Wilko Johnson "Love and Death and Rock 'n' Roll" a Play with Live Music by Jonathan Maitland

I was intrigued when a friend suggested going along to see “Wilko: Love and Death and Rock ‘n’ Roll” which was advertised as a “play with live music” (as opposed to the dreaded ‘musical’) about guitar legend Wilko Johnson and his influential pre-Punk raw R&B band Dr. Feelgood at the Southwark Playhouse Theatre. I checked it out online and the reviews were unanimously ecstatic – to win over passionate, die-hard fans of a band is something of an achievement but that’s exactly what writer Jonathan Maitland and his quite remarkable cast seemed to have pulled off. We went along to the sold out matinee performance on the very last day of the show’s run at the Playhouse, but don’t worry if you missed out because they announced that the play will be transferred to the West End with a well-deserved additional set of dates at the Leicester Square Theatre in July. Maitland, a well-known author, journalist and playwright has managed to distil pretty much all the essential ingredients of Wilko’s inspiring and quite remarkable story into the thoroughly entertaining two hour show. It starts off in the unique landscape of Canvey Island in Essex, reclaimed land in the Thames estuary that is mostly below sea level and dominated by a huge oil refinery and flood defence systems which were erected much too late to stop the fatal flooding in 1953. Canvey Island boy John Wikinson meets his beloved Canvey Island girl Irene and invites her to see his band that will be playing at the local venue the Monico that evening. It turns out that this band is actually a rag-tag ensemble of mates playing skiffle outside the Monico, busking their jug band sound to drunks and punters making their way home. 

The Labworth, Canvey Island - Photo by Retro Man Blog

Irene and Wilko become inseparable, they marry young, and her presence looms large across the whole arc of the story. Wilko is unable to afford his coveted Fender Telecaster guitar but Irene generously steps in and pays for it in full. So, hugely inspired by American Blues, R’n’B and Rock ‘n’ Roll, Wilko decides to form a proper band with three of his mates who all live within a stone’s throw of each other on Canvey. In thrall to the Mississippi Delta Blues, they name themselves Dr. Feelgood and decide on a stripped back raw sound and image far removed from the Prog and Glam Rock excesses of the early to mid-70’s, ditching most of the cover versions in their set in favour of Wilko-penned originals. Toying with the hard and rough reputation of Canvey Island, the band look mean and moody, and they play on the swampy backwater atmosphere that they name the Thames Delta. The charismatic Lee Collinson takes on the role of lead vocalist and is renamed Lee Brilleaux partly due to his hair looking like a Brillo pad but given a New Orleans style twist. John B. Sparks on bass becomes Sparko and drummer John Martin is christened The Big Figure and due to the proliferation of ‘Johns’, Wilkinson becomes Wilko Johnson. The casting of Johnson Willis is inspired (and not just because of his real name!) he has the look and captures, not only Wilko’s wide-eyed incredulous stare and vocal mannerisms, but his unique guitar style too. This guitar style was influenced by Wilko’s attempts to emulate his hero Mick Green from Johnny Kidd & The Pirates, he can’t quite manage it but ends up with his own choppy rhythm and lead all-in-one sound that will in turn go on to inspire countless guitarists. The stage is set with drums and amps and there is another really pleasant surprise when the cast hammer out some early Dr. Feelgood classics, they sound bloody amazing. David John on drums and Georgina Field on bass are a wicked rhythm section – and yes, it does seem a bit strange at first having Sparko played by a female actor, but she nails his “walking backwards and forward” style and any doubts are very quickly dispelled. 

The Monico, Canvey Island - Photo by Paul Slattery

The real revelation is Jon House as Lee Brilleaux, who has the physical presence and gruff vocal delivery down to a tee and proves himself to be a mean harmonica player too. The four of them could quite easily go out on tour as the UK’s premier Dr. Feelgood tribute act. The only thing missing is Johnson (the actor) doesn’t attempt Wilko’s uniquely wired skittering across the stage, moves and poses which is a bit of a shame. The script skips the fact that Dr. Feelgood were absolutely huge at one point, with a number one live album “Stupidity” in the charts and were a big influence on Punk Rock, both with New York’s CBGB’s crowd and on Joe Srummer, John Lydon and the early London Punk explosion. But I guess these are minor quibbles after all. The play does cover the somewhat unusual circumstances around the band’s break-up – of course there are the usual tensions between band mates constantly on tour, pretty normal for many a band and there's the frustration over Wilko’s diminishing songwriting prowess and the others lack of contributions. However, they do gloss over the differing drug and booze habits that did cause a divide between Wilko, who favoured speed and the solitude of his own room and the heavy drinking, hard partying of the others. But it’s a song called “Paradise” about Wilko’s somewhat blasé attitude to monogamy that finally causes an irreparable divide between Lee and Wilko who considers it his masterpiece. Despite his love for Irene, he professes his affection for another woman in the song’s lyrics and the band take exception to the morally dubious sentiments. Wilko leaves the band and the once tight frontman and his trusty guitar wielding sidekick were never to be reconciled. There are some touching scenes in the play where Wilko is visited by the ghost of Brilleaux, who very sadly died of cancer in 1994, and the pair reminisce on their times together and the chemistry they had. “You love the Stones but there’s a reason you don’t own any Mick Jagger or Keith Richards solo albums, it’s because they are shit, they need each other” Brilleaux tells Wilko, before twisting the knife a bit reminding him that they actually scored their biggest chart hit with “Milk and Alcohol”.  After Wilko had left Dr. Feelgood he formed Solid Senders and then also joins Ian Dury & The Blockheads but is hampered by his own perceived lack of musicality among the virtuosity of the rest of the line-up. He then forms the Wilko Johnson Band with drummer Dylan Howe and the Blockhead’s legendary bassist Norman Watt-Roy, who has actually appeared in the play on occasion. 

