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Introducing the new Uncut

Michael Bonner
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Introducing the new Uncut
CLICK TO GET THE NEW UNCUT DELIVERED TO YOUR DOOR Having spent quite a lot of time at the end of last year poring over Peter Jackson’s Get Back films, it felt as though revelatory light had been shed on the final stages of The Beatles’ creative life. For this issue, meanwhile, Peter Watts has...

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Having spent quite a lot of time at the end of last year poring over Peter Jackson’s Get Back films, it felt as though revelatory light had been shed on the final stages of The Beatles’ creative life. For this issue, meanwhile, Peter Watts has assembled the most detailed and revealing exploration of the other end of The Beatles’ career in this excellent deep dive into the Fabs’ 1962.

Without spoilers, I should note that it’s remarkable how different things could have been if, say, George Martin had prevailed and The Beatles had recorded “How Do You Do It” as their debut single, or if John Lennon hadn’t pulled out a harmonica on stage at Stroud’s Subscription Rooms. Reading Peter’s impeccably researched piece, I’m struck by the amazing amount of luck and happenstance that occurred during this pivotal year in Beatle lore. History turned on small moments like a chance meeting in the bar of the Green Park Hotel or an impromptu drink at the New Colony Club. As the year progressed, the team around The Beatles began to gather – familiar faces like Martin, Neil Aspinall, Tony Barrow and Tony Bramwell assemble. Later, of course, The Beatles are masters of their own destiny – but as 1962 unfolds they are still coming into focus in their own story. It’s a tale full of revelation and promise: a reminder that the stories of our greatest heroes must start somewhere.

There’s a lot more besides The Beatles in this splendid issue of Uncut. Not least the arrival – 22 years late! – of Neil Young & Crazy Horse’s mythic lost album, Toast. Young is on a formidable run at the moment – who knew we needed another round of live recordings from 1971? – and the arrival of Toast, teased for so long, not least by Young himself, feels like yet another essential release from one of music’s richest vaults. Young’s doughty lieutenants Crazy Horse are on hand too, to take us inside the sessions at Toast Studios.

Elsewhere Nick Hasted ascends to the Mothership in pursuit of George Clinton, Sam Richards gets loud with John Dwyer and the OSees, Graeme Thomson gets mellow with Chris Blackwell, Christine McVie considers the past, present and future games of Fleetwood Mac, while Allison Hussey hears colourful Tropicália tales from Sessa. There’s also Family, Ty Segall, Bikini Kill, Nina Nastasia and a long, strange trip back to Europe 1972 for the Grateful Dead.

All this, plus an impeccably curated free CD showcasing the very best of the month’s new music including Gwenno, Black Midi, MJ Lenderman, Andrew Tuttle and Naima Bock and Laura Veirs.

As ever, let us know what you think.

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Ringo Starr postpones summer tour dates after band members contract COVID-19

Ellie Robinson
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Ringo Starr postpones summer tour dates after band members contract COVID-19
Ringo Starr has postponed the remainder of his North American summer tour with the All-Starr Band, after two of its members – keyboardist Edgar Winter and guitarist Steve Lukather – tested positive for COVID-19. ORDER NOW: THE BEATLES ARE ON THE COVER OF THE LATEST ISSUE OF UNCUT “We ...

Ringo Starr has postponed the remainder of his North American summer tour with the All-Starr Band, after two of its members – keyboardist Edgar Winter and guitarist Steve Lukather – tested positive for COVID-19.

“We are so sorry to let the fans down,” the former Beatle said in a statement shared to his website on Saturday (June 11), hours before the tour was set to reach the Pennsylvanian city of Easton. “It’s been wonderful to be back out on the road and we have been having such a great time playing for you all. But as we all know, [COVID-19] is still here and despite being careful these things happen.”

Following Saturday’s gig in Easton, the tour would have continued to Providence, Rhode Island on June 12, before rolling through Maryland, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania this week. All of those shows – as well as subsequent dates in Virginia, Georgia and Florida – have now been pushed back into September.

Exact dates are yet to be confirmed, however they’re all slated to occur before Starr’s previously announced autumn dates commence in late September. Scroll down to see the updated itinerary for the remainder of the tour.

“I want to thank the fans for their patience,” Starr continued in his statement. “I send you all peace and love, and we can’t wait to be back in the Fall.”

Winter was the first of Starr’s bandmates to come down with COVID-19, sitting out the last three dates of the tour – two of the All-Starr Band’s three sold-out shows in New York, and their subsequent gig in New Jersey – after he tested positive of June 7. The band had initially planned to power on without Winter, but changed course when Lukather tested positive for the virus on Saturday.

Starr put out his latest solo album, What’s My Name, in 2019. He shared two EPs in 2021: Zoom In and Change The World.

Away from his solo work, Starr was recently enlisted by Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder to perform on his third solo album, Earthling. He’s also branched out into the world of digital art, announcing his first collection of NFTs in May. It came alongside the debut of a virtual art gallery, dubbed RingoLand, which fans will able to access via the metaverse platform Spatial. The announcement was widely panned by Starr’s fans.

Last week, Starr was awarded an honorary doctorate from the Berklee College of Music. “The idea that I’m a doctor blows me away,” he said in his acceptance speech. “You know, I just hit [the drums]. That’s all I do. I just hit the buggers. And it seems to be, I hit them in the right place.”

Ringo Starr’s updated North American tour dates are:

SEPTEMBER
TBA – Easton, State Theater
TBA – Providence, PPAC
TBA – Baltimore, Modell Lyric
TBA – Baltimore, Modell Lyric
TBA – Lenox, Tanglewood
TBA – Pittsburgh, PPG Arena
TBA – Philadelphia, Metropolitan Theater
TBA – Richmond, Virginia Credit Union Live
TBA – Atlanta, Cobb Center
TBA – St Augustine, The AMP
TBA – Hollywood (Florida), Hard Rock
TBA – Clearwater, Ruth Eckerd Hall
Friday 23 – Bridgeport Connecticut, Hartford Healthcare Amphitheater
Saturday 24 – Atlantic City New Jersey, Hard Rock Etess Arena
Monday 26 – Montreal Quebec, Place Bell
Tuesday 27 – Kingston Ontario, Leons Centre
Friday 30 – Mount Pleasant Michigan, Soaring Eagle Casino

OCTOBER
Saturday 1 – New Buffalo Michigan, Four Winds Casino
Sunday 2 – Prior Lake Minnesota, Mystic Lake Casino
Tuesday 4 – Winnipeg Minnesota, Canada Life Centre
Wednesday 5 – Saskatoon Saskatchewan, Sasktel Centre
Thursday 6 – Lethbridge Alberta, Enmax Centre
Saturday 8 – Abbotsford British Columbia, Abbotsford Centre
Sunday 9 – Penticton British Columbia, South Okanagon Events Centre
Tuesday 11 – Seattle Washington, Benaroya Hall
Wednesday 12 – Portland Oregon, Arlene Schnitzer Hall
Friday 14 – San Jose California, San Jose Civic
Saturday 15 – Paso Robles California, Vina Robles Amp
Sunday 16 – Los Angeles California, Greek Theater
Wednesday 19 – Mexico City Mx, Auditorio Nacional
Thursday 20 – Mexico City Mx, Auditorio Nacional

Uncut – August 2022

Uncut
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Uncut – August 2022
HAVE A COPY SENT STRAIGHT TO YOUR HOME The Beatles, George Clinton, The Osees, Sessa, Chris Blackwell, Bikini Kill, Nina Nastasia, Christine McVie, Roger Chapman, Neil Young and Al Jardine all feature in the new Uncut, dated August 2022 and in UK shops from June 16 or available to buy online no...

