I first became aware of Liz Smith, who died this week aged 95, in 1973 when she starred in “Hard Labour”, a BBC TV drama directed by Mike Leigh & produced by Tony Garnett. The weekly “Play for Today”, like its predecessor “The Wednesday Play”, was a forum for many emerging British talents. The strand encompassed a wide variety of styles & subjects. It was the hard-hitting & effective social realist themes, a development from kitchen sink dramas of a decade earlier which often provoked controversy. “Hard Labour” was Leigh’s first TV play, it employs his improvisational technique to achieve a naturalism & a bleakness unleavened by the humour to be found in his later work. Mrs Thornley, harassed by her husband, patronised by her middle-class employer & offered no solace by her religion, is a study in isolation & limited communication. Liz Smith was outstanding in the part & she broke our hearts.
There’s very little of “Hard Labour” on the Interwebs so let’s move on a couple of years to her next starring TV role. “I Didn’t Know You Cared” was a sit-com adapted from his own novels by Peter Tinniswood. It ran for 4 series from 1975-79, another slice of Northern life, this time across the Pennines in Yorkshire. The Brandon family were a wonderful parade of absurd characters, the men cloth-capped, gloomy & cynical, the womenfolk keeping a close eye on them & their faults. It had a terrific ensemble cast, was tougher than the long-running “Last of the Summer Wine”, with the gentleness & acerbity of Alan Bennett. At the heart was Liz Smith’s Mrs Brandon, hen-pecking, haranguing & hilarious, nailing some of the best lines of a very good bunch. Some right old toot from the same period is now recycled on the nostalgia channels with no sign of this classic British comedy.
Ms Smith was in her fifties before this acting thing really took off. Her talent to portray the slightly mad but always likeable Grandma found her plenty of work in film & TV & she quickly became a very recognisable character actor. Her cinema work included Lindsay Anderson’s “Britannia Hospital”, Ridley Scott’s debut “The Duellists” & she was Lady Phillippa of Staines in Viv Stanshall’s brilliant “Sir Henry at Rawlinson End”. She was perfect for the BBC’s adaptations of Dickens & appeared in Michael Palin’s “Ripping Yarns” classic episode “The Testing of Eric Olthwaite”. It would be 1984 before she gained recognition from her peers for her talents.
Handmade Films, a British production & distribution company, was formed by George Harrison when his Monty Python friends were struggling to finance “Life of Brian”. The story goes that George had to mortgage a house but I don’t think that he ever went short. In the next decade Handmade were involved with many fine British films. “A Private Function” (1984) is as close as this to the gentle, eccentric comedies made by Ealing Studios in the 1940s & 50s. Alan Bennett was an international success in 1960 with “Beyond the Fringe”. He continued to act while becoming better known as a writer for TV & theatre. This was his first screenplay, perhaps having less substance than his plays but no less lacking in the acuity Bennett has for language & the intricacies of social interaction & manners.
“A Private Function” is set in post-Second World War Yorkshire when food was still rationed. The social climber Joyce Chilvers (Maggie Smith) is determined to make her mark in the town & intends to drag Gilbert, her chiropodist husband, (Michael Palin) along with her. A pig, being illegally fattened for a municipal celebration is kidnapped by the Chilvers & hilarity ensues…really it does. Along with the great writer & the two illustrious principals the cast involves an overflowing National Treasure chest. Denholm Elliott, Alison Steadman, Pete Postlethwaite & others all do their distinctive thing while Liz, as Joyce’s mother, driven mad by the smell of the secret pig, thinking that perhaps she could be the source of the odour, won the BAFTA for Best Supporting Actress.
Liz continued to do the work, adding value to whatever she appeared in. In 1998 she was cast as Nana Norma in Caroline Ahern’s comedy “The Royle Family”.By this time she was 76 year’s old & the nation’s favourite grandmother, perfectly cast in a series which, along with Ricky Gervais’ “The Office” & Steve Coogan’s “I’m Alan Partridge” injected new energy & raised the standard of British situation comedy. “The Royle Family” was sometimes a kitchen sink drama but it was mostly on the living room sofa in front of the telly. The skillful characterisation, the pacing, the natural humour & affection made many people suspect that Aherne had placed a spy camera in their own homes to obtain material. This clip, from the 2006 special “The Queen of Sheba” where the new baby is introduced to the bedridden Nana will moisten the driest of eyes. A starring role in the UK’s most popular comedy brought Liz Smith even wider recognition &, in 2007, a British Comedy Award for Best TV Comedy Actress.
