Skye Shines on the Godfrey Lads (& Us All) : Clock to Stop

When Skye/Ross came out in 2016, I was dead chuffed. 2/3s of Morcheeba. The real Morcheeba. Skye Edwards Morcheeba.

When their latest Blaze Away came out in June of last year, I was beyond elated. Recently the tides of time have swept me through the sea-beds of trip-hop once more.

So I decided to do up some Cheeba here.

The Brothers Godfrey & Lady Skye launched "Trigger Hippie" in 1995 & Morcheeba was birthed. It was upward sailing (listen to the autobiographic "We Fell Down" & I'll guarantee you'll be hooked on this great Rock 'n' Roll saga) until 2003. But that year the GBs dismissed longtime vocalist Skye Edwards. The Godfrey brothers ran through two more singers (not to Morcheeba fan's liking, however) before producing an album of all guests vocalists. They finally asked Edwards to return in 2010.

That year they released Blood like Lemonade with only Ms. Skye on vocals. It was a spectacular reunion & a tremendous album. Once more it's been an uphill ride, not without a few bumps, emotionally taxing for all concerned. Paul & Ross had not been getting on musically or personally for quite some time. Shortly after the release of the Head Up High album in 2013, Paul decided he was leaving the band. Because of the internal tensions, HUH was not the success that Lemonade had been. It was a rough journey at best, the original trio's true swansong. In 2014 Paul Godfrey left the band.

Ross & Skye announced a new project in 2016 named Skye ][ Ross. The band started as just an acoustic duo but were soon joined by  Edward's son Jaega on drums, her husband Steve Gordon on bass & Godfrey's wife Amanda Zamolo providing backing vocals. This band is now the core of Morcheeba v4.0. Edwards took responsibility for the lyrics which had been Paul's in Morcheeba. Skye had been writing her own lyrics on her four solo releases (Back to Now being a jewel in Skye's crown) after leaving Morcheeba in 2003.

Ross & Skye then went on to release Blaze Away under the old Morcheeba moniker in 2018.

I have mainly skipped most songs from 2003s Parts of the Process, a "best of" released as Skye departed. I did include a version of "Trigger Hippie", as it was their first & "World Looking In" (a fave of mine, "Otherwise"...).  I also omitted song from The Antidote & Dive Deep as they were made sans Skye, filling the void. I have included numerous tracks from Skye's solo releases as well as Skye][ Ross (if "All My Days" & "How to Fly" aren't "classic" Morcheeba tracks, I'll eat my shorts).  2018 saw the return of Morcheeba to their former glory in the form of Blaze Away.

What a long strange but vastly worthwhile trip it's been, even though...

What's wrong with me?

Look to the sky, but watch out for trigger hippies...

Morecheeba & More: Skye; Ross; & Paul - The Morcheeba Project 2xCD, 

NØ Comps, 2019.

CD1 -

Trigger Hippie (Glide Star mix) - Morcheeba
Almost Killed Me - Skye
Love Dub - M
I Believ - S
How to Fly - Skye & Ross
Slow Down - M
Clock to Stop - S
Hypnotized - M
We Fall Down - S
Small Town - M
Beat on the Drum - M
Summertime (c12 mix)
Feet First - S&R
Love Show - S
Howling - M
Love is Rare - M
Say Amen - S
World Looking In - M



CD2 -

Little Bit Lost - Skye
Crimson - Morcheeba
Public Displays of Affection - M
All My Days - Skye & Ross
Give In - S
Set Your Sails - M
Friction - M
Easier Said than Done - M
Fragments of Freedom - M
What's Wrong with Me? - S
Recipe for Disaster - M
Let It Go - M
Otherwise (Radio edit) - M
Storm - S
Light of Gold - S&R
Sweet L.A. - M
Even Though - M
Every Little Lie - S

Enjoy,
NØ

Are You a Believer?

Various - Do You Believe in the Final Solution?, NØ Comps, 2019.

Do You Believe in the Westworld - Theatre of Hate
Ex Lion Tamer - Wire
The Rat - The Walkmen
Imagination - Sad Lovers & Giants
We Are Time - The Pop Group
Jumping Someone Else's Train - The Cure
Resurrection Joe - The Cult
Life During Wartime - Talking Heads
Nice 'n' Sleazy - The Stranglers
Blood - Editors
A Song from Under the Floorboards - Magazine
careering - Public Image Ltd.
Practice Makes Perfect - Wire
Final Solution - Pere Ubu

Enjoy,
NØ

Give the People What They Want

I'll just keep' em coming for a while. I'm working on a Skye Edwards / Morcheeba overview, so until that's ready, these are fun.

