Rockpile - 1979-07-06 - Boston

Rockpile
1979-07-06
Paradise Ballroom, Boston, MA
FM Broadcast recording (WBCN-FM), very good quality
mp3 @ 320 kbps

And so now it all comes back to Rockpile, certainly one of the greatest of the pub rock bands, and just a great band all around. I've chronicled the Rockpile story previously, so won't go into it again, but the combination of Nick Lowe and Dave Edmunds together, their superior songwriting melding with their driving rock spirit and firm grasp of music history and style, and with the able backing of Billy Bremner and Terry Williams, they were just awesome. So, here we have a radio broadcast concert from Boston in 1979. This is several months later than the last Rockpile show I featured (10-24-1978 - NY), and comes at a great period for the band, as it is right on the heels of the release of both Dave Edmunds' Repeat When Necessary and Nick Lowe's Labour of Lust albums (both of which are among their all-time best albums, and both are really Rockpile albums), so this show adds in several new songs from those albums, that were not heard at earlier Rockpile shows (Interestingly, though, 'Cruel to Be Kind' (which would be Nick's biggest hit) had not yet become a hit, and was not played here). So, here, once again, is the legendary Rockpile in their prime, and as a bonus, this show also has Martin Belmont (from The Rumour) as a guest guitarist on 'They Called it Rock'. Enjoy.
 
Tracklist
01. Sweet Little Lisa
02. So It Goes
03. I Knew the Bride (When She Used To Rock & Roll)
04. Switchboard Susan
05. Crawling From The Wreckage
06. Deborah
07. Trouble Boys
08. Cracking Up
09. Born Fighter
10. The Promised Land
11. I Hear You Knocking
12. Queen of Hearts
13. Here Comes The Weekend
14. So Fine
15. They Called It Rock
16. Ju Ju Man
17. Let It Rock - Bye Bye Johnny
18. Let's Talk About Us

Rockpile is:
Dave Edmunds, vocals, guitar
Nick Lowe, vocals, bass guitar
Billy Bremner, vocals, guitar
Terry Williams, drums

Guest: Martin Belmont (The Rumour) plays guitar on track 15, 'They Called It Rock'.

Rockpile_1979-07-06_Boston.rar

Graham Parker & The Rumour - 1979-06-06 - Hempstead NY

Graham Parker and The Rumour
June 6, 1979
Calderone Concert Hall
Hempstead, NY
FM Broadcast (WLIR) recording, good quality
mp3 @ 320 kbps

Pub Rock, continued

So, as indicated previously, from the remains of Brinsley Schwarz and Ducks Deluxe, Brinsley Schwarz, Bob Andrews, and Martin Belmont teamed up with Andrew Bodnar (bass) and Stephen Goulding (drums) to form The Rumour in 1976, best known as Graham Parker's dynamic, precise, hard-driving back-up band through his early (and most consider his best) years (1976-1980), and one of the great rock bands of all-time. But The Rumour also recorded and performed on their own as well, releasing three albums (Max, which was named in response to Fleetwood Mac calling their latest album Rumours-1977, Frogs Sprouts Clogs and Krauts-1978, and Purity of Essence-1980). But The Rumour split-up, with both Graham and each other in 1981, to go their separate ways. Most of the guys continued on as session musicians playing with various other acts, with Schwarz, Bodnar, and Goulding continuing to work quite a bit with Graham Parker on his solo albums and tours, as well as with Elvis Costello and others. Martin Belmont went to work mostly with Carlene Carter and Nick Lowe, being a part of Nick Lowe and his Cowboy Outfit (with Paul Carrack) for several years, and various other groups as well. Of course, in recent years The Rumour reunited and re-joined with Parker, even recording an entirely new album (Three Chords Good, 2012) and appearing in the Judd Apatow film This is 40 (2012). Fortunately, there are many fine live recordings featuring Graham Parker & The Rumour (some already featured here previously) in their prime. Here is a recording that is less widely available than others, an FM Broadcast recording from Hempstead NY in 1979, featuring a full show, a good mix of songs, and a fine performance. Here, once again, the great Graham Parker & The Rumour.
 

