Some of you may be aware of my Overlooked Gems of My Lifetime blog, which has been inactive since – not coincidentally – the launch of this blog version of Rock Town Hall. It’s time I put a little work into that concept again – and make sure to celebrate some things I love wholeheartedly, with no intent to confuse and educate readers.
Recently I pulled out my lone album by The Prisoners, A Taste of Pink. It sounded as rockin’ and fun as ever, and the vinyl was still pink. It’s hard to find the space between songs when placing the needle on a particular song on a pink-vinyl album, but the tracks on this album make the effort worthwhile.
I never bothered to find out much about this ’80s garage-mod band from somewhere in England. A friend owned another album by them, but it was not as good as the one I happened to take a chance on. I never bothered hearing another note by these guys. One great album by any ’80s garage-mod band is enough. (God, as I type that sentence I sense myself looking in the mirror, holding an unopened box of my band’s second record!) Honestly, though, I can only take so much garage and mod rock, especially when the lyrics and fuzz-guitar solos are nothing special. This album, however, is together! Simply put, it works. The guitars are chunky. The organ player cooks up that Deep Purple “Hush”/Steppenwolf stew. The singers pull no punches. I have FUN while listening to it. It’s a good time to get my lab coat pressed.
Since this is a rare album I’ve never spent much time thinking about, I’m going to do nothing more but share some tracks with you. Send your lab coat to the cleaner and check out The Prisoners!
A Taste of Pink is pretty decent (especially the track “I’m Coming Home”), but I’ve always been a huge fan of their second album “TheWiserMiserDimelza”, which is full-on mod in the Small Faces mode. It was the only one of their records released in the US. Really wonderful record. Their third record “The Last of the Forefathers” is also quite good. Both better than Pink, I think. They also had a 7″ ep with a great cut called “Melanie”. For some reason I think they were from Medway, part of that Headcoatees/Billy Childish scene.
I’ve got that second album too, leftover by an old roommate. Ragged in a good way. I never saw anything else from them by the time I would think to do it. Lots of stuff going on with that back cover. I think you’re right about the Billy Childish connection, maybe with the drummer. I associate them a bit with the Milkshakes for some reason too.
Childish was in the Milkshakes. They were his puppy, I think. Also, I think Thee Mighty Caesars were a Medway supergroup of sorts, with Childish and main Prisoner Graham Day. I have a copy of the Solarflares disc, Day’s current band, but it is more indie rock, not so much Prisoners-like. Doesn’t give me the same rush.
More than you ever wanted to know about the Prisoners and their spin-offs:
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?
fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=132244031
Tvox wrote:
I guess sending those lab coats out for cleaning is tougher than we imagined:-)
I LOVE the Prisoners.
But it is not because of their studio recordings like the ones above. After hearing them, I only “liked” them.
However, hearing “Rare and Unissued” (on Hangman Records), made me realize that their best work must have been live, or when they were loose, and recording demos. Every song on that album, though a bit low-fi, smokes the shit out of their studio stuff. It’s much more vicious.
another one of their best songs, “reachin’ my head”, is lost to obscurity on a split 7 inch with their more famous Medway-ites, The Milkshakes.
I also have more love for the material on “In from the Cold”, than the earlier albums. Graham Day is a fantastic songwriter.
I haven’t heard the rare stuff comp, nor that 4th album, Saturn. You have? I need!
I’d love to hear that as well, Sat. Maybe we could share it for a couple of days?
I have a 16rpm flexidisc by the Prisoners, but it’s too rare to be played, so I can’t tell you what it sounds like. Still it looks like it rocks harder than any of the tracks previously mentioned in this thread.
I have a 16rpm flexidisc by the Prisoners, but it’s too rare to be played, so I can’t tell you what it sounds like. Still it looks like it rocks harder than any of the tracks previously mentioned in this thread.
I think I might have the limited edition Edison cylinder of that!
I think BigSteve has claimed Post of the Day from Alexmagic’s Ja-Bru analysis. Nice!
I was out of the running after that Eddie Money story anyway.
bah.
BigSteve’s post is based on that tired old mockery of the “I knew them before they became popular” rap.
Dilworth and I used to say, “oh yeah? i have a copy of their first practice tape, dude! it’s way better than that early obscure 7″ you’re talking about.”
this is the dated kind of mid-90s humor that passes for “post of the day” on RTH? puh-leez.
BigSteve, I used to use that kind of humor before it became cool!
Of course, I kid…I kid. good stuff, BigSteve!!!
Seriously, my love for the tracks I’m talking about has nothing to do with hipster coolish-ness. they just have more energy and heart than those studio recordings, which are roundly maligned by Graham Day himself.
And to clarify: I like the “material” on “In from the cold”, however, the recording suffers from the same studio sterility.
mod, t-vox, and anyone else who is “innarested”: my copy of “Rare and Unissued” is on a rapidly deteriorating cassette tape. When I get a chance, I promise, I’ll convert and distribute.
That’s not his current band. His current band is THE GAOLERS. You find them on Myspace here:
http://www.myspace.com/grahamdayandthegaolers