and popular band backing them up. But that's exactly what former Boys bassist and co-vocalist Duncan Reid has done, announcing in advance that this Lexington show will be the very last time himself, or the fabulous Big Heads will be appearing live. Yes, it is true, he is hanging up his purple Duncanbacker bass for good. The decision certainly came out of the blue (or purple...) and took the majority of fans by surprise, making the atmosphere at the sold-out Lexington a bit weird at first, especially when the band hit the stage with their customary energy and slammed into the brilliant "Your Future Ex-Wife" and you could sense everyone thinking the same thing - "why the hell are they packing it in now!?" Duncan then announced the bad news that unfortunately, guitarist Sophie Powers had been told by her doctors not to play due to a wrist injury, but then the good news was that she was going to make an appearance on a few songs throughout the evening anyway.
So, Heidi Cotton deputised for Sophie alongside regular Big Heads, guitarist Nick Hughes and drummer Karen Jones but it wasn't long before Sophie joined in on the fun, hair flying everywhere and trading riffs with her guitar sparring partner Nick. There's such a great energy and chemistry between the band, they seem to be having as much fun as us in the crowd are. In fact, Sophie did end up playing on most of the songs, so I am sure she will have suffered the next morning. There are some special guests, former Chelsea and Gene Loves Jezebel guitarist James Stevenson joined in for "The One" and previous Big Heads drummer Ciara takes her place behind the kit for a superb run through of "Kelly's Gone Insane". We get a pick of tracks from Duncan's debut solo album "Little Big Head" and then from each of his four albums with the Big Heads "The Difficult Second Album", "Don't Blame Yourself", "Bombs Away" and the superb new one "And It's Goodbye From Him". My personal highlights included "Montevideo", "Listening To The Beach Boys" and a blistering "C'est La Vie" along with the early Boys track "Soda Pressing".
Unfortunately, they didn't play my all-time favourite track "Gotta Call Simone" after all, we loved it so much, over ten years ago now we named Episode 9 of Retrosonic Podcast after a line from the song, "I'm Going Crazy, Need a Shot of You", but I guess the twenty one other brilliant melodic guitar pop nuggets in the set-list more than made up for its omission. The thoroughly entertaining night ends with a chaotic blast through The Boys classic "First Time" with Nick playing keyboards on his shoulder and the whole thing degenerating into an emotional singalong. The band then have their photos taken in front of their adoring fans and that's it, they skip off stage to rapturous applause, unfortunately for the very last time. Well, I must admit it was a somewhat bittersweet night and with so much negativity and cynicism in the world today, not to mention the amount of dull soulless bands treading the boards, it's quite sad to think we are losing one hell of a special good-time Rock 'n' Roll band that puts smiles on people's faces and guarantees you a great night out. But the memories of such nights remain and we can only be thankful for them and wish Duncan and the Big Heads all the best with whatever comes next in the future.
I hope to ask Duncan about the reasons behind his decision to call it a day in an upcoming Retrosonic Podcast so please keep an eye out for that. In the meantime, you can listen to our Retrosonic Podcast "Lockdown Lowdown" special episode from a few years ago with Duncan discussing some of his favourite songs and influences and a pick of his own material, it's available in our archives at Spotify, iTunes, Apple Podcasts or direct from our SoundCloud site below.
You can see more videos from the final show at our Retromanblog65 YouTube channel here. You can order the new Big Heads album "And It's Goodbye From Him" from the official site here.
My first introduction to The Boys came via the faultless Punk & New Wave compilation album “20 of Another Kind” which I picked up at my local record store as an eager 14-year-old schoolboy mini-Punk Rocker on its release in 1979. I still have that album, it’s one of my most prized possessions even though it (rather embarrassingly) does have my name written in BIC biro on the front cover, a must if you wanted to get your records back after swaps at the school record club. It featured lots of my favourite bands of the time such as The Jam, The Stranglers, Stiff Little Fingers, Generation X and more but it also had some unfamiliar names to me such as The Jolt, 999, The Lurkers and The Boys, who’s tuneful track “First Time” really stood out. Another of my favourite albums of the time was The Jam’s “All Mod Cons” and I remembered on the back cover there was a picture of Paul Weller’s trademark Rickenbacker guitar sporting a sticker of The Boys. So, if they were good enough for Weller then surely, they were good enough for the general record buying public. After all, “First Time” was as catchy and melodic as any songs by the bands I was watching regularly on Top of The Pops such as The Skids, Buzzcocks and The Undertones. Unfortunately, I never got to see the band play as they split up around the time I was old enough and able to start venturing out to my first gigs. The Boys never seemed to achieve the fame and acclaim of many of the other bands on that compilation but over the years their reputation and influence seemed to spiral as all over the world any Power Pop, New Wave or Pop Punk band worth their salt would cite The Boys as an influence.
