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Friday, February 09, 2007
WILD CHILD
LASER SHOW
WHAT'S GONE WRONG
The Untouchables
Wild Child
Stiff Records : 1985
Re-issue Cherry Red UK : 2002
[Buy it]
MySpace
The Untouchables were a Californian Mod/Ska band that passed into my airspace sometime during high school at a time when kids were popping up and down in Fishbone shirts. They are the first band I ever saw live. I was at a UB40 show at the Lisner Auditorium in DC, and the show started and I remember thinking "I didn't know UB40 had so many black people in it" and then after three songs I didn't recognize: "Geez when are they going to play 'Red Red Wine'?" It wasn't during one of my cooler periods. I really don't remember anything else about that night. I'm not sure why, although the Lisner has a way of sucking detail out of the air.
I didn't see a whole lot of live music in High School. I passed up a number of chances to see IRS-period REM. $8 seemed kinda steep. Ditto Prince's Purple Rain and Talking Heads' Stop Making Sense tours.
I did see Go-Go legends Trouble Funk play at Sidwell Friends, a small, private Quaker High School in Northwest Washington. I think Megan was there, though I wouldn't meet her until 2 decades later. And one of the first things we talked about when we did meet, was what the fuck was Trouble Funk always doing at Sidwell Friends High School?
The title track Wild Child was the clear hit off the Untouchables debut LP. When it comes to the 2-Tone species, I really can't think of a more wonderful specimen. The bands popular tide soon flagged, and drew back to the West Coast. I stopped listening to UB40 for good soon after and haven't even considered them for 20 years, though I did make a bet with my girlfriend a couple weeks ago: she claimed Neil Diamond wrote Red Red Wine, I insisted it had roots in an old rocksteady song. She won: the Jewish Elvis dropped that hot pocket almost FORTY years ago.
But I hung on to Wild Child in the form of a dusty gold Maxell cassette, and the song that I always returned to was Laser Show. There is something so perfectly and deftly spare about it. I was happy to discover recently that Wild Child had been re-mastered for CD in 2002 with bonus action (including this extended version of What's Gone Wrong), and recently took up residence in iTunes.
I don't really have anything more to say, so I'll ask you, MW faithful, to answer me one or more of these questions:
1. What was your first concert? Discuss.
2. Name a T-shirt that out-sold the band it advertised more so than the Fishbone T-shirt.
3. The comments below were left on a youtube video. WITHOUT cheating, tell me the name of the artist and song they apply to. (The answer has nothing really to do with anything in this post)
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I'M NOT CRYING, THERE'S SOMETHING IN MY EYE!!!!!!!!!!!!
JUst a beautiful piece of musicianship. It's a shame that songs like this aren't big hits anymore..
If there was ever a song where the picture was painted before the artist ever said a word, it was THIS one. The scene, the mood, the picture...everything is set before he sings his first line.
sob sob sob (reminds me of my cousin who died of cancer a year ago)
Gangsta rap is all bad. Anyone who thinks it's cool to glorify criminal activity, prison life and raping girls is nothing but sick!!! This stuff is great! Good wholesome values here.
Man this song takes me back to the essence of my being, freakin amazing.
I actually saw him perform this song in the living room of a friend of mine. Excellent! He's a good guy too.
excellent i really like this song and im only 19
I was conceived to this song..thanks mom!
I remember puking up having the flu listening to this as a kid and it would make me feel better.
This song's so beautiful it makes me want to do smack.
great song, no good music now; rap sucks
i love this song!! i dreamt that i was flying and it was the best dream i ever had coz it felt so real..;'b
Reminds me of my vacation at Lake George, NY....circa 1972...
If you play close attention... this song is actually about espionage... Nothing is what it seems. Scope the lyrics reeeeeeeallll close...
rap is not REAL music. It is borrowed, homogenized, artificial crap that rots the brains of its creator and listener as well. This is an actually song with real instruments, thoughtful lyrics, melody, and emotion. Today's music doesn't just pale in comparison; THERE IS NO COMPARISON!
I just love this song because it reminds me of the best brothers ever, Kenny & Kevin, that night at the karaoke was AMAZING!!
love this song..
really makes fall in love again
and again
again...
and
really makes me feel free...
Classic. Rap should die a painful death!!!
- - - - - - - - - - - -Labels: James, ska
posted by James
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