Okay, and now stick around for a little history, because this gets a tad complicated.
To begin with, as genre afficianados may have already guessed, the Half-Cubes are a spin-off from pride of Syracuse NY worthies The Flashcubes, who've been making melodic-music-with-loud-guitars since 1977, and god bless 'em for the wonderful work they've been doing. You can find out more about them (and stream/purchase their most recent album Pop Masters) over HERE.
As for "Love's Melody," longtime readers are doubtless aware that it was originally released in 1974 by seminal British pub-rock band Ducks Deluxe and (perhaps more notably) was covered in 1980 as the title track for the second of The Searchers' superb New Wave comeback albums. The fine folks at Big Stir inform me that the song's composer Andy McMasters rates this new version as the best of the three and, as Mr. Spock says in Star Trek II, I would accept that as axiomatic.
I should add that the single's cover art...
...er, borrows fetchingly from the Searchers original LP cover...
...and kudos to whoever had the bright idea to go back to the well, as it were.
In any event, you can -- and should -- pre-order the Half-Cubes remake over HERE, and while doing so, check out the B-side, which is a quite lovely version of The Hollies "Slow Down" (originally heard on the post-Allan Clarke Romany album); it's a honey in its own right.
Also -- because I love you all more than food, and because most of you probably have never seen it -- here's a possibly live video of The Searchers doing "Love's Melody."
You're welcome.
5 comments:
I had not heard Love's Melody before, but I recall early Searchers hits on the radio from the mid-60s. It is a tuneful and cheerful song, and I wish success to all who perform it. In these days of modern times, in this world in which we live in, tunes and cheerfulness are quite welcome.
Great tune. Pretty good version. Only problem I have, and this is only having listened to it twice, is that it needs a little more room. You know, to breathe. It's too dense. A very good performance, nevertheless. I can hear all the trademark sounds that flip Steve's switch. I was raised on the Duck's version and am partial to it. The Cubes version is pretty similar to the Searchers', with added balls and arousal.
The version by Elizabeth McQueen is also pretty fuckin' dyno. I like her band. link below
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPYGR8Hl1wg
and a bonus track - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X83fJ3elrE4
BTW, met the Searchers once at the studio where they shot Midnight Special. I was invited along by a photographer who was shooting the band. They were in town for "The British Are Coming" nostalgia tour. They, especially Pender, liked us and invited us to the Sheraton Universal where they were staying. Pender was very attractive in 1973. His early thirties, I guess, and I just graduated high school. As I figured, he was pretty straight. I asked him what songs they played on the tour. He rattled off a dozen or so songs. "When You Walk In the Room" wasn't mentioned. I told him that it was really stupid not to play it. Told him it was one of my faves. He found me amusing.
The whole time I'm sitting there, my friend is shooting. Since Pender is the star of the group, he got most of the attention. Pender asked my friend if he could take a shot of me sitting on his lap. I said I'd do it, but only if he sat on my lap. It happened. He enjoyed our company so much that he had his people give us some excellent comp tickets at the Forum gig. The concert was on a Friday the 13th which we all joked about.
I ended up going to the show with Sandy, since the photographer had a magazine gig. He was shooting the Doobie Brothers, Savoy Brown & ZZ Top at the Swing in Berdoo. Pender spotted me in our fifth-row seats. He pointed and smiled. They did covers of Neil Young, Carole King & even Kris Kristofferson songs mixed in with the hits. Some of the shit didn't make any sense for them to do. The fuckers obviously needed some better career advice. But, lo and behold, they did "When You Walk In the Room!' Pender introduced it saying something like "This is for a California girl who told me that if we didn't play it, I couldn't sit on her lap anymore,:”
VR
I love Romany by The Hollies. It holds together so well as an album.
Danny-
Yeah. I think Romany's really underrated. It'a different vibe because of Rickfors. I like the UK LP'a running order better than the US version. Had the UK version first because I didn't want to wait a month for the US issue. Saw this line-up live a couple of times-once with Billy Preston and Danny O'Keefe. Coincidentally, since you brought the Hollies up out of thin air, they were at that same Midnight Special shoot I mentioned above. But not on the British Invasion nostalgia tour at the Forum. The Hollies very seldom made it to the West Coast in the 60's. A pity. But I did see them in Pismo with a surf sister from 'Dino who had moved to Oceano. They were tight. Harmonies and rhythm section were amazing. Still had Haydock on that show. The ballroom we saw them in is now Pancho's Surf Shop. A cool place in both incarnations. Filled with the spirit, you know.
VR
VR - that Searchers story is wonderful.
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