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Suede announce new album and series of intimate London tour dates

Elizabeth Aubrey
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Suede announce new album and series of intimate London tour dates
Suede have announced their return with a new album, Autofiction. ORDER NOW: Queen is on the cover of the latest issue of Uncut The band's ninth studio album is due for release on September 16 via BMG and can be pre-ordered here. Suede, made up of Brett Anderson, Mat Osman, Simon Gilbe...

Suede have announced their return with a new album, Autofiction.

The band’s ninth studio album is due for release on September 16 via BMG and can be pre-ordered here.

Suede, made up of Brett Anderson, Mat Osman, Simon Gilbert, Richard Oakes and Neil Codling, went “back to basics” for this new record according to a press statement.

They hired “a rehearsal studio in deserted Kings Cross to collect a key, hump their own gear, set up and start playing,” before recording at London’s Konk studios.

The band have given fans the first taster of the album via new single called “She Still Leads Me On”, which Anderson wrote to his late mother.

Check out the new single here:

Autofiction Tracklisting

“She Still Leads Me On”
“Personality Disorder”
“15 Again”
“The Only Way I Can Love You”
“That Boy On The Stage”
“Drive Myself Home”
“Black Ice”
“Shadow Self”
“It’s Always The Quiet Ones”
“What Am I Without You?”
“Turn Off Your Brain And Yell”

Speaking about Autofiction, frontman Brett Anderson said: “Autofiction is our punk record. No whistles and bells. Just the five of us in a room with all the glitches and fuck-ups revealed; the band themselves exposed in all their primal mess… Autofiction has a natural freshness, it’s where we want to be.”

Bass player Mat Osman added: “When we were rehearsing and writing this record it was this sheer, physical rush. That thing where you’re hanging on for dear life.”

Following the release of their next album, Suede will perform two special intimate shows at London’s Electric Ballroom in October.

Tickets are on sale from May 27 here at with a fan presale beginning May 26. More dates are expected to be announced.

Suede 2022 Tour Dates

OCTOBER 
05 – Electric Ballroom, London
06 – Electric Ballroom, London

The band recently released a new photojournal called So Young: Suede 1991-1993.

The journal, which was compiled by Gilbert, documented his arrival in the band in 1991 through to 1993, when the group’s self-titled debut album reached number one.

Speaking about the project at the time, the drummer said: “So Young is the book that’s been in my head for over 30 years. When I was getting into music I was more interested in seeing bands away from the bright lights of Top Of The Pops. Photos of the Pistols in the pub or The Clash at a checkpoint in Belfast fascinated me, and filled me with visions of what it was actually like to be in a band.â€

Reviewed! Moonage Daydream – a trippy flashback of David Bowie’s life

Damon Wise
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Reviewed! Moonage Daydream – a trippy flashback of David Bowie’s life
This may not be the in-depth movie bio you think David Bowie deserves, but it is a film he would have loved: playful, intelligent and admirably wary of covering familiar ground. It’s a trippy reverie that resembles an acid flashback more than a documentary. ORDER NOW: Queen are on the cover ...

This may not be the in-depth movie bio you think David Bowie deserves, but it is a film he would have loved: playful, intelligent and admirably wary of covering familiar ground. It’s a trippy reverie that resembles an acid flashback more than a documentary.

Directed by Brett Morgen – who adopted a similar path-less-trod route to Kurt Cobain in Montage Of Heck – Moonage Daydream opens with a sequence cut to Bowie’s 1995 Pet Shop Boys collaboration “Hallo Spaceboyâ€: not only a neat way to underscore his intentions to avoid a linear trawl through the star’s back pages, but also a signal that Morgen is hip to the better work in his subject’s later discography. Some omissions may be surprising – the film’s speedfreak pace seems to take us from Ziggy Stardust to Low – but others are not: Bowie’s post-Let’s Dance ’80s output and both Tin Machine albums among them.

A framing device using footage from the Blackstar promo allows Morgen to play with the Bowie as-space-alien metaphor, crash-landed in post-war Britain. But the director digs into Bowie’s earthly origins, using excerpts from vintage TV interviews in which he lays out his thoughts, revealing that his early success meant that he never grew to be the person he “should have beenâ€. To accompany this, Morgen uses a slew of interesting live takes to underscore all this self-examination, including a phenomenal version of “The Jean Genie†that incorporates The Beatles’ “Love Me Doâ€.

The rain of references is torrential, and Morgen never lets up, so if you’re not familiar with Bowie’s movie work, his paintings, his book collection, or his esoteric work with the likes of Klaus Nomi and La La La Human Steps, then Moonage Daydream may prove to be hard work. But at the same time, it’s refreshing to see a film that expects you to do that work yourself. It may not be the full story, but Moonage Daydream is a powerful attempt to convey the restless curiosity that fuelled Bowie to the end.

Moonage Daydream opens in the UK on September 22

The Delines: the road to The Sea Drift

Laura Barton
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The Delines: the road to The Sea Drift
Several years ago, singer Amy Boone was in her garage apartment in Austin, Texas, when she got a letter from the songwriter Willy Vlautin. Boone knew Vlautin well – the pair had toured together in their respective bands, The Damnations and Richmond Fontaine, and bonded over late-night green room c...

Several years ago, singer Amy Boone was in her garage apartment in Austin, Texas, when she got a letter from the songwriter Willy Vlautin. Boone knew Vlautin well – the pair had toured together in their respective bands, The Damnations and Richmond Fontaine, and bonded over late-night green room conversations and a shared love of Tony Joe White records.

The letter from Vlautin was hand-written and several pages long. “‘I just wrote a bunch of songs that I specifically wrote for your voice and for you,’†Boone quotes today, walking around her new home in Portland, Oregon. “‘And here they are. You pick what you like, and what you don’t like, don’t do.’†Boone still has the letter.

At the time, Boone had put music to one side and was studying for her teaching certificate at Texas State University. She had a mind to teach biology. But when the letter arrived and with it, an opportunity to form a new band with Vlautin, she immediately quit her studies. “I was blown away, I was so excited and flattered,†she recalls. “I thought, ‘I can stay in college or I can go travel the world.’ I didn’t hesitate at all.â€

Back then, Vlautin was growing weary of fronting Richmond Fontaine, weary of being the focus on stage, weary of writing for his own voice. When he happened to overhear Boone singing for herself one day, unaware she could be heard, he was struck by the promise of a different quality he heard in her voice. “I remember listening to her singing these kind of country ballads, real soul-y, and sad,†he remembers. “And I was just like, man, I want to be in a band like that before I die.â€

The type of band The Delines have grown to be is a rarity. Theirs is a sound that evokes the swamp-soul of the late ’60s and early ’70s, that is lugubrious and perceptive and downcast and romantic, but somehow, remarkably, never strays into pastiche. On their latest album, The Sea Drift, with its tales of convenience store robberies gone awry, lovers arrested for unknown crimes, and finding a person who makes you feel like the world isn’t so cruel, the songs seem marked by a startling authenticity that rests on the unique relationship between Vlautin’s songwriting and Boone’s voice. “Willy’s the real deal,†says producer John Morgan Askew. “He’s dusty and he’s got that purity in him. She’s the real deal, too. That’s the thing, I think.â€

Send us your questions for Roger Chapman

Sam Richards
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Send us your questions for Roger Chapman
It's 55 years now since Roger Chapman first made the leap from the building sites of Leicester to the vanguard of the London scene, fronting psych-rock stalwarts Family. But as proved by last year's rousing solo album Life In The Pond, his extraordinary voice remains intact – deeper and raspier fo...

It’s 55 years now since Roger Chapman first made the leap from the building sites of Leicester to the vanguard of the London scene, fronting psych-rock stalwarts Family. But as proved by last year’s rousing solo album Life In The Pond, his extraordinary voice remains intact – deeper and raspier for sure, but still full of raw R&B aggression, offset by an otherworldly tremor.

