Tag Archives: Chas and Dave

Singles Night at the Virtual Hot Tub #33

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Yeah, it’s that time again! Time for another Singles Night at my Virtual Hot Tub. These nights are always huge amounts of fun, with some rockin’, some ripe cheese and some surprises. Plus the occasional dud, just to keep me on my toes.

Recap time, for the newbies: Singles Night is all about digging into my collection of 7 inch singles, which have come into my possession from various sources. I play through the pile, one after the other, A side then B side. There’s all sorts of genres and styles in that pile and sometimes the unexpected CAN happen.

So grab the’sen a drink (I recommend the booze) and let’s see what we get in this pile of 45rpm glory…

  1. Royal Blood – “Limbo” / “All We Have is Now”
  2. The Cult – “Spiritwalker” / “A Flower in the Desert”
  3. Zodiac Mindwarp & The Love Reaction – “Planet Girl” / “Dog Face Driver”
  4. Slade – “Mama Weer All Crazee Now” / “Man Who Speaks Evil”
  5. Kevin The Gerbil – “Summer Holiday” / “Hawaiian Holiday”
  6. Boney M – “Belfast” / “Plantation Boy”
  7. Elton John – “Part Time Love” / “Cry at Night”
  8. Chas & Dave w/ Rockney – “Strummin'” / “I’m in Trouble”
  9. Showaddywaddy – “Rock’n’Roll Lady” / “I’m a Traveller”
  10. Suzi Quatro – “She’s in Love with You” / “Space Cadets”
  11. Chuck Berry – “My Ding-A-Ling” / “Let’s Boogie”
  12. Queen – “Hammer to Fall” / “Tear It Up”
  13. Def Leppard – “Animal” / “Tear it Down”
  14. Queen – “I’m Going Slightly Mad” / “The Hitman”
  15. Gary Moore – “Parisienne Walkways” / “Fanatical Fascists”
  16. Music from ‘The Sting’ ft. Marvin Hamlisch on piano – “The Entertainer” / “Solace”
  17. Showaddywaddy – “Heartbeat” / “Lucy Jane”
  18. David Soul – “Silver Lady” / “Rider”
  19. Frank Sinatra – “I Believe I’m Gonna Love You” / “The Only Couple on the Floor”
  20. Hot Chocolate – “You Sexy Thing” / “A Warm Smile”

Who wants to guess the lamest track of the bunch? If you guessed Kevin the Gerbil’s song, you’d be dead wrong! I’m a lifelong Roland Rat Fan and anything from his world is golden to me. In actual fact, there’s noting awfully cheesy on that last – certainly not Chas & Dave or Showaddywaddy, either.

Starting off bang up to date with a great single from Royal Blood, the rock genre delivered the goods with bangers from The Cult, Zodiac Mindwarp, Queen and Def Leppard. I’ve only just noticed that Queen wanted us to “Tear It Up” whilst the Lepps wanted us to “Tear it Down” – crazy!

Talking of crazy, I love Slade and that single was a gift from my pal Greeny at his wedding (it was number 1 when I was born). A happy addition to the collection.

Another fun night, it got a bit hazy with the beverages piling up. I’ll keep you posted with more of these soon.

Oh, and one more thing: RIP David Soul.

Singles Night at the Virtual Hot Tub #32

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Here we go again, my little Hot Tub amigos! Yes it’s time for another Singles Night at Platinum Al’s Virtual Hot Tub – grab a cocktail and jump right in, we’ve got some listening to do!

Do I really need to explain what we’re up to, here? OK, well very quickly then: I have a pile of 7 inch singles that I’ve acquired from various places, all of different artists and genres. On Singles Night, I play through a stack of ’em in order, A side then B side, and we go on a musical odyssey.

Sound like fun? Well it is. Drink up and let’s rock with this latest selection:

