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Conversation: Kit O'Toole and 'Singles - 45's and Under'
361 Plays3 years ago
The iconic Squeeze album ‘Singles - 45s and Under’ - gets the Cool For Cats treatment, as I welcome Dr. Kit O’Toole for a hearty discussion on this fan fave. While this release came out in 1982 and covered only a 4-year span, for anyone who wants to get their feet wet in the discovery of the band’s ‘greatest hits,’ this album is for you. Kit and I jump into how and when she discovered this release, make our case with a track-by-track analysis, delve into the often overused comparison to Lennon-McCartney and find that while these songs represent only a fractional timespan in Squeeze history, it’s a conversation that is timely and timeless for anyone who considers themselves a dedicated follower of Squeeze.
Kit is a co-host for ‘Talk More Talk: A Solo Beatles Videocast’ on Facebook and at talkmoretalk.com and her most recent book is co-authored with Ken Womack ‘Fandom and The Beatles: The Act You’ve Known For All These Years.’
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Transcript
Introduction of Dr. Kidd O'Toole
00:00:07
Speaker
Hello, and welcome to Cool 4 Cats with me, Amy Hughes. We're inviting you in for black coffee and a chat about our favorite band Squeeze. In this episode, I'm welcoming Dr. Kidd O'Toole, music journalist, academic scholar, and author. She co-hosts Talk More Talk, a solo Beatles video cast, and her most recent book is with Ken Womack, Fandom in
Beatles and Squeeze Fan Connection
00:00:31
Speaker
the Beatles,
00:00:31
Speaker
the act you've known for all these years. And not surprisingly, for this podcast, she's a huge fan of Squeeze. Hello, Kit. Hello, Amy. I'm absolutely thrilled to be here and talking about one of my other favorite bands.
Comparing Squeeze and the Beatles
00:00:49
Speaker
Yes, because full transparency, listening audience, Kit and I, we like the Beatles.
00:01:00
Speaker
Yeah, we like them a little bit. Just a small amount, but not as much as we really like Squeeze. And one of the reasons I asked you to come on to the show was that while there is that connection between Squeeze and The Beatles, and possibly too much of it is talked about between obviously Difford and Tilbrook and Lennon and McCartney, which is overused,
00:01:25
Speaker
A lot of that connection is warranted because they are so good at songwriting and I know that you can add much more to this conversation.
Focus on Squeeze's 'Singles 45's and Under'
00:01:37
Speaker
And another full transparency reveal
00:01:40
Speaker
Even though Kit wouldn't and hasn't classified herself as hardcore Squeeze, the reason for this podcast episode today is for her and I to talk about basically the seminal iconic go-to Squeeze release singles 45 and unders.
Discovering Squeeze and High School Memories
00:01:59
Speaker
Why don't you talk about possibly the first time you heard about Squeeze? Well, this really brings back such good memories. This is high school that we're talking about.
00:02:14
Speaker
both when I was really getting into the Beatles, you know, when I was really getting deeply into the Beatles, and really expanding my musical palette, I guess you could say. And I first encountered Squeeze through Hourglass.
00:02:36
Speaker
The song Hourglass, I was a sophomore in high school and that video was really getting heavy airplay on MTV. I'm sure you all remember. It was such a fun, fun video, but the song was so different from really what was being played at that time. Let's face it, we're 87, it was hair bands.
00:03:05
Speaker
You know, it was, you know, we were hearing hair bands, we were hearing pop, and you know, but then along comes this really fun, you know, horn-filled song with these, you know, really kind of absurdist kind of lyrics, and it grabbed my attention.
00:03:27
Speaker
And, you know, I loved Glenn Tobruk's voice. You know, it had, you know, perhaps slightly McCartney-esque, but it was just this very clear, you know, sounding voice. And then that chorus, you know, that rapid chorus. And it just grabbed my attention and thought, what is this? And I just loved it.
00:03:52
Speaker
instantly and wanted
Squeeze in High School Music Cliques
00:03:54
Speaker
to know more about who was Squeezed. At the same time, I found out then about this album and it was kind of considered what the cool kids
00:04:09
Speaker
listen to at school I mean there was you know back in the 80s there were the artsy kids that listened to you know I don't know if it was called goth at that point but there were the artsy kids that will listen to the cure and all that and then there were
00:04:26
Speaker
sort of the metal heads and so forth. But then there were the kids that listened to Elvis Costello and Squeeze. I'm not sure, I call them the cool kids. I don't know if that's, you know, but we'll just call them that, right? And one of the guys in my class, who I also had a crush on at the time, brought the cassette
00:04:55
Speaker
of 45s and under into class. And I remember the cover vividly. And I was like, oh, that's that group, you know, squeeze that that hourglass song, you know, and I think I need to check this band out.
Enduring Appeal of 'Singles 45's and Under'
00:05:17
Speaker
And you don't think I likes it.
00:05:19
Speaker
must be good so I bought the the album and I just couldn't believe that this was the same group you know I I just was shocked at the variety on this album and then when I found out Tempted was on it I then thought oh
00:05:36
Speaker
that band you know i mean i'm sure many people when they first heard it i thought that's the same band i've heard that song before it sounded nothing like hourglass and and then you know hearing cool for cats and so many other songs i just could not believe that the same band produced all these different songs and that's what i love
00:05:55
Speaker
about Squeeze, this variety they have. So that's how I first got into Squeeze, through Hourglass and then through this album. And so I must thank Bob, my high school crush, for introducing me to that album because I just really became
00:06:20
Speaker
an admirer of Squeeze after that. Yes, thank you, Bob, very much. I know you'll be listening to this podcast when it goes viral, and we're talking about you. Thank you so, so much for that. Now, the interesting part is that
00:06:39
Speaker
that is that can happen a lot in in the world of squeeze where especially with hourglass although it wasn't like a spectacular hit you know to be perfectly honest right can drive people back to something like singles 45 and under and they're really
00:06:58
Speaker
You know, funny part about this whole thing is that that collection of songs really only spanned about four to five years. But somehow it continues to define, squeeze and their capabilities, as it were, of getting people into their sphere, as it were.
00:07:19
Speaker
It's really, that's the kind of staying power. Wouldn't you agree to that? That that particular album would have so much influence on people listening to all of that.
Versatility in Squeeze's Music
00:07:31
Speaker
It's a very short album too, to be honest, as well.