Tracklist:
01 Discovering Japan
02 Local Girls
03 Protection
04 Don't Get Excited
05 Back To Schooldays
06 Passion Is No Ordinary Word
07 Howling Wind
08 Heat Treatment
09 Stick To Me
10 Mercury Poisoning
11 You Can't Be Too Strong
12 Love Gets You Twisted
13 I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down
14 Don't Ask Me Questions
15 Saturday Nite Is Dead
16 Nobody Hurts You
17 Soul Shoes
18 encore applause
19 I Want You Back (Alive)
20 New York Shuffle

Original cassette recording from FM broadcast and digital transfer made by Mikedks.
I obtained this show from the Music Ruined My Life blog (which also contains many other fine Graham Parker and related shows).
 

Link updated 11/8/21
Graham Parker & The Rumour - 1979-06-06 - hempsteadNY.rar

Brinsley Schwarz - Unknown Numbers (BBC Session Recordings) 1971-1973

Brinsley Schwarz 
1971-1973, 'Unknown Numbers' (Miscellaneous BBC Session Recordings)
FM Broadcast recordings, very good quality
Mp3 @ 320 kbps

It's certainly about time I feature something from the legendary British 'pub rock' band Brinsley Schwarz (1969-1975), who despite being a great band on their own, became known primarily for what its members went on to do afterwards. Brinsley Schwarz the band consisted of guitarist Brinsley Schwarz, Nick Lowe, keyboardist Bob Andrews, and drummer Billy Rankin, initially, and grew out of an earlier incarnation called Kippington Lodge. In 1971 (after their 2nd album), singer-songwriter Ian Gomm was added, and the roster was complete. Brinsley Schwarz released 6 fine albums between 1970 and 1974, and established a reputation as a great live band before splitting to go their separate ways in 1975. Their last album (New Favorites of...) was produced by Dave Edmunds, and they played as Edmunds back-up band on tour at that time and were featured on the live tracks from Dave's solo album, Subtle as a Flying Mallet. Of course, Nick Lowe then went on to team up with Edmunds in the great band Rockpile, as well as establish, record and produce for Stiff records (and many others, producing artists such as The Damned, Elvis Costello, Wreckless Eric, Graham Parker, and The Pretenders), as well as a full solo career of his own, on his way to becoming an icon of britiish pub rock, power pop, punk rock, and new wave, and in recent years, even gentleman crooner. Drummer Billy Rankin and guitarist Brinsley Schwarz joined up with guitarist Martin Belmont briefly in Ducks Deluxe before Schwarz and Belmont, along with keyboardist Bob Andrews then teamed up with Graham Parker to become The Rumour, and one of the best back-up bands in rock history (both with and without Graham). Ian Gomm also went on to a successful solo career. All these artists achieved some great things, but Brinsley Schwarz the band is generally only thought about as being a stepping stone to those other things. Yet, they were a great band, and their music deserves to be heard. In some ways, they are kind of the british equivalent to Buffalo Springfield, not so much in their musical style, but in the fact that although they were a great band, they are seen primarily as a pre-cursor to so much other great music (Buffalo Springfield, and members Neil Young, Stephen Stills, Richie Furay, and Jim Messina, of course, lead to CSN&Y, Poco, Loggins& Messina, Manassas, SHF Band, etc. as well as all their stellar solo work). But anyway, Brinsley Schwarz was pretty great, too, and their excellent musical chops, precision playing and singing, and brilliant songwriting, all stand out on these selections of tracks from various BBC live sessions. Knowing their subsequent musical directions, we expect the tight rock 'n roll sound and the soul influences they show, but what you may not expect, is the strong American country-rock influence shown here. In fact, their overall sound is more strongly influenced by The Byrds, Gram Parsons, and particularly The Band, than just about anyone else (especially in their early years). Great stuff here, yet most of it not known at all in the US. By the way, the performances/recordings included here are supposed to be different from any of the officially released BBC material (on 2 LPs, including Cruel To be Kind-2004, which is excellent), but I have not specifically verified this. So, check out Brinsley Schwarz, not for what its members did later, but for the great music they made that was all their own. 

