Tuesday Tunes 202: Alcohol

I think it is about time that I give you a new, unused theme for these posts, and I was pondering what to choose when I saw an advert for a drink. The plan quickly fell into place, and the beauty of this is that there are several varieties I could go with: there will be a ‘beverages’ version coming soon, but for today I’m going with what most of us think of when someone asks if we’d like a drink, even though I’m not allowed it for medical reasons. So my vicarious kicks will come from playing you a set of tunes themed around: alcohol.

Let’s get off to a rousing start. What’s yours – a whisky drink, a vodka drink, a lager drink, a cider drink…

If you didn’t already know, that was Chumbawamba with Tubthumping, one of my favourite UK chart hits of the past thirty years or so. They were a British ‘anarchist punk’ band formed in 1982 and disbanded in 2012. Their repertoire was wider than that description might suggest, though: they also had elements of folk music as part of their act, and I actually saw them around 2009 as part of a multi-band folk music event. I wasn’t sure quite what to expect from them, but they were every but as good as I had hoped, and yes, they closed their set with this one and brought the house down. The single of that was released in August 1997 and got to #2 in the UK, #1 in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Italy and Ireland, and #6 in the US. It was also included on their album Tubthumper, which came out the following month, peaking at #19 in the UK, #2 in Canada and #3 in the US. If ever a band could be defined by one record, this was it, though they did feature in the charts on several other occasions. My abiding memory of this was the annual work Christmas party, when our HR Director did his own slightly manic version of the dance you saw in the video, and one year I made the mistake of being near him when the song came on: there was no escape!

I mentioned the dreaded words ‘folk music’ there, didn’t I. This next one is a traditional folk tune which I first heard on an album by Tim Hart and Maddy Prior of Steeleye Span, but this version by the great Irish band Planxty gets the nod today. It’s a song warning of the dangers of over-imbibing:

Planxty were formed in January 1972, and this video features their original lineup of Christy Moore (vocals, acoustic guitar, bodhrán), Andy Irvine (vocals, mandolin, mandola, bouzouki, hurdy-gurdy, harmonica), Dónal Lunny (bouzouki, guitars, bodhrán, keyboards), and Liam O’Flynn (uilleann pipes, tin whistle). They were a multi-talented bunch, who have all gone on to build their own careers in music. Christy Moore, who takes the lead vocal here, is probably the best known, but the others can all be seen on various videos on YouTube: at one time it seemed obligatory to have Dónal playing with your band – he was everywhere! Three Drunken Maidens was released as a single in 1972 but as far as I can tell it didn’t make the charts – I’d be surprised if it wasn’t a hit in Ireland but Wikipedia isn’t telling. It doesn’t appear to have been on any of their albums, either, though it is included on compilations.

Continuing the Irish theme now, with one of the bands I recently featured in my “Irish” Music post. They are actually from Germany, but who’s counting? This is a song with a story:

That was The O’Reillys and The Paddyhats with Barrels of Whisky. They were formed in 2012 and I’d like to tell you more about them, but I’m afraid my fifty years old German A-level isn’t up to translating their Wikipedia page! This was one of their earlier tunes, from their debut album Seven Hearts One Soul, which was released in 2016. Deutschepedia doesn’t show it as having charted in their native Germany, though several of their more recent records have. It’s a fun song and video, and as I’m a big fan of their German/Irish folk/punk style I just had to play it.

Another one on the damage caused by alcohol is up next. This is becoming something of a PSA, isn’t it! This is Rod Stewart, back in the days when he made good records:

What’s Made Milwaukee Famous (Has Made A Loser Out Of Me) was released as a double A-side with Angel in November 1972, and got to #4 in the UK charts. The only other chart placing for it was in Australia, where it got to #71. Angel had been included on his album Never A Dull Moment, which came out in July 1972 and reached #1 in the UK and #2 in the US. It was one of the albums that formed the soundtrack to my uni days, as I started there three months later. This song wasn’t on a studio album, though it has since appeared on compilations. Both tracks were covers. Angel was a Jimi Hendrix song – his version is great, and I prefer it to Rod’s – and Milwaukee was written by Glenn Sutton. Its title is a reference to Schlitz beer, which for many years was advertised with the slogan, “The beer that made Milwaukee famous.” It was first recorded in 1968 by Jerry Lee Lewis, who took it to #94 in the US Singles chart.

Today’s final tune is also from the Seventies, and is one of my favourites from the time when disco was everywhere and I needed an antidote. These guys provided it:

Dr Feelgood were formed in 1971 in Canvey Island, Essex. Their two main original members were Lee Brilleaux, seen on vocals here, and guitarist Wilko Johnson, who had left the band by the time Milk And Alcohol came out, and then joined Ian Dury and the Blockheads. They were known as a pub rock band, and were very popular around Essex and London. I remember seeing them one evening after work, and they were huge fun: one of the rowdiest gigs I’ve ever been to. But I managed to leave the venue still in possession of my briefcase, which I regarded as quite an achievement! This was released as a single in January 1979 and made the top forty straightaway, eventually peaking at #9 – their only top ten entry, though they had several others in the lower reaches of the charts. It had been included on their album Private Practice, which came out in September 1978 and made #41 in the UK Albums chart. They were fun, and I enjoy a wave of nostalgia whenever I hear this one.

That’s all for this week – another motley selection of tunes from the depths of my mind. How many of them did you know? I’m guessing that at least two of them were new to most, and the others may have dropped out of your memory. I’ll see you again soon, and until then have a great week 😊