00:07:33
Speaker
Absolutely and and it is amazing that it does represent such a short period because again you know when you listen to it the the variety that's on there it goes you know from you know something like take me I'm yours where it has that you know real synthesizer sound to then you know something like pulling muscles from a shell where it's it's you know a bit
00:07:57
Speaker
Poppier I mean it's you know to black coffee bed where it's more of a you know a bit of a Motown sound I mean the sheer variety and in that album and and as you said
00:08:11
Speaker
just in the span of a few years I mean that's remarkable that that they had such a such a you know they jumped from genre to genre in just that short a time and it still stands up I think as a great introduction to the band and I know there's there's a course since been an updated
00:08:34
Speaker
hits collection, which is great too, but I think this still stands as a pretty good introduction. I would tend to agree because I think a lot of people, this is their first stepping stone into Squeeze and it's a very small chunk of their career
00:08:54
Speaker
And it's interesting to note too that a lot of these songs were written back in the day when Chris and Glenn were still fairly wet behind the ears when it came to presenting themselves as songwriters and singers and
00:09:11
Speaker
to be able to have now that perspective, this distance of 40-odd years to look back and say, these songs still stand up. Because like you said, when you look back at that time period, what was being played, and the kind of environment that they were kind of also trying to break out of, which was that sort of punk
00:09:36
Speaker
era where people didn't really have to play their instruments really well. They could have a sort of very, well, to put it lightly, bad attitude. And it's not to say that Squeeze didn't have a bad attitude, but they certainly had the songs to
00:09:50
Speaker
back up the credibility of their existence. And that's that's kind of hard to do, you know, that that forthrightness, to be able to say these songs are good, these are the songs we're going to play, we can play them in two minutes flat. But the the fact of the matter is, there's they're still standing
Analyzing 'Take Me I'm Yours'
00:10:11
Speaker
up. So, so we'll go through, you know, a couple of them and or, you know, the whole album, why not?
00:10:17
Speaker
and kind of talk about your reaction to these songs. So the first one on, oh, by the way, this album was released for all you kids, all you catons and kittens out there. This album was released in 19, yeah, you youngins, 1982.
00:10:36
Speaker
Um, yeah, scary. So the first song on the, on the side one, remember side one kid? I know back when there were album sides. Ah, those were the days. Yeah. Cause that's nice. Um,
00:10:54
Speaker
The first song is Take Me I'm Yours, which is from their debut album from 1978, and it's from UK Squeeze. Now, the interesting angle, and I'm probably going to use interesting quite a few times, is that this particular song was not produced by John Cale, who was the overall producer of that album. It was actually produced by the band, which is actually a good thing. So how do you feel about Take Me I'm Yours?
00:11:22
Speaker
Well I mean this is as I said an example of you know wow this is the same band.
00:11:29
Speaker
that did black coffee in bed and tempted and so forth. I mean, this is so different. It almost was like a little bit of a pre-depesh mode or something. I mean, it just has this sort of dark sound to it. And I think they're just so good at still having this kind of
00:11:59
Speaker
Oh, it's sort of a catchiness to it, but it has at the same time this kind of, as I said, this sort of darkness to it at the same time. That really grabs the attention. I love the harmonies in the lead vocals here with Chris and Glenn.
00:12:27
Speaker
And the synthesizers are just used to such great effect here to, you know, create this, this, you know, mood. And, you know, what a great single to, you know, start off with. I mean, you know, such, you know, early, you know, early on in their career. I mean, again, it just sounds even now.
00:12:52
Speaker
you know, so different than anything that's out there now. And, you know, and they were ahead of their time, I think, with the single.
Exploring 'Goodbye Girl'
00:13:03
Speaker
I mean, you know, this is 78 that this came out. And so I was just thinking. Go ahead. Oh, no, go ahead. No, I was done. I was going to I was going to say we have to think of 1978. We're still in that sort of
00:13:22
Speaker
AM radio mode. And we can look back on a lot of these songs just to sort of give contextual insight in that this was probably not being played heavily on the radio. There were not many choices back then. And Chris has stated quite often that it was really the live gigs. It was really the gigs that you had to go to to get the essence.
00:13:50
Speaker
of them as a group. And thank goodness, you know, it's persevered to this day. However, I will be throwing out some fun factoids about these songs that I've dug up. And one of the factoids about T.P.I. I'm Yours, the particular lyrical inspiration is that Chris was staying at the house of the mother of Miles Copeland, who was their manager.
00:14:20
Speaker
at the time, and she was an archaeologist. So there were all of these things that Chris is describing in the song. Those were the objects and items, things about Egyptians and so forth and so on that were in the house, and that's what he was surrounded by.
00:14:38
Speaker
Well, and that's amazing. And that that makes a lot of sense. I mean, in terms of his songwriting, because we'll be, of course, talking about this later. But, you know, he's talked about something like black coffee in bed where I mean, it's just amazing how he was inspired by just.
00:14:56
Speaker
objects um you know like he talked about just you know a stain and in a notebook or something i mean you know so in a way that doesn't surprise me that he would just be inspired by some objects to write a song i mean that's that's amazing what a talent and the fact that this has got that sort of marching band um you know keeps the whole phrasings
00:15:23
Speaker
moving along, and it's almost like you don't almost have to know exactly what is happening in the song. Lyrically, it's just all the words sound so good together, and the way that they're singing it, and from what I've researched, is that the whole beginnings of Glenn and Chris singing together, whether they're an octave apart, together just kind of happened.
00:15:48
Speaker
And although Glenn has an amazing voice and Chris is unique in his own way, that's kind of where the bassist, the bass work started with them singing together. They just realized they had this chemistry of that high low that didn't, wasn't naturally harmonizing the way that we know, say with John and Paul, but it worked. It worked for that occasion. Exactly. And now that you mentioned John and Paul, I just want to
00:16:18
Speaker
interject here and you refer to it at the at the very beginning that you know I think the whole Lennon McCartney comparison in a way is unfair because you know in a way I think it kind of put them in a box that they didn't need to be in because yes I mean I know that they were you know
00:16:39
Speaker
compared to them saying, oh, they're the new Lennon McCartney and in terms of their songwriting and all. I mean, I think in a way that unfairly limited them because, you know, OK, fine, they're British and they wrote from a British perspective and we'll talk about that in a minute. But, you know, they're their own song. They have their own sound. They have their own style. And, you know, I thought that was and you mentioned it earlier that that was really overplayed. And I completely agree.
00:17:08
Speaker
And same thing with their singing style and so forth. I mean, I think they need to be celebrated for their own voices, their own style. I mean, I always thought, I agree. I thought that comparison was way overdone. I like them. And as Beatles fans, we can say this, they have a completely unique sound. And that's why I like them.
00:17:38
Speaker
And so I think that whole comparison may have, it was in a way kind of a label that they couldn't live up to and they shouldn't. I love them for what they are. It's a completely different sound. And we can definitely talk about that because that
00:17:59
Speaker
that
In-depth on 'Cool for Cats'
00:18:00
Speaker
Lennon McCartney comparison will be coming through a little bit later on in the 80s. But the next song on the list of singles 45 and Under is Goodbye Girl, which is on their next release, Cool for Cats, oh, Cool for Cats, 1979. So we have Goodbye Girl now.
00:18:23
Speaker
Um, more fun factoids is that there are three versions of this song. Um, and there's the UK single, the US single, and then the album version. And what they decided to do was change the wording of one of the lines in the song where they're singing, my wife has moved to, and it was either going to be
00:18:50
Speaker
Jersey, Guernsey, or Boston. And most of the time, it's been noted as Boston. And it's Boston, Massachusetts. Thank you, Chris. Because he enjoyed being in Boston. It was also going to be a good seller for them in the States to do that. And here's where we get to the really fun part about analyzing those Britishisms, where some of it was changed from wearing a fur coat to a waistcoat
00:19:20
Speaker
And the one, the one word that I got back from Chris was when I interviewed him a while ago, a while ago, there's a line in the song that says, sunlight on the lino, the way they're singing it. All right, so I'm thinking, what does that mean, lino? Is it like a line on some piece of furniture or like that? So here it is, cats and kittens from Chris Difford, linoleum.
