UK – Page 24

The Fixx | Walkabout

“A London-based new wave group that managed to sustain a successful career in America for several years in the mid-’80s,” reports AllMusic, “the Fixx always flirted with the mainstream with their catchy, keyboard-driven pop.” After several albums and growing success in the US, “The terse, pulsating ‘One Thing Leads to Another’ became a #4 hit.” The band, which had less success in its native UK, “kept their basic, synth-driven sound intact for 1986’s Walkabout, which featured the hit ‘Secret Separation.'”

Starting in E major, the groove-driven title track shifts to G major at 1:12, Bb at 1:44, and finally Db at 3:04. Throughout, the melody features a very un-poppy factor: a very prominent tension 11 in the melody (heard for the first time at 0:16 on the final syllable of “investi-gate“), seemingly leading the way in providing the tense atmosphere so common to the band’s output.

Dan K. Brown deserves a special mention for his imaginative fretless bass lines, which hop and skitter through the track, providing as at least as much drive to the tune as its prominent percussion or Cy Curnin’s distinctive vocals.

Average White Band | A Love of Your Own

“Their self-effacing name to the contrary, Average White Band are anything but — one of the few white groups to cross the color line and achieve success and credibility playing funk,” AllMusic reports. “With their tight, fiery sound also belying their Scottish heritage, evoking American R&B hotbeds like Detroit, Memphis, and Philadelphia instead.”

Wikipedia details that the band had several soul and disco hits between 1974 and 1980: “They are best known for their million-selling instrumental track ‘Pick Up the Pieces’, and for their albums AWB and Cut the Cake … They have influenced others, such as the Brand New Heavies, and been sampled by various musicians, including the Beastie Boys, Public Enemy, TLC, Too Short, Ice Cube, Eric B. & Rakim, Nas, A Tribe Called Quest, and Arrested Development, making them the 15th most sampled act in history.” Despite many changes in lineup, as of 2020, the band continues on — 48 years after it was formed.

“A Love of Your Own” (1976) starts in F# minor, shifts to A minor at 0:44, then returns to F# minor at 1:12. The pattern holds through a second verse (through 2:24), where a wholesale shift upwards to G minor kicks in for the balance of the tune — which amounts to an extended 3-minute chorus/outro. Many thanks to stalwart mod wrangler JB for submitting this tune!

Strangers Like Me (from “Tarzan”)

“Strangers Like Me,” by English drummer and songwriter Phil Collins (best known for his work with the rock band Genesis), was originally featured in the 1999 Disney animated film Tarzan, and later included in a Broadway musical adaptation. Also popular as a pop song, the track reached the #10 spot on the US Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks chart. Straight-forward half-step modulation at 3:06.

Swing Out Sister | Break Out

“… Swing Out Sister‘s music is unashamedly commercial pop,” AllMusic notes. The UK group’s “jazz-tinged arrangements and knack for clever hooks move them closer to the indie dance territory of St. Etienne or late period Everything But the Girl than to the cookie-cutter dance-pop of Kylie Minogue or Paula Abdul.” “Breakout” was the stand-out single from the band’s 1987 debut album, It’s Better to Travel, which AllMusic calls “a dreamy collection of mostly electronic pop songs that manages to sound warmly organic through the judicious use of real strings and horns and Corinne Drewery’s lovely voice, which recalls the throaty purr of vintage Dusty Springfield … ‘Breakout’ (was) one of the finest U.K. pop singles of the late ’80s.”

This unapologetically bouncy pop tune somehow seemed to know upfront that it would become an international smash hit, scoring top 5 chart positions in the UK, US, Canada, and New Zealand as well as prominent chart performance throughout Europe. The track swung for the fences and succeeded in nearly single-handedly establishing the band as late-80s sophistipop royalty. A whole-step modulation at 3:02 is announced by the boisterous horn section.

Many thanks to not one but two of our regular contributors, Chris L. and JB, who suggested this tune completely independently of one another!

Gareth Gates | Anyone of Us (Stupid Mistake)

“Anyone of Us (Stupid Mistake)” is featured on the 2002 debut album of English pop singer Gareth Gates, What My Heart Wants To Say. The second single released from the album, the track debuted at #1 on the UK Single Chart, and also reached the top spot in the Netherlands, Sweden, and Norway. Key change at 2:48.

