THEORIES, RANTS, ETC

MOJO welcomes letters for publication. Write to us at: Mojo Mail, Endeavour House, 189 Shaftesbury Avenue, London WC2H 8JG. E-mail: mojo@bauermedia.co.uk

Smiths, Morrissey, Reid and Frond, you like ’em all!

THE STORY OF BOB MARLEY IN 1976 IS A complex tale – one of global triumph infused with the deep-rooted politics of Jamaica. The latter harks back to the island’s quest for independence and, indeed, its own identity. This search was reflected in the music made from the late ’50s onwards. As MOJO commemorates the anniversary of Marley’s international breakthrough, we examine the phenomenal Jamaican music in that landmark year, plus its impact on British groups such as Steel Pulse, Aswad and Misty In Roots, whose sound was equally shaped by the culture around them. Essentially, our cover story centres around musicians who sought to bring peace and unity to the world. A tale that continues to resonate today… I gotta raise now

Re How Soon Is Now? being voted the best Smiths song in MOJO 273. Back in the day, I was working in Our Price Lewisham when a new guy started with us. He was perfectly pleasant and spoke in a slightly old-fashioned sort of way. From distant memory he might have been called James. One day I was chatting to him when he announced he came from Manchester and was a friend of Morrissey. He went on to say that one night he’d been out with Moz and friends when they ended up in a club. James was feeling down because of a lack of romance. Moz said he may get lucky right now, prompting James to say, “But Morrissey, how soon is now?” We were all understandably a bit sceptical about this, given his non-Moz-type appearance (tall, moustache with short cropped hair and always wore army surplus jumpers with the patches on the shoulders), right up until the day James Maker turned up at the shop and started chatting to our James. Sadly, ‘the lad himself ’ never appeared. So, you never know. Martin McKee, via e-mail

Sing his praises with understanding

MOJO 273 was the first that I have ever purchased; as a Morrissey fan, I just couldn’t leave his smug mug on the shelf! Thank you so much for your Smiths special; it’s thoroughly refreshing to see my favourite band being covered in such detail! I appreciated every page, with the exception of a small lyrical inaccuracy: the second line of The Queen Is Dead is “Hemmed in like a boar,” not “Penned in like a bull,” as John Harris writes. On the back of this triumph of an issue, I do believe that a powerful follow-up feature would be about Morrissey’s post-Smiths solo career. At times venomous, and at times hilarious, his impressive catalogue of albums has had an incredibly profound impact on fans and casual listeners alike, from the early days, through brief flirtations with glam rock, torch songs and, more recently, flamenco. As a young writer, and self-confessed Morrissey superfan, with particular interest in his post-2004 releases, I would be excited to offer my services for such a piece. I know that it makes editorial sense to vary the topics explored within a magazine, but no doubt you are already planning issues that will not hit the shelves for some time! By which point, we will have a summer of live shows to reflect on, making a Morrissey feature even more topical. Aidan Tulloch, via e-mail

Look how the man spell “rule”!

Thank you Andrew Perry for a detailed review of Fire Records’ reissue of New River Head by The Bevis Frond in MOJO 273. Nick Saloman is, in my view, one of the greatest living songwriters, guitar players and performers. Perry clearly has an appreciation of his subject and might have a point in describing NRH as Saloman’s finest hour. I would like to add that track 12, Stain On The Sun, ranks in my top three recordings of all time, alongside The Beatles’ Strawberry Fields Forever and She Loves You, and Who Knows Where The Time Goes? by Fairport Convention. Stain On The Sun always brings me to tears, whether listening to either the recording or a live performance, in a good way. It just touches the emotions. Its melody, floating guitar motif, the late Martin Crowley’s complementary drumming, Saloman’s vulnerable English vocal delivery and,

above all, the poetic lyrics – “She was the answer to all your prayers/She was as vital to you as the air/ Why is she suddenly such a drag/Where is the bullet hole in the Holy Roman flag/Oh yeah, I’ll take your word/Your eyes are better than mine/But I still can’t see a single stain on the sun” – all combine to create musical perfection. Mick Donovan, near Brighton, via e-mail.

