MUSIC LIST
Defektors are from Manchester. are huge in Japan and are relatively unheard ofin this country. That promises an interesting gig. as does the debut of Koolwhip (named after a Fatback Band song). a reincarnation of the Same Animals. Well worth seeing.
I Native Sons Halt Bar. Woodlands Road. 332 1210. 9pm. Free.
I Billy Forbes La Taniere. Fox Street. 221 4844. 3pm. Free. Afternoon residency.
I Zenith La Taniere. Fox Street. 9pm. Free. Evening residency. described as ’rock‘.
I Jamie Barnes and Cochise Vivas. Union Street. 1pm. More of a Saturday institution than Saint and Greavsie - beats Christmas shopping any day.
Edinburgh
I The Shattered Family and Sponge and Twist Calton Studios. Calton Road. 556 7066. One of the first dates the moody and powerful group are making with their augmented line-up. Single to follow soon(ish). Sponge are like Hawkwind on triple-bad acid. with frenzied mushroom-head fans to match. Groovily-painted guitar. though.
I Flni Tribe Venue. Calton Road. 557 3073. 7.30pm. Shame that their version of Can's ’1 Want More' hasn‘t got anywhere. but ’De Testimony‘ was a better pointer to the theatrical. shaven-headed. metal- bashing. arc-welding gigs they put on. Fairly pretentious. much of it. but good for the first half-hour at least.
I Blind Budgies on Alcohol Lord Darnley. West Port. 229 4341 . 10pm. Free. More rhythm ‘n‘ booze.
I The Heaters Preservation Hall. Victoria Street. 226 3816. £1 after 9.30pm. More of the same.
I Slice of Lite Music Box. Victoria Street. 220 1708. £1 after 9pm. Pretty raw stuff. unless they've tightened up a lot.
I Tam White and The Dexters Platform 1. Rutland Street. Residency for the gravel-voiced one. still leading his fine band into solid R&B grooves.
I Friends at Carlotta Negociants. Lothian Street. 225 6313. 9pm. Free. Core of well-known local musicians running through loads of old rock. soul and blues standards and getting paralytic in the process. Good fun.
I The Pterodactyls and The Wendy House Blues Basement. Broughton Street. 556 7147. 603‘ Pebbles-style sounds from Pterodactyls. and The Wendy House. though only on their second gig. show promise.
I The Heaters Preservation Hall. Victoria Street. 226 3816. £1 after 9.30pm.
SUNDAY 13
Glasgow
I The Stuplds Rooftops. Sauchiehall Street, 332 5883. 10.30pm. Doesthc band‘s name refer to the people who go and see them?
I Blver Detectives Fixx. Miller Street. 9pm. Free. Residency — shout for their a cappella version of Springsteen‘s ’Factory‘.
I Jazz Betelrtors Stirling Univ. Stirling. 9pm. Mini Scottish tour continues.
I Blg George and The Business La Taniere. Fox Street. 9pm. Free.
Edinburgh
I Dio Playhouse Theatre. Greenside Place, 557 2590. Former Rainbow and Black Sabbath singer. Ronnie Dio hauls his crew onto the road once more.
I Fool’s Gold and Strategy Soundcheck Rock Club, Venue. Calton Road. 557 3073. 7.30pm. £1.50. Weekly heavy rock club. Should be busy after the Playhouse gig.
I Tam White and The Bexters Preservation Hall, Victoria Street. 226 3816. £1 after 9pm. See Sat 12.
I Cosmo Music Box. Victoria Street. 220 1708. Afternoon. Free.
MARTIN STEPHENSON AND THE DAINTEES
One of the most iong-awaiied debut LPs oi 1986 was a set at rellective jazz and country-tinged ballads on the Kitchenware label (which had already brought us Prelab Sprout and Hurrah!) lrom a group whose name had expanded lrom the plain old Daintees to the somewhat grander Martin Stephenson and The Daintees, and who instantly iound their critical reputation had grown accordingly. The press’s reception tor ‘Boat To Bolivia’ surprised even its creator Martin Stephenson, who wrote all the songs on the record between winter 1981 and summer 1985, and toured with The Daintees to promote it. Although never a huge seller, ‘Boat To Bolivia”s soul-baring ballads lodged it in many people’s hearts.
Now in the studios mixing their second long-player, The Daintees are taking a break to play a lew Scottish dates, hopetully warming them up tor a national tour when the record - as yet untitled - hits the shops in March.
Stephenson’s one regret about the Daintees upcoming dates is that they can’t afford to take a string section on the road with them, so will again have to rely on keyboards lor the orchestrated bits.
Perhaps he thinks the technology will get in the way oi the sincerity. lie certainly seems to have an altinity with primarily acoustic music, the stult that’s always claimed to be ‘lrom the heart’. I wondered it he had always
I . I! 'e . c "
been a tan oi music like jazz and country.
‘Not really. llirst got introduced to jazz when I was about 19 (he made his lirst record at the age 0118, the story goes, the day alter being discovered busking by Kitchenware boss Keith Armstrong), and joined my bass player’s uncle’s hand, because he had a double bass. It was through him thatl got introduced to the elements of it, but I never went into it in any great depth.’
But the country connection: doesn’t he leel that kind at music suited the emotionally affecting lyrics he was writing?
‘Probably, yeah, but it wasn’t a conscious thing, y’know. To analyse it now I can see what you mean, but at the time it wasn’t like that. I’ve tried to sit down and write a song in a certain style, but it just didn’t work. The only time I can do anything is it I’m not really thinking.
