TV Cream

Albums

‘London 0 Hull 4’ by The Housemartins

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KnLFCY2vWoI

AGIT-PROP indie-gospel Thatcher-baiting that wasn’t afraid to fall over on Wacaday. For the briefest of pop moments, a bunch of overgrown students in shabby jumpers somehow emerged through the radio twilight zone of John Peel/Janice Long endorsement to become the nation’s favourite chart-toppers, perplexingly acquiring a zany cuddly image despite singing Blue Peter-baiting songs about shooting bankers, monarch-instigated throttling, and, erm, turning pigs upside down. All the unexpectedly-Wogan-appearance-generating hits were present and correct on the Fourth Best Band In Hull’s ‘Quite Good’ debut (although – completists take note – Flag Day and Think For A Minute! both appeared in ‘different’ versions) alongside loads more piano-pounding jangly guitar leftism and a couple of Comedy Bit In Jossy’s Giants-friendly instrumentals, which defied its Red Wedge-rabble-rousing origins to become the must-have for those AntiApartheid badge-sporting youngsters who were wont to, well, think for a minute, and eventually to sit alongside Graceland in the swankiest of habitat-furnished chrome-and-black pads in ‘the city’, doubtless helped on its way by the mock-vintage stylings of the tastefully tinted sleeve.

7 Comments

7 Comments

  1. Matthew Rudd

    February 1, 2010 at 8:18 pm

    On every Walkman in the East Riding from September 1986 to June 1987.

  2. Applemask

    February 4, 2010 at 2:30 pm

    Flag Day appeared in a superior version, I think is what you meant to say. The single mix is on Now That’s What I Call Quite Good anyway.

  3. TV Cream

    February 4, 2010 at 2:42 pm

    Nope, didn’t mean to say that at all… the Ted Key version will always be best.

  4. A Sheep

    February 4, 2010 at 3:13 pm

    Always remember Hugh Whitaker announcing his departure in the pages of Smash Hits with a photo captioned “Bidding a fond farewell to showbusiness” which showed him cheerfully flicking the Vs at the camera in a Harvey Smith fashion.

    Shame how it turned out for him (Shining-style axe attacks and all), here’s hoping he’s back on track.

  5. televisualcabbage

    February 4, 2010 at 3:56 pm

    Also used by Look North Hull to point out Hull City’s first Premier League season success against the London clubs. So maybe the first album title to predict the pools!

  6. Jakey Doodles

    February 12, 2010 at 10:37 pm

    I’ve still got this album and although the 80’s feel is a bit dated it still has some cracking songs. Happy Hour and Flag Day are classics. The second album wasn’t bad either.

  7. Richard Davies

    August 12, 2010 at 5:01 pm

    I can remember hearing Happy Hour everywere in the summer of 1986, along with Stan Ridgeway’s Camoflage.

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