Monday, August 3, 2009

Jesus & Mary Chain - Some Candy Talking

(Blanco Y Negro, 1986)

For the follow-up to Psychocandy, the Jesus & Mary Chain unleashed this “Just Like Honey”-style narco-ballad via the band’s typical truckload of configurations. The edition I own is the double 7” (as opposed to the 7”, 12”, or poster 12”), with the first disc a relentless, grinding downer that feels like a queasy post-LP hangover, and the second a four-song acoustic EP that shows off a gentler, cuddlier side of the group. Finesse was hardly the JAMC’s strong suit in the early days, so “Honey” is terribly clumsy in a hamfisted, chunka-chunka kind of way, but there’s a yearning, VU-LP3 earnestness that sells it, and the surprisingly lovely acoustic disc shows that the band WAS in fact able to drop the scowls and the hair product long enough to produce believably effective slowies. Shame, then, that half of the hush-slab (acoustic run-throughs of “Psychocandy” and “Some Candy Talking”) never made it to compact disc, even when the JAMC assembled its pseudo-comprehensive Negative Thinking rarities box.


Bad enough, that, but want worse? Here: that casual criticism of said box gives me the opportunity to put on my geek galoshes and wade deeper into the failings of the set. Ready? Now, say that you, like most People of Today, want to make sure you own every song the Jesus & Mary Chain ever released. Well. First you’ve gotta buy all six studio albums, then the three rarities compilations (Barbed Wire Kisses, Sound of Speed, and Hate Rock ’n’ Roll), then the two live records (The Complete BBC Sessions and Live in Concert), then the aforementioned Power of Negative Thinking package. That covers almost everything, but there are still a few stray tracks out there on singles and EPs (ahem, “Some Candy Talking” 2x7”) that have yet to be collected elsewhere. So, as a heroic public service, I’ve compiled a likely-flawed list of those stragglers:

* “Upside Down (demo)” (“Upside Down” 12” test pressing)
* “Psychocandy (acoustic)” (“Some Candy Talking” 2x7”)
* “Some Candy Talking (acoustic)” (“Some Candy Talking" 2x7”)
* “April Skies (extended version)” (“April Skies” 12”)
* “Happy When it Rains (extended version)” (“Happy When it Rains” 12”/10”)
* “Taste of Cindy (live in Detroit)” (“Sidewalking” 12”/CDEP)
* “April Skies (live in Detroit)” (“Sidewalking” 12”)
* “Sidewalking (Chilled to the Bone)” (“Sidewalking” CDEP)
* “Reverence (Jim and William Reid Mix)” (“Reverence” CDEP/12” promo)
* “Reverence (Al Jourgensen Mix)” (“Reverence” CDEP/12” promo)
* “Reverence (Mark Stent Mix)” (“Reverence” CDEP/12” promo)
* “Reverence (Mark Stent Extended Mix)” (“Reverence” 12” promo)
* “Far Gone and Out (Arc Weld Mix)” (“Far Gone and Out” CDEP/12” promo)
* “Far Gone and Out (Dance Mix)” (“Far Gone and Out” 12” promo)
* “Far Gone and Out (Instrumental Dance Mix)” (“Far Gone and Out” 12” promo)
* “Far Gone and Out (Just for Fun Mix)” (“Far Gone and Out” 12” promo)
* “Teenage Lust (Pimpin’ Ain’t Eazy Mix)” (“Rollercoaster U.S.” CD promo)
* “A New Kind of Kick (live)” (“Come On” CDEP #2)
* “I Hate Rock ’n’ Roll (Fascist Record Company Edit)” (“I Hate Rock ’n’ Roll” CDEP promo)
* “I Hate Rock ’n’ Roll (edit)” (“I Hate Rock ’n’ Roll” CDEP promo)
* “I Hate Rock ’n’ Roll (clean album version)” (“I Hate Rock ’n’ Roll” CDEP promo)
* “Cracking Up (live)” (“’98 Tour EP”)
* “Moe Tucker (live)” (“’98 Tour EP”)
* “I Love Rock ’n’ Roll (live)” (“’98 Tour EP”)


Nothing earth-shattering here, given that these are all alternate mixes and live recordings, but can you really make it through your day – CAN YOU FACE YOUR SPOUSE AND KIDS – knowing that you don’t own, for example, the “Just for Fun” remix of “Far Gone and Out”? And that’s precisely why I – though a childless bachelor – spent many sweaty years hunting these releases down, until at last, one by one, I clutched each elusive disc to my bosom.