‘Hank Williams to me is the strongest ol the country acts. liind lrom him there’s a lot ol warmth, and he tells stories. He’s just got this huge amount of warmth that comes across in the records. But it you look at my record collecton there’s only about one Hank Williams record and a couple of country singles.’
So now you know. And it the cold weather gets you down, wander into Edinburgh’s Venue on Wed 16 or Glasgow Art School on Fri 18 to get warmed up. (Mab)
MONDAY 14
I White Halt Bar. Woodlands Road. 9pm. Free. A band who are far too good for pub rock — but still well worth going to see them playing in their local.
Edinburgh
I Gary Glitter Playhouse Theatre . Greenside Place. 557 2590. The pantomime dame of rock ‘n‘ roll, doing the rounds at Christmas again. but we love him anyway. And we seriously thought we‘d seen the last of him when Abba came in . . .?
I The Sex Gods Venue. Calton Road. 557 3073. 7.30pm. All-Star Cast. featuring Gary Dwyer (ex-Teardrop Explodes). Washington (ex-Wah!). Michael Mooney (ex-Psychedelic Furs) and probably guitar from Pete deFreitas (Echo and The
Bunneymen‘s fab drummer). Worth it for all 05 us who still can‘t bear to part with our now-ragged overcoats.
I Comedy 01 Errors Music Box. Victoria Street. 220 1708. 9.30pm. Free.
I Glrosel Lord Darnley. West Port. 229 4341. 10pm. Free.
I Fool’s Gold Preservation Hall. Victoria Street. 226 3816. 9.30pm. Free. The Pres's weekly heavy rock night.
W
I Uneasy Pieces/River Detectives Third Eye Centre. Sauchiehall Street. 7.30pm. OK, you know about the River Detectives by now. Some of Uneasy Pieces used to be in Nightshift. who 1 always thought were interesting and underrated. so this could be good.
I Kirk Douglas and The Longcoats Fixx Bar. Miller Street. 9pm. Free. The Fixx‘s best kept secret. But who are they?
I Goodbye Mr Mackenzie Mayfair. Sauchiehall Street. 10.30pm. Special Cash For Kids benefit for a band who will always be welcome. ’Face To Face‘ is certainly one of the best Scottish singles of 1987 - but will they get that seemingly elusive record deal?
I While Shadows. Bath Street. 9pm. Free. The best band ever to have played at Shadows - and that is a guarantee.
Edinburgh
I Shiver 'n’ Shake Preservation Hall. Victoria Street. 226 3816. 9.30pm. Free. I Cosmo Lord Darnley. West Port. 229 4341 . 10pm. Free.
I The Twist Music Box. Victoria Street. 2201708.9.30pm. Free.
I The Peristalsis Brothers Negociants. Lothian Street. 225 6313. 9pm. Free. 50s‘ sounds.
WEDNESDAY 16
Edinburgh
I Terence Trent B’Arby Playhouse Theatre. Greenside Place. it sounds like the obligatory critical backlash. but his current single isn‘t quite as good as we should expect from Terry. Still he put on an excellent show in Glasgow earlier in the year. carrying it through what could have been some disastrous moments purely by the force of his self-confidence.
I Martin Stephenson and The Daintees Venue. Calton Road. 557 3073. 7.30pm. Personal songwriter. strongly influenced by country and jazz and consequently tending towards the maudlin. Stephenson has a great feel for his kind ofpop-country music. though. as can be heard on the vastly-praised Boat (0 Bolivia LP.
I Three Dancers Canongate Masonic Lodge. Queen Charlotte Street. Leith. Another benefit, this time in aid ofthe Rosen Campbell Hepatitis Research Trust. See Singles reviews.
I The Kltes Music Box. Victoria Street. 2201708.9.30pm. Free.
I Bon Ton Boulez Lord Darnley. West Port. 2294341. 10pm. Free.
I Bo’Weevil Blues Basement. Broughton Street. 556 7147. Rockin‘ blues.
I The Mole People Cavern. Cowgate. 226 5641.
I Perlstalsls Brothers Boston Bean Co. 5560111. 8.30pm. Free. 505‘sounds.
I Tam White Negociants. Lothian Street. 225 6313. 9pm. Free. Away from The Dexters. Tam plays around with a variable set of musicians. Gravel-voiced blues.
Glasgow
I The Pogues Barrowland, Gallowgate. 7.30pm. Another band I havea pathological hatred of. If you want to sing Republican songs and wave tricolours— then it is cheaper to go to Parkhead on a Saturday.
I Third Party Fury Murrys. Maxwell Street. 10.30pm. £3. A local band. who have recorded one excellent tape , which would seem to make this worth a visit. Very high on the ’1 saw it first‘ value.
I Anaconda and Tom Russell Shadows. Bath Street. 9pm. Free. Charity night with Anac‘bnda- and wait for it - a Singing Competition featuring Tom Russell. Rumour has it that he is practising his version of ‘Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?‘ -then again, maybe we should expect an a cappella version of Anthrax‘s ’1 Am The Law‘. Go along, be entertained and give to a good cause - well done , Tom.
I Aerial Technique Halt Bar. Woodlands Road. 9pm. Free. Sent me avery flattering letter recently. so that alone deserves a plug - go and see them: this is their second gig.
I Spike Bayne and the Jazz Organics
The List 11 Dec 1987—7Jan 1988 41