Chappo certainly has a tale or two to tell. Name an important British countercultural happening and Family were there: Middle Earth in 1968, supporting the Stones in Hyde Park, the Isle Of Wight festival, Glastonbury Fair.

When that first band ran out of steam, Chapman formed underrated funk-rockers Streetwalkers before going solo, finding success in Europe. Life In The Pond, which reunited Chapman with his old Family bandmate John ‘Poli’ Palmer, was his first album in 12 years. He’s followed that up this year with expanded reissues of Family’s A Song For Me and a new compilation of solo material, A Moth To A Flame, via Esoteric Recordings.

So what do you want to ask a a singer and songwriter who’s been there, done that, and is still doing it with bells on? Email your questions to audiencewith@www.uncut.co.uk by Tuesday (May 24) and Roger will answer the best ones in a future issue of Uncut.

Sandy Denny – Early Home Recordings

Graeme Thomson
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Sandy Denny – Early Home Recordings
The market in Sandy Denny’s pre-Fairport Convention recordings has been increasingly well served in recent years. Who Knows Where The Time Goes?, the first major retrospective of the late English folk singer, who died in 1978, started the ball rolling in 1985 with the inclusion of a handful of ear...

The market in Sandy Denny’s pre-Fairport Convention recordings has been increasingly well served in recent years. Who Knows Where The Time Goes?, the first major retrospective of the late English folk singer, who died in 1978, started the ball rolling in 1985 with the inclusion of a handful of early home demos. It was followed by The Attic Tracks, a coveted cassette-only Australian release from the late ’80s. In 2004 came A Boxful Of Treasures and in 2010 an epic eponymous boxset which covered pretty much every inch of Denny’s oeuvre across no less than 19 CDs. Recordings Denny made in 1967 with Alex Campbell and The Strawbs have also been re-released several times over.

In terms of basic housekeeping, everything on this double vinyl Record Store Day release, authorised by the Denny estate, has previously been available elsewhere. Its 27 solo tracks essentially replicate all of disc 12 and two tracks from disc 13 of the mammoth Sandy Denny box which, though exhaustive, was given only a limited release and quickly became prohibitively pricey.

Though dedicated fans may have heard most or all of this material before, it’s the first time the majority of these tracks have been issued on vinyl (there is also a CD version). For the more selective or less solvent listener, Early Home Recordings provides a concise, accessible overview of the evolution of Denny’s artistry between 1966 and 1968, spanning the period when she was first establishing herself in London folk clubs to the months immediately after she joined Fairport in May 1968. The inner gatefold sleeve includes informative liner notes by Pat Thomas, who curated the release, though he needlessly denigrates some of Denny’s contemporaries in the process of rightly trumpeting her brilliance.

What emerges is a dual portrait. Denny is captured as an interpreter of songs ancient and new, as well as a budding singer-songwriter in her own right. Aged 19, she kicks off in 1966 with two songs written by her boyfriend of the time, tempestuous American folkie Jackson C Frank, making a particularly fine fist of his signature song, “Blues Run The Gameâ€. Elsewhere, she covers Bert Jansch (“Sohoâ€), and offers up a beautiful, hushed take on Fred Neil’s “A Little Bit Of Rainâ€. In contrast, attempts at two songs written by her friend and fellow free spirit Anne Briggs – “Go Your Own Way My Love†and “The Time Has Come†– seem halting, almost tentative. The pick of this crop is a tender, transformative reading of Bob Dylan’s “It Ain’t Me Babeâ€, a song Denny would sing many times, here presented as a masterclass in tone and dynamics, highlighting the width of her vocal range.

The traditional material is generally a little less compelling. Such staples from the US, British and Irish trad. arr. repertoire as “Motherless Childrenâ€, “Seven Virginsâ€, “She Moves Through The Fair†and “Cradle Song†were ten-a-penny in the folk clubs of the time, and Denny’s versions feel a tad dutiful, a haunting “Let No Man Steal Your Thyme†notwithstanding.

Scattered among these interpretations are the earliest flowerings of Denny as a composer, 10 originals which include songs she never professionally recorded or released. You can hear why in the case of the gloomy “I Love My True Love†and derivative “Ethuselâ€, but “Gerrard Street†is an appealing blues stroll through London’s bohemian underbelly, while
“In Memory (The Tender Years)†is pretty, if slight.

Also featured is the very earliest recording of “Who Knows Where The Time Goes?†from 1967, one of two versions featured. Played in open tuning, bouncing along to an uncertain rhythm and sprightlier than it would later become, it doesn’t quite access the full range of the song’s magnificent melancholy but is fascinating, nonetheless. Another highlight is “Boxful Of Treasuresâ€, a lovely embryonic version of “Fotheringay†– a fine rendition of which is also included here in its finished state.

If Denny’s songwriting is still a work in progress, her voice is already a mesmerising instrument. Heard here in an unadorned setting with only her own – excellent – guitar playing as an accompaniment, it shines and shadows with unerring instinct. All of these tracks were taped on rudimentary home recording equipment, but the sound quality is generally decent; oddly, the seven 1966 recordings are cleaner than the later ones, some of which flirt with distortion when the volume creeps up. Though there are a few tuning issues, and the performance of “Motherless Children†ends abruptly with a male voice speaking in the background, none of the domestic idiosyncrasies hamper the listening experience. For anyone who has ever dreamt of having Sandy Denny sing in the corner of the room for an hour or so, this welcome release might be as close as we’ll get.

Norah Jones – Come Away With Me: 20th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition

Nigel Williamson
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Norah Jones – Come Away With Me: 20th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition
On its release in February 2002, expectations for Norah Jones’ debut album were “modest†in the extreme, as the liner notes accompanying this expanded 20th-anniversary edition tell us. In Uncut’s brief original review, we suggested that Jones’ sultry voice sat somewhere between Sade and Sh...

On its release in February 2002, expectations for Norah Jones’ debut album were “modest†in the extreme, as the liner notes accompanying this expanded 20th-anniversary edition tell us. In Uncut’s brief original review, we suggested that Jones’ sultry voice sat somewhere between Sade and Shelby Lynne, but did at least hint that she might go on to outstrip both of them. Nine Grammy awards, 30 million sales and two decades later, that judgement seems a tad cautious but not too far wide of the mark.

Since her debut Jones has recorded half a dozen more huge-selling albums and lent her beguiling voice to collaborations with Foo Fighters, Dolly Parton, Danger Mouse, Jeff Tweedy, Mavis Staples and among others.

Yet it is Come Away With Me, recorded when she was 22 and which Jones herself self-deprecatingly calls “my moody little recordâ€, which has remained her biggest seller and her calling card.

After graduating from the University of North Texas, Jones moved to New York in 1999 and began playing jazz gigs in restaurants around Manhattan. Her 21st birthday found her singing at a brunch with the JC Hopkins Biggish Band. After the gig she gave a three-track demo to Shell White, who happened to be not only Hopkins’ wife but also an executive with EMI Publishing.

White passed the demo to Blue Note president Bruce Lundvall and the long and winding road to Come Away With Me which ensued is chronicled here in a collection that augments the album’s 14 released tracks with another 30. They include demos, early sessions and an entire version of the album recorded with producer Craig Street, subsequently scrapped when Jones went back into the studio with Atlantic veteran Arif Mardin.

Sequenced chronologically, we get a unique insight into the evolution of a classic album, starting with the three self-recorded demos that first persuaded Blue Note that Jones had something special. What is most striking is that at the time the singer clearly regarded herself primarily as a jazz chanteuse. “Spring Can Really Hang You Up The Mostâ€, a song made famous by Ella Fitzgerald, was recorded solo in Jones’ school band room but finds her sounding like a precociously assured lounge singer. Nat King Cole’s “Walkin’ My Baby Back Home†is even jazzier with double bass and trumpet, and it’s only on the Bonnie Raitt-like “World Of Trouble†that we get a hint of the jazz-pop troubadour mode eventually heard on Come Away With Me.