The band were formed, like so many others in that initial London based Punk Rock explosion in 1976 from the now almost mythical ‘band’ the London SS, who must have boasted every aspiring Punk musician turning up for an audition. Matt Dangerfield was one such musician but he decided to form a band with Casino Steel the Norwegian keyboard player with The Hollywood Brats whose songs such as “Sick on You” and “Tumble with Me” they would take into their fledgling outfit they named The Boys. By the way, at this point I must strongly recommend Hollywood Brats vocalist Andrew Matheson’s hilarious memoir "Sick on You: The Disastrous Story of Britain's Great Lost Punk Band” a kind of “Withnail & I” meets “Spinal Tap” story of their pre-Punk Mott The Hoople meets the New York Dolls band. Casino’s art school pal Honest John Plain was later joined by bassist and singer Duncan ‘Kid’ Reid and drummer Jack Black and the classic Boys line-up was in place. The band were snapped up by NEMS Records and released two albums “The Boys” in 1977 and “Alternative Chartbusters” the following year. But despite their second and third singles “First Time” and “Brickfield Nights” now being widely accepted as classics they never hit the heights of their contemporaries or even had a big hit such as “Turning Japanese” by The Vapors or “Back of My Hand” by The Jags, similar tuneful Pop Punk contemporaries. The band then signed to Safari Records and remained with the label until their fourth and final album “Boys Only” which was released in 1980. So that brings us onto this new compilation from Cherry Red Records “The Boys on Safari”. Sitting at my computer looking at a play-list of MP3’s of the 71 songs that make up the compilation at first it feels like a slightly daunting task but thankfully when things get going it is The Boys after all, and it makes for a surprisingly consistent collection that even though missing their classic first two albums, still throws up enough gems to keep you satisfied.
Yep, I mentioned the whopping 71 songs, for that’s what is included in the 5-disc box set that takes in all the Safari releases from 1979-1981 and more besides. The tracks have been remastered by Matt Dangerfield and he also adds liner notes to the included booklet which also looks to feature lots of band photos, press cuttings and example of memorabilia. Some of the rarities were discovered after a studio clear out and a lot of them hadn’t been heard in around 40 years. The first thing that hits me is that the sound is powerful, punchy and clear even on my laptop speakers and testament to Matt’s excellent work with the remastering. So, things start with what was the third studio album “To Hell with The Boys” which is kicked off by a vicious, raucous cover of Khachaturian’s famous ballet piece “Sabre Dance” and they transform it into a kind of James Bond on the Trans-Siberian Express Spy movie theme. This leads nicely into the excellent “Rue Morgue” with it’s duelling twin-guitars. One of the album’s great singles “Terminal Love” boasts some fine heart-tugging vocals and the other 45rpm release, “Kamikaze” has some nice stabbing brass. A swaggering “See Ya Later” is driven along by prominent keyboards and handclaps and I’m really getting into the swing of things. But its “Waiting for The Lady” that is one of my favourites with its naggingly catchy guitar riff, it’s a masterclass in Power Pop and “Bad Day” crashes in on a whopping “My Generation” sized intro. By the time they released “Boys Only” in 1981 Casino Steel had left the band, it does seem to lack his contribution somewhat and I think the album is a more polished, straight ahead Rock album. However, the opening track and single “Weekend” is an absolute classic with its Summery harmonies evoking a drive along a sunny coastal road in a convertible, top down, singing along to the melodic chorus. It’s on a par with the Barracudas “Summer Sun”, The Undertones “Here Comes the Summer” and the Ramones “Rockaway Beach” in the great Summer Pop song list. My other highlights include the New York Dolls, Johnny Thunders strut of “Wrong Arm of The Law” along with “Monotony” and “Gabrielle” which are both high-class lessons in melodic guitar Pop. The Rarities disc includes eight unreleased demos as well as B-Sides and various mixes that differ from the album versions. Usually, I find that unreleased tracks are unreleased for a very good reason – they are generally not deemed good enough at the time to make it onto official records. However, thankfully the “Rarities” here include some real gems and it’s a rare exception to my rule. Actually, it’s testament to the strength of the song-writing that a pretty damn decent official album could have been put together from this collection. For example, “Schoolgirls” is a classic, a great track that was originally written for a children’s TV show. The next two songs show an influence of American proto-Punk, there’s “Jap Junk” which is driven along by an insistent, repetitive piano riff that reminds me of the Velvet Underground’s “Waiting for The Man”. “See You Later”, a demo from 1978, seems conjures up the Stooges “No Fun”. There are a couple of decent slower paced songs, ballads I suppose, “Cry Tomorrow” with just vocals and acoustic guitar and then “Love in Pain”, which adds piano to the voice and guitar.