Down by the jetty, Canvey Island - Photo Retro Man Blog

Wilko’s beloved Irene (played by the excellent Georgina Fairbanks) passes away with cancer and this terrible disease is of course going to play a big role in the next part of the story. Before we get to that, I must mention that the play also touches on Wilko’s early career as a rebellious teacher, his love of Astronomy and English literature and his tendency to pepper his speech with quotes from Shakespeare and the poets. There’s also his appearance in Game of Thrones where he plays the mute executioner Sir Ilyn Payne, lucky for him as he didn’t have to learn any lines, just look mean. In 2013 Wilko is diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer and given less than a year to live. He decides against chemotherapy, claiming that he feels alive and ready to enjoy what time he has left including a final farewell tour of the UK and a trip to his beloved Japan. Then another unexpected twist occurred when a photographer, who happened to be a doctor, was astounded that he was still careering around the stage when in reality he should have been at death’s door. The photographer referred him to a colleague for a second opinion and it turned out Wilko had been misdiagnosed and there was a chance that the supposedly inoperable tumour could be removed. The doctor warns Wilko of the dangers of the operation and that it would be a lengthy procedure, “I’m going to need a lunch break” he quips. Wilko agrees, the operation is a success and a 3kg tumour ‘the size of a watermelon’ is removed, meaning that he has to now come to terms with the fact that he will not be dying anytime in the near future after all. I was promoting a Retro Man Blog night at Wilko’s local The Railway in Southend-on-Sea in December 2013 with TV Smith from the Adverts and supporting were Eight Rounds Rapid who included Wilko’s son Simon on guitar. Wilko turned up and of course was mobbed by well-wishers all desperate to chat and with his usual self-effacing humour he claimed that the cancer diagnosis was a good career move, and he was now playing bigger venues than he had in years. It was this inspirational attitude that won him even more admirers and I’m sure that “Wilko: Love and Death and Rock ‘n’ Roll” will hopefully encourage many more people to check out the music of Dr. Feelgood and the remarkable story of Wilko Johnson, a truly inspirational musical icon.

Wilko and son Simon (Eight Rounds Rapid), Retro Man Blog Night, The Railway Southend, 2013 by Paul Hughes

You can see our Canvey Island location report, including photos of Dr. Feelgood on the Naughty Rhythms Tour in 1975 by photographer Paul Slattery, in our Retro Man Blog archive feature here. Thanks to Paul Slattery, Paul Hughes and Buddy Ascott. Photos of the play by Retro Man Blog. To book tickets for the Leicester Square Theatre in July please check out the box-office link here and for more information please visit the official Facebook page here.

Eight Rounds Rapid Release Their Third Album "Love Your Work" (Tapete Records) a Blistering, Visceral Attack on The Senses

Eight Rounds Rapid have just released their third album "Love Your Work" on the excellent German label Tapete (Robert Forster, Monochrome Set etc) and it shows the band taking a big leap forward, broadening their sound and horizons quite impressively. They've seemingly taken the feel of "Johnnie Ray" and "Reverse" from previous album "Objet D'Art" as the template for this new set of songs and while there's undoubtedly less of the full-on cranked-up R&B of their previous releases, it doesn't mean the band have smoothed out any of their edges. Not a chance. If anything "Love Your Work" is more challenging and spiky than ever before. But don't worry, while the album will no doubt appeal to a much wider audience, there's still plenty of those classic trademark ERR sounds to keep all you existing fans more than satisfied. "Love Your Work" is visceral and hypnotic and is packed full of David Alexander's wry observations on the state of our nation. He has the knack of elevating the mundane minutiae of life in Brexit Britain superbly and it's difficult to say where lyrics stop and poetry starts. Opening track "You Wait" sets a scene that's full of simmering aggression and tension and it's this theme that runs throughout the entire album. The song's protagonist seems to be trapped in one of those endless call centre scenarios, waiting impatiently, trying to get through, stuck on hold probably listening to awful piped music "he's in a meeting, can I take a message?" You can feel him gradually unravelling as the "you just wait" mantra twists into the ominous threat of "you just wait!". The threat of violence permeates "Love Your Work" and nowhere is this more apparent than in "Passive Agressive". This is what I would call a classic Eight Rounds Rapid song in that it distils all that is great about the band into a two and a half minute adrenaline-fuelled blast. It places you squarely in the heart of a low-life low-rent criminal fraternity and you can visualize small time drug deals with fidgety thugs in pub toilets - "don't look at me funny, I gave you the money". It's driven along on a blistering guitar riff before the song breaks down into a frantic argument - "there's no negotiation, there's no fucking money you slimy little prick". It's one of the best songs the band have written. Luckily the tension lifts a bit with the next song "Love Don't" which is pretty much a Bluesy swing number with Simon Johnson's guitar whizzing all over the place, floating above Jools Cooper's fluid basslines and Lee Watkins superb jazzy drumming. It proves my theory that they are among the best rhythm sections around at the moment.

