Josef K - Classic or Dud

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Postcard did start up again at some point, wasn't one of the Nectarine No. 9 releases on a 90s version of Postcard.

― dan selzer, Monday, 23 April 2007 05:11 (seventeen years ago) link

Bourgie Bourgie were on MCA and appeared a couple of years after postcard were putting out records. There were a couple of bands
- The Bluebells were another one - that were kinda postcard, in that Alan Horne was associated with them - but didn't actually put out postcard singles. I used to see Alan and Paul shopping in Byres Road safeways all the time, though not since its changed to a Sommerfields... Not surprising really its rubbish.

Erm anyway, I'm not all that keen on Bourgie Bourgie, sure Paul Quinn has the vocal chops and the music was kinda well made (wasn't it the bloke who was in The Leopards?)... but the Sade-ish cocktail jazz goes too close to that Glasgow 1983-4 sound from the Precious Organisation bands like Love and Money, Hue and Cry, Del Amitri, the Wets etc. and I never liked that much.

― Sandy Blair, Monday, 23 April 2007 07:18 (seventeen years ago) link

yup, sommerfields on byres road sucks. i have never seen alan horne in there but have bumped into the odd blue niler, pastel and bluebell in there before i deserted it in favour of m&s. that precious organisation sound was thee sound of (then) young glasgow when i moved here and boy did i hate it, but for some reason i always had a soft spot for bourgie bourgie's 'breaking point'.

― stirmonster, Monday, 23 April 2007 07:48 (seventeen years ago) link

Oh I like Quinn's vocals in Breaking Point (and Apree Ski... not so much careless) but here's a thought experiment that will ruin it... listen to it and pretend its Pat Kane singing. Actually don't do that to Breaking Point... try it with careless, its less of a loss.

There was quite a significant split in the Glasgow music seen around then, places like Henry Afrikas / Rock Garden / Nicos / that piano place under the building next to Charing Cross would have the fledgling Dels, Hue and Deacons - and a quite a few others, Hipsway, bathers etc...

Against that were the folks starting to come through in the wake of the Pastels, playing at places like Daddy Warbucks, Fury Murrays etc.

I'm not suggesting that the scenes didn't meet, Glasgow didn't have enough venues to have such scenes isolated. But my theory (which I just made up right now) is that both were Postcards fledglings.

― Sandy Blair, Monday, 23 April 2007 12:22 (seventeen years ago) link

Postcard Mark II put out some good things. I've still got a Nectarine No. 9 CD that's quite good. Postcard's Vic Godard album, "The End of the Surrey People" is a forgotten classic. Someone should re-issue that ASAP. Wasn't their also some Horne connection with Davey Henderson's post-Fire Engines band Win?

― leavethecapital, Monday, 23 April 2007 23:54 (seventeen years ago) link

I think most of the Win stuff came out on London and Virgin, though it seems like some early releases were on a label called Swamplands.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Win_(band)

Time to update wikipedia as Henderson now has a single out as The Sexual Objects.

― dan selzer, Tuesday, 24 April 2007 00:37 (seventeen years ago) link

So, the consensus from the thread is that my vague boredom with Josef K comes more from only hearing Young and Stupid and some C81 track than from any lack of talent on their part?

― I eat cannibals, Tuesday, 24 April 2007 02:13 (seventeen years ago) link

The consensus, yes. But I say run with your boredom all the way to Chic.

― Kevin John Bozelka, Tuesday, 24 April 2007 02:18 (seventeen years ago) link

Kevin, man, I'm already a Chic fan, this is something I feel you failed to take note of through perhaps no fault of your own.

My opinion is if people don't like Josef K's Young & Stupid, they've missed the best Josef K release out of hand. Might as well give up.

― Bimble, Tuesday, 24 April 2007 02:22 (seventeen years ago) link

Ok, I guess I'd have you over for dinner knowing you liked Chic and Josef K.

