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Just thought I'd rattle off my top ten Geldof songs. Some of these selections may be displaced when the new album comes out. This list is in no particular order of favouritism as I personally like all the songs. Suggestions welcome. A In The Pouring Rain b Dig A Ditch c Thinking Voyager Two type things D A...
Can anybody recommend a good album they think a Rats fan would like - old or new it doesn't matter? I've been listening to the Kaiser Chief's Off With Their Heads for the last few weeks and think it's pretty good - I'd give it 7/10.
Seeing that there is increasing signs of Christmas activity in Dublin I'm reminded of a few years ago in a shopping centre the hoary old Christmas "favourite" Let It Snow came on the PA system. And for the first time I noticed the similarity with the chorus of BG's Let It Go! Now I can't lis...
What if any Boomtown Rats track could be revamped in the modern stylee with the usual pointless generated "beats" and other such interfering to make it playable to a modern audience with a ten second attention span? i was thinking a dancey sounding track with some commercial appeal like...
Which is the better song Mondays or Rat Trap? -- Edited by ArrGee on Tuesday 26th of October 2010 10:12:54 PM-- Edited by ArrGee on Tuesday 26th of October 2010 10:17:48 PM
For some reason unknown to myself I didn't see the Rats more than once live and that was in 1979. In the early to mid 80s they were doing the Uni circuit. A friend of mine saw them, probably around 82-85 (that's when he was at Uni) and he said they refused, or rather Bob did, to do Rat Trap and Mondays and eve...
Just watched the Rats on Youtube doing Diamond Smiles in Toyko, May 1980and can't help thinking if wasn't that great. Talk about overdoing the na na nas, and the concise dynamic of the original is ruined with a lazy ending/last verse. I've always had a thing that I generally prefer the recorded versi...
As a fan growing up I used to feel a bit insulted that the Rats were not considered "real " punks whatever that means. Then I started to realise that this was only a concept made up by the music press to suit their agenda which is being the arbiters of taste. Bands like XTC, Dr Feelgood or The Sain...
hey- this is one song the Rats don't seem to have played too often live. It must be one of their most tender songs and it's curious that Bob hasn't played it live in his own band. There was a very good version on the first album reissue a few years back. I know its a bit at odds with the more New Wavey/ Punk feeli...
Does this mean I have been bad? Is it like a bad mark or a warning signal to others? Is it like I been handed a warning? Lmao Any other suggestions of what it could mean?
bet Bob is not too pleased - Wasn't one of the ideas behind this particular company to do local tv in Ireland? Great stuff - would like to see very localised tv all over england too. Your thoughts?
Just discovered trawling through page six or seven of the Boomtown Rats videos that someone has added Mary of the Fourth Form and Me and Howard Hughes from the Rock Goes To College series from 1978. This is the first time I've seen these songs as I had only seen Rat Trap from RGTC previously. Picture qual...
HI- does anybody know if a full concert was recorded by Japanese tv when the Rats toured in 1980? A live version of Diamond Smiles appeared on Youtube so I presume a full concert was recorded but I have no more information and always wondered if this concert remains in the vaults of some tv corporatio...
What a brave, emotional, but brilliant performance from Bob and the band last night He opened the gig by singing the Soft Soil for his sister and could not sing all the words By the end, he was on fire and a brilliant and receptive audience made sure he realised how much they respected him for this He is fly...
Anyone have any rare BTR live cds or Bob Live cds . I have 4 Live cds I would love to copy and trade for something I dont have. I am talking about Bootlegs . Right now there is a Boomtown Rats Bootleg cd on ebay starting at $20.00 , I will trade the same cd minus artwork for something I dont have . I have "On a Night...
Hot off the presses. Pete Briquette has stated that he thinks its very unlikely for there to be a Rats reunion there are too many disputes between the personnel in the band. He says he'd love to for sentimental reasons but who would want to see a bunch of middle aged old guys on stage! Various sources for t...