Eight Rounds Rapid - Photo by Paul Hughes

The switch of styles throughout the album is really what sets it apart - quite a few of the songs are almost like atmospheric mini-movie soundtracks, initially based around the foundation of the drums and bass with Simon's inventive playing setting the scene for David Alexander's evocative lyrics/poetry. Then you get something like "Retro Band" with it's clicking drum machine and unsettling background noises that is as unusual as it is addictive. David Quantick compared the band to Sleaford Mods in a recent review for Classic Rock magazine and after listening to this track I can kind of see his point. It's not just the backing track they use in "Retro Band" but the way both acts are using their local vernacular to shine a spotlight on the current state of our nation, warts and all. Another example of this shift in sound would be the hilarious "Onesie" which near as damn it, nails today's popular so-called culture succintly with it's simple mantra of "I took a selfie in my onesie". It's a jittery avant-garde Jazz blast with some wicked sax from George Cleghorn that reminds me of the late 70's New York No-Wave scene. "Letter" is one of my favourites on the album, a slow burning song with some great choppy ryhthm guitar. Is it a love song for the Coronavirus times? At first I thought so - "when this is over, when this is through, I'm gonna write a letter to you, I'm gonna make it better for you". However, this is Eight Rounds after all and the sampled atmospheric strings and creepy voice in the background makes you wonder if it's actually something slightly more sinister. "Future Estates" is an absolute classic where David Alexander's idiosyncratic half-spoken vocal delivery of his stunning street poetry clicks perfectly with the musical soundtrack. It's so evocative. You're immediately transported to kicking-out time on a Friday night in provincial Brexit-Britain, waiting in a taxi rank in the pissing rain trying to avoid the seething aggression from the "ragamuffin street urchin toerags" all around you. It conjures up images of dodgy tattoo parlours, botox and nail bars and raucous hen and stag parties - "ticket tout lash out lip pout fell out..." Not only does the song boast what I think are David's best lines yet, it also features some unbelievable guitar from Simon - he mangles the strings just like Pixies' Joey Santiago, cranking up the tension almost to breaking point. What a song. "Tricks" is a return to the old-school ERR sound of rough and ready Canvey Island R&B that you've come to expect from the band. It's topped off with a superb harmonica solo and is probably the closest the album gets to what you might call a traditional Rock & Roll song. However, "Mirror" changes the feel again with its lovely shimmering guitar textures reminiscent of Wire's Bruce Gilbert around the "A Bell Is a Cup Until It Is Struck" period.

There aren't really any other contemporary bands I can think of like Eight Rounds Rapid, they're impossible to pin down or categorize. I mean, their uniform of black suits, white shirts and skinny black ties harks back to classic late 70's/early 80's Power Pop, that most innocuous and feelgood of musical genres. But there's certainly nothing innocuous about Eight Rounds Rapid and not a lot of feelgood (excuse the pun) if truth be told. After all, the band look more like a bunch of bouncers outside a local neon-lit boozer than some frothy New Wave band. It's not easy-listening that's for sure. Their music is challenging and thought-provoking and sometimes it can drive you to distraction just like the best Krautrock and Post-Punk bands have the tendency to do. Sure, there are bits of The Fall, early Talking Heads, Can and Public Image Ltd, maybe not musically, but in the way they push the listener to the edge of their comfort zone. However, when you get it you really get it and it's ultimately rewarding. I sometimes wonder if there's a grand plan behind Eight Rounds Rapid. Some of their press releases and statements are challenging, sarcastic almost, are they taking the piss or what? Are they a parody, some kind of Anti-Rock art statement or are they just four Essex blokes who like to get together and kick up a goddamn almighty racket? A bit of all I suspect. But in the end you can do all the theorizing and pontificiating you like, the bottom line is it's music that hits you in the guts, smacks you in the nose but then makes you wonder just what the hell is coming next from Eight Rounds Rapid. I have no idea but I'm certainly looking forward to finding out.

You can hear "Passive Agressive" from "Love Your Work" in Episode 39 of Retrosonic Podcast.

Retrosonic Podcast · Episode 39 "Be Seeing You!"

Useful Links: For more information on Eight Rounds Rapid check out their web-site here or their Facebook page here. "Love Your Work" is available to buy here from Tapete Records. Thanks to David Alexander. Thanks to Sidewinder DJ David Edwards for being the first to tip me off about the band at the very start. Thanks to Mondo & Piley at Radio Podrophenia. They released the band's debut single "Writeabout" on their own label. Hello to all at The Railway Hotel, Southend-on-Sea. One of the U.K.'s best independent Pub Venues where Eight Rounds Rapid played as part of one of our joint Retro Man Blog/Podrophenia Nights. Band photo by Paul Hughes.

