Relocate

"I look out the window and see the streets below. Cars and the people. Lonely church steeples surrounded by grey. We need to move away ..." Ah the eternal debate couples seem to have. It's the gist of the dialogue Sarah Cracknall and David Essex have during Saint Etienne's Relocate. Do we move out of London to the countryside for a better way of life? Or should we accept the city for all its faults because at least we've roots here and it's got a bit of life after all. From what is surely the group's finest work, Tales From Turnpike House, this wasn't the only time they worked with David Essex. David (along with Linda Robson) provided the narration for their film What Have You Done Today Mervyn Day? Set on 7th July 2005, a unique day of national celebration and horror in London's history, it captures something of an east London about to disappear for better or worse just before the preparations for the 2012 Olympics begin. David Essex, of course, is one of the great London pop figures, but did he record any London songs at the height of his fame? Similarly, the Saint Etienne lads, for all their London related works, did they really write about the Croydon suburbs that wrought them? Well, if they didn't at least Danish progressives Burnin' Red Ivanhoe did at the start of the '70s with their unexpected track, the wonderful 2nd Floor Croydon from an LP that even saw a UK release via John Peel's Dandelion label. "And when she moved her head in a certain way outside her window she could see Big Ben ..."

The End of the Surrey People

"I'm watching you. I am the fox in your trap. I'm watching you. I am the wife you would slap ..." So begins The End of the Surrey People by Vic Godard. A song that Vic has said "came from a bizarre dream I had at the time the trouble in Yugoslavia started off with Slovenia and Croatia breaking away and somehow I was thinking what it would be like if that kind of thing happened in Surrey." It would be the title track of his wonderful 1993 LP on Postcard Records, the last of the punk independents. A record that sort of started when Vic felt inspired to start songwriting again after reading an obituary of Johnny Thunders. This would appear as part of the short-lived Rough Trade Singles Club.

Keep a little Marc in your heart!

"Mighty mean mod king. Dressed like fame. London to Brighton and then back again ... Changing life's patterns to get to the top. But when you get up there you don't know if you're there or what ..." On 16 September 1977 Marc Bolan was killed in a car accident on Queen's Ride, in the Barnes/Richmond area of London. His beautiful wife Gloria Jones was driving at the time. Marc was rightly stepping back into the limelight with his own TV series, which I vividly remember rushing home from school to watch religiously. The final show, which was aired after Marc's death, would feature Generation X, the Rods, and David Bowie performing Heroes before a duet between Marc and David as the closing credits rolled. Today it seems appropriate that The London Nobody Sings ... and our New York colleagues remember a very special person ...

Richmond ... three times

"I'm waitin' here in New York City. The rain is falling. There's no one who cares. There's no one loves me here ..." The Faces' Richmond finds Ronnie Lane in a melancholy homesick mood. Must be those leafy lanes he was missing. Don't ask me why, but it still amazes me how wonderful some of the Faces' recordings were. And those moments when they get all tender are pretty special. Especially when Ronnie Lane steps up to the microphone. Debris, and so on. That vulnerable voice. And that cheeky grin. Bless 'im.

Richmond ... two times

"Remember the nights on the island. Newcastle ale. Lying on the grass. Jeff on stage with the Tridents. And talk about the past ..." Richmond by Shelagh McDonald is from her debut LP from the start of the '70s. A completely beautiful folk rock record, which includes contributions from the Mighty Baby guys which is always a good sign. Shelagh made one more LP (with arrangements by Robert Kirby and most of Pentangle helping out, so another good sign) before disappearing for the next 30 odd years. She reappeared in the offices of the Scottish Daily Mail in 2005. Richmond itself was written by the equally intriguing Andy Roberts, who apart from making some fantastic solo LPs (Nina and the Dream Tree is particularly recommended, featuring the lovely I've Seen The Movie) also played with the Liverpool Scene, the poetry/rock experimental project, and Plainsong with the great Ian Matthews. The Plainsong LP In Search of Amelia Earhart is at times better than the Byrds and the Burritos.

Richmond ... one time

"In Richmond we've all got the right credentials. In Richmond where the breakfast's continental. In Richmond where the cigarettes are menthol ..." Arturo Bassick was in an early incarnation of The Lurkers (playing on Shadow and Freak Show) before going off to start his own group Pinpoint. Their debut single, Richmond, was another classic slice of class war south west London style. But in the interests of balance it's worth mentioning the legendary Crawdaddy club in Richmond. Without Giorgio Gomelsky's place where would we be? Logical links take us to Crawdaddy Simone by The Syndicats. But if you don't know that ... If you do know that you'll love this. Arturo would approve.

