Paul McCartney to appear in final Dandy comic

Sir Paul McCartney has fulfilled a "personal ambition" by being immortalised in The Dandy.

The former Beatle will appear alongside Desperate Dan in the last-ever print edition, which goes on sale this week.

According to publishers DC Thomson, Sir Paul got in touch after they announced the end of the comic in August.

He wrote: "In 1963, in the NME, when asked what my personal ambition was, I replied - to have my picture in The Dandy! I hope it's not too late!"

"The Dandy was a favourite comic of mine when growing up in Liverpool and each week I would look forward to the exploits of Desperate Dan and his other comic book colleagues."

Sir Paul will be seen grimacing as Desperate Dan, unaware of the strength of his formidable handshake, crushes the bass player's fingers (thankfully the ones on his right hand - Sir Paul plays a left-handed guitar).

He then leads 50 of the comic's most famous characters in a sing-along version of Hey Jude.

Pop-up shop

Published in Dundee, The Dandy is one of the world's longest-running children's comics, launching characters such as Bananaman, Korky the Cat and Beryl the Peril.

But sales have slumped to 8,000 a week from a peak of two million in the 1950s.

This week's edition marks its 75th anniversary, after which it will continue in digital formats only.

The announcement has, ironically, increased demand for the struggling comic.

One Scottish newsagent claims to have received more than 700 orders for the final edition, with fans getting in touch from around the world in hope of reserving a copy.

Des Barr, who runs Sinclair Barr Newsagents in Paisley, now plans to set up a pop-up stall in the Braehead Shopping Centre, near Glasgow, dedicated solely to the final issue.

"The Dandy's famous cowboy character, Dan, might be desperate, but it's the public who are really desperate to get their hands on the final issue.

"My staff will be posting the comic out to people all over the country," he said.

"I think there is a huge nostalgia thing going on here. Since it was first published in 1937, millions of people will have grown up reading The Dandy. It will have been part of their childhood."

Source: BBC

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Tony Hancock rare radio scripts up for sale

A collection of rare radio scripts recorded by comedy stars such as Tony Hancock, Spike Milligan and Peter Sellers are being sold.

The "extraordinary and rather moving" collection has been catalogued by actor and rare books dealer Neil Pearson.

It includes seven or eight scripts for episodes of the radio series Hancock's Half Hour, the recordings of which have been lost.

Other items include original scripts for early episodes of The Goon Show.

"The recordings of these episodes have been lost. People are not buying the copyright, they're buying the artefact," Pearson explained to the BBC.

"Some of the scripts are heavily annotated by technicians or the performers. What collectors are buying is that direct link back to the time when the show was made."

Pearson, who has been collecting books for more than 30 years alongside his acting day job, has set up his own rare books dealership.

The Hancock scripts include one 1955 episode where Hancock and Sid James travelled to Swansea to thank Harry Secombe, who had replaced Hancock for three episodes when he failed to turn up.

They found Secombe singing down a coalmine, but the recorded episode was wiped and is lost, so the script is the only record of it.

Another features Hancock dreaming he is Father Christmas and is being prosecuted in court by Sid James for not carrying out his duties properly.

Pearson, who is probably best known for his role in 1990s Channel 4 comedy Drop the Dead Donkey and crime drama Between the Lines, said several items in the catalogue would excite collectors.

"We have two of Terry Nation's own scripts that pre-date Doctor Who. In 1963 he invented the daleks and wrote the fifth ever episode of Doctor Who," explained Pearson.

"The two scripts we have are from the 1950s, including Fine Goings On which starred a very young Frankie Howerd."

The collection also includes an original script for the one and only episode of Terry's Topics in 1947, an early attempt to launch Terry-Thomas as a radio star.

Co-written by Terry-Thomas and Frank Muir, the show was recorded but never transmitted, and is now lost.

There are also a number of original scripts for The Goon Show, including one from the first series when it was called Crazy People.

"This is material that the book trade tends not to find, as they tend to be looking elsewhere," said Pearson.