Then there are different mixes of “Terminal Love” and “Kamikaze” and two tracks which evoke the Rolling Stones. “I Love Me” is a take on the Stones’ “We Love You” single and a there’s a cracking cover version of “You’d Better Move On” which has a superb Spector’s Wall of Sound feel. I also really like “Jimmy Brown” and although in the liner notes Matt Dangerfield said he never liked the lyrics, it does boast a great line that made me smile, “I wish I could play guitar like Johnny Ramone; I wouldn’t have to sit in the corner of the pub alone”. Then there are five demos from the “Boys Only” sessions including one “Little Run-around” that didn’t make it to the LP, somewhat surprisingly as I think it’s rather good. I mentioned earlier that I think you can judge a band by the strength of their rarities and unreleased tracks but I also think a good barometer is by how good their B-Sides are and “Cool” and “Lucy” included here, are damn fine examples of what B-Sides should be. “The Yobs Christmas Album” is an irreverent and humorous Punky bash through various Xmas songs, carols and originals – mostly given a foul-mouthed twist. The Yobs were actually born out of a legal dispute with NEMS Records, so rather than release the album as The Boys, they just decided to reverse the name and in doing so, perfectly captured what you can expect from the record. If you like The Macc Lads and the Sex Pistols “Friggin’ in The Rigging” then you’ll no doubt love this. The fifth and final disc features an excellent 1980 live recording from the “BBC In Concert” archives and in the introduction, the presenter informs us that the band were fresh off a successful tour supporting the Ramones. Here we do get the classics “Brickfield Nights” and “First Time” as well as a superb run through of “Living in The City” and a version of The Lurkers “New Guitar in Town”. So, all in all I reckon this compilation will be a must-have for even the most die-hard of Boys fans, you can get it from Cherry Red or from The Boys own web-site here.
Original band members Casino Steel, Matt Dangerfield and Honest John Plain got back together as The Boys to release the “Punk Rock Menopause” album in 2014 and continue to this day. Duncan Reid is now a solo artist with his own band The Big Heads.
Podcover photo by Peter Andersen courtesy of Duncan Reid
In Episode 5 of our special Retrosonic Podcast "Lockdown Lowdown" series we welcome Duncan Reid, formerly the bassist with original Melodic Punk Pop legends The Boys and currently performing and recording with his own band The Big Heads, into the virtual Retrosonic studio. In this thoroughly enjoyable romp through Duncan's life we go right back to his earliest childhood musical memories including seeing the Rolling Stones on TV amongst his disapproving Beatle-loving family and we discover the first record he bought with his own pocket money. He tells us of the first gig he went to and what he found in his Dad's cupboard and how it played an important part in his life. There are examples of his favourite singles and albums along with the artists and gigs that have had an impact on him over the years. He explains who influenced his bass playing and confesses to how he upset Bass Guitar magazine. Then we learn why he was awarded the freedom of a South American capital city, how he became big in Kensington and Chelsea and even bigger in Japan (without even knowing it!). All this and much, much more! Generously soundtracked by Duncan's own pick of the Pops throughout the episode and of course, including some of the very best of his own recorded work from his time with The Boys and Hollywood Killers to his debut solo album and bang up to date with The Big Heads excellent new LP "Don't Blame Yourself".
Retrosonic Podcast can be streamed and downloaded directly below or from our Soundcloud site here. Alternatively, you can subscribe for free at iTunes and Apple Podcasts.
Here's the great video for "To Live or Live Not" from the new Big Heads album, enjoy!