― Kevin John Bozelka, Tuesday, 24 April 2007 04:01 (seventeen years ago) link

I disagree. If you don't like Young and Stupid...if you don't like It's Kinda Funny and Sorry for Laughing and the Missionary...I don't think you're gonna change your mind when you hear everything else.

But the fact that it bores you doesn't mean they don't have talent, or that it's too bad they don't sound more like Chic. It means YOU DON'T LIKE JOSEF K.

― dan selzer, Tuesday, 24 April 2007 04:10 (seventeen years ago) link

I didn't say they didn't have talent; but it IS too bad they don't sound more like Chic. This is something you couldn't say of Change or High Fashion.

― Kevin John Bozelka, Tuesday, 24 April 2007 04:26 (seventeen years ago) link

Dan - you don't know the SWAMPLANDS label? A major label-distributed effort by Alan Horne and pals, not only did they release the best material Davy Henderson ever worked on (possibly short of "Candyskin"), but one of the best "Postcard-ish" releases ever in the James King & the Lone Wolves 12", plus among the best Edwyn Collins and Paul Quinn efforts - and the James Kirk "Memphis" 12" was pretty swell too. A nearly perfect label! And I've never heard the John Cale-produced JK & the LWs album - said to be the most satisfying Postcard-related music ever.

― deedeedeextrovert, Tuesday, 24 April 2007 04:30 (seventeen years ago) link

I'm still not quite sure what you're talking about. I understand you may want Josef K to be more dancey. That's fine. I don't listen to Josef K for dancing, or DJ Josef K for dancing. What this has to do with Change and High Fashion, I'm not sure. They are DANCE bands! Josef K was an angsty post-punk band. Some artists mixed those two things amazingly well. Josef K didn't, and neither do Chic, Change or High Fashion.

Don't know about Swamplands but I'll look into it. Am I the only person who prefers Meat Whiplash to Candyskin?

― dan selzer, Tuesday, 24 April 2007 04:35 (seventeen years ago) link

No, I'm with Kevin, here, actually. There's one particular really deliciously funky Josef K song that I always wished there was a little more in the Josef K catalogue to go along with. I think it's Heart of Song.

Change do indeed sound a lot like Chic, I've never heard of High Fashion, but will give them a listen.

― Bimble, Tuesday, 24 April 2007 04:53 (seventeen years ago) link

I don't know...despite "post-punk" and "disco" being two of the major interests of mine, and despite often loving when they mix, I feel like I prefer not to force it, and particularly with the angst of some post-punk, I like that it's not quite funky. I used to play Josef K, Manicured Noise, Boots for Dancin, Fire Engines, etc in dance sets but it usually didn't work. I stick with ACR and She is Beyond Good and Evil when I try to get some uk post-punk in my disco sets.

― dan selzer, Tuesday, 24 April 2007 05:06 (seventeen years ago) link

The Josef K I remember listening to was definitely an angsty post-punk band. But it was also a funky (or "funky") one like a lot angsty post-punk bands. Vaguely "We Are All Prostitutes" or "Hungry So Angry" though I never heard anything that could match those two. Unless senility has set in, Josef K sounded to me like a dance band of the Hurrah's variety.

― Kevin John Bozelka, Tuesday, 24 April 2007 05:09 (seventeen years ago) link

For once we agree. I can imagine people dancing to Josef K in the way they'd pogo and freak out to other angsty angular stuff or the way I imagine Hurrahs to have taken place. We Are All Prostitutes and Hungry So Angry are a bit more disco/funk, while She is Beyond Good and Evil and Do the Du destroy dancefloors.

― dan selzer, Tuesday, 24 April 2007 05:15 (seventeen years ago) link

two years pass...

Bimble was right about "Young And Stupid". Brilliant Peel sessions, singles tracks and other odds and ends make this essential, frenetic post-punk listening.

― Gerald McBoing-Boing, Friday, 23 April 2010 00:29 (fourteen years ago) link

Oh, and anyone want to suggest a best-of Paul Haig's post-Josef K material? I like the bits I've heard on various compilations.

― Gerald McBoing-Boing, Friday, 23 April 2010 00:47 (fourteen years ago) link

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