Various - The Black Panther Party Songbook, NØ Comps, 2019.

(Don't Worry) If There's a Hell Below We're All Going to Go - Curtis Mayfield
The World is a Ghetto (La Pozze Latina remix) - War
The Revolution Will Not Be Televised (live) - Gil Scott-Heron
Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler) - Marvin Gaye
Rich Get Richer - The O'Jays
Woman of the Ghetto - Marlena Shaw
Say It Loud (I'm Black & I'm Proud) - James Brown
Yes We Can, Part I - Lee Dorsey
Ball of Confusion (That's What the World is Today) - The Temptations
Yes We Can, Part II - Lee Dorsey
Power to the People (demo) - Curtis Mayfield
Get Involved -  George Soulé
People, Get it Together - Eddie Floyd
Give the People What They Want - The O'Jays
Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology) - Marvin Gaye
The Revolution Will Not Be Televised (album version) - Gil Scott-Heron

Enjoy,
NØ

I Face the Rising Sun

Jonder, you didn’t say WHEN you were going on VayCay.

Hope this catches you in time &  traveling fancy. It’s a sweet rhapsody for the road.

Various - Dumping Ground: Good Garbage Picked from the Dump, NØ Comps, 2019.

Sylvia Plath - Peter Laughner
The Suit That Won’t Come Off - Fantastic Negrito
She was a Living Breathing Piece of Dirt - Shockabilly
Strange Little Girl - The Stranglers
Hey Gyp (Dig the Slowness) - Donovan
& the Beat Goes On - Prince Fatty featuring Hollie Cook
Drive Me Insane - Dead Neighbors
Nothing Means Nothing Anymore - The Alley Cats
Jackie Onassis - Human Sexual Responce
Loretta Young Silks (acoustic) - Sneaker Pimps
Touch of Style - Ace & the Eights
Boomerang Doll - Katastrophy Wife
Asharaden - Tartit
Fortune Teller - Tony Jackson with the Vibrations
Rising Sun - Art-X & The Roots Addict
Jam Jar Jail - Therapy?
School Daze - Patrick Cowley

Enjoy,
NØ

Time to Wake Up

Various - Party Up in Here, NØ Comps 2019.

Awakening - Phallus Dei
What Silence Knows (unreleased version) - Shara Nelson
Trigger Hippie (Newcheeba mix) - Morcheeba
Party Up in Here - The Brides of Funkenstein
Isn’t That Enough - Chaka Knan
Love Is a Bitch - Two Feet
Say My Name - Little Axe
2000 Light Years from Home - Sky Cries Mary
I Put a Spell on You - Bryan Ferry
Dangerous - Barbara Gogan & Hector Zazou
Modern Times (extended mix) - Latin Quarter
Dead Radio - Rowland S. Howard
Don’t Cha Know - Chaka Khan
Thought of You - Shara Nelson
Will You Come Now - Phallus Dei

Enjoy,
NØ

Tubby Goes Digital

Got a request from Dee, a visitor here at NSS, for some 80s digital dancehall. Always try to oblige.

Although I have a much greater interest in Dub than I do reggae (or dancehall), I do have a bit of the genre.  Here is a 2001 release from Pressure Sounds of some of King Tubby's contributions to the whole scene.

Various - Firehouse Revolution: King Tubby’s Productions in the Digital Era 1985-89, 

Pressure Sounds PSCD34, 2001.

decryption code in comments

Temp - Anthony Red Rose
After All - King Everall
Crank Angle Part 2 - King Asha
Two Big Bull Inna One Pen - Anthony Red Rose / King Kong
Original Sound - Conroy Smith
Special Singer - King Everall
Rude Boy - Lloyd Hemmings
Dry Up Your Tears - Tinga Stewart
Dry Up Your Tears (version) - Peego / Fatman
Line Up - Johnny Osborne
Fade Away - Little John
Babylon - King Kong
Pressure Me - Lilly Melody
Automatic - King Everall
Under Me Fat Thing - Anthony Red Rose
Under Me Fat Thing (version) - Noel Davy

Enjoy,
NØ

Detritus of Rebirth

Cool Whip or Smooth Cheese?

Lisa Taylor - Secrets of the Heart, Giant Records W2 24432, 1992.

any decryption codes in comments

Fallen Angel
Secrets of the Heart
Better Late than Never
Once Again Love
To Know Your Love
Make You Mine
Part of My Heart
You Could've Been with Me
I Can't Remember When
I Wanna Fall in Love Again
Did You Pray Today?