The Len Price 3 and Pubmonkey Movie Screening at The Railway Southend-on-Sea February 27th

The Len Price 3 at The Railway - Photo copyright Retro Man Blog

This was a great double bill at one of our favourite venues, The Railway Hotel in Southend-on-Sea. First of all we had the screening of the excellent British indie film "Pubmonkey" followed by a live set by The Len Price 3, who wrote the movie's score. Lead actor Phil Deguara and the movie's writer Jamie O'Hara, who also plays the psychotic debt-collector Bingo, were in attendance to introduce the screening and chat to people throughout the evening. If you are not familiar with the movie you can check out the in-depth interview in our Retrosonic Podcast Pubmonkey special with Jamie and The Len Price 3's Glenn Page talking about the making of the film and how the band got involved with writing the music. It also features some exclusive music from the film's score and of course a selection of other Len Price 3 tracks that pop up during the movie. You can listen to and download the Podcast free of charge from our Soundcloud site or subscribe for free at the iTunes store.

Phil (left) and Jamie introduce Pubmonkey - Photo Retro Man Blog

Pubmonkey is the story of how a drunken shoe salesman's life gets turned upside down. Eddie is the Pubmonkey, an amateur philosopher, chronic loser and Sinatra fan whose only discernible talent is entertaining lowlifes for free drinks. His life has taken a downward turn, stuck in a dead end job in a shoe shop, one morning he receives a phone call from an irate addict known as Loony Noonie. He accuses Eddie of stealing a shipment of cocaine and gives him till 8pm that evening to return it or he’ll kill his girlfriend. Eddie knows nothing about the cocaine or why his girlfriend has been taken. He decides to rally a bunch of people from his colourful past in a bizarre rescue attempt. These include an aging gang of builders collectively referred to as The Berts and an unhinged debt-collector known as Bingo. Will Eddie be able to get this disparate group together in time? Will Loony Noonie’s sanity hold out? But, most importantly, will Eddie be able to keep himself sober enough to make it through the day and save his girlfriend?

Photos above copyright Retro Man Blog

The Len Price 3 followed the movie with a storming set of their razor sharp vignettes on modern life, bursting with so much energy that the Railway's P.A. system was almost on the brink of collapse! Tonight's set was one of the tightest and loudest I have seen from the band and it included a choice selection of tracks from throughout their career. So, we are treated to a rare outing of the excellent "Dorolia", the B-side of their first single right through to an as yet unreleased new song "Nothing I Want", which will feature on their forthcoming record store day single. The Len Price 3 will be appearing at our next Retro Man Blog Night at the Half Moon Putney on May 08th, together with Graham Day & The Forefathers and The Galileo 7, you can buy tickets in advance from here.

The Len Price 3 - Photo copyright Retro Man Blog

A right pair of Pubmonkeys - Phil and Jamie at The Railway

For more photos of the evening please head on over to the Retro Man Blog Facebook page and hit "Like" (if you are not already following or subscribing) to access the exclusive photo album. For news on future screenings and gigs please check out the Pubmonkey official Facebook page.

The Len Price 3 + "Pubmonkey" Movie Screening at The Railway Hotel Southend on February 27th.

Our favourite music venue, The Railway Hotel in Southend-on-Sea, will be hosting a very special event on Friday February 27th when they will screen the excellent black-comedy crime and booze-fest "Pubmonkey", followed by a live set by The Len Price 3. We first reported that The Len Price 3 were going to feature in the movie Pubmonkey back on the Blog here in November 2012, and after two and half years of filming, recording, editing and a lot of bloody hard work from Director Jean-Claude Deguara, Writer Jamie O'Hara and their team, which mostly consisted of an impressive number of family and friends, we finally got to see the completed film when we attended a private screening of the first ever showing of the movie at the British Film Institute on the South Bank along with the crew, cast and their families. It might have been a long wait, but it was certainly worth it, the film is a resounding success and testament to all those involved. I spoke to lead actor Phil Deguara after the screening and said how impressed I was that an Independent movie could look so impressive, "It's not really an Independent film" Phil said "as most Independents have some sort of financial backing and we didn't". The Len Price 3 provide lots of great songs along with incidental music to the film's soundtrack and also make an appearance too as featured in this video.

You can hear more about the fascinating story behind the making of the movie and The Len Price 3's involvement in our special Retrosonic Pubmonkey Podcast with the movie's writer/actor Jamie O'Hara and the LP3's singer and songwriter, Glenn Page. We are also very pleased to announce that the Podcast features unreleased incidental music from the movie's soundtrack. The promo video to "Swing Like a Monkey" above also features footage and characters from Pubmonkey and was performed during the last day of filming at the Antelope in Tooting, South London. You can listen to the Podcast below or download for free at our Soundcloud site or iTunes.

Check out the Pubmonkey Facebook page for regular updates, here's a trailer to give you a taster...