Retrosonic Podcast has a valid PRS certificate. Podcover photo by Peter Andersen courtesy of Duncan Reid. Check out our previous Lockdown Lowdown episodes with Leigh Heggarty of Ruts DC, Raymond Gorman of That Petrol Emotion/The Everlasting Yeah, Buddy Ascott of The Chords/The Fallen Leaves and Mike & Elsa from The Jack Cades.
There are only two people in the entire world who can claim to have played with the Ramones while not actually being tagged with the ‘Ramone’ nom-de-plume. Duncan Reid is one of those people. As singer and bass player of Joey Ramone’s favourite band, The Boys, Duncan rode on the crest of a wave during Punk’s original late-1970s heyday as part of a wider collective of friends and peers that included Sex Pistols, The Clash, Generation X and a host of other power-chord pioneers. The Boys remain one of the best-loved and influential bands of their generation. "Montevideo" from the Big Heads’ debut album "Little Big Head", earned Duncan the keys to the Uruguayan capital with the only other musicians to achieve this being Elton John and Paul McCartney! Following a cornucopia of stellar reviews for "Little Big Head", The Big Heads developed their unique, effortlessly entertaining, melodic brand of harmony laden Pop-Punk with "The Difficult Second Album". Their third album "Bombs Away" was released in 2017 garnering variety of awards and appearing in numerous best album of the year lists and featured fourteen catchy little ditties about life, death, paranoia and Viagra. 2019 sees the Big Heads touring eternally in the UK, France, Belgium, Spain, Japan, Korea and Germany including festival dates at Rebellion, Strummercamp and Scotland Calling. As well as a fourth album being recorded, "Little Big Head" is reissued with previously unreleased bonus tracks and splatter vinyl, while a vinyl single, "Kelly’s Gone Insane" is out on Crocodile Records, also with new bonus tracks. You can check out a review of Duncan Reid & The Big Heads recent show at The 100 Club which features photos and videos, in the Retro Man Blog archive here.
Duncan Reid at The 100 Club - photo copyright Retro Man Blog
The "Kelly's Gone Insane" single can be ordered via Crocodile Records and more info on Duncan Reid & The Big Heads can be found at their official web-site here. Words courtesy Crocodile Records.
Duncan Reid & The Big Heads at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog
Here are some photos and videos of a thoroughly enjoyable night of Punk Rock at London's iconic 100 Club featuring a top-notch three band line-up. Headliner Duncan Reid & The Big Heads were unfortunately missing regular guitarist Sophie due to illness so Mauro Venegas from The Speedways stepped in at the last minute to cover admirably. Mauro had an immediate chemistry with Duncan and his bandmates, the excellent drummer Karen Jones and impressive lead guitarist Nick Hughes. As promising as they sounded, Duncan didn't make Mauro's job any easier by including a couple of new songs in the set. And what a set it was...packed full of timeless Punk Pop, or Power Pop or whatever you want to call it - that took in the best of his debut solo album and those with The Big Heads including songs such as "Bombs Away", "Let's Skip To The Good Bit" and "Montevideo". Duncan is a non-stop blur of purple clad energy and he barely gives himself time to finish singing a line before he's off jumping around the stage again. Of course there's a pick of classics by The Boys including "First Time", "Brickfield Nights", "TCP" and "Sick On You" which got everyone singing along. Duncan mentions how lucky he was to be in The Boys with such talented songwriters and cheekily comments that's why his new songs are so good! He's not wrong though, as songs such as "Don't Stop" and "C'mon Josephine" certainly match the melodic genius of his previous employers.
Duncan Reid & The Big Heads at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog
Duncan Reid & The Big Heads at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog
Duncan Reid & The Big Heads at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog
Duncan Reid & The Big Heads at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog
Duncan Reid & The Big Heads at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog
Duncan Reid & The Big Heads at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog
Leeds band Cyanide Pills put on an all-action show with a set crammed full of their fast and naggingly memorable Punk tunes. Although some of the humourous songs such as "Suicide Bomber", "Mail Order Bride" and "Can't Get It Up" might at first put them firmly in The Toy Dolls and The Dickies camp, the quality of their superb songwriting, particularly on excellent tracks like "Government", "Sit Tight" and "Shallow" for example, prove there is much more depth to the band. A personal highlight of the night was the classic "Johnny Thunders Lived In Leeds" which boasts one of the greatest lines ever - 'I'm a Yorkshireman not a New York junkie'. The merchandise table was bulging with their already impressive back catalogue of multicoloured vinyl singles and if you didn't snap up the lot on the night then you can order them from Damaged Goods Records here.