Elvis Costello | Oliver’s Army

Rolling Stone‘s capsule review of Armed Forces, the 1979 album by UK post-punk rocker Elvis Costello, proclaimed that the single “Oliver’s Army” was “…the pièce de résistance … on an album that’s a killer in several senses of the word. The tune sounds bright and bouncy, with a jangly keyboard riff along the lines of ‘Here Comes Santa Claus,’ and it’s enough to make you want to rock around the room.”

AllMusic elaborates: “‘Oliver’s Army’ was a 45 that radio could hardly refuse — that is, until programmers listened closely to the words and discovered it was a bitter screed about how impressionable youth were being used as cannon fodder by Tory leaders whose political agendas had little to do with the concerns of the man on the street.”

According to American Songwriter, keyboardist Steve Nieve’s “buoyant” piano part was stylistically inspired by ABBA’s 1976 hit single “Dancing Queen” — confirmed by Nieve himself. Starting in A major, the F# major bridge arrives at 1:35; Costello’s own backing vocals go out of phase here, echoing the lead or disappearing entirely, rather than the wide-ranging two-part harmonies which adamantly speak together elsewhere. Another jaunty verse kicks in at 1:53, this time in B major, carrying us to the end of the tune. Many thanks to prolific mod submitter JB for this classic!

Shayne Ward | That’s My Goal

Vocalist Shayne Ward was the winner of the second season of the British reality music competition The X Factor, and “That’s My Goal” was his debut single after his victory in 2005. The track sold over 300,000 copies in the two days after its initial release, making it the fastest- selling song of 2005, and ultimately the third fastest-selling song of all time in the UK. Key change at 2:48.

Beatles | Something

American Songwriter features a post on The Beatles’ 1969 release “Something” that can’t be improved upon:

“The only Harrison-written Beatles tune to top the US charts, this song’s simple beauty has earned it a place in the hearts of millions and in the repertoires of countless other artists (‘Something’ is the second most-covered Beatles song after ‘Yesterday’).

Harrison’s three lyrically parallel and sonically even verses are interrupted by a key change, which prompts an up-tempo bridge. A spirited but mellow solo by Harrison shows off his unparalleled chops and brings the song back into its original key, thus leading into a final verse that lends closure to this gorgeous track…For all its initial intricacies and experimentation, a song that once hit the eight minute mark was ultimately whittled down to a three minute number that defied the band’s musical conventions.” The article mentions that Harrison had an aural image of Ray Charles in mind when writing it, but added “I’m not Ray Charles.”

According to BeatlesEBooks.com, the humble Harrison told BBC radio “They blessed me with a couple of B-sides in the past. This is the first time I’ve had an A-side. A big deal, eh? Ha-ha.”

The Feeling | Love It When You Call

“Love It When You Call” was featured on Twelve Steps and Home, the 2006 debut album of the English rock band The Feeling. The track peaked at #18 on the UK Singles Chart, and was also performed at a live concert in 2006 produced by the BBC’s charity Children in Need, which supports disadvantaged children in the UK. Key change at 2:53, then back to the original key at 3:11.

Jamie Cullum | Anyway

One of my favorite singer-songwriters, Jamie Cullum, makes his MotD debut today with “Anyway,” included on his 2013 album Momentum. Shortly after the album’s release, Cullum elaborated on the inspiration behind it and how he chose its name in an interview with the German magazine Nothing But Hope and Passion:

“Well, it seems like a good title for the album for a lot of reasons. One is that this album was entirely made with a sense of momentum. My life’s changed in a lot of ways since the last few records, you know, I’m a father now, I have multiple responsibilities, far beyond just looking after myself, and so this album was made in pockets of time, rather than the luxury of all the time in the world. So I just kind of hurled myself into it, and the whole thing happened without a great deal of thought, which sounds careless, but I’ve come to realize that thought is the enemy of creativity in a lot of ways.
The other thing, the album is really about that crossover period where you’re really still a young man, but also you’ve got one foot in this incredibly grown-up, adult world where you’re the leader of your pack, and the album really is about that kind of balance of your childish fantasies with these grand and quite epic responsibilities. I think it’s momentum that carries you through that, really, so that’s how I came up with the title.

The tune is primarily in Eb minor, briefly modulating to G major at 2:59 before returning to Eb minor at 3:16.