The Rutles - Past Masters - Volume Two (1969)

For this second volume of 'Past Masters' from The Rutles, we've once again raided the back catalogues of The Flames, Neil Innes, GRIMMS, Timebox and The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band for 'singles and b-sides' that didn't appear on their albums. The Flames contributed some tracks that actually were from 1965 and 1966, and Neil Innes filled in the gaps from the later years. I'd already used every contemporary song from the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band, but in a recent post of theirs I unearthed a recording that they'd made for a radio session which actually fitted on here quite well, and so by adding that, plus the one suitable unused song from GRIMMS and two from Timebox, we now have a second volume of rarities from the Pre-fab Four, which finally completes their discography.

Track listing

01 Blue Colour (b-side of 'Hold My Hand' 1963) 

02 Bring Back The Time (single 1963) 

03 Stop, Look And Listen (b-side of 'Ouch!' 1964) 

04 Tell It Like It Is (b-side of 'Between Us' 1965)  

05 Busy Day (b-side of 'Nevertheless' 1966)  

06 Lost (single 1966)  
07 You've Got The Chance (b-side of 'Piggy In The Middle' 1967) 
08 Stoned On Rock (single 1967) 
09 We're Gonna Bring It On Home (b-side of 'Good Times Roll' 1967)
10 Feel No Shame (b-side of 'Hey Mister!' 1968)  
11 Black Dog (b-side of 'Get Up And Go' 1969) 
12 City Of The Angels (b-side of 'Easy Listening' 1969)    
13 Oo-Chuck-A-Mao-Mao (b-side of '9-5 Pollution Blues' 1969) 
14 Rock Of Ages (single 1969) 
 
PERFORMERS
 
*The Flames - 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 
*Neil Innes - 5, 8, 10, 12, 14
*The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band - 9
*Timebox - 7, 11
*GRIMMS - 13

The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band - A Dog's Life (1969)

Tonight will be a comedy/rock special, as I've got three albums to post from comedy legends of the 60's and 70's. I know that a lot of visitors have a soft spot for the Bonzo Dog Band, from the comments on my various Rutles posts, and they were a unique and innovative band who've never been bettered in their genre. They've been well served over the years with numerous compilations and remasters which have uncovered previously unheard material, but there's never been a comprehensive collection of all their rarities in one place. 
For this post I've gathered all the songs they recorded which never appeared on any of their albums, and they include both sides of their two pre-album singles from 1966, followed quickly by a first album out-take in the same vein. 
They recorded a lot of sessions for the BBC, mostly for John Peel, and as well as performing otherwise unheard songs, they also wrote surreal musical sketches, and 'The Craig Torso Show' is one from 1967, with the more conventional 'I've Found The Answer' being broadcast the following year. A couple of covers of popular songs and a second album out-take precede the second 'Craig Torso Show', which is a Christmas special from 1967. 'Da Story Of Da Bonzo' is an early version of 'The Bride Stripped Bare', with a bit more guitar than the finished take, and 'Excerpt From 'The Brain Opera' - Act 3 Scene 1' is another musical sketch recorded for John Peel in 1968. 'Little Sir Echo' is a live take from the German TV pop show 'Beat Club', before we're back for part 3 of 'The Brain Opera', broadcast in 1969. 'I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles' is taken from a live jazz festival at Bilzen, and the 1969 Peel session recording of 'Sofa Head' segues into 'Give Booze A Chance', as it was originally broadcast, whereas more recent compilations have split them into two separate tracks. 
The Bonzos got back together in 1992 to release a satirical song about UK politics with 'No Matter Who You Vote For, The Government Always Gets In (Heigh Ho)', and this version is the much longer demo, which features a lot more Viv Stanshall than the eventual single release. We finish with the entirely appropriate 'End Of The Show', taken from the 'New Faces' TV show in 1967. There are quite a few more rarities out there, but they tend to be either demos or early versions of songs which subsequently made the albums, such as 'Tragic Magic', which is almost exactly the same as the eventually re-titled 'Keynsham', or a very brief 'National Beer', which later metamorphised into 'King Of Scurf'. I've tried to make this the definitive Bonzo's rarities album, and hope that it contains every rare song that you could possibly want to hear, so enjoy an hour and a quarter of exquisite silliness.