Tracklist
1. Country Girl (Lowe)
2. Dry Land/Unknown Number (Gomm)
3. Silver Pistol (Lowe)
4. Range War (Gomm)
5. Egypt (Lowe)
6. Nervous on the Road (But Can't Stay at Home) (Lowe)
7. Rockin' Chair (Gomm)
8. Unknown Number (Lowe)
9. It's Been So Long (Gomm)
10. Don't Lose Your Grip on Love (Lowe)
11. Surrender to the Rhythm (Lowe)
12. Home in My Hand (R.Self)
13. Ju Ju Man (Jim Ford/Lolly Vegas)
14. 30 Pounder (Instr.) (Lowe/Gomm/Andrews/Rankin/Schwarz)
15. Hooked on Love (Gomm)
16. It's Been So Long (Gomm)
17. Why Do We Hurt the One We Love? (Lowe)
18. I'm Gonna Make You Love Me (Lowe)

Tracks 1-7, BBC In Concert, June 18, 1971
Tracks 8-13 BBC In Concert, May 4, 1972
Tracks 14-18, BBC In Concert, Apil 14, 1973

These are different performances/recordings from those on the officially released BBC recordings albums

Brinsley Schwarz_Unknown Numbers-BBC_71-73.rar
Link updated 09/27/21

Graham Parker & The Rumour - 2012-12-02 - Huntington, NY

Graham Parker & The Rumour
December 02, 2012
Live at The Paramount, Huntington, NY
mp3 @ 320 kbps
Audience recording, very good quality

This just in, another wonderful show from the current Graham Parker & The Rumour Reunion Tour. This one, from just about a week after the first show in Tarrytown (featured here), is from Huntington, NY, has a somewhat shorter set, but features a better recording (brighter, clearer) than the last one, and thus makes it easier to hear everything the band is doing (as well as Graham's heartfelt vocals), which makes this one even more of a joy to listen to (although it is missing several great songs from the opening night show). One song that was added for this show, though, was 'Stupefaction', from The Up Escalator. So, here is another great show from these legendary performers on another stop on this legendary tour (for details on band and tour, see previous post). Enjoy!

Tracklist:
01. Fool’s Gold
02. Stop Cryin’ About The Rain
03. Hotel Chambermaid
04. Get Started. Start A Fire
05. Watch The Moon Come Down
06. Live In Shadows
07. I’ll Never Play Jacksonville Again
08. A Lie Gets Halfway ‘Round The World
09. Long Emotional Ride
10. Discovering Japan
11. Nobody Hurts You
12. Protection
13. Stupefaction
14. Local Girls
15. Passion Is No Ordinary Word
16. Soul Shoes

Lineup:
Graham Parker - vocals, guitar
Steve Goulding - drums
Andrew Bodnar - bass
Bob Andrews - keyboards, vocals
Martin Belmont - guitar, vocals
Brinsley Schwarz - guitar, vocals

GPRumour_2012-12-02_-_Huntington.rar

Graham Parker & The Rumour - 2012-11-24 - Tarrytown, NY

Graham Parker & The Rumour
November 24, 2012
Live at the Tarrytown Music Hall, Tarrytown, NY.
Audience recording, very good quality
mp3 @ 192 kbps
Custom artwork