East Sheen

"They think because you're young you don't know what you're doing ..." I doubt the local Chamber of Commerce uses East Sheen by O Level to promote the prosperous south west London suburb. But Edward Ball sounds like he is less than thrilled with life down Richmond way. I always get a little confused exactly where this debut O Level single sits in the TVPs' scheme of things but I'm pretty sure it was right there at the start with 14th Floor. A follow up O Level EP would include a 'tribute' to Revolver, the TV series produced by Mickie Most where Peter Cook would introduce the hip punk acts of the day. Among the guests would be The Lurkers, circa Fulham Fallout. You may remember the Part Time Punks would have bought the O Level single, but it wasn't pressed in red so they bought The Lurkers instead. Hook it Stride ...

The Putney Bus

It's not all plain sailing y'know. Our intrepid sleuths are out there tracking down London songs for you, following up clues, but just occasionally there's a bit of a dead end. We got very excited about there being a song called The Putney Bus, made famous in its time by music hall entertainer Arthur Lloyd. We found an image of the sheet music, ascertained that it tells the tale of Arthur walking home from the city and spotting a pretty girl. He follows her but is dismayed when he loses her after she gets on a bus to Putney. He chases her in a cab and when he catches up with her discovers, in true music hall fashion, that the pretty girl is actually his wife. Great stuff. But can we find a recorded version of this song? Can we heck! So we'll have to console ourselves with a song by a great entertainer, educated in Putney, and who drove buses for a living before being 'discovered'. This is a very atypical Matt Monro moment but a rather wonderful one, and a very London one. It also makes me think of a story I read about Matt and the Pretty Things hanging out on the Isle of Wight.

On Tooting Broadway Station

"On Tooting Broadway Station I knelt down and wept. My fingers hit the concrete floor until my fingers bled ..." The Kitchens of Distinction's grandiose and dramatic song of despair based on Tooting Broadway Station, with its echoes of Elizabeth Smart's tragic tale, is itself doomed. Doomed, for mention Tooting Broadway Station to anyone of my generation and they'll clench their raised fist and look to the skies and cry: "Power to the people ..." before starting to whistle The Red Flag in tribute to the great John Sullivan's comic creation, Wolfie Smith, the urban revolutionary who never quite got his act together. Jim Connell incidentally wrote The Red Flag in 1889 on a train from Charing Cross to New Cross. Probably stuck on a signal at Spa Road Junction ...

Let him dangle

"Not many people thought that Bentley would hang. But the word never came, the phone never rang. Outside Wandsworth Prison there was horror and hate as the hangman shook Bentley's hand to calculate his weight. Let him dangle ..." Squeeze may have known a couple of likely lads that were in and out of Wandsworth. But there have been those that never should have been in there. The hanging of Derek Bentley in 1953 was a classic case of misjustice. It would be many, many years before the campaign to clear his name had any kind of success. And of course by then it was far too late for Derek. The case was highlighted in popular music by The Bureau in 1981 in their classic Let Him Have It. Several years later Elvis Costello would write about the case in Let Him Dangle on his Spike LP. This clip of him from a BBC TV special is fascinating because of the opportunity Elvis gets to 'plug' his record, but the respect is seemingly genuine, the format is refreshingly gimmick free and suitably stark, and it's intriguing to hear Elvis talk about the writing of the song. It's a performance and a song Phil Ochs would have approved of ...

Goodnight Sweet Josephine

"Goodnight sweet Josephine. She's the queen of Clapham. Every night, she goes out with men to trap 'em ..." Ah. It wasn't just Squeeze then that resorted to tortuous rhymes about Clapham. Goodnight Sweet Josephine was towards the end of The Yardbirds' life. For Jimmy Page it would then be downhill all the way. I do prefer the earlier material, like Mike Hugg's You're A Better Man Than I, which I first heard via Sham 69 oddly enough. And before we leave Clapham, whatever happened to The Man on the Clapham Omnibus? The mythical embodiment of reasonableness ...

Up The Junction

"Day's begun and people rush. Off to work by foot and bus. Open eyes and open mind. Conditioned to the daily grind ..." Manfred Mann's theme to Up The Junction, written by the godlike Mike Hugg, is a great way to start a great film. Dennis Waterman and Suzy Kendall and several other great British names star in the adaptation of Nell Dunn's novel. "You're the only beautiful thing around 'ere princess ..." There was a few years earlier a Nell Dunn adaptation of Up The Junction broadcast on TV as a play. Directed by Ken Loach. And bless the person who has posted ten minutes of this on YouTube complete with some appropriate comments from Edward Ball. Grittier and artier. And ironically Paul Jones is singing on the theme for that.

Lavender Hill

"While people eat their biscuits with tea, they dream of daffodils that sway in the breeze. And every sunday afternoon tidy ladies shine their shoes. And every little lady dreams lavender memories ..." The thing about London is that it can get confusing, with your Mill Hills, your Plaistows, and your Lavender Hills. Which Lavender Hill were the Kinks singing about? The one up Enfield way? Well, they were north London lads. Or was it the one down Clapham? It's a beautiful song whichever one you fancy. And as we've finally succumbed to the Kinks songbook, here's Dead End Street ...