     ===================================================================

Ronny’s Got a Krush on da DJ

Ronny Jordan meets DJ Krush - Bad Brothers, Island Records PHCR-3705, 1994.

The Jackal (The Illest mix)
S**t Goes Down (but I Got Phunked Up mix)
Love I Never Had It so Good
So What! (Tuff 'N' Smooth mix)
Seasons for Change (Dawn of the Season mix)
Bad Brother (How Ya Like My Wheeel mix)

===================================

It is a Beautiful Thing, Baby

Housemartins, Beats International, Freak Power, Pizzaman, or Fatboy Slim...we all know & love him as Norman Quentin Leo Cook.. Here’s one from Fried Funk Food hisself.

Freak Power - In Dub: The Fried Funk Food EP, Island Records FREAK LP1, 1994.

Turn On, Tune In, Find Joy
At Your Own Pace
Sugar Lump
Freakpower is a Beautiful Thing, Baby
My Heart Sings
Where I’m Going

===================================

Fear of Lamb

Lamb - Fear of Fours limited edition bonus disc, Fontana 314 546 417-2, 1999.

B Line (Andy Votel mix)
Górecki  (Global Communication mix)
Cottonwool (Fila Brazillia mix)
Trans Fatty Acid (Kruder & Dorfmeister Session mix)
Gold (Hipoptimist Alchemy mix)

===================================

Karmacoma or Komacaramel?  Massive Karma.

Various - Versions of KC & more: NØ's mix, 2019.

Karmacoma (Album version)
Karmacoma (Instrumental original)
Overcome - Tricky
Karmacoma (U.N.K.L.E. Situation mix)
Karmacoma (Napoli Trip)
Karmacoma (Ventom DUB Special)
Fake the Aroma (live studio recording)
Karmacoma (U.N.K.L.E. Situation instrumental mix)
Karmacoma (Bumper Ball DUB mix)
Karmacoma (live)
Overcome - Bristol
Karmacoma (U.N.K.L.E. Situation instrumental remix)
Karmacoma (Portishead experience)

===================================

& the Real Reason I Started this Series

I've mentioned before that I'm a closet tripper-hopper, well...

''Revenge of the Number'' is that reason.

Rebirth.

Portishead - Numb single, Go! Discs GODCD 114, 1994.

Numb
Numbed in Moscow
Revenge of the Number
Earth - Linger
A Tribute to Monk & Canatella
w/ hidden track - Still Numb

===================================

Ode to C. Blackwell

''Do you think that I could forget you
After all that you done to me?
You think that I don't know
After all that I done for you?
You think that it don't show?

Efforts to build your empire,
You turned out a filthy ole liar
By shooting the stars that you fire
& I watch while the flames burn higher.

No. 1 Rip-off man
You saw the #1
You dirty rip-off man.''

Jimmy Cliff - No. 1 Rip-Off Man from Music Maker, Reprise Records MS 2188, 1974.

Enjoy,
NØ

Don’t Say Nothin'

Been gone for a while. Planting time & a big Anniversary for me has had me busy. The pause has had me rethinking a lot of things.

Thinking about Rebirth...here's the Rebirth of Cool series from 4th & Broadway / Island. There are innumerous variations on these muthas, so I'm just giving ya what I personally have in my collection. They get progressively better IMO & by Phive it's definitely alive.

Various - The Rebirth of Cool, 4th & Broadway 512 238-2, 1992

any decryption codes in comments

I've Lost My Ignorance (& Don't Know Where to Find It) - Dream Warrior & Gang Starr
Raise the Flag - X Clan
Senga Abele (Lion Roar) - Manu Dibango & MC Mell'O'
Cool & Funky - Ronny Jordan
I Should've Known Better - Mica Paris
Welcome to the Story - Galliano
Family - McKoy
Try My Love - Lalomie Washburn
Kickin' Jazz - Outlaw
Step Right On - Young Disciples
Joe's Jam - Statemaster Tate
Witness the Drift - Laquan
I Come Off - Young MC
The Slow Jam - Dodge City Productions


Volume Too duplicates material from the original release as well as adding new tracks. In this case I have posted both the complete volume & the edited volume with only the new tracks. That way you can decide if you want it as released or without the redundancy. I'll try to make the choices obvious, but the choice you choose is fully & truly yours. Completist versus drive-space...you decide. I'm just here to make things more confusing.

Various - The Rebirth of Cool Too, 4th & Broadway BRLPD 582, 1992.

