I missed this when it came out back in 2015, a standalone 7" single from Michael Head and his Red Elastic Band. The b-side is a jazzy song about Koala Bears with an intelrude into Close To You. The a-side is a beaut, with a finger picked intro reminiscent of Everybody's Talkin', cello and Mick singing of the pleasures of listening to Lou, Sterling, John and Mo in the park, in the dark.
Velvets In The Dark
This live version was recorded in March 2016 at Islington Assembly Hall, all reverb and atmosphere. It shimmers. If you want a physical copy of the studio version Piccadilly Records seem to have some left.
4 comments:
love this single
Velvets In The Dark and Koala Bears form a single that is among my favorite things Mick Head as ever released. Velvets brings back memories of sitting in my loft conversion bedroom as a High School student, lights off at 2am listening to Candy Says, Pale Blue Eyes and the rest of The Velvet Underground, dreaming of laying on a carpet in Andy's Factory or walking in Alphabet City with Lou and John on a sunny Saturday afternoon. If it seems that's a rather specific 40 year old memory, it's because it's one that's really stuck and I still go back to that late night waking dream whenever The Velvets come on - and now when Velvets In The Dark does as well.
Koala Bears is a beautifully altered bit of Chamber Pop that in any other hands would never seem genuine.
Sorry, one more note on Koala Bears...when I was creating a Playlist of Michael Head, Shack, Pale Fountains and Strands for my trip to Cadiz last year I unwittingly programmed Koala Bears just before The Fountains epic (IMHO) Thank You from Pacific Street. Both feature the beautiful work of Andy Diagram on Trumpet, linking the quiet beauty of Koala Bears with the grandiose, string-laden, innocence of Thank You. They show the power of Mick Head's songwriting from some his earliest attempts to some of his most recent and the stand solidly together.
You are welcome to pop and leave multiple comments whenever you like Echorich
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