Reckon he’s got some explaining to do. If he was able to walk down the High Street in Dunfermline in that get up without getting a kicking I’ll doff my cap. No chance in Ballingry.
I’m assuming he‘d grown out of this long before he caught Mariellas eye.
So I promised @Walkerinthesun the story of my social interactions with Richard J, so here goes.
I'll be honest, I used to share you're opinion of Jobson.......until I got to know him a tiny bit.
Back story (which I'm sure I've told on here before) good pal of mine, I was best man at his wedding 86ish, moved down to that London, did VERY well for himself, semi-retired very young.
He's a wannabe writer, had a couple of little bits and pieces published.
I should've mentioned, Andy, my mate.............massive Skids fan.
Andy decides to take a script writing/ film making class that Jobson was running.
Long story short they became pals.
Andy part funded some projects Richard was involved in, they lunched together at The Groucho etc.
2010 Andy and I were guest listed to one of the comeback shows, The Alhambra in Dunfermline, saw the soundcheck, got invited back stage.
Great gig, back stage for drinks afterwards.
This gig was part of a festival (can't recall the name) promoting Fife. Jobbers was involved in this, so when I met him afterwards he was in "working the room" mode and he did nothing to change my opinion that he was a bit of an arse.
Had a decent chat with Bill Simpson the bass player.
He was working as an estate agent "Cannae all be fucking film directors" ws his take, right nice guy.
Fast forward to 2017 (I think) another guest list at The Glen Pavillion in Dunfermline, beautiful setting BTW.
Met Richard again post gig, saw a different side to him.
Relaxed, just a bloke having a beer after his work.
Decent company, great night.
Next step on the journey 2019, The Lemon Tree in Aberdeen.
Andy organised four of us onto the guest list and to see the sound check again.
It became a mini reunion, the four of us used to cut about during our school days, went to a few gigs together, including The Skids, as teenagers.
One of our number, Duncan, is now a minister.
More on that later.....
The gig was on a Saturday, Richard was flying up early Saturday due to filming commitments.
He was playing Alan McGhee's Dad in the movie "Creation Story".
We had to meet Richard in town as he didn't know where the venue was.
We met him, hit the sound check, then he joined us for a pre gig curry, though he only had a few pieces of pakora as he had to "dance badly" later.
He was absolutely brilliant company, self effacing (told us his nickname at school was "Pelican Puss" due to his large chin), interesting, engaging.
He told us that the movie guys had tried to get him to have temporary "King Billy" tattoos for the roll, McGhee's Dad was a big Orangeman apparently, diehard Celtic fan, he flatly refused.
He has a place in Berlin where he lives periodically.
It's in quite a rundown, Bohemian area of the city.
His daughter reckoned the area was getting a bit gentrified.
He'd been walking home fairly recently and met a guy taking a shit........said guy asking him if he had any toilet paper.
"So.....not gentrified then" was his take on the incident.
At the gig Richard regaled the crowd with tales that "Aberdeen's only punk minister" was in the crowd.
Next time he came back to Aberdeen he mentioned Duncan in a press interview.
So, nice guy, good company, changed my opinion of him.
This is a record I'll continue to listen to. It's got everything I love about the post-punk music of the time that came out of the UK. If getting familiar with an under-played album I've had in my library for some time is all I get from these album selections, that's good enough for me.
I find it hard to categorise music, I am much like Mr Rat in that either I like it or I don't. However, when I listened to this a couple of days ago, my first thought was that it was a punk album, but then what is punk - The Clash, The Jam, The Stranglers? Not sure I know. I think a lot of music features angry young men, probably more often than angry young women and I have never really thought about why this might be. Generally, i like angry stuff. The recent Sam Fender album is angry, Tom Morello's collaborations with Bruce really bring out the angry side of his music. Maybe men have a different way of expressing anger, I don't know. I'm just rambling now, so I will stop!
Getting back to this album, I listened again with the lyrics in front of me and enjoyed it more. My first listen without the lyrics I was just experiencing the music and rhythm, with the lyrics it takes on new meaning.
Thanks @MagicRatAFC , an excellent start to the album club.
Maybe men have a different way of expressing anger, I don't know. I'm just rambling now, so I will stop!