Thus: things are much better now. I am so calm.

8 comments:

Donald Brown said...

Indeed you should be calm, because now you know that on that day in some dim, as yet unforseeable future, when some toddler of yours, grown to teendom, asks, so, like, um, how many different versions of this song did JAMC DO?, you'll be able to get up from your big poppa chair and deliver the goods! And then think about how you'll feel when that same kid is able to enlighten his/her teenish comrades, who don't know shit about the true heights of audiophile nirvana, by saying something like, "no, that was only on the 7" demo."

It's be just like honey...

Anonymous said...

plus there a couple more UK 10-inchers with live trax and some grey-area live EPs that the label did in Japan and what-not

Anonymous said...

You also need the "Come On" from the CD single, it is a longer version than on the album. It is on the same disk with "New Kind Of Kick" you already mentioned though.

Anonymous said...

Hey I just checked something else - I am 99% sure these acoustic songs you have posted are the same as those on the "Peel Sessions" CD - I imagine they were originally taken from the Peel radio broadcast. Let me know if you think they are different. I listened them back to back and they sounded the same to me!

Anonymous said...

yeah those acoustic songs are the same as on that complete john peel sessions cd, but you forgot there's also the nme version of some candy talking that's on a 7" compilation called NME'S BIG FOUR and there's a track called 45 rpm which is on 104.9 AN XFM COMPILATION ALBUM cd, and it's completely different version of the song 33 rpm. there's probably couple of others too.

Anonymous said...

there are more version in the uk 7. singles
out of reach, come on 2version. reverences megamix, jfk remixes..and many version singalong with william.

but i think this version and songs have to wait 10 years..fron another nothigallbutthemoney album.

John said...

Here is what I have, I am trying to compile them to a CD

[The Hit Mag 7”]
Taste Of Cindy (re-recorded)

[NME giveaway]
Some Candy Talking (live)

(Sound Waves 2)
9 Million Rainy Days (live)

April Skies 12”
--April Skies (Long version)

Sidewalking (ext ver) 12”
Sidewalking (7” ver) / Taste Of Cindy (live) / April Skies (live)

Barbed Wire Kisses
-- Surfing USA
-- Mushroom

Sound of Speed (Jap)
-- Reverence (Radio Mix)
-- Teenage Lust (acoustic version)

Sound of Speed (euro)
-- Reverence
-- Sidewalking - Extended Version

Far Gone and Out 12”
(dance ver) / (dance inst) / (just for fun mix) / (arc-weld mix)

Almost Gold 10”
Catch Fire (live) / Blues From A Gun (live) / Head On (live)

I Hate Rock and Roll
-- Teenage Lust [Desdemoana Mix]

Come On CD5
--Come On (longer)
--A New Kind of Kick (live)

Cracking Up CD5
-- Commercial

Tour Promo (1998) CD5
Cracking Up (Live)
Moe Tucker (Live)
I Love RocknRoll (Live)

Heroes Soundtrack
-- All Things Must Pass

CK Dexter said...

This is Javier, from Spain.
Well, as many of you probably know, all TJ&MC albums have been re-released as 2CD+DVD editions with lots of B-sides, hard-to-find tracks and, in some cases, unreleased tracks. The fact is that I am compiling every single track from them to make my own compilation of Singles, B-Sidesd and Rarities. After buying the reissues (yeah, I'm the kind of guy who bought the vinyl, then the CD and now the reissue), I haven't been able to find a few tracks:
* “Reverence (Mark Stent Extended Mix)” (“Reverence” 12” promo)
* “Cracking Up (live)” (“’98 Tour EP”)
* “Moe Tucker (live)” (“’98 Tour EP”)
* “I Love Rock ’n’ Roll (live)” (“’98 Tour EP”)
* “I Hate Rock ’n’ Roll (Fascist Record Company Edit)” (“I Hate Rock ’n’ Roll” CDEP promo)
* “I Hate Rock ’n’ Roll (edit)” (“I Hate Rock ’n’ Roll” CDEP promo)
* “I Hate Rock ’n’ Roll (clean album version)” (“I Hate Rock ’n’ Roll” CDEP promo)

If anyone is interested in helping just send me a PM to smithjavier@gmail.com. Thanks in advance for your time.

And cheers from Spain.


Javier