Jesse Garon & the Desperadoes - Scotland Live for Leukemia 1987 /Lewis Edwards Memorial Appeal Fund

Track listing:
• Splashing Along
• And the Rain Fell Down part 2



From a videotape I bought at the time.

The Hook ’n’ Pull Gang – Live at Clowns on the 4th of April 1986

Another great gig by this wonderful band that sadly published only one record during its first incarnation.
This tape was given to me by Fritz Van Helsing who sadly passed away a while back.
The sound has been cleaned a bit, thanks to Robin Woods. Don’t worry though. It’s still fiercely raw.



Set list:
• Pour it down your throat
• King clown
• Revenge of Al Green
• Gasoline
• Lick the pavement
• The ride
• Lovers
• Gonna be strong
• Headless chicken
• The ride
• Revenge of Al Green

The Thanes – Live in 1987 at Rumours

I'm afraid that I have been neglecting this blog for a few months. Given that I left you last October with The Green Telescopes, it seems appropriate to me to resume with The Thanes.

This concert was filmed in 1987 during a series of Thursday nights organized by Avalanche Records in the Cavern and Rumours, Edinburgh. The videos of the gigs were to be shown later in Avalanche Records shop.

Here they are at last for you lo-fi viewing / listening pleasure.

Warning: This video may feature a grumpy Lenny 😉

The Green Telescope – Live at De Stip (Amsterdam) – 30 August 1986

The Green Telescope were an amazing garage/psych mid-eighties band from Edinburgh, Scotland. They released two 45s, The “Two by Two” EP and “Face in a Crowd” single and participated to the “The Waking Dream” and “Beyond The Wildwood - A Tribute To Syd Barrett” compilations.

Lenny Helsing was on guitar and vocals, Alan McLeanon on bass, Bruce Lyall on organ and Gavin Henderson on drums which was replaced by Mal Kergan.

They later changed their name to The Thanes of Cawdor then The Thanes and are still active to this day under that name.

Here they are, recorded live in Amsterdam on the 30th of August 1986. Angus McPake is playing bass on that recording. He was standing in for Alan Mclean, just for that tour.



Setlist:
• Thinkin’ about today
• She was mine
• (I’m so) frustrated
• I could be happy
• Touch
• X+Y=13
• I am alone
• I cried my eyes out
• Who knows?
• It’s gonna rain
• Face in a crown
• Make me stay
• Kicks and chicks

Jesse Garon and the Desperadoes - Live at Rumours (Edinburgh) - 5 February 1987

If Rote Kapelle was on the Fall / Cravats side of the scene, Jesse Garon and the Desperadoes were Edinburgh somewhat darker answer to Blondie.

Andrew Tully, Angus McPake (bass guitar) and Margarita Vasquez-Ponte (drums) were in both bands. Kevin McMahon (guitars), Stuart Clarke (guitar) & Fran Schoppler (vocals) completed the line-up.

They may have been the proper happy sad pop band Edinburgh was looking for and would more than deserve to see their records reissued.

This concert was filmed in 1987 during a series of Thursday nights organized by Avalanche Records in the Cavern and Rumours, Edinburgh. The videos of the gigs were to be shown later in Avalanche Records shop.

Baby’s Got a Gun – Live in 1987 at the Cavern (Edinburgh)

“Baby’s Got a Gun” was the third album by the Only Ones, released in 1980.

It was also a Scottish band, active from 1985 until 1995 who, by their own admission, “punk’d up the eighties rock scene”. Here they are, live in Edinburgh at the Cavern in 1987.

The peculiar concert was filmed in 1987 during a series of Thursday nights organized by Avalanche Records in the Cavern and Rumours, Edinburgh. The videos of the gigs would be shown later in Avalanche Records shop. Since I was to leave Scotland before this would materialize, I begged Kevin Buckle to sell me advance copies of what had been filmed so far. He was kind enough to oblige me and here it is in all its lo-fi glory!

Sonic Youth – Live at Splash One (Glasgow) – 18 May 1986

On May 1986 our American cousins, Sonic Youth, came to visit Scotland.

On the 5th, they gave a feverish concert in Glasgow. They were at the peak of their Bad Moon Rising / Evol area. I still remember being in the front rows during the whole set and taking photographs (but more of that in a forthcoming post).

A few days later, in Edinburgh, I met someone who filmed that gig and who accepted to give me a copy. Here it is, digitized at last!

PS: If anyone knows the person who used to film indie gigs in Edinburgh and Glasgow around 1986, I would very much like to get in contact with him. He must have amazing archives, should he accept to share them 😉

The Pastels – Live at the Onion Cellar (Edinburgh) - 3 February 1986

The Pastels played the Onion Cellar on the 3 February 1986. Here is a bootleg tape I bought at the time.

I digitized it for your lo-fi enjoyment 😉

The Television Personalities live at The Forum Enger Club (Germany) – 7 January 1984

On the 7th of January 1984, The Television Personalities were on stage at the famous Forum Enger Club, Germany.

The support band was Die Sauberen Drei. This gig was booked by Macs Beckmann, who got Thomas Zimmermann into booking TVPs by posting him a hand written letter in January 1983. The sound engineer was Wigbert Pieper.

