SECRET SAUCES RADIO #015: SUMMERTIME SPECIAL

Now That's What I Call Feel-Good Summer-Time Sing-Along Anthems!

This week's mix is for anyone else who is dying in this disgusting UK heat.

Here are some notes on the fifteenth Secret Sauces Radio show, which can be listened to on Mixcloud here...

SECRET SAUCES RADIO INTRO IDENT

Sexy Beast opening scene sample

A snippet from the opening scene of Jonathan Glazer's directorial debut, the classic Sexy Beast from 2000 starring Ray Winstone and Ben Kingsley. Watch the trailer here.

1) BOB MOULD - Black Sheets Of Rain

The title (and opening) track of Bob Mould's second (and last for Virgin Records) in 1990. One of the greatest songs ever. It has very rarely been played live, only a couple of times on the original Black Sheets tour (perhaps owing to the complex guitar parts and Bob's preference for trios, or the song's dark nature?). I have a bootleg audience recording of it being performed at the Nectarine Ballroom in Ann Arbor, MI on the 15th October 1990.

2) KYUSS - 100°

Taken from their 1994 album that everyone refers to as 'Welcome To Sky Valley', owing to the sign on the sleeve, though that title doesn't appear on the disc or spine. This album was their first for Elektra Records, and their first with bassist Scott Reeder, who replaced Nick Oliveri in 1992.

3) SONIC YOUTH - The World Looks Red

Taken from Sonic Youth's 1983 debut full-length LP 'Confusion Is Sex', originally released on Glenn Branca's Neutral Records. It was since reissued by SST, then Geffen, now Sonic Youth's own 'Goofin' Records' (via Geffen).

4) DIE KREUZEN - Cool Breeze

From Die Kreuzen's 1986 second LP, 'October File', released on Touch And Go Records. CD pressings include the band's first album in full after 'October File' ends.

Sexy Beast opening scene sample

More from that classic opening scene.

5) THE KLF - Make It Rain

Taken from The KLF's second and final album, 'The White Room', released in 1991. The KLF deleted their KLF Communications back catalogue after the Brit Awards appearance with Extreme Noise Terror (ladies and gentlemen, The KLF have now left the music business), and this album has remained out of print ever since. In the US, the band were signed to Arista Records, who would never dream of doing such a thing. However, the US version has various differences, and on this specific track all of the Stevie Wonder samples were removed. The 2021 'Director's Cut' of The White Room that you can find on digital music platforms is a totally different beast, with different versions of the tracks, being based on an earlier, unreleased version of the album that was the soundtrack to an unfinished film of the same name. A cut of The White Room film has since been released on the 2023 BFI Blu-ray '23 Seconds To Eternity'.

6) THE FLAMING LIPS - Felt Good To Burn

Taken from the band's 1992 major label debut for Warner Bros. 'Hit To Death In The Future Head'. It was their final album with drummer Nathan Roberts and guitarist Jonathan Donahue (of Mercury Rev), and later on the band The Futureheads took their name for it. 'Hit To Death In The Future Head' was actually completed and ready to go in 1991, but was delayed for around a year due to the sample from Michael Kamen's score for Terry Gilliam's 'Brazil' in the song 'You Have To Be Joking (Autopsy Of The Devil's Brain)'. By the time the sample was cleared, Jonathan and Nathan were out, and Steven Drozd and Ronald Jones were in to tour in support of the record.

7) NEIL YOUNG - See The Sky About To Rain

Taken from the classic 1974 album 'On The Beach'. Like many Neil Young tracks, this song was written, recorded live and a studio version recorded years before, but left in the vaults until he got the take. Some different 1970 live takes from The Cellar Door have been released on 'Archives Vol. I', 'Live At The Cellar Door' and 'Carnegie Hall 1970'.

The song continued to appear in live sets in 1971, performances which can be heard on 'Live At Massey Hall', 'Royce Hall 1971' and 'Dorothy Chandler Pavilion 1971'.

A studio outtake from the Harvest sessions on 15th April 1971 can be heard on the Neil Young Archives website. Once he got the perfect take in 1974, it was seemingly dropped from the live setlist for years!

Sexy Beast opening scene sample

More from that classic opening scene.

8) PULP - They Suffocate At Night

The first single taken from Pulp's second album, 1987's 'Freaks', released in 1987. Pulp's '80s and early '90s recordings are often overlooked and forgotten about - in many people's minds the band begin with 'His 'N' Hers' - but they are well worth a listen. In 2012, the resurrected Fire Records reissued 'Freaks' as a two-disc set with altered artwork and all associated singles and b-sides. It's out of print now, but worth tracking down.

9) MANIC STREET PREACHERS - Die In The Summertime

Taken from the Manics' finest hour, 1994's 'The Holy Bible'. Despite the album's dark lyrical content often coming directly from the mind of the soon-disappeared member Richey Edwards, he said on release that this track was "actually about a pensioner wanting to die with memories of childhood in his mind".

10) HÜSKER DÜ - Deadly Skies

Taken from the band's 1983 mini-LP 'Metal Circus', released on SST Records. One of the great 80s Cold War tunes.

11) DUB SEX - The Big Freeze

Taken from the b-side of Dub Sex's biggest song, 'Swerve' in 1989. 'Swerve' also gives the name to Mark Hoyle's recent autobiography, which was published by Route in 2024 and can be purchased here.

Sexy Beast Don's arrival scene sample

Don (Ben Kingsley) arrives, and chaos soon ensues.

12) ULTRA VIVID SCENE - Staring At The Sun

This was the 1990 lead single of Ultra Vivid Scene's second LP, 'Joy: 1967-1990' released on 4AD the same year. I hope one day we receive deluxe reissues (and live recordings!) of UVS, though with Kurt Ralske very much retired from music, I doubt we will.

13) ANGST - The Burning Light

Taken from the second Angst album, 'Mending Wall', released on SST Records in 1986 on LP and cassette. No CD release, sadly!.

14) METALLICA - Creeping Death

Taken from Metallica's classic second album 'Ride The Lightning' in 1984. It was also released as a single.

15) BIG STAR - Nighttime

Big Star's third album doesn't really exist. It wasn't intended to be a Big Star record during the recording process, an early sequence was complete in 1975 with a vinyl test pressing, but no title or artwork were produced and the record didn't come out. It saw it's first release in 1978 on Aura Records as 'The Third Album' and PVC Records as '3rd', both with different artwork and sequences. Many other versions appeared on various labels throughout the 90s, and in 1992 Rykodisc released 'Third/Sister Lovers' with an expanded tracklist and new artwork. 'Nighttime' is one of the tracks that appears on every version of the record.

The best one to get is the 2016 Omnivore release 'Complete Third' which features three discs - 'Demos to Sessions to Roughs', 'Roughs to Mixes' and then 'Final Masters'. The 'Final Masters' disc is sequenced as the original test pressing, with all other tracks following.

16) NINE INCH NAILS - Help Me I Am In Hell

Taken from the 1992 EP 'Broken', Nine Inch Nails' first release for Interscope Records. A companion video was shot but remained unreleased due to its graphic content. You can find it online, of course.

SECRET SAUCES RADIO OUTRO IDENT

Thanks for listening and reading. New 60 minute music mixes are uploaded to Mixcloud every Tuesday and I will post accompanying notes, with pointless trivia and endless links for you to enjoy.

See you next Tuesday!