REVIEWS:
(reviewed by Rob Eustace)
HIGH POINTS: Teenage Kicks, Male Model, Get Over You, Here Comes the Summer, Jimmy Jimmy. LOW POINTS: True Confessions
The Undertones were one of the great new wave bands to emerge during the 1978/79 post punk aftermath. While many of the post punk bands from this era were unoriginal and uninspiring, Cockney Rejects, Angelic Upstarts, UK Subs to name a few, some of the new blood was drawing a little of the punk ideals and combining their own originality to create an appealing mix of power pop, The Undertones fit this persona completely. The five unlikely lads from Derry (Northern Ireland) broke through the UK market in the summer of 1978 with their eternally catchy "Teenage Kicks" single, a track that (champion of so many UK bands) John Peel apparently still quotes as his favourite single of all time. "Get Over You", "Jimmy Jimmy" and "Here Comes the Summer" quickly followed, all are contained on this debut album (in it's second release format) and all wonderfully compelling throbbing guitar workouts, although none ever quite lived up to the magnificent "Teenage Kicks" opener.
The songs were predominately guitarist John O'Neill compositions containing quick fire infectious riffs, but the real jewel in the crown for The Undertones was the unique vocal delivery of frontman Feargal Sharkey. These tracks delivered in the flavour of the day "in your face" vocal, Jimmy Pursey, Nicky Tesco, Paul Weller, would probably have never seen the light of day, but Sharkey does what so many other vocalists where afraid to do from this period and delivers his performances quite proudly and distinctly his own regional accent. I remember watching a documentary at the back end of the 80's where a well respected rock journalist was spinning tales that prior to The Smiths the every band on the planet sang with American accents. As a general rule and for the casual listener there may be something in this quote but for readers of sites like this their will be thousands of exceptions to this rule and in this case Feargal Sharkey clearly predates Morrissey by seven or eight years. Sharkey's masterful quavering tones set these mostly adrenalin charged themes alight and this debut is a glorious collection of late 70's guitar pop and something that would sadly to tail off giving way to the second most baron period in British pop culture.
The Undertones was originally released in the May of 1979 and subsequently re-issued at the end of the summer with a brand new cover and adding the "Teenage Kicks" and "Get Over You" singles and a re-recorded version of "Here Comes the Summer". The entire album is a very even and solid affair with the only dip for me being a substandard version of earlier released "True Confessions". "Family Entertainment", "Girls Don't Like It", "Get Over You", "Jimmy Jimmy", "Here Comes the Summer" "She's a Runaround" and the superb "Male Model" are all classics and gel with the remaining tracks to make this debut a real gem. Latest CD re-issues make the album even more appealing by adding the equally compelling singles from the period to the package.
A mark of a great band is when their B sides stand shoulder to shoulder with their A sides and like The Beatles, and The Smiths, The Undertones consistently pulled it off. I brought "Here Comes the Summer" on release in 1979 and great as it was the two B side tracks "One Way Love" and "Top Twenty" were the tracks that throbbed from my speakers for most of that August. "One Way Love" a little more jangly than the main album tracks is possibly more catchy than "Teenage Kicks", a perfect slice of guitar pop that should never have been hidden away as a B side. "Top Twenty" is nearly it's equal, the pace quickens a little from the previous track but it contains more of Sharkey's top drawer vocals and some wondrous little guitar hooks, and even plays out with a verse of Bolan's "Solid Gold Easy Action".
The Undertones unfortunately is the bands one great album. A couple of classic singles followed the release of this set, the "You've Got My Number/Lets Talk about Girls" pairing being particularly noteworthy before the band sank into the murky waters of "Wednesday Week", "It's Going to Happen", "Julie Ocean" and even worse followed. For this set however we have a distinctly upbeat, exciting, and raw sound that probably draws more from The Ramones than any of their UK forerunners. The Undertones is indeed a worthy addition to your UK new wave collection.
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