The band: Dan Treacy - Vox, Guitar, Joe Foster - Vox, Guitar, Dave Musker - Vox, Organ, Jeff Bloom - Drums, and Jowe Head (who had just joined on) - Vox, Bass

This nth generation video looks very trippy / fuzzy but it is a unique occasion to see and hear the TVPs play a 2 hours and 20 minutes gig filled with fan’s favourites.

On that night, The Television Personalities played Jowe's song “Shiny Black Shirt”. There are also a couple of more or less unrecorded songs on there.



Set List:
• Jack The Ripper
• Silly Girl
• Someone to Share my Life with
• The Picture of Dorian Gray
• Stop and Smell the Roses
• Look back in Anger
• La Grande Illusion
• David Hockney’s Diaries
• I know where Syd Barrett Lives
• The Painted World
• The Love is Gone
• If I could Write Poetry
• Pablo Picasso
• Conscience Tells me No
• Sense of Belonging
• Shiny Black Shirt
• Part Time Punks
• Three Wishes
• Painter Man
• Arthur the Gardener
• Back to Viet Nam
• Day in Heaven
• Where's Bill Grundy Now
• Set the Control to the Heart of the Sun (Medley)
• Waiting for my Man
• Sister Ray
• Roadrunner
• Batman
• Miles and Miles / Substitute
• Louie Louie
• Pushing too Hard
• 96 Tears
• She Loves You / Helter / Skelter
• Hang on Soopy
• Venus in Furs (beginning)

I hope you’ll enjoy this lo-fi video 😉

Rote Kapelle – Live at the Onion Cellar (Edinburgh) – 6 October 1986

On the 6th of October 1986, Rote Kapelle played at the Onion Cellar to a very sparse crowd, supporting Vee VV. Happily, Dave Spalding recorded their set.

You will find below this historical moment for your refined auditory pleasure 😉

Set list:
01. Intro
02. King Mob
03. Anna
04. Jellystone Park
05. These Animals Are Dangeroos
06. Sunday
07. Marathon Man
08. George

Rote Kapelle – Live at the Cavern (Edinburgh) – 12 January 1987

Rote Kapelle were a great post/punk band from Edinburgh. The were noisier and weirder sounding than most of the anorak pop bands while retaining a pop sensibility.

It may be high time to reassess Marguerite Vasquez-Ponte importance in the Edinburgh scene. She formed Rote Kapelle in the early 1980s with Andrew Tully (vocals), both of whom would also form Jesse Garon and the Desperadoes. She was also a member of The Fizzbombs and joined the re-formed Shop Assistants in the late 80’s.

The other Rote Kapelle members were Chris Henman (guitar), Ian Binns (keyboards, also a member of The Stayrcase and who played drums in The Thanes from 1987 until at least 1994), Malcolm Kergan (bass, also a member of The Thanes), and Jonathan Muir (drums). As always in Edinburgh at that time, a few familiar faces kept popping up in many bands.

The peculiar concert was filmed in 1987 during a series of Thursday nights organized by Avalanche Records in the Cavern and Rumours, Edinburgh. The videos of the gigs would be shown later in Avalanche Records shop. Since I was to leave Scotland before this would materialize, I begged Kevin Buckle to sell me advance copies of what had been filmed so far.

He was kind enough to oblige and here it is in all its lo-fi glory!

Getting Close to Nothing: An Indiepop / Riot Grrrl video fanzine from 1994

As the nineties arrived, the C86 sound began to evolve. The younger bands tended to get tougher and more radical in their political and sexual issues.

In 1994, I bought a video fanzine (limited edition of 300), I think I should share with you. It is a fair picture of the Riot Grrrl first years.

The tracks:
• Blood Sausage: F*** You and Your Underground
• Huggy Bear: No Sleep Till
• Mambo Taxi: Belgium Blues
• Cornershop: Waterlogged
• Huggy Bear: Her Jazz
• Tobi / Kathi: Safety First
• Bikini Kill: Rebel Girl
• Cornershop: Gimmie Change
• Mambo Taxi: Poems on the Underground
• Sister George: Virus Envy
• Voodoo Queens: Indian Film Star
• Huggy Bear: Pansy Twist
• Bikini Kill: This is Not a Test
• Bikini Kill: Don’t Need You
• Mambo Taxi: Serial Killer
• Huggy Bear: Single Bullets
• Blood Sausage: What Law Am I Breaking Now
• Bikini Kill: Suck My Left One
• Voodoo Queens: Voodoo Beat
• Cornershop: England’s Dreaming
• Huggy Bear: Teen Tighterns
• Sister George: Sister George
• Mambo Taxi: Do You Always Dress Like That…
• Huggy Bear: February 14th

Brompton Cocktail live at the Onion Cellar – 3 November 1986

I had the privilege to play at the Onion Cellar with Brompton Cocktail, opening for the Close Lobsters. In all fairness, I must admit that the reception was rather cold…. Almost everybody hated us. You may judge for yourself by the lack of applauses 😉

At the time, we were heavily influenced by The Cramps, The Rezillos, B movies and Hammer films. I gess this trad rock universe didn’t mix happily with the C86 crowd.

