Monday, May 10, 2010

Even Laurie Lingo and Dipsticks make Britain exciting


After finally getting round to watching that Dr Feelgood film Oil City Confidential (which was ace, by the way), it's official that the most unromantic parts of Britain have a certain allure.

Looking at the giant oil refineries, mudflats and rundown seaside of Canvey Island made it all the more excting as a backdrop to the Feelgoods brand of driving RnB. I want to go there at once. I want to feel the tension in the static caravan park.

Whereas it was once far-off US towns and cities that were exotic and exciting - Memphis, Nashville, Jackson, etc., all shitholes in reality - now we can romanticise our own.

Canvey Island and more or less the whole A13 corridor is our delta. Eel Pie island is the home of the blues. The Westway is synonymous with the Clash. We all know what Liverpool is for.

But hasn't it taken its time for this to happen. Why is this? Do we not see the attraction of these places? Does it take a film to mythologsie it for us?

When you think of England, Scotland, Wales or Ireland, can you get excited about places, times or people embodied in song?

Do tell.

By the way, I've completely changed my mind about Jamie Oliver. I take my hat off to to him.

9 comments:

John Medd said...

I said exactly the same thing to Mondo a couple of weeks back. Let's all meet up in the year 2000. Sorry, I mean Canvey Island.

Cocktails said...

Kilermont Street bus station in Glasgow has always had a romantic allure to me thanks to Aztec Camera. Well, it did until I actually had to take a bus from there.

What's Jamie done to change your mind? Cooked some pasta in Venice?!

Jon Peake said...

It was the Swedish thing, Cocktails. And he's so dedicated to food and family. You can't fault that.

I used to think he was a fat-tongued dimwit, but he's proved me wrong on so many levels.

Mondo said...

I've always been a bugger for visiting any location with some Rock History. After seeing an hour of Oil City on BBC 4 I went giddy with how it all made sense and why I haven't I made more of this. Canvey is literally on my doorstep - a five minute drive away. I commute past the flame-topped oil refineries every day (although in reality it's more white-van land than musical delta).

There's a patchwork of musical history around the estuary area that deserves be threaded together at some point: Dudley Moore, Sandie Shaw (Dagenham) Procol Harum (Southenders), Donovan discovered in Westcliff, Depeche and the Basildon scene, Crocs nightclub in Rayleigh, Eddie and The Hot Rods, Ian Dury, My Life Story, The Horrors - I could go on..

Jon Peake said...

And let's not forget the Kursaal Flyers, Mondo.

Mondo said...

Or Joy 'Naughty Naughty Naughty' Sarney.

Ron Wood's ex Jo is another Southender and Blur(although they're Colchester so more East Anglian than Estuary, but still Essex)

Kolley Kibber said...

Not to mention the Dooleys, Flintlock, Tina Charles, and Black Lace. Essex is the showbiz talent capital of the UK, bar none. Makes me proud.

Jon Peake said...

It really is a rich vein. I had no idea.

Louis Barfe said...

I feel the same way about Canvey Island and young Jamie. I'd always dismissed him as a gobby Jim Davidson lookalike, but I caught a bit of one of his programmes a while back and suddenly thought "Actually, you really do know what you're on about". Then, at Christmas, I saw him cooking with his nan and his sister, and they were all so natural and funny with each other, I caved in and decided he'd do.

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