I read somewhere that girls talk more, share the impacts of various traumatic events. Boys don't talk to each other, not really about the deep and heavy stuff. Then they explode, and we have punk and all other angry music. A medium for their frustration. This is very simplified but can be one of the reasons for angry music.
I think this is what I loved about the early U2, Alarm and Big Country music. I think for an American kid, the young bands coming out of the UK in the early 80s had a certain martial quality, like they all had something worth fighting about and I wanted something worth fighting about.
they all had something worth fighting about and I wanted something worth fighting about.
I guess this is exactly why I can't relate to this music, and why I believe understanding the need to fight, and consequently loving punk, is a male thing.
I might have some kind of genre detection defect. I know this band is classified as punk, but to me it's too melodic to actually be punk. The Alarm and early U2 were considered punk, too, but never by me. I mean, there's the punk attitude, but these UK bands of that period that I still listen to today just don't sound like what I consider true punk.
I've listened to the album twice, I do believe it's a great punk album, sadly it's the genre I find uncomfortable listening to.
It was never the kind of music I could connect with, maybe I was born too late, but more likely, I just never identified with the thunderous, fast-paced, rebellious battlefield sound of it. The energy and noise are the backgrounds of some confessional and controversial lyrics, and I've always understood the anti-establishment themes and their importance. The blunt lyrics never bothered me unless there was violence or sexism, and there is plenty of both in punk, it's just overall too cold-hearted for me.
I guess there must be a real sense of catharsis in loud, angry music, and perhaps it's linked to masculinity. I don't believe it's a unisex music genre. I think the number of female punk bands maybe proves my point. If this makes any sense, I'd like to swap gender and listen to this record again. Perhaps this music would make more sense if I could understand the agony of the men writing it.
Fabulous album cover, very telling.
Thanks @MagicRatAFC for making me give punk another try..
I've listened at least eight times now and it's one of those albums that's good from start to finish. I haven't checked out the bonus tracks yet because I think for the sake of these discussions we should all listen to the original albums, but I'm itching to get at them soon.
The only other album I have is a best of, but I'm going to get the rest.
I can see how they might sit alongside The Alarm and co. That second wave never really connected for me, I guess because I thought they seemed to come up short against their punk predecessors
There's just something about those bands from Wales, Scotland and Ireland that lit my fire at the time. I think this band, Big Country and The Alarm all stood toe to toe with U2 of the period, but U2 is the one that made it the biggest. I still often think Mike Peters and Stuart Adamson are who Bono and The Edge wanted to be.
Gave the first selection a couple of listen this afternoon. As I noted above, it’s a record and band I’m familiar with, albeit not for a long time: getting on for 40 years ago. 😧
Despite never being their biggest fan I was pleasantly surprised. Stuart Adamsons pre Big Country guitar work was a highlight, particularly on the title track, as WS noted. Less bagpipe drone. Still found Jobsons vocal stylings a bit tiresome on occasion, but thought he did a pretty good Mick Jones impression on one track: Integral Plot.
Fav tracks: title song, Melancholy Soldiers, Saints and Charles.
I streamed it and also played thru the additional tracks, a round up of thsir preceding 45 & EP tracks & b-sides. Closer to punk than their later ’new wave’, proto-post-punk, and more fun too. Worth a listen If your source allows. I can see how they might sit alongside The Alarm and co. That second wave never really connected for me, I guess because I thought they seemed to come up short against their punk predecessors: Ramones, Clash, Buzzcocks, early Banshees, and weren’t as stimulating as the more progressive NYC bands that I was starting to explore. But that’s another story……
Right, first up @Walkerinthesun I'll relate my social interactions with Mr Jobson later. I shared your opinion of him until I broke bread and supped with him. Incidentally, did everyone know that Mr Jobson was once married to Mariella Forstrup?
To the band and the album....
Yes, the late, great Stuart Adamson was the musical brains behind the album, Richard providing the lyrics predominantately.
I think, 42 years after the fact, this album has aged pretty well.
Richard's enunciation can be "of its time" in places, and betrays a Bill Nelson influence.
There's a dark political and social awareness running through the album.