On the same night, The Catburgers and The Close Lobsters played great sets, so it was a fairly enjoyable evening.

Our drummer was Fritz Van Helsing of many bands, our singer was Pip Boydell, both now sadly passed on. Our guitarist was Michael G Jackson. I played bass.

But what is a Brompton Cocktail may you ask?
It is an oral mixture of morphine and cocaine helping patients in agony with advanced disease, named after the Royal Brompton Hospital in London, England, where the formulation of this mixture was standardized in the late 1920s for patients with cancer.

Weren’t we naughty at the time? We were young(ish), foolish, and we had a great time!

Hope you’ll enjoy our set, so many years later 😉

Note: The photographs were taken in and around our rehearsal room in Niddry Street (Edinburgh).

Set list:
• James Bond
• Shape of Things to Come
• Sally
• King Rat
• Monster Movies
• City of Nightmares
• Do the Scorpion
• Downtown
• Girl from America
• Let’s all Sin
• Everybody wants to be a Cat
• Slither
• The Children of the Living Dead
• Lagartija Nick

The Vaselines live at the Onion Cellar – 22 December 1986

Long before Nirvana “discovered” them, the Vaselines played the Onion Cellar. Here is a recording of that night.

The Hook ’n’ Pull Gang – Studio & Janice Long Session

The Hook ‘n’ Pull Gang were described as “a cross between the Sex Pistols and the Ronettes.” They were always a joy to see live. They only released one 7 inch (“Gasoline” / “Pour it Down Yer Throat”) and unfortunately saved some of their strongest songs for later releases that never materialized.

Here are a few demos and tracks recorded for a Janice Long session.

The line up at this time was Eileen McMullan (drums/vocals), Rita Blazyca (guitar/vocals) and Alan McDade (bass).

Tracks:
• Gasoline
• Gonna be Strong
• Burke N’Hare
• Revenge of Al Green
• Pour it Down Yer Throat
• The Ride
• Lick the Pavement
• Footsie Love
• Pour it Down Yer Throat
• The Family’s in

Close Lobsters – Demos and Live (85 / 86)

This is a perfect example of Indie pop communication in 1986, long before the internet, when we still used snail mail.

Here is a tape sent by the great Close Lobsters with three demos and three live songs dating back to 86 / 87. Many thanks to them!

Tracks:
• All The little Boys And Girls – Demo Feb. 86
• Just Too Bloody Stupid – Demo Feb. 86
• Firestation Towers – Demo April 86
• Going To Heaven – Live in Paisley 2/6/85
• Another Girl Another Planet – Live in Paisley 2/6/85
• Get What They Deserve – Live in Paisley 2/6/85

The Catburgers live at the Onion Cellar (Edinburgh) – 15 December 1986

The Catburgers (Jeff Duffy, Robert Jones and Stuart Macgregor) were an Edinburgh based C86-era indie pop band which never had a physical release in this era (Discogs).

On the 15th of December 1986, they played the Onion Cellar with Angus McPake (surprise!) on drums. I took a photograph during their set and Dave Spalding recorded them. Here is the result 😉



Setlist (To be completed):
01. Anthony
02. Childrens TV
03. Holiday House
04. Long Time Coming
05. ?
06. ?
07. I've Got A Friend
08. Flowers & Trees
09. Diving For The Brick
10. Sixty Seconds
11. ?

The BMX Bandits live at the Onion Cellar - 1 September 1986

The BMX Bandits were definitely one of my favourite bands from the C86 scene, so funny and touching at the same time. They played another great gig at the Onion Cellar) on the first of September 😉

Luckily, I brought my tape recorder and my camera with me. Here is the result, complete with audience participation.

Set list:
• So macho
• The day before tomorrow
• Gym song
• Strawberry Sunday
• Groovy good luck friend
• E102
• What a wonderful world
• In your hair



I am so sorry that I erased “Sad” that was played during the set. I must have been pogoing too hard!

Anyway, you will find it in this blog under "The Onion Cellar Experience - Live compilation 1986 - 1987" (see link below - recorded on that very same night by Dave Spalding).

The Onion Cellar Experience - Live compilation 1986 - 1987l

A day like any other - Back in Niddry Street

Back in 1986, when I was far younger and still had hair, I acted in a short movie as part of a super 8 workshop… and yes, it is quite embarrassing!

It was filmed partly inside the Bannermans pub, partly in Niddry Street, outside and inside the rehearsal rooms building. A few weeks later, I found myself rehearsing in the same building with Brompton Cocktail but on the first floor if my memory does not fail me.

Since no one seemed to be interested in the outcome of our day’s work, I kept the film that I never saw again until now.

I finally got around to having it digitized it and left it as it was.

Since the film was mute, I added two great Beeville Hive V songs as soundtrack (I Can Tell and Sometime Ago).

I hope you will enjoy this wee time capsule 😉

Just another night at the Onion Cellar

I just found in a drawer this long lost and forgotten picture and - guess what - I quite like it ;-)

Note: A Vulture is in this photograph. Can you spot her?