Tuesday 5 August 2014

The Buzzcocks - Promises

Was this the first punk rock record using a sample from another track?

I can't think of any before, can you?

I posted this because of the excellent track 'Lipstick' which samples the guitar riff from an earlier posting by Magazine 'Shot By Both Sides' so what could be better merging two of my favorite bands 'Magazine' and 'The Buzzcocks'. To make things even better 'Promises' is also an excellent track (I guess thats why one side is A and the other 1), but then all of their first ten singles (including b-sides are brilliant).


Band: The Buzzcocks
Label: United Artists
Year: 1978
Tracks
1. Promises
2. Lipstick



If you like this, then go and buy this, this single is on it, plus many other classics:
Love Bites
Love Bites

9 comments:

45 Revolutions said...

"Holidays In The Sun" versus "In The City"?

Punkzer0 said...

Do you think so?

Just listened to them both, not sure, something sounds similar but it doesn't sound like a direct copy of a riff.

Anonymous said...

The B side is very "Shot By Both Sideish" which figures considering Howard Devoto was once a Buzzcock.





Longy

Anonymous said...

(^^What's that obtuse comment about pistols/jam supposed to mean?^^^)


All their UA singles were labelled "A" one side and "1" on the other.

Devoto took the riff of Lipstick to Magazine when he left and made it into a monster song

Punkzer0 said...

Thanks Stan as I have said before you learn lots on this blog, I always thought it was the Buzzcocks sampling deevoto. Thanks for the correction.

And now you pointed it out, I remembered (well it felt like it Did) that UA did put the A and 1 on each side.

The obtuse comment, was when i asked the question was the promises/shot by both sides the first ever punk single that used sampling. 45 revs suggested the pistols/jam was an exmaple/

Anonymous said...

It's the same music actually as Pete Shelley wrote both tracks. Read the credits on the labels.

Punkzer0 said...

Hi Anon, I don;t think anyone was saying Shelly didn't write some of the music. The question was it the first punk sample (even though I got it the wrong way round).

If you do look at the credits, Shelly wrote Lipstick, and Shot by both sides credits Shelly and Devoto for the music.

Anonymous said...

The Holidays in the Sun riff is very like In The City, if you listen closely. Of course the Pistols sound is much heavier due to the muli tracked guitar versus Weller's tinny old Rickenbacker. Weller and Sid famously came to blows over it, Sid getting a bit of a pasting and later threatening to do Weller mob-handed when he next saw him. Such a brave boy was our Sidney.

Mr.B

Punkzer0 said...

Hi agan Mr. B, my memories of Sid (seeing him at a few gigs) was he never looked in great shape, couldn't imagine him beating anyone.