I've Lost My Ignorance - Dream Warriors & Gang Starr
La Raza - Kid Frost
Senga Abele (Lion Roar) - Manu Dibango & MC Mell'O'
Cool & Funky - Ronny Jordan
I Should've Known Better - Mica Paris
All for One - Brand Nubian
One to Grow On - UMC's
Family - McKoy
Try My Love - Lalomie Washburn
Kickin' Jazz - Outlaw
Looking at the Front Door - Main Source
Free Your Feelings - Slam Slam & Gang Starr
Go With the Flow - Pete Rock & C. L. Smith
Set Me Free - The Bygraves
Black Whip - Chapter & the Verse
The Slow Jam - Dodge City Productions

 Various - New on Too (edited tracks)

Various - The Rebirth of Cool 3, 4th & Broadway BRCD 590, 1993.

Chameleon - Jazz Warrior
Life Goes Around - Courtney Pine featuring Juliet Roberts
Taurus Woman - The Subterraneans featuring Mardou Fox & Jonzi
Dominican Girdles - Dana Bryant
Don't Say Nothin' - Opaz
Fever - Stereo MC's
Bad Brother - Ronny Jordan
Good Lover (Touch mix) - D-Influence
Caroline - M.C. Solaar
Big Idea (Shortwave) - The Brecker Brothers
Did You Pray Today? (Extended R&B mix) - Lisa Taylor
Man Talk (Talkin' Loud mix) - Greg Osby
Revival (Rebirth edit) - Martine Girault
People (Come On) - Dodge City Productions
Loud Minority (Club mix) - United Future Organization
Inner City Boundaries - Freestyle Fellowship

 Various - The Rebirth of Cool 4 Most, 4th & Broadway BRCDX 607, 1994.

Just Wanna Touch Her (Stoned Jazz mix) - DJ Krush
Play My Funk - Simple E
Cantamillia - Tranquility Bass
My Favourite Things - Ronny Jordan
Aftermath - Tricky
Earthsong - Batu
Crazy - Outside
Spock with a Beard - Palm Skin Productions
World Mutation (Made in His Image) - Tone Productions
Tree, Air, & Rain on the Earth - Mondo Grosso
Great Men’s Dub - Burning Spear
Soul of the People - Bread & Butter

Various - The Rebirth of Cool Phive, 4th & Broadway BRCD 617, 1995.

Friendly Pressure - Jhelisa
Eine Kleine Hed Musik - Coldcut
Karmacoma (Portishead Experience) - Massive Attack
Boundaries - Leena Conquest & Hip Hop Finger
Whipping Boy (remix) - Ben Harper
Deep Shit (Parts 1 & 2) - Kruder & Dorfmeister
Hell is Round the Corner - Tricky
Turn On, Tune In, Find Joy - Freak Power
Revenge of the Number - Portishead
Bug Powder Dust (La Funk Mob remix) Bomb the Bass & Justin Warfield
United Future Airlines (Astral Hi-Jack mix) - United Future Organization
Iniquity Worker - D-Note
Release Yo Delf (Prodigy mix) - Methos Man
Kosmos (Lynch Mob bonus beats) - Paul Weller
Nouveau Western - M.C. Solaar
Get It Together - Beastie Boys

Various - The Rebirth of Cool 6, 4th & Broadway BRCD 620, 1996.

Underwater Love - Smoke City
Claire - IO
To Forgive but Not Forget - Outside
You Are Heaven Sent - Nicolette
Cotton Wool (Fila Brazillia mix) - Lamb
Horizons - L.T.J. Bukem
Migration - Nitin Sawhney
Ponteio - Da Lata
Jazz Garage - Akasha
Feel the Sunshine - Alex Reece
Surfin' - Ernest Ranglin
Who Could It Be (Jungle Brothers radio edit) Luciano meets The Jungle Brothers
Bittersweet - Lewis Taylor
Street Player - DJ Pulse & The Jazz Cartel
Rudiments - Dave Angel


Then 4&B'way parent Island takes over & shit goes downhill fast. Chris Blackwell (the Assassin of Cool) had already sold out to Polygram UK by 1988 but hung around for ten more years before finally splitting.

Cool 7 was one of the last stabs into a dying corpse. 4th & Broadway was shut down in 1998, shortly after Blackwell left Island Records but before the merger of the PolyGram & MCA label families that became Universal Music Group. 4th & B'way's remaining hip hop artists transferred to Def Jam Recordings, but that’s another story for another day.