Cyanide Pills at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog
Cyanide Pills at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog
Cyanide Pills at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog
Cyanide Pills at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog
It's been a while since we last saw The WitchDoktors play and it was refreshing to catch them again after so long and enjoy their whiskey soaked Rock 'n' Roll. The crunching Garage Punk of songs like "I'm Sick" and "No Pain No Gain" are balanced by tuneful favourites such as "Told You To Go", which I always felt was The WitchDoktors very own "Train In Vain". Talking of The Clash, the band don't shy away from their primary influence especially as "Black Bag" segues into a cover of "Guns of Brixton" and there's a sneaky drum attack tribute to "Tommy Gun" along the way too. The band are steeped in the outsider Rock 'n' Roll tradition of bowling shirts and brothel ceepers - Johnny Cash, Ramones, old school Rockabilly and it's all wrapped up in a swampy Voodoo sound perfectly captured in two of the night's highlights, "Neck Tattoo" and "Common Prayer For A Working Man". Great band and great guys. I hope it won't be too long before we see them again.
The WitchDoktors at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog
The WitchDoktors at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog
The WitchDoktors at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog
The WitchDoktors at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog
For more photos of the gig please check out the Retro Man Blog Facebook page here and you can find lots more original videos of all three bands at our YouTube channel here. Please click on the highlighted links to take you to the band's official web-sites for news and more info on upcoming tour dates and how to buy their records. Mauro is also involved with Some Weird Sin promotions who will be putting on the Pump It Up Power Pop weekender at The Lexington on July 27th and 28th which features Duncan Reid & The Big Heads and The Priscillas among others.
Duncan Reid live at the 12 Bar Club - Photo by Paul Slattery
So, it was back up to the 12 Bar Club again which is fast becoming our favourite venue and hang-out in London, this time to see a solo show by Duncan Reid, the bassist from The Boys. Duncan is promoting his excellent new album “Little Big Head”, which effortlessly continues on from The Boys impressive legacy of timeless melodic song-writing, packed full of harmonies and memorable choruses. It really is one of those perfect albums – from the sequencing of the songs, the depth and strength of the song-writing, the overall sound and punch of the production and the great cover art photography by David Apps, who has already featured on the Blog and Retrosonic Podcast in his own right. The whole package is faultless and I was looking forward to hearing the songs live.
The Feathers with added Spizz - Photo by Paul Slattery
Support on the night came from The Feathers, who feature Danie on guitar and vocals, decked out with spiky red hair and a union jack tailcoat jacket, looking like an extra from Derek Jarman’s “Jubilee”. Dazzle is on drums and multi-coloured haired Molly, none other than Spizz’s daughter on bass and vocals, and they kicked up a great Glam-Punk racket. It was fun and raw and featured a stage invasion for a sing-along “When Was the Last Time You Had Sex” and then an appearance from Molly's proud dad Spizz, who joined the band for a rendition of Spizzenergi's classic “Amnesia". The Feathers are a really enjoyable band and well worth checking out.
Duncan and Anna - Photo by Paul Slattery
Duncan Reid took to the tiny 12 Bar stage, and slammed into the great “Montevideo” from the new album, it’s clear from the start that Duncan has lost none of his trademark energy as he leaps around the stage, slinging his bass around, he looks remarkably youthful. It is then into “TCP”, The Boys tribute to the Ramones and the trusty remedy to acne. “She’s a Handful” is taken from the “Mattless Boys” album that Duncan did with Honest John Plain. They called it that as a joke because all The Boys played on it apart from Matt Dangerfield. Two more excellent songs from the new “Little Big Head” album follow “Aren’t Women Wonderful” and “Thinking”, which with its rumbling slow bass build up and clever word-play is one of the night’s highlights. The band then give a sprightly work-out to The Undertones “Teenage Kicks”, with guitarist Alex Gold taking over on lead vocals and the song fits in perfectly with the night’s set-list. “Too Late” the piano led ballad follows and then Alex is back on lead vocals to sing one of his own songs “Oh Roisin”, released under the band name Darling Boy, it’s a nice gesture by Duncan and the song is warmly received. “I’m fed up with telling everyone that Alex is not my son” Duncan quips, and there is no denying there is a resemblance, not only in appearance, but in the quality song-writing stakes too.