The title track is a dark tale of unrequited love written first person stalker, "Melancholy soldiers" (my favourite track on the album) an observation of an urban army in the dole Q, "Charles" (the band's first single) a fantasy tale of workplace monotomy, "Into the valley" (the hit that took them to some level of chart success) the tale of the charge of the Light Brigade "Into the Valley of death rode the 600.....", military manoeuvres and war being a recurrent theme in Richard's writing, cross referenced with references to gang fighting in the Dunfermline area during the guys' youth, "Of one skin" on discovering you are adopted........etc. etc.
Bear in mind, these songs were written when Richard was 17/18 and Stuart 19/20.
I adore this record.
It has kept me company from childhood to adulthood to middle age.
Finally, Stuart Adamson.
As a guitarist, he was up there.
Peel once compared him to Hendrix.
Dead by suicide at 43, taken by the bevvy.
At his funeral The Edge said Adamson wrote the songs U2 wished they could have written.
If you liked this album check out the rest of their work, "Days in Europa" and "The Absolute Game" specifically, you can thank me later.
Mariella! O.M.G.! I just have to hear her voice and I come over all unnecessary. My opinion of RJ has just taken a quantum leap In the right direction…….
The pit villages around Dunfermline and Kirkaldy were a no go area for us bumpkins back in the day, and then Thatcher did for them. Dunno if they’ve ever recovered. I remember Dunfermline in the late ‘60’s, 70’s - fuelled by good paying jobs in the pits and dockyard. Was there with work 2 or 3 years ago and man was it depressing…….🙁
I have listened once and was pleasantly surprised. I was also surprised that I knew the first song "Into the Valley" - was this a single? That was the only song I recognised. I particularly liked "Saints are Coming" and thought there was some great guitar work on "Sacred Dance".
I can certainly imagine really enjoying this band live back in the day.
I need to now find the lyrics and listen again with them in front of me.
I think I may have heard of the band, definitely didn't know the music or this album.
Initial impressions are... I like it. Very much. I definitely get the Big Country vibe @Jerseyfornia mentioned, and that's a huge plus for me. I love the vocals and guitar. It sounds like it's from that era without sounding dated, another plus.
So far only listened on buds, but tomorrow I will have the chance to turn it up to 11 in the car. Nice one @MagicRatAFC.
Edit to say I imagine I am pretty sure I would listen to this again in time, which might not be the case with everyone's choice and is also a good indicator of how much I like the music or album.
I just saw this on Wikipedia: Scared to Dance was the first album to feature Stuart Adamson's 'bagpipe guitar', which would be the trademark of his later band Big Country.
I should mention that I'm not very good at articulating when it comes to aesthetics. Whiskey, food, music. Love them all, but talking in terms of specifics isn't my strong suit. So...
I never heard this album before, but I remember the distinctive cover from back in the day. And certainly covers need to be a part of these discussions. It took a couple songs for this to really kick in for me, but kick in it did. The music reminded me of a favorite group of mine from that era, XTC. I read along with the lyrics, and the word I would use is evocative. I liked them despite having no clear idea what they were about. Poetry mostly escapes me. Never studied it.
i used to knock around with a few guys from Methil when I was at Uni. They knew Jobson pre-Skids from playing footie around west Fife. Their considered view was that he was a pretentious wanker. This would seem to be supported by those rare occasions he broke cover post-Skids and I happened to see/hear. Don’t let this prejudice your listening experience!
I have a fair selection of their early 45’s and this first LP, but balked at the second, Days In Europa, when I saw the cover. Way too Reifenstahl for me, in combination with their original band name graphics. I suspect I actually saw/heard them live early ‘78 at the Kinema Ballroom, Dunfermline supporting The Clash on their Out On Parole tour, but have only the sketchiest of memories of that night, beyond being completely blown away by the headliners.
Anyhow, enough chat, I’ll revisit my youth tomorrow……..
I came to the office with a mild headache today, I found the album on Spotify, so my only hope is it's not too hard-edged and loud for my head today....
I feel like I'm back in school, doing the book reports... Loving it... 😊
I'm not overly familiar with this band or this album, but I have heard it several times since I got it a few years back. I bought their best of compilation in the mid 2000s after hearing The Saints Are Coming on the radio. My favorite tracks from that collection are the ones on this debut album, which led me to get this one. I'm going to enjoy a deeper dive into this record and what I know going in is that it's a passionate rock album that somehow got labeled as new wave. I put this band in the same category as The Alarm, The Call and Big Country, all bands I love. I won't be surprised if I get the rest of their records after playing this the next few days.