Various - The Rebirth of Cool 7 2xCD,  Island Records 524 487-2, 1998

CD1 

Get Another Plan (Extended mix) - Abstract Truth
Mokey Jazz - Ian O'Brian
My Beat - Blaze
Size of an Elephant - Universal Being
Contrazoom - Spacer
The Redeemer - Underwolves
Where My Mind Is At - DJ Skitz alongside Roots Manuva
My History / Feel the Spirit (Afro History Pt 11) - New Sector Movements
Escravos de Jo - Kerrie & Joe
African Elation - Dean Fraser

CD2

 Tears for the Yazd - The Amalgamation of Soundz
Chemical Imbalance (DJ Die mix) - Karime Kendra
Elephant Ride - State of Bengal
Life (Da Lata mix) - Luciano
Plans & Designs - Faze Action
Na-Da (Featuring Manorama Prasad) - Tala Quintet
In at the Deep End - Bill Riley
Ballet Dance - Roni Size
Impressions - Fused Up
What Is It? - The Mighty Strinth

Enjoy,

NØ

Back to the Round-Up

This is installment three of a crazy-ass project that I started October 1, 2017 All the Usual Suspects when I posted The Elephant Table Album (a Compilation of Difficult Music). Then NSS regular W. commented: "This is a rather fantastic collection of early works from some now well know electronic/experiemntal artists." which led me to the idea of posting a full album by each band on all four sides of TETA.


When I started on October 7, & Other Galactic Funk I stated: "that...I hope I can do the other three sides before my short attention span puts the kibosh to this plan. Well, at least, here's Side One..."


I managed to post up the second side the next day Elephant Round-up Side 2. Then my mind took a walk somewhere else. But like this Elephant thaang goin' on, I never forget, even if I wander off for a while.

Here we go with Elephant Round-up Side 3 with these suspect devices: SPK; MFH; Nocturnal Emissions; Attrition; Legendary Pink Dots; & Paul Kelday.

SPK (System Planning Korporation) - Information Overload Unit, Side Effects ser01, 1981.

all decryption codes in comments

Ultra-Face -
Emanation Machine R. Gie 1916
Suture Obsession
Macht Schrecken
Berufsverbot

Hyper-Face -
Ground Zero: Infinity Dose
Stammheim Torturkammer
Retard
Epilept: Convulse
Kaltbruchig Acideath

MFH - Ground Zero cassette, YHR Tapes YHR 016, 1981.

Side One -
Back to Basics
Geigenzeit
Interlude I
The Last Few Days
Mistral
Tunnel Vision
Interlude II
Whitescape

Side Two -
Funk
Ground Zero
Open-web Soldiers
Metal for Michael
Interlude III
Safi
Behind the Darkest Clouds

Nocturnal Emissions - Spiritflesh, Earthly Delights EARTH 004, 1988.

Side One -
T' Cow's Yed
Acres of Gold
Thor's Cave
Cloud Can
Boneshaker

Side B -
Ch'i Sea
Raindance
Ape Chime
The Well is Deep
Peter’s Stone

Attrition - Death House cassette, Adventures in Reality Recordings ARR 11, 1983.

side one -
Crawling

side two -
Dead of Night

Attrition - Onslaught cassette, Third Mind Records TMT06, 1983.

1st Side -
Vigil
Onslaught
Shrinkwrap

2nd Side -
Tones in Black
First Onslaught

Legendary Pink Dots / Attrition - The Terminal Kaleidoscope split cassette, 

Ding Dong Records & Tapes DDC 011, 1985.

Side A -
Flowers for the Silverman
City Ghosts
A Lust for Powder
Kitto
Tower 4
Neon Gladiators

Side B -
Pendulum Turns: Reflections
Redoubt of Light
The Next Day
Across the Divide
Beast of Burden
Surge & Run


I am a fan of all things LPD-related: LPD; Edward Ka-spel; Silverman; Tear Garden; Ryan Moore; etc.

My own favorite era of LPD is the early/mid 90s. I guess I’ve posted most everything from that time-frame elsewhere on this here mess. I believe one of the few things I haven’t posted is a split with Big City Orchestra entitled Tryst 7 from 1994 on Ubuibi. I’ll remedy that right now.

The Legendary Pink Dots side is a mix of old material into a new "mega-mix: song. An interesting note about this release is that BCO & LPD both produced two mixes each, so there are actually 4 different editions of this cassette totaling 200 copies.  Here’s my copy:

Big City Orchestra / Legendary Pink Dots - Tryst 7 split cassette, UBUIBI, 1994.