This is turning into a big year for one of our long-time favorites, Graham Parker. Earlier this year, he reunited with his legendary crack back-up band from his glory days, the Rumour (complete with all 5 original members), and now they have released their first new album together in over 30 years (titled Three Chords Good, available now), and even better, have now started out on tour together, again, for the first time in over 30 years. Graham and the Band are also featured prominently in a new Hollywood Movie (Judd Apatow's This Is 40, starring Paul Rudd) that is premiering soon, and is providing much (needed) publicity for Graham and the Rumour (and yes , they actually appear and perform in the movie, not just as part of the soundtrack). And to top that all off, here is an actual recording from the first night of their new tour, launched in Tarrytown, NY, 11-24-2012. So, here is a good quality audience recording from that first night, and it shows Graham and the Band in fine form. They put on a great show, featuring a good mix of new songs (7 from the new album) and old classics (over a dozen from the classic period of GP&The Rumour). Ok, maybe they don't still have the same fire and intensity they once did, but they sound great, and it is wonderful to hear them back together playing live again. And, although I have not heard the entire new album, what I have heard (and the new tracks here), sound really good to me, so I'm sure the new album is worth getting, too (I will be getting it, just haven't gotten to it yet). So, anyway, enjoy this gem in the next stage of Graham's wonderful career, and really, how great is it to hear him with the entire Rumour band (Martin Belmont, Brinsley Schwarz, Bob Andrews, Andrew Bodnar, and Steve Goulding)?  Enjoy.

Taper (larryrulz) notes: Fantastic start to the first Graham Parker and The Rumour tour in over 30 years. The audience was into it but not a distraction at all. The setlist is a good mix of new and old… In this recording, there is a gap of about two minutes’ duration between the end of 'Local Girls' and the beginning of 'You Can’t Be Too Strong'. The gap consists mostly of applause and a very brief portion of Graham’s banter before 'You Can’t Be Too Strong'. No music is missing.

Tracklist:
01. Fool’s Gold
02. Stop Cryin’ About The Rain
03. Nothin’s Gonna Pull Us Apart
04. Snake Oil Capital Of The World
05. intro to Get Started. Start A Fire
06. Get Started. Start A Fire
07. Watch The Moon Come Down
08. intro to Old Soul
09. Old Soul
10. Hotel Chambermaid
11. Live In Shadows
12. A Lie Gets Halfway ‘Round The World
13. intro to Jacksonville
14. I’ll Never Play Jacksonville Again
15. intro to Long Emotional Ride
16. Long Emotional Ride
17. Discovering Japan
18. Nobody Hurts You
19. Protection
20. Thunder And Rain
21. Coathangers
22. Local Girls
Encore 1
23. You Can’t Be Too Strong
24. Passion Is No Ordinary Word
25. applause
Encore 2
26. Don’t Ask Me Questions
27. Soul Shoes

Lineup:
Graham Parker - vocals, guitar
Steve Goulding - drums
Andrew Bodnar - bass
Bob Andrews - keyboards, vocals
Martin Belmont - guitar, vocals
Brinsley Schwarz - guitar, vocals

GPRumour_2012-11-24_Tarrytown.rar

Thanks to the taper (larryrulz) and BigO Worldwide for making this available.

Graham Parker & The Rumour - 1976-11-07 - San Francisco

Graham Parker & The Rumour
1976-11-07
The Savoy, San Francisco, CA
FM Broadcast (KSAN-FM), Excellent quality recording
mp3 @ 320 kbps

From one GP to another GP. From Gram Parsons to Graham Parker. While Gram was an American pioneer of country-rock music in the mid-late sixties, Graham emerged from the pub-rock scene to be a pioneer of British New Wave in the mid-late seventies, and went on to become one of the all-time great, yet sadly underappreciated, rock artists . We'll return back to more Gram Parsons, FBB, and other rarely heard or previously uncirculated country-rock recordings soon, but first I'll put up a few other things of interest that I've recently found. Here's a great show from early in Graham Parker's career, right around the release of Heat Treatment, Graham's 2nd album (both of which were released in 1976) with his legendary (yet always underrated) band, The Rumour. This is an excellent full-set FM broadcast recording with great sound. I only recently acquired this one (otherwise I would have posted it before). So, if you're a fan of Graham Parker, and particularly his early days with the Rumour, this is a must-have. For everyone else, it's certainly worth checking out. Great Stuff.