HAVE A COPY SENT STRAIGHT TO YOUR HOME

The Beatles, George Clinton, The Osees, Sessa, Chris Blackwell, Bikini Kill, Nina Nastasia, Christine McVie, Roger Chapman, Neil Young and Al Jardine all feature in the new Uncut, dated August 2022 and in UK shops from June 16 or available to buy online now. This issue comes with an exclusive free CD, comprising the best tracks of the month.

THE BEATLES: Welcome to 1962: the first annus mirabilis of many in the extraordinary life of The Beatles. We relive the key events in this fast-moving, transformative year – from disaster in Decca’s Studio 2 to triumph on the stage of the Empire Theatre. Familiar faces appear here for the first time, old friends depart, the tempo is set for the rest of their career – and by the end of the year, John, Paul, George and Ringo are poised to release their first No 1 single. The future, Peter Watts discovers, is born here.

OUR FREE CD! FROM US TO YOU: 15 of the best new tracks this month, including songs by Andrew Tuttle, Black Midi, Ty Segall, Laura Veirs and more.

This issue of Uncut is available to buy by clicking here – with FREE delivery to the UK and reduced delivery charges for the rest of the world.

Inside the issue, you’ll find:

GEORGE CLINTON: As George Clinton’s ‘latest farewell’ tour rolls into town, Uncut hitches a ride aboard the Mothership. There, veteran Funkateers and new recruits bear testimony to the joyous legacy of Parliament–Funkadelic. But where next for the collective’s visionary Patriarch. “This particular cherub,” hears Nick Hasted, “may be here forever.”.

THE OSEES: Having spent the past 20 years boldly exploring the extremities of garage rock, psychedelic sludge and free-jazz meltdowns, Osees have returned with a thrillingly intense new album, A Foul Form. Sam Richards discovers how the band’s new “scum-punk” direction is providing catharsis at a troubled time. “I would never consider the Osees to be the conscience of humankind,” says their fearless leader John Dwyer, “but at the same time it’s never bad to hold a mirror up…”.

CHRIS BLACKWELL: A gambler by nature, Island Records visionary Chris Blackwell has backed many winners in a long and colourful career, from Free, Bob Marley and King Crimson to Roxy Music, Grace Jones and Tom Waits. Peter Tosh called him “Whiteworst!”, Lee Perry branded him an “energy pirate”, but the label supremo has been hugely respected, if not loved, by his artists. “I knew I wanted to spend my life close to music,” he tells Graeme Thomson.

SESSA: From São Paulo to New York, via a remote island off the southeast coast of Brazil, Sessa has taken his dreamy, stripped-down brand of Tropicália with him. But how does he contend with the movement’s history and tradition as well as Brazil’s turbulent political landscape? “I’m a musician, that’s where my heart is,” he tells Allison Hussey.

ROGER CHAPMAN: Chapeau to Chappo! The former Family frontman looks back on a long career spent dodging spivs, scallywags and hypnocrats to hobnob with Jimi, Elton and the Stones.

BIKINI KILL: The making of “Rebel Girl”.

NINA NASTASIA: Album by album with the Californian songwriter.

NEIL YOUNG WITH CRAZY HORSE: At last! Twenty-two years late… the Horse’s mythic ‘lost’ album arrives. But has it been worth the wait?

CLICK TO GET THE NEW UNCUT DELIVERED TO YOUR DOOR

In our expansive reviews section, we take a look at new records from Ty Segall, Gwenno, Kendrick Lamar, Andrew Tuttle and more, and archival releases from The Walkmen, Grateful Dead, David Michael Moore, and others. We catch the Wide Awake Festival and Kim Gordon live; among the films, DVDs and TV programmes reviewed are Elvis, Il Buco, Earwig, Pleasure and Nitram; while in books there’s Peter Doherty and David Leaf.

Our front section, meanwhile, features Elvis Costello, Richie Furay, Revalators Sound System, and World Of Twist, while, at the end of the magazine, Al Jardine shares his life in music.

You can pick up a copy of Uncut in the usual places, where open. But otherwise, readers all over the world can order a copy from here.

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Bob Dylan covers The Grateful Dead’s “Friend Of The Devil” in Oakland

Rhian Daly
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Bob Dylan covers The Grateful Dead’s “Friend Of The Devil” in Oakland
Bob Dylan covered The Grateful Dead at the June 11 Oakland stop of his Rough And Rowdy Ways North American tour. ORDER NOW: THE BEATLES ARE ON THE COVER OF THE LATEST ISSUE OF UNCUT READ MORE: A look back at Bob Dylan’s landmark debut album The star has been on the road in support of ...

Bob Dylan covered The Grateful Dead at the June 11 Oakland stop of his Rough And Rowdy Ways North American tour.

The star has been on the road in support of his latest album since November 2021, taking a break between December 2021 and March 2022.

On the last of three nights at Oakland, California’s Fox Theater, Dylan closed his set by swapping the tour standard of “Every Grain Of Sand” for a cover of The Grateful Dead’s “Friend Of The Devil”.

It was the first time since 2007 that Dylan had performed the Dead song live, although it used to be a staple of his sets in the late ‘90s. Listen to a recording of his latest cover of “Friend Of The Devil” below.

Dylan himself got the cover treatment recently, with Angel Olsen putting her own spin on his 1964 song “One Too Many Mornings”. The cover was recorded for the soundtrack of the new Apple TV+ series Shining Girls, which stars The Handmaid’s Tale’s Elisabeth Moss.

Kate Bush reacts to “Running Up That Hill” reaching new UK chart peak: “How utterly brilliant!”

Rhian Daly
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Kate Bush reacts to “Running Up That Hill” reaching new UK chart peak: “How utterly brilliant!”
Kate Bush has shared a new statement on "Running Up That Hill" after it reached a new peak on the Official UK Singles Chart. ORDER NOW: THE BEATLES ARE ON THE COVER OF THE LATEST ISSUE OF UNCUT READ MORE: Kate Bush on her album The Dreaming: “I wanted to take control of everything” T...

Kate Bush has shared a new statement on “Running Up That Hill” after it reached a new peak on the Official UK Singles Chart.

The 1985 single has been witnessing a resurgence after it featured as a prominent part of the storyline in Stranger Things 4.

On June 11, the track landed at Number Two on the Official UK Singles Chart. It was held off the top spot only by Harry Styles’ “As It Was”, which has remained Number One for 10 consecutive weeks. “Running Up That Hill” previously peaked at Number Three, and gave Bush her highest chart position since “Wuthering Heights” went to Number One in 1978.

““Running Up That Hill” has just gone to No 2 in the UK charts and No. 1 in Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland, Sweden….,” Bush wrote in a new post on her official website. “How utterly brilliant!

“It’s hard to take in the speed at which this has all been happening since the release of the first part of the Stranger Things new series. So many young people who love the show, discovering the song for the first time.”

She went on to say that the response to the song was “something that has had its own energy and volition”, was a “direct relationship between the shows and their audience”, and had come together “completely outside of the music business”.

“We’ve all been astounded to watch the track explode!” she added. “Thanks so much to everyone who has supported the song and a really special thank you to the Duffer Brothers for creating something with such heart.”

Earlier this week, Bush earned her first Number One album on the US’ Billboard charts when Hounds Of Love topped the Top Alternative Albums Chart. It followed “Running Up That Hill” rising to Number Eight on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, marking the first time one of Bush’s singles has landed in the Top 10 in the US.