Liz Smith was born in my hometown in Lincolnshire. She’s from the Crosby area up in the north of town. She attended the secondary school which, years later with a change of name, in a different building became my school. That may be why, even in those early days before I knew of her origins, I found her performances to be so convincing. She reminded me & so many others of our own grandmothers except that perhaps my Nana Daisy actually knew her as young Betty Gleadle. Sad events have made this appreciation into an obituary & that’s a pity. It’s OK because I am reminded of the talent of Liz Smith by the old ladies I talk to at the bus stop, in the market & around my estate. For these women, who have lived through some times, have seen & learned some things, Liz Smith represented.
There’s not an end of year “Best Of”, broadcast, in print, written & talked about anywhere on the planet that doesn’t acknowledge 2016’s Haul of Fame, I can be no different . When the indestructible Lemmy left us at the end of 2015 who could possibly have imagined who would have followed him by the end of 2016. I know it’s life and what can you do, but to see so many big hitters depart in an unreal succession was difficult to comprehend. Personally, Bowie,Prince,Leonard Cohen and Gene Wilder’s leaving shook me the most… what more can be said…so it goes.
From early this year Parquet Courts’ “Human Performance” was, for me, their best since 2012’s “Light Up Gold”. After the improvised experiments of “Monastic Living” (2015) New York’s finest (really) return to the stripped back post-punk, anxious lyrics combined with irresistible, melodic hooks, pure & simple human performances. Its an easy option to throw out the Modern Lovers/Velvets/ Pavement comparisons. Parquet Courts have a lot more going for them than their influences. Lyrically the album is packed with “what did he just sing?” moments but it’s tough to choose standout tracks such is the quality & consistency of the whole. “I Was Just Here” deals with displacement and the dreadful situation when you return home you find your favourite Chinese restaurant/chip shophas shut down..a horror I am familiar with.The title track, a great pop song, has a melody faintly reminiscent of Wire’s “Outdoor Miner”..wonderful!
Thanks Joe, you’re the 2nd friend this week to endorse the Radiohead record…that’s enough to put me on to it. In 2017 I look forward to new music from Joe’s band the Gatefolds &, you never know, a reunion of Derry legends Bam Bam & the Calling (Joe is the bassist) on the occasion of your upcoming big birthday would be the very thing.
OK, a couple of things, no right-thinking person should let me loose in the suburbs with a microphone. I’ve got information man ! New shit has come to light & people need to hear it. Also I’m never really seized by the festive spirit until almost the last minute. By Christmas Eve I’m as ready as a red-nosed reindeer. I love the time spent with family & friends, I just don’t get the materialism, the planning in October, the office party with people you avoid for the rest of the year (though I’ve had my moments at these). I’m really not a miserable person but, if asked “Are you ready for Xmas ?” then you may get short shrift & the wrong impression.
The joviality was turned up to 11 despite being stuck with this music by all the usual suspects, Slade, Wizzard, Elton John, Wham. I was having a good game, my festive flow was in full effect. The quality & sincerity of “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)” seemed incongruous & I wished the citizens of Kingstanding “Peace on Earth from John, Yoko & all the other Beatles”. that was as far as I was going to push it. There was a bit of a swerve when up came “Another Rock & Roll Christmas” by Gary Glitter, a man whose stage costumes resembled a foil-wrapped turkey but who had, more recently made the news because of his unsavoury sexual predilections. The Double Gee was a pervert & this was the wrong soundtrack to be handing out sweets to children. I needed to find the fast forward button sharpish to get to something less controversial (but equally offensive) like “Mistletoe & Wine” by Cliff Richard. Where’s an elf when you need one ?
I was still on roll when we left the residential avenues for the main road. The adults were corralled & we flash crashed a couple of pubs, y’know for charity. Back on my sleigh I gave a ride to Dani & her friend. My job done I passed them the mic & they serenaded passing pedestrians with the hits of Robbie Williams, who, for reasons that eluded me, was very popular at the time. Back at base photos were taken & everyone was very pleased with the evening’s work. Unfortunately they wanted the costume back & I was mild-mannered Clark Kent again.
A suck bag of a year: the death of some of the most celebrated musicians to have ever walked our polluted planet – mix into that a year scourged by a rapid, domino-effect decline in sensible politics (if ever such a thing existed) and you’ve got your suck bag. Yes, some would say 2016 has been evil; a fucking tremendous annus horribilis. But, this isn’t a blog-piece about that. No, I’m here to talk all things my top 3 releases of the year. I’m not choosing some of the more obvious choices among the massive hits this year, I guess that many fellow bloggers/contributors will no doubt mention those. Instead, I’m going to talk about ones that fell slightly below the radar and/or which merit greater attention.