Can someone help me.I have just seen a video from the band,for a song called Rain.It is the video for the terrific DAVE,with some words changed ,for what seems like no reason at all. Can someone explain this, as all this does to me is to ruin the image of Dave,as a song.THANKS
I didn't know Geldof has such a love for tigers. Just what is Bob up to with that tiger. If you go to Getty Images search for Boomtown Rats then choose "oldest first" loads of brilliant Rats photos from back in the day appear including some with Bob and his new best friend from the Tonic cove...
If you see the 3 witches , (sorry, I mean ladies), then come and say hello. I Scots, 1 Polish, 1 Dutch. At Brussels and Hamont. Thanks Tina for clearing up the Hotpress article. I have deleted it so not to cause any more confusion. -- Edited by Scottie on Sunday 10th of October 2010 01:31:41 PM
Hi - I was wondering about fans favourite photos of the Boomtown Rats. I would say there are loads to choose from, but my fave is the one with the band sitting on the stairs on the Diamond Smiles video set festooned with balloons. This one appeared in an issue of Jackie magazine which my sister used to get,...
Having to make a speech the day after your birthday bash in Dublin really shows!! Part 1 Belfast Media Festival http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XP_HdnMivS0
BG talked recently about things that affected him most, amongst which was meeting his heroes Mick Jagger and Bob Dylan. It must be hard to meet someone he had hero worshipped in his teenage years and was deeply influenced by. Just what do you say that doesn't make you sound like ablithering idiot?-- E...
Does anybody think that Bob Geldof was the most exciting front-man of the punk/new wave scene? With his constant movement around the stage and his general presence and charisma he certainly was more exciting than Paul Weller of the Jam. The fact that he didn't play guitar set him free to move about an...
Hi-I've always wondered if the phrase" Vegetarians of love "actually meant something. Obviously veggies don't eat meat but in the context of love might they be missing something, perhaps emotionally undernourished. On the other hand maybe they're happier and healthier, with less e...
Hi - bored of Tunbridge Wells writes to ask when did Boomtown Rats piano player Johnnie Fingers stop wearing pyjamas on stage and as a fashion statement? Was it around the time of Surfacing or a few years later during the Mondo Bongo years? PS - Or should that be Bored, of Tunbridge Wells? And it's not e...
This one is for fun only so don't take it too seriously. Does anybody see any blatant rip offs or plagiarism in any of the Rats songs. For me I cannot spot any so nothing springs to mind. I was wondering if anybody thinks x song by the Rats sounds a little like some other song. Conversely is there any songs by...
I really admire Bob for all hes done and all that hes become, Kerr concludes. But whenever anyone mentions his name I always remember the first time we saw The Rats in Glasgow. I thought they were really fantastic. A lot of the so-called punk bands that we had seen were excitiing but also disappointing....
HI- I'm sure some of the praise for the Rats success must go to Facthna O' Kelly. He was a quietly spoken, thoughtful music journalist who worked for the Evening Press newspaper in Dublin in the seventies and left his job to manage the Rats he was so impressed on seeing them play live. I've heard him being...
HI - Does anybody know which was the Rats best selling album of all time- I'm including all the re released cd albums and greatest hits in this. I suspect in might be Tonic . From 1978 till 2010 it must have outsold the others in terms of accumulated sales. I bought it probably four times in various formats...
HI- some years ago a film called Rat was made which I haven't seen. It was some sort of Oirish Blarney set in Dubalin and featured music by Geldof and Briquette. Does anyone know if this was original music, which is unlikely or was it some of their known work? The film got ok reviews but maybe some rainy da...
Maybe "depressing " is the wrong word but I've always seen a melancholy strain in his solo work-of someone who comes across as never being too happy or contented with life. I know perceiving the whole of someones personality through art is a bit unfair and I recognise the persona of a singe...
HI- I was wondering does anybody have reviews of the Fine Art of Surfacing , Mondo Bongo and V Deep from NME Sounds MM etc. It's said these albums got a hard time and caused friction between the music press and Geldof or maybe this is just exaggerated. How much reviews sway people is open to debate. I suppo...
For what its worth does anybody think if the original Boomtown Rats line-up was to get together again could they come up with a good album? I know its an unlikely scenario but other bands have done it. I'm not naive, deluded or whatever but I still think Geldof and the five others had a unique feel to th...