Track listing

01 My Brother Makes The Noises For The Talkies (single 1966)
02 I'm Going To Bring A Watermelon To My Girl Tonight (b-side of 'My Brother.....)
03 Alley Oop (single 1966)
04 Button Up Your Overcoat (b-side of 'Alley Oop')
05 On Her Doorstep, Last Night (previously unreleased 1967)
06 The Craig Torso Show (John Peel session 1967)
07 I've Found The Answer (John Peel session 1967)
08 Blue Suede Shoes (previously unreleased 1968)
09 Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down) (previously unreleased 1968)
10 Mr Hyde In Me (previously unreleased 1968)
11 The Craig Torso Christmas Show (John Peel session 1967)
12 Da Story Of Da Bonzo (aka 'The Bride Stripped Bare' 1969)
13 Boo! (previously unreleased 1969)
14 Excerpt From 'The Brain Opera' - Act 3, scene 1 (John Peel session 1968)
15 Boiled Ham Rhumba (previously unreleased 1969)
16 Little Sir Echo (live in Germany 1967)
17 Excerpt From 'The Brain Opera' - Part 3 (John Peel session 1969)
18 I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles (Live at Jazz Bilzen 1969)
19 Sofa Head / Give Booze A Chance (John Peel session 1968)
20 We're Going To Bring It On Home (John Peel session 1969)
21 No Matter Who You Vote For, The Government Always Get In (Heigh Ho) (demo 1992)
22 End Of The Show (New Faces 1967)

The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band - A Dog's Breakfast (1983)

To close this comedy/rock special here's a collection of hard to find singles, b-sides, and radio sessions by various members of the Bonzos, which were issued by them after the band broke up. You might think that there's not enough Viv on here, but that's because there are actually enough rarities from him to make his own album, which I'll be posting later, but I've added my favourite single of his - 'Labio-Dental Fricative'/'Paper Round' - so that there's at least two songs of his on here. 
Here are some notes on each song that I found online, although I've re-jigged the track listing from the original album that they came from.     

Topo D. Bill - Witchi-Tai-To (A-side) - 3:29
Topo D. Bill - Jam (B-side) - 3:10
originally released in December 1969 as the first single (CB-116) on Tony Stratton Smith's newly founded 'Famous Charisma' record label. Produced by 'Legs' Larry Smith, both tracks were recorded with help from former collegue Roger Ruskin Spear and one or more (unknown) members of Yes and/or The Who. The single was released under a pseudonym as the various participants were already signed to other record companies. The word is that 'Springtime for Hitler' was 'Legs' Larry's first choice to be released but rejected by Stratton Smith as he was just finalizing a deal with a German distributor.

The World - Angelina (A-side) - 2:48
The World - 9 To 5 Pollution Blues -  4:22
Neil's first short-lived solo project 'The World', was a more conventional group than the Bonzo's and featured besides Neil on lead vocal, piano and guitar, former Bonzo Dennis Cowan on bass and guitar, Ian Wallace on drums and Roger McKew on lead guitar. They only released one album 'Lucky Planet' (LBG-83149) and one single 'Angelina' b/w 'Come Into The Open' (LBF-15402 in mono) in 1970 on Liberty Records.

Viv Stanshall & The Sean Head Showband - Labio-Dental Fricative - 3:09
Viv Stanshall & The Sean Head Showbnad - Paper Round - 2:05
Viv's first solo single was released on the Liberty Label in 1970, coupling "Labio-Dental Fricative/Paper Round", and credited to Vivian Stanshall and The Sean Head Showband (an oblique reference to Stanshall having shaved off all of his hair during his breakdown). Both sides featured Eric Clapton on guitar.

