“L-L-Lucy” (Hallmark SHM 920) October 1975

Since I took early retirement a couple of years ago I spend a lot of time searching for cheap records in charity shops. I don’t mind taking a chance and spending a couple of quid on an album. It’s still quite a buzz finding vinyl junk.

I’ve decided to begin a new series on my blog where I’ll focus on a track from a budget label release, remaster a FLAC directly from the record, create a YouTube video and investigate / research the performer and album under the spotlight.

My new series will be called “Budget Label Curios.”

Who knows what I’ll uncover, the music may be delightful to your ears or it could make you want to bang your head against the nearest brick wall to make the pain go away.

The LP “Top Of The Pops – Volume 48” cost £1, from St Benedicts Hospice, a local charity shop in Concord, Washington. Most of the material on this is quite weak, the session singers struggle wildly with their remakes, especially the bloke creating the vocal style of David Bowie on “Space Oddity.”

“Don’t Play Your Rock And Roll To Me” – originally a hit for Smokie almost made selection status mainly because of hand-claps in the song but in the end I decided to go for Mud‘s “L-L-Lucy.”

I suppose Mud were passed their heyday by late 1975 but they had one last rocker in them with “L-L-Lucy” which starts with some fierce, fast paced pub rock / proto-punk guitar screeching and effective hammering on the drums.

The session singer imitates Les Gray with good style and the song remains intact. I’d never previously heard this one by Mud so checked out some TV footage of them performing the number from back in the day.

The lads by this stage of their career were only still in their late twenties and early thirties but looked so much older and worn out.

The original single was released on Private Stock during September 1975 and was a top ten hit.