Customer Reviews

Bash!

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

After the acrimonious breakup of Rockpile, the fate of Nick Lowe and Dave Edmunds wasn't in question; Guitar wizard Billy Bremner was more of a wildcard. He delivered in spades on BASH! [criminally, never seeing a US release until now]. Produced and mostly co-written by Will Birch from UK powerpop denizens The Records, BASH! is a delight for Rockpile fans from start to finish.

Featuring a sublime classic in Elvis Costello's donated original, "Shatterproof", and a country-hit-just-waiting-to-be- covered in "When These Shoes Were New" [as well as the Stiff single "Loud Music In Cars"], this album is a MUST for anyone who ever loved "Tracks on Wax 4" or "Labour of Lust" by his rockin' compatriots. For those who bought the vinyl LP in the 80s, bonus B-sides from the Stiff 45s are also included. Billy's more recent album, also on Gadfly Records ["A Good Week's Work"] is also VERY worthy of your attention.

Let's be honest: this is hardly a "lost" masterpiece. Sure, Bremner's terrific--when he's got the right band, the right songs, and some sympathetic arrangements. (Let the man ROCK, is what I'm saying.) But a lot of these tunes are merely pleasant--hardly up to Rockpile standards--and the production is horribly dated. (Sounds more like bad Squeeze, say, than the bashing Brinsleys.) Probably worth three stars as an LP. Now let's talk turkey: this thing was mastered off vinyl. There are audible clicks & pops throughout--something that's simply inexcusable for an '80s release. If Gadfly couldn't get the masters, that's one thing; but, jeez, at least dig up a cleaner record for your reissue.

I did not buy this on Vinyl at the time and I was only vaguely aware of Rockpile at the time of their breakup (I remember Little Sister with Robert Plant on vocals from the Concert for the People of Kampuchea video being in heavy rotation on MTV). However, in the last few years I have come to appreciate the careers of Nick Lowe and Dave Edmunds and through my explorations of their solo music and the Seconds Of Pleasure album, I have been fortunate enough to come to learn about Billy Bremner.

This guy has been a stealthy secret weapon in many a band. Q. Who did Chrissie Hynde call on when she needed a guitar player for Back On The Chain Gang in the wake of JHS's death? A. BB!

Bash is a lot of fun, just a great pop-rockin' / roots rock blowout. Some of my favorite songs are the bonus tracks on this re-issue especially Yes Please!

Minus one star because as the other reviewer noted, this disc was mastered from vinyl and not cleaned up particularly well. No big deal, it still is a blast to listen to.

I was really happy to see this finally re-released on CD, cause it had been too long since I'd been able to listen to this gem of a record. Contrary to the slagging this disc takes in a previous comment on this page, the production, songs, and performances on this record are top notch. A must for any Rockpile fan. I think he had the best voice in that band and his guitar playing is always great. There are some great and rare bonus tracks here too, that had previously only been on long out-of-print and very hard to find singles. These are also very good. Check out this disc!

From his work with Nick Lowe and Rockpile to session work with everyone, including Paul McCartney, and his overlooked solo career Billy Bremner consistently puts out a clean, shimmering pop sound. This CD is highly reccomended for fans of The Beatles, Badfinger, The Beach Boys and others of their style. Little known and greatly underappreciated Billy Bremner is a superb artist.

Originally released in 1984, four years after Rockpile's one official album, guitarist Billy Bremner's first solo LP makes him appear to be the George Harrison of the band. Like Harrison, Bremner is a distinctive guitarist, and though an able songwriter and singer, his contributions were often overshadowed by those of his bandmates (Nick Lowe and Dave Edmunds).

This breakout LP provides a good idea of what he contributed to the Rockpile equation. In addition to vocals and guitar, his ability to write a memorable melody and a catchy lyric (assisted, by co-writer/producer Will Birch of The Records) is substantial. Gadfly's reissue adds five bonus tracks, gathered from singles that pre-date the LP.

Pete Wingfield, Terry Williams (Rockpile) and Bobby Irwin all pitch in. Birch's production is a bit more mid-80s grand than Lowe's was for Rockpile (and the preceding Lowe/Edmunds solo LPs), but there's still a lot of late-70s energy left here. "Fire in My Pocket, " "Meek Power," and "Yes Please!" could easily have been Rockpile tracks, and songs like "Look at That Car" bring to mind the L.A. pop of 20/20.

Surprisingly ignored at the time of its original issue, this reissue provides many power pop fans a chance to appreciate Bremner's debut for the first time.