Those three songs initially got Jones signed on a demo deal rather than a full contract and she was sent away to work on original material with her guitarist Jesse Harris and bassist Lee Alexander. “We let her find her own direction,†Brian Bacchus, Blue Note’s head of A&R, explained. “We knew that if she could develop her songwriting, it would work.â€

Only a handful of the 14 new songs she recorded found their way on to Come Away With Me but they included Harris’ “Don’t Know Whyâ€. Recorded in a single take, it’s the hit version that ended up on the finished album with only the lightest overdubs. Also retained from those early sessions was a wondrous jazz-blues take on John D Loudermilk’s “Turn Me Onâ€, singled out as her finest vocal performance in Uncut’s review of the album 20 years ago.

Among the unreleased songs, perhaps the most revealing is “Something Is Calling Youâ€, which has a raga-like circular guitar motif and Indian tabla accompaniment. At the time it was not widely known that Jones was the daughter of Ravi Shankar.

The simple, unpretentious integrity of the demo sessions beguiled Blue Note’s big-wigs and on being offered a full recording contract, Jones requested that Street should produce, inspired by his work on Cassandra Wilson’s 1995 Grammy-winning New Moon Daughter, which she regarded as a touchstone.

The aborted album they put together at Allaire Studios near Woodstock offers an intriguing glimpse into the record that Come Away With Me might have been. In the end, three of the 13 tracks from the sessions made it onto the final album and one can hear why the Street-produced versions of songs such as “Come Away With Me†and “Turn Me On†were ultimately rejected. Given the kind of moody, textured wash associated with Daniel Lanois, they’re terrific in their own right and Jones sings them exquisitely; but the vibe has strayed a long way from the simpler, jazzier mood of the demos that had excited Blue Note in the first place.

The version of Come Away With Me that was eventually released cherry-picked the best moments from the three different sources. “Don’t Know Why†and “Turn Me On†came from the demo sessions, “Seven Years”, “Feelin’ The Same Way†and “The Long Day Is Over†from the Street-produced set, and nine songs were recorded or re-recorded with Mardin, who added a burnished veneer of sophistication without subtracting from the freshness that had characterised the demos.

As a deep dive into how a talented young artist and a smart record label go about feeling their way to greatness, this 20th-anniversary edition is not only endlessly fascinating but required listening for anyone involved in the business of making records as a foundation course in how it should be done.

? and the Mysterians – 96 Tears/Action

Jim Wirth
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? and the Mysterians – 96 Tears/Action
On April 2, 1968, Rudy ‘?’ Martinez was one of three men picked up by Michigan state police in a lay-by near the Zilwaukee Bridge, not far from his home town of Saginaw, the trio arrested for possession of “several tubes of glue and brown bags containing glueâ€. In the wrong place at the wron...

On April 2, 1968, Rudy ‘?’ Martinez was one of three men picked up by Michigan state police in a lay-by near the Zilwaukee Bridge, not far from his home town of Saginaw, the trio arrested for possession of “several tubes of glue and brown bags containing glueâ€. In the wrong place at the wrong time with very much the wrong drugs, the perma-shaded
? And The Mysterians singer thus found himself about as far from the psychedelic action as he could have been, an improbable local success story recast as something of a laughing stock.

Naive, sci-fi crazy, Mexican-American youngsters from a blue-collar backwater two hours’ drive from Detroit, ? And The Mysterians contrived to record the second-biggest-selling US single of 1966 (outsold only by The Mamas & The Papas’ “California Dreamin’â€) in a basic studio in Bay City, Michigan. A wounded rant with a killer keyboard sound, “96 Tears†sold a million, but the two albums the band released – now back on vinyl after a long spell in legal limbo – went largely unnoticed, with mismanagement, racism and more goings-on elsewhere helping to seal the band’s fate as a one-hit wonder. As ? whoops presciently on the debut album’s “Ten O’Clockâ€: “You miss your train, now your name’s erasedâ€.

However, for lovers of garage rock – the genre post-rationalised into existence following Lenny Kaye’s 1972 compilation of overlooked small-time 7†singles, Nuggets – ? And The Mysterians’ underachievement remains heroic. These crystal-clear new versions of
96 Tears (1966) and Action (1967) show a band impervious to the psychedelic winds of change, persisting in playing lascivious, Brit-style R&B at teenage velocity, in blissful ignorance of anything The Beatles, The Rolling Stones – or indeed anyone else – had done since 1965.

Once a covers band, ? And The Mysterians hit on a neat gimmick when ? renounced his birth name, but seemed fated to go nowhere, their first attempts at recording vanishing after the studio owner was murdered in Detroit. They got a second chance, with “96 Tears†going viral after receiving a limited release on the tiny Pa-Go-Go label, becoming a hit in Saginaw, then Flint, then Detroit, before a deal with the Cameo-Parkway label helped propel it to the national No 1 spot in October 1966.

With future Casablanca disco mogul Neil Bogart whipping them on, the Mysterians recorded two albums in the space of six months, guitarist Bobby Balderrama and 15-year-old Vox Continental wizard Frankie Rodriguez providing tunes for their hyperactive frontman to adorn with campy yelps and rather less subtle come-ons. Quite how
no-one at the relatively strait-laced Cameo-Parkway noticed him muttering “girl, you masturbate me†on Action’s fuzztoned calling card “Girl (You Fascinate Me)†is anyone’s guess.

If they were young and a little unsubtle, ? And The Mysterians were not the musical lightweights some latter-day fans would perhaps like them to be. Frankie Gonzalez’s sly drop of a passage of “Mary Had A Little Lamb†into “I Need Somebody†– the opening track from the debut album – is evidence of a band that knew their history. Fellow Saginaw keyboard king Stevie Wonder slipped a bit of the same tune (on harmonica) into his 1963 No 1 “Fingertipsâ€.

The instrumental “Set Aside†and “Midnight Hour†show that the Mysterians had jazz and blues chops too, but if they aspire to the alpha-male thud of the Spencer Davis Group’s “Keep On Running†on “Don’t Break This Heart Of Mineâ€, ?’s Prince-pitched vocals subtly queer their pitch. He comes on like a repentant Little Richard on a take of “Stormy Monday†– the only cover on 96 Tears – and plays the wounded innocent superbly on the featherweight “Why Meâ€, a wet lettuce approximation of Love’s “My Little Red Bookâ€.

Producer Bogart perhaps recognised this appealing androgyny in ? when he forced the soppy “Can’t Get Enough Of You Baby†(previously recorded by “A Lover’s Concerto†hitmakers The Toys) on to the band for Action. The hackneyed attempt to graft the keyboard line from “96 Tears†on to this potential comeback hit sounded clueless to the teenaged Balderrama (see interview), but ?’s slightly mocking delivery suggests he may be in on a joke somewhere.

Toughened up by an intense bout of touring, the Mysterians essay the streetwalking cheetah bit rather more convincingly on Action. Groovy, laidback and nasty, “Smokes†does the Muddy Waters “I’m A Man†bit as ? scowls: “I don’t care if you’re blue or red/I’ll take you any time anywhere in the nightâ€. The fade-out to the hard-edged “It’s Not Easy†is similarly lusty, the singer promising: “I got kisses and I can hug you and I can… I said I can…†Meanwhile, the jaunty “Don’t Hold It Against Me†is a gaslighter’s excuse for infidelity on the lines of Shaggy’s “It Wasn’t Meâ€, ? sorry/not sorry as he keens “you were gone and she was thereâ€.

If the Mysterians can pass as leathery road warriors, ?’s hard-man act continues to mask a more delicious ambiguity. In the intro to “Girl (You Captivate Me)â€, he has a strange premonition of Patti Smith as he intones, “Dark alleys and streetlights I’d walk a lonely sleepless night/The shadows were all I had until you came into my lifeâ€, a knowing wink – perhaps – to a love that might have been wary of speaking its name in Saginaw. Elsewhere, he delights in tossing off romantic cheese like “Just Like A Rose†and high-kicks his way through the Isley Brothers’ “Shout†while the “la la laâ€s of his own “I’ll Be Back†show that he may have missed his true calling as a Ronette.