To book tickets please check the The Railway Hotel web-site or give them a call on 01702 343 194

The Len Price 3 + Bif Bam Pow! & DJ's Piley & Mondo at the Retro Man Blog/Podrophenia Night at The Railway Hotel Southend-on-Sea April 26th

The Len Price 3 at The Railway Southend - Photo by Paul Slattery

Our first Retro Man Blog/Podrophenia night of 2014 was another great night of music, dancing and rather a lot of drinking! Headliners The Len Price 3 were back at The Railway in Southend-on-Sea to promote their fourth album "Nobody Knows". The band played a blinder, almost literally, as a flying drum stick nearly hit a promoter in the eye! Luckily there was no need to stop the gig for medical treatment and The Len Price 3 didn't miss a beat as they powered on to deliver a superb set packed full of tracks from the new album and those much loved classics such as "Rentacrowd", "Pictures" and "If I Ain't Got You". One of the highlights of the band's recent gigs has been "Nobody Knows" closing track "The London Institute", it's developing into a real crowd favourite and probably points the way to the future for the band - stretching their songwriting to a different dimension while not losing any of their trademark power and energy. With their recent spate of gigs, the band just keep getting better and better and if you haven't seen them play yet then now is the time! 

Bif Bam Pow! by Paul Slattery

Opening up the night were the excellent Canvey Island based Pub Rockin' band Bif Bam Pow! who were the perfect act to get everyone warmed up with their take on some great raw Blues, Soul and R'n'B tracks. To round off a great evening everyone reconvened down in the Railway's bar to dance along to Piley & Mondo's eclectic mix of music which never fails to keep the atmosphere going.

The Len Price 3 by Paul Slattery

With many thanks to Fi, Dave and all the staff and gang at The Railway, Duncan, Bif Bam Pow! and of course my lovely co-hosts and top DJ's Piley & Mondo from Podrophenia. Many thanks indeed go to Paul Slattery and Paul Hughes for the excellent photos, you can see more great pics of the goings on throughout the evening at Paul Hughes Flickr page here.

The effect the new LP3 album can have on you...! Photo by Paul Hughes

You can read a nice review of The Len Price 3's recent show at The 12 Bar Club with The Fallen Leaves by none other than Leigh Heggarty, guitarist with Ruts DC, TV Smith and Back To Zero. You can check out his excellent Blog "Leigh's Mad World of Guitars" here. 

The Len Price 3 at The Railway Southend by Paul Slattery

The Len Price 3 Return to The Railway Hotel Southend-on-Sea April 26th with Bif Bam Pow! & DJs Piley & Mondo

Retro Man Blog and Podrophenia join forces once again for another top night of entertainment at The Railway Hotel, Southend-on-Sea on Saturday April 26th. The Len Price 3 make their long-awaited return to promote their brand new album "Nobody Knows". Support comes from the lively Canvey Island based RnB Pub Rockin' Bif Bam Pow! and after the live music, DJ's Piley & Mondo will be spinning an eclectic selection of top tunes to keep everyone dancing until the early hours...

The Len Price 3 at The Railway Hotel, Southend-on-Sea by Paul Slattery

For a report on our previous gig with The Len Price 3 at The Railway Hotel, which went down a storm, please check out the Blog archive feature here. The gig also got a great review in The Word Magazine which we featured here. Check out the Podrophenia Podcast archive here. Anyway, it's always a great night at The Railway, so hope to see you there. Live music will start from around 8pm until 11pm with kicking out time at 1am. Tickets are just a bargain £3.00 on the door.

Podrophenia DJ's Piley & Mondo entertain the crowd at The Railway

The Railway Hotel is at Clifftown Road, Southend-on-Sea SS1 1AJ just opposite Southend Central.

TV Smith and Eight Rounds Rapid at The Railway Hotel Southend-on-Sea December 07th

TV Smith and admirer - Photo by Paul Hughes

It’s no wonder that TV Smith has gone on record as saying Southend-on-Sea’s Railway Hotel is one of his favourite venues in the U.K. to play. They are a great match, both without huge (if any) financial backing but both tirelessly fighting their respective creative corners as true individuals in a sea of soulless branded chain venues and an equally soulless music industry. The Railway’s managers, Fi and Dave, put on a bewildering array of eclectic musical acts of all genres, along with film screenings and parties, often free or with a minimal cover-the-costs entrance fee such as this gig’s bargain ticket price of just £3.00. Tonight is a perfect example of what they offer, downstairs in the bar, Steve Hooker is entertaining the drinkers with his raw Rockabilly songs, augmented by a snare drummer, double bass and harmonica, it creates a lively buzz and is a perfect warm up for the night’s main event. This event is actually another joint get together with Retro Man Blog, Podrophenia DJ’s Piley & Mondo and Steve Pegrum’s excellent Southend Punk web-site for a night of great live music, DJ sets and of course a severe bout of boozing and socialising. 

Eight Rounds Rapid by Paul Hughes

I was really pleased that we could get local band Eight Rounds Rapid to open the show, I have been really impressed with what I have heard from them, and we received quite a few glowing comments after we played their last single “Channel Swimmer” in Retrosonic Podcast Episode 7. They have also started to get much wider recognition from respected BBC DJ’s Gideon Coe, Steve Lamacq and also David Quantick amongst others as well as some high profile shows supporting Wilko Johnson at London’s Koko. Now, here’s the thing. It’s very difficult to talk about Eight Rounds Rapid without mentioning Wilko Johnson, not just because they are both based in Southend but mainly due to the fact that guitarist Simon is Wilko’ s son. It might not be so apparent when listening to their recorded work, but live, Simon’s hugely impressive staccato guitar playing and his onstage mannerisms, although not quite as wired as Wilko’s, are cut from the same black-suited cloth. 

