What song should the new Rats do next?

ArrGee · Back To Boomtown

What song should the new Rats do next?

ArrGee · Back To Boomtown

You can make multiple votes.

Also if there's a song you would like to include in addition, just reply.

suss · In the Long Grass

I must be missing something. Can you only multiple vote on first/only visit? My option to vote a second time doesn't seem to be there.

Jules · The biggest Geldof fan in the world, bar none!

Me neither. It just shows the voting stats and no button or anything. Scanned around, can't see anything confuse

ArrGee · Back To Boomtown

Once you vote you cannot vote again. So select all the songs first time.

However as administrator, I can add votes if you wanted to add extra songs. Let me know if you want some AVs.

noelindublin · Loudmouth

Great songs I'd like to hear them play include Real Different, Hard Times, Late Last Night and Born To Burn. Of course these songs are too obscure for the casual fan so its not gonna happen. Again something tells me than only Bob Geldof's singing can impart their particular nuances and emotional impact so it may be a pointless exercise anybody else trying.

Not sure why the band seem reluctant to try different songs- just for the sake of variety. Of course a limited amount of stage time necessitates a shortish set that is largely familiar - surely Do The Rat is a sort of celebratory Rats theme song that would be fun to play. The "beer factor " may render all arguments null and void with fans too drunk to notice or remember afterwards.

ArrGee · Back To Boomtown

noelindublin wrote:
Great songs I'd like to hear them play include Real Different, Hard Times, Late Last Night and Born To Burn. Of course these songs are too obscure for the casual fan so its not gonna happen.

I would have thought a fair amount of the first album would be unfamiliar to some fans. Sales of A Tonic for the Troops, Fine Art of Surfacing and even Mondo Bongo dwarfed the debut. Oddly Kicks, which a few people may have heard in the 1978 tour is not in the set list.

Late Last Night was played live in 1979, and went down well. I was surprised it ended up as a b-side. I thought it would have made a good single post-Mondays. I was never quite sure when it was recorded. The Padgham session seems to pre-date Surfacing, so it may have been considered as a single in the same way the re-recording of Joey was.

suss · In the Long Grass

I think it's telling that the current set includes 2 Feelgood tracks, the inference being that the set is built on what Garry and Simon want to play rather than playing to the crowd, and they would sooner play those tracks than further Rats' songs.

That's not to say I wouldn't want loads of the tracks discussed given at least an occasional or experimental airing, just that I can't readily see it happening. It's a shame really as you would have thought the challenge of (re)mastering another set option would be appealing, as they must get slightly bored with same old set.

Perhaps the (geographically) restricted opportunities to rehearse 'new' stuff dampens their enthusiasm for change. I can well believe they would adopt view that if you can't play it well don't play it at all.

noelindublin · Loudmouth

The bottom line is that you can only do so much in a forty minute set or however long they play for. Wanting to play some Dr Feelgood is understandable because I think at one stage in the early days all the Rats set consisted on Dr Feelgood material- so its basically an homage to an undeniable influence and brings back memories for Garry and Simon of just starting out.

ArrGee · Back To Boomtown

suss wrote:
I think it's telling that the current set includes 2 Feelgood tracks, the inference being that the set is built on what Garry and Simon want to play rather than playing to the crowd, and they would sooner play those tracks than further Rats' songs.

They started off with three. They ditched All Through The City (pity) . Riot in Cell Block #9 isn't really a Feelgood song, more an R&B standard, as it was written in 1954 by Lieber & Stoller. Had Elvis been around a little earlier he would have recorded it, but instead he got Jailhouse Rock a couple of years later. Surprisingly, Elvis never recorded the song.

Simon used to like A Tonic for the Troops.

http://www.boomtownrats.co.uk/the-boomtown-rats/interviews/137-simon-crowe-interview-2001.html

CHRIS: What's your favourite Rats LP ? (I guess your fave song must be Like Clockwork ?).

SIMON: I suppose Tonic has to be the one - when we were on the crest of our wave and on the way up - we put that album relatively painlessly too. We had found our confidence in the studio without becoming too anal!

ArrGee · Back To Boomtown

noelindublin wrote:
I think at one stage in the early days all the Rats set consisted on Dr Feelgood material

According to Geldof (you have to remember he doesn't always tell the whole truth). they played Down By The Jetty in its entirety...

Dr. Feelgood were absolutely central to the Boomtown Rats. When I heard Down by the Jetty, it just fcuking blew me away. The Feelgoods were in it for me. Our early live set used to be their entire first album. When I heard the line 'Stand and watch the towers burning at the break of day', which was about the Canvey Island burn-offs, I realised that it wasn't enough for music to sound good. It had to mean something, to reflect where you came from. - Bob Geldof

http://theboomtownrats.blogspot.com/2006/06/down-by-jetty.html

suss · In the Long Grass

Asked Garry about this after Morecambe gig and apparently they are looking to add Banana Republic and Dave to the set. Interesting choices. Not really in keeping with the R&B/guitars base of the current set, but would be great to hear.

noelindublin · Loudmouth

Well Banana Republic was a big hit and is well known so it's good for them to give it a live airing. Dave on the other hand is probably only known by those who have a more dedicated interest in the band. I like Up Or Down from In The Long Grass- that is really basic guitar music and would sound good l live but again its only an album track.

With my cynical hat on I'd say that most people at these gigs are a few sheets to the wind and may not pick up on what is being played. Possibly another good choice would be When The Night Comes. At least the Rats have a long list of quality songs to choose from.

BTR · Tonight

Garry & Simon want to play 'Dave' because he was a good mate.

Banana Republic was a big hit. It was in the German charts for about a year. Apparently, they took to it because of the Berlin wall divide.

Banana Republic is extremely precise and controlled (perhaps another reason why Germans liked it so much - it's almost Kraftwerk-like in that respect).

My versions on Banana Republic:

http://www.myspace.com/1chrisgraham/music/songs/banana-republic-chris-graham-6435409

http://www.myspace.com/1chrisgraham/music/songs/banana-republic-cg-mykey-7029523

-- Edited by BTR on Wednesday 1st of June 2011 02:25:39 AM

noelindublin · Loudmouth

BTR wrote:
Garry & Simon want to play 'Dave' because he was a good mate.

Banana Republic was a big hit. It was in the German charts for about a year. Apparently, they took to it because of the Berlin wall divide.

Banana Republic is extremely precise and controlled (perhaps another reason why Germans liked it so much - it's almost Kraftwerk-like in that respect).

My versions on Banana Republic:

http://www.myspace.com/1chrisgraham/music/songs/banana-republic-chris-graham-6435409

http://www.myspace.com/1chrisgraham/music/songs/banana-republic-cg-mykey-7029523

-- Edited by BTR on Wednesday 1st of June 2011 02:25:39 AM

Chris - just listened to both versions of Banana Republic and the are both quite good. Probably prefer the first version- the second one starts well but sorta fades half way through- but both basically much better than I could do.

I didn't know that Banana Republic was such a huge hit in Germany at the time. Geldof's clever word play using Septic isle instead of Shakespeare's Sceptered isle from Richard 11 is impressive.

ArrGee · Back To Boomtown

suss wrote:
Asked Garry about this after Morecambe gig and apparently they are looking to add Banana Republic and Dave to the set.

No objection to those. Great songs.

Drop Diamond Smiles and I Don't Like Mondays.