However, as a commercial proposition, ? And The Mysterians were not about to be anyone’s baby. Even at the dawning of the Age of Aquarius, the colour of their skin probably closed doors for them, and ?’s eccentricity perhaps did not help (he was liable to tell interviewers that he was from Mars, and had been walking the earth since the time of the dinosaurs).

Cameo-Parkway kept vainly chasing another hit, the band putting out further doomed singles plus would-be novelty hits as the Fun Sons and the Semi-Colons? for the label, which went bust in September 1967. Beatles lawyer Allen Klein picked up ? And The Mysterians’ back catalogue in the subsequent fire sale, but his ABKCO label blocked any large-scale reissues until relatively recently. Meanwhile, the band barely survived into the 1970s; Capitol put out a one-off single, “Make You Mineâ€, in 1968, but a third album – recorded for Ray Charles’ Tangerine label – remains unreleased.

“96 Tears†fared pretty well without them, though. Recorded by Aretha Franklin, Eddie & The Hot Rods and Suicide among others, it provided minor hits for Big Maybelle, The Stranglers and Thelma Houston, as well as the “I’ve got 96 tears in 96 eyes†hook for The Cramps’ ’50s slasher “Human Flyâ€. ? And The Mysterians’ two LPs don’t quite live up to that improbable hit, but they at least highlight the subtle musical smarts and off-stage drama integral to a story where the sweet smell of success gives way to the disorienting fog of solvents. Read between the lines and you’ve got a novel.

Neil Young – Official Bootleg Series: Royce Hall, 1971/Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, 1971/Citizen Kane Jr Blues (Live The Bottom Line)

Tyler Wilcox
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Neil Young – Official Bootleg Series: Royce Hall, 1971/Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, 1971/Citizen Kane Jr Blues (Live The Bottom Line)
As with so many other things, Neil Young’s attitude towards bootlegs has been inconsistent, to say the least. An oft-circulated film clip from the early 1970s shows him angrily confronting a hapless record store clerk over a stack of unauthorised CSNY releases, eventually absconding with them, unp...

As with so many other things, Neil Young’s attitude towards bootlegs has been inconsistent, to say the least. An oft-circulated film clip from the early 1970s shows him angrily confronting a hapless record store clerk over a stack of unauthorised CSNY releases, eventually absconding with them, unpaid for. By the early 1990s, however, he had changed his tune. “More power to them – they can sell ’em in the parking lot, I don’t give a shit,†Young told biographer Jimmy McDonough. “I have nothing against bootlegs – for an artist like me, they’re essential.â€

In the 2020s, Neil has leaned even further in the latter direction. Last year saw the launch of his Official Bootleg Series with Carnegie Hall 1970 (though in typically haywire fashion, this was in fact a previously un-bootlegged performance). Now, he’s released three more volumes, all solo acoustic, capturing two early 1971 concerts and one surprise small-club gig in 1974. Thanks to upgraded sonics (but retaining their charmingly amateur graphic design), they’re are all worthy additions to Young’s ever-expanding canon. But fans will almost certainly have a few quibbles about this latest batch of boots.

As Neil rightly notes, bootlegs have been essential for understanding and contextualising a career as long and varied as his. He’s played with a host of different bands, he’s gone through countless phases and side trips, he’s left entire albums unreleased for decades. Any die-hard will tell you Young’s officially released records tell only a fraction of his story (case in point: “Dance Dance Danceâ€, the only song on all three of these new Official Bootlegs, didn’t show up on a Young release until 2007).

However, with the release of two more 1971 acoustic shows, Neil can probably close the book on his post-Déjà Vu/post-After The Gold Rush solo era. Royce Hall, 1971 and Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, 1971, recorded days apart, join the aforementioned Carnegie Hall 1970, Young Shakespeare, Live At The Cellar Door, and Live At Massey Hall 1971, all of which feature similar setlists. Throw in two earlier sets, Sugar Mountain – Live At Canterbury House 1968 and Live At The Riverboat 1969, and we’ve got a more than full portrait of Neil as a young artist, alone onstage. Taken on their own merits, Royce Hall and Dorothy Chandler are prime examples of Young in early ’71 … but maybe we can move on to other territory now? Future Official Bootlegs announced but now pushed back include a Tonight’s The Night-era gig at London’s Rainbow Theatre and a 3LP collection of recordings made in 1977 with Young’s virtually undocumented band The Ducks, plus Archives III, due this year.

Dorothy Chandler is the one to get; the 8+-minute “Sugar Mountainâ€, with numerous spoken-word digressions, is Neil at his most hilariously droll. The impossibly delicate “See The Sky About To Rain†may well be the definitive version of this underrated ballad. Finally, the snippet of “You And Me†(a song he wouldn’t finish until more than two decades later) that presages “I Am A Child†is the kind of thing that Shakey Heads live for. You’ve doubtless already heard the version of “Needle And The Damage Done†on Royce Hall — it’s this take that would later appear on Harvest.

Why is this period so important to Neil? “I loved itâ€, he told Cameron Crowe of his early ’70s solo tours. “It was real personal. Very much a one-on-one thing with the crowd.†That warm rapport comes across nicely on Royce Hall and Dorothy Chandler Pavilion – both venues are in the LA area, so they were virtually homecoming concerts for Neil. A reference he makes to the “memory of the Buffalo Springfield†at Royce Hall gets such a rapturous response that it’s safe to assume that many in the crowd had been there back in the Sunset Strip days. But these shows are no nostalgia trips, old bands notwithstanding. Maybe Neil sees this era as the point where he truly came into his own as a solo performer, with no need for the Springfield, CSNY or Crazy Horse.

Young’s fondness for the early 1970s might also have something to do with the fact that he had just met actress Carrie Snodgress, with whom he’d quickly fallen in love. By May of 1974, however, the bloom was off the rose for Neil and Carrie — and along with the legendary Homegrown (finally released in 2020), Citizen Kane Jr Blues (Live The Bottom Line) is a stirring document of his heartache in the wake of their dissolving love affair. “Here’s another bummer for you,†Young jokes at one point, before launching into an epically lonesome “Ambulance Bluesâ€.

Neil was about to embark on an CSNY arena tour, but he dropped in unannounced to the 400-capacity Bottom Line in NYC to debut a set of mostly new, mostly downcast material. It’s a unique performance, with a wealth of rarely played material, from opener “Pushed It Over The End†to “Motion Picturesâ€, a song Neil has yet to play ever again (sacrilegiously, Neil has edited some of the original banter out). Even if devastation is the overarching theme of the new material, Young sounds alert and lucid, his guitar work precise, his vocals expressive. Thankfully recorded by taper Simon Montgomery, the Bottom Line bootleg was the kind of listening experience that turned casual fans into obsessives. Now remastered and officially part of Neil’s ongoing saga, its seductive power remains undimmed.

Suede tease unknown track in new Coming Up montage

Damian Jones
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Suede tease unknown track in new Coming Up montage
Suede have shared a new montage of clips featuring songs from their 1996 album Coming Up, including what appears to be an unknown track. ORDER NOW: Queen is on the cover of the latest issue of Uncut The short clip, which you can view below, sees snippets from "Trash", "Beautiful Ones" and "...

Suede have shared a new montage of clips featuring songs from their 1996 album Coming Up, including what appears to be an unknown track.

The short clip, which you can view below, sees snippets from “Trash”, “Beautiful Ones” and “Saturday Night” before a screen of interference features a couple of seconds of the unknown song. It is unclear whether it is new material or a previously unreleased track.

The band are currently touring Coming Up across Europe with a date pencilled in at Barcelona Razzmatazz on May 19 before they head on to Tomavistas 2022 festival in Madrid the following night (May 20).

They will play further shows in Luxembourg (May 22) and Brussels (May 23) later this week.