Hi - RTE Irish television made a documentary on the Rats in America in 1979 which I have never seen so I was wondering if anybody has seen this item or is it still in the RTE archives in Dublin?
Hi- I was too young to attend but I was curious if anyone on this forum attended the Leixlip castle gig. This was infamously when there was some sort of riot in the same way that there was lots of football hooliganism at that time- caused by people who didn't really care so long as the could have a scrap. Unf...
Looking at the pithy review in MOJO magazine( not a bad review) and feeling the new single will get little airplay I wonder does anybody have any genious methods of promoting BG' s new album. He'll probably get a few live tv appearances as well but it all seems so random. Maybe Bob himself doesn't care to...
The Boomtown Rats achieved reasonable success if one considers the hazards of getting involved in a band in the first place. Two British number one singles, a string of top twenty singles, generally considered a good band by the critics, four top twenty albums and six albums which always maintained...
HI just seeing the postings about the ultimate live sets and Jules saying how good the Rats looked on the dvd, about a year ago I purchased a dvd projector cos I'm a big movie fan. For techies these things basically project a very large image on to a wall or screen which will make a 50 inch plasma tv look ...
hi- does anybody have any views on thefrowned on the idea but with various Musicians Union type rules in play during th Rats miming on tv appearances?. I think some of the more pure punk bands e seventies there was no alternative but to refuse to play so bands were caught in a bind. Geldof's famous playi...
Bit of a philisophical one this.......... Are some of us more capable of a deeper love than others? Woud you say for instance that Bob is capable of love more than, say, most people? I mean judging by his actions it would appear that Bob does have more love for a complete bunch of strangers thousands of mi...
Hi- I'm not unrealistic about Geldof's solo talent but because of my long lasting love for The Boomtown Rats and continued interest in his music I shall just buy the album without any consideration of reviews or potential disappointment with a single. Geldof is one of a handful of artists that comma...
HI Just a quick post- I've always thought it interesting that Bob Geldof has never written songs with someone like Bono or Elvis Costello. I'd imagine writing songs with Bono would help to get publicity. In a way its good that he hasn't as he's standing on his own feet so to speak but the go- it -alone rout...
HI - Was curious to know if anybody has any idea of the average tv audience figures for TOTP in the late seventies / early eighties when the Rats were having all their hit singles. I know there were limited tv channels availible in Britain and Ireland at that time so one couldn't skip to the History Channe...
I have some very important album news but because i am on tour myself i need to check check and bloody check again. You know what its like i will phone management to make sure ive got it right ...................LOL
http://musicruinedmylife.blogspot.com/2010/07/boomtown-rtas.htmlhttp://www.megaupload.com/?d=5EFQVDOZ http://www.megaupload.com/?d=3RPXURWN http://www.megaupload.com/?d=ISZ2JVIU-- Edited by Bobi G on Tuesday 7th of September 2010 10:56:24 PM
Not a hugh amount comes to mind. Definitely there's the Doctor Feelgood influence down to Pete Briquettes "homage" to Wilko Johnson at live performances. Also the australian "punk" band with horns The Saints have the same raw r and b feel and energy and Pulp with their catc...
Hi back in 1984 the Rats gave a very good performance on the Oxford Road Show from Manchester performing Tonight as their new single and possibly two other tracks from In The Long Grass. This was before BG's "new found " fame as world saviour. I Dont have one but it would be good if someone s...
HI- Its so cool to see Hugh Laurie playing Mondays on House and getting nearly two million hits- people will be asking (probably americans!) that sounds fimiliar who is it by ?- only to be told its by Bob Geldof and the Boomtown Rats- they might even download or buy some Rats cds. I havent seen House by...
In my case because I played the songs so frequently growing up when they came out that they're sort of lodged in my head and I don't need to listen that often. I always find its good to 'rest' music and let it breathe. Sometimes I just play a single track by the Boomtown Rats as the mood suits me- like a good c...