Since Stranger Things 4 first aired last month, Spotify streams of “Running Up That Hill” have also increased by at least 153 per cent.

In a previous statement, Bush shared her love for Stranger Things, saying she had “watched every series” of the show and “really loved it”. Explaining why she had agreed for her song to be included in the new episodes, she added: “When they approached us to use “Running Up That Hill”, you could tell that a lot of care had gone into how it was used in the context of the story and I really liked the fact that the song was a positive totem for the character, Max. I’m really impressed by this latest series.”

David Lynch pays tribute to Julee Cruise: “A great musician, great singer and a great human being”

Rhian Daly
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David Lynch pays tribute to Julee Cruise: “A great musician, great singer and a great human being”
David Lynch has paid tribute to his frequent collaborator Julee Cruise, following the news of the singer’s death. Cruise, who famously sang the theme tune for Lynch’s Twin Peaks, died on Thursday (June 9), her husband Edward Grinnan announced on social media yesterday (10). She was 65 years o...

David Lynch has paid tribute to his frequent collaborator Julee Cruise, following the news of the singer’s death.

Cruise, who famously sang the theme tune for Lynch’s Twin Peaks, died on Thursday (June 9), her husband Edward Grinnan announced on social media yesterday (10). She was 65 years old.

Lynch has since posted a short video offering his response to Cruise’s death. “I just found out that the great Julee Cruise passed away,” he said in the clip. “Very sad news.

“So might be a good time to appreciate all the good music she made and remember her as being a great musician, great singer and a great human being. Julee Cruise.”

As well as the Twin Peaks theme, the singer also worked with Lynch on his 1986 film Blue Velvet, which featured the song “Mysteries Of Love”. Cruise also appeared in Lynch’s 1990 avant-garde concert Industrial Symphony No. 1: The Dream Of The Broken Hearted.

Lynch and Angelo Badalamenti also served as songwriters on Cruise’s albums Floating Into The Night (1989) and 1993’s The Voice Of Love.

Sharing news of her death, Grinnan wrote: “I said goodbye to my wife, Julee Cruise, today. She left this realm on her own terms. No regrets. She is at peace.”

He added that her time as a member of The B-52s, who she toured with sporadically throughout the ‘90s as a stand-in for Cindy Wilson, was “the happiest of her performing life”. “She will be forever grateful to them,” Grinnan wrote.

“When she first stepped up to the mic with Fred [Schneider] and Kate [Pierson] she said it was like joining The Beatles. She will love them always and never forget their travels together around the world. I played her [The B-52s’ 1989 song] “Roam” during her transition. Now she will roam forever.”

Back in 2016, Cruise collaborated with Sky Ferreira on a new live version of “Falling” – the Twin Peaks theme tune – at David Lynch’s Festival Of Disruption in LA.

Deep dive into Queen’s 30 greatest songs

John Lewis
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Deep dive into Queen’s 30 greatest songs
Even for a band as seasoned as Queen, a new tour presents certain tribulations. For example, as they resume their Rhapsody World Tour – including a 10-date residency at London’s O2 Arena – Brian May, Roger Taylor and Adam Lambert are facing a familiar conundrum. Just how do you adequately repr...

Even for a band as seasoned as Queen, a new tour presents certain tribulations. For example, as they resume their Rhapsody World Tour – including a 10-date residency at London’s O2 Arena – Brian May, Roger Taylor and Adam Lambert are facing a familiar conundrum. Just how do you adequately represent Queen’s capacious back catalogue in a single live set? “We do just over two hours, which is time for just over 30 songs,” says Taylor. “There’s that constant challenge – to fit in big hit singles alongside slightly deeper cuts. God help anyone trying to whittle our back catalogue down to a Top 30!”

As it transpires, both Taylor and May are fascinated by Uncut’s entirely impartial and scientific list of Queen’s best songs. “That looks like a good mix of hits, live favourites and album tracks,” admits Brian May. “I can imagine that lots of fans will argue for days about this selection! But it’s heartening that there is such depth in our catalogue. There are so many deep cuts we’d love to do live again. Part of me would love to do a whole set of obscure album tracks. But you can’t afford to do that when you have so many hit singles that people expect to hear. As Prince used to say: ‘There are too many hits, darling!’”

Over the last 50 years, Queen have recorded nearly 200 songs – including 40 hit singles. As a consequence, many of the band’s biggest singles don’t make the setlist – songs like “Flash”, “You’re My Best Friend”, “Good Old Fashioned Lover Boy”, “Play The Game” and “A Kind Of Magic” haven’t been played in years.

Too many hits? Not a bad problem to have. But what Brian May is uncomfortable about is explaining what some of those hits mean… “I’m so glad that Freddie was never grilled by journalists, asking him the exact meaning of “Bicycle Race” or whatever,” says May. “Part of me is uncomfortable about analysing what these songs mean. I love that no-one understands “Bohemian Rhapsody”. It means that anyone is free to put their own interpretation to the song. One thing I’ve learned over the years is that the intention of the writer is just a small part of what a song means. There is always an autobiographical element to every song, but so much is in the eye – or the ear – of the beholder, of the interpreter. That’s how music should be.”

Vieux Farka Touré – Les Racines

Nick Hasted
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Vieux Farka Touré – Les Racines
Imagine being Jimi Hendrix’s son, and forging your own path as a musician. Vieux Farka Touré has carried that weight, wrestling with the legacy of his father Ali Farka Touré, the Malian guitarist whose ’90s albums with Taj Mahal and Ry Cooder introduced western audiences to the blues’ diaspo...

Imagine being Jimi Hendrix’s son, and forging your own path as a musician. Vieux Farka Touré has carried that weight, wrestling with the legacy of his father Ali Farka Touré, the Malian guitarist whose ’90s albums with Taj Mahal and Ry Cooder introduced western audiences to the blues’ diasporic loop, from the slave ships to the USA and back to Africa, where young Ali heard John Lee Hooker and shivered with recognition. Touré Senior closed that circuit of influence, defining what came to be termed desert blues.

Vieux Farka Touré, meanwhile, went his own way. Blessed with similarly virtuosic guitar talent, he defied Ali’s initial disapproval to become a musician. Starting his professional career in 2006, the year his father died, he explored different collaborative byways as he established himself, working with jazz great John Scofield and Allman Brothers alumnus Derek Trucks on The Secret (2011), and two improvised albums with Israeli musicians as The Touré-Rachael Collective. In truth, he’s never wandered far from Malian music. But, 16 years after his father’s death, this sixth solo album finally immerses him in Ali’s sound. It’s as if, having made his own name, he’s now able to let go, allowing Ali’s influence to flood through. “This album had to be very natural, with the same mood and feeling my father had,” he tells Uncut. “I have this music in my blood and my heart anyway. What I’m doing is still myself. It’s not the same as previous Vieux Farka Touré albums, but it’s the same as I am in the street, in the school – it’s what I’m doing all the time. This is the tradition. It’s like the songs from my house.”

Les Racines means “the roots” and, as he crafted its music with maximum care at his Bamako home studio – named Studio Ali Farka Touré in unapologetic homage – Touré dug as deep as he could. Amadou & Mariam’s Amadou Bagayoko, who interweaves guitars on high-velocity opener “Gabou Ni Tie”, was among the elite Malian musicians who stopped by. But Les Racines is ultimately a full and fierce showcase for Vieux’s own prowess, and his restatement of desert blues.