The band recently released a new photojournal called So Young: Suede 1991-1993.

The journal, which was compiled by drummer Simon Gilbert, documented his arrival in the band in 1991 through to 1993, when the group’s self-titled debut album reached number one.

Speaking about the project at the time, Gilbert said: “So Young is the book that’s been in my head for over 30 years. When I was getting into music I was more interested in seeing bands away from the bright lights of Top of the Pops. Photos of the Pistols in the pub or The Clash at a checkpoint in Belfast fascinated me, and filled me with visions of what it was actually like to be in a band.”

Meanwhile, Suede also previously called on their fans to submit voice recordings for their next record, detailing a list of instructions which included singing and shouting “along when we ask you toâ€.

“Everything you send in will be gratefully received. If you can do two or even three recordings, that would be even better,†the band said at the time.

View Suede’s tour schedule and remaining tickets, here.

Cocteau Twins’ Elizabeth Fraser shares new song with Sun’s Signature project

Will Richards
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Cocteau Twins’ Elizabeth Fraser shares new song with Sun’s Signature project
Former Cocteau Twins vocalist Elizabeth Fraser has shared the second song from her new project, Sun's Signature – listen to "Underwater" below. Sun’s Signature is the project of Fraser and her partner, former Spiritualized and Echo and the Bunnymen drummer Damon Reece. ORDER NOW: Que...

Former Cocteau Twins vocalist Elizabeth Fraser has shared the second song from her new project, Sun’s Signature – listen to “Underwater” below.

Sun’s Signature is the project of Fraser and her partner, former Spiritualized and Echo and the Bunnymen drummer Damon Reece.

The project was announced last month with the first single “Golden Air”, and both tracks will feature on Sun’s Signature’s forthcoming self-titled EP, which is set to arrive on June 18 via Partisan for Record Store Day.

Fraser announced the forthcoming Sun’s Signature EP back in March. “Underwater” is a rare 2000 single which Fraser performed at the ANOHNI-curated Meltdown Festival in London in 2012, where ideas for Sun’s Signature first began.

Listen to “Underwater” below.

Fraser’s last single was 2009’s “Moses”, though she has collaborated extensively with other artists since then. Last year, she joined Oneohtrix Point Never on a new version of his track “Tales From The Trash Stratum”. In 2020, she teamed up with Sigur Rós frontman Jónsi, appearing on his track “Cannibal”.

Earlier this year, former Cocteau Twins guitarist Robin Guthrie released a new EP titled ‘Springtime’, which consists of four instrumental tracks.

The EP was issued on January 4 via Soleil Après Minuit in time for his 60th birthday, marking his first release of the year.

Springtime follows up a prolific year in 2021 for the musician, who issued two four-track EPs with Riviera in December and Mockingbird Love in October.

Back in November, Guthrie released his sixth full-length album Pearldriving, which was his first album since 2012’s Fortune, which was also all-instrumental.

The Smile debut new song “Friend Of A Friend” as they kick off European tour

Will Richards
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The Smile debut new song “Friend Of A Friend” as they kick off European tour
The Smile began their debut European tour this week (May 16), debuting a new song called "Friend Of A Friend" – check out footage, setlist, ticket details for the rest of the tour and more below. The band – comprising Thom Yorke, his Radiohead bandmate Jonny Greenwood and Sons of KemetÂ...

The Smile began their debut European tour this week (May 16), debuting a new song called “Friend Of A Friend” – check out footage, setlist, ticket details for the rest of the tour and more below.

The band – comprising Thom Yorke, his Radiohead bandmate Jonny Greenwood and Sons of Kemet drummer Tom Skinner – formed last year and released their debut album, A Light For Attracting Attention last week.

After making their live debut at Glastonbury’s Live At Worthy Farm livestream last summer, The Smile played their first proper live shows with a three-gig run within 12 hours at London’s Magazine venue last month.

Their full UK and European tour began in Zagreb, Croatia on Monday, and saw tracks from A Light For Attracting Attention performed alongside the brand new cut “Friend Of A Friend”.

“Friend Of A Friend” saw Yorke at the guitar with Greenwood playing melancholy chords at the piano. Behind them, Skinner played free and loose jazz drums.

See footage of the new song, the band’s full setlist, remaining tour dates and ticket details below.

The Smile played:

“Pana-vision”
“The Smoke”
“Speech Bubbles”
“Thin Thing”
“Open The Floodgates”
“Free In The Knowledge”
“A Hairdryer”
“Waving A White Flag”
“We Don’t Know What Tomorrow Brings”
“Skrting On The Surface”
“The Same”
“The Opposite”
“You Will Never Work in Television Again”

“Friend Of A Friend”
“Just Eyes and Mouth”
“Feeling Pulled Apart By Horses”

The Smile
The Smile. Image: Press

See the band’s remaining UK and European tour dates below. Pick up tickets for the gigs here.

MAY
19 – Prague, Forum Karlin
20 – Berlin, Tempodrom
23 – Stockholm, Cirkus
24 – Oslo, Sentrum Scene
27 – Amsterdam, Paradiso
29 – London, Roundhouse
30 – London, Roundhouse

JUNE
1 – Edinburgh, Usher Hall
2 – Manchester, Albert Hall
4 – Lille, L’Aéronef
6 – Paris, Philarmonie de Paris
7 – Paris, Philarmonie de Paris
8 – Lyon, Les Nuits de Fourvière
10 – Barcelona, Primavera Sound
12 – Dijon, Festival VYV Les Solidarites
24 – Reims, La Magnifique Society
25 – Werchter, TW Classic Festival
27 – Luxembourg, The Neumünster Abbaye
29 – Gdynia, Open’er Festival

JULY
5 – Barcelona, Poble Espanyol
6 – Madrid, Noches del Botánico
8 – Lisbon, Coliseum
11 – Nimes, Festival de Nimes
12 – Montreux, Montreux Jazz Festival
14 – Milan, Fabrique Milano
15 – Ferrara, Piazza Trento Trieste
17 – Macerata MC – Arena Sferisterio
18 – Rome, Auditorium Parco della Musica
20 – Taormina, Teatro Antico di Taormina

Rare LPs and memorabilia from John Peel’s private collection will be auctioned off next month

Matt Doria
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Rare LPs and memorabilia from John Peel’s private collection will be auctioned off next month
A series of records owned by legendary DJ John Peel will be sold at an auction in London next month. ORDER NOW: Queen is on the cover of the latest issue of Uncut Before his death in 2004, Peel amassed a weighty collection spanning over 26,000 LPs, 40,000 seven-inch singles and countless C...

A series of records owned by legendary DJ John Peel will be sold at an auction in London next month.

Before his death in 2004, Peel amassed a weighty collection spanning over 26,000 LPs, 40,000 seven-inch singles and countless CDs. A selection of those, as well as various items of memorabilia, will be auctioned off at Bonhams’ Knightsbridge location on Tuesday June 14. It takes place a week before the 50th anniversary of Glastonbury, which has long honoured Peel with a stage named in his honour.

According to a press release, the records on offer were “carefully selected by the family, whist retaining the integrity of the John Peel Record Collectionâ€.

Key pieces in the lot include an annotated mono pressing of John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s Two Virgins LP (which holds an estimated value of £15,000-20,000), a promotional album signed by The Rolling Stones (£6,000-8,000), a copy of the rare Marc Bolan album Hard On Love (£5,000-6,000) and a copy of Queen II that comes with a letter hand-written to Peel by Freddie Mercury (£1,000-1,500).

In the way of merchandise, Peel’s estate are offering up a handful of his ultra-rare posters – including one for Joy Division’s Unknown Pleasures valued at £3,000-4,000) – a five-page letter from David Bowie that features a series of original sketches (worth £3,000-4,000), and his ‘93 NME Award for Godlike Genius (£800-1,200).

