"And Guess What I Found..." Part 1: 79-86

 

After last week's introduction, it's time to get to the songs themselves. A couple of things before we start though...

Firstly, the eagle-eyed amongst you will have noticed that there are eight songs here rather than the traditional ten. This is because I'm covering 86 songs altogether, so I thought it made sense to do two lots of eight then seven sets of ten (see the main page for the schedule).

Secondly, we need to talk about Valentina...

Gedge's fondness for big band music was already well established by the time it was announced that there would be a jazzy Cinerama reworking of Valentina. In 2009, David had performed a selection of Cinerama and TWP songs (including 'Brassneck' and 'Cat Girl Tights') with the BBC Big Band for Radio 2. 

There were some TWP fans who enjoyed this material, but they were in the minority. I have to confess that I was in the negative camp: I thought the arrangements didn't suit the songs or David's voice at all and I actually find these recordings quite a challenge to listen to. That said, the general consensus was that David should be admired for stepping out of his comfort zone (he certainly doesn't look comfortable in the video above) and trying something new. Fair play, as they say where I live.

The Cinerama version of Valentina provoked similar reactions. The overwhelming majority listened to it, said 'fair play' once more, then vowed never to listen to it again. One problem - although by no means the only one - that many (myself included) had with it is that it doesn't actually sound anything at all like Cinerama covering Valentina. The Cinerama sound 1998-2000 (before they started to morph back into TWP) was pretty clearly defined (see, for example, 'Love' or 'Film') - and there was no jazz, swing or big band sound in evidence. 

Preparing for this blog (using the same method as I did for my Wedding Present one), I ended up listening to the Valentina songs far more times than I had previously. I still disliked most of them, although there were a couple that I did find myself warming to. A little. So if you are a Valentina fan, be warned - you're going to meet most of the tracks in the first couple of posts...

86 Back a Bit... Stop

(Valentina 2015)

A disastrous collision of ill-conceived and mis-matched ideas thrown together into a hyperactive soup of easy-listening big band schmaltz. The various elements - sweeping strings, twanging guitars, blasting horns (which can't stop themselves resorting to default 'It's Not Unusual' mode) , jazzy piano, rumbling bongos - all seem to be playing different songs in different time signatures. An unholy mess.

85 Meet Cute

(Valentina 2015)

Gedge had expressed his love for epic Western soundtracks before, for example in the coda to 'Interstate 5'. Here, the same approach is rendered leaden-footed and chaotic. The transitions between sections are ham-fisted and Gedge's vocal line seems completely divorced from the arrangement.  Aims for epic; lands in shambolic.

84 Cita a Ciegues

(Valentina 2015)

A lo-fi piece of cabaret cheesiness that concludes the album in a rather pointless and underwhelming fashion. Could possibly have made for a mildly diverting interlude if it was about a quarter of the length. 

83 You're Dead

(Valentina 2015)

Not the strongest TWP song in the first place (it reached only 118 on my list), here it gets a sluggish swing treatment that does it no favours. In particular, it emphasises the song's weakest point: its rather cringey chorus. It's not entirely without merit - the Hammond organ splashes work nicely enough - but overall it's a bit of a tiresome plod.  

82 The Girl From the DDR

(Valentina 2015)

Once again, the swirl of the Hammond organ is the best feature, and the horn motifs at the end of each line of the chorus are also quite sweet. The transitions are distinctly awkward though, and David struggles with this vocal - rather painfully in places.

81 You Jane

(Valentina 2015)

The reserved two-chord swing of the verse is passable enough, Terry adds some nicely breathy backing vocals and once again the Hammond adds a bit of colour. But overall, it's sluggish take on a song that wasn't that strong in the first place.

80 The Name of the Game

(Single, 2018)

I'm no great ABBA fan, but I can certainly appreciate the intense melancholy of their 1977 hit. The Cinerama cover is disappointingly flat and listless.

79 Deer Caught in the Headlights

(Valentina 2015)

I am a fan of the song - probably more than most, to go by the reaction to me placing it at number 19 on the Suddenly It's Tuesday list - and this one of the better Valentina offerings. It starts off in a reasonably promising fashion: after the initial string and horn flourishes, it settles into a pleasantly measured groove with a driving bass line (that brings Bruce Foxton to mind) backed with a mellow organ. 

This doesn't last long, however, the fussy horn parts in particular becoming increasingly distracting as the song progresses. Throw in some twinkly keyboards, breathy backing vocals, swirling strings and a burst of gameshow organ, and once again we end up with a bit of an overcooked mess. Concludes with a pleasant if unremarkable coda that fades out and back in again for no detectable reason.

That's it for this week - see you next Wednesday for 71-78.

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