Thingabout London

"You see London pulls the wool over your eyes, and day to day keeps you hypnotised ..." Asher Senator is another MC who came through the south London reggae ranks at the same time as Smiley Culture, and among the tracks he made would be the wonderful Abbreviation Qualification. He is also probably the only man to mention Fu Manchu and Danny La Rue in the same verse. Nearly a quarter of a century on from first recording for Fashion Records Asher would take time out from his youth/community work to record Thingabout London for fashion label English Eccentrics. It's a quite lovely thing ...

Police Officer

"One say: 'Shall we put him in the van or in the back of the Rover?' Me say: You can't do that ca' me name Smiley Culture. 'You what? Did you do that record Cockney Translator?' In the reggae charts number one was its number. 'My kids love it and so does my mother! Tell you what I'll do . A favour for a favour. Just sign your autograph on this piece of paper' Me cut him short and me just draw out me Parker. 'Pon the producer me just sign Smiley Culture. Them never lie. Them never bother..... arrest me or take me ganja!" The Battersea and Clapham areas have quite a history when it comes to reggae. The Dub Vendor shop on Lavender Hill is a bit of an institution. And once upon a time it had a studio in its basement where many cuts were recorded for the associated Fashion Records, the UK reggae label that has already featured a few times in this project. At the end of '84 into '85 Fashion had a massive hit in a way independent labels like Creation could only dream of. Local lad Smiley Culture's Police Officer almost made it into the Top 10 which was all the more extraordinary as it dealt with a scenario where young black man gets pulled over and searched by the local constabulary. As befits the style of the young London MCs of the time the track has a twist and a lot of humour. And as the video cuts off before the punchline it's worth checking out this version.

Shot Gun Wedding

"Buy a house and do it quickly. Me don't want no cottage down by the sea. Me want a three bedroom in a Battersea ..." In Shot Gun Wedding Ranking Ann has no time for stereotypes and expectations. A familiar theme with Ranking Ann's work. This comes from a Mad Professor/Ariwa 1982 Sessions compilation, which was around the same time her debut LP, A Slice of English Toast appeared. You need that record. Ranking Ann can be seen here performing the title track in 1984. The live Mad Professor mix is astonishing. The song itself qualifies for inclusion here as it mentions being born in the labour ward down a' Waterloo. St Thomas' to you. What other songs mention London's hospitals?

Down at Battersea Park

"I know a place in the centre of London where you can get your money's worth. You can play on the swings or the sideshow. You can sail in a boat on the lake ..." Now this is surreal. Germany's answer to the Edwin Hawkins Singers come up with an ode to one of the best parks in London sung in a distinct north of England accent. Our pop sleuth Brian Kotz advises that it was written by Jimmy Bilsbury (once of the Magic Lanterns) and that he probably handles the lead vocals too. He would later write Belfast for Boney M, who have links to the Les Humphries Singers, but then so do Uriah Heep. Mention Battersea Park to me and I will immediately think of the Easter Parade which relatives would religiously attend. Once upon a time this was a significant event in the social calendar ...

Meet Me In Battersea Park

"If you're a Londoner just like me, meet me in Battersea Park. If you are young or you'd like to be, meet me in Battersea Park ..." Over Chelsea Bridge and into Battersea Park. How could you refuse Petula Clark's singing Meet Me In Battersea Park? A number from 1954, written by her dad and Joe Henderson (no, not the Bluenote cat ...). It's easy to forget that by the time of Downtown and Don't Sleep In The Subway Petula was already a seasoned pro, and a generation older than a lot of the Brit girl singers. Nevertheless she trumped everyone at the end of the '60s with her contribution to Michel Legrand's score for The Lady In The Car With Sunglasses And A Gun. Being one of those people that always prefers Petula en francais it's the continental version of the theme song, Je Roule, that gets me going everytime. Wonderful stuff. Did someone mention the Scars or Sebastien Japrisot?

Chelsea Bridge

"Was it an hour since I ran to the stop to catch my 91? I don't mind the rain in my neck. It's all part of the season's fun ..." Ah. Louis Philippe again. We may need to ration his appearances here. But he does have a way with London songs. Lazy English Sun, for example, deals with the perils of leaving your umbrella on the 91 bus given the unpredictability of the English summer. And then there's Chelsea Bridge, a particular favourite. The bridge? Well, yes, in a way. But I really meant the song. A vocal and piano treat, and hommage to the French vocalese jazz tradition. It would be Louis' sleevenotes to the reissue of his Rainfall set that got me interested in Les Double Six, the Parissienne vocal ensemble that featured Christiane Legrand and Ward Swingle. So Louis has earned his frequent appearances here.

Brompton Oratory

"Up those stone steps I climb. Hail this joyful day's return. Into its great shadowed vault I go. Hail the Pentecostal morn. The reading is from Luke 24. Where Christ returns to his loved ones. I look at the stone apostles. Think that it's alright for some ..." There is something so perfect about Nick Cave's Brompton Oratory. A beautiful brooding song set in a magnificent Catholic church in the heart of Chelsea & Kensington. Thank god for London's churches ...