Marmalade - Fine Cuts-The Best of Marmalade

by Andrew Carver

published: 31 / 10 / 2011

Marmalade - Fine Cuts-The Best of Marmalade

Label: Salvo Music
Format: CD

Often surprising career-defining double CD compilation from 1960s/70s Scottish rock and pop act, Marmalade

Review

The Marmalade are one of those 1960s bands too often tagged as ‘one-hit wonders’.‘Obla-Di Obla-Da’, their No. 1 cover of The Beatles’ tune, is what most people remember them for, but in fact they had other hits (though no other chart toppers in the US or UK). ‘Fine Cuts: The Best Of‘ does a good job of correcting false impressions, with a good survey of both their 1960s hits and misses on one disc and a selection of their 1970s output up until about 1972. This means the comp covers a fair bit of ground, and not everyone will be as entranced by the band’s psych-pop, country rock, folk and radio-friendly orchestral pop in equal degrees. Marmalade got their start in Glasgow as Dean Ford and The Gaylords. They enjoyed great success there, and cut several singles for Columbia (none of them, regrettably, included on this compilation). Like many a British band of the era, they honed their skills in Germany. Soon enough, both a name change to the Marmalade and the lights of London beckoned and the band embarked on the road to ... well ... mixed success. Their first singles as the Marmalade, starting with 1966’s ‘It’s All Happening Sunday Night,’ are harmony rockers, much like the Hollies’ early work. The band is also notable for eschewing rhythm guitar at this point in favour of a second six-string bass, which gave their music a bit of extra drive. Parping horns make an entry in the intro to 1967’s ‘Can’t Stop Now’ - shades of things to come - while the creepings of psychedelia emerge with the excellent ‘I See the Rain’ - justly lauded in the exclamation point-heavy liner notes by guitarist Junior Campbell. Unfortunately, none of these excellent tunes made an impact in the charts, and their subsequent, string-laden single ‘Man in the Shop’ couldn’t crack it either. Two other contemporary tunes, ‘Cry (The Shoob Dooroopie Song’ and ‘The Laughing Man’ give a good feel for the band’s pre-chart days, and their marked capabilities as performers. That all changed in 1968 with the band’s first hit: ‘Lovin’ Things’. The upbeat, horn-happy tune made #6 in the UK, but to modern ears isn’t notably superior to their own album - in fact it seems a bit treacly. It also sets a pattern for the rest of the collection. The band’s own tunes are largely clear of horns, strings and other garnish, and are generally the better for it. The hits are often the product of outside songwriters. The collection takes a bit of a turn, with a cover of the oft-covered (most notably by Jimi Hendrix) ‘Hey Joe’, which eschews all horns and strings for a return to the Marmalade’s earlier, tougher sound. The band’s own ‘Mess Around’ is another hot number. It, however, took another heftily arranged tune written by hired guns, ‘Wait For Me Mary-Anne’ to get on the charts at #30. It was composed by well known hitmakers Ken Howard and Alan Blaikley, also responsible for the Honeycombs ‘Have I The Right?’ and Elvis Presley’s ‘I’ve Lost You’. The Marmalade capped their successful 1968 with ‘Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da’, which outran several competitors to make it to No. 1. The collection then looks in on one of the band’s own compositions, Campbell’s acoustic strummer ‘Chains’ , perhaps to better prepare the listener for ‘Baby Make It Soon’, by songsmith ‘Tony Macaulay - he of ‘Build Me Up Buttercup’ fame. ‘Time is on My Side’ is another cheerful band composition which frankly rests easier on the palate. A restrained version of the Bee Gees' ‘Butterfly’ makes good use of flute and some hammered percussion, as well as the group’s harmonic skills and may be the band’s most capable cover. ‘(Take A Little) Piece of My Heart‘, like ‘Hey Joe’, gets a spot on the comp to show off the band’s fondness for R&B and gets a decent treatment. A cover of Vanda and Young’s ‘Station On Third Avenue’ throws in a few train whistle sound effects and a string section which seems to think it’s covering the theme from ‘Batman’ and is fun if somewhat inconsequential lyrically. The comp is rounded out by covers of Bob Dylan’s ‘Mr. Tambourine Man’ which goes a bit overboard on the strings, a softly rocking version of ‘I Shall Be Released’ and a fine version of the Lovin’ Spoonful’s ‘Summer in the City’ with the vocals markedly high in the mix. Finally, one of the band’s few self-penned hits, ‘Reflections of My Life’, a melancholy tune that reached #3 in Britain and also charted in the U.S. Disc 1 concludes with the piano-accompanied chug of ‘Rollin’ My Thing’, which lets singer Dean Ford show off his blue-eyed soul chops. The 1970s started off on