"I've spent my professional life around this kind of material and somehow this fabulous collection has made its way to me."

Source: BBC

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Review: Xmas Music Round-Up 2012

In our household there’s an unwritten rule; come the 1^st December, the only music to be played is Christmas music. Now, I’m sure you’re aware of the old saying, “rules are made to be broken”, but not this one. Any deviation, and you’re out, and believe me, no-one wants to be homeless for the holidays.

Every year there’s a glut of new Christmas music released onto the market, it’s my duty, honour and pleasure to listen to as much of it as possible and report back accordingly. So, flip your Cliff Richard calendar to December (he’s looking lascivious on a quad bike), break out the new eggnog and read on…

The Sweetback Sisters – Country Christmas Singalong Spectacular (Signature Sounds)

You can’t beat a drop of old-school country at Christmas, and the best of the bunch are The Sweetback Sisters. Their “Country Christmas Singalong Spectacular” is cheesy perfection - their voices soar through a collection of standards, and their honky-tonk backing band rip it up like they don’t expect to make the new year. It’s hot stuff, and their covers of “Santa Claus Is Coming To Town” and “Rocking Around The Christmas Tree” are as good as any versions I’ve ever heard. And I’ve heard a lot.

Various Artists – XO For The Holiday Volume 5 (XO Publicity)

Every year XO Publicity releases a collection of Yule tunes recorded by artists and groups on their roster. It’s presented as a free download, so all you’ve got to do is hit the link below and it’s yours (together with the previous volumes – if you want them). I love it when indie kids get jiggy with Christmas, and XO never disappoint. Highlights are Blue Skies For Black Hearts’ “Maybe Next Christmas”, Robert Burnham’s “White Christmas” and Piney Gir’s “It’s Christmas Time Again”. I long to pinch their rosy red cheeks and send them on their way with a pound clasped in their mittens.

Belshazzar’s Feast – Stocking Fillers (Unearthed)

Folk music and Christmas go together like turkey and proper bread sauce, so the Feast’s “Stocking Fillers” collection works for me. Mostly it’s traditional songs and tunes arranged by the duo of Paul Sartin (vocals, oboe and violin) and Paul Hutchinson (accordion), and without wishing to get all Dickensian on your skinny, Scrooge-like poop-shoots, “Stocking Fillers” is the ghost of Christmas past made real. Indeed, its old-world appeal is best enjoyed in a high-backed chair, in front of a roaring fire, port glass in hand. Check out the album cover for an explanatory diagram.

Tracey Thorn – Tinsel And Lights (Strange Feelings)

This sounds like it was recorded in July, by members of Al-Qaeda. Now I can appreciate Tracey Thorn under normal circumstances, but Christmas isn’t a normal time of the year. It’s a celebration and this joyless collection of downer break-up songs does as much for the festive spirit as a Christmas Day lunchtime screening of “Sophie’s Choice”. It’s being marketed as a collection of Christmas songs for people who don’t much like Christmas songs. Really? Did we lose a war or something?

The National Jazz Trio Of Scotland – Christmas Album (Karaoke Kalk)

There is space for melancholy at Christmas time, and this is how it should be done. Okay, they’re not a trio, and their understanding of jazz is loose, but there’s no doubting their Scottish dourness. Bill Wells and his troupe, including Aidan Moffat and Norman Blake, and with various guest vocalists, interpret a dozen well-known Christmas hymns to devastating effect. Haunting and poignant, these songs, and their delicate arrangements, resonate long after silence has reclaimed the room. Perhaps not the ideal soundtrack for your Christmas party, but when the guests have all gone home, and you’re enjoying one final whisky before bedtime, you’ll not find a more perfect album to play.

www.thesweetbacksisters.com

www.xopublicity.com

www.belshazzarsfeast.co.uk

www.traceythorn.com

www.karaokekalk.de

Rob F.