The instrumental “L’Âme”, meaning “the soul”, sinks most deliberately and deeply into Ali’s spirit, rising and sinking like breath, with a loping, rolling gait, ’til it quickens in climactic tribute. It has the warmth of an abiding memory. “Flany Konare” is a contrasting statement of living, sensual love, Touré singing “Cherie, Cherie, Cherie, Cherie!” with unabashed, mantric directness, his voice conversationally low as a tight, tough arrangement pops and ripples, and his guitar dances over his own, deep-set jabs. “Adou” is similarly fervent, and exultantly proud of the son it’s named after. “Les Racines” sounds Spanish at first, with its castanet-style percussive clicks and Touré’s florid, brooding riffs, but his playing’s introspective intensity and lyricism, shadowed by Toumani Diabaté’s brother, Madou Sidiki Diabaté, on kora, is a very individual communing with roots.

Tradition is always double-edged, both a rooted strength and restriction, and “Gabou Ni Tie”’s chiding of a girl who rejects ancestral education and, as Touré explains, “the advice of her parents and only keeps bad company”, promotes communal responsibilities.

Elsewhere, though, Les Racines’ many instructional songs can’t be denied. Touré intends these lyrics for both Mali’s elites – with more expectation of being heard than most rock protest songs – and the toiling farmers in its rural expanse, where music remains the prime information source. He’s addressing a nation groaning with musical wealth but riven with ethnic conflict, alongside IS slaughter, government corruption and insidious foreign influence. No wonder “Ngala Kaourene”, which pleads for ethnic reconciliation, starts with the album’s starkest blues guitar notes, Madou Traore’s flute sweeping Touré’s guitar in its slipstream as he desperately implores. “Ndjehene Direne” closes Les Racines with staccato guitar stabs so liltingly light-toned yet relentless that they have a cumulative effect.

This delayed return to his father’s musical house finds Vieux Farka Touré commandingly authoritative and viscerally present. For all its vivid tumult and protest, his musical lines always loop back, like John Coltrane or John Lee Hooker, but further still, carrying him home.

Steve Earle & The Dukes – Jerry Jeff

Nick Hasted
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Steve Earle & The Dukes – Jerry Jeff
In 1971, 16-year-old Steve Earle arrived at gigs with a battered guitar, long hair and a cowboy hat, often half-pissed, and trying more than anything to be like Jerry Jeff Walker. He eventually caught up with the “Mr Bojangles” writer in Nashville, becoming a student and friend as he had with To...

In 1971, 16-year-old Steve Earle arrived at gigs with a battered guitar, long hair and a cowboy hat, often half-pissed, and trying more than anything to be like Jerry Jeff Walker. He eventually caught up with the “Mr Bojangles” writer in Nashville, becoming a student and friend as he had with Townes Van Zandt and Guy Clark, in progressive country’s febrile heyday. Walker was the last of that pantheon to die, in 2020, and Jerry Jeff completes Earle’s trilogy of homages, after Townes (2009) and Guy (2019).

Walker began as a Greenwich Village folkie down from upstate New York, then played psychedelic rock before changing his name and becoming the hitchhiking, careless country troubadour the teenage Earle dreamily idolised. Songs picked here are steeped in the trade’s romance, before the cost of hard living has worn it down. Earle adopts a phlegmy, trailing growl as he inhabits his hero, and the Dukes mostly speed down the track, heedlessly immediate.

“Gypsy Songman” defines Walker’s persona, “I Makes Money (Money Don’t Make Me)” elaborates on his code, Earle muttering “ain’t a dollar in the world makes me change my stuff” in an ornery blur, and “Gettin’ By” makes it a general, languid condition amenable to both hippies and honkytonks. “Mr Bojangles”, sung with cornpone syrup by Dylan, here earthily returns to the drunk-tank cell where Walker met its subject, a broken-down, alcoholic tap-dancer his song invests with heel-clicking magic. The tune defiantly climbs, strings waltz and Earle stores sentiment ’til the end. Eleanor Whitmore’s fiddle waltzes here and distinguishes arrangements of rushing mandolins and balmy steel guitar, until the closing, wheezing harmonica blues of “Old Road”.

Despite “Hill Country Rain”’s youthful insistence on “livin’ too fast” and “leavin’ me nothing behind”, Walker died aged 78. Earle too dispensed with his Walker-style props, booze especially, a quarter-century ago – yet the zesty liberty in the man’s music clearly still moves him.

Angel Olsen – Big Time

Sharon O'Connell
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Angel Olsen – Big Time
Angel Olsen’s records are most often characterised as heartbreak music – love, loss and loneliness expressed with almost desperate intensity and a directness that has its own poetry. It’s a reasonable take but, as is the case with so many female singer-songwriters, it overlooks her music’s t...

Angel Olsen’s records are most often characterised as heartbreak music – love, loss and loneliness expressed with almost desperate intensity and a directness that has its own poetry. It’s a reasonable take but, as is the case with so many female singer-songwriters, it overlooks her music’s thoughtfulness and ignores Olsen’s agency, as if the artistic decisions she makes always take a back seat to the emotions that inform her songs.

A couple of recent projects alone, though, prove that internal weather systems don’t direct all of Olsen’s creative moves. Two years after the triumph of 2019’s All Mirrors, which saw her teaming up with Jherek Bischoff and John Congleton for a synth-blasted set full of lavish orchestrations and saturnine theatricality, came a covers EP. A move so leftfield it played as almost frivolous, “Aisles” saw Olsen taking on the likes of Laura Branigan’s “Gloria” and (most startlingly) “The Safety Dance” by Men Without Hats. It was, it seems, a way for her to loosen her reputation for unbending conviction. Around the same time, there was a writing and recording hook-up with Sharon Van Etten for “Like I Used To”, a welcome reminder, Olsen said then, of the power of collaboration and the release from expectation it brings.

Her sixth, co-produced by Jonathan Wilson, executes no radical stylistic swerve but neither are its 10 songs of a single type. Rather, they’re a balancing of country – here are echoes of Tammy, Emmylou and Lee Hazlewood – and torch song (kd lang, Roy Orbison), with the odd flourish of cocktail-lounge melancholy (a la Badalamenti) and classic, MGM-style orchestrations. Nor do they rely on the slow-build-to-giddy-headrush dynamic that made All Mirrors so irresistible.

That said, “Go Home” – a towering, burnished beauty where Olsen, her voice swathed in anguish and velveteen reverb, cries “I wanna go home, go back to small things, I don’t belong here, nobody knows me” – would have sat well on that record. Despite a large cast of players, including one-man orchestra Wilson, this is a smaller record than All Mirrors, which may in part be an inverse reaction to the overwhelming nature of its author’s recent life events, but is more likely the fact that she’s settled on a ground between artistic high drama and dark introspection.

The “big time” in question clearly isn’t a reference to household-name success – that’s hardly Olsen’s interest, nor would she be so crass. Rather, it’s how her partner expresses her feeling: “I love you big time.” As a title it both celebrates their relationship and represents Olsen’s newfound liberation, while also describing a period of huge personal upheaval. Though publicly out since last year, she hadn’t declared her queerness to her parents but after she finally did, the couple celebrated with friends. Just three days later, Olsen’s father died; within weeks, she lost her mother, too. All of which suggests a record soaked in grief, but the exultancy of new love and the relief of hard-won selfhood are in play, too.

