Dylan Jones – writer, former editor of i-D, Arena and GQ - was 15 in 1975 and dressed like Henry McCullough of Wings (“a lot of denim and silk scarves”), a time he thinks had enormous influence on the following five decades. There are many highlights in his latest book ‘1975: The Year The World Forgot’, a lot of them discussed here with David and Mark, including …

… the lasting impact of the cover of Patti Smith’s Horses.

… the “frightening” Millie Jackson, 50 years ahead of her time.

… why Blood On The Tracks was the first middle-aged rock album.

… the information black-out and the value of the ‘70s rock press - particularly Street Life – for such experimental music.

… how the sarcasm of Steely Dan still feels contemporary – “Donald Trump is a figure they could have made up 50 years ago”.

… the three key rhythms of the ‘70s – Fela Kuti’s afro-beat, James Brown’s funk and Klaus Dinger’s Neu!-beat.

… the reason Donna Summer’s Love To Love You Baby is 17 minutes long.

… how Brian Eno’s accident led to the birth of ambient music.

… “writing about pop music allows you to write about anything”.

… how the sophistication and intellect of the mid-‘70s was pilloried in Punk’s Year Zero.

… the Quiet Storm genre - aka “foreplay music” – from Sade to Smokey Robinson and Marvin Gaye.

... the unrecognised power of the female record-buyer and the sexism of the rock press.

… and the greatest record of 1975!

Pre-order ‘1975: The Year The World Forgot’ here:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/1975-World-Forgot-Dylan-Jones/dp/1408721988

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The Beach Boys’ SMiLE was abandoned by Brian Wilson in 1967 and eventually performed at an emotional gathering of the faithful in London 37 years later. For writer and lecturer David Leaf it became an obsession. He made a documentary about it in 2004 and has just published ‘SMiLE: The Rise, Fall and Resurrection of Brian Wilson’ drawn from detailed conversations with the people involved. He talks to us here about his discoveries, which include …

... the Rolling Stone story that kick-started his obsession.

… “a bicycle ride from Plymouth Rock to Hawaii” and other early plans for the album.

… how Leonard Bernstein, the Beatles and Derek Taylor racked up the pressure in the studio.

… why the other Beach Boys – and Capitol and Murry Wilson - felt the new music was a threat to their livelihood.

… how Brian composed the “teenage symphony for God” that became an albatross around his neck.

... “Ray Davies needed a deadline”: the perils of endless recording time.

… the magnetism of Van Dyke Parks, a man who “talks in paragraphs”.

... the imagined impact on the world and the band’s career if SMiLE had come out in 1967.

… the birth of “art rock” versus the strictures of the music business.

… the value of the SMiLE myth in the eventual rebirth of the Beach Boys.

… the reaction to its long-awaited performance at the Festival Hall in 2004.

... why Brian thought shelving the album would save the group yet “they went from a No 1 single to an act nobody cared about in under a year”.

... and the greatest Beach Boys record of all time.

Order SMiLE: the Rise, Fall & Resurrection of Brian Wilson here: https://omnibuspress.com/products/smile-the-rise-fall-and-resurrection-of-brian-wilson-published-10th-october-2024?_pos=1&_psq=smile&_ss=e&_v=1.0

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Slapping the beanburger of news on the sizzling grill of scrutiny and served with relish by Alex Gold and Mark Ellen (David’s in Spain with his bucket and spade). This week’s specials include …

… Springsteen’s unprecedented speech onstage in Manchester about his nation’s “corrupt, incompetent and treasonous administration” and the Dixie Chicks’ career-popping anti-Trump manoeuvre of 2003.

… John Niven’s upcoming play ‘The Battle’ and the Blur/Oasis soundclash it celebrates.

… the 50th anniversary of the Stones’ (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction: from motel bed to finished recording in six days.

… “Lennon’s all about the legs”: the art of playing the Beatles, Keith Richards and all four of the Small Faces onstage (involves “ducking, bobbing and dipping”).

… brilliant songs written in seconds – by Lady Gaga, the Beastie Boys, James Brown and the White Stripes.

… the tour circuit and the trouble at borders.

… “the sound of dental floss being pinged by a squirrel”: Bill Bailey’s impression of the Edge with a power failure.

… Elvis v Cliff, Beatles v Stones, Hendrix v Clapton, Bowie v Bolan, Clash v Pistols, Duran v Spandau, Blur v Oasis: what was the last great rock rivalry?

... and Elvis Costello’s inspired use of the Ansaphone.

Fast Show clip ‘Mr Wells’:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FRAeFyBX1w

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