Roger Ruskin Spear - Trouser Freak (Full Version) (A-side) - 2:49
Roger Ruskin Spear - Trouser Press (A-side) - 2:58
Roger Ruskin Spear - Release Me (B-side) - 2:50
Roger Ruskin Spear - Drop Out! (B-side) - 2:02
Roger's wonderful 'Rebel Trouser EP' was released in 1971 under the monniker 'Roger Ruskin Spear And His Giant Orchestral Wardrobe' on EMI's subsidiary label United Artists (UP-35221) and recorded with help from former Bonzo bass players Dave Clague and Dennis Cowan (on guitar), Leon Williams on trumpets and Tat Meager on drums. The EP's opening track 'Trouser Freak' was re-released several times on Bonzo compilations but these versions were all edited down to 2:18 omitting the ending, whereas the version here is complete.

Roger Ruskin Spear - Mattress Man (BBC Radio Flash 10-08-1971) - 2:11
Roger Ruskin Spear - Call Of The Freaks (BBC Radio Flash 10-08-1971) - 2:47
Two live tracks by 'Roger Ruskin Spear And His Giant Orchestral Wardrobe' from the Viv Stanshall presented BBC radio show 'Radio Flash' broadcast on August 10, 1971 and produced by John Walters and engineered by Bob Conduct. Among others Roger on tenor sax, Dave Glass on piano, Tad Meager on drums, Jerry Gardner on rhythm guitar, Bob Kerr on cornet and Thunderclap Newman's Andy Newman on sax. (He also recorded a cover of the Bonzo's track 'On Her Doorstep, Last Night', but I've omitted that as it was nowhere near as good as the Bonzo's version. PJ)

Neil Innes - Re-Cycled Vinyl Blues (A-side) - 3:30
Neil Innes - Fluff On The Needle (B-side) - 5:36
From the Neil Innes solo-single 'Re-Cycled Vinyl Blues' b/w 'Fluff On The Needle' released in 1974 on United Artists (UP-35676) and featuring Monty Python member Michael Palin acting as a record shop keeper. Among the featured send-ups are standards like 'Take Good Care Of My Baby', 'White Christmas', 'In The Mood' and 'Who Wants To Be A Millionare'.

Neil Innes - What Noise Annoys A Noisy Oyster (A-side) - 2:47
Neil Innes / Grimms - OO-Chuck-A-Mao-Mao (B-side) - 3:51
Two great Neil Innes penned tracks released under his own name in 1975 on United Artists (UP-35772). The B-side was originally released in 1973 on the second Grimms album 'Rockin' Duck'. 

Roger Ruskin Spear - I Love To Bumpity Bump - 2:35
Roger Ruskin Spear - When Yuba Plays The Rumba On The Tuba - 3:04 
Both sides of a 1974 single from Roger's second solo album 'Unusual'. The b-side, a wonderful cover version of a tune found on an old 78 RPM-single is his solo version of an early Bonzo favorite they never recorded.

Grimms - Womble Bashers Of Walthamstow (A-side) - 2:50
Grimms - The Worst Is Yet To Come (B-side) - 2:48
Grimms' (featuring Neil Innes) final release from the album 'Sleepers' and released as 7" single in 1976 on DJM Records (DJS-679). 

'Legs' Larry Smith - Springtime For Hitler (A-side) - 3:59
'Legs' Larry Smith - I Got A Braun New Girl (In God Wet Rust) (B-side) - 2:12
From the 1978 single 'Springtime For Hitler' released in 1978 on Arista Records (ARIST-194). 'I Got A Braun New Girl' was re-released in 2009 on Smug Records as part of a five track digital EP 'Call Me, Adolf!' produced by Gus Dudgeon.

'Legs' Larry Smith - Bullshot - 2:16
Title song from the 1983 Handmade Films release 'Bullshot' featuring 'Legs' Larry on vocals. Handmade was a George Harrison owned company that he established in 1979 with Denis O'Brien to finance Monty Python's second feature film 'Life Of Brian' after their movie deal with EMI fell through at the last minute.