The set opens with the easy-swinging “All The Good Times” and Olsen’s declaration: “I can’t say that I’m sorry when I don’t feel so wrong anymore”, her truth burning through others’ presumptions, her liberated shrug almost audible over the light brushing of pedal-steel guitar, a murmuring organ and subtle horn punctuations. The title track, co-written with Olsen’s partner, follows right behind, delivering a twangin’, honky-tonk kick with a touch of Kitty Wells, but the mood changes with “Ghost On”, a spangled, waltz-time swoon, heavy on the reverb and regret: “The past is with us, it plays a part/How can we change it?/How do we start?” she wonders. “This Is How It Works”, a fluid, beautifully underplayed standout, sees lapping pedal-steel guitar and Feldman’s keys making light and elegant work of heavy emotions – accepting the inevitability of death and finding the strength to bear grief’s battering. Midway sits the tremulous and hushed “All The Flowers”, which could be Vashti Bunyan, had she spent time in Topanga Canyon.

The album closes on a sweetly romantic note with “Chasing The Sun”. Here, a simple piano coda signifies the shift from darkness to light, Olsen’s soft, cocktail-lounge coo ushering in the Hollywood strings before she notes: “Write a postcard to you when you’re in the other room/I’m just writing to say that I can’t find my clothes/If you’re lookin’ for something to do”. Then, with a sudden vocal leap, Olsen is soaring, her soul, as well as voice, bursting. She sounds dizzy with the realisation that she’s been “having too much fun doing nothing” and finally – in this new chapter at least – “driving away the blues”.

Laurie Anderson says Lou Reed archive won’t be housed in Texas “because of guns”

Erica Campbell
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Laurie Anderson says Lou Reed archive won’t be housed in Texas “because of guns”
Laurie Anderson has shared why the Lou Reed: Caught Between The Twisted Stars exhibition was nearly held in Texas but ended up in New York City instead. ORDER NOW: THE BEATLES ARE ON THE COVER OF THE LATEST ISSUE OF UNCUT READ MORE: The rich and musical life of Lou Reed: “There are many ...

Laurie Anderson has shared why the Lou Reed: Caught Between The Twisted Stars exhibition was nearly held in Texas but ended up in New York City instead.

The archive, which chronicles the life and work of Reed through images, voices, and music from the star and his collaborators, will be hosted at The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts starting today (June 9).

Anderson, Reed’s widow, recently told The New York Times that she’d first selected the Harry Ransom Center in Austin for the exhibit, but decided against that plan after Texas Governor Greg Abbot, signed the campus-carry bill in 2015. The bill allowed people licensed to carry a handgun in Texas to carry a concealed handgun on university campuses.

Laurie Anderson Lou Reed
Laurie Anderson Lou Reed. Image: Brendon Thorne

“I called them up,” Anderson said, adding: “‘This thing we’ve been talking about for a couple years? It’s off. Because of guns.’”

Later, she read about the Public Library’s digital archives and decided that Reed’s work would be a better fit there, officially giving them the archive in 2017. The exhibit runs until March 4 2023, and contains digital files, and never-before-heard demos of “stripped-down, almost folky acoustic version” of Velvet Underground songs.

“This collection is to inspire people,” Anderson said. “It’s not necessarily to say, ‘Here’s the real Lou Reed.’ That’s never what it was meant to be. Here’s a lot of his music and how he did it. Be inspired by it. But it’s not and can’t be a real picture of the man.”

Earlier this week it was announced that a Lou Reed album featuring new material would be released. Words & Music, May 1965 is set to drop on August 26 via Light In The Attic in partnership with Anderson, in tandem with celebrations for what would be the musician’s 80th birthday.

The songs on the album were written by Reed and recorded to tape by his future Velvet Underground bandmate John Cale. Reed posted the tape to himself as a “poor man’s copyright” and it remained sealed in its original envelope for nearly 50 years.

Little Feat reveal Waiting For Columbus Super Deluxe Edition

Michael Bonner
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Little Feat reveal Waiting For Columbus Super Deluxe Edition
Little Feat's 1978 live double album Waiting For Columbus has been expanded for a new Super Deluxe Edition to mark its 45th anniversary. ORDER NOW: Queen are on the cover of the latest issue of Uncut The original album was recorded over a series of live shows in London and Washington, D.C. ...

Little Feat‘s 1978 live double album Waiting For Columbus has been expanded for a new Super Deluxe Edition to mark its 45th anniversary.

The original album was recorded over a series of live shows in London and Washington, D.C. during summer 1977. This 8-disc box set includes a newly remastered version of the original double album on 2 CDs, as well as three unreleased concerts on the remaining 6 CDs – at Manchester City Hall (July 29, 1977), The Rainbow (August 2, 1977), and Washington D.C. at Lisner Auditorium (August 10, 1977).

When the album was recorded, the Little Feat line up comprised Lowell George (vocals, guitar), Paul Barrere (guitar, vocals), Bill Payne (keyboard, vocals), Richie Hayward (drums, vocals), Sam Clayton (percussion, vocals) and Kenny Gradney (bass), who were backed by the Tower of Power horn section.

The Super Deluxe Edition is released by Rhino on July 29. Dig! is offering an exclusive set, including the Super Deluxe Edition bundled with a 2-LP version, and a reissue of the Japanese 7” single for “Oh Atlanta” b/w “Willin’.” You can pre-order here.

The album is also available as a 2LP + 7″ single bundle, an 8CD + 7″ single bundle and a standard 2LP edition.

The tracklisting for the Super Deluxe Edition is:

CD/LP Track Listing:
CD/LP One: Original Album
1. “Join The Band”
2. “Fat Man In The Bathtub”
3. “All That You Dream”
4. “Oh Atlanta”
5. “Old Folks Boogie”
6. “Time Loves A Hero”
7. “Day Or Night”
8. “Mercenary Territory”
9. “Spanish Moon”

CD/LP Two: Original Album
1. “Dixie Chicken”
2. “Tripe Face Boogie”
3. “Rocket In My Pocket”
4. “Willin’”
5. “Don’t Bogart That Joint”
6. “A Apolitical Blues”
7. “Sailin’ Shoes”
8. “Feats Don’t Fail Me Now”

CD Three: Live at Manchester City Hall (29/7/77)
1. “Walkin’ All Night” *
2. “Skin It Back” *
3. “Fat Man In The Bathtub” *
4. “Red Streamliner” *
5. “Oh Atlanta” *
6. “Day At The Dog Races” *
7. “All That You Dream” *
8. “On Your Way Down” *
9. “Time Loves A Hero” *
10. “Day Or Night” *

CD Four: Live at Manchester City Hall (29/7/77)
1. “Rock And Roll Doctor” *
2. “Old Folks Boogie” *
3. “Dixie Chicken” *
4. “Tripe Face Boogie” *
5. “Willin’/Don’t Bogart That Joint” *
6. “Feats Don’t Fail Me Now” *
7. “Rocket In My Pocket” *
8. “Sailin’ Shoes” *
9. “Teenage Nervous Breakdown” *

CD Five: Live at The Rainbow, London (2/8/77)
1. “Walkin’ All Night” *
2. “Fat Man In The Bathtub” *
3. “Red Streamliner” *
4. “Oh Atlanta” *
5. “Day At The Dog Races” *
6. “All That You Dream” *
7. “Mercenary Territory”
8. “On Your Way Down” *
9. “Skin It Back”
10. “Old Folks Boogie” *

