Customer Reviews

Reaching To The Converted (Minding The Gaps)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Billy's version of Walk Away Renee (accompanied by Johnny Marr) alone makes this CD worth the cost. After seeing this song performed live in 1988 I've been searching through second hand record stores for years trying to find this track. I love the line "I told her I'm the most illegible bachelor in town, and she said yeah that's why I never understood any of those silly letters you keep sending". Cracks me up every time! Another highlight is a very beautiful rendition of She's Leaving Home with backup vocals from Cara Tivy. Very memorable. There are many other gems amongst this collection of B-sides. Essential CD for all Bragg fans.

Good to hear the new version of 'Greetings to the New Brunette' - retitled 'Shirley' here, it's got a heavier sound than the original, and both are, in their different ways, excellent. Even better to get a lyric sheet for the song, where Bragg sings "I'm more impressionable when my _cement_ is wet". I always thought that instead of 'cement' he sang about something more...uhh...biological...Well, it certainly makes a lot more sense than 'cement'.

Best of all though is his version of 'Walk Away Renee'. The tune itself is always a heartbreaker, and on this recording guitarist Johnny Marr picks it out while Bragg talks about a funny/pathetic failed love affair ("The first time she spoke to me, my nose started to bleed. She guessed the rest"). Used to have this on the B side of one of his singles, now sadly long lost. At the time it seemed painfully accurate, presumably because I was going through a funny/pathetic failed love affair...It's a classic. Worth the price of admission alone.

The rest - there's some new stuff (to me, anyway) like 'Sulk' which is excellent; and a ballad version of 'Wishing the Days Away' which isn't bad though not up to the original. I'm not all that keen on Bragg's political rants, and this is not just political bias speaking. Unfortunately, when he gets on his soapbox he loses his delicacy of touch, not to mention his humour (when he keeps both, as on the 'Workers Playtime' album, he is great).

Billy Bragg is undoubtedly the exponent of modern British folk music. Spanning Billy's 17 year carreer, this collection of B-sides and rarities is an awesome addition to any Bragg fan's collection. The songs, coming from different stages in Bragg's carrer, are pretty diverse musically, ranging from just guitar and vocals to the more produced, full-band sound of his recent work.

Whereras most other artists record B-sides just for the sake of backing up a single, Billy seemed to put as much effort into a B-side as any of his singles or album tracks. There are so many excellent tracks here that I don't know where to begin. There are some biting political rants in the good-ole Bragg tradition - the superb "Think Again" and "Days Like These"; some beautifully sparse love songs - "Ontario, Quebec and Me" and my personal favourite "Scholarship Is The Enemy Of Romance"; some poppy full-band tunes - the sublime "Sulk" and "Bad Penny"; and some inspired covers - "Jeanne" [The Smiths], "She's Leaving Home" [The Beatles], "The Tatler" [Ry Cooder] and "Heart Like A Wheel [Kate and Anna McGarrigle]. A few other songs worth mentioning are "Shirly", a remake of "Greetings To The New Brunette" on which Johnny Marr plays all the instruments; "Walk Away Renee", a love poem read by Billy accompanied again by Johnny Marr; and a nice sleepy folk song, "Rule Nor Reason".

If you are a die-hard Bragg fan this is a must have, but if you are unfamiliar with Bragg or are just getting into him, don't start here - instead start with "Back To Basics" - it's a marvellous introduction to this much overlooked talent that is Billy Bragg.

Billy Bragg has never been as one-dimensional as some of his detractors might have you believe. His political aspect has always had it's counterpoint in his understanding of humanity. And that's exactly what comes across on this collection of B-sides and rarities.

If you want politics, you've got the excellent, tell-it-like-it-is "Think Again" and "Days Like These". But love songs also abound, both the bitter-sweet and the humorous. Some classics that need to be mentioned are "Walk Away Renee (version)","Bad Penny" and "Sulk". Other's worth special mention are "She's Leaving Home", "Rule nor Reason" and, of course, "Shirley (greetings to the new brunette)"

What has always stood out, for me, about all Billy's songs (and his covers of other artists songs) is his honesty. One gets the feeling that he's been there (whether it was good or bad), and that he couldn't be glib about it if he tried. So his voice convinces, and bites deep where others would merely leave scratches.