Neil Innes - Them (B-side) - 2:52
Written and performed by Neil Innes, this song was originally released in 1982 as A-side to the single 'Them' b/w 'Rock Of Ages' (MMC I00) and re-released in 1992 as B-side to 'No Matter Who You Vote For The Government Always Gets In (Heigh Ho)'. The latter song, recorded in 1987, was Vivian Stanshall's final recording with the band as he died in 1995 when a fire broke out in his house.

That's your lot for tonight, and if nothing else this album shows that every member of the Bonzo Dog Band had much more to give after the group had disbanded. Watch out for Viv's album later on. 

Track listing

01 Topo D. Bill - Witchi-Tai-To (single 1969)
02 Topo D. Bill - Jam (b-side of 'Witchi-Tai-To')
03 The World - Angelina (single 1970)
04 The World - 9 To 5 Pollution Blues (from 'Lucky World' 1970)
05 Viv Stanshall & The Sean Head Showband - Labio-Dental Fricative (single 1970)
06 Viv Stanshall & The Sean Head Showband - Paper Round (b-side of 'Labio-Dental Fricative')
07 Roger Ruskin Spear - Trouser Freak (Full Version) (single 1971)
08 Roger Ruskin Spear - Trouser Press (b-side of 'Trouser Freak')
09 Roger Ruskin Spear - Release Me (b-side of 'Trouser Freak')
10 Roger Ruskin Spear - Drop Out! (b-side of 'Trouser Freak')
11 Roger Ruskin Spear - Mattress Man (BBC Radio Flash 1971)
12 Roger Ruskin Spear - Call Of The Freaks (BBC Radio Flash 1971)
13 Neil Innes - Re-Cycled Vinyl Blues (single 1974) 
14 Neil Innes - Fluff On The Needle (b-side of 'Re-Cycled Vinyl Blues')
15 Neil Innes - What Noise Annoys A Noisy Oyster (single 1975)
16 Neil Innes / Grimms - OO-Chuck-A-Mao-Mao (b-side of 'What Noise Annoys A Noisy Oyster')
17 Roger Ruskin Spear - I Love To Bumpity Bump (single 1974)
18 Roger Ruskin Spear - When Yuba Plays The Rumba On The Tuba (b-side of 'I Love.....')
19 Grimms - Womble Bashers Of Walthamstow (single 1976)
20 Grimms - The Worst Is Yet To Come (b-side of 'Womble Bashers Of Walthamstow')
21 'Legs' Larry Smith - Springtime For Hitler (single 1978)
22 'Legs' Larry Smith - I Got A Braun New Girl (In God Wet Rust) (b-side of 'Springtime For Hitler')
23 'Legs' Larry Smith - Bullshot (from the film 'Bullshot' 1983)
24 Neil Innes - Them (single 1982)

Vivian Stanshall - Are You Having Any Fun? (1990)