Eight Rounds Rapid by Paul Hughes

It’s also nice to see Wilko in the crowd tonight and he catches up with TV Smith and Steve Hooker, who he has recorded with in the past, as well as politely and patiently chatting to lots of awestruck punters. But despite that, Eight Rounds Rapid have forged their own idiosyncratic sound and are refreshingly very difficult to pin down – it’s a style that I guess could be said to almost divide opinion. With front man David’s deadpan delivery and half-spoken vocals, which are firmly rooted in A-House, Art Brut, Blue Aeroplanes territory, they challenge the expected norms of what a “Rock” band should be. They also occasionally remind me of Wire’s art project approach to being in a band, where they push the boundaries and limits between melody and noise, of what’s pleasantly catchy and what can grate and challenge the listener. It’s not to be filed under easy listening that’s for sure. But live they truly excel tonight, and Eight Rounds Rapid conjure up a powerfully hypnotic force on their slightly sinister little gems such as “Dostoevsky”, “Steve” and “Channel Swimmer”. 

Wilko Johnson and son Simon from Eight Rounds Rapid by Paul Hughes

The superb rhythm section of drummer Lee and bassist Jules lock in together perfectly and it’s nice to see a real onstage chemistry. It’s only on the swaggering bluesy beast of "My Mate" and a new song “I Want a Drink”, where that legendary rough Thames Estuary R’n’B sound comes to the fore and bassist Jules’ fluid runs bring to mind Norman Watt-Roy. They are called back for a well deserved encore and power through the new single “Writeabout” which was very generously part funded by tonight’s Radio Podrophenia DJ team of Dave Collins and Ian Pile, long-time staunch supporters of the band and evidently men of great taste! 

TV Smith by Paul Hughes

And then it’s time for TV Smith to take the stage to a warm reception from his loyal Southend fans. Armed only with his acoustic guitar he has emerged as a kind of Punk Rock folk troubadour in the grand tradition. He is a globe-trotting story-teller with topical protest songs full of a barbed yet humorous satire on modern life. It’s a life fraught with the issues of Globalisation, Surveillance, Corruption, Capitalism and well…the perils of Xmas…! For TV Smith’s sometime cynical and world-weary tales are not just aimless diatribes against “the Man” but often moving and perfectly drawn personal observations that many people can easily relate to. It’s politics of the individual, he’s not bashing you around the head with a “down with this sort of thing” placard, but he is opening eyes and ears to various issues that mean a lot to him. 

There are various dimensions to his approach too, he can use humour in different guises to make his point, whether it’s the less-than-subtle laugh out loud attack on festive consumerism in “Xmas Bloody Xmas” or on the clever wordplay of “It’s Expensive Being Poor”. On songs like “The Day We Caught the Big Fish” and “Generation Y” subjects such as nuclear submarines accidently sinking fishing vessels and the recent trend for youthful apathy towards politics, are  wrapped up in sublime melancholic songs that force you to think as you sing along. There’s Punky aggression on “Coming Into Land” and of course a rich back catalogue of songs to be plundered such as “We Who Wait”, “New Church” and “No Time To Be 21”. Promising new songs from the next album are also aired, and these include tonight’s set opener “The First One To Sign Up", "Replay" and a song that turns out to be one of my highlights of the set and a sure-fire future classic called “I Delete”. 

TV Smith at The Railway by Paul Hughes

We get the hilarious “Complaints Department”, the moving “The Lion and The Lamb” and a superb version of one of my favourite songs “You Saved My Life Then Ruined It” and it just goes to show the depth of TV Smith's song-writing. At one point he snaps a string on his guitar and then launches into an off-the-cuff performance of Cheap's “My String Will Snap" which goes down really well. For the encore we are treated to three classic Adverts songs “Gary Gilmore’s Eyes”, “Bored Teenagers” and a raucous “One Chord Wonders” – where TV invites The Railway’s soundman Duncan up on stage to join him on vocals. Duncan sings in local band Swindle and although he looks a bit bashful for, oh all of 10 seconds, he soon throws himself into the task with a huge grin while the now traditional Railway stage invasion takes place around him. It’s all over and time for TV to relax and chat to fans by his merchandise stall, a time that he always seems to relish. Then we retire back down to the bar to enjoy DJ’s Piley and Mondo’s excellent music and soak up the atmosphere of another great night at The Railway. I’d like to thank Tim, Eight Rounds Rapid, Fi, Dave, Heather, Duncan and the staff at The Railway, Steve Pegrum from Southend Punk, Dave and Ian from Podrophenia and to Paul Hughes for the excellent photos. Of course a huge “thank you” to all who came along and for all the encouragement and support. Cheers! 

Soundman Duncan with TV Smith by Paul Hughes

TV Smith has a brand new album “The Acoustic Sessions Volume 1” out now along with volume four of his highly entertaining Tour Diaries  entitled “To Heligoland and Beyond”. Eight Rounds Rapid new single “Writeabout” is available on Podrophenia Records as a limited edition 7” vinyl. Check out Podrophenia for their regular radio shows and Podcasts. Southend Punk is an excellent archive and resource and forthcoming events at The Railway Hotel can be found here. 