In a statement shared with the announcement of the sale, the Ravenscroft family commented: “By virtue of the role he played in it, John/Dad was in a position to have access to many of the most celebrated people and events in the history of popular music. This is reflected in a wealth of souvenirs he collected throughout his life.

“He had not only a voracious appetite for vinyl, but a keen sense of what memorabilia, ephemera and correspondence might find an interested audience in decades to come (though it could be argued that this was achieved by a strategy of keeping almost everything that crossed his path).

“In going through the accumulation of 40 years of pop music moments, we decided that some of the most interesting items might find a home, with fans of his programme or of the artists whose music he played. Bonhams have assisted us to carefully select what is being offered for sale, and we hope these items find the attention and appreciation that we’re sure John/Dad would feel they warranted.

“We had no desire to split up his beloved record collection but have included in the sale a selection of particularly rare or unique records that do not take away from the integrity of his archive.â€

Katherine Schofield – the director of Bonhams’ Popular Culture department – added that Peel “had an incredible impact on the new music landscapeâ€, and declared that “without his passionate advocacy of emerging talent, generations of music lovers may never have heard the sounds of The Fall, The Undertones, The Sex Pistols, and countless othersâ€.

She continued: “This collection, offered directly by the family, comprises some of Peel’s most collectible and rare records, spanning decades in music – many of which are accompanied by letters from the artists or their management. A number of the test-pressings in this collection were the source of the first airplay for landmark songs.â€

In 2012, Peel’s record collection was made into an interactive online museum. It came part of The Space, an experimental service organised and funded by the Arts Council and the BBC.

In 2020, nearly 1,000 classic sets performed for the John Peel Sessions series – aired on BBC Radio 1 across his 37-year tenure at the station – were catalogued and made available online. Throughout the years, Peel had overseen more that 4,000 live sessions by over 2,000 artists.

The last hurrah of The Clash: “Combat Rock gets stronger as time goes onâ€

Uncut
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The last hurrah of The Clash: “Combat Rock gets stronger as time goes onâ€
For The Clash, the question in 1982 was: where next? 1980’s Sandinista! had covered a lot of ground across its six sprawling sides. Now, as sessions for The Clash’s fifth studio album moved from London to New York’s Electric Lady studio in November 1981, their recently reappointed manager Bern...

For The Clash, the question in 1982 was: where next? 1980’s Sandinista! had covered a lot of ground across its six sprawling sides. Now, as sessions for The Clash’s fifth studio album moved from London to New York’s Electric Lady studio in November 1981, their recently reappointed manager Bernie Rhodes anticipated a return to straight-ahead rock’n’roll. He couldn’t have been more wrong. Covering dub, funk and hip-hop, and with guest spots from Allen Ginsberg and NY graffiti artist Futura 2000, Combat Rock was almost as diverse as its predecessor. “The city found its way into the music,†says singer Ellen Foley, who was also Jones’ partner at the time. Mixed by Glyn Johns back in the UK, singles “Rock The Casbah†and “Should I Stay Or Should I Go†were punched up for maximum chart impact.

Nevertheless, Combat Rock arrived in shops on May 14, 1982 to a mixed reception. “In England people were like, ‘Oh fuck, The Clash have sold out’ – which was ridiculous,†says filmmaker Don Letts. “In America, they were going from strength to strength.†Yet despite the album’s ambitious mix of styles, all was not well within the band. “They were falling apart,†admits Letts. “Musical differences were happening. As demonstrated by Mick Jones’ original Combat Rock mix [Rat Patrol From Fort Bragg]. I’ve still got the C90. It was more dance-orientated.†Topper Headon had been sacked just days before the album was released, owing to his escalating heroin habit, replaced on the band’s upcoming tour by original drummer Terry Chimes. “Topper was the fucking rock,†says Letts. “Once Topper was gone, there was no proper foundation.â€

As the title suggests, conflict was rife – and not just within the band. Combat Rock was released during the Falklands War. This gave many of Strummer’s songs an additional urgency. “They feel like you’re a war correspondent on the front line – or postcards from the edge,†says The Pop Group’s Mark Stewart.

“Rock The Casbah†reached No 8 in America, as the band embarked on a stadium tour supporting The Who. “Paul Simonon said to me right at the beginning, ‘If I ever get any money, Mark, I want a waterproof telly that I can watch in the bath,’†says Stewart. “When Combat Rock broke through, I hoped Paul got that telly.â€

Such celebrations were short-lived. By 1983, Mick Jones had been sacked; the original Clash were no more. But even today, Combat Rock sounds bullish and brilliant. “They’d flown off into orbit, gone through their prog phase with Sandinista!,†says Stewart. “Then they landed here. Knowing them, and what they were trying to do, this is the classic Clash album.â€

“Forty years later,†adds Sex Pistol Paul Cook, “I think Combat Rock gets stronger as time goes on.â€

The Who return to Cincinnati for the first time since 1979 tragedy: “There are no words”

David James Young
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The Who return to Cincinnati for the first time since 1979 tragedy: “There are no words”
The Who's North American tour has taken them to Cincinnati, Ohio, for their first performance in the city for nearly 45 years. ORDER NOW: Queen is on the cover of the latest issue of Uncut READ MORE: Pete Townshend’s Top 10 deep cuts from The Who Sell Out box The midwest US city was th...

The Who’s North American tour has taken them to Cincinnati, Ohio, for their first performance in the city for nearly 45 years.

The midwest US city was the centre of an infamous tragedy during the band’s tour in December of 1979. A crowd crush that occurred while fans were entering the Riverfront Coliseum left 11 dead and dozens more injured. A documentary on the tragedy, The Night That Changed Rock, aired in 2019 and featured interviews with frontman Roger Daltrey and guitarist Pete Townshend.

After a failed attempt to return in 2020, The Who performed at Cincinnati’s TQL Stadium over the weekend (May 15). The band waived their fee for the performance, donating all ticket proceeds to local charities. The families of nine of the 11 victims were also in attendance, as they were given VIP front row tickets to the show.

“I’ve been trying to think of what to say, what would be cool to say, [and] what would be uncool to say,” said Townshend to the audience. “Really, there are no words that we can say that can mean (as much as) the fact that you guys have come out tonight and supported this event. Thank you so much.”

Watch fan-shot footage from the performance below:

The Cincinnati Enquirer reports that the band paid direct tribute to the victims of the 1979 tragedy during their performance of “Love, Reign O’er Me”. Black-and-white photos of the 11 victims were projected onto the screen, with the full list of names presented following the performance.

A video message from Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder was also shared prior to the first encore of the evening. Vedder, who is currently also on tour in North America, told the Cincinnati audience that he was “hoping to be” at the show but was unable to attend. “We’re all thinking about you,” he said to the audience. “It’s a great thing remembering those young people, who will never be forgotten.”

Vedder went on to mention that both Daltrey and Townshend had been there for him following Pearl Jam’s own tragedy, when nine people were killed during a stampede at the Roskilde Festival in 2000 while the band was performing.

For the final song of the evening, “Baba O’Riley“, the band were joined on-stage by students from Finneytown High School, a nearby school in Cincinnati. Three of the victims of the 1979 tragedy went to Finneytown High, and the school established its P.E.M. Memorial Scholarship Fund in the wake of it.

“You never get over it, but you gotta live,” Daltrey said as the band took its final bows of the evening.

The Who will wrap the current leg of the tour next week at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

Sun Ra House listed as historic Philadelphia landmark

Will Lavin
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Sun Ra House listed as historic Philadelphia landmark
Sun Ra House, the Philadelphia building that has been home to the late Sun Ra’s evolving Arkestra collective since the 1960s, has been listed as a historic Philadelphia landmark. ORDER NOW: Queen is on the cover of the latest issue of Uncut READ MORE: Sun Ra – Lanquidity (Definitive Ed...

Sun Ra House, the Philadelphia building that has been home to the late Sun Ra’s evolving Arkestra collective since the 1960s, has been listed as a historic Philadelphia landmark.