00:19:52
Speaker
The mystery is solved. Yes. And it just adds a little bit more to the fact that this is just a wonderful little, little ditty almost, you know, that you could just, it's so simplistic, but it's just so filled with so much, so many colorful words, so many colorful characters in the storyline is just so
00:20:19
Speaker
lovely. Is that how you would characterize a kid? Absolutely and as you mentioned, that's another thing that I really like about Squeeze is all the British-isms in the lyrics and what you just mentioned is a perfect example. At times you feel like when you're listening to music you should have a
00:20:44
Speaker
British to English slang dictionary or something. I mean, it's really, you find a number of those references in there and places and so forth and that's great. I love that. You know, that's a very specific perspective that again makes them so unique.
00:21:08
Speaker
And I think it just adds to the story and really adds to, as you said, white painting, the picture.
00:21:21
Speaker
of you know these characters that they portray in their songs and well there are many other times they do this and we'll talk about it as we go through the songs but and that's the other thing I love about Chris Difford's lyrics that he does these you know he tells these stories and he knows how to
00:21:43
Speaker
portray these characters and paint these scenes and very British scenes in many cases. And using this language really helps to tell the story and you can really visualize it. And it certainly was, you know, at least in a large portion of the universe of Squeeze, it was very helpful to have those kind of
00:22:12
Speaker
lyrical painterly sort of atmosphere coming through when you juxtapose it right next to the next song on the album, which is Cool for Cats. And here we have Chris Difford as the lead vocalist for the first time, one of the few times, but his delivery is so
00:22:38
Speaker
comical and he has said that he just actually did this in one take and there are slightly different versions yeah there are slightly different versions that made it to the airwaves there's the one that we all know but then there's also a short there's a short and a long version where the middle section gets kind of cut out which is a sort of weird psychedelic rolling kind of synthesizey bit
00:23:06
Speaker
So I wanted to know, is this a song that would you say would help define their image right there and then even as it's Chris different singing?
00:23:17
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, I think this definitely, I mean, this is definitely their statement of, you know, I love that, that Chris, you know, sang it in that accent. You know, they are really singing from a perspective of, you know, like,
00:23:39
Speaker
you know, of a specific character. And I have to say, the first time I heard this, and I was, you know, mentioning in high school, the first time I heard this, I just thought, what? I mean, I just, this song blew my mind, but I'm very certain. I just, I did not get this at all. And now I love it.
00:24:03
Speaker
You know, now I love it, but this song at first just blew my mind. But I actually, I did a little research too, and I saw that Glenn Tilbrook said in an interview, was written about the social scene the band experienced in their youth.
00:24:23
Speaker
And he said it was originally written about the social circle we were moving in at the time being young. We were almost entirely centered in our own little world. And he said I remember hearing Chris sing these lyrics for the first time and thinking he just nailed what our lives are about now.
00:24:43
Speaker
It's lovely to be able to look back on that and see how we were as youngsters. And so, you know, clearly it was again painting this picture of
00:24:59
Speaker
you know what what they were living at the time and these people they knew and and uh yeah i think that's a fair statement that this is kind of you know a perfect example of the the kind of songwriting and all that that the squeeze became known for that this you know this british perspective painting this picture of these characters
00:25:22
Speaker
this in a particular kind of style like working-class Britain you know it's it just I think this is a good I think you're right you know really stand out example of the particular style and voice of Squeeze. It's kind of
00:25:42
Speaker
poignant in a way that after reading Chris's autobiography, he was very conflicted later on about playing this song. Not so much in the fact that he didn't like it, but he felt that he had outgrown it as he had moved on.
00:26:01
Speaker
And he said there were several instances where they were deliberately wouldn't play this song. People would shout for it. They wouldn't play it. They would just deliberately do a 180 and ignore it. And he had felt that as he moved on, that it had no relevance. His mindset was completely different. And now, nowadays, literally, he has said, I embrace this song. It really spoke to where we were at, as you mentioned, at that time.
00:26:31
Speaker
And it's something that I shouldn't shun. Even if it's me talking at 20 something years old, it spoke to people in a way that resonates now out. And if I'm a close to 60 something kind of guy, I can perform the song. People love it. And I've made my peace with it, as it were.
00:26:58
Speaker
and that's good because I mean like you know I have the lyrics in front of me here yeah I mean it's just you know he talks about you know going to the disco and you know pulling a girl and take your home and then you know going the next yeah I mean it's just a specific
00:27:14
Speaker
Time in his life and and and his friends and everything. I mean, you know, it's it's yeah I mean I could see him looking back on it now and and you know for a time and thinking that's pretty cringy but yeah, it's just a snapshot in time and and I can see it's a catchy song first of all that you know people love that it is it's very catchy but I think it probably a lot of people can relate to it in a way that you know, it's you're young and you're dumb and you're doing crazy stuff and
00:27:44
Speaker
And I think people can relate to that and love hearing it. So I'm glad that he can look back on it now and say, hey, that was just a phase in my life and being young and stupid, basically.
Exploring 'Up the Junction'
00:27:58
Speaker
And it's just a song about that. And it's a good song. It's a lot of fun. And the fact that he sang it and that kind of exaggerated accent and everything, I mean, that just stressed that, that it was.
00:28:13
Speaker
a particular time in the past. So so I'm really I'm glad that that he is now accepting it because it's a great song. And he definitely, you know, like I said, had issues with some of the wording. But I it's it's interesting to look at it from the 2021 perspective of this cancel culture and should the song be played nowadays with a lot of the lyrics seeming to be very misogynist. However,
00:28:43
Speaker
His original inspiration for at least the beginning part of the lyrics was watching the Benny Hill show and the meter and the cadence of some of the comic songs that Benny would do on the show. That's literally word almost like word for word.
00:29:02
Speaker
where the inspiration came from. It didn't have anything to do with the perspective of today. It came from him. As we all know, with John Lennon reading a newspaper and lifting things off, that's where Chris lifted the lyrics from.
00:29:17
Speaker
My gosh, boy, that's interesting. Well, and it is done in kind of a comical way. So I mean, that makes sense. So yeah, so I agree. I think it's, you know, it's not something to be taken very seriously in that way. But but yeah, so very interesting. And segueing into sort of the the flip side of Cool for Cats, the next song
00:29:44
Speaker
on this collection is up the junction from the same album, same year. And one of the sort of the overused kitchen sink drama narrative that's being sung about here, I would think one of the first things that jumped out at me when I heard this was that there is no chorus to this song.
00:30:10
Speaker
That is true. Yep, not conventionally structured. And of course you don't even hear the title phrase until the very end. And let me tell you, this is one of my favorite squeeze songs. And if I were ever
00:30:25
Speaker
to, and I'm not because I'm not a professional musician, but if I were ever to teach a course in songwriting and concise songwriting, this is the song I would use as an example. I mean this is a master class in it. I mean this is, you know, this song is what, three, three, three and a half minutes, something like that. I don't know the exact time, but I mean it's pretty short and
00:30:52
Speaker
This is a, I mean this story that is told in such a short amount of time and you're hanging on every word and it has this sad ending and the story takes these twists and turns and Glenn Tilbrook does such a incredible job on vocals telling this
00:31:18
Speaker
this story. I mean, not in an overly dramatic, I mean, he doesn't, of course, you know, his style, he doesn't have to engage in any vocal acrobatics or anything. I mean, he just sings in that wonderful, straightforward kind of style. But, you know, and it's not a, of course, a, you know, super dramatic story. I mean, this is a, you know, story man and woman.