TV Smith and Wilko Johnson by Paul Hughes

Podrophenia DJ Mondo entertains the packed Railway bar by Paul Hughes

Eight Rounds Rapid by Paul Hughes

Piley in the pulpit - DJ Ian Pile by Steve Worrall

The customary Railway stage invasion - Photp by Paul Hughes

More of Paul Hughes’ excellent photos can be found at his Flickr site. More videos of Eight Rounds Rapid and TV Smith from the night are up on the Retro Man Blog You Tube channel now. 

Finally, don't forget our Retrosonic Podcast special edition with TV Smith which includes an in-depth interview and exclusive acoustic session featuring four classic songs.

TV Smith returns to The Railway, Southend-on-Sea December 07th with Eight Rounds Rapid & DJ's Mondo & Piley

TV Smith, the legendary voice of The Adverts, returns to one of his favourite U.K. venues, The Railway Hotel in Southend-on-Sea on Saturday December 07th. This will be our third joint promotion at The Railway with Retro Man Blog, Podrophenia and the Southend Punk Web-site, and is promising to be another great night as we are very pleased to announce that support comes from the excellent Eight Rounds Rapid. After the live music, Podrophenia DJ's Mondo & Piley will be playing their usual eclectic mix of Psych, Punk, Soul and unexpectedly funky TV themes. The Railway Hotel is located at Clifftown Road, Southend-on-Sea, Essex SS1 1AJ. For more info call 01702 343 194.

Photo by Paul Hughes

You can check out a review of our first gig with TV Smith at The Railway back in June 2012 on the Blog here, and the second one in November last year here. Both reviews feature excellent photographs from Paul Slattery, Paul Hughes, Sophie Lo and Eric Waring.

Don't forget our very special Retrosonic Podcast with TV Smith which features an exclusive four song acoustic session live in the Retrosonic Studio.

"TV Smith, the legendary voice of The Adverts and hugely respected solo performer, joins us (Steve from Retro Man Blog, Rock photographer Paul Slattery and Adam from The Jetsonics) in the Pod to discuss his influential career and play an exclusive four song acoustic session. From early gigs on the edge of Dartmoor with his first band Sleaze to playing the Roxy with The Adverts at the very beginning of the Punk Rock explosion. From appearing on Top of The Pops, the end of The Adverts and his following bands Cheap and The Explorers, to his reinvention as an acoustic Punk Rock troubadour, TV brings us right up to date to the release of his latest album “Coming Into Land” and the publication of his excellent “Punk Rock Tour Diaries”, which cover his adventures as a travelling solo performer armed only with a guitar, a suitcase and an emergency sandwich".

Thanks to Fi and Dave at The Railway, Dave and Ian, Steve Pegrum and Paul Hughes.

Eight Rounds Rapid "Writeabout": New Single Launch Party at The Railway Hotel, Southend on August 09th

Southend-On-Sea's Eight Rounds Rapid launch their new single 'Writeabout' with a free gig at The Railway Hotel in their hometown on Friday 09th of August, and it will be the very first chance to get your hands on a copy. The title track has never been available in any format prior to this single, which is the first release on Podrophenia Records and it's strictly limited to 500 hand-numbered copies. Support comes from the always excellent Tuppenny Bunters, and then join Podrophenia DJs Piley and Mondo downstairs in the bar for the aftershow party!
 
Piley and Mondo may be better known for their DJing and Podrophenia Radio show and Podcast, not to mention their joint gig promotions with me at The Railway Hotel for The Len Price 3 and TV Smith. Here, Podrophenia give us the low down on the new single 8RR single "Writeabout".

Photo by Paul Hughes

Who are Eight Rounds Rapid?
Southend's rising stars and estuary bred Rock ‘n’ Rollers, filtering Dr Feelgood Thames-Delta grooves through post-punk punch and new wave clout. 

Describe 8RR.

"Window-licking, channel-flicking, TV dinners, sniffing thinners, lotto-playing, fare-evading, shoplifting, jumble-sifting"

Where might I have seen 8RR?
Supporting Wilko Johnson on his Farewell Tour.

Supporting Thee Faction.
At Podrophenia live event nights.

Where might I have heard 8RR?
Previous single (Channel Swimmer) was played by...
Mark Radcliffe (6Music and Radio 2)
Gary Crowley (BBC Radio London)
Radio Podrophenia

Retrosonic Podcast

What do I need to know about the new single?
It's a limited edition 7" vinyl release - and the only format that "Writeabout" will ever be available on. The flip-side "Steve" is long-haul live crowd pleaser and fan favourite.

Check out The Eight Rounds Rapid Facebook page for up to date info and news. 

Photo by Paul Slattery

Photo shows Piley & Mondo in action at The Railway Hotel, Southend-on-Sea at the very first (and packed-out) Retro Man Blog/Podrophenia night with The Len Price 3 back in March 2012. 

TV Smith at The Railway Hotel Southend-on-Sea Nov 23rd a Retro Man Blog/Podrophenia/Southend Punk night

TV Smith - Photo by Paul Slattery

TV Smith's return to The Railway in Southend-on-Sea turned out to be another wonderful experience at what is fast becoming one of my all time favourite venues. As TV Smith said after our last gig there together back in June, "The Railway is a music venue run by music lovers for music lovers and that's a rare thing in the U.K.". He enjoyed it so much that the very next day he asked to do it all again. And so, here we were back again, and thanks to my joint promoters Dave Collins and Ian Pile from Podrophenia and Steve Pegrum from the Southend Punk web-site, we were greeted by another capacity crowd packed out with what must be the friendliest bunch of locals a venue could wish for. Fi and Dave Dulake have done wonders at The Railway and are transforming the upstairs venue, installing a new P.A. system and extending the stage since I was last there.

