Week 20: 23/02/91 - 14/11/91

Missed it yesterday as a result of Memorial Day, which is like a Bank Holiday but with remembrance rather than the Banks not having a holiday.

And just one proper release this week. But there's a Peel session, which is largely similar to the album tracks - they're all loud and thunderous. And there's a Mixer, which is one of my favourite tracks from this period and this is a good version.

And then the album proper: Shift Work. Notebooks out Plagiarists. This is a good record but something holds it back for me - there's not a duff song on it but there's not a winner either. Ho Hum. Edinburgh Man is Mark singing proper and being all melancholic again. Book of Lies is straight up adult rockabilly, it sort of works. The War Against Intelligence has their best line: "You think your haircut is distinguished; but it's a blot on the English landscape". This is pretty much the pinnacle of the Fall being a proper band with understandable lyrics and tappable tunes. The Mixer is all bleepy bloopy over violins and is probably the best song on there. Rose is probably about Brix and Sinister Waltz is a weirdo tag on.

Then three remixes of So What About It?. It's on the CD, it's listed in the Bible but not on Discogs. Does this even exist. I don't need three remixes of SWAI anyway.

Onwards and upwards

Week 19: 04/06/90 - 23/02/91

And after the 3 hour playlists, I can't quite believe that this week it's just 55 minutes. This was certainly a lean period for the Fall, just two singles and then some extra bits and bobs.

White Lightning is one of the perfect Fall covers, almost to the extent that I couldn't quite believe it was a cover, it sounds like something Mark just cooked up. Great rockabilly riff driven nonsense. The B-Sides are largely forgettable, but they set the stage for the new Fall sound - a fairly mature mix of electronics and a lighter Fall rhythm. And Mark's pretty much understandable (both in terms of the voice and lyrics).

High Tension Line I like, though mainly for the chorus. Here's where the b-side goes awry. Xmas with Simon is stupid and I love it. A bleep bloopy backdrop, Mark mumbling about Christmas: "Pity the people who had too much desert". "Born in a barn, surrounded by animals, no set amount to the number of diseases". Don't Take The Pizza is another throwaway. My spreadsheet gives my a gift of The Re-Mixer, I love this song on the LP proper and this is a nice melancholic number here. We also get Cloud of Black, which is fully forgettable.

And to round out the hour, some stuff on Receiver comps. The only thing of note is a neat version of Idiot Joy Showland. It sounds a bit live in the vocals, but the music sounds too good for that.

So that was the end of the first year of 1990 - not much activity by the Fall's standards but some moments of joy nonetheless.

Week 18: 13/09/89 - 04/06/90

And we cruise into the 1990s with a healthy Bob James shot in the arm. Telephone Thing has to be one of the all time great Fall singles. Surely Coldcut ripped off Mardi Gras on this, but of course they failed by not issuing a version without the bells HA HA HA. The 90s brought some scary literalism into the Fall and they started doing songs which were vaguely understandable. Hence we have British People In Hot Weather - it seems that Mark is not a fan. Musically they're in a weird place: a blend of rockabilly guitar and 90s cheesy drum machines and electronics. It sort of works but perhaps only because it's been a journey to get here.

A track on a random compilation delivers one of their most menacing tracks in a while: The Theme from Error Orror. Some random tracks from the Receiver catalogue (including a cracking Black Monk Theme) and a full on truck stop version of White Lightening. Peel Session: Chicago Now which should be good but I find it quite tiresome, A very tidy Black Monk Theme (to be covered later), Hilary and Whizz Bang. Out of the context of the record the songs sound a little disjointed - it's a Peel session of some tracks from the record rather than a coherent whole.

I never had Extricate - my good friend Malcolm had it on tape and I dubbed a copy. I remember kind of liking it but thinking it didn't hold a candle to the early stuff (I was an indie kid after all). But actually it's a fairly together record that works as a sequence rather than having any super stand outs (bar one). Sing! Harpy is mildly boring but I'm Frank is a proper rock song through the prism of the Fall. It's got one of those things which might be a middle 8 or whatever too. Bill Is Dead is a slow one (and actually quite dull) but you need it as preparation for the greatest Fall cover of all time: Black Monk Theme. Everything's up at 11 and it almost sounds like a Fall song, they've even got that super cheesy organ going on.

