12/11/2008
The current series of Jools Holland is coming to a close. It was the last Later Live yesterday, and Friday marks the last extended Later With show. Seeing as I’m penniless for roughly 3 weeks of every month, I still live with my parents. And because I spent the last of my money on a three-day bender and didn’t go home at the weekend, I couldn’t drink whilst watching yesterday's show in case they pulled out the old “ALCOHOLIC!” card again. It was still okay though, despite the sobriety.
THE STEREOPHONICS: Okay, so I may not have been drinking, but that means that I smoked more. So I was smoking as Stereophonics kicked-off the show and didn’t really catch it. I could vaguely hear The Stereophonics singing ‘Dakota’ above the din of my Mum, rattling on about a “LADY WHO CAME INTO WORK TODAY” and all that kind of Mum speak that Mums rattle on about. I went off The Stereophonics when I realised that lead-singer Kelly’s a bit of an arrogant spaswit. What kind of a name is that anyway? Kelly…
SOLANGE: I was aware that Solange is Beyonce’s sister, but I never realised she was quite as good looking. She looked damn good in this short tartan-dress, and along with her backing singers made-up this really cool 60s Motown, Supremes type trio. It was good old-fashioned funky soul with a modern twist. It helped that she was fit, obviously.
RAY DAVIES INTERVIEW: Then Jools went over to talk to Kinks legend Ray Davies. Ray looked pretty good and had quite a head of hair. I reckon I’m probably in more danger of going bald, and Ray must be in his 60s or 70s. Jools showed a clip of Ray on Top of the Pops, closely resembling David Dickinson with this big mullet and a dodgy suit. Ray didn’t seem impressed with Jools’ choice of clip, probably because of the whole “CHEAP AS CHIPS” comparison. Then Ray started professing a love for Solange. He probably wanted to get in her pants, like me.
DENGHUE FEVER: Woah! Some beard the male singer had. Reminded me of the B.C. era, the way you see the pictures in the books. Even though his voice was cracking throughout, the song worked well with the female vocalist. The two playing off each other like Travolta and Newton-John in Grease, only with cooler lyrics that I could relate to. “YOU ONLY OPENED UP WHEN YOU WERE DRUNK!” And he’s all like, “I KNOW!” And she’s like, even though you’re a drunk and get off your face on drugs, I love you anyway. Real; raw; I liked this band a lot.
CAROLINA CHOCOLATE DROPS: Imagine Little House on the Prairie if they didn’t just sit around eating home-made cake and playing with donkeys all day, but spent their time having pissed-up barn-dances instead. Really, really good pissed-up barn dances, where you drink far too much moonshine and find yourself groping an old hag in a grubby dress who picks apples all day. Absolutely sublime old school Carolina music on fiddle, banjo and jug. Top drawer music and a top drawer performance!
JOOLS HOLLAND WITH LOUISE MARSHALL: God bless you Jools. God bless your piano skills and your song-writing and your bloody great programme! This song, and I don’t know what it was called, made me feel a tad sad. It was like a goodbye love lament, where you can’t let go of whoever he or she was that grabbed your heart and shagged it into a euphoric wonderland; melted it away. You try and prolong what was, by buying them gifts and flowers and stuff, but it’s no good, they’re gone forever. Great backing violins and cellos made this all the more exceptional.
ELI PAPERBOY REED: This was like old 50s style rock n’ roll sung by a blue-eyed 60s soul legend. This was the kind of music to make you feel all happy and warm and fuzzy in your gut, tap-a-tap-tapping your feet away like a drunk, only without having to drink anything! Everyone was up on their feet dancing, the crowd, the performers; Solange brought a mic over and supplied backing vocals and looked well impressed! I reckon Eli probably pulled and he and Ray Davies probably had a fist-fight for her affections when the camera stopped rolling…
THE STEREOPHONICS: They played a song from back when they were a reasonably okay band: Local Boy in the Photograph. I remember back in the day when I first started getting drunk every day, because I was all confused about what the fuck I was going to do with my life and why my face was so spotty and I lacked face-fuzz, listening to this song. Don’t know why I related to it really. And now I only have a few spots and I have face-fuzz… but I’m still confused about what I’m going to do with my life. I guess some things never change.
The last in the series of Later with Jools Holland is broadcast this Friday at 23:40 on BBC2. To visit the official website and catch up on the show, CLICK HERE! |