  1. The Cult – “She Sells Sanctuary” / “No. 13”
  2. Iron Maiden – “Infinite Dreams (Live)” / “Killers (Live)”
  3. Rod Stewart – “Lost in You” / “Almost Illegal”
  4. Steve Miller Band – “Rock’n’Me” / “The Window”
  5. Bob Marley & The Wailers – “Mr Chatterbox” / “Mr Chatterbox (Version)”
  6. Wizzard – “Rock’n’Roll Winter (Loony’s Tune)” / “Dream of Unwin”
  7. Hot Chocolate – “A Child’s Prayer” / “Everything Should Be Funky”
  8. Mud – “Show Me You’re a Woman” / “Don’t You know”
  9. Bay City Rollers – “I Only Wanna Be With You” / “Rock’n’Roller”
  10. The Kartoon Krew – “Inspector Gadget” / “Inspector Gadget Dub”
  11. Snap! – “The Power” / “The Power (Dub)”
  12. Nicole – ” A Little Peace” / “Thank You, Mercy”
  13. Bob Marley & The Wailers – “Stir It Up (Alt. Jamaican Version)” / “Stir It Up (Alt. Jamaican Instrumental)”
  14. Katrina & The Waves – “Walking on Sunshine” / “Going Down to Liverpool”
  15. Hot Chocolate – “Disco Queen” / “You’re a Natural High”
  16. UK Subs – “She’s Not There” / “Kicks” / “Victim” / “The Same Thing”
  17. Run DMC – “Walk This Way” / “Walk This Way (Instrumental)”
  18. Iron Maiden – “Run to the Hills” / “Total Eclipse”
  19. The Nolans – “Attention to Me” / “Old Feelings Again”
  20. Chas & Dave – “Gertcha” / “The Banging in Your Head”

Another twenty 45 rpm slabs of varying quality there, but I’m not including Katrina (great song!) or Chas & Dave (who can do no wrong) in the dodgy list.

We started with possibly my favourite song of all time, the wonderful “She Sells Sanctuary”. Love that tune. I never had the 7″ as a kid, I bought the 12″ as it had an extra track on it, as I was always obsessed with collecting B sides. That was in 1989, however, well after the single was originally released in ’85.

Other highlights included a double dose of Iron Maiden, a UK Subs EP and the classic Run DMC single “Walk This Way”. Not to mention a couple of very cool Bob Marley singles, both of which were Record Store Day purchases.

As I said, Singles Night is always a journey, from well known paths to the very different excursions. I can recommend it as a fun evening.

I really should do this more often.

Singles Night at the Virtual Hot Tub #13

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Unlucky for some, eh?  Well, this thirteenth edition of Singles Night was far from unlucky for me – I had a great night.

It’s been a while since I’ve thrilled you with a blog like this.  So what is Singles Night, exactly?  Well, I’ll tell you: it’s basically me playing through a stack of 7 inch vinyl singles in the order they’re stacked in.  Like a jukebox, but not as good.

The quality of these discs can vary dramatically.  Some are classics I’ve spent a couple of quid on.  Some are charity shop finds, or even donations given to me.  As such they can range from the unfathomably cool to the stinkiest of cheese.

It’s always good fun though.  So take a dip in the Virtual Hot Tub with me, and enjoy a playlist unlike any other…

  1. The Donnas – “Who Invited You” / “Mama’s Boy”
  2. Windsor Davies & Don Estelle – “Whispering Grass” / “I Should Have Known”
  3. Elvis Presley – “(Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear” / “”Loving You”
  4. Chas’n’Dave – “Stars Over 45” / “Harem”
  5. Neil Diamond – “Be Mine Tonight” / “Right By You”
  6. Depeche Mode – “Get the Balance Right” / “The Great Outdoors”
  7. Small Faces – “Sha-La-La-La-Lee” / “Grow Your Own”
  8. Right Said Fred – “Don’t Talk Just Kiss” / “Don’t Talk Just Kiss (Instrumental)”
  9. Bad Manners – “Lip Up Fatty” / “Night Bus to Dalston”
  10. Cyndi Lauper – “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” / “Right Track Wrong Train”
  11. Feargal Sharkey – “A Good Heart” / “Anger is Holy”
  12. Bruce Willis – “Under the Boardwalk” / “Jackpot (Bruno’s Bop)”
  13. Sergio Mendes & Brasil ’66 –  “The Fool on the Hill” / “With a Little Help From My Friends”
  14. Pat Benatar – “Love is a Battlefield” / “Here’s My Heart”
  15. Gloria Gaynor – “I Will Survive” / “Anybody Wanna Party?”
  16. Kenny Rogers & The First Edition – “Ruby, Don’t Take Your Love to Town” / “Girl Get a Hold of Yourself”
  17. Showaddywaddy – “Blue Moon” / “I Think I’m Really Going Out of My Mind”
  18. REO Speedwagon – “Keep On Loving You” / “Follow My Heart”
  19. Salt-N-Pepa – “Do You Want Me (Remix)” / “Do You Want Me (Original)”
  20. Carl Douglas – “Kung Fu Fighting” / “Gamblin’ Man”
  21. Judas Priest – “You’ve Got Another Thing Comin'” / “Exciter (Live Version)”
  22. Elvis Costello & The Attractions – “Sweet Dreams” / “Psycho”
  23. Iron Maiden – “Flight of Icarus” / “I’ve Got the Fire”
  24. Motorhead – “Bomber” / “Over the Top”
  25. Village People – “Y.M.C.A.” / “The Women”

My favourite of all of those records is the Donnas single – just awesome rock’n’roll.  They’re a great band, I just wish I had the album on vinyl.

