Is this THE great lost single? If they'd released it after On & On and (the re-released, Chris Evans-approved) She Said instead of Lost Myself, would it have sealed their position as One Of The Greatest 90s Indie Bands, rather than a dark secret from Richard Hawley's past, or an odd Pulp-related footnote/curio?
I can't even find the fucker on the internet, so there's no link. But if you've got it, listen to it, RIGHT NOW.
You see? It's fucking INCREDIBLE.
But Lost Myself is my favourite one!
This is a good single though, I'll grant you that. But I would disagree with the Greatest 90s Band thing. First album is goooood. The lead off single from the second album? The Frank Sonata, or whatever? Not so hot.
Not THE greatest band,
but certainly one of them. It's a shame some of the early b-sides were left off the album, especially 'Sweetness' and 'Juicy'. And they should have re-recorded 'Sally Dances', it was blatantly recorded for about 3p in a shed and even though it's a great song, the album sags a bit as a result.
Choices of single off of 'Mobile Home' were fairly poor, but it was something in the air that killed Longpigs rather than anything they actually did. Neither NME nor Melody Maker were never really on their side and the future was, apparently, going to be all about Fatboy Slim and Fred Durst, or men on stools moaning about the fucking weather. Ho-hum.
Mobile Home is a great album
BUT suffers from pandering too much to trying to break America, and for having the guts to not just hammer out a few more 'She Said's etc.
Wasn't the lead single Blue Skies?
I always had a soft spot for that.
Was it?
I can never remember. As a committed singles buyer at the time though, I remember I only bought Frank Sonata.
It's the song that got me into indie.
Seriously. I listened to The Levellers and Pato Banton before that.
Oh, and it's pronounced 'Jeeeeeee-EE-eeeee-EEZUZ CRIIIIIIIIIIIEZ'
The Levellers is WELL indie.
Folk-punk-anarcho-syndicalist-commune-CORE!
Actually.
i LOVE the longpigs.
i think 'she said' is better, though.
i love the longpigs, too
:)
listening to it now
you're right.
I went to school with crispin hunt. Do I win anything?
The chance to say you know someone who wrote songs for
Natilie Imbruglia? No, really...
Did he? Seriously?
Which ones?
I heard he was working for at Westminster these days, though that could have been filthy, evil lies.
His Dad's an MP
So he worked in his office I think.
figures
it was a private school. Or a training camp for casual wear tories. Feel free to burn my house down.
If you are who I think you are
I could totally do that for you.
*fetches petrol and matches*
I cannot
confirm whether or not I am who you're thinking of, but regardless, I'd welcome the purifying bliss of a good old petrol blaze. Keys under the mat.
I'm trying to remember how this goes
but for some reason, as soon as I start singing it to myself it turns into "Bully Boy" by Shed Seven. I have no idea why.
I have the 7" of that
Limited edition coloured vinyl.
Actually true.
it goes
'jesus christ - i'm on fire, when you smile (?)
jesus christ - i retire, you make me so, so (???)'
and basically rocks like no song has any business to.
It's on i Tunes
.
its no 'Jesus Christ'
by Gay Dad
To be fair, it's not the greatest use of the word 'Christ' in a song.
That honour goes to Strangelove.
KEEEERRRRRRIIIIIIIIIIIST.
Best moment in song, ever.
^this!
^thirded
BUT Longpigs severely>Strangelove.
Mostly everything wrong with Strangelove was Patrick Duff's fault for being a fuckawful lyricist; an area in which Crispin Hunt pretty much excelled ("Cow... milk..." tendencies aside...).
that album
was brilliant. utterly awesome start to end. what went wrong? why were they never huge?
Richard Hawley should be proud to have been a part of them. He wrote a really good b-side for them called 'tendresse' which I always liked. much darker than what I've heard of his solo stuff.
Far
I really like "Far" as well. Oh, and Richard hawley never seems to have a good word to say about his time in the Longpigs
It was probably a soul-crushing nightmare of tedium and frustration
and to be fair, few people who were in indie bands in the 90s seem to have a good word to say about it. Except Alex James, but then, he was paid in champagne.
Jesus Christ was on a tape
a Vox or Select one, I think. It was a live session version that was better than the album version by some way.
Good singles band...
My longstanding memory of them is watching many young girls with heatstroke get pulled out of a crowd by security during their set at V96.
It was on an NME tape,
along with 'Sandstorm' by Cast and something by Electrafixion, sometime in Summer 2005 (most likely July, around the time 'She Said' was first released, my band at the time was recording a demo in Wisbech that week).
Fuck. I'm. Sad.
i dont
think he and hunt get on that well these days, i think i've heard hunt talking fairly scornfully of hawleys output as well. ('sounds like richard moaning on' or something to that effect) - so its probably not that surprising really.
i absolutley adore both albums - and personally i blame mother for fucking them over. true enough that mobile isnt the easiest listen, but theres some amazing stuff on it. i think at the time though mother were pressuring them to write more 'she saids' and crispin was just saying no. they did write blue skies for just that reason - but the first single i think was the frank sonata. by that time mother had lost interested and the whole album was seriously underpromoted and there you go - what could have been one of the truly great bands were totally fucked. shame.
Mother were something to do with U2 as well werent they? someone correct me if thats wrong, but if not - its fucking BONOS FAULT. x
Tuuuuuuune
It took me
far too long to learn to love the first Longpigs album, aside from the first four tracks. Now Jesus Christ props up every compilation I make. Why they chose not to release this as a single (though wasn't it mooted to be one at some point?) I shall never ever know. Ever.
Oh, and Seymour, when are your incredible band coming to Leeds? You should play a clubnight called Idioteque - they'd bum you.
They did. I own it.
1995. Mum 68. Coloured vinyl. Backed by 'Sweetness'. I think it's time for me to leave.
Lush - Ladykillers
GREEN coloured vinyl!
Thanks to this thread
I bought "The Sun Is Often Out" yesterday. £3 in the record exchange near Camden Lock. Some notes:
- "Jesus Christ" is really good, aye.
- "Lost Myself" is a pretty downbeat way to open the album
- is the bit in "She Said" where Crispin Hunt appears to sing "You'd better hit her" a Velvet Underground reference? I never picked up on it the first time round.