Like with The Empire Strikes Back, this might be a time when the sequel is better than the original. Back in 2020, Bubblerock is Here to Stay! The British Pop Explosion 1970-73, on Cherry Red Records, was superb. Well, the label's gone and done it again. Bubblerock is Here to Stay! Volume Two: The British Pop Explosion 1970-73 is out today and it's somehow more eclectic, more energetic, and more delightful than the first set of British one-hit wonders from an earlier, simpler time.
Disc One of Bubblerock is Here to Stay! Volume Two: The British Pop Explosion 1970-73 starts with a bunch of familiar names, though with their less familiar hits. There's a saucy turn by Lynsey De Paul ("Sugar Me"), a lyrical ramble from Gilbert O'Sullivan ("No Matter How Hard I Try"), and a semi-funky gem from Jonathan King ("It's a Tall Order for a Short Guy"). But where Disc One works so well is with the cuts that seem far removed from the Top 40 styles of that era, or any era, really. "Dad, You Saved the World" by White Plains (another Tony Burrows' outfit) is an epic that recalls The Move, while "Drug Taker" by Derek Paul is in another world altogether. Part cautionary tale, part psychedelic breakdown, the tune is a masterpiece, like something Super Furry Animals would have written in 1996. Elsewhere, we get hits by The Sweet ("Alexander Graham Bell") and The Brotherhood of Man ("United We Stand"), rounding out the 27 songs on Disc One alone.
Disc Two opens with the operatic "Runaway" by Huddlesfield Transit Authority. While the group's name aped that of Chicago (as in the Chicago Transit Authority here in the States), the tune, a cover of the Del Shannon number, showcased Tim Rice's young talents. Elsewhere, we have a big Slade hit ("Coz I Love You") and a cover of "Little Bit O' Soul" by Iron Cross (not the D.C. Iron Cross, obviously). This one is hard as hell, but peppy too, and it's a reminder of just how sharp the riffs of glam could be. The organ-figure of "The Way I Feel" by Complex reminded me a tiny bit of "Life" by Sly and the Family Stone, but this track is far more straightforward pop, as is "She is Still A Mystery", a singalong gem by Summer Wine. Disc Two shines not in the familiar names here (Clodagh Rodgers, The Tremeloes), but real oddities like "The Sun Has Got His Hat On" by Nemo (an alias for Jonathan King). Racially offensive bits aside, the selection seems like something from a Monty Python sketch, even as the Native American parodies of "Working in the City" by Chain Reaction sully what is also another otherwise superb cut.
"Gimme Dat Ding" by The Pipkins is one of the great one-hit wonders of all time. Insipid, insanely catchy, and disposable, it's the perfect example of bubblerock and a good way to kick off Disc Three of Bubblerock is Here to Stay! Volume Two: The British Pop Explosion 1970-73. Things aren't all silliness here as "She Keeps Giving Me These Feelings" by Velvet Opera (featuring a young Cozy Powell) is a masterpiece. Similarly, covers here of "Gimme Shelter" by Birds of a Feather and "Black and White" by Greyhound are nearly compelling enough to make one (briefly) forget the originals. A pre-10cc Hotlegs shows up with the rough "Lady Sadie", and Rockin' Horse (featuring members of The Merseybeats) serve up an Arthur Brown-ish treasure in "Julian the Hooligan". A cover of Lee Michaels' "Do You Know What I Mean?" by teen heartthrob Simon Turner is nearly better than "Alright" by Bay City Rollers, another set of teen idols, while "Hurdy Gurdy" by Muff recalls American fluff from Bobby Sherman. Things wind down with the wonderful "Mouldy Old Dough" by Lieutenant Pigeon, a cover of the musicians' same song as Stavely Makepeace. This one, with its gruff, mumbled semi-vocals in the chorus, seems like the sort of thing that Earl Brutus would draw inspiration from decades later, even as the piano hook places this firmly in line with any number of Seventies hits on both sides of the Atlantic. Hardly bubblegum rock, it's yet another in a string of odd, one-of-a-kind singles from the era.
Bubblerock is Here to Stay! Volume Two: The British Pop Explosion 1970-73 is wonderful. It's just so much fun to dive into something like this, where you might know a couple of names, or cuts, and hear so many more that are absolute revelations. These 79 songs are evidence of an era when multiple genres were dueling it out for post-Beatles listeners, in that brief window before disco and punk shook up the musical landscapes everywhere. What's surprising is how little here is pure bubblegum, and how much is, if not entirely substantial, far more inventive and varied than a casual fan might anticipate. Snatches of glam and folk-rock jostle with prog bits, and sometimes all in the space of one cut. In crafting somewhat disposable singles, creators and producers had more freedom than they may have had in prior eras, when serious music demanded consumers' money. Over and over again here, we're reminded just what a delight a good single can be, and how so much can be done, and so much pleasure given in a four-minute radio ditty. Essential.
Bubblerock is Here to Stay! Volume Two: The British Pop Explosion 1970-73 is out today via Cherry Red Records.