Article Response: "The Cottage Industry Of Moments"

it must be depressing to actually work in the cottage industry.

I like how Robin couldn't quite excise Middle of the Road from the story. ;-) I admit I prefer the Lush version anyway.

Excellent excellent excellent. Thank you Robin!

Nice article... but why are Marmalade included?

They don't fit with the anonymous / studio based definition of bubblegum being a long term live act from the time of the Gaylords. I'm not sure what category to put them in - some sort of "post-60s guitar pop along with the likes of Badfinger, Steelers Wheel etc" genre- its pop, but its not bubblegum.

And if you just felt like mentioning them because they were great and get dismissed because of one stupid cover version hit then you should have slipped in a mention of the astonishing 'Radancer'.

Actually thats a whole new genre, great bands who get no success and have to resort to recording a ropey cover version.

Lovely, as I knew it would be. Any good retrospective comps out there? Even one just covering the Penny Farthing label would be nice to know about.

I should have mentioned the Love Affair's "Rainbow Valley" and Mary Hopkin's "Temma Harbour". Other than that, I think I represented it well. Thanks for the compliments!

Alexander, I'm fully aware that Marmalade fit more into the category you mention than studio-manufactured bubblegum, and I deliberately didn't mention that fucking Beatles cover (the first song that is "Macca" rather than "Paul", with all the horrors that may suggest), but their records were produced and consumed along with actual Britgum: you do sometimes have to include other artists bound up with the movement you're writing about if you're going to fully reflect all those who got involved. But even before his disgrace, I think I'd have tastefully avoided Jonathan King.

You're right, though. I was going to compare "Rainbow" to Fotheringay's "The Sea", before the narrative was slimmed down. I can't remember much about "Radancer", I have to admit, though I know I've heard it.

Jeff, you might be interested in this:

http://www.huntsman.clara.net/beautifulsunday.htm

And actually, Ned, I quite like "Soley Soley" :).

groovin with mr bloe is an odd record that seems to appeal across a number of boundaries (it is a favourite at mod and northern soul clubs too), and seems to be like a mid point between the records mentioned here and, like, young-holt unlimited and ramsey lewis type stuff

shouldn't Sweet be in here? All their best stuff was from that period? They totally fit the gum definition. Don't foget, you can't play your instruments or write your songs if you are gonna be real bubblegum, and it's better if you don't exist or are a cartoon. And "Love Grows" is more over-used than over-praised I think. It's a decent pop song.

Gareth's bang OTM about "Groovin' With Mr Bloe".

G, the Sweet *are* in there, I just concentrate on their early singles.

Sweet did play their instruments. As for song-writing: Initially they were only allowed to write b-sides, but they eventually had a couple of hits with their own compositions.

Robin - It was a great article. Apart from the fab "Groovin' With Mr Bloe", I haven't heard any of the tracks in your Top Ten, but I'll soon be searching around in my local charity shop for records by Pickettywitch and Daniel Boone.

Heroic, Robin. I have a friend who's a britgum obsessive, and I'll make sure he reads this. He lives in Dorset too - britgum revival epicentre?

Am I right in thinking the Sweet's own compositions were much closer to heavy rock than their best-remembered hit singles (mostly written by Chinn and Chapman)?

Yes Robin. They would have preferred to have been rock heroes - this is visible (eg) in the appearance of the drummer (Mick Tucker iirc) with his double bass drums and stripped-to-the-waist Carl Palmer- esque attitude. I think "Fox On The Run" was one of their songs, and if it wasn't "Love Is Like Oxygen" definitely was.

And Steve Priest in make-up and Nazi uniform. I wonder whether they kept this from audiences in Germany, where they were huge (8 number ones in 4 years).

"Ballroom Blitz", "Hell Raiser", "Action" ... incredibly great singles. But not Britgum.

Yes, they were Sweet originals. I have a particular affection for Love Is Like Oxygen ("too much you get too high/not enough and you're gonna die").

If any Sweet-era is Britgum then it's the pre-Blockbuster run of Co- Co, Wigwam Bam and Little Willy.

*My* Britgum top ten would have to include The Pipkins "Gimme Dat Ding" and Hermans Hermits - "Something Tells Me".

Does Jonathan King have a place here, in any of his early 70's guises?

Does Jonathan King have a place here, in any of his early 70's guises?