Other classics from Motorhead (one of their best singles, with a beauty on the B-side); Judas Priest at their best; great Small Faces and one of the greatest singles of all time – “Kung Fu Fighting”.  If I remember, I was actually up on my feet at that point, doing a few martial arts inspired moves.  I’d been drinking, after all.

There’s a fair spread of cheese in that lot too, though you can’t go wrong with “Y.M.C.A.”, “I Will Survive” and “A Good Heart”.  Not to mention one of my childhood favourites, “Whispering Grass”.  Enjoyable songs all.

The one real stinker of the bunch was the Bruce Willis tune.  I remember liking that as a kid, ‘cos I was a fan of Moonlighting.  Listening to it again – with its terrible 80’s production and Bruce’s “adequate” voice ruining a soul classic – it’s less Die Hard than Die of Embarrassment.

Till next time!

Singles Night at the Virtual Hot Tub #11

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It’s time for another night of spinning wax and drinking booze, as we endure another Singles Night at Platinum Al’s Virtual Hot Tub!

This is all about playing through a never ending pile of old 45 rpm vinyl singles, and making the best of it.  Some of these songs are bona fide classics, some are far from it.

The only rules are: play whatever’s in the pile, in order, A side then B side.  No skipping records – however much you may want to.

Here we go:

  1. Elvis Presley – “Are You Lonesome Tonight” / “I Gotta Know”
  2. Frank Sinatra – “Love’s Been Good To Me” / “A Man Alone”
  3. Marcello Minerbi – “Zorba’s Dance” / “L’Isola Del Sole”
  4. Tom Jones – “Without Love” / “A Man Who Know Too Much”
  5. Chas & Dave – “Rabbit” / “Sideboard Song”
  6. Louis Armstrong – “What a Wonderful World” / “Cabaret”
  7. Bobby Goldsboro – “Honey” / “Danny”
  8. Wonder Dog – “Ruff Mix” / “Living on a Farm”
  9. The Four Tops – “Back to School Again” / The Cast – “Rock-a-Hula-Luau (Summer is Coming)”
  10. Right Said Fred (+others) – “Stick It Out” / “Stick It Out (Aerobic Mix)”
  11. Procul Harum – “A Whiter Shade of Pale” / “Lime Street Blues”
  12. Neil Diamond – “Rainy Day Song” / “Be Mine Tonight”
  13. Spitting Image – “The Chicken Song” / “(I’ve Never Met) A Nice South African”
  14. Carpenters – “Yesterday Once More” / “Road Ode”
  15. Bonnie Tyler – “Holding Out For a Hero” / “Faster Than the Speed of Night”
  16. Boney M – “Ma Baker” / “Still I’m Sad”
  17. The Kinks – “Come Dancing” / “Noise”
  18. Haysi Fantyzee – “John Wayne is Big Leggy” / “The Sabres of Paradise”
  19. Depeche Mode – “People Are People” / “In Your Memory”
  20. Roxy Music – “Avalon” / “Always Unknowing”
  21. The Jam – “Just Who is the 5 O’Clock Hero” / The Great Depression”
  22. Blondie – “Dreaming” / “Sound Asleep”
  23. U2 – “Angel of Harlem” / “A Room at the Heartbreak Hotel”
  24. The Vanilla Fudge – “You Keep Me Hanging On” / “Take Me For a Little While”
  25. Robert Palmer – “Addicted to Love” / “Remember to Remember”
  26. Canned Heat – “Let’s Work Together” / “I’m Her Man”

A real eclectic selection this time, with not much of preferred rock till the end of the session.  Still some great fun songs, a few novelty hits and some easy listening master pieces there.  In my defence this time, a few of those records were given to me (and I’m stupid enough to take them).

If you’re wondering what Wonder Dog is, it’s basically a pop/disco number with a dog barking the melody.  It’s actually not as bad as it seems.

And I quite enjoyed the Four Tops song – I’ve only just found out that it’s from the film “Grease 2”, which is apparently a disaster.  As the first “Grease” film is garbage,  the sequel must be really bad.