Tune Tag #31 with Kal Hodgson of Kalowski's Substack: Squeeze, Ryan Adams, Kiss, Little Anthony & the Imperials, Julian Cope

A new record for your collection? Music from across the Atlantic and specific: Oceans of sound, in fact, wash ashore revealing more the similarities than the differences. Sea for your shelf.🌊💿💽

Yo, #94! Tag, You’re It!

Tune Tag Welcomes #94…..uh, I mean, Kal Hodgson!

“A mathematician and teacher by day in South Manchester, UK, I wanted something to exercise my thinking, my writing and my love of music. My “Kalowski’s Substack” is simply designed to write about my personal experiences with music.

“I have found much of my writing is steeped in nostalgia, memory and anecdote, but I don't aim for that - I write organically, just see what emerges. So for the last ten months I have written about a range of artists, and I aim to continue to do that, weekly, at Friday 5pm (GMT) for as long as I can.”

Kal’s Song #1 sent to Brad: Julian Cope, “Sunspots,” 1984

Kal’s rationale: Taken from his second solo album, Fried, released in 1984, I chose this because it is a perfect example of the ‘80s revival of psychedelia, with remarkable guitar sounds from the late Steve Lovell (who also produced this track), Donald Ross Skinner and “Brother Jonno” Johnson.

A commercial disaster, both as a single and the accompanying album, it’s a song that Cope-heads absolutely love, and is a great reminder of just how wonderful Julian can be. Sadly, Polygram disagreed, and dropped him from its Mercury affiliate after the album peaked at #85 in the UK. [Brad, with the American POV: Curiously, the album wasn’t initially released in the U.S., but eventually found its way in 1990, via CD re-issue on domestic Mercury/Polygram.]

Brad’s response: I’ve only ever known the name, Julian Cope (and the existence of his previous musical romp in the “post-punk neo-psych” Teardrop Explodes out of Liverpool).

By 1983, I was out of “the biz,” and embarking on a return to college, at 28, to pursue an entirely different professional route. So, Cope’s music, for me, has gone unheard! While one would wonder why Master Cope would pose naked on the cover of Fried, clad only in a tortoise shell, it only served to inspire my Tune-Tagged reply to Kal’s first song, without even hearing “Sunspots”!

I’ve since heard it, and I really appreciate Kal’s pinpoint-accurate depiction of the song’s psychedelic essence, as well as the guitar work. With Cope currently at 66, I wonder if this film ever came about:

From a 2010 UK Independent article I found: “Now the curious story of Julian Cope, former Smash Hits cover star, practicing druid, and great British eccentric, is set to be turned into a feature film.”🤷‍♂️

Shell If I Know!🐢

Brad’s Song #1 sent to Kal: Squeeze, “If It’s Love,” 1989

Kal’s response: Ah, how I love Squeeze. Great choice. I think this was chosen because they were dropped by their record label after the release, in fact, whilst they were touring the album. Difford and Tilbrook are one of the great songwriting partnerships. [Brad: Truer words were never spoken, Kal, as readers can affirm here]:

Audio Autopsy, 1984: The Difford & Tilbrook Duo LP, Labelled With Squeeze

Brad’s rationale: Is there anyone here who’d like to join me in asserting that the Frank album jacket (shown above on Spotify link) is a subtle “dig” or gentle nod to Julian and his similarly-titled Fried album title, 5 years later? Thankfully, Difford and/or Tilbrook chose not to pose on the cover with a turtle shell…with or without clothing!

As the Squeeze dudes learned, apparently, nothing signals so clearly to the label execs you’ve got your personal act together than lifting the home off a Testudine reptile for your meeting with an art director! Let Jules be Jules should be our musical mantra!✊

Kal’s Song #2: Elvis Costello, “From a Whisper to a Scream,” 1981

Brad’s response: As the live studio taping of the Jim’ll Fix It UK TV show depicts, Squeeze-er Tilbrook joins Elvis on this 1981 single, the second from Costello’s Trust album (F-Beat Records/UK). Interestingly, the song was not released in the U.S. as a single, but it nevertheless, received airplay on various AOR and college stations. In fact, the song got to #46 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart, marking the first time an EC song made the Top 100 of any U.S. chart, according to Treblezine.com.

Guitar was added, in the studio recording, by ex-Graham Parker and the Rumour guitarist, Martin Belmont. Nick Lowe and Roger Béchirian produced. More Elvis:

Wholly "Toledo"! My Long Drive To Find the 1998 Elvis Costello/Burt Bacharach Classic

Kal’s rationale: Chosen simply because Glenn Tilbrook contributes vocal to the song. I utterly love Elvis Costello, especially his work from the late-‘70s to the late-’80s.  There was a strong link between Squeeze and Costello throughout the ‘80s. Elvis produced and sang a line on Squeeze’s 1981 “Tempted,” for example. Apparently Costello met Tilbrook and Difford at a bar and they went on to “forge a lifelong friendship,” with Squeeze supporting Costello on his 1980 tour.