Alex and Duncan - Photo by Paul Slattery
I think Duncan has assembled a great band around him, and there is undoubted chemistry amongst them all, but in particular with Alex as they trade riffs and synchronised guitar-hero leaps and poses, it’s very entertaining. I knew that Alex performed as a singer-songwriter in his own right and also continues the fine work laid down by the now sadly defunct Word Magazine by promoting “Word In Your Ear” gigs and events for ex-Magazine subscribers, along with the magazine’s founders David Hepworth and Mark Ellen. I asked Duncan about the rest of the band and he explained, “Tom, the drummer is a young school friend of Alex and they grew up together in Redditch. Guitarist Anna, I met in Germany, she was in a band with Vom Richie from Die Toten Hosen called Wet Dog. Tom is allergic to vegetables, Alex is a vegetarian and Anna doesn't do milk or nuts. Promoters all over Europe are pulling their hair out when asked to feed us..!” They are a multi-talented bunch – Anna is also an excellent guitarist, a supercool presence to Duncan’s left, who takes over on bass when Duncan plays the keyboards and then Alex also covers on keyboards – in fact, Tom’s the only one who doesn’t swap instruments throughout the gig! It’s great to see a solo artist performing, not just with a backing band, but as a band, if you get my drift, and this becomes apparent on the great track “Kelly’s Gone Insane”, which tonight surpasses the already pretty-damn-near-perfect recorded version. Alex takes over lead vocals again for a rabble-rousing sing-along of arguably, The Boys finest moment, “Brickfield Nights” before we have a bit of a breather with “All Fall Down”.
Alex, Duncan, Anna and Tom - Photo by Paul Slattery
Another great rocker from the new album, “77” follows, and then there is a trio of classic Boys numbers to end the set, “I Don’t Care”, “Box Number” and a fantastic “First Time”, which sparks off mass outbreaks of air-guitar and singing from the crowd….great stuff! Of course, following such an excellent performance there are calls for an encore and we are treated to “Gotta Call Simone” from the new album, which you can also hear on our new Retrosonic Podcast, The Boys’ “Terminal Love” which morphs into “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” and it's list of Rock 'n' Roll casualties. Then to cap it all, a rowdy finale of The Yobs comedy Punk classic “The Worm Song” and “Sick On You” which was a Boys track originally performed way back when they were The Hollywood Brats. What an excellent show, packed full of so many memorable songs and a superb energetic performance from Duncan Reid and his band, The Big Heads – the buzz around the 12 Bar and the smiles on the crowd’s faces afterwards were certainly testament to that.
Duncan Reid at the 12 Bar Club - Photo by Paul Slattery
With thanks to Paul Slattery for the great photos - you can see more photos by heading over to the Retro Man Blog Facebook page and hitting "Like", for access to the Photo Album. For more info, news and updates please check out Duncan Reid's official web-site, Alex Gold's Darling Boy web-site and The Feathers Facebook page. You can hear a track from Duncan Reid's excellent new album "Little Big Head" in our brand new Episode 8 of Retrosonic Podcast below:
Tomorrow at The Borderline, The Boys will perform a one time only special set comprising only songs from their first two albums "The Boys" and "Alternative Chartbusters", to mark the definitive digitally remastered Deluxe Re-issues of both. The new versions will feature previously unreleased bonus material and sleeve notes by Mojo Journalist Dave Henderson and a track by track guide from Singer/Guitarist Matt Dangerfield. Legendary Hollywood Brats singer and founding member of The Boys, Andrew Matheson, is flying in specially from Canada to join the band on stage as a very special guest. Andrew was in the Hollywood Brats with Casino Steel before they both joined up with Matt Dangerfield in 1975 after he left the famed pre-Punk band London SS. Matt brought along his Art college friend Honest John Plain and they recruited Duncan Kid Reid on bass and Jack Black on Drums, before going on to unleash some of the most influential melodic Power Pop to emerge from that early 70's Punk scene such as "I Don't Care" and the classic "Brickfield Nights".
The Boys - The original 1975 line-up
The Borderline is on Orange Yard, off Manette Street, Charing Cross Road near Tottenham Court Road Tube Station. Here's a reminder of The Boys in their prime...
Support on the night comes from the Glam Stompin' Punk Rockin' band The Derellas...