As promised on Friday, here's the first of two posts from the legendary Vivian Stanshall. Born Victor Anthony Stanshall in 1943, he is, of course, best know for his work with the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band. They were actually named following a word game that Stanshall played with co-founder Slater, in which they cut up sentences and juxtaposed fragments to form new ones and 'Bonzo Dog/Dada' was one result which they liked. The band initially performed under this name, but grew tired of explaining what Dada meant and so it became the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band, 'doo-dah' being a quaint expression that both Slater's mother and Vivian himself used to describe everyday objects. After acquiring a manager, they went full-time and were booked on the working men's club circuit, mainly in the north of England, and in 1967 they appeared in The Beatles' television film 'Magical Mystery Tour', performing Stanshall's 'Death Cab for Cutie' during the strip club scene. This led to a spot as the house band on 'Do Not Adjust Your Set', a weekly children's television revue series that also featured pre-Monty Python appearances from Eric Idle, Michael Palin and Terry Jones. 
In 1968 the band scored a surprise top-ten hit with 'I'm The Urban Spaceman', co-produced by Paul McCartney and Gus Dudgeon under the alias 'Apollo C. Vermouth'. After a couple more successful albums they decided to split whilst they were still friends, and in March 1970, they played their last show at Loughborough University. Following the split Stanshall formed a number of short-lived groups during 1970 alone, including biG GRunt (including former Bonzos Roger Ruskin Spear and Dennis Cowan, and with Anthony 'Bubs' White on guitar), The Sean Head Showband (again featuring Cowan and White), Gargantuan Chums, and the slightly longer-lived Bonzo Dog Freaks with Innes and the ever-faithful Cowan and White. Early that year, biG GRunt recorded a well-received John Peel session for BBC Radio 1, but despite this promising start they dissolved during their first UK tour when Stanshall became incapacitated by the onset of an anxiety disorder which caused a nervous breakdown that would continue to plague him for the rest of his life. He soon recovered sufficiently to record and release his first solo single 'Labio-Dental Fricative/Paper Round', credited to Vivian Stanshall and The Sean Head Showband (an oblique reference to Stanshall having shaved off all of his hair during his breakdown), and featuring Eric Clapton on guitar. 
Later in the year, his single version of Terry Stafford's song 'Suspicion' was released, credited to Vivian Stanshall and Gargantuan Chums and featuring Keith Moon and John Entwistle of The Who, with the b-side being 'Blind Date', the only officially released track by biG GRunt. In early 1971, Stanshall returned to touring with a new band, Freaks. This group recorded a BBC radio session for John Peel that featured solo numbers by Stanshall and Innes, alongside tracks from The Bonzo's yet-to-be-released 'Let's Make Up And Be Friendly', and it also marked the first appearance in any medium of an episode of Stanshall's magnum opus, 'Rawlinson End'. Further singles were rare, but avidly welcomed by his fans when they appeared in 1974 and 1976, as were the Peel sessions that he was continually offered by his DJ friend. In 1973 he recorded his contribution to the 'That'll Be The Day' soundtrack album, although the song didn't make the film, and one of his last recordings was for a charity album in support of the Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy Centre, put together by the New Musical Express, and featuring his '(There's) No Room To Rhumba In A Sports Car'. 
Vivian Stanshall was found dead on the morning of 6 March 1995, following a fire at his flat. 
I hope that this collection of non-album singles, choice radio sessions, and the afore-mentioned charity record and film soundtrack work, is a fitting tribute to a unique character, for whom it can honestly be said 'there'll never be another like him'.  

Track listing

Vivian Stanshall & biG GRunt 
01 Eleven Moustachioed Daughters (John Peel session 1970)
02 The Strain (John Peel session 1970)
03 Cyborg Signal (John Peel session 1970)
Vivian Stanshall & The Sean Head Showband
04 Labio-Dental Fricative (single 1970)
05 Paper-Round (b-side of 'Labio-Dental Fricative')
Vivian Stanshall & Gargantuan Chums
06 Suspicion (single 1970)
Vivian Stanshall & biG GRunt
07 Bind Date (b-side of 'Suspicion')
Vivian Stanshall
08 Lakonga (single 1974)
09 Baby Tunde (b-side of 'Lakonga')
Vivian Stanshall, Keith Moon, Jack Bruce, Ronnie Wood & Graham Bond
10 Real Leather Jacket (from the 'That'll Be The Day' soundtrack album 1973)
Vivian Stanshall
11 Trail Of The Lonesome Pine (John Peel session 1975)
Vivian Stanshall & Kilgaron
12 The Young Ones (single 1976)
13 Are You Having Any Fun? (single 1976)
14 The Question (b-side of 'The Young Ones'/'Are You Having Any Fun?')
Vivian Stanshall & The Big Boys
15 (There's) No Room To Rhumba In A Sports Car (from 'The Last Temptation Of Elvis' 1990)