Side A: Bedgceityookastraw -
Introduction
Kaosyxs
Seven
Distraction
Focus
Withdrawal
Release - all as one single track

Side B: Legendary Pink Dots -
The Politics of Excess

Paul Kelday - Expedition to the Barren Reaches of the Mind cassette, DTW DTW 011, 1986.

Side 1 -
Princess of Power
Premonition

Side 2 -
Epitaph for the Rainbow Warrior

Enjoy,
NØ

Say Her Name [Thoughts of You]

Her name is Shara Nelson.

She’s been called the Aretha of trip-hop. Her name is Shara Nelson.

Fuck, I shouldn’t have got so high & then listened to "Thoughts of You" while typing this shit-storm. I’m sitting here at the ole PC with major wood. (ha...ha...he said "wood"). Then "How Close" comes on: "How close is too close?..there must be a reason for this tension...I’m giving you time to blow your mind...How close is too close, baby?" Now I've gotta head to the bathroom to clean up, then I’ll hit this sucka again.

Shara was only eighteen when she hooked up with those scoundrels at On-U Sound & made her debut in 1983 as the vocalist with The Circuit on Aiming At Your Heart. She made numerous On-U guest appearances with Voice of Authority, Singers & Players, Missing Brazilians, & Dub Syndicate throughout the 80s.

Shara Nelson & the Circuit - Aiming at Your Heart 12" 45, On-U Sound MIX 2, 1983.

all decryption codes in comments

Side A -
Aiming at Your Heart (Part 1)
Aiming at Your Heart (Part 2)

Side B -
Just as Long as We Have Love (Part 1)
Just as Long as We Have Love (Part 2)

However it is her work with Massive Attack on their 1991 debut album Blue Lines for which Shara remains most associated, in particular the highly acclaimed "Unfinished Sympathy".

"Unfinished Sympathy" was first released under the temporary group name Massive. It was written by the three band members Robert "3D" Del Naja, Andrew "Mushroom" Vowles, Grant "Daddy G" Marshall, as well as vocalist Shara Nelson, & the group's co-producer Jonathan "Jonny Dollar" Sharp. The song was released as the second single from Blue Lines, on the band's Wild Bunch label distributed through Circa Records on 11 February 1991.

Massive Attack - Shara tracks from Blue Lines, Wild Bunch Records WBRCD 1, 1991.

Safe from Harm
Unfinished Sympathy
Daydreaming
Lately


In total, Nelson co-wrote & provided vocals on four tracks on the Blue Lines album, including another hit single "Safe from Harm". Nelson also recorded & appears on another track with Massive Attack entitled "Just a Matter of Time", which was exclusively included on a short film the group made of the same name. It was shot on Super 8mm film on location in Bristol, 7 minutes of greatness & quite rare.







After Blue Lines, Shara launched a successful major label solo career. Her debut was What Silence Knows (co-writing & singing all tracks) on the Cooltempo/Chrysalis label.

Shara Nelson - What Silence Knows, Cooltempo ctcd35, 1993.

Nobody
Pain Revisited
One Goodbye in Ten
Inside Out
Uptight
Down the Road
Chance
Thoughts of You
How Close
What Silence Knows


She also released singles such as "Uptight" produced by Mike Peden. The one I’m posting (7243 8 81184 2 2) contains the supremely superior Adrian Sherwood & Style Scott unreleased version of the song "What Silence Knows" (Style plain rips it up!).

Shara Nelson - Uptight CD single, Cooltempo cdcool 286, 1994.

Uptight (Uno Perfecto edit)
Uptight (Uno Perfecto mix)
Uptight (Dirty Lowdown vocal mix)
What Silence Knows (Adrian Sherwood / Style Scott unreleased version)


Then life took its toll & Shara stepped away from the limelight.

In 2003, after more than 10 years away, she returned to On-U's spin-off imprint of the time, Soundboy & recorded a vocal version of Sherwood's "Hari Up Hari" from Never Trust a Hippy.

Adrian Sherwood - "Hari Up Hari  (Shara Nelson vocal version)" 

from promo 12" on Real World Records RWAS DJ 1, 2003.

She also released a self-credited track "Nobody Else" featuring a rhythm by Jazzwad [Rhythm 214].

Shara Nelson - Nobody Else 10'', Sound Boy SB012, 2004.

Side A -
Nobody Else

Side B -
Nobody Else (version)

Also in 2003, Nelson collaborated with Futurasound on the track "Right Now".

She co-wrote & sang "Say My Name" with Little Axe. When Shara begs you to "Say My Name", you'll truly know what longing is all about.

