First off - about who I am. My name is Brian Smith. I'm from England. I was born at the end of the 1960s. The first records that affected me were the 'Goofy Greats' compilation from K-Tel, 'Crazy Horses' by the Osmonds, 'Children's TV Themes' by the Tony Hatch Orchestra, 'Arrival' by ABBA, and 'End Of The Century' by the Ramones. I first picked up the guitar when I was about 13 years old. I played in bands with friends for a few years, but my earliest significant musical moment was joining Visions of Change on their last tour before they split. This was an amazing experience because the tour was supporting Fugazi around Europe. Visions of Change called it a day the following year, but, with their members Lee and Andy, plus friends Kath and Glynn, we formed Family Gotown. For around 3 years (1990-1993) Family Gotown had a heady time - we played some great gigs on the same lineup as some excellent bands, recorded some killer songs, got signed to Vertigo/Phonogram/EMI Music, released a few singles, and then called it a day before our lack of commercial success became too conspicuous. After that, I moved to Japan, where I formed MINX. We got signed to Sky Records, released 3 LPs and still play in one form or another to this day. In the meantime, I've been writing and recording a lot of solo songs where the arrangements are a bit too knotty for the 5-piece band. Some of those songs make up this collection. OK - here it is, a total demystification of the contents of these 27 songs. I realise that it is probably only you and I that will ever read this, so let's get comfy. First, how they got made… These songs were all created in the spare room of my home, using a Mac Mini PC, Garageband software, 4 different guitars (3 rescued from the rubbish tip), a microphone (thanks Keizo) and a few other instruments that I borrowed from my kids. They are a selection from about 100 songs that I've completed (and about 100 that I haven't yet completed) over the last 10 years. They are an anthology of truths, lies, facts, fictions and fantasies. They demonstrate a range of my musical tastes, which is hopefully wide enough to sustain your interest over all 27 songs. So, here we go - a song-by-song breakdown of what is on here… TO THE SEA This song came into life when I was looking through some old photos with my mum and my brother, in the aftermath of my dad's death. I often think, not morbidly, about the fragility of life, and the legacies that we leave. Death seems to be the great leveller, so that irrespective of who we are, our matter will decompose, and eventually recombine into some other form elsewhere in this mighty cosmos. The main chord progression for this song is mad-easy to play, yet I've never heard another song that uses it. That simplicity is compensated for in the outro, which has a couple of Black Flag chords thrown in there to stretch your fingers. (Check: 'Miss Van Houten's Coffee Shop' by Captain Sensible/Martin Newell) SUMMER'S COME This is a song that MINX once spent about 10 minutes on in a rehearsal, but never had time to pursue any further (although the bass part that Mike came up with that day remains almost unchanged). The chorus was born fully-formed, and the rest of it, except for the baroque bits at the beginning and end of the song, all followed very smoothly. I have some very vivid, happy memories of long, summer evenings spent outdoors in the English countryside - I love the way that the sunshine in the last hour of daylight illuminates the hills, the skies and people's faces. It's a very romantic time and place. I persuaded a reluctant Mrs S and Miss S to sing some backing vocals on this song. (Check: 'Love On A Farm Boy's Wages' by XTC > 'Light & Day' by the Polyphonic Spree) MAY This version of 'May' was my second stab at the song. The first version had the same melody and forlorn lyrics, but was a synth-pop affair. Then, a few years later, I came across a great LP called 'Better Can't Make Your Life Better' by Lilys, which, in turn, reminded me of how much I used to love the Lime Spiders, the Headless Horsemen, the Fuzztones and the Hoodoo Gurus. In the same week as I heard the Lilys LP, a Fender Telecaster came into my possession, and that was it - all the stars were aligned. I think I spent as much time programming the Keith-Moon-drum-fills as I spent on singing and playing everything else on there. (Check: the Who > the Kinks > Lilys > the Lime Spiders) LITTLE BOY One of my favourites - I think the finished result sounds very natural and uncontrived, but the music is like a Heath-Robinson