The Tuppenny Bunters - Photo by Steve Worrall

As well as doing a fantastic job running the place, and serving some amazing vegetarian food too, they also have time to perform in their own drum and organ duo, The Tuppenny Bunters, who opened tonight's show. Swapping instruments and vocals as they went along, they played a mind spinning set of crashing jazz punk featuring unusual cover versions and cheesy theme tunes ramped up to 100 miles per hour.
 

Dick York - Photo by Paul Slattery

Next up was Cryssis front man and singer-songwriter Dick York, who played an acoustic run through of some catchy numbers from his repertoire. Dick used to play in local Mod Revival band Sta-Prest so the set was interspersed by local references and heavy on the audience participation. He has written a true classic in "Could It Be", and I'm sure I could hear people humming the tune the next day all over Southend. Dick's wife Christine joined him on stage at the end to run through some poems including the amusing "Punk Rock Gran".

TV Smith - Photo by TheDimLocator

Then TV Smith took to the stage to rapturous applause, the Railway crowd seem to have really embraced him and the reaction was really heart-warming. TV ran through a perfectly balanced set of songs from throughout his career such as "It's Expensive Being Poor", "Lord's Prayer", the song he wrote for The Lords of The New Church and my personal favourite, "You Saved My Life Then Ruined It". There are calls for "Tomahawk Cruise" the classic single he released with his first post-Adverts band TV Smith's Explorers, and he duly obliges to everyone's delight. "The Lion and The Lamb", "The Day I Caught The Big Fish", are also played with utter conviction. He then kindly complied to my shout for "Complaints Department" from his latest album "Coming Into Land", although ironically not until after a little complaint. "I'm not a Punk Rock Jukebox you know...", he tells me... "but TV, it wasn't as if I requested "Bored Teenagers", just a track from your new record...!". You can hear a hilarious version of "Complaints Department" in our exclusive Retrosonic Podcast live session. Throughout the show he talks about his views on the corporate world and mass consumer obsessions that are blighting our society, he's inspiring and honest, but also humorous with it.

 

TV Smith - Photo by Paul Slattery

He even throws in his amusing but cynical take on the ubiquitous seasonal Christmas song, "Xmas Bloody Xmas". What is evident every time you see TV Smith perform is that he cares, he wants to do right, to play his music on his terms to anyone that will listen. And if that means lugging his guitar, suitcase and emergency sandwich to sub-zero temperatures in Norway or Finland, or playing a festival in the middle of a forest in Eastern Europe with no guarantee of a place to sleep, then he will do it. It's inspirational, and his between song monologues get a great reaction. We are treated to the moving "Generation Y" and "In The Arms Of My Enemy" and then the raucous sing-along of "Only One Flavour".

TV Smith - Photo by Paul Slattery

Of course the set builds towards some of the classics from The Adverts days, but the good thing is you don't get a feeling of nostalgia, his solo material is as well received as the old numbers, but there's no doubting the place does go wild to "One Chord Wonders" and "Gary Gilmore's Eyes". As the set draws to a close the atmosphere builds and as he plays "Good Times Are Back", there is a stage invasion. TV is swamped by people all trying to shake his hand, slap his back and join in on backing vocals, it's chaotic but good natured. Unfortunately due to things over-running, the set had to finish there and we did not get to enjoy Piley and Mondo's superb DJ'ing, but the crowd were thoroughly exhausted and seemed very satisfied, so it was probably a fitting time to call it a night. Well, that was Retro Man Blog's third joint promotion gig at The Railway and I sincerely hope there will be more to come!

Here are some more photographs from the night, and you can also see a full set of superb photos by the extremely talented photographer Paul Hughes on his Flickr site.

Fi from The Tuppenny Bunters - Photo by Jim McManus

Fi from The Tuppenny Bunters - by Paul Hughes

Dave from The Tuppenny Bunters by TheDimLocator

TV Smith by Paul Slattery

TV Smith by TheDimLocator

TV Smith by Jim McManus

TV Smith by Paul Hughes

"Coppo" by Paul Slattery

Stage Invasion! by Jim McManus

Dick York, Dave Collins and TV Smith by Paul Hughes

TV Smith by Paul Slattery

There is another review of the gig up on the excellent Planet Mondo Blog and you can see more photos and a great selection of videos at the Southend Punk web-site Gallery too. Then you can still listen or download for free, our fantastic Retrosonic Podcast TV Smith Special Edition, in which TV talks us through his fascinating and inspiring history and plays an exclusive acoustic live session.

I'd like to thank TV Smith, Fi and Dave at The Railway, Dave Collins and Ian Pile from Podrophenia, Steve Pegrum from Southend Punk, Dick York & Christine York. Many thanks also to photographers Paul Slattery, Paul Hughes, Jim McManus and TheDimLocator for contributing the excellent pics, not forgetting the great Railway crowd that turned up to make this another memorable night!