00:31:41
Speaker
in, you know, Britain in the white, you know, late 70s.
00:31:49
Speaker
It's still this story, I mean, you're hanging on every word and you're rooting for this couple until the very end. And then you find out what happens. And that last line where he sings, I'm up the junction. So it's my assumption, I'm really up the junction. And you're just like, oh no, your heart sinks. It's just,
00:32:18
Speaker
uh just a you know it's heartbreaking but it's as I said this is a master class in how to tell a story and and keep your audience hanging on your every word in a short song and even one you know leaving them wanting more it's a wonderful song
00:32:38
Speaker
It is, and the fact that they were able to transfer a lot of that sort of domesticity, the poignancy, the tiredness of that song into a video, which is now available with technology on YouTube, is quite lovely.
00:33:04
Speaker
the fact that they filmed this and Cool for Cats sound alert here that they filmed it at Tittenhurst. And Up the Junction was filmed in John Lennon's kitchen. And Cool for Cats was filmed in a small chapel that's right next to the house. And it was done in one day.
00:33:31
Speaker
Wow. And the fact that they give off that sort of vibe of knowing what's happening within each song is just a really a nice turn
00:33:46
Speaker
and they don't waste any energy. Even though there's a lot happening, saying the video, say, for Cool for Cats with dancing and everybody's having a great time, they get to the point very quickly. Like you said, there's a masterful minimalism attached to the way that the band can present this kind of material. So again, why is beyond their years?
00:34:13
Speaker
Yeah, absolutely. I mean, it's just amazing to think how young they were, particularly the Up the Junction, that how young they were when, you know, Christopher wrote those lyrics. And I just think that's amazing that, you know, that they were so young and writing such an incredible song. As I said, I just think that would be a great way to teach
00:34:41
Speaker
songwriting.
Discussion on 'Slap and Tickle'
00:34:42
Speaker
I mean, that's just such a poignant, poignant song. And the other interesting aspect of this is they can just go against the grain of everything for this song. I found out that they did a video for the British TV show, which we probably both know Top of the Pops, where
00:35:02
Speaker
They each took the wrong instrument. I believe they were miming. And so Glenn, when he sings this song on top of the pops, is playing drums. Oh, I bet that turned out well.
00:35:22
Speaker
Yeah, the looks on the faces of just them doing this, I can't get it. But it's fun to watch. You have to go look it up. It's very fun to watch. Yeah, I'll look that up after we're done taping this. So the next song on side one is called Slap and Tickle and still again from Cool for Cats from 1979. And the really
00:35:49
Speaker
amazing aspect of this song is that it's still driving the squeeze engine so many years ahead. To be able to watch them play this song is so, it's like this sort of heavy metal sparks flying. They have a great keyboard player in their tour, Steven Large.
00:36:16
Speaker
And he just goes absolutely, I mean the best word for it, he just goes absolutely mental on the break. And to be able to watch that, you'll have to go search that. This song just gets everybody moving and it can sound dated from its original place, but to have it played live is where it's to be appreciated.
00:36:38
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, it's a, and I love how you describe it. I mean, it's just, this is such a, it's hard to describe this song. I mean, I really like it. But, you know, when I was jotting down notes for our show today, I was trying to describe it and I'm just like, you know, of course, it goes from this sort of electronic kind of,
00:37:08
Speaker
you know, bit of craftwork and Giorgio Moroder, then it goes to this like rock, it was full on rock part, you know, and I was like warped, you know, warped disco. I mean, it sounds a bit like that. And of course it has this kind of, you know, I call it, you know, delightfully sleazy aspect to it with the lyrics. I mean, it just has this, you know, of course the phrase itself is, you know,
00:37:38
Speaker
Kind of you know vulgar sort of British slang and I mean it's it's just It's it's such a you know out there a kind of kind of song I You know researching this as well Christopher said he he was inspired lyrically by by
00:38:03
Speaker
Ian Dury which I like okay I can see that in the in the lyrics Ian Dury I mean in terms of you know a bit of bit of.
00:38:14
Speaker
you know dark humor there and also he said he was influenced by Elvis Costello in the rhythmic meter and I was sort of researching that I've that intrigued me and was wondering you know which particular songs and and I was looking so this came out in 79 you know wonder which there were particular songs and all I could figure was maybe on armed forces
00:38:44
Speaker
There were a couple of songs from 79 Elvis's 79 album. Green Shirt or Senior Service had a bit similar kind of sound or this year's model from 78, Lipstick Vogue had a bit of an odd kind of
00:39:04
Speaker
Rhythm to it. So maybe those two or those three rather songs so But it's just I mean this song is just it still sounds so out there But I love it. I mean it's it's and you're right. I mean live it you know sounds even even better and
00:39:26
Speaker
Um, but, um, you know, it's, it's just, as I said, just the, the lyrics are really, um, you know, just have the kind of the sleazy air to them, but it's, uh, but it really, uh, the, the unusual beat and then going from electronica to hard rock. I mean, only squeeze could do this. Right. Only.
00:39:53
Speaker
only Chris and Glenn in there that octave apart harmonizing can get that message and just deliver it. Like you say, there's that sort of Ian Drury cadence of driving it forward in semi monotone. But then when Glenn takes it up more on his solo vocal,
00:40:16
Speaker
you realize what's going on in this song and then there's a nice synthesizer break and it comes just driving back in. Gilson's drums just kind of get that accelerator back into motion and you're just going forward. It's like you're really in this fast car and you can't break too quickly because you're going to go through the windshield.
00:40:43
Speaker
I like that I like that analogy and and that's by the way that's true of a lot of squeeze songs another reason I really get you
Guitar Solos in 'Another Nail in My Heart'
00:40:50
Speaker
know really fell in love with this band that there are a lot of twists and turns that that their songs take I mean you know they'll they'll go from one genre to another in one song I love that yeah it's certainly not drive my car but in its own way it's it's quite memorable lyrically indeed
00:41:13
Speaker
So our next song is now from 1980, the beginning of 1980 from their album, Argy Bargy.
00:41:21
Speaker
called Another Nail in My Heart. And again, something quite notable is that Glenn's guitar solo comes in right after the first verse. So it kind of throws you off. You're listening to these great words and it's all sounding so great. And then this jewel, this nugget of
00:41:45
Speaker
of just gliding all these notes coming off. I can't even do it justice because it's so fantastic that Glenn said he worked on it because he wanted it to sound great and it does. And this is why Glenn Tilbrook is one of the most amazing guitarists that never gets talked about as a guitarist.
00:42:11
Speaker
Would you agree? I absolutely agree. His guitar solo in this is just incredible. And I agree. He's underrated, deserves more. And also, I think he's underrated as a vocalist. And this is another nail in my heart. It's a great example of that. I just think, again, he's not flashy. He's not a flashy vocalist. But he just...
00:42:39
Speaker
you know particularly in these sort of um you know i hesitate to call them pop because they're not it's a straight pop but uh but he just you know he just has these you know straightforward you know i i keep saying clear i i'm not sure how else to put it um but but they just uh you know he just really can can
00:43:02
Speaker
get these songs across and just, you know, in such a great way. Also, you know, again, they, you know, Squeeze knows how to throw curves and an omnis some marimba.
