Billy Childish - Archive From 1959, The Billy Childish Story [2 CD, Digipak]

×

Billy Childish - Archive From 1959, The Billy Childish Story [2 CD, Digipak]

Close

Billy Childish has been releasing records, painting, writing poetry and generally doing his own thing for the past 32 years.

He first took to the stage back in October 1977 with seminal punk garage band The Pop Rivets, they split after two years and from there he joined The Milkshakes along with fellow Pop Riveter Bruce Brand and local lads Micky Hampshire & Russ Wilkins, after that came Thee Mighty Caesars, Thee Headcoats, The Buff Medways and right up to date with his two current ensembles The Musicians Of The British Empire & The Chatham Singers.

This 51 Track compilation is a look back at the more Rock N Roll aspects of his musical career which is why there’s no spoken word or poetry on this album.
In amongst these more well known bands are tracks he recorded solo and with other artistes like The Delmonas, Thee Headcoatees, Singing Loins, Kyra Rubella etc.
Over the years Billy has been championed by lots of great bands and musicians including Beck, Mudhoney and Kurt Cobain and more recently by Eddie Vedder & The White Stripes. Even with that praise Billy has been largely ignored by the music press in this country which is really surprising as he has now released over 120 albums (including 4 on one day!).

Many of the tracks on this compilation have been unavailable for ages and some also have never appeared on CD as well as many unpublished photos on the cover and 12 page booklet.

Lois Wilson (Mojo) has writing the sleeve notes and there will also be a deluxe triple vinyl version as well as a double CD digipak deluxe package. Now seems to be the perfect time for people to catch up with what he has been doing for the last 32 years.

30 years of blazingly discrete music.

Archive From 1959: The Billy Childish Story goes some way to making a labyrinthine lo-fi career clear. With contributions from at least 11 of the outfits Childish has been involved with, it guides you through 30 years of blazingly discrete music.

Billy Childish: a man who would purposely change musicians if they were too competent. If you like musical complexity, this is simply not for you. Eschewing the ornate, there is not a single unnecessary trimming on this album. It's a palate cleanser and no mistake; the fourth chord, if it is there, comes often as a great release.

There are 51 examples of his craft. The rush of the Buff Medways' Troubled Mind; the outstanding rock 'n' roll pathos of the MBEs' He's Making A Tape from 2008's Thatcher's Children. The aggressive simplicity of the Milkshakes' For She. Davy Crockett by Thee Headcoatees is the best record that you've never heard, a deceptively straightforward pop splash, which could be slipped into a party after Louie Louie and everyone would go berserk. Of course it's all a bit 1977, and that's just it. The quality of thought takes it far from being stuck in a rut, and the strength of belief blocks it from being an intellectual exercise in parody. And it frequently makes you laugh out loud and reconnect with the primal daftness of pop.

As an introduction to an artist who has simply made too many records, it is indispensable. It reminds you of the 2004 Fall Compilation 50,000 Fall Fans Can't Be Wrong: 39 Golden Greats, in that it pins the tail on a very inscrutable pop donkey. Compilation of 2009, we'd wager. [BBC review, Daryl Easlea]

As the decades roll on, Billy Childish remains a constant figure on the outskirts of art, music and poetry. Working solidly from his home in Chatham, Kent, Childish has developed a set style for each of his major interests, which remains unchanged by the passage of time and fashion.

His works hark back to an earlier, simpler time – before home PCs, iPods, conceptual art and digital watches. Childish’s approach is rooted firmly in the past.

It is easy to see why Childish would have his detractors – his work never moves forward, he borrows extensively from the pop and art culture of the past, he’s overly critical of people in the public eye who don’t adhere to his way of thinking. But he is also a fascinating character – a sort of anti-pop art magpie, taking what he wants from recent British history – be it cultural or his own personal history – and makes it into something very much his own. With his handle bar moustache and military uniforms, he looks like a walking museum exhibit. He likes abstract expressionism and impressionism, so that’s what he paints. His poems and literature are smeared with the grime of a forgotten era. His music is almost all based on the skuzzy sound of 60’s garage rock – with a little blues and rock ‘n’ roll thrown in for good measure.

‘Archive from 1959’, a release to celebrate Childish’s 50th birthday, features most of the best moments from Childish’s many bands and albums from the past four decades, giving a good insight in the development, or anti-development, of his sound. With two CDs and 51 tracks, the compilation is difficult to take in one sitting, particularly given Childish’s predilection for recycling the same riff many times over (some might call this musically thrifty), but the vast majority is still very exciting to listen to.

It’s interesting to listen to the subtle differences between each of his bands. It’s not much of a difference, but it is there. There’s slightly more of a beat influence on the Milkshakes’ tracks, for example, while thee Headcoats had distinctly more bile than most of his other bands, at times (such as on ‘Punk Rock ist Nicht Tot’) sounding like very early Fall.

The bluesier feel of the Chatham Singers tracks, which come on like the early attempts at British R 'n' B, are welcome breaks from the punky mod onslaught of most of the tracks, as do the pop-punky female led tracks (usually those by The MBEs, which feature Childish’s wife on bass and occasional vocals).

The pure punk rock of the Pop Rivets tracks, which was Childish’s first band, are fascinating from a vaguely historical point of view, listening to a very youthful sounding Childish railing against the system with an inexhaustible energy.

It’s hard not to admire Childish for eschewing the well-trodden path of adulthood in favour of doing exactly what he wants, regardless of what anyone else thinks. Considering he’s made the same basic record well over 100 times, it’s a testament to him that he is still creating something interesting. [pennyblackmusic]