Records

Rip It Up, Issue 113, 1 December 1986, Page 40

Records

Topp TWins Go Vinyl Festival In the wake of the Topp Twins telly debut a re-issue of their vinyl debut has hit the shelves, with the added extras ‘Graffiti Raiders' and ‘Paradise’ — both songs taken from the Web Women’s Collective album Out of the Comers. All the favourites are here — ‘Good Sisters Gone Bad,’ ‘Untouchables,’ ‘Bastion Point’ and ‘Mr Ronald Reagan.’ The EP is interesting historically, when compared to Twinset and Pearls — the straightforward guitar backing on Vinyl sounds fine in comparison to the instrumenta-

tion on Pearls. Those who said at the time ‘‘where do they go from here” were silly to think the Topps couldn’t add a backing. In fact, I doubt there’s anything the Twins can’t do. What can I say? The Topp Twins are like a national treasure — a taonga if you like! Hopefully, lots of people who saw the Topps on telly will rush out and buy te recrd and start being set free! Fiona Rae Taj Mahal Taj Gramavision Taj has turned up the sweetest, clearest and possibly to our shores, the dearest example of his artistry to date. Included are two tracks penned by Herbs, ‘Light of The Pacific’ and ‘French Letter,’ illustrating the bond held for some time between the two parties.

Included in his stack of supporting musicians are characters such as Jesse "Ed” Davies, a guitarist whose history runs through the Faces and solo projects by Ringo Starr and George Harrison. Taj’s cast of thousands is thick with horns, vocals and percussion, with Babatunde Olatunji "putting the Juju in what we-do and you-doo.” The result is a rich and impeccably bright blend of calypso, reggae roots and blues. Don’t leave off the rhythm either. “Do I Love Her” grooves along with a strainer post of a bass line — and groove is the operative word on all tracks. Crying mouth harp and guitar lend themselves to the shady smoke filled nightclub and dark winding alley — but remember, this album is as clean as. I love the steel drums on ‘Kauai Kalypso’ ... an amazingly pretty and pacey tune that weaves the ol-

dest of blues formulas in a .way that Malcolm McLaren (joke) could only dream of doing with black soulsters. Other tracks ‘Soothin’ and ‘Pillowtalk’ slink away in a very humble form of jazz shuffle. None of the 10 tracks are in the least offensive or brash ... if you insist on being complex, then yes, it is a sophisticated album, but it never strays from the bottom line; never betrays itself. From the charismatic opener ‘Everybody Needs Somebody’ to Herbs’ ‘French Letter’ (given added beauty by-Taj), the album clips through 40 minutes of the warmest sunshine you’ll find this summer. You must have it. Barry Caitcheon Everything But the Girl Baby the Stars Shine Bright (WEA) Yeah, they’ve come a long way

from their cover of Cole Porter’s ‘Night and Day;’ These days they’re writing their own Cole Porters. This third album, with an orchestra in tow, sees Tracey Thorn and Ben Watt turn the corner into a maturity that results in ballads as strong as ‘Careless’ and ‘Little Hitler.’ But of the 10 songs here only the classy ‘Don't Leave Me Behind’ and ‘Sugar Finney’ break out of the cocktail dinner jacket. Too restrained for me but if you think the night time is the right time then here’s your backdrop. GK Dream Syndicate Out of the Grey (Bigtime) As the sun sets on the guitar resurgence the likes of the Del Fuegos, Rain Parade and now the Dream Syndicate are struggling to find the ideas to survive. For a while they all basked in anti-tech accolades and Steve Wynn’s Syndicate deserved applause for the psychotic lineup that was The Medicine Show. Out of the Grey slips down several notches intoroutine beginner’s guitar songs — borrowing more than they create. ‘Boston’ and ‘Now I Ride Alone’ remain the exceptions on an album from a band in danger of losing the little identity they had. GK Bad Company Fame and Fortune (WEA)

A reformed version without singer Paul Rodgers, now busy with the Firm. Unfortunately it doesn’t live up to the Bad Company name but still contains some great pieces, like the title track and ‘Burning Up.’ With Mick Jones at the controls it sounds more like a new Foreigner album than a Bad Company one, so it’s hardly another Straightshooter. GD WASP

Inside the Electric Circus (EMI) Blackie Lawless welcomes you to the wild wicked WASP world of

sex and outrage, so hang on as they rip through these nasty nine and two covers. Delivered with all the grace of ... well, a buzz-saw cod-piece, this offering is sure to please WASP’s ever-increasing swarm of followers. GD Triumph The Sport of Kings (WEA)

After more than a decade of making good rock records without a great deal of commercial success, it seems Triumph are aiming for wider audience appeal. An acoustic guitar piece called ‘Embrujo’ precedes the hard-hitting song ‘Play with the Fire.’ The rest is pretty light material, though all finely played with nice crisp production. Still good but maybe too mellow for some. GD Megadeath Peace Sells, But Who’s Buying (EMI) Second recording from this new band and they sound sorta like Metallica’s little brother, which isn't surprising since guitarist Dave Mustaine was in the first line-up. Sure they play hard and are tight enough, but they seem limited lyrically with nearly every track being about death. If you like your metal very heavy this will be your cup of tea; to others it’ll be more like a cup of cyanide. GD Various Artists Masters of Metal (K-Tel) As far as compilations go, this one’s alright if you want to sample the range of heavy rock artists around and don't want to fork out the bucks for all the original albums. A fairly good coverage and there’s a couple of local bands included too. Knightshade’s ‘Blood and Money’ is the better produced and fits in well. Now what do you do with the free plastic patch of a bald evil moron wielding a big stone hammer? Geoff Dunn