Alex Chilton covering Jonathan Richman

In 1978 at the Ocean Club in NYC, Alex Chilton covered "Government Centre" by Jonathan Richman. Also interesting about this show is that Chris Stamey (later of the dB's) was in the band and they played his tune "Summer Sun" which was produced by Alex Chilton.

Test Department covering the Sex Pistols

On September 4, 1989 at a secret gig in Venlo (Netherlands), Test Department covered "God Save the Queen" by the Sex Pistols.

Sonic Youth covering the Ramones

On October 24, 1987 in Naugatuck, CT, Sonic Youth covered "I Don't Wanna Walk Around With You" and "Today Your Love, Tomorrow The World" by the Ramones so close out their show.

Sisters of Mercy covering the Ramones

On June 23, 2001 at the Bonn Open Air Festival, the Sisters of Mercy covered "I Wanna Be Sedated" by the Ramones

REM covering the Replacements and Television

On November 26, 1984 at the University of Birmingham (UK), REM covered "Color Me Impressed" by the Replacements and "See No Evil" by Television.

REM covering Let's Active

On July 15th, 1984 at the Salty Dog Skyroom Saloon in Buffalo, NY, REM covered "Every Word Means No" by Let's Active.

Peter Hope Richard H. Kirk - Hoodoo Talk - 1988

Benn a long time since I played "Hoodoo Talk", very welcome to these ears like a long lost friend. I should never have neglected such a fine piece of work: demonic vocals over Kirk's programming. Does get slightly weaker as the album progresses.

REM covering The Neats

On November 10, 1983 in San Francisco, REM covered "Lies" by Boston band The Neats who were touring with them. Here's more info on this concert:

This show is particularly unique for the encores - friends Andy Gill and John King from Gang of Four, whom the band had toured extensively with joined the band to cover 'Sweet Jane', and Eric Martin from The Neats, who supported the band at this show (along with Let's Active), came out and sang his song 'Lies' with the band, the only known time this occurred.

New Order ‎– BBC Radio 1 Live In Concert - 1992

Next out of the bin was New Order live at Glastonbury from 1987. Quite good. Could never top the 1981 concert but still very enjoyable.

Pastels covering the Modern Lovers

On June 4th 1988 at the Greyhound in London, the Patesls covered "Pablo Picasso" by The Modern Lovers.

Daviess County Panthers ‎– Je N'Aime Pas Beaucoup Ma Gamelle - 1997

I was handed a stack of Sonic Bubblegum CD's by a friend and sadly I never go too far with them. This one "Je N'Aime Pas Beaucoup Ma Gamelle" was still sealed! I opened it up and put it in the player finally and was surprised how experminental it was. I can sense a lot of Bush Tetras and Pylon influences, at least those are my touchpoints. Steve Albini was one of the engineers! Crazy what I've been sitting on!

Cabaret Voltaire - Micro-Phonies - 1984

I think I never knowningly listened to the Cabs until 1986 sadly. Around that time "Sensoria" was heard fairly regularly on the radio. I rebought "Micro-Phonies" on CD pretty soon after I got my player. I played this CD a lot. I have almost played it too much. But it is also nearly a perfect album.

Artificial Intelligence II - various - 1994

Ah, the completist, it leads to purchases like this which isn't a bad listen at all. I can imagine popping it in during a dinner party and chilling. Was the Kirk mix worth it?

The Wedding Present - Hit Parade 1 - 1992

"Hit Parade 1" a compilation of 6 singles (one per month Jan-Jun) plus their B-sides. The A-sides are all great: dark, moody. I'm not a fan of the B-sides. Just not a fan. Takes off where "Seamonsters" left off but nothing interests me on the B-side.

Lush covering Blondie

On June 28th, 1994 in Paris (Black Session), Lush covered "Sunday Girl" by Blondie. There was an earlier aborted take as well.

Thousand Yard Stare - Hands On - 1992

Hands On by Thousand Yard Stare - sort of a disappointment, produced by Stephen Street but I think my ears are more tuned to the single versions. There are many great tracks on the disk, especially the last two.

Al Jabr - One Million and Three - 1998

Next random selection was "One Million and Three" by Al Jabr (Richard H. Kirk) on the Alphaphone label. Pretty sure this was my second Kirk solo CD (the first being Trafficante). This has some great grooves, expecially tracks 1, 2, 4 and 5, quite an enjoyable CD but without a real standout I feel.

The Undertones - Cher O' Bowlies - 1986

Must have picked this up in the haste to reproduce my vinyl collection on CD. "Cher O' Bowlies" traces the Undertones career from punksters to popsters, and it certainly doesn't disappoint. When the first track is John Peel's favorite track you can't go wrong!

Glenn Branca - Lesson No. 1 - 2004

What a treat, re-issue of the first release of 99 Records "Lesson No. 1". Interesting, reading the liner notes it says that Branca was listening to a lot of "Love Will Tear Us Apart" by Joy Division before writing the track! Not sure why I didn't buy everything ever released on 99 Records at the time, but I used to frequent the place back in the day.

The Cure - Wish - 1992

"Wish" by the Cure was next out of the drawer. It has its moments but I never really was moved beyond the singles, except for maybe "Cut", so it didn't get much playtime.

Selections from Rubaiyat (Elektra's 40th Anniversary) - various - 1990

Hmmm, just listened to "Rubaiyat" and reaized I have the one CD version not the two CD version. Well I bought it for the great cover version of "Tokoloshe Man" by the Happy Mondays. Not sure I could make it through the 2 CD version. "Hello I Love You" covered by the Cure is an added bonus.