Born in a small, English cathedral town, Duncan Reid's early dream was to be the next George Best. There was only one thing standing in his way: a complete lack of football talent! So, having discovered a vintage bass guitar in his father's cupboard, Duncan headed to London in his teenage years to land smack bang at the birth of the 70s punk explosion. Duncan's future fellow band member, Matt Dangerfield, had a basic 4 track studio in the coal cellar of his Maida Vale apartment. It was at this flat that members of The Sex Pistols, Clash, Damned, Generation X and others took their first recording steps along the path which would change Rock 'n' Roll forever. One of the bands which coalesced out of this youthful melee was The Boys, with Duncan Reid joining as the bassist who would also go on to sing lead on some of the songs. The Boys became known as "the Beatles of Punk", a title given to them due to their, at that time, unique fusion of harmonies and pop sensibility with raw punk. By the time The Boys had recorded their 4 albums and toured extensively throughout Europe and the US, their influence had spread far and wide to groups like Green Day and Die Toten Hosen, as well as being quoted by the likes of Joey Ramone as his favourite group.
Photo by David Apps
It was during a tour with The Ramones that Duncan, together with fellow Boys member Casino Steel, provided backing vocals for the live version of their hit, "Baby I Love You". In this way Duncan became one of only 2 people in history to play with The Ramones while not themselves being called Ramone! The Boys also recorded periodically as The Yobs creating a whole genre of comedy punk with their versions of "The Worm Song" and "Christmas Carols", a genre much copied since. 18 years after they first split The Boys were persuaded to reform for 2 gigs in Tokyo.
Pressure for new gigs came from a new generation discovering The Boys for the first time. For the last 13 years the band have again played worldwide, headlining in front of audiences in the UK, Germany, Spain, Italy, Slovenia, Norway, Sweden, Japan, United States, Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil and elsewhere. After a further recording with other Boys members under the name "The Mattless Boys", and writing songs for other bands such as The Cute Lepers, Duncan has finally recorded his first solo album, bringing a unique angle to the pop punk genre, and taking it into new realms of melodic sweetness.
Photo by David Apps
Opening track "The One" is a great start, it's pure melodic Pop and paves the way for the delights to follow. Next up it's the clever lyrical word-play of "Thinking", which makes me think of the intelligently crafted guitar pop of Marshall Crenshaw. This is followed by the hand-clapping and stabbing organ of the rousing "Montevideo", which has a chorus to die for, and echoes of Cheap Trick and Tom Petty. "Too Late" is a slower, piano led Beatles influenced number which is followed by the excellent "Kelly's Gone Insane" which is a bouncy Power Pop delight of a song.
"His Name" has a sort of slide guitar Replacements feel to it and then it's probably the album's highlight, the stunning "Gotta Call Simone" which is a faultless piece of song-writing, perfectly timeless with it's tale of having your head turned by pretty girls and it even has a cool little Bass break too. The Country-tinged "If That's what You Want?" really tugs at the heartstrings before you are jolted back down to earth by the muscular Pop of "77" and it's love story played out first of all in a crammed, hot and sweaty Marquee on Wardour Street. The romantic couple then move on, and we find them hanging out at the Speakeasy with Lemmy playing on the fruit machine in the background and The Boys themselves making a fleeting cameo appearance, trying to fit in with the Punk scene.
Album cover art by David Apps
"All Fall Down" is another slower ballad and "Shot In The Back" lightens the mood with it's amusing take on trying to stay on the right side of an angry loved one. "Aren't Women Wonderful" is almost like an immediate follow-up, an olive branch or at least a nice bunch of flowers as way of apology. "Little Big Head" draws to a close with the beautifully drawn "Rolling On" which Duncan claims is "his life story in 3 minutes 12 seconds..." It's a nostalgic, but contented, look back on growing up in a small town, moving up to the big city and forming a band. But it doesn't just dwell on the Rock 'n' Roll lifestyle, instead, Duncan admits to growing older gracefully and realising the importance of his family. It's an honest and heartfelt song that rounds things off perfectly and leaves you with a nice warm glow as the album fades and the melodies continue to linger in your head.
Here's the great video to "Gotta Call Simone" - there are more on Duncan's YouTube channel.
Check out the Duncan Reid official web-site for news, gig news and updates and to find out how to buy the wonderful "Little Big Head" album, which is a must-have for any record collection...!
Thanks to Paul Slattery for the superb portrait at the top. The album cover and official Photos of Duncan were designed and taken by David Apps of Artifical Designs.
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