This actually happened to a friend from myspace last week. She was crossing the street near her home in LA, when she had a near miss with a car. It stopped at lights and she recognised the passenger, a certain Mr Geldof. She approached the car and started talking to Bob through the window, telling him she...
hi just wondering if any BG fans have songs by other artists that they'd like to see Bob covering. songs that would suit his musical persona. I've always loved a song by the Only Ones called Deadly Nightshade that Id love to hear him cover- its got gloomy semi- doomed lyrics that would suit Bob! Any idea...
how many Cds did Greengate make- I have one-its really awful but I would buy the others out of devotion/stupidity.
if you know email me at fodleg@yahoo.com as I dont get to the forum often.
Chil out be cool stay free.
fodleg
I've done a version of the song Banana Republic. You can hear it on my myspace page here: http://www.myspace.com/1chrisgraham It's only a demo version, that isn't mixed properly. I just wanted to do a different chilled-out feel version of the song. Listen to it in the dead of the night. Any constru...
If you were stranded on a desert island a la radio 4s long running series and had to choose six Boomtown Rats tracks which would you choose ?. Mine would be in no particular order of favouritism - 1 Diamond Smiles 2 Never IN A Million Years 3 Real Different 4 Over Again 5 A Hold Of ME 6 Straight Up. Dont thi...
By this I mean proper old school b-sides as on the original vinyl! My personal favourite is Real Different bw Elephants Graveyard. In fact Real Different is one of my favourite Rats tracks- a song about stagnation and boredom a familiar Rats theme. There are loads more good b- sides like Its All The Rag...
JUST WONDERING WHICH ALBUM COVER RANKS BEST- FOR ME I CANT DECIDE BETWEEN THE FIRST LP AND TONIC ARTWORK AND LONG GRASS IN THIRD PLACE .THE REST ARE OK BUT NOTHING TOO SPECIAL , SONGS ARE GOOD THOUGH!
One of the things I do along with Ian, is run an agency called Home Sweet Home which deals with private house and garden concerts. And also acoustic based concerts in venues of special interest, i.e. castles, churches, historic venues.... we are delighted to announce that Gerry Cott will be joining...
I have just read ArrGee's post about the charity album. I passed the message through Jules because I am very busy with my own musical career, by the way you lot, I am just about to record a cover of mondays and there is a youtube clip knocking about. Arrgee to be perfectly honest with you, I lost my little bo...
Hi everyone more rats musings -Ive always wondered if Gerry Cotts pretty good Elephants Graveyard b side was written about Bob Geldof and the fickleness of fame.This was the commercial peak of the Rats "career" best selling album Mondo Bongo had just been a hit. Particularly the lines &...
hi everyone I was wondering why Bob did not follow up SAD fairly quickly with another album- there an old adage Strick while the iron is hot. SAD got good critical reviews and a nine year delay is a long time. If a year is a long time in politics etc. Paul Weller seems prolific but then hes not off saving the...
I've still got some stuff. t-shirts, button badges etc from the early days of the Rats. One item I have which seems a bit quirky is a ceramic porcelain like ashtray. Nicely colured and glazed, in the shape of the swimming pool from Fine Art of Surfacing. Probably about 6" x 4" and is inscribed...
hi everyone I was just wondering will the new Geldof single get much radio play. I suppose if its really good it will get some in the UK/IRE on BBC RADIO 2 , maybe BBC 6 Music, RTE . Hopefully it will be good enough to reming people that he can write decent tunes every now and again. He may be "big "...
Hi everyone Ive been listening lately to a track called Dig A Ditch from the anthology and this song to me sounds most like a Boomtown Rats track in terms of energy passion and lyrics. Also a song called Talk Me Up which is the b side of World Calling and in my opinion a better track-Its got ratlike qualit...
I dont know about everybody else but my rough formula for rating albums is having four pointers - not very scientifically named 1 brilliant songs 2 very good songs 3 sort of ok/acceptable and 4 songs i activally dislike. Theres also the BTTSOIP factor- better than the sum of its parts. So thats how I...
Ever since he wrote Fever Pitch the story of an obsessive Arsenal fan (errr!) - a number of people who I met at the time said the book reminded them of me, some of his books have been too close for comfort! High Fidelity - A musically obsessed list maker (errr!) Juliet Naked - A artist obsessed fan with his o...