contraption, made up of about six previously-unconnected bits of music. Once the tune started crystallising, the words came fairly easily - I did a bit of research on Robert J. Oppenheimer - who I knew had lived a pretty startling life - then jumbled up my words, and it all came together very quickly. When I was a kid, I always liked songs that referenced historical characters ('Me And Howard Hughes', 'Einstein A-Go-Go', 'Rasputin', etc.) so this is my contribution to the oeuvre. (Check: 'Spilt Milk' LP by Jellyfish > 'How Does It Feel?' by Slade) DRIFTING Proper sad, this song. I particularly like the line 'we can’t both be right, but we could both be wrong', which seems to describe the futility of a lot of arguments. I used the same, watery, mellotron-style sound that is used on 'To The Sea' - I think it is very cinematic, and evokes views of the sea beyond England's east coast, between the English Channel and the North Sea. (Check: 'See My Friends' by the Kinks > 'Veronica in Ecstasy' by Tim Smith) THE LAST CENTURY I don't really consider myself a big fan of synthesisers, or of the eighties pop of Gary Numan, Soft Cell, Duran Duran, et al - I always preferred bubblegum pop and the guitar sound of punk bands - but as this song evolved, I did a bit more homework and found a lot of brilliant music from back in the days when I first started squeezing my spots. Although I shoehorned into the lyrics every feasible eighties, futuristic, cringeworthy buzz-word I could think of, and sang it in the trademark robo-deadpan of the period, the chorus, strangely, still affects me quite emotionally. Also, a word of thanks to Howie Sato, from Nicotine, who suggested a couple of great chord changes. (Check: 'We are So Fragile' by Tubeway Army, 'Say Hello, Wave Goodbye' by Soft Cell, 'Say A Prayer' by Duran Duran) MELANCHOLIE To be honest, there is very little of me playing on this song - all the acoustic piano and accordion was played by my friend Tony Cerqua. He took an early, solo demo-version that I'd made - but that I never felt very at home with - and he rearranged it as a duet with another friend of ours who sang it. Their version was beautiful. However, for this instrumental interlude, I've used his backing tracks and added a few other bits and bobs of my own. When I listen to this, I start daydreaming about Claude Monet, Hector Guimard, and endless tables of glasses of white wine. (Check: 'Comme Toujours' by Les Negresses Vertes) ODD BODKINS This is the youngest song of the whole lot. I'm not really sure how it came into existence, but it owes a debt of thanks to early Blur, solo-Julian Cope and, more than anyone else, Cardiacs. The song is about a character similar to the persona Tim Smith seemed to be performing as, during early Cardiacs gigs. I'd love to see some youths freaking out to this at a sixth-form disco. (Check: 'Tarred and Feathered' by Cardiacs) TRUE LOVE AGAIN This is for anyone who has ever had to sort through boxes of old photos, school reports and love letters from the attic. MINX's Ali Campbell plays the breezy, sunny, French-pop keyboards on this song - one summer's day I sat him down on a chair in my stuffy spare room and made him play it and play it until we had it all done. He wasn't allowed out until he'd finished this and 'Sneaking Out' (which comes later). There is loads going on in this song, but it came out sounding surprisingly simple. (Check: 'Move In A Little Closer' by Mama Cass) 1968 The first instalment of my mini-autobiography - years 0-20 - in two verses! I still laugh at these lyrics. Backing shouting courtesy of my friend, Yusuke. Guitar solo courtesy of 999, Generation X and the Ruts. (Check: 'I Know What You Want' by Snuff) WHEN THE WEEKEND COMES An ode to the frustrations of really crappy jobs. I had Phil Daniels' portrayal of Jimmy in 'Quadrophenia' in mind when I wrote the lyrics. The music came when I woke up before the rest of the family, early one New Year's Day, and decided to try to write a song like something from 'Silver Age' by Bob Mould. It came out sounding more like 'Brutal Youth' by Elvis Costello, but that's OK with me. Check the twin guitar solo! I've never done one of them before! (Check: '13 Steps Lead Down' by Elvis Costello) NEVER MET A GIRL LIKE YOU Another of my personal favourites. I love the words (I'd like to think that Ian Dury would, too) - a very un-florid paean to the hits and misses of my romantic youth. If we were at school together, and I fancied you, the only reason you're not mentioned in the lyrics is because I couldn't think of a suitable rhyme for your