Competition: win a copy of Jah Wobble and Keith Levene - Yin and Yang

We’ve just reviewed JahWobble and Keith Levene - Yin and Yang (click on the link to read), and those lovely folks at Cherry Red Records have given us a couple of copies to give away to two lucky readers

For a chance to win just send your name and address to:

leicesterbangs (at) hotmail.co.uk 

Subject heading: "Wobble / Levene"

Please see our competition rules, terms and conditions here:

Leicester Bangs Rules, Terms, Conditions for Competitions

By entering our competition, you agree to be bound by all rules, terms and conditions relating to the competition.

All entries to be in by 31^st December 2012.

Be sure to check out the other titles at Cherry Red Records.

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Review: Jah Wobble and Keith Levene - Yin and Yang

Jah Wobble and Keith Levene - Yin and Yang (Cherry Red)

Fresh from touring their own retrospective take on ‘Metal Box’, former PiL stalwarts Wobble and Levine have resisted the temptation to default to the post-punk template; and in ‘Yin and Yang’, have rather produced a uniquely eclectic but satisfyingly progressive set of new material.

Fittingly, vocals are largely incidental. Wobble’s spoken (or growled) word passages grace the Blockheads-on-acid-esque title track and the edgy ‘Jags and Staffs’; but even guests vocalists Little Annie and Nathan Maverick self-consciously avoid anything like singing in their contributions to ‘Vampires’ and ‘Understand’ respectively. Instead, voices are mere supplements to a rich and varied sonic landscape which draws from familiar and less familiar world/jazz/kraut/electronica/industrial sources, spiked with a surprising dash of country (‘Mississippi’) and filtered through Wobble’s trademark nuanced dub. A bewildering take on ‘Within You Without You’ adds colours to the psychedelic pallet its original writer could barely have imagined and is worth hearing for its audacity alone.

If there seem to be standouts they come late in the day and may be as much to do with gathering momentum as quality differential. Instrumental ‘Fluid’ is just what it says on the tin, ‘Vampires’ is short but exquisite; and the two parts of ‘Understand’ are a madcap delight. But the collection as a whole is intelligent, brave, and (given how flawed and over-rated the old guvnor’s latest effort was), timely too.

Wobble has been one of the UK’s most consistently creative mavericks for the past thirty-five years, and reunited here with his old sparring partner has produced a gem of a record which will delight long-term advocates and connect with new recruits as well.

www.cherryred.co.uk

Neil B.

Mediaeval Baebes: new album and cathedral dates

MEDIAEVAL BAEBES release new album 'The Huntress’ 

- out now on Queen of Sheeba - 

http://www.mediaevalbaebes.com

On 5 November 2012 Mediaeval Babes released their new album. The album will be supported by the following UK dates.

December:

8 Norwich Cathedral

13 Gloucester Cathedral

14 Ely Cathedral

15 Peterborough Cathedral

21 St Sepulchre-without-Newgate (the National Musicians Church)

It’s fifteen years since the Mediaeval Baebes first appeared, adding a layer of knowing glamour to the sometimes fusty world of early music, shamelessly trading in baebe power to the delight of a public that lapped it up even as some of the purists sniffed. In the intervening period, Baebes have come and gone (and even been born), and what was once an imaginatively presented niche act is no longer an outlier. In Britain and beyond young musicians have reconnected with a folk tradition of strangeness and storytelling and the power of their unadorned vocals sounds more contemporary than ever. No wonder The Huntress, their seventh studio album, contains a version of ‘Cruel Sister’, the old murder ballad that was the title track of both Pentangle’s 1970 album and the Unthanks’ 2005 debut.

Katharine Blake, musical director and leader and now the sole original Baebe, is delighted with the results. “It’s been more satisfying, more realised and closer to what I hear in my head.” Although she describes producing, writing, performing editing and mixing as “a recipe for insanity”, The Huntress was worth the struggle. Loosely themed around the idea of ‘feminine energy’, the adapted sources which Blake has arranged for female voices range from Byron’s ‘She Walks In Beauty’ and Ben Johnson’s ‘Queen and Huntress’ to the mediaeval Arabic poetry of ‘Clasp of A Lion’ and old Latin of ‘Dianae’ (‘Of Diana’ the huntress, and appropriately pronounced DNA). ‘Jennet’s Song’ uses a transcript of the famous Pendle witch trial as a lyric, while less tragically ‘Care Away’ tells of a henpecked husband (and features The Mediaeval Bloakes, an impromptu choir of musicians and friends). References to the moon abound, unsurprisingly.    