Recognised by the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places, the building at 5626 Morton Street – also known as the Arkestral Institute of Sun Ra – still houses a number of Arkestra members, including current bandleader Marshall Allen.

Allen, who first moved into the Sun Ra House in 1968 and took over the legendary jazz collective following Sun Ra’s death in 1993, revealed last year in an interview with Music Mxdwn that the building had partially collapsed.

“Water had dripped on [the floor], and probably termites had eaten the sub-basement,†Allen stated. “One day it just – schlkup – fell in.”

On Friday (May 13), the Philadelphia Historical Commission unanimously voted to grant protected status for the building, a representative for the register told Pitchfork.

Moving forward, the Historical Commission will overlook any adjustments to the building and make sure they meet historic preservation standards, as well as advising on its restoration and maintenance.

Sun Ra
Sun Ra Arkestr’s Marshall Allen. Image: Raymond Boyd / Getty Images

The designation came about with help from the Robert Bielecki Foundation, a philanthropist organisation that provides grants, awards and donations to emerging, under-recognised artists, musicians, writers and organisations.

You can check out the Historical Commission’s proposal for the nomination.

The home of Dr. John E. Fryer, psychologist and gay activist, was also recently listed on the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places.

Best known for a pivotal speech against psychiatry’s classification of homosexuality as a mental disorder in 1972, he delivered this speech in disguise at a convention for the American Psychiatric Association (APA).

The Sun Ra discography is one of the largest discographies in music history, spanning over 100 full-length albums.

Sun Ra Arkestra’s last release was 2020’s Swirling – its first album in decades – which was nominated for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album award at the 2022 Grammys.

Uncut – July 2022

Uncut
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Uncut – July 2022
HAVE A COPY SENT STRAIGHT TO YOUR HOME Queen, The Clash, King Crimson, Joan Shelley, Nancy Sinatra, The Delines, Billy Childish, Norman Whitfield, Yo La Tengo and Dennis Bovell all feature in the new Uncut, dated July 2022 and in UK shops from May 19 or available to buy online now. This issue c...

HAVE A COPY SENT STRAIGHT TO YOUR HOME

Queen, The Clash, King Crimson, Joan Shelley, Nancy Sinatra, The Delines, Billy Childish, Norman Whitfield, Yo La Tengo and Dennis Bovell all feature in the new Uncut, dated July 2022 and in UK shops from May 19 or available to buy online now. This issue comes with an exclusive free CD, comprising the best tracks of the month.

QUEEN: Welcome to Uncut’s deep dive into Queen’s 30 greatest songs – from glam smashes to arena-sized anthems, deep cuts and more. Brian May, Roger Taylor and Adam Lambert share with John Lewis tales behind the band’s thrilling body of work and celebrate the many career highs of their inimitable frontman Freddie Mercury. Stand by for cameos from Groucho Marx, an Alfa Romeo and rock’s only known bicycle-bell solo, learn the secrets of “the Deaky box†and discover how The Who and Aretha Franklin proved to be unlikely influences on the band’s sound…

OUR FREE CD! KILLER CUTS: 15 of the best new tracks this month, including songs by Chris Forsyth, Faye Webster, Ty Segall, David Michael Moore and more.

This issue of Uncut is available to buy by clicking here – with FREE delivery to the UK and reduced delivery charges for the rest of the world.

Inside the issue, you’ll find:

THE CLASH: For The Clash, the making of Combat Rock was a time of chaos and internal conflict. Yet 40 years on, its infectious mix of dub, funk, punk and hip-hop remains as glorious as ever. Here, collaborators, eyewitnesses, fans and contemporaries – including Jim Jarmusch, Don Letts, Julien Temple, Glen Matlock, Paul Cook and Mark Stewart – celebrate the last hurrah of Strummer, Jones, Simonon and Headon. “Knowing them, and what they were trying to do,†we learn, “this is the classic Clash album.â€

KING CRIMSON: An excellent new documentary, made to mark the 50th anniversary of King Crimson, may in fact commemorate the band’s “completionâ€. Uncut talks to Robert Fripp, King Crimson frontman Jakko Jakszyk and filmmaker Toby Amies to uncover a tale of bereavement, self-censorship and the importance of “getting out of the way of the musicâ€. “It’s not 12-bar blues,†learns John Robinson.

THE DELINES: The Delines’ atmospheric blend of country soul balladry and hard-luck tales has reached stunning new heights with their latest album, The Sea Drift. Willy Vlautin and Amy Boone help Laura Barton join the dots between Richmond Fontaine, “low-level coke dealers†and “Rainy Night In Georgiaâ€. Their secret? “We’re eavesdropping into people’s lives for moments at a time.â€

BILLY CHILDISH: Over the last 40 years, the freewheelin’ Billy Childish has produced a gargantuan body of work encompassing bracing R&B, blues-infused punk, raucous rockabilly, art, poetry and beyond. Currently, he is bringing his rough and rowdy ways to the Bob Dylan songbook. But how does the Bard of Hibbing fare against Chatham’s very own Renaissance man? ““Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door” is about the shortest song Dylan has ever done,†he tells Peter Watts. “So I wrote another 12 verses…â€

NANCY SINATRA: Much more than “Frank’s daughter who sang “Boots…”â€, the ’60s icon talks Nancy & Lee, Kill Bill, Elvis, Sonic Youth and flooring her Ford Thunderbird.

YO LA TENGO: The making of “Sugarcubeâ€.

DENNIS BOVELL: Album by album with the reggae guitarist.

JOAN SHELLEY: New parenthood and a songwriting circle helps increasingly ‘swell’-assisted songs attain captivating new heights.

CLICK TO GET THE NEW UNCUT DELIVERED TO YOUR DOOR

In our expansive reviews section, we take a look at new records from Wilco, The Smile, Steve Earle & The Dukes, Current ’93 and more, and archival releases from Al Stewart, Frank Sinatra, Barbara Keith, and others. We catch Nick Mason and Ride live; among the films, DVDs and TV programmes reviewed are Vortex, Everything Everywhere All At Once, Men, The Innocents and Benediction; while in books there’s Rory Sullivan-Burke and Bob Stanley.

Our front section, meanwhile, features Mavis Staples & Levon Helm, John Prine, Sounds Of The New World on vinyl, the Bickershaw Festival and Steve Reich, while, at the end of the magazine, Laura Veirs shares her life in music.

You can pick up a copy of Uncut in the usual places, where open. But otherwise, readers all over the world can order a copy from here.

CLICK TO GET THE NEW UNCUT DELIVERED TO YOUR DOOR

Iggy Pop pays tribute to guitarist and David Bowie collaborator Ricky Gardiner

Sam Moore
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Iggy Pop pays tribute to guitarist and David Bowie collaborator Ricky Gardiner
Iggy Pop has led the tributes to the guitarist Ricky Gardiner, who has died at the age of 73. The Scottish musician's death was confirmed May 15 by Tony Visconti, who told his Facebook followers that he was informed of Gardiner's passing by his wife Virginia. "Another guitar genius and persona...

Iggy Pop has led the tributes to the guitarist Ricky Gardiner, who has died at the age of 73.

The Scottish musician’s death was confirmed May 15 by Tony Visconti, who told his Facebook followers that he was informed of Gardiner’s passing by his wife Virginia.

“Another guitar genius and personal friend passed into the next world last night,” Visconti wrote. “Ricky Gardiner, who joined David Bowie for the albums Low and Iggy Pop’s The Idiot, ended a long battle with Parkinson’s. His multi-talented wife Virginia sent me an email this morning.”

Another guitar genius and personal friend passed into the next world last night. Ricky Gardiner, who joined David Bowie…

Posted by Tony Visconti on Sunday, May 15, 2022

Gardiner, who also formed the progressive rock band Beggars Opera in 1969, played guitar on Bowie’s 1977 album Low, which was co-produced by Visconti.

Gardiner first met Iggy while recording Low at the Château d’Hérouville in France, and subsequently became a member of his live band.