I finely listen to this album a couple nights ago, while Moma was away. OUT-FUCKING-STANDING!!!!! Just bought it and on the I-Pod
Another Skids-ish piece
I liked the album, but that picture will make it tough for me to listen to it again.
BTW @walkerinthesun that picture is on its way to Mr Jobson for further comments. 😁
I confess I had a combo not a million miles off what Stuart Adamson is wearing in that pic.
Wow.
Ooh, why's that big gap appeared at the bottom of the post?
So I promised @Walkerinthesun the story of my social interactions with Richard J, so here goes.
I'll be honest, I used to share you're opinion of Jobson.......until I got to know him a tiny bit.
Back story (which I'm sure I've told on here before) good pal of mine, I was best man at his wedding 86ish, moved down to that London, did VERY well for himself, semi-retired very young.
He's a wannabe writer, had a couple of little bits and pieces published.
I should've mentioned, Andy, my mate.............massive Skids fan.
Andy decides to take a script writing/ film making class that Jobson was running.
Long story short they became pals.
Andy part funded some projects Richard was involved in, they lunched together at The Groucho etc.
2010 Andy and I were guest listed to one of the comeback shows, The Alhambra in Dunfermline, saw the soundcheck, got invited back stage.
Great gig, back stage for drinks afterwards.
This gig was part of a festival (can't recall the name) promoting Fife. Jobbers was involved in this, so when I met him afterwards he was in "working the room" mode and he did nothing to change my opinion that he was a bit of an arse.
Had a decent chat with Bill Simpson the bass player.
He was working as an estate agent "Cannae all be fucking film directors" ws his take, right nice guy.
Fast forward to 2017 (I think) another guest list at The Glen Pavillion in Dunfermline, beautiful setting BTW.
Met Richard again post gig, saw a different side to him.
Relaxed, just a bloke having a beer after his work.
Decent company, great night.
Next step on the journey 2019, The Lemon Tree in Aberdeen.
Andy organised four of us onto the guest list and to see the sound check again.
It became a mini reunion, the four of us used to cut about during our school days, went to a few gigs together, including The Skids, as teenagers.
One of our number, Duncan, is now a minister.
More on that later.....
The gig was on a Saturday, Richard was flying up early Saturday due to filming commitments.
He was playing Alan McGhee's Dad in the movie "Creation Story".
We had to meet Richard in town as he didn't know where the venue was.
We met him, hit the sound check, then he joined us for a pre gig curry, though he only had a few pieces of pakora as he had to "dance badly" later.
He was absolutely brilliant company, self effacing (told us his nickname at school was "Pelican Puss" due to his large chin), interesting, engaging.
He told us that the movie guys had tried to get him to have temporary "King Billy" tattoos for the roll, McGhee's Dad was a big Orangeman apparently, diehard Celtic fan, he flatly refused.
He has a place in Berlin where he lives periodically.
It's in quite a rundown, Bohemian area of the city.
His daughter reckoned the area was getting a bit gentrified.
He'd been walking home fairly recently and met a guy taking a shit........said guy asking him if he had any toilet paper.
"So.....not gentrified then" was his take on the incident.
At the gig Richard regaled the crowd with tales that "Aberdeen's only punk minister" was in the crowd.
Next time he came back to Aberdeen he mentioned Duncan in a press interview.
So, nice guy, good company, changed my opinion of him.
This is a record I'll continue to listen to. It's got everything I love about the post-punk music of the time that came out of the UK. If getting familiar with an under-played album I've had in my library for some time is all I get from these album selections, that's good enough for me.
8.5 of 10.
I find it hard to categorise music, I am much like Mr Rat in that either I like it or I don't. However, when I listened to this a couple of days ago, my first thought was that it was a punk album, but then what is punk - The Clash, The Jam, The Stranglers? Not sure I know. I think a lot of music features angry young men, probably more often than angry young women and I have never really thought about why this might be. Generally, i like angry stuff. The recent Sam Fender album is angry, Tom Morello's collaborations with Bruce really bring out the angry side of his music. Maybe men have a different way of expressing anger, I don't know. I'm just rambling now, so I will stop!