Morrissey - Vauxhall and I - 1994

Next in the stack is Vauxhall and I but I found it pretty forgettable sadly to say. "The More You Ignore Me..." well, I ignored this one for a long time and we'll see the next time I pull it out...

Cabaret Voltaire - Radiation - 1998

Next into the player was Cabaret Voltaire - Radiation. It begins with very stripped down "live" sessions and ends with a glossy finish. As you'd expect with me I prefer the early to the late. I wonder why they didn't do earlier BBC sessions?

Basement 5 - 1965-1980/Basement 5 in Dub - 2004

Never having owned this on vinyl, I rectified that when the re-issue came out and its been a treat ever since. Co-produced by Martin Hannett, need I say more?

Crocodiles - Echo and the Bunnymen - 1980

Where to begin? I remember buying the LP at Disc-o-Mat and later upgraded to the CD when it came out, probably from Noteworthy (an early internet retailer). I was always turned off by the album cover and still cringe by it. I remember trying to decide if it was worth the $5 on the price tag. It is still intense and moody and explosive and defnitely stands up to the test of time. "Crocodiles" by Echo and the Bunnymen.

The Birth of Alternative Vol. 1 - 1998

Compilations, I'm a sucker for them. I can't seem to get enough of them and I know exactly why I bought this one: "Indian Summer" - by Beat Happening. Can't get enough of that song. Can't say anything else on here swayed me one way or another however.

FAC. DANCE - 2011 (Strut)

2 CD's and a bonus remix disc, what could go wrong? Saw this disc in my stack and I'm sad to say I'm disappointed. No New Order. The standouts are the Section 25 tracks and the Abecedarians. I'm afraid a lot of it sounds dated. I wonder if Vol. 2 will show up in my stack of CD's. That one at least has ESG, but again, no New Order. Licensing issues? Hmmm....

Ultramarine - Barefoot EP - 1994

I picked up the 4 track Barefoot EP by Ultramarine for the 3rd track, the "Badger" remix by RHK. Happy to say that it still stands up.

Sandoz - Digital Lifeforms Redux - 2004

 Starting to go through my CD collection randomly to see what I can re-discover.  I may even move over to vinyl at some point.

Sandoz "Digital Lifeforms Redux"

This is Kirk at the top of his game, originally released in 1993.  I could never get tired of listening to this.

Standout tracks on the bonus disc are "Communicate with the Future" and "Zombi Savane" the latter of which samples "White Lines (Don't Do It)" by Grandmaster Flash which itself stole the riff from "Cavern" by Liquid Liquid and the court battle over this led to the demise of 99 Records

Definitely fond of this purchase!

That Petrol Emotion covering Pere Ubu

On November 17, 1985 in Camberley, UK That Petrol Emotion covered Non-Alignment Pact by Pere Ubu.

New Order covering Sparks

 On June 22, 1982 in Milano, Italy, New Order covered When I'm With You by Sparks.  I have owned this bootleg on vinyl since about 1983.  It is a _must_have_.  This was the only time New Order covered this song.  

The Beat (featuring Rankin' Roger) cover The Clash and The Specials

 On January 31st, 2018 at the Governor Hindmarsh Hotel in Adelaide, Australia the Beat (featuring Rankin' Roger) covered "Rock the Casbah" by the Clash as well as ending the show with "Enjoy Yourself" by the Specials!

Young Fresh Fellows covering the Soft Boys

 On March 20, 2001 at the Theater of the Living Arts in Philadelphia, the Young Fresh Fellows covered "Give It Up To The Soft Boys" by the Soft Boys.

Robyn Hitchcock covering The Only Ones and Gary Numan

On July 18, 2003 at the Three Kings Pub in Clerkenwell, London during a set of "Naff Hits of the 70's" Robyn Hitchcock covered "Another Girl Another Planet" by The Only Ones and "Are Friends Electric?" by Gary Numan.

May's tape number...

Finally retired the cassettes. Haven't had a tape player in years.  Only the best, XL-II's...

Here's a scan of the cassette labels

Echo and the Bunnymen covering Talking Heads and Television

On April 27th 1985 in Hultsfred, Sweden, Echo and the Bunnymen covered "The Big Country" by the Talking Heads and "Friction" by Television.

Chamelons covering Buzzcocks (RIP Pete Shelley)

On June 1st, 2019 in Maransart, Belgium, at a private party no less, the Chameleons Vox covered "Ever Fallen In Love" by the Buzzcocks.

Robyn Hitchcock covering The Psychedelic Furs

We've seen it before, but this is a different song. On April 12, 2002, at the Bottom Line in NYC (late show), Robyn Hitchcock covered "All That Money Wants" by the Psychedelic Furs.

Throwing Muses covering the Volcano Suns

On June 17, 1995 at Irvine Meadows, CA, the Throwing Muses covered "Jak" by the Volcano Suns.

Pop Will Eat Itself covering Pete Shelley (RIP Pete!)

On December 14, 2018 at the Craufurd Arms, Wolverton Pop Will Eat Itself covered "Homosapien" by Pete Shelley (RIP).

Echo and the Bunnymen covering Jonathan Richman

On November 22, 1985 in Liverpool, Echo and the Bunnymen covered "She Cracked" by Jonathan Richman.