a strong note with the folksy lope of ‘Rainbow’, which also featured some high lonesome harmonica. It also visited the charts, topping off at No. 3 in the U.K. The sonic template stayed more or less the same for ‘The Ballad of Cherry Flavour’, its B-side. The delicate ‘My Little One’, lands on the orchestral pop side with strings, adenoidal woodwind and a harmonized “Ooh-wa, doo-da-day” for the chorus. Its B-side ‘Is Your Life Your Own’ is also included in the comp, and like the ‘Rainbow’ singles sees the band incorporating a country flavour, with its piano and acoustic guitar augmented by touches of steel guitar. The two singles put a capper on the band’s “Junior Campbell era” as the guitarist split for a solo career; Hugh Nicholson, formerly of Scotland’s Poets, stepped into the breach. Not that the band had heard the last of Campbell; he returned to help score the brass section of Nicholson’s ‘Cousin Norman’, where it supplements some cheery strumming and a lyrical ode to home life. Its follow-up, “Back on the Road” didn’t do quite as well on the charts, but has a gently country rocking bounce that is quite appealing. The more sombre ‘Mama’, taken from 1971’s ‘Songs’ LP, has some lovely melodic lines picked out on electric guitar, and is one of singer Dean Ford’s contributions. ‘Sarah’ also comes from ‘Songs’ and is more melancholy country rock. Another ‘Songs’ entry, ‘Ride By Ride’ closed out the original Decca album with a heavy dose of piano and harmony. Those listeners wondering where the electric guitars got to will be pleased by bassist Graham Knight’s ‘Empty Bottles’, which brings a touch of soul back to the group’s sound. That segues into a trip to the archives for another R&B track, the oft-covered ‘Stay With Me’. Campbell notes in the liners that he added orchestration to the original track. “And how,” one might add. Since Lorraine Ellison’s original boasted a 46-piece orchestra, it probably suits, though Ford’s vocals aren’t as over-the-top as Ellison’s desperate plea. ‘Can You Help Me’? is another tune with a 1996 copyright date and a Campbell/McAleese (i.e., Dean Ford) credit; it’s a relatively fierce offering, albeit with a gentle bridge. It’s a serious workout clocking in at 8 minutes, 32 seconds with lots of fuzz guitar and sounds more like something the band recorded in the 1960s, though allegedly the band’s 1970 lineup deserves the credit. Nicholson’s ‘Radancer’ is the last hit on the collection, hitting No. 6 in 1972 (the band’s last hit, ‘Falling Apart At The Seams’, from 1976 apparently doesn’t make the cut). ‘Radancer’ tells the timeless day of a boy trying to get the girl with his dancefloor moves, and features a simple distorted guitar riff and a “Dance! Dance! Dance!” chorus - simple but effective. The compilation is rounded out by the psychedelic ‘Kaleidoscope’, which breaks out the alliteration in a serious way with “mystic magic mirrors” and “shimmering sunbeams” galore. ‘The Lady of Catrine is a fingerpicked gem of harmony folk from ‘Songs’. Another Ford tune, also a ‘Songs’ offering, ‘She Wrote me A Letter’ is a quality love-lost tune with some sepulchral organ backing. Ford produces another countrified tune in ‘Just One Woman’, which was a ‘Radancer’ B-side (along with the aforementioned ‘Sarah’). ‘Bad Weather’ (another ‘Songs’ tune) breaks out the fuzz again, and even throws in some cowbell for a heavier psychedelic sound. ‘Super Clean Jean’ boogies along effectively with some chopping chords and piano. The comp closes with ‘‘I’ve Been Around Too Long’, which sounds like the band has been listening to Steppenwolf, with its freaky guitar riff and Ford’s impassioned vocals. A later band lineup, sans Nicholson, would head to the charts one more with a more ‘boogie’ rock sound better suited to the prepunk days of 1976, but after 45 tracks ‘Fine Cuts’ calls it a day. Not everyone will enjoy the whole ride, but as a survey of most of a band’s career, it’s hard to top.

Track Listing:-

1 It's All Leading Up To Saturday Night
2 Wait A Minute Baby
3 Can't Stop Now
4 There Ain't No Use In Hanging On
5 I See The Rain
6 Laughing Man
7 Man In A Shop
8 Cry
9 Lovin' Things
10 Hey Joe
11 Wait For Me Mary Anne
12 Mess Around
13 Ob-La -Di, Ob-La-Da
14 Chains
15 Baby Make It Soon
16 Time Is On My Side
17 Butterfly
18 (Take A Little) Piece Of My Heart
19 Mr Lion
20 Station On 3rd Avenue
21 Mr Tambourine Man
22 Summer In The City
23 I Shall Be Released
24 Reflections Of My Life
25 Rollin' My Thing
26 Rainbow
27 The Ballad Of Cherry Flavar
28 My Little One
29 Is Your Life Your Own
30 Cousin Norman
31 Back On The Road
32 Mama
33 Sarah
34 Ride Boy Ride
35 Empty Bottles
36 Stay With Me Baby
37 Can You Help Me
38 Radancer
39 Kaleidescope
40 Lady Of Catrine
41 She Wrote Me A Letter
42 Just One Woman
43 Bad Weather
44 Super Clean Jean
45 I've Been Around Too Long