That’s ’70s

Many many thanks to MOJO and Sylvie Simmons for the Terry Reid feature in MOJO 273. I am old enough to have seen Terry with Peter Jay, and since then with his various bands, and then in recent years solo, with band and also BJ Cole. A wonderful singer, songwriter, musician and, best of all, a great human being. Geoff Jackson, Derbyshire

Man travel down many roads

Thanks for Pat Gilbert’s Joe Strummer feature in MOJO 273. I was a few years too young for The Clash but I did get to see Joe and The Latino Rockabilly War on the Rock Against The Rich tour at the Liverpool Royal Court in 1988, and they were superb – I can still remember the audience chanting along to the old favourites. It was particularly poignant to read that Joe was so keen to reform The Clash through the ’80s though (but listen to Big Audio Dynamite albums like Tighten Up Vol. 88 or Kool-Aid and maybe he had a point?). I was lucky enough to exchange a few words with Joe in the pouring rain at his Glastonbury campfire in the ’90s, and he was just as friendly and inspirational as I’d hoped. We still miss him, don’t we? John Lloyd, via e-mail

Each of them tune!

Sitting here listening to the glorious reimagining of Blonde On Blonde on the CD given away with MOJO 272, and the realisation that the record is 50 years old hits me. At a certain point in time, it’s easy for one year in music to flow into the next, and suddenly 20 years have gone by. When MOJO compiled their 100 Greatest Albums Ever Made for the August issue in 1995, Blonde On Blonde, Pet Sounds, Revolver and other 1960s masterpieces had yet to turn 30. The magic of these records, and their historical importance as well as influence, has become even more pronounced with the passage of time. Personally, I admire the restraint shown by the MOJO team in letting their 1995 list stand the test of time. There’s nothing worse than a magazine updating these important lists every few years, it only serves to undermine the very concept of compiling such a list in the first place, and promotes the inclusion of new albums that have not yet truly earned the right to be there. But how long is too long? To the MOJO team; the people who put together the greatest music magazine in the world, month after month, I implore you to create a second Greatest Albums Ever Made list. Which modern records would make it? OK Computer? Kid A perhaps? Which of Oasis’s records would make it? Maybe none? Would the great ’90s albums in the 1995 version survive a new list? How about established albums that may have been overlooked in 1995? Music From Big Pink, for example. Would they benefit from a second chance? From one fan, on behalf of many others I’m sure, please give it some serious thought. A new list doesn’t negate the impact of the first one, not after standing for so long, but an entire era has gone by, and there are albums that have been made within the last 20 years that deserve to be considered equals among the greatest of all time. Lachlan Hellyer, via e-mail

To control this song

It was great to read Jim Irvin’s review of my favourite album of all time in MOJO 272. I bought Holger Czukay’s Movies when it came out and have been in love with it ever since. John Foxx receives a thanks on the sleeve of the original release. I met him a few years ago and mentioned the credit. He said that he’d arrived at Conny Plank’s studio to record Ultravox’s Systems Of Romance, and both Holger and Conny were physically and mentally exhausted by the recording of Movies and were on the verge of packing it in. John told them that it was too important to abandon and that they were to take a break and reconvene once Ultravox had departed after having recorded their third album. Apparently, that’s what they did. John remembered watching Conny feeding tape through the machines. Because he had perfect pitch he was able to control the speed at which the dialogue or whatever was to be added to the master so that it fitted the track. At this point John became quite choked and had to have a minute to himself as he was overcome by emotion remembering his time at Conny’s studio. A lovely moment. Joe Black, Brighton

I know, it’s force of habit

At long last, after many, many, many years, I think I’ve got the film title from the quotes on the letters page of MOJO 273. Please tell me it’s Carry On Cleo! Just goes to show I’m not a serious film buff! Gary Bragg, Chester

Tiny thing

Wow! One of the reasons I buy MOJO is because the photos are always a cut above. However, I don’t think I’ve seen an image as bizarre, strange and frightening as that on page 28 in MOJO 273, showing Tiny Tim and some 20-odd children on a cattle ranch, standing beneath an elaborate wrought iron arch decorated with silver cherubs and bull horns. Just describing it is freaking me out a little. Thank you. I think. And keep up the good work. I think. Alan Jellicoe, via e-mail