If you've never heard his songs before, give this a go - you'll enjoy it.

If you're already familiar with his work, why haven't you got it yet?

As a young fella who's only been into Billy Bragg for a few of years and missed the chance to get his singles on vinyl, it's brilliant to finally be able to hear stuff like "Walk Away Renee" and "She's Leaving Home", which I've been trying to lay my hands on for ages. The version of "Greetings to the New Brunette" is a bit of a curiosity, and it doesn't top the version on Taxman in my opinion, but I like the Smiths cover and its good to hear stuff like "Days Like These" and "Raglan Road". This is a godsend for die-hard Bragg fans, and because of the variety of stuff on it, from early guitar-voice material to work with the Red Stars, it'd be a fairly good introduction too. Keep it up, Bill!

An uneven album of B-sides and rarities, nevertheless essential for a few golden nuggets which all Bragg fans should have in their play-list. The relatively obscure - and much too short - Scholarship is the Enemy of Romance, is the pick for me. Here we find Barking's most famous Saturday Boy at his love-sick best. A cover of a Smith's lesser-known track, the kitchen-sink classic, Jeane, is also memorable. Also included is one of Bragg's best political songs, Days Like These, which has the same lump-in-the-throat poignancy as his more familiar Between the Wars.

... as a fan of Billy's since the release of 'Talking with the Taxman...', I bought this thinking it was exactly as titled, something for us 'Billy' fans, and it did NOT dissapoint... those of us in the 'States' had missed out on alot of what was released in England... that being said... the original of 'Accident Waiting to Happen' has much more power as a song, and 'Greetings...', in it's original version is also much better... the rest of this LP is fantastic throughout (including those re-made songs)... I've put songs from this LP on mix-tapes for friends, and they're never disappointed... it's wonderful how you can tell in each stage of Billy's career that 'this song' was an outtake from this album, and 'that song', was an outtake from this... and then there are his hits from England that we never got to hear until now.... amazing that one of my favorite artists ever could come out with the most 'essential' B-Sides LP ever... why couldn't XTC have done this?

I must confess to not knowing Billy till Mermaid ave.(which i love along with mermaid 2)But after purchasing this cd i definately plan on buying more from him.Unlike other reviewers, I am not afraid to have my beliefs challenged-especially by such a fresh and courageous perspective-that is to say I come away from his political songs invigorated, refreshed and sometimes with a new perspective--and I think that is exactly what Billy wants to accomplish.

I just bought this album the other day and saw Billy in concert that night. He plays too many Woody Guthrie songs in my opinion, but the man has to play what makes him happy, and he apparently was. Highlights of the show and this disk included the Johhny Marr version of Greetings to the new Brunette (retitled Shirley here), Accident Waiting to Happen (brilliant live and on this disc), The Boy Done Good, the *version* of Walk Away Renee. I read other reviewers unhappiness with this song, but seeing it live really fleshes it out. Its really a joking kind of monologue, and Billy said "I realized I wasn't in love when one day she voted Tory" live. Funny. Being the biggest Johnny Marr fan in the world (arguably) hearing him play this excellent folk classic on accoustic guitar is a very nice treat, but that might not float your boat. The covers are both good, and the only song I dont' care for is the final one, but maybe that will grow on me too. All in all, an excellent disk. Don't tell your friends its a b-sides comp and they won't figure it out on their own.

Thanks Bill, you've done it again. Another fab complilation.

I didn't think I'd see the day when I'd have the opportunity to own an unscratched copy of "Bad Penny", in my own humble opinion, one of The Bard of Barkings finest moments. So good to see "Ontario" made it on to the disc as well.

The new version of "Greetings" rocks and if anything, is an improvement on the "Talking to the Taxman" version.

Finally, "Jeanne". Thanks so much Bill. A great tune, check out The Smiths version if you can. You'll find it on the B-Side of "This Charming Man".

Billy is the best of the 80's and the 90's, which makes this compilation so apt.

I never thought I'd say thank you to Thatcher for anything, but Thank you Maggie, without you we'd all be without Our Billy.

"If no one out there understands then start your own revolution and cut out the middle man."