CD Six: Live at The Rainbow, London (2/8/77)
1. “Rock And Roll Doctor” *
2. “Cold Cold Cold” *
3. “Dixie Chicken” *
4. “Tripe Face Boogie” *
5. “Willin’/Don’t Bogart That Joint” *
6. “Feats Don’t Fail Me Now” *
7. “Rocket In My Pocket”
8. “Spanish Moon” *
9. “A Apolitical Blues” *
10. “Teenage Nervous Breakdown” *

CD Seven: Live at Lisner Auditorium, Washington, D.C. (10/8/77)
1. “Walkin’ All Night” *
2. “Red Streamliner” *
3. “Fat Man In The Bathtub” *
4. “Day At The Dog Races” *
5. “All That You Dream” *
6. “On Your Way Down”
7. “Time Loves A Hero” *
8. “Day Or Night” *
9. “Skin It Back” *

CD Eight: Live at Lisner Auditorium, Washington, D.C. (10/8/177)
1. “Oh Atlanta” *
2. “Old Folks Boogie” *
3. “Dixie Chicken” *
4. “Tripe Face Boogie” *
5. “Feats Don’t Fail Me Now” *
6. “Rocket In My Pocket” *
7. “Sailin’ Shoes” *
8. “Teenage Nervous Breakdown” *
* Previously Unreleased

Pixies confirm new album Doggerel with single “There’s A Moon On”

Charlotte Krol
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Pixies confirm new album Doggerel with single “There’s A Moon On”
Pixies have confirmed the release date for their eighth album Doggerel – see all the details below. ORDER NOW: Queen are on the cover of the latest issue of Uncut READ MORE: An Audience With… Frank Black The Boston rockers will share their new album along with the single "There's A ...

Pixies have confirmed the release date for their eighth album Doggerel – see all the details below.

The Boston rockers will share their new album along with the single “There’s A Moon On” on September 30 via BMG. You can pre-order the album here and hear the first single below.

Vocalist/guitarist Black Francis said of the new album: “We’re trying to do things that are very big and bold and orchestrated. The punky stuff, I really like playing it but you just cannot artificially create that shit. There’s another way to do this, there’s other things we can do with this extra special energy that we’re encountering.”

Guitarist Joey Santiago added: “This time around we have grown. We no longer have under two-minute songs. We have little breaks, more conventional arrangements but still our twists in there.”

In addition to digital/streaming formats, Doggerel will also be issued in a variety of physical configurations. There will be a range of gatefold colour vinyl options: the standard red vinyl; a yellow vinyl will be available exclusively from select independent stores, and an orange vinyl that is only available from the Pixies’ official store that also offers an exclusive red cassette. The formats are completed by a deluxe CD.

Listen to “There’s A Moon On” and see the Doggerel tracklist below.

Doggerel tracklist:

01. “Nomatterday”
02. “Vault of Heaven”
03. “Dregs of the Wine”
04. “Haunted House”
05. “Get Simulated”
06. “The Lord Has Come Back Today”
07. “Thunder & Lightning”
08. “There’s A Moon On”
09. “Pagan Man”
10. “Who’s More Sorry Now?”
11. “You’re Such A Sadducee”
12. “Doggerel”

News of the new LP follows the band sharing a short documentary with a behind-the-scenes look at the making of their new album. Watch the film below:

Pixies also play UK summer tour dates including outdoor headline shows in Manchester, Birmingham and Newcastle, plus a BST Hyde Park show as guests to Pearl Jam.

Since the release of Pixies’ most recent album, the band have released an EP of scrapped demos from that album’s studio sessions and two standalone singles: “Hear Me Out” in September 2020, and “Human Crime” earlier this year.

Foo Fighters announce Taylor Hawkins tribute concerts

Rhian Daly
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Foo Fighters announce Taylor Hawkins tribute concerts
Foo Fighters have shared details of two Taylor Hawkins tribute concerts that will take place this September. ORDER NOW: Queen are on the cover of the latest issue of Uncut Hawkins, the band’s drummer since 1997, died in Bogotá, Colombia on March 25. He was 50 years old. Together with ...

Foo Fighters have shared details of two Taylor Hawkins tribute concerts that will take place this September.

Hawkins, the band’s drummer since 1997, died in Bogotá, Colombia on March 25. He was 50 years old.

Together with the rock icon’s family, Foo Fighters will celebrate Hawkins’ memory and music at two special gigs in London and Los Angeles. The Taylor Hawkins Tribute Concerts will stop at Wembley Stadium on September 3 before taking over LA’s Kia Forum on September 27.

The shows will see several artists who inspired and were inspired by the legendary drummer join his family and bandmates to play “the songs that he fell in love with and the ones he brought to life”, according to a press release.

Taylor Hawkins
The Taylor Hawkins Tribute Concerts poster. Image: Courtesy of Foo Fighters

The line-up for each show will be announced soon. Fans can sign up to receive information on timings, ticketing links and on-sale dates on Foo Fighters’ official website.

Hawkins’ wife Alison has also shared a statement thanking the band’s fans for their support in the months since his death. “My deepest thanks and admiration go out to the global Foo Fighters community and Taylor’s fans far and wide for the outpouring of love each and every one of you have shown our beloved Taylor,” she wrote. “Your kindness has been an invaluable comfort for my family and me during this time of unimaginable grief.”

She continued: “As Taylor’s wife, and on behalf of our children, I want to share how much you meant to him and how dedicated he was to ‘knocking your socks off’ during every performance. Taylor was honoured to be a part of the Foo Fighters and valued his dream role in the band every minute of his 25 years with them. We consider every band member and the extended Foo Fighters team our family.

“Taylor’s endearing spirit and deep love of music will live on forever through the collaborations he so enjoyed having with other musicians and the catalogue of songs he contributed to and created.”

Alison added that, in “celebration of his life”, “it is now up to all of us who loved him most to honour Taylor’s legacy and the music he gave us”.

Taylor Hawkins Alison Hawkins statement
Image: Courtesy of Alison Hawkins

The two Taylor Hawkins tribute concerts will mark Foo Fighters’ first live performances since the drummer’s death.

Graham Coxon announces autobiography Verse, Chorus, Monster!

Will Richards
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Graham Coxon announces autobiography Verse, Chorus, Monster!
Blur's Graham Coxon has announced details of his autobiography, Verse, Chorus, Monster!. ORDER NOW: Queen are on the cover of the latest issue of Uncut READ MORE: Graham Coxon on Blur and pop: “It’s a strange, limiting form… but me and Damon are more receptive these days” The mem...

Blur’s Graham Coxon has announced details of his autobiography, Verse, Chorus, Monster!.

The memoir is described as “an intimate, honest reflection on music, fame, addiction and art by one of Britain’s most iconic musicians.” It will be published on October 6 this year via Faber.

A press release for the book reads: “Among the noise and clamour of the Britpop era, Blur co-founder Graham Coxon managed to carve out a niche to become one of the most innovative and respected guitarists of his generation – but it wasn’t always easy.

“Graham grew up as an Army kid, moving frequently in his early years from West Germany to Derbyshire and Winchester before settling in Colchester, Essex. A shy child, he had a thing for eating soil and drawing intense visions; his anxiety was tempered by painting and a growing love of music.”

It adds: “These twin passions grew into obsessions, and as he honed his artistic skill at school, Goldsmiths and beyond, his band with school friend Damon Albarn, fellow art student Alex James, and a drummer called Dave Rowntree began to get noticed.

“But there are things they don’t tell you before you get famous. There are monsters out there. And some may even be lurking inside yourself.”

Back in April, Coxon announced a new duo called The WAEVE with Rose Elinor Dougall, the former Pipettes member-turned-Mark Ronson collaborator.