The guitarist later worked on Iggy’s Lust For Life album in 1977, co-writing “The Passenger”, “Success” and “Neighbourhood Threat” and playing lead guitar on such tracks as “Lust For Life”.

Iggy paid tribute to Gardiner in a message that was shared on Twitter this morning (May 16). “Dearest Ricky, lovely, lovely man, shirtless in your coveralls, nicest guy who ever played guitar,” he wrote.

“Thanks for the memories and the songs, rest eternal in peace.”

In addition to his work with Bowie and Iggy, Gardiner worked as a solo artist and released such records as The Flood (1985), Precious Life (1987) and 2015’s Songs For The Electric.

In 1995 Gardiner fell ill and developed electromagnetic hypersensitivity, which restricted the amount of time he could spend with computer devices while recording music.

Jarvis Cocker is on a quest to find woman who inspired Pulp’s “Common People”

Will Richards
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Jarvis Cocker is on a quest to find woman who inspired Pulp’s “Common People”
Jarvis Cocker says it's still a "mystery" who he wrote Pulp hit "Common People" about, but is determined to find out. ORDER NOW: Miles Davis is on the cover of the latest issue of Uncut READ MORE: The Making Of… Pulp’s "Common People" In the iconic 1995 song's opening lines, Cocker s...

Jarvis Cocker says it’s still a “mystery” who he wrote Pulp hit “Common People” about, but is determined to find out.

In the iconic 1995 song’s opening lines, Cocker sings of a woman who “came from Greece [and] had a thirst for knowledge,” studying sculpture at London’s St. Martin’s College.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s This Cultural Life (via The Mirror), Cocker addressed claims that the inspiration was Danae Stratou, a Greek woman who attended St Martin’s at the same time as Jarvis, but confirmed that “it wasn’t her because she had blonde hair and the girl had dark hair.â€

Of the origin of the song, Cocker said: “We went to the pub and she just came out with that she wanted to live in Hackney with common people.

“In 2011 we played at St Martin’s and someone showed me a picture on their phone and said, ‘Is that the girl you wrote the song about?’ I went, ‘Yeah, I think it is’” he remembered.

“Unfortunately, I didn’t ask them for the picture and I can’t remember who showed it to me so it’s still a mystery.â€

Back in 2015, Deborah Bone, the inspiration behind Pulp‘s 1995 hit “Disco 2000”, died at the age of 51. The mental health worker had been battling multiple myeloma – a type of bone marrow cancer.

Born in Sheffield, Bone and Cocker were close growing up and their friendship inspired the band’s famous track, which begins with the lyric: “Well we were born within an hour of each other. Our mothers said we could be sister and brother. Your name was Deborah. Deborah. It never suited ya.â€

Bone moved to Letchworth at aged 10 and went on to become a nurse, later setting up the Step2 health service for the Hertfordshire Community NHS Trust in Stevenage. She won various awards for her work in mental health and, just hours after her death, it was announced that she was to receive an MBE in recognition of her services to children and young people as part of the 2015 New Year’s Honours List.

Later this year, Cocker will release new memoir Good Pop, Bad Pop. Set to arrive on May 26 through Vintage Publishing, Cocker describes the book as an “inventoryâ€. It’s centred around the former Pulp frontman coming across “a jumble of objects that catalogue his story†while clearing out his loft, with the various ephemera used as a jumping off point to reflect on Cocker’s life and career. Pre-orders are available here.

His band JARV IS… recently composed the score for new BBC comedy drama This Is Going To Hurt and the full soundtrack was shared back in March.

Check out the full catalogue for Thom Yorke and Stanley Donwood’s Test Specimens art exhibition

Sam Moore
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Check out the full catalogue for Thom Yorke and Stanley Donwood’s Test Specimens art exhibition
Thom Yorke and Stanley Donwood's upcoming art exhibition Test Specimens is now being previewed online - you can check out the full catalogue of drawings below. ORDER NOW: Miles Davis is on the cover of the latest issue of Uncut READ MORE: Radiohead – Kid A Mnesia review Test Specimens,...

Thom Yorke and Stanley Donwood’s upcoming art exhibition Test Specimens is now being previewed online – you can check out the full catalogue of drawings below.

Test Specimens, an exhibition of 60 drawings by the Radiohead frontman and Donwood (who has created the cover art for all of Radiohead’s albums since The Bends in 1995), will go on display at 8 Duke Street in London from May 25-29.

The artwork was all created by Yorke and Donwood between 1999 and 2001 when the pair were working on art for Radiohead’s albums Kid A (2000) and Amnesiac (2001).

“Test Specimens offers an extraordinary, intimate glimpse into the minds of these creative geniuses at a pivotal moment in British cultural history,” curator Siobhan Andrews Kapoor said in a statement. “For us the viewers, it’s a privilege to be let behind the scenes and explore this fantastical world for ourselves.”

Donwood confirmed earlier May 16 that the full catalogue for Test Specimens is now available to view online, which you can see here.

A limited number of timed entry tickets for Test Specimens are available to book here.

Tin Man Art, who are presenting the exhibition, said in a statement last month: “We’re opening the pages of Thom and Stanley’s sketchbooks to the public for the first time, following the frenzy of interest over the exhibition of works associated with Kid A and Amnesiac at Christie’s during Frieze week last year.

“These pieces were made at a time of war and political upheaval, strangely enough mirrored by today’s tinderbox climate, making the timing particularly poignant. The message holds true: humanity can be chaotic and cruel, but art, collaboration and invention can shine a light in any darkness.”

Arooj Aftab: “If you’re an artist with an ego, you’re not a good artist”

Sam Richards
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Arooj Aftab: “If you’re an artist with an ego, you’re not a good artist”
We get a brief glance of Arooj Aftab’s home base – a light-filled room in a shared brownstone in Brooklyn’s Bed-Stuy, borrowed double bass propped against the wall – before she politely asks to switch the camera off. It’s still early, and the singer is feeling a little worse for wear follo...

We get a brief glance of Arooj Aftab’s home base – a light-filled room in a shared brownstone in Brooklyn’s Bed-Stuy, borrowed double bass propped against the wall – before she politely asks to switch the camera off. It’s still early, and the singer is feeling a little worse for wear following a heavy session at a local bar the previous evening. “It was a really warm day after five months of winter,†she pleads. “So we just lost our minds and went out and drank so much gin for absolutely no reason.â€

As it turns out, this is not an uncommon occurrence for Aftab. “I’m the biggest hedonist,†she admits. “I love being social, I love talking to people, I love just being out and about. I’m inspired by the sheer energy of people saying crazy shit to each other. I think that solitude, for some people, helps them clear their mind and do incredible things. But for me, I prefer being in the middle of a big moving organism. Being in the centre of many energies is inspiring to me.â€

This confession may come as a surprise to those who have recently found solace in Aftab’s fantastic 2021 album, Vulture Prince. A stunning and largely beatless affair that masterfully blends Sufi devotional music with smoky jazz and blues, ambient soundscapes and Buckley-esque acoustic flourishes, it transmits a sense of deep spiritual yearning and rarified, otherworldly calm. Reviews praised the album in awed, quasi-religious terms: it was “mesmerisingâ€, “mysticalâ€, “rhapsodicâ€. Suffice to say it is pretty much the exact opposite of the music you might expect to hear bubbling up from the hectic streets of Bed-Stuy, scene of Do The Right Thing and Biggie Smalls’ rap battles, a place where Aftab admits it’s tricky to record at home because of the constant blare of “airplanes and sirens and kids playing in the streetâ€. Still, she wouldn’t have it any other way.

“I think calm doesn’t meet calm very well,†she says, considering the apparent disparity between her “reckless and rowdy†lifestyle and the serenity of her music. “And also I think it’s about not feeling that self-important about your work, like, ‘this is sacred music’. While my music pretends to be minimal, it’s not repetitive structures – it has a lot of dynamic energy. And that definitely can’t happen if I’m just hanging out by myself, you know?â€

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