Still Feel The Rain

This record, Still Feel The Rain by Stex, was released on 19th November 1990, thirty five years ago yesterday. 

Still Feel The Rain (The Grid Remix)

It rolls in on a very danceable, very 1990 breakbeat. There's a clipped, funky guitar riff, the spirit of Nile Rodgers has been conjured into acid house. A bumpy bassline, sounding like The Orb or The Grid. And then a vocal, a female lead joined by a male on the chorus, 'I still feel the rain now the storm is over/ Still the cold when you open the door'. Wonderful uptempo house/ pop. 

Stex briefly promised to be a Sly Stone for the 90s. it wasn't to be- an album, Spiritual Dance, didn't follow until 1992. Still Feel The Rain got some music press coverage and should have been a smash hit. The press coverage came via two factors- the single was remixed by The Grid and the guitar was played by Johnny Marr. 

Richard Norris and Dave Ball were just starting out as The Grid in 1990- singles like Floatation and A Beat called Love and an album, Electric Head, saw them flying their flag high. It's easy to see why Johnny Marr was happy to play on Still Feel The Rain. He was post- Smiths, Chic had always been an influence on his guitar playing and in 1990 he was perfectly placed to enjoy acid house. He was repositioning himself away from those Smiths fans who still blamed him for breaking up the band, playing on a slice of good time, acid house pop, grooving in the video with hair cropped short and wearing white with a gold necklace. Johnny's moved on writ large. 

It didn't work out for Stex- there was an album and a handful more singles. Better to have made one great single than none at all but this record is a perfect little time capsule,a postcard from 1990.