00:43:17
Speaker
is in this, which is great. I love hearing, you know, you don't hear that quite so much in this. And then, of course, I think, I think Glenn Tilburg also performs the Mogun in this as well, which is, you know, great to hear. And
00:43:35
Speaker
Catchy as hell I mean this is another one this is and I mean to go from again talking about how how diverse they are and as I said as I heard this album the first time I just thought wow you know going from slap and tickle not to then hear another nail in my heart which is you know a bit more.
00:43:55
Speaker
you know, a bit more poppy and maybe a little more, at least for American audiences perhaps, you know, maybe a little more accessible. And again, you're just like, this is the same band.
Lyrical Content of 'Pulling Mussels from the Shell'
00:44:07
Speaker
I mean, amazing. It's just what versatility they have.
00:44:12
Speaker
And the video is also quite iconic in that this is still pre-MTV, but they have realized that even though they're not a sort of
00:44:26
Speaker
photogenic hair band out there jumping around for the cameras, they realized the potential for using video as a selling tool, as a marketing tool. And this is what they did. They made a very, very simple video with a little bit of some fun effects with Glenn singing, and I think a girl was in his tie or something like that.
00:44:50
Speaker
And the loose thread of a story is that with Jules Holland pushing this upright piano through the streets of London was sort of a cover for the fact that he really doesn't play hardly any piano on this song except at the very, very end. They were able to tie everything up in about three minutes, which is fantastic.
00:45:21
Speaker
Yep, and of course shout out to Jules Holland. You know, great, you know, play some great piano on various tracks. I'm sure we'll get to that in a little bit, but yeah. Yeah, they really squeeze definitely saw the potential of music video for sure.
00:45:40
Speaker
Yeah. And it's even though it's got sort of a it's got a sort of a homey video quality to it. I know that there were a lot of big name acts that were starting to break through in that year to use music videos as as a tool to be able to if they weren't
00:46:00
Speaker
available to perform or they needed it to be shown somewhere. Everybody was taking their cue from that other band that did that little song called, Hey Jude, and were able to use that as a stepping stone, which obviously
00:46:23
Speaker
in the next year or so helped them quite often in these circumstances. So our next song is again from R.G. Bargee. It's pulling muscles from the shell. Very autobiographical from Chris in that the events that you hear and the lyrics basically happened to him as a young child.
00:46:45
Speaker
And one of the other, here we go from one extreme to the next, we were enthusing and salivating over Glenn's wonderful guitar solo in Another Nail in My Heart. And he then decides to basically do a one note solo next to Jules's wonderful finger flying bridge in this song. So
00:47:11
Speaker
It's a great song and it's got all these little kind of moving parts that you can dig into, you know, now so many years later. Oh yeah, this is one of my favorites, all-time favorites. I mean, first of all, as you mentioned, you know, Glenn Tilburg's guitar solo, one, basically one note guitar solo, Jules Hollins, you know, rollicking piano solo, I mean, you know, doesn't get any better.
00:47:39
Speaker
And then, yeah, I mean, Christopher, creating these, again, just vivid scenes of these beach holiday kind of seaside holiday scenes. And even from the first time I saw it, just certain lines will jump out at you and just think, these aren't typical lines that you would think of
00:48:07
Speaker
from a, you know, top 40 kind of song. I mean, I remember that, you know, first hearing it when I was much younger, you know, you know, behind the shell, my holiday's complete, and I feel like William Tell made Marian on her tiptoed feet pulling muscles from a shell. I mean, wow. I mean, that's just amazing. I did, you know, great, great lines. I mean, using those metaphors and
00:48:36
Speaker
And then just all these other just wonderful little scenes that that he paints about you know a he-man in a sudden shower shelters from the rain you wish you had a motorboat to pose around the Harvard bar and
00:48:50
Speaker
and then hooking it up, you know, then the boat, the car when the day is over. I mean, just these great little scenes of all these vacationers. And I just, I love this track. And, you know, between the great instrumentation, of course, again, Glenn Tilbrook turning in an incredible vocal here, the instrumental and the middle, I mean,
00:49:16
Speaker
And then Christopher, Christopher, what a lyricist. Just incredible stuff. And the fact that Chris can
00:49:27
Speaker
extract all of these moments from his earlier life that seemed so idyllic and it becomes this little small powerhouse pop song that we as Americans may not be able to connect with on sort of a detailed level because there's again a lot of those sort of British holiday camps and I know a lot of us who are our Beatles
Analyzing 'If I Didn't Love You'
00:49:55
Speaker
you know, like factoids, understand some of it because of our connection with understanding Ringo and describing Butland's camp and things like that and going to the seaside as Paul McCartney has described many times. So to be able to condense all of that into a song, keep it moving and throwing in this sort of amazing, brilliant, accentuated piano solo
00:50:25
Speaker
is wonderful. It's one of the standout tracks on that album because it just has such clarity and singularity in bringing things together so quickly.
00:50:38
Speaker
Yeah, absolutely, and it does help. Our mutual love of the Beatles, it does help to know about the summer camps that Ringo talked about, even a little bit about the summer tours that Magical Mystery Tour, of course, painted a really warped picture of.
00:50:58
Speaker
It does help that we know a little bit about that stuff to understand the song. But yeah, Chris Difford does such a great job of painting these great, I mean you feel like you're watching a play or something when you're listening to this song.
00:51:20
Speaker
If you haven't heard about Anchor by Spotify, it's the easiest way to make a podcast with everything you need all in one place. Here's how it works. Anchor is tools that allow you to record and edit your podcast right from your phone or computer. When hosting on Anchor, you can distribute your podcast on listening platforms like Spotify, Apple Podcast, and more. It's everything you need to make a podcast in one place. And best of all, Anchor is totally free.
00:51:50
Speaker
Download the Anchor app or go to anchor.fm to get started. Right, and the next song off of Singles 45 and Under is, let's flip that vinyl over, let's pull that C90 cassette out of our boom box and turn it over. And what we've got for the
00:52:17
Speaker
For the US release, which we'll talk about quickly on the UK releases, and actually a different song. But for the US release is If I Didn't Love You, again from Argy Bargy, 1980.
00:52:30
Speaker
Chris has said this is one of his favorites from that particular album. And Glenn has intimated that the line about the record jumps on a scratch is how they were able to work in at the very end of the song with them repeating the title of the song over and over again between the two of them. So it's kind of got a lot of in-jokey references.
00:52:59
Speaker
Yeah and this is another really catchy effect of that sort of needle stuck kind of effect really does make it catchy. This song has a little punk kind of quality to it.
00:53:21
Speaker
maybe a little punk white, I guess I would say, quality to it with that repeating kind of quality. Also interesting how
00:53:35
Speaker
Chris Difford has said that it's about the early cozy part of a relationship, which I call the nesting stage. He said, you know, at the same time, it has the juxtaposition of emotions. And this is also what caught my attention with this song, because he says, you know, if I didn't love you, I'd hate you.
