Bedbugs and Ballyhoo

nobody@vox.com(Burl Veneer) — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 22:56:49 -0700

Just a quickie here: last night I put up the Doors' "Peace Frog" and another song that recycled its rhythm, "The Only One I Know" by the Charlatans. I also wanted to include another of its descendants, Echo and the Bunnymen's "Bedbugs and Ballyhoo," but I couldn't find it at the time. Now I've found it, so here it is as an addendum:

03 Bedbugs and Ballyhoo

Echo & The Bunnymen

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More Lost 80s: Everest the Hard Way

nobody@vox.com(Burl Veneer) — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 20:34:11 -0700

Here's another faceless band from the 80s, Everest the Hard Way--faceless due to the lack of any band picture, their music has plenty of character. One 7" single ("Tightrope" b/w "When You're Young") and this four-song 12" EP (extended version of "Tightrope" plus "When You're Young," "Quarter to Six," and "Take the Strain") from 1983 are the band's only release(s), as far as I know (on the Do It label, completely unrelated to yesterday's Do It band and "Do It" song, but a nifty coincidence nonetheless). (Did Do It release any other records? The catalog numbers for these two are DUN17 for the 7" and DUNIT17 for the 12", so I suppose there are at least sixteen other releases from Do It. Damned if I can find any on the Web, though, "Do It" is eminently unGooglable.) All four songs are very good! I guess that's one way to ensure consistent quality: quit before you record anything bad. The sound is vital and anthemic, in the vein of early-80s Simple Minds, an additional similarity being the muscular bass. Here is the longer "Tightrope:"

Tightrope

Everest the Hard Way

The singer adds some interesting vocal embellishments; my only quibble is that he sings the chorus in too low a register and thus is unable to put much power into it. I think this band had the potential to be as big as Simple Minds, maybe even U2, but they just disappeared. Dang.

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Burl Veneer’s Music Blog

Bedbugs and Ballyhoo

More Lost 80s: Everest the Hard Way