Getting back to this album, I listened again with the lyrics in front of me and enjoyed it more. My first listen without the lyrics I was just experiencing the music and rhythm, with the lyrics it takes on new meaning.
Thanks @MagicRatAFC , an excellent start to the album club.
I don't want to come across as someone who believes that girls don't listen to punk music at all. They do, and they should.
And why have I begun this gender division of music... I apologize. Was just trying to identify the reasons for my dislike.
Yeah. That sounds right.
I'm not massive on genres TBH.
Generally I have two.......... "good" and "bad".
But, for what it's worth, I'd categorise The Skids, and probably The Alarm and Big Country, as "post punk".
Anyway, I adore this record and I'm glad others have taken positives also.
I love this album, @MagicRatAFC,
I think this is what I loved about the early U2, Alarm and Big Country music. I think for an American kid, the young bands coming out of the UK in the early 80s had a certain martial quality, like they all had something worth fighting about and I wanted something worth fighting about.
I might have some kind of genre detection defect. I know this band is classified as punk, but to me it's too melodic to actually be punk. The Alarm and early U2 were considered punk, too, but never by me. I mean, there's the punk attitude, but these UK bands of that period that I still listen to today just don't sound like what I consider true punk.
I've listened to the album twice, I do believe it's a great punk album, sadly it's the genre I find uncomfortable listening to.
It was never the kind of music I could connect with, maybe I was born too late, but more likely, I just never identified with the thunderous, fast-paced, rebellious battlefield sound of it. The energy and noise are the backgrounds of some confessional and controversial lyrics, and I've always understood the anti-establishment themes and their importance. The blunt lyrics never bothered me unless there was violence or sexism, and there is plenty of both in punk, it's just overall too cold-hearted for me.
I guess there must be a real sense of catharsis in loud, angry music, and perhaps it's linked to masculinity. I don't believe it's a unisex music genre. I think the number of female punk bands maybe proves my point. If this makes any sense, I'd like to swap gender and listen to this record again. Perhaps this music would make more sense if I could understand the agony of the men writing it.
Fabulous album cover, very telling.
Thanks @MagicRatAFC for making me give punk another try..
I've listened at least eight times now and it's one of those albums that's good from start to finish. I haven't checked out the bonus tracks yet because I think for the sake of these discussions we should all listen to the original albums, but I'm itching to get at them soon.
The only other album I have is a best of, but I'm going to get the rest.
There's just something about those bands from Wales, Scotland and Ireland that lit my fire at the time. I think this band, Big Country and The Alarm all stood toe to toe with U2 of the period, but U2 is the one that made it the biggest. I still often think Mike Peters and Stuart Adamson are who Bono and The Edge wanted to be.
Gave the first selection a couple of listen this afternoon. As I noted above, it’s a record and band I’m familiar with, albeit not for a long time: getting on for 40 years ago. 😧
Despite never being their biggest fan I was pleasantly surprised. Stuart Adamsons pre Big Country guitar work was a highlight, particularly on the title track, as WS noted. Less bagpipe drone. Still found Jobsons vocal stylings a bit tiresome on occasion, but thought he did a pretty good Mick Jones impression on one track: Integral Plot.
Fav tracks: title song, Melancholy Soldiers, Saints and Charles.
I streamed it and also played thru the additional tracks, a round up of thsir preceding 45 & EP tracks & b-sides. Closer to punk than their later ’new wave’, proto-post-punk, and more fun too. Worth a listen If your source allows. I can see how they might sit alongside The Alarm and co. That second wave never really connected for me, I guess because I thought they seemed to come up short against their punk predecessors: Ramones, Clash, Buzzcocks, early Banshees, and weren’t as stimulating as the more progressive NYC bands that I was starting to explore. But that’s another story……
Thanks @MagicRatAFC - great start!
Right, first up @Walkerinthesun I'll relate my social interactions with Mr Jobson later. I shared your opinion of him until I broke bread and supped with him. Incidentally, did everyone know that Mr Jobson was once married to Mariella Forstrup?
To the band and the album....
Yes, the late, great Stuart Adamson was the musical brains behind the album, Richard providing the lyrics predominantately.
I think, 42 years after the fact, this album has aged pretty well.
Richard's enunciation can be "of its time" in places, and betrays a Bill Nelson influence.
There's a dark political and social awareness running through the album.