Last month (May 4), The WAEVE played a pair of intimate launch shows at The Lexington in London, returning the next day with first single “Something Pretty”.

Ahead of their debut gig, the duo said: “We are greatly looking forward to unleashing our new sound live at the Lexington. We’ve been locked away, busy translating the varied sounds of our songs into a dynamic live show, with the help of some great musician friends. We invite you to surrender to the world of The WAEVE.”

The WAEVE came together after exchanging messages during the lockdown Christmas of 2020. They soon started writing songs before their collaboration “gave rise to an unexpected sonic universe”, per a statement.

Bonny Light Horseman unveil new album, Rolling Golden Holy

Michael Bonner
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Bonny Light Horseman unveil new album, Rolling Golden Holy
Bonny Light Horseman have announced details of their new album, Rolling Golden Holy. ORDER NOW: Queen are on the cover of the latest issue of Uncut Produced by the band’s Josh Kaufman, the follow up to self-titled debut will be released on October 7 2022, via 37d03d Records. Click here to...

Bonny Light Horseman have announced details of their new album, Rolling Golden Holy.

Produced by the band’s Josh Kaufman, the follow up to self-titled debut will be released on October 7 2022, via 37d03d Records. Click here to pre-order.

You can hear “California”, from the new album, here.

The tracklisting for Rolling Golden Holy is:

Exile
Comrade Sweetheart
California
Summer Dream
Gone By Fall
Sweetbread
Someone To Weep For Me
Fleur De Lis
Once On Another Day
Fair Annie
Cold Rain and Snow

Bonny Light Horseman are currently on tour in America supporting Bon Iver and have announced their own headline dates there in the Autumn. Full run here.

Hear Cass McCombs’ new track, “Unproud Warrior”

Michael Bonner
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Hear Cass McCombs’ new track, “Unproud Warrior”
Cass McCombs has announced details of his 10th studio album, Heartmind, and a run of UK and EU tour dates. ORDER NOW: Queen are on the cover of the latest issue of Uncut The album is released on August 19 (vinyl on September 23) via ANTI-. You can pre-order here. Ahead of this, he's rele...

Cass McCombs has announced details of his 10th studio album, Heartmind, and a run of UK and EU tour dates.

The album is released on August 19 (vinyl on September 23) via ANTI-. You can pre-order here.

Ahead of this, he’s released “Unproud Warrior“, featuring Wynonna Judd and Charlie Burnham.

The tracklist for Heartmind is:

Music Is Blue
Karaoke
New Earth
Unproud Warrior
Krakatau
A Blue, Blue Band
Belong to Heaven
Heartmind

To coincide with the album, he’s also announced a run of UK/EU tour dates:

September 28 – Madrid, ES @ Teatro Bellas Artes
September 29 – Zaragoza, ES @ Luis Galve
September 30 – Alicante, ES @ Teatro Arnichas
October 1- Valencia, ES @ Sala Loco
October 4 – Milano, IT @ Bellezza
October 6 – St Gallen, CH @ Palace St Gallen
October 7 – Schorndorf, DE @ Manufaktur
October 8 – Paris, FR @ Café De La Danse
October 10 – Bristol @ Redgrave Theatre
October 12 – Manchester @ The Stoller Hall
October 13 – London @ Alexandra Palace Theatre
October 15 – Dublin @ Liberty Hall
October 16 – Glasgow @ Mackintosh Church
October 18 – Brussels, BE @ Botanique Rotonde
October 19 – Cologne, DE @ Artheater
October 20 – Utrecht, NL @ TivoliVredeburg Cloud 9
October 22 – Berlin, DE @ Frannz Club
October 23 – Hamburg, DE @ Nochtspeicher
October 25 – København S, DK @ DR Studie 2
October 26 – Stockholm, SE @ Slaktkyrkan
October 28 – Oslo, NO @ Oslo Parkteatret

Blondie announce mammoth box set, Against The Odds 1974 – 1982

Michael Bonner
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Blondie announce mammoth box set, Against The Odds 1974 – 1982
Blondie have announced details of their long-delayed box set, Blondie: Against The Odds 1974-1982. ORDER NOW: Queen are on the cover of the latest issue of Uncut The box set will be released on August 26 via UMC and The Numero Group. It's available to pre-order here. To coincide with the...

Blondie have announced details of their long-delayed box set, Blondie: Against The Odds 1974-1982.

The box set will be released on August 26 via UMC and The Numero Group. It’s available to pre-order here.

To coincide with the announcement, they’re released a previously unheard cover of The Doors’ “Moonlight Drive”.

The box features 124 tracks – 36 of which are previously unissued – as well as two volumes of liner notes (by Uncut contributor Erin Osmon), track by track commentary, an illustrated discography and dozens of previously unpublished photos. The music has been remastered from the original analog tapes, vinyl cut at Abbey Road Studios.

It’s available on Deluxe 4LP, Deluxe 8CD and 3CD Editions as well as a Super Deluxe Collectors’ Edition (10xLP, 1×7”, 1×10” in Red, White, and Black vinyl formats).

The box features their first six studio albums – Blondie, Plastic Letters, Parallel Lines, Eat To The Beat, Autoamerican, The Hunter – as well as demos (including the group’s first-ever recording session), alternate versions, and studio outtakes.

Says Debbie Harry, “It really is a treat to see how far we have come when I listen to these early attempts to capture our ideas on relatively primitive equipment. Fortunately the essence of being in a band in the early 70’s held some of the anti-social, counter culture energies of the groups that were the influencers of the 60’s. I am excited about this special collection. When I listen to these old tracks, it puts me there like I am a time traveler. As bad as it was sometimes, it was also equally as good. No regrets. More music.”

“I am hopeful that this project will provide a glimpse into the ‘process’ and some of the journey that the songs took from idea to final form,” adds Chris Stein. “Some of this stuff is like early sketches; the old tape machines are like primitive notebooks. The trickiest thing for me was always about getting the melodies out of my head into reality and the changes that would happen along the way.”

“It is amazing that after all this time, and against the odds, our Blondie archival box set will finally be released,” says Clem Burke. “It’s been a long time coming and we are all very happy and excited with the final results.”

The box set was first announced in 2018, since when it has been subject to a number of manufacturing delays.

The tracklisting for the Super Deluxe Collectors’ Edition is:

Blondie
Side A
1. X Offender
2. Little Girl Lies
3. In The Flesh
4. Look Good In Blue
5. In The Sun
6. A Shark In Jets Clothing
Side B
1. Man Overboard
2. Rip Her To Shreds
3. Rifle Range
4. Kung Fu Girl
5. The Attack Of The Giant Ants

Plastic Letters
Side A
1. Fan Mail
2. Denis
3. Bermuda Triangle Blues (Flight 45)
4. Youth Nabbed As Sniper
5. Contact In Red Square
6. (I’m Always Touched By Your) Presence, Dear
7. I’m On E
Side B
1. I Didn’t Have The Nerve To Say No
2. Love At The Pier
3. No Imagination
4. Kidnapper
5. Detroit 442
6. Cautious Lip

Parallel Lines
Side A
1. Hanging On The Telephone
2. One Way Or Another
3. Picture This
4. Fade Away And Radiate
5. Pretty Baby
6. I Know But I Don’t Know
Side B
1. 11:59
2. Will Anything Happen
3. Sunday Girl
4. Heart Of Glass
5. I’m Gonna Love You Too
6. Just Go Away