Do not speak his name...

Robin, have you ever heard "Abergavenny" by Shannon (aka Marty Wilde)? I wonder where that fits in the Britgum scheme of things. It was released in America on Colossus records, who usually concentrated on Dutch Invasion artists like the Tee Set and the Shocking Blue. Anyway, it's terrif.

Oh, good, Pickettywitch - yum. Thanks, Robin. Some of this I haven't heard and wish I could. Found a new radio station today on Live365 - Pop 45 something - all 45s from the early seventies, some or much of it British. Lots of these show up on K-Tels, for you American buyers.

i have become sharply more interested in j.king since he was jailed, and *worse* i have begun to sort of like his music!¡!¡

A fantastic article, Robin, as I would expect. Will talk about it in greater length on Church of Me in the nearness of future.

It's the sort of thread that makes me wish Laura were here to read and respond to it. Many of the songs you mentioned were staples of L's collection as a wee lass - the only one I don't know is the Stephanie De Sykes one. Where I grew up we had to endure a throaty orchestral romp through "Hundred Pipers An' All An' All" to start Scottish TV's programmes. And don't get me started on the Glen Michael Cavalcade! ATV, though - even the name brings back that queasy early '70s childhood haze; the amazement of seeing the blueness of the logo when we got our first colour TV in 1970; Pipkins (the puppets not Greenaway and Burrows). Tempered of course by the fact that The Prisoner also came out of ATV and that Pipkins eventually mutated into Spitting Image.

Any idea where I can get the song, RPC? I presume as Ms De Sykes only ever had two hits there isn't a compilation extant - although I guess Angus Deayton must have a copy somewhere.

Re: Marmalade - to my innocent seven-year-old mind in the same ballpark as Badfinger, yet the latter are hailed as pioneers and the former laughed at. Does knowing a Beatle and committing suicide give you cred?

Re: "Abergavenny" - YES! Released in UK as Marty Wilde and played to death on Radio 1 circa '68 but never a hit here - but a wonderful record.

ALSO! "Teen Wave" by Ricky Wilde - RAK records, 1974. Radio Luxembourg powerplay but never a hit. Exactly what Andrew WK would like to be like.

Marmalade and Badfinger had their biggest hits with McCartney White Album era songs, of course. O-Bla-Di and Come and Get It.

The AMG entry on Marmalade is a hoot - they sort of ended up with two versions of the band sluggin it out around the chicken in a basket circuit in the 80's/90's. (Anyone for Marmalade, The Searchers and Christie at Scunthorpe Whispers?) I didn't realise they had links with Scottish freakbeaters The Poets. They're longstanding favourites of mine since I first heard 'Wooden Spoon' on one of the Bam Caruso Rubble comps in the mid-80's.

Can anyone remember the name of Junior Campbell's solo hit? I remember Wally Whyton enthusing about it while standing in for Ed Stewart on the weekend Sat/Sun morning show when I wus a lad.

It was of course "Hallelujah Freedom."

Actually "Funny Funny", "Co-Co" and "Poppa Joe" are Britgum: everything from "Little Willy" onwards is already out of it and into glam. Anything with guitars as loud as "Wig Wam Bam" quite obviously doesn't count.

I still love "Everyone's Gone To The Moon" and "It's Good News Week", but all King's early 70s records were the runts of the Britgum litter to me long before we knew what we do.

Marcello, the Scottish TV startup you refer to is actually Geraldo's awful "Scotlandia" (it's a truly dreadful concoction of tartan / shortbread / People's Friend cliches, though someone I know remembers hearing it on Desmond Carrington's show), though the words you mention fit over the tune. But, yes, in another century from ATV's imagery and worldview - even the *fonts* on their "Good Morning" slides ooze 1973.

Actually your mention of Ricky Wilde reminds me that "Kids In America" and especially "Water On Glass" are Britgum out of time, and very little to do with other early 80s pop.

All wildly removed from the thread but actually there shouldn't be a "though" there because Carrington endlessly plays off tartan / shortbread / People's Friend cliches, so no wonder he played it.

this told me nothing i wanted troerklgkfd/skm.g,fm,.dfhmg/.,hmnf,mghng,m h,mgnfh,mgfhnfgmhn

Can I trust that this troll is not actually Tom?

Yes you can Robin.

damn