Blake considers the two discs that make up the album to split between folk and classical, the first record perhaps more accessible, the second part more esoteric. And with familiar songs like ‘Cruel Sister’ and a take on standard ‘She Moved through The Fayre’ as well as the instantly familiar ‘Lenten Is Come’ and newly penned, notably percussive ‘Cathedral of Song’ she has a point.

Yet the divide is not always obvious. ‘Veni Veni Bella’, already accompanied by a video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t0v7nv2s3tQ is perfectly appealing, despite the archaic Latin lyric. The ‘Moorish jazz’ of ‘Clasp Of A Lion’ is eerily exotic (‘panting gazelle in the clasp of a lion’, indeed), while its sister piece, the knowingly spooky ‘Phantom’, where Esther Dee’s high vocal terrifies while an ancient groove is laid down beneath, genuinely defies time and genre. Concluding with an arrangement of ‘Dies Irae’, the Catholic doomsday hymn, it’s hardly lightweight stuff. 

“It’s a choir. And it’s a band,” says Blake, neatly summing up the Baebes unique dichotomy. And it’s not like anything else. Asked if she can hear anything of her music in any contemporaries, Blake might compare a particular song or effect to Philadelphia’s Espers, Steve Reich’s systems music or even the other KB, Kate Bush. But The Huntress is truly sui generis.

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Review: Robert James Selby – Scrap-Book Ballads Vol. 1

Robert James Selby – Scrap-Book Ballads Vol. 1 (Grasmere)

Born and raised in Yorkshire, and now resident in London, Robert James Selby paid his troubadour dues traveling Europe, singing on street corners, sleeping on floors, and generally having the time of his life. He considers himself a poet rather than a songwriter, and his influences err towards Byron and Keats rather than the well-worn names that tend to crop up in reviews.

I can’t say I’m too au fait with the romantic poets, or poetry in general. I did write a limerick one that was hilarious, but I can’t remember the last line, so it’ll have to remain unpublished - for now. Selby takes his words considerably more seriously, which isn’t to say that he doesn’t lighten the mood when required. In contrast to the majority of his contemporaries, he’s quite willing to accompany his words with upbeat, energetic tunes, and “Hard Love” and “Cats Of Pere Lachaise” provide a lively launch for the album. Elsewhere he revisits the delights of 1980s indie on “I Still Adore” (even the title is suggestive of C86, Morrissey/Marr, Stone Roses and Sarah Records), and “Song To Soho”, a paean to London’s most misunderstood district, is sweet and gentle. Throughout “Scrap-Book Ballads…” Selby eschews the solo approach, and his supporting cast of musicians add considerable nuance and depth to a fine collection.

http://robertjamesselby.com/

http://www.facebook.com/robertjames.selby

Tony S.

Review: Cave Women – S/T

Cave Women – S/T (Independent)

With a name that suggests garage rock played with puckish, punkish abandon, Cave Women’s debut album provides wholly unexpected pleasures. The five women from Sacramento, Casey Lipka (bass, vocals), Alicyn Yaffee (guitar, vocals), Emily Messick (vocals, melodica, accordion, guitar), Kim Davis (vocals, flute, sax) and Vanessa Cruz (drums), reject guitar thrash and throttled vocals and instead head straight for the jazz-folk jugular. Four-part harmonies vie with world rhythms and a variety of non-rock instrumentation, and they consistently remember to pack tunes and hooks.