Little Axe - "Say My Name" from Champagne & Grits, 

Real World Records, 7243 5 76746 2 1, 2004.

Since then she has worked with 10th Planet ("Push Me Away"), NUfrequency ("Go That Deep" & "Promised"), Doug Wimbish ("I Wanna Know" - co-writer & vocalist).

Several new tracks have been posted on Nelson's official website, including "Promise to You", "Different" & "If".

In September 2012 Shara performed live for the first time in many years, performing her hit "Unfinished Sympathy" at the concert in aid of Cool Earth produced by Angelica Campion-Armstrong.

Since then she has contributed vocals to the tracks "Badger Swagger" by The Artful Badger, "All Together Now" on The Peace Collective single. Nelson, Simon Britton, & John Power wrote & recorded the title track "Looking" for the motion picture "ANTI-SOCIAL". Nelson is currently continuing work in the studio with Simon Britton & various collaborators for her next solo album purportedly due sometime this year.

& if you are still drooling for more, here’s a baby bonus...

Presence featuring Shara Nelson - Sense of Danger (Part 1) 12'' EP, Pagan PAGAN 024, 1998.

Side A -
Sense of Danger (original Presence mix)

Side B -
Sense of Danger (Pepe Bradock remix)
Sense of Danger (Furry Phreaks Dub)

bonus bonus:
Presence - Matter of Fact featuring Shara Nelson from All Systems Gone, Pagan PAGAN CD1010, 1999.

Enjoy,
NØ

Lost but Not Forgotten

Being an acolyte of all things On-U Sound & a fan of Mark Stewart (Pop Group, Maffia, or solo), I've posted other MS & M offerings here & here. Now the latest.

In January of this year, Mute Records rereleased 1983s Learning to Cope with Cowardice
by Mark Stewart & Maffia (both 2xCD & 2xLP are already sold out).

Along with this reissue of the original comes The Lost Tapes, a collection that represents the outcome of a painstaking search & the presentation of previously unheard material. Brought together into a sequence of embryonic prototypes, frenzied dub versions, & new archive discoveries, The Lost Tapes chronicles the early ideas & unknown stories that defined the outset of Stewart & Adrian Sherwood's vastly influential work together.

Beginning with the seething assault of "Intro" the collection provides a glimpse into a project Stewart originally intended for William Burroughs whilst "May I" presents a never-before-heard spectacle of raw Dubwise disorder recently discovered on an unmarked tape in an archive in France. Elsewhere there are significant coups in the form of "Paranoia", a pristine yet tough alternate version to "The Power of Paranoia", & "The Weight", another previously unreleased track that, in its forthright lyricism, reveals the vigor with which Stewart has, for many years, been committed to the Campaign Against The Arms Trade. Other revelatory moments include "Conspiracy" the first-ever collaboration between Stewart & Sherwood & "Jerusalem (prototype)", a historic first version of LtCwC's defining anthem, originally aired at the fateful CND rally in Trafalgar Square that signaled an end to Stewart's days in The Pop Group ver.1.0 & initiated his solo career.

Mark himself perceives The Lost Tapes as a document that now possesses a storied significance: "It was a real adventure discovering this forbidden history, a twisted tale of Muswell Hillbillies, French pirates, & a Dutch schizophrenic doctor doing psychic archaeology." Adrian Sherwood describes these works as characteristic of a distinct primitivism: "[The Lost Tapes represent] the early childhood of the songs before Mark & I conducted frenzied, scorched earth, slash-&-burn, twenty-hour mental manic editing sessions at Crass' studios that led to the birthing of the finished album."

Mark Stewart & Maffia - The Lost Tapes 1983, Mute Records 69759 , 2019.

Intro
May I
Conspiracy
Jerusalem (prototype)
Paranoia
Liberty Dub
Vision
Cowardice Dub
High Ideals & Crazy Dub
The Weight

You better grab this while it lasts.

Enjoy,
NØ

Let's Start the Conversation

In San Francisco, renowned surveillance expert Harry Caul (Gene Hackman) & his recording engineers Stan & Paul tape the conversation of Mark & Ann as they walk through busy Union Square. Their circuitous route through the noisy public space complicates the assignment. Harry must use three simultaneous tapes, each of which captures only a portion of the conversation. Harry returns to his sparse, impersonal apartment to discover that his landlady has bypassed his elaborate alarm system to leave a gift for his birthday. This is extremely annoying to Harry, as he values his own personal privacy above all else. He eases his spirits by spending the evening alone playing his saxophone.