name. I think the music does a nice job of evoking a Mecca ballroom, with a slowly-turning mirror ball illuminating a couple slow-dancing on an otherwise-empty dance floor. (Check: 'Lorando' by Rebekah Del Rio > 'Sweet Gene Vincent' by Ian Dury and the Blockheads) PAPA ENZO’S PUPPET SHOW (INTERLUDE) Stupid instrumental. Would love to make a scratchy, crackly, black and white video for this one day. (Check: 'The Birdie Song' by the Tweets) FLY WITH ME, MELODY I've always loved Saturday mornings, and when I was a kid, the combination of no school + American cartoons on TV + shop-bought lunch + playing at my friend's house in the afternoon + 'Happy Days' on TV + Dad cooking dinner + 'Starsky & Hutch' on TV (I watched a lot of TV back then) almost gave me a nosebleed just thinking about it. Please find enclosed my every pre-adolescent fantasy, plus a marching band. (Check: the Polyphonic Spree) UNDONE Don't drink and drive (yourself to despair). A simple, but satisfying, set of chords played over a sad set of lyrics. (Check: 'Sewn' by the Feeling) ROLLER COASTER Another number for the lovelorn, taking solace in the dizzying anaesthetic of drink. This started as a tremolo-soaked guitar song, but ended up morphing into a fairground-organ doo-wop. Featuring the beautiful trumpet playing of Brian Feeney. (Check: 'I'm Your Puppet' by James and Bobby Purify > 'Sideshow' by Blue Magic) STAY BEAUTY I really enjoyed reading the terrifying scenario depicted in 'Dead Air' by Iain Banks, of a man in love with a mobster's wife. The first bit of the music came from an aborted, no-show MINX rehearsal when, instead of just going through the same old songs on guitar, Mike and I rented a keyboard and doodled on it until something interesting came out. (Check: 'Adore' by the Smashing Pumpkins) FOR MARIE (INTERLUDE) My aunt, who was from Sweden, and who I was very fond of, passed away a couple of years ago. When I was thinking about her, this tune came. (Check: 'From Gardens Where We Feel Secure' by Virginia Astley) HALLELUJAH I super-enjoyed bolting together this homage to Vegas-era Elvis. Mrs S was surprised that I could sing this many words in so short a space of time. She and Miss S on backing vocals again. (Check: 'A Little Less Conversation' by Elvis Presley) 6PM ROCKING ON THE FM This song's entire DNA was born in about 5 seconds, playing around on Ali's house piano. I found a two-chord combination, and instantly knew how the rest of the song would go and what it would be about. I remember being absolutely overwhelmed when I was a kid, going up to London on a late summer's evening for my brother's birthday and eating at the Hard Rock Cafe! For a 12-year-old from Warlingham, this was about as good as life got. This is my attempt to recreate the dizziness I experienced at seeing all those white suits, Ford Granadas and Lady-Di-hair-dos, racing through the golden dusk of Piccadilly. (Check: 'Sweet Talkin' Woman' by ELO) SNEAKING OUT Another song featuring the piano magic of Ali Campbell. I think this would make a funny episode of a sit-com. I really enjoyed playing the guitars on this, in thrall to Mick Ronson on 'Moonage Daydream'. (Check: 'The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars' by David Bowie) HER MAJESTY I've had a few friends in relationships with people like the character in this song. The things we do for love, eh! (Check: 'Wasteland' by the Jam) EVENING CLASSES (INTERLUDE) My foray into the alien territory of electronic instrumentals. (Check: 'My World' by the Go! Team > Boards of Canada) SHE NEVER CAME BACK AGAIN Sixties California psych-pop. (Check: 'Lady Friend' by the Byrds) CLUB LIFE A fraternal hymn sung by young men in matching cardigans in an oak-panelled, fire-lit club house. Inspired by a few different images - One Direction's video for 'It's Got To Be You', Tony Soprano's dream episode (in the white mansion), and the movie 'Wonder Boys'. (Check: 'Oh What a World' by Rufus Wainwright) DON’T BE FRIGHTENED OF THE DARK I wrote this lullaby for my two kids. I'm not particularly into the classic, fantasy novels, but their stories and this dark melody seemed to go together nicely. (Check: 'Hushabye Mountain' by Dick van Dyke) WITH ALL MY HEART I SING (FOR JULIA AND FOR TIM) The closer. I'm always moved when I hear a choir booming out 'Jerusalem', so I wanted to take a crack at a hymn for this collection. I dedicate this song to two people who have, in very different ways, affected my life significantly. Thanks. (Check: 'Home of Fadeless Splendour' by Cardiacs > 'To Whom it May Concern' by Million Dead)