00:53:57
Speaker
He said because at the back of your mind you've got that insecurity about your ability to have a proper relationship with somebody And yeah, I mean that's one of the things that that you
00:54:08
Speaker
you know, grabs your attention with the lyrics of this song. Because I mean, you know, with the song, you know, if I didn't love you, you first think, oh, this is going to be this, you know, kind of beautiful, romantic song. But I mean, to start a song like that, if I didn't love you, I'd hate you. What? But yeah, I mean, you're, but then the images he uses,
00:54:32
Speaker
again you know focusing on specific objects we were talking about that earlier i mean really interesting way to phrase it like you know watching you play in the bath with soap suds stickleback navy a scrubbing brush landing craft your skin gets softer and warmer i pat you down uh with a towel tonight it's loved by the fire and you know
00:54:54
Speaker
But then my mind goes out on the prowl. I mean it's like it's it's interesting like you know in some ways He'll have these kind of romantic images, but then there's always this creeping uncertainty Like you know is this is this real? You know it's just a really you know interesting
00:55:13
Speaker
interesting lyrics here I mean I think there's just this you know and that and the synthesizer you hear along with that stuttering I mean there just seems to be this undercurrent of you know this this dread in a way throughout the song of you know we feel this way now but is this going to last it's it's just an interesting
00:55:37
Speaker
you know, interesting imagery here. But there's still that catchiness to it with that stuttering and the rest of the chorus. So again, really another masterclass in songwriting and song structure here. And it seems very tentative in a lot of
00:56:01
Speaker
different ways with the name of the song, the title of the song, If I Didn't Love You, and the sort of trepidation that Glenn's guitar work gives off because, like you say, there's a hesitancy even though we're starting this relationship. Is it going to last? And maybe there's subconsciously a bit of
00:56:27
Speaker
him not feeling so secure enough with everything that's going around that he's decided, I'm doing all of these things because I'm supposed to be sconed in like domesticity and appreciate the fact that we're together. However, what would happen if this didn't work out and what could I do about it
00:56:49
Speaker
And sometimes it's like a preemptive strike, wouldn't you say? Right. Yeah, exactly. I mean, there's just so much hesitancy creeping through this song. And it's just really fascinating how the arrangement and instrumentation, as you said, the guitar and so forth just echoes and underscores the
00:57:19
Speaker
you know the words of like you know as you said like I'm doing these romantic things and I'm supposed to be you know I'm doing the right things but you know they're they're just they're you know I'm still you know feeling that you know they're I'm not sure this is going to last and so it's yeah just a just a well well crafted song
00:57:43
Speaker
And just as a side note that the interesting part about this particular singles 45 and under is that for the UK release they decided to substitute out this song with labeled with love which is off the next album which is East Side Story and I find that quite interesting because
00:58:03
Speaker
it has re-emerged in their live set from time to time in fact in the recent tour it came up and because it has that kind of you know sort of soothing country flavor to it however i guess from a u.s. perspective at the time maybe they felt that it needed a little bit more of a wake-up call i'm not i'm not quite sure what the thinking was behind it it's kind of like the sort of
00:58:34
Speaker
grudgingly teeth gnashing we do on the Beatles level about what they did to the first couple of albums when there was a difference in the UK and the US. So I'm just like, really? Do we do we really have to have two different versions going on here? Yeah, and maybe it was a case of what will work in the what or I should say what the label thinks will work in the American market versus the British market. And it's yeah, just
00:59:03
Speaker
Just crazy stuff. Yeah. And so the year goes on and we'll preface the next selection is that love from East Side Story, which is 1981. So you and I both know that 1980 was an interesting year as far as the anticipation for John Lennon coming out with new music for so long.
Production Story of 'Is That Love'
00:59:32
Speaker
the band was aware of what kind of was going on over there. And when they got together to do East Side Story, the tale is that they wanted it to be a double album. They were going to have their friends come over and work on it. Nick Lowe, Dave Edmonds, Elvis, and Paul McCartney.
00:59:57
Speaker
And that didn't happen. They decided to just straight up stick with Elvis. Dave Edmunds did produce one song, which was the lead off track on the album, which is Inquinescence. But they were in the middle of recording East Side Story in late December, early December of 1980, when they received the word that John had been killed. And it's noted in some articles about how they felt.
01:00:25
Speaker
were dumbfounded and shocked. I mean, yeah, obviously, you know, everybody was. And boy, that's mind blowing. And I didn't realize that Paul McCartney was supposed to be involved in the album. I did not know that. Yeah, one of the stories is that at the time,
01:00:51
Speaker
when everything was coming together they all thought it was a fantastic idea of course it would be because they were all friends essentially and Paul got all involved with what would eventually become tug-of-war and so the interesting chain of events was that Elvis came in and basically got them into fighting shape with
01:01:21
Speaker
with the way he was going to conduct the sessions and help them. And so the first taste of that from the singles, 45 and Under, is that love, which is a pretty much another sort of speed it up, let's get going.
01:01:38
Speaker
And again, driven by Chris's autobiographical observations of his wife's wedding ring by the soap. And also Glenn saying that he was definitely influenced by the Beatles and the people that he was working at the time. And so that figurehead essentially is definitely, is definitely Alphys.
01:02:00
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, and I can definitely see why, you know, they would pair up with Elvis because, I mean, that's, you know, Elvis Costello is, you know, I absolutely understand why he would want to work with Squeeze because they, you know, they're kind of two peas in a pod in terms of
01:02:19
Speaker
the you know the writing style certainly in terms of versatility and musical versatility so I mean that seems like that was a no-brainer that that they would work together and of course interest in the Beatles or in being influenced by the Beatles so you know so that was a pairing that that you know
01:02:42
Speaker
definitely made a lot of sense. Yeah, here's another case of Chris Difford's songwriting style. Again, yeah, just getting the idea for a song by his wife's wedding ring being left next to the soap. Oh, great idea for a song. That's amazing. Just such talent.
01:03:12
Speaker
And interestingly, I saw that Glenn Tilburg said this was started. The track was originally recorded in mid-tempo, but then it just wasn't happening, so they sped it up and worked a lot better that way.
01:03:36
Speaker
So and that I think Elvis Costello played the piano on on this track, if I'm not mistaken. Yes, that's that's what I've been I've been looking at. And it wouldn't surprise me the fact that there was a suggestion made, you know, sort of a coming together of the minds to like, get this get this song going. Something's good, but it's just not quite right. So the way that, you know, Glenn's
01:04:01
Speaker
propelling this song along in sort of a little bit of I don't know what would you call it sort of this sort of this sort of runaway flamenco riff yeah yeah that's a good way of putting it absolutely runaway flamenco I like that
01:04:17
Speaker
but yeah exactly and you know and now I have full disclosure here this is probably not a favorite track of mine of theirs you know that's it and when I say that I mean the lesser track you know what my least you know lesser favorite track of Squeeze of a quotes lesser favorite track of Squeeze is better
Exploration of 'Tempted'
01:04:44
Speaker
than many other bands tracks so I mean when I say it's not one of my all-time favorites it's still better than a lot of other tracks so this is not
01:04:58
Speaker
one of my all-time favorites but but it's still you know it's still really you know interesting but particularly I like this this phrase here this line here you know my assets froze while yours have dropped now is that is that it's the cupid cupid cupid disguise that more or less survived now is that love
01:05:26
Speaker
I mean, you know, not exactly a traditional love song, is it? No, I would say amongst the little bon mons that Chris drops in his songs lyrically speaking. Yeah, that is one of my all time favorite couplings. My assets froze while yours have dropped. I mean, it's just it's so beautiful. It's such a nugget. I love it. I love that nugget.
