Tune Tag #39 with Penny Kiley: Them, Gerry & The Pacemakers, Elvis Presley, Glasvegas, Camel, Petula Clark, Supremes
A Liverpudlian scribe joins the fun for this Tune Tag! A former correspondent for UK's leading rock tabloid, Penny's unique '80s Brit POV is unleashed today, and is welcomed, FRONT ROW & BACKSTAGE!
Hey, Penny! Air Tag…..You’re IT!
Tune Tag welcomes UK- based rock scribe, of Penny Kiley’s music writing!
Penny: “UK-based former music journo. In 1979, I became Liverpool correspondent (and token punk rocker) for Melody Maker. My first interview was The Cramps. My first interview with a Liverpool band was The Teardrop Explodes. It was their first interview, too. Now, I’m collecting my post-punk archive on Substack, with a new piece every week, plus a short commentary for historical context. Still getting used to being ‘historical’.”
[Brad’s 2¢: My record-biz career overlapped Penny’s by, literally, just a few weeks! In 1979, I was finishing up 3 years in retail at Houston’s (TX) Cactus Records, and would frequently visit a local newsstand to pick up one or all of the three weekly UK rock tabloids, including Penny’s Melody Maker (from my POV, and a handful of years reading them all, the best), Sounds, and New Musical Express (NME). In January 1980, I moved to a Los Angeles suburb, and didn’t want to venture downtown to look for a newsstand that might carry those tabs. I wish I could say that I had read Penny’s work!]
Last week, we happily welcomed in
of the BrittaRiffindots Substack!
Next week, we welcome back to Tune Tag,
of Earnestness is Underrated!
Penny’s song #1 sent to Brad: Gerry & The Pacemakers, “Don’t Let the Sun Catch You Crying,” 1964
Just a couple months after The Beatles led The British Invasion to the States via The Ed Sullivan Show, Gerry Marsden’s Pacemakers take that same CBS-TV stage (above) to present their group-written hit, “Don’t Let the Sun Catch You Crying,” which was produced for record by George Martin, with Brian Epstein as their manager. The song got to #4 in the U.S., and hit #6 in the UK.
Penny’s rationale: I chose this because I wanted something from Liverpool that wasn’t obvious. Gerry and the Pacemakers are underrated in pop history, but they were the first group to reach number one in the UK with their first three singles (the next to do so was another Liverpool group, Frankie Goes to Hollywood). This wasn’t one of the number ones, but I love the emotional vocal and melancholy feel.
Brad’s song #1 sent to Penny: Louise Cordet, “Two Lovers,” 1964
Penny’s response: New to me, which is good. I learnt something from this. I hadn’t heard of Louise Cordet before (she only had one UK hit, “I’m Just a Baby” in 1962, and it passed me by), but I really liked the way this puts a girl-group groove onto a Motown song. And I found out that Gerry Marsden co-wrote “Don’t Let The Sun Catch You Crying” for her. Her version is good, too, but I still prefer Gerry’s (recorded two months after Cordet’s February 1964 recording).
Brad’s rationale: 1964, the same year as The Pacemakers’ “Don’t Let the Sun Catch You Crying,” Cordet was the first to record the eventual Pacemakers hit, with Gerry and gang following. Her Decca recording of Smokey Robinson’s “Two Lovers” features session guitar player, Jimmy Page.
Penny’s song #2: Them, “Here Comes the Night” (feat. Van Morrison), 1965
Live 1965 footage, with a rare and interesting musical misstep at about the 0:28 mark, but Van and company regroup quickly enough:
Brad’s response: Written by Bert Berns, who also produced the track. Berns founded Bang Records that same year (with eventual Atlantic Records mainstays, Ahmet Ertegun, older brother, Nesuhi Ertegun, and Jerry Wexler). A guess might have Penny offering a song by a group that featured an eventual solo rock star (Morrison), tagging my song that featured noted Led Zep guitarist, Page, as a session player.
Penny’s rationale: So, Jimmy Page played on the Louise Cordet song, which opened up lots of possibilities, as he did so much session work in the early ‘60s. Wikipedia tells me he played on “Here Comes the Night,” so I hope it’s true. I chose this because it’s one of my favourite Van Morrison tracks. It has a great dynamic and Van’s voice is suitably moody. And I always sing along.
I first heard this on the radio some time in the 1970s, and earnt my own copy of the single in 1978 as part payment for working at a record fair for a friend.
[Brad: Vinyl as currency! We love that, plus there’s no exchange rate from one country to another! Wikipedia also allows that Andy White (who briefly replaced Ringo on drums for the recording of “Love Me Do”/”P.S. I Love You”) and Tommy Scott performed backing vocals, with Phil Coulter on keyboards.]
Brad’s song #2: Camel, “Freefall,” 1974
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