The title track is a dark tale of unrequited love written first person stalker, "Melancholy soldiers" (my favourite track on the album) an observation of an urban army in the dole Q, "Charles" (the band's first single) a fantasy tale of workplace monotomy, "Into the valley" (the hit that took them to some level of chart success) the tale of the charge of the Light Brigade "Into the Valley of death rode the 600.....", military manoeuvres and war being a recurrent theme in Richard's writing, cross referenced with references to gang fighting in the Dunfermline area during the guys' youth, "Of one skin" on discovering you are adopted........etc. etc.
Bear in mind, these songs were written when Richard was 17/18 and Stuart 19/20.
I adore this record.
It has kept me company from childhood to adulthood to middle age.
Finally, Stuart Adamson.
As a guitarist, he was up there.
Peel once compared him to Hendrix.
Dead by suicide at 43, taken by the bevvy.
At his funeral The Edge said Adamson wrote the songs U2 wished they could have written.
If you liked this album check out the rest of their work, "Days in Europa" and "The Absolute Game" specifically, you can thank me later.
I have listened once and was pleasantly surprised. I was also surprised that I knew the first song "Into the Valley" - was this a single? That was the only song I recognised. I particularly liked "Saints are Coming" and thought there was some great guitar work on "Sacred Dance".
I can certainly imagine really enjoying this band live back in the day.
I need to now find the lyrics and listen again with them in front of me.
A good choice to get us started!
How's your head @Louisa ?
I think I may have heard of the band, definitely didn't know the music or this album.
Initial impressions are... I like it. Very much. I definitely get the Big Country vibe @Jerseyfornia mentioned, and that's a huge plus for me. I love the vocals and guitar. It sounds like it's from that era without sounding dated, another plus.
So far only listened on buds, but tomorrow I will have the chance to turn it up to 11 in the car. Nice one @MagicRatAFC.
Edit to say I imagine I am pretty sure I would listen to this again in time, which might not be the case with everyone's choice and is also a good indicator of how much I like the music or album.
I should mention that I'm not very good at articulating when it comes to aesthetics. Whiskey, food, music. Love them all, but talking in terms of specifics isn't my strong suit. So...
I never heard this album before, but I remember the distinctive cover from back in the day. And certainly covers need to be a part of these discussions. It took a couple songs for this to really kick in for me, but kick in it did. The music reminded me of a favorite group of mine from that era, XTC. I read along with the lyrics, and the word I would use is evocative. I liked them despite having no clear idea what they were about. Poetry mostly escapes me. Never studied it.
Feel free to quote me.
Calling The Tune is working its way up toward The Saints Are Coming as my favorite track.
i used to knock around with a few guys from Methil when I was at Uni. They knew Jobson pre-Skids from playing footie around west Fife. Their considered view was that he was a pretentious wanker. This would seem to be supported by those rare occasions he broke cover post-Skids and I happened to see/hear. Don’t let this prejudice your listening experience!
I have a fair selection of their early 45’s and this first LP, but balked at the second, Days In Europa, when I saw the cover. Way too Reifenstahl for me, in combination with their original band name graphics. I suspect I actually saw/heard them live early ‘78 at the Kinema Ballroom, Dunfermline supporting The Clash on their Out On Parole tour, but have only the sketchiest of memories of that night, beyond being completely blown away by the headliners.
Anyhow, enough chat, I’ll revisit my youth tomorrow……..
I came to the office with a mild headache today, I found the album on Spotify, so my only hope is it's not too hard-edged and loud for my head today....
I feel like I'm back in school, doing the book reports... Loving it... 😊
Okay, I think Billy Idol stole White Wedding from Scale.
I might have mentioned that some should be familiar with The Saints Are Coming via U2 & Green Day. The original is better.
I'm not overly familiar with this band or this album, but I have heard it several times since I got it a few years back. I bought their best of compilation in the mid 2000s after hearing The Saints Are Coming on the radio. My favorite tracks from that collection are the ones on this debut album, which led me to get this one. I'm going to enjoy a deeper dive into this record and what I know going in is that it's a passionate rock album that somehow got labeled as new wave. I put this band in the same category as The Alarm, The Call and Big Country, all bands I love. I won't be surprised if I get the rest of their records after playing this the next few days.