01:05:56
Speaker
So we're going to move on to the next, I guess you would call it the seminal, the breakout song, at least as far as Singles 45 and Under, as far as the band is concerned, as far as America is concerned, is tempted. And that's also off of these side stories. So what you had mentioned way at the beginning was that could this be the same band? And of course, when people hear it,
01:06:24
Speaker
and wrap their heads around, squeeze past this particular song. What obviously throws them is that the lead vocalist is, their new keyboard is Paul Carrick.
01:06:34
Speaker
exactly and and i really you know that that's the thing and as you said you know whenever i've mentioned squeeze
Motown Influence in 'Black Coffee in Bed'
01:06:40
Speaker
to people and they'll say i've never heard that i'm like yes you have you've heard tempted that's that's the one and it's uh really it's it's just mind-blowing that you know this is the same band that did uh take me i'm yours and and so many others um i mean
01:06:58
Speaker
Definitely the lyrics when you you know really was lyrics. I mean certainly the lyrics are Squeezed you know are certainly typical squeeze in many ways, but But certainly the the style I mean it's got a little more of I mean it's it's certainly more on the pop side and with Paul Carrick and
01:07:22
Speaker
on the lyrics it's it's a little more on the soul side kind of the blue eyed soul side and so you know and it's it's definitely you know more like a
01:07:36
Speaker
I don't know, just a little more, you know, perhaps accessible for, you know, mass audiences. I mean, there really aren't, you know, British references here or anything like that. And you still hear it played today on the radio like crazy. I mean, it's just amazing how this has lasted. But I can see why. I mean, it's
01:08:00
Speaker
got some you know great you know keyboard on here Paul Carrick of course great vocalist you know of course he only lasted this album with them but but he's you know great and Gwen Tobruk
01:08:16
Speaker
to have some vocals on here as well and it's it's just catchy as heck I mean it's it's just a you know terrific and there's some nice wines here you know just some classic great I always trying to find this one oh yeah here it is at my bedside empty pocket a foot without a sock
01:08:42
Speaker
Your body gets much closer, I fumble for the clock. Just some great little lines in here. It's rightfully still a favorite with many people.
01:09:00
Speaker
I think it also inspired a lot of people, I would imagine, to get into Squeeze's other stuff and I'm sure like with me they were shocked that this was just one side of Squeeze.
01:09:19
Speaker
It definitely helped the exposure because now we're we're almost moving into that uh you know the mtv error for the for the us and so there wasn't much to play and this was one of those videos uh which was sort of a mimed live uh experience so you
01:09:40
Speaker
definitely were able to see their lineup quite clearly and how they presented themselves and how Paul just sort of naturally slotted in to the band. And even though it was suggested that Paul sing the lead and Glenn was kind of like, you know, naturally he was a little, you know, like, what? What do you mean? What?
01:10:03
Speaker
He got over that. And he still, he does sing it today. He's got his own little spin on it, which is quite different. But I will tell you that past this one song and this one album with Paul Carrick, he did come back to the band about 10 years later and played on Some Fantastic Place and sang on that album.
01:10:33
Speaker
And another fun factoid is that this song was re-recorded in about 2010 for the Squeeze album called Spot the Difference, which was essentially the band re-recording note for note their catalog of sort of bigger known songs.
01:10:56
Speaker
And they brought back in Paul Carrick to sing the song. So it's quite serendipitous for this song to still have legs. And its running legs are still evident in its product placement, which I did a little bit of research on, which is this is a mind blow because I didn't know it. And I looked at this and I went, really? So this song in its original form
01:11:25
Speaker
was used in a Burger King commercial. It was used in a Gap jeans commercial. It was used in a Heineken beer commercial and it was also used for rock band. The Burger King thing, I don't get it. I watched it and I was like, okay. But anyway.
01:11:54
Speaker
Okay, well, but boy, so this song does have legs. And that's interesting. I didn't know that Paul Carrick did another album with Squeeze. I'll have to check that out. Yes, he's on some fantastic plays. And he's actually come out and played with the band on several occasions. And they will work together. It's interesting that we keep talking about people coming in and coming out of the band.
01:12:20
Speaker
And there's been instances where they've all in various formations have worked together and maybe people aren't aware of that. But I would suggest definitely to pick up and listen to spot the difference. And they made a very conscientious effort to use the same instrumentation, the same gear, if they could at all possible. And it's quite a nice listen.
01:12:51
Speaker
So our next song is Black Coffee in Bed, which is from the next album, Sweets from a Stranger, 1982. Again, a big surprise. The inspiration for the lyrics is from Chris, literally, seeing a lot of those little couplets in his life. The one thing that's a real standout, again, here we are moving into the MTV era. They are definitely not a hairband.
01:13:21
Speaker
that can jump around and do everything so that they get the attention of their audience. But they do have the pedigree to ask that and either were given the opportunity to work with director Steve Barron, who did Michael Jackson's Billie Jean video. And when you look at this video, it's right off the bat.
01:13:47
Speaker
they do not look comfortable. They've got the makeup on, but they're going through the motion. So they've got a new keyboard player in, as Paula's left. They've got Don Snow in to do the keyboard work. So this is a really strange amalgamation of a wonderful little song, a little tune that's got, again, some amazing lyrics, great vocal delivery.
01:14:11
Speaker
great drumming from Gilson Lavis, but the video which was played just endlessly kind of gives you a different mindset if you kind of get what I'm saying. Yes, I have seen that video and yeah, Gwen in particular does not look happy.
01:14:36
Speaker
Yeah, he looks very glum. Look at the
Turnaround with 'Annie Get Your Gun'
01:14:40
Speaker
camera. So yeah, that's unfortunate that that didn't work out. But the song itself, this is another favorite. You know, I was really happy, you know, as I've listened to this, I thought, wow, that really sounds like a Motown group could have recorded that. Well, as I've done research on it,
01:15:04
Speaker
And I think Tilbrook, Glenn Tilbrook himself said that Motown was an influence on the song. So I thought, all right, I called that. And really, it does. I mean, it sounds like a Motown group could have done this. You know, it's just, you know, great
01:15:30
Speaker
great track and you know again just starting I love that you know Chris Difford was inspired he said you know picking up a notebook one day and seeing coffee stain on it which inspired the opening line which you know and I just love that that you know
01:15:51
Speaker
the way to start a song, which of course about heartbreak and all, just saying, you know, there's a stain on my notebook where your coffee was and there's ash in the pages. Now I've got myself lost. I mean, what an incredible image. I mean, it's so vivid. You can just see that and you can understand that, you know, and that stain on my notebook that rings your goodbye.
01:16:20
Speaker
wow I mean that that is um you know and of course in the chorus you know he's trying to convince himself you know now she's gone and I'm back on the beat a stain on my notebook says nothing to me I mean you know of course he's lying to himself and um another
01:16:40
Speaker
masterclass in songwriting there. I mean, just using this, you know, coffee stain as a metaphor for his heartbreak. I mean, that's, you know, genius. And Gorse Glen Chilbrook turns in another great vocal.