All five members carry impressive musical CVs, and there’s a wealth of experience between them. It’s perhaps surprising then that the presentation isn’t quite as showy as expected. There are solos, and some of the playing is inspired – the interaction between flute and guitar on “Fall” impresses more each time I hear it – but the song and vocals invariably take centre stage. Other highlights are plentiful; “Blizzard” loops and cajoles, and concludes with a sublime guitar solo, and “Balloons”, with its mix of time signatures and jerked rhythms contains almost an album’s worth of ideas on its own.

www.cavewomenmusic.com

www.facebook.com/cavewomenmusic

www.cavewomen.bandcamp.com

Tony S.

Douglas Gordon 'outrage' over work stolen from Christie's

Turner prize-winning artist Douglas Gordon has hit out at Christie's after a solid gold sculpture was stolen from the auctioneer's London warehouse.

"It looks like I am the last person to know," Gordon told the Guardian, having learnt of the theft two weeks after it was reported to police on 12 November.

The artist believes his artwork, which has an insurance value of £500,000, has been melted down for scrap.

Christies said the incident, was "under investigation".

"We are in contact with all parties involved," a Christie's spokesman said. "We cannot comment any further."

The 2007 sculpture, entitled The Left Hand and the Right Hand Have Abandoned One Another, is normally on display at the Paris gallery Yvon Lambert, but was shown this summer at an exhibition organised by Christie's at Waddesdon Manor in Buckinghamshire.

Following the exhibition's conclusion at the end of last month, the artwork - which is available for private sale - was being held at Christie's Westminster storage facility, before travelling to Tel Aviv for a further exhibition in January.

"Apparently an employee randomly picked up the box it was in... and discovered it was a bit light," Gordon told the Guardian on Thursday.

The Scottish artist, who lives and works in Berlin, told the Guardian on Thursday that he had a call from the Waddesdon exhibition curator last week regarding the theft, "but I only heard from Christie's directly this morning".

"Apart from the fact it's outrageous that something might get stolen from Christie's, I still own the work and I am creator of the work," he said.

"There's something going on here about value and the way the artist is treated in all of this."

Gordon, who won the Turner Prize in 1996, is arguably best known for his video installations including 24-Psycho, a slow-motion view of Hitchcock's famous film, and Zidane - a video 'portrait' of the French footballer Zinedine Zidane.

Earlier this year, he became the first visual artist to be nominated for a prize at the Royal Philharmonic Society Music Awards for his film installation K364.

Since the start of the global economic crisis in 2008, gold has risen in price by 100%, making it a popular target for thieves.

The sculpture is estimated to have a scrap value of approximately £250,000.

Source: BBC

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Grayson Perry tapestries gifted to nation

Six tapestries created by artist Grayson Perry have been gifted to the Arts Council Collection and the British Council.

The tapestries, titled The Vanity of Small Differences, were made earlier this year alongside Perry's Channel 4 series, All in the Best Possible Taste.

Inspired by William Hogath's A Rake's Progress, they each measure 2m x 4m.

The works will begin a national and international exhibitions tour, starting in Sunderland in June.

The tapestries tell the story of class mobility and the influence British social classes have on aesthetic taste, charting the "class journey" made by the protagonist in Perry's series, Tim Rakewell.

They include many of the characters and incidents Perry encountered while travelling through Sunderland, Tunbridge Wells and The Cotswolds for the show - which he literally weaved into the work.

'Marvellous gift'

"I am hugely pleased and proud that The Vanity of Small Differences will be shared by the Arts Council and British Council Collections because this means the work will be able to travel all around the country and the world," Perry said.

"Of all the pieces I have made, this was the one I conceived from the outset as a public artwork.

"I hope that wherever it goes, it not only delights the eye but also sparks debate about class, taste and British society."

With support from the Art Fund, the touring exhibition will begin at the Sunderland Museum and Winter Garden - the town where the first two tapestries, The Adoration of the Cage Fighters and The Agony in the Car Park, are set.

It will then continue to Manchester, Birmingham, Liverpool and Leeds.

"Grayson's state-of-the-nation tapestries are caustic, funny and affectionate. They are a marvellous gift to our two Collections, and to our worldwide audiences," Andrea Rose, from the British Council, said.

Source: BBC

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