2 #2 slot is firmly occupied by ‘Preoccupations’, by Preoccupations. The Canadian band described as ‘labyrinthine post-punk’ and formerly known as Viet Cong, released a substantial album in September 2016. Under their old moniker they threw out jams like ‘Continental Shelf’ and ‘Bunker Buster’ from their self-titled debut album ‘Viet Cong’. With the name change comes a change in sound. I think the new album, the difficult 2nd one, has a much more mature and focused approach. Take ‘Memory’ for example, at just over 11 minutes you might think that things could get a little samey, and that’s when they crank things up, change direction once again and finish the track off with 6 minutes of dreamscape ambience; you have to watch the video for more on this. Their sound, while holding onto their uniqueness, which comes from the very 80’s sounding vocals of Matt Flegel, is difficult to pin down, but why would you want to, their fantastic music is already enough of a preoccupation… Preoccupations/’Memory’
Right from the get-go, opening track and album title track, we get a “Hi” to welcome us in. This is one of my favourite tracks on the album because it is a down-beat instrumental hip hop track that grabs you by the shoulders and gives you a hug and says, “come on in, sit down, enjoy yourself, now, are you ready?”. The other outstanding tracks for me are track 4 ‘Bergschrund” featuring the German composer/producer Nils Frahm’, track 6 ‘Depth Charge’; and the final track on the album ‘Suicide pact’. I have to say, this is one of those special albums that upon repeat listen, you hear more and more each time. Happy listening folks! DJ Shadow/’Bergschrund (feat. Nils Frahm)
At a time when I’m finding the output of established American artists to be mining a seam that, while still productive, was providing a greater return 10 years ago, Whitney sound fresh & modern. The songs they choose to cover indicate a finely tuned taste. There’s a touch of Allen Toussaint in the way the songs are short, sweet, restrained & melodious. “Nashville Skyline” Bob Dylan provides “Tonight I’ll be Staying Here With You” & anyone who checks for NRBQ is OK by me. Have just one more. This swashbuckling version of “No Matter Where We Go” was a digital release which brings to mind the pop sensibility of Big Star. That’s some heavy names & no-one here has mentioned the Band…Get on this record !
An Underworld b-side “Born Slippy. NUXX” featured in “Trainspotting”, Cool Britannia’s flagship movie. “Lager lager” was a popular flavour at the time & the group had a big hit on their hands. Subsequent releases did not match the quality of those two records, we were chilling out & trip-hopping while they were becoming Underworld-by-numbers. This year’s “Barbara Barbara, We Face a Shining Future” is their first release for almost 6 years. They are back to the original duo & Karl Hyde’s collaboration with Brian Eno, 2 albums in 2014, was a tip off that they had got it going on. It’s a collection for the head, the heart & the hips, strong songs topped by the glitter-rock done by the Fall of “I Exhale”, tailed by the shimmering beauty & power of “Nylon Strung”. Underworld know what they want & know how to get it done. Listening to”Barbara…” is, for me an exhilarating & uplifting experience & 2016 sure needed some of that.
“SADEVILLAIN” is a 20 minute mix made by young Portsmouth producer Seanh2k11. It matches #1 rapper MF DOOM with Ms Adu, a prominent purveyor of Eighties coffee table Soul & man, it sounds very good to me. DOOM sampled Sadie’s “Kiss of Love” on “Operation:Doomsday” his debut back in the last century (1999) & Sean Harrison has merged the greatest hits of both of them with imagination & skill. His
I repeated the action with all three of his sisters on the days we brought them home. On January 11, each of those children sent me a heartfelt, comforting message. Coincidentally, when my youngest, Carol, asked her granny if she like David Bowie, my mother started to sing The Jean Genie. I guess that song had a bigger effect on my family that I had realised.
It’s difficult to think of “Blackstar” now outside the context of what the great man was suffering when he wrote and created it and his subsequent death, but for that first weekend the music was all that mattered. After the weak “The Next Day” three years earlier, here was the man back on top of his game, on top of the heap. And like the magpie he’d always been, he had taken the finest ingredients of drum and bass, electronica, rock and jazz and made them into that finest of things: A Bowie Album. Like all of his best works it is of the now but carries deep heritage in its grooves, it didn’t rise from nowhere but is the result of a life, a history, an evolution of curiosity and genius.
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