Tracklist:
01. White Honey
02. That's What They All Say
03. Fool's Gold
04. Turned Up Too Late
05. Something You're Goin' Through
06. Pour It All Out
07. Back To Schooldays
08. Hotel Chambermaid
09. Heat Treatment
10. Don't Ask Me Questions
11. Not If It Pleases Me
12. Help Me Shake It
13. Soul Shoes
14. Kansas City
15. Hold Back The Night

Graham Parker: Lead Vocal, Rhythm Guitar
Brinsley Schwarz: Guitar and Backing Vocals
Martin Belmont: Guitar and Backing Vocals
Bob Andrews: Keyboards and Backing Vocals
Steve Goulding: Drums and Backing Vocals
Andrew Bodnar: Bass

New Link! (Updated 07/16/21)
Graham_Parker_1976-11-07_SF_FM.rar

Graham Parker & The Rumour - 1980-10-18 - Rockpalast - Essen, Germany

Graham Parker & The Rumour
1980-10-18
Rockpalast, Grugahalle, Essen, Germany
Soundboard recording, excellent quality
mp3 @ 320 kbps

Here's another great Graham Parker & the Rumour show, this one from what would be their final tour together, in support of their last album, the Up Elevator, in 1980. This is from the Rockpalast series, so has great sound, and features many songs not in the earlier shows. So, enjoy. By this time, keyboardist Bob Andrews had already left the group and was not replaced, so for this tour, they had Nicky Hopkins sit in on keyboards. I got this from the fine blog 'Music ruined my life', so I have to thank them for making this available, and they also have several other GP boots and out of print albums there, so check 'em out.

tracklist:
01  Stupefaction                            
02  No Holding Back                      
03  Jolie, Jolie                         
04  Love Without Greed                    
05  Discovering Japan                     
06  Passion Is No Ordinary Word        
07  Howlin Wind                          
08  Thunder And Rain                     
09  Manouvers                            
10  Don't Get Exited                     
11  Beating Of Another Heart             
12  Empty Lives                          
13  Devils Sidewalk                         
14  Endless Night                           
15  Can't Get No Protection                  
16  Nobody Hurts You                         
17  Hey Lord Don't Ask Me Questions         
18  Tripe Face Boogie                      
19  Soul Shoes                             
          
Musicians:
Graham Parker - guitar, vocals
Brinsley Schwarz - guitar, vocals
Martin Belmont - guitar, vocals
Stephan Göulding - drums, vocals
Andrew Bodnar - bass, vocals
Nicky Hopkins - piano

New link! (Updated 10/5/21)
GPRumour_1980_Rockpalast.rar

Graham Parker & The Rumour - 1977-03-17 - BBC

Graham Parker & The Rumour
1977-03-17
BBC Sights & Sounds, London
TV Broadcast recording, excellent quality
New! Now upgraded to mp3 @ 320 kbps
(previous version was 192 kbps)

I'm delighted to see how popular the previous Graham Parker posts have been. So, here's another show, the audio from a TV broadcast of the BBC show Sights & Sounds from relatively early in Parker's career, following his second album with the Rumour, Heat Treatment. Here again, he's backed by that great band, The Rumour. So, here's some vintage GP from 1977.
 
Tracklist:
01. Heat Treatment
02. Silly Thing
03. Fool's Gold
04. Pourin' It All Out
05. Gypsy Blood
06. Don't Ask Me Questions
07. Hold Back the Night
08. Not If It Pleases Me
09. Soul Shoes
10. Kansas City

New Link! (Updated 10/5/21)
GP&Rumour_1977-03-17_BBC.rar