Eat To The Beat
Side A
1. Dreaming
2. The Hardest Part
3. Union City Blue
4. Shayla
5. Eat To The Beat
6. Accidents Never Happen
Side B
1. Die Young Stay Pretty
2. Slow Motion
3. Atomic
4. Sound-A-Sleep
5. Victor
6. Living In The Real World

Autoamerican
Side A
1. Europa
2. Live It Up
3. Here’s Looking At You
4. The Tide Is High
5. Angels On The Balcony
6. Go Through It
Side B
1. Do The Dark
2. Rapture
3. Faces
4. T-Birds
5. Walk Like Me
6. Follow Me

The Hunter
Side A
1. Orchid Club
2. Island Of Lost Souls
3. Dragonfly
4. For Your Eyes Only
5. The Beast
Side B
1. War Child
2. Little Caesar
3. Danceway
4. (Can I) Find The Right Words (To Say)
5. English Boys
6. The Hunter Gets Captured By The Game

7″ 45 rpm
1. Moonlight Drive
2. Mr. Sightseer

10″ LP Out-takes & rarities (‘Out In The Streets’)
Side A (1974 Session)
1. Out In The Streets (1974)
2. The Disco Song
3. Sexy Ida
Side B (Betrock Demo)
1. Platinum Blonde
2. The Thin Line
3. Puerto Rico
4. Once I Had A Love (1975)
5. Out In The Streets (1975)

LP 1 Out-takes & rarities (‘Plaza Sound’)
Side A
1. X Offender (Intro)
2. X Offender (Private Stock Single)
3. In The Sun (Private Stock Single)
4. Little Girl Lies (Private Stock Mix)
5. In The Flesh (Extended Intro)
6. A Shark In Jets Clothing (Take 2)
7. Kung Fu Girls (Take 8)
8. Scenery
Side B
1. Denis (Terry Ellis Mix)
2. Bermuda Triangle Blues – Flight 45 (Take 1)
3. I Didn’t Have The Nerve To Say No (Take 1)
4. I’m On E (Take 2)
5. Kidnapper (Take 2)
6. Detroit 442 (Take 2)
7. Poets Problem

LP 2 Out-takes & rarities (‘Parallel Beats’)
Side A
1. Once I Had A Love (Mike Chapman Demo)
2. Sunday Girl (French Version)
3. I’ll Never Break Away From This Heart Of Mine (Pretty Baby)
4. Hanging On The Telephone (Mike Chapman Demo)
5. Will Anything Happen (Instrumental)
6. Underground Girl
Side B
1. Call Me
2. Spaghetti Song (Atomic Part 2)
3. Die Young Stay Pretty (Take 1)
4. Union City Blue (Instrumental)
5. Llámame

LP 3 Out-takes & rarities (‘Coca Cola’)
Side A
1. I Love You Honey, Give Me A Beer (Go Through It)
2. Live It Up (Giorgio Moroder Demo)
3. Angels on the Balcony (Giorgio Moroder Demo)
4. Tide Is High (Demo)
5. Susie & Jeffrey
Side B
1. Rapture (Disco Version)
2. Autoamerican Ad
3. Yuletide Throwdown

LP 4 Out-takes & rarities (‘Home Tapes’)
Side A
1. Nameless (Home Tape)
2. Sunday Girl (Home Tape)
3. Theme From Topkapi (Home Tape)
4. The Hardest Part (Home Tape)
5. Ring of Fire (Home Tape)
Side B
1. War Child (Chris Stein Mix)
2. Call Me (Chris Stein Mix)
3. Heart of Glass (Chris Stein Mix)

The making of Yo La Tengo’s “Sugarcube”

Tom Pinnock
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The making of Yo La Tengo’s “Sugarcube”
“I think it was shown on MTV once, maybe twice,” says bassist James McNew, of the video for Yo La Tengo’s “Sugarcube”. “As far as I know, that’s it. That’s all.” ORDER NOW: Queen are on the cover of the latest issue of Uncut In the 25 years since, however, the promo has ra...

“I think it was shown on MTV once, maybe twice,” says bassist James McNew, of the video for Yo La Tengo’s “Sugarcube”. “As far as I know, that’s it. That’s all.”

In the 25 years since, however, the promo has racked up millions of views on YouTube, no doubt helped by the presence of its stars David Cross and Bob Odenkirk, the latter now better known as lawyer Saul Goodman in Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul. He has, it turns out, been a Yo La Tengo fan since the early ’90s.

“We were all fans of Bob’s from The Larry Sanders Show,” explains Ira Kaplan. “Then Georgia and I were on vacation out in LA and we saw that Bob was doing stand-up at a bookstore, so we went out to see the show. Afterwards he was just browsing the record section, and it was kind of out of character for us to do this, but we introduced ourselves. It turned out he knew our band.”

There’s more to “Sugarcube” than its video, of course. Since the mid-’80s, the Hoboken-based group had been charting a unique path, mastering the acoustic hush of 1990’s Fakebook as adeptly as they did the brutal fuzz workouts of ’92’s May I Sing With Me. On their eclectic eighth album, 1997’s I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One – now celebrating its 25th anniversary with a digital and vinyl reissue – they perfected this sonic tightrope walk. “Sugarcube”, a highlight among its 16 tracks, is a propulsive, droning delight, Hubley’s drumming and McNew’s unusual organ bass driving Kaplan’s freeform guitar wrangling and their surprisingly gentle harmonies.

“It feels really natural to play “Sugarcube” or to play [quiet instrumental] “Green Arrow”,” says McNew. “Loud music is us and quiet music is us, atmospheric music is us and straight-ahead music is us. We were more comfortable with that idea than other people were, it seems.”

Recording took place in Nashville’s House Of David, a studio converted for Elvis Presley, with the sessions – somewhat typically for Yo La Tengo – efficient and exploratory at the same time. “We’d recorded before at Alex The Great in Nashville,” recalls Hubley, “which is a much more bohemian studio, with a lot of character. But House Of David was on a real street, with a lot of music industry stuff on that road, you know, publishing companies and other recording studios.”

Send us your questions for Karl Bartos

Sam Richards
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Send us your questions for Karl Bartos
Very few people were ever allowed a glimpse inside Kraftwerk's legendary Kling Klang studio, close to Düsseldorf Hauptbahnhof. But for 15 years, from 1975 to 1990, it was Karl Bartos' primary place of work as he helped envisage music's new electronic future. A graduate of the Robert Schumann Con...

Very few people were ever allowed a glimpse inside Kraftwerk’s legendary Kling Klang studio, close to Düsseldorf Hauptbahnhof. But for 15 years, from 1975 to 1990, it was Karl Bartos’ primary place of work as he helped envisage music’s new electronic future.

A graduate of the Robert Schumann Conservatory, Bartos joined Kraftwerk initially as a percussionist, but soon became a co-writer and a key component of the band’s revolutionary mensch-maschine on albums such as Trans-Europe Express and Computer World.

After leaving Kraftwerk, he formed Elektric Music and collaborated with Andy McCluskey, Johnny Marr and Bernard Sumner, appearing on albums by OMD and Electronic. This century he’s released three solo albums – with another one on the way – as well as inventing his own music-creation app and writing his memoir, The Sound Of The Machine, soon to be published in English for the first time.

And now he’s kindly submitting himself to a gentle grilling from you, the Uncut readers. So what do you want to ask a Kraftwerk insider and electronic music originator? Send your questions to audiencewith@www.uncut.co.uk and Karl will answer the best ones in a future issue of Uncut.

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