And then with Popcorn Double Feature (another cover) it all comes crashing down, it's a bad song badly covered. Hilary fits but is largely forgettable. Chicago Now is as good as it gets. The Littlest Rebel splits me somewhat. Musically it's probably the best thing on the record but they lyrics are a little cheesy. I imagine it's about Brix though. They end on And Therein... which is super super rockabilly.

They followed this with Popcorn Double Feature as a single. God knows why, it's just terrible. The flipsides weren't really up to much too, though Arms Control Poseur is good (and much better in the spikier mix).

But even better than all of this is the HI-NRG version of "Black Monk Theme Pt 2." Which is basically Oh How To Do Now, with some bonkers over the top organ noises. Genius - there's even a key change which Mark announces. And even weirder, a track called Extricate which surpasses all of the songs on the lp was only on the CD. Full on twiddly bass electronics and shouty Mark. Best

They played live in Zagreb: it was largely forgettable but has been released anyway. Mostly songs from Extricate with a good Telephone Thing. A mistitled Dead Beat Descendant (down as Tuff Life Boogie) has the most offensive organ sound I've ever heard on it. They close on Popcorn Double Feature.

I also cleaned up a few omissions: Mainly the other versions of Hit The North (I wasn't missing anything there). A weirdo studio outtake from the Beggars days (I African Mancunian) which is pretty good. And a live version of Pilsner Trail which ended up on the Levitate CD. Whew.

Week 17: 23/12/88 - 13/09/89

And now the end of the Beggars era. They go out with a bang though, if by bang we mean a contractual obligation album and a contractual obligation single.

Like all the great records I own, I bought Cab It Up from Revolver Records in Bristol - must have been one of the early Fall singles I bought. Cab It Up / Dead Beat Descendant is a good double bill and actually the two live tracks (Kurious Oranj which is a real grower for me and Hit The North which is not) are of a good standard.

Then the "Live" Album. The bible is fairly dismissive of this record, and perhaps rightfully so - it is strung together with the bare minimum of care. But, for me, it was one of the first Fall records I bought and I actually think it's pretty good. Dead Beat Descendant is the Fall at the Indie Disco: it's got hooks and understandable lyrics. Pinball Machine is some stupid American Truck Blues things. It's pretty faithful and actually quite melancholic - I like it a great deal. Then H.O.W. with Mark mumbling over some classic Fall bass and drum stuff. Another great track. Squid Law is shit, Mollusc In Tyrol was recorded in the front room and sounds like it.

Then over to the 'live' side. With a few bonuses this is okay, Frenz is as good as it was. The other tracks are so-so live versions (2x4, Kurious Oranj, Hit The North and the like). Elf Prefix introduces LA - it's classic Mark genius, grating violin with Smith Poetry. The audience are always shouting for Victoria and when they play it there's barely a cheer. It still feels like an odd song for the Fall but it's okay. They include a thumping Pay Your Rates - again a weirdo choice for this album. The album proper ends with Cruiser's Creek. Where this was recorded I have no idea but Bill Grundy of Sex Pistols swear fame goes on about nothing. "Enjoy Yourselves!" he says. The Fall have intro music which leads into Cruisers Creek - a song which works better on paper than on the record - it sounds like a big venue though. The CD version tacks on In These Times which blows away the other songs for 2 seconds and then a no-nonsense PWL organ kicks in and totally ruins it. Like Sonia covering Blob 59 or something.

The only non-contractual song is the version of Race With The Devil, played for Peel's 50th Birthday. The Band are great, Mark is wasted: "We learned this especially for John's Birthday". The band kick in to some serious rockabilly, Mark slurs his way to the end of the song. Classic Fall.