The next day, in his warehouse office, Harry synchronizes the three tapes, isolating Mark &Ann's voices from the surrounding sounds. He reconstructs almost all of their innocuous-sounding conversation. Harry delivers the tape to  the Director, Mr. C's office. The Director is the high-level businessman who has commissioned the recording. When Mr. C's assistant, Martin Stet meets Harry & insists on taking the tape himself, a mistrustful Harry refuses to relinquish the recording. He returns to his office to listen to the tape again. This time, noticing an inaudible whisper, he uses specialized equipment to discern the words; "He'd kill us if he got the chance." Being a devout Catholic, Harry visits his church & confesses to a priest his fear that the tape will be used to hurt Mark & Ann.

After a surveillance conference held the following day, Harry invites several acquaintances & their two female companions back to his office to drink. Once there, Bernie, one of Harry’s rivals in the surveillance racket pushes Harry to reveal how he accomplished his most famous job, a Washington, D.C. welfare scandal. Then Bernie tells the group how the welfare scandal resulted in the deaths of three people. Harry explodes in anger & throws everyone out. Meredith, Bernie’s flirtatious assistant/showgirl insists on staying. She successfully seduces Harry. Later when he awakens from post-coital bliss, Meredith & the Director’s tape are gone.

Harry has realized that Ann is Mr. C's wife. Afraid of what Mr. C. will do to Ann for her affair with Mark, Harry, relying on Mark's taped comment about an appointment at a hotel that afternoon, rents the room next to theirs. Soon, he hears an argument between Mr. C. & Ann. He then sees a bloody handprint on the adjoining balcony window. Horrified, he tries to escape the noise of the argument by turning up the television & burying himself under the bedcovers. Hours later, he arises & breaks into the adjoining room. Everything appears perfectly clean until he flushes the toilet, which overflows, flooding the room with blood.

Harry races to Mr. C's office where reporters are busy questioning Ann about her inheritance now that Mr. C. has died, supposedly in a car crash. Harry realizes that Mark & Ann were not in danger, but rather planning a murder. After returning to his apartment, Harry sits & plays his saxophone to unwind. He receives an ominous phone call warning him that he is being watched. He then hears a recording of himself having just played his saxophone. Undone by the thought that his secure domain has been breached, Harry searches for bugging devices, shredding the curtains, disconnecting the wiring, even pulling up the floorboards until his apartment is completely destroyed by his paranoia.

Finally, Harry is left alone, playing his saxophone amid the wreckage.



Presented here is a tribute inspired by Coppola's 1974 film. (for previous The Bug, go here.)

The Bug - Tapping the Conversation, WordSound WSCD018, 1997.

decryption code in comments

Harry's Theme
Invasion of Privacy
Countdown to Elimination
Those Tapes are Dangerous
Bug Party
The Lift
Fake Auto Crash
Room 773
Seduction & Betrayal
The Director
Amy
Nightmare Messenger
Twenty-four Hour Surveillance

Enjoy,
NØ

Don't Touch Me There

About five years ago I posted up Edwin Starr's incomparable Ric-Tic Records 45rpm classic "Agent Double O Soul" (backed w/"ADOS instrumental").

Since I've been slamming with Terrorists as of late, I thought I'd toss out The Untouchables take on the Double O soul agent.

These black & white rude boys were frequently seen in the clubs or riding around L.A. on Vespas & Lambretta scooters wearing three-button suits, military-issue parkas, dark sunglasses, &pork pie hats.

Led by vocalist Kevin Long, the Untouchables were formed in Silver Lake (L.A) in 1981, inspired by the success of a local ska-punk band, the Boxboys, who had themselves been inspired by Britain's 2-Tone ska revival.

Soon, the Untouchables (who called themselves "the UT’s") had a rabid following who packed the Silver Lake-area dive called the O.N. Klub (referred to simply as On by the scenester hip), to hear them play & watch their stage show.

They would eventually became the house band at the Roxy Theatre in West Hollywood, enjoying a Thursday night residency that lasted for months. The Roxy was just down the street from the Whisky a Go Go, where they’d also played to huge crowds.

The Untouchables - Agent Double O Soul, Twist Records 7 72342-2, 1988

decryption code in comments

Agent Double O Soul
Let's Get Together
Stripped to the Bone
Airplay
World Gone Crazy
Under the Boardwalk
Cold City
Shama Lama
Sudden Attack
Education
Cool Boy
Agent Double O Soul (House mix)
Stripped to the Bone (Bare Bones mix)

bonus - American Masquerade (The Boxboys 1980)

Enjoy,
NØ