01:17:00
Speaker
love the backup, which I found out that Elvis Costello and Paul Young were doing backing vocals, which I thought was really cool. And so this is one of my all-time favorites, and I just love that Motown feel. It certainly does, and I know you read
01:17:24
Speaker
you speak from the heart when it comes to Motown because that's one of your near and dear passions as well as the Beatles. And I think from a video perspective, what they probably should have done was do a black and white video that resembled something from like the early 60s
01:17:47
Speaker
where they all stood in front of microphones and did like this temptations for top. No, I think it has definitely be a temptations look where they all got the hand movements and the feet and going everything is in unison. It would have been so lovely to have seen something like that because they actually have that quality about them that they could have
01:18:10
Speaker
Probably pulled it off that they were looking pretty somber in the video then they might as well have just done a straight-up tribute to the to the temptations and i will say to that. There's this some also sort of at that point a recent.
01:18:26
Speaker
accolade to to holla notes and some people did have a little bit of a problem making the connection in their most recent tour here in the states with you know what are they doing with holla notes could is there really that sort of you know copacetic thing going between them that sort of vibe and i would say definitely that's where a lot of this
01:18:49
Speaker
Spraying from because you have to again remember that that black coffee was happening in 1982 and hollow notes were starting to ride that uphill wave from private eyes and they were just getting to almost that status of that reemergence and becoming the hollow notes that we know and love today.
01:19:12
Speaker
Yeah I mean they were and absolutely I could picture them you know the two groups doing this song together I mean that would make all the sense in the world and I like your idea about the video they absolutely should have done something like that I mean I'm surprised that that they did that that would have
01:19:31
Speaker
You know that would have been perfect because I mean as you said they could have pulled off something like a sort of a temptations like like thing and and And absolutely, yeah, I mean Motown and Solon R&B in general are my other passion and so yes, I was particularly drawn to to this song because Yeah, it has that that feel to it Just just love it
01:19:58
Speaker
So the very last track on Singles 45 and Under was that. It was a single that didn't have an attachment to any album at the time and was pretty much the selling tool for this collection of songs. So it was released slightly ahead of Singles 45 and Under. It's called Annie Get Your Gun and
01:20:23
Speaker
The really interesting, I keep using the word interesting because you kind of do scratch your head sometimes now in hindsight, this song was presented to the band. It was either going to be Annie Get Your Gun, or it was going to be Action Speaks Faster, which ended up actually being on the Difford and Tilbrook album later on. So everybody kind of, I think, erred on the side of best.
01:20:49
Speaker
and chose Annie Get Your Gun. This was an interesting collaboration that he brought in Alan Tarny as the producer and Alan went off and actually just did the song himself. And that's what he wanted to do.
01:21:07
Speaker
And he just really wanted Chris and Linda to come in and do the vocals. And everybody was a little upset about all of that, especially Gilson Levis and John Bentley and Don Snow. They're just like, what happened here? This is a band that can play their own instruments, thank you very much. So they were starting to, unfortunately, come apart at the seams at that point.
01:21:27
Speaker
They did perform this song in November on Saturday Night Live. So this was a little bit of a swan song in regards to them at this point in their lives and squeeze lives. It was not foreseen, but certainly the circumstances surrounding this particular song, even though it's a great driving song, it's a little sad and poignant when you think about it.
01:21:57
Speaker
Yeah, and I love a quote I found from Glenn Tilburg about this. He said it was like we were the monkeys because they weren't playing any of the instruments. And he said it was, you know, devastating for them because, you know, of course they could play. But, you know, they
01:22:23
Speaker
They couldn't I mean they and but and it's a shame because it is a good track. I mean, it's it's uh, you know The lyrics are fun. I mean, it's basically just just kind of about rocking out you know about You know just rocking out on electric guitar and and and it's a it's a fun track and of course
01:22:47
Speaker
Glenn Tilbrook and Chris Difford do a great job on vocals as they always do. But yeah, I mean, I didn't know until later the full story behind the song, you know, because I just thought it was, you know, fun rocking track. But yeah, it's a shame that it, you know, had this back story and that it was sort of
01:23:18
Speaker
you know, the kind of beginning of the end, I guess, of the, you know, first phase of Squeeze. And it's really, you know, kind of a shame. But at least it did get released, and it's still, it's a fun song. But, you know, I like it.
01:23:40
Speaker
But yeah, it's a shame that they couldn't play on it, because of course the band would have done a phenomenal job on it. But yeah, and as I said, the vocals are still very strong.
Appreciation and Impact of Squeeze
01:23:58
Speaker
But yeah, as you said, it's kind of sad as well.
01:24:03
Speaker
And I'm not even downing the fact that they brought in somebody who thinks that, you know, he's all that and a bag of chips that Squeeze can't fend for themselves, but it is a little
01:24:19
Speaker
Sometimes there's a little comeuppance when you can take the song to its conclusion and be able to see one of the last performances of that incarnation of Squeeze at that time. It just proved the point. I think Gilson argued the fact it's been stated that he wanted to add drums to it. You can understand his perspective and it really did
01:24:43
Speaker
end the collection very well. The collection overall of Singles 45 and under certainly did not hurt Squeeze as far as their reputation, as far as their reputation, as far as could they perform
01:25:04
Speaker
across so many different styles and genres like we've been talking about, that pretty much shows it, that this thing can get pulled out literally from any time and any place, years and years and years away from when it was first conceived.
01:25:24
Speaker
people automatically. It's kind of like a pair of socks. You put the CD on, you put that cassette in, and people are automatically comfortable with it. They just love it so much. That's the kind of reputation
01:25:42
Speaker
that this collection has. Yeah, it sounds just as good today as it did when it first came out. And it really hasn't dated. It doesn't sound dated at all.
01:25:57
Speaker
you know the the stuff from the late 70s and I mean it doesn't sound like it's from the late 70s at all I think it has really you know stood up well and and as I've said I know I said it many times during this show but you know if I were to
01:26:14
Speaker
teaching a course on songwriting, I would absolutely tell students to get this album and say, you know, listen to this and this is what, you know, concise songwriting is about. I mean, these songs tell more effective stories and draw the listener in than, you know, many songs that are like five minutes and over.
01:26:41
Speaker
do. I mean, it's just, you know, these are really, you know, Chris Difford and Gwen Toburg are truly craftsmen. And Chris and Glenn, you are truly craftsmen. If you're listening to this right now, we appreciate all that you did so long ago. The fact that you're still working hard
01:27:02
Speaker
is testament to the fact that the Difford and Tilbrook songbook can keep going and that we just love so much that we can dissect all of this, but still love it for what it was, what it is, and how it's been presented. So Kit, I wanna thank you so, so much for sitting down with me and talking about these songs because it really,
01:27:32
Speaker
It shows the appreciation that you can just come in and drop yourself down in front of this collection, talk about it, enjoy it immensely, and reminisce all about the great times that you
01:27:48
Speaker
that you had and to thank your crush for introducing you to this. That's the best storyline, isn't it? It really is. I just had such a good time. It was a blast going back and reminiscing and just, you know, renewing my appreciation for such an incredible band and thank you again for having me on, Amy. I just had a great time.
01:28:15
Speaker
Thank you, kid. Thank you so much. Oh, that was fun.