Back catalogue: 50s/60s

Review: ***B-STOCK: Creasing to corner of outer sleeve, product unopened & in excellent condition***


David Vanian, splitting off from his role as the lead singer of the Damned, once made an effective detour known as David Vanian and the Phantom Chords. The Chords' self-titled debut from 1995, reissued here, is a fusion of rockabilly and gothic rock - often classified as gothabilly. The band perform a mixture of covers and original material, including 'Voodoo Doll', 'The House Is Haunted' and 'Jezebel', laying down the massive, twangy, incipient sound of gothabilly with Vanian himself sounding as if to be singing in a massive catacomb's chasm.

Review: .Often considered to be one of the biggest commercial flops in music recording history, Standing In The Spotlight was the 1989 debut solo album from Ramones bassist Dee Dee Ramone. Released under his rap moniker Dee Dee King, the bizarre project served up an amalgam of old school hip-hop, late 50s garage rock and even doo-wop, all blended together in chaotic fashion, and led by Dee Dee's new gangster bravura. It's been noted that the hip-hop-centric attire seen on the cover was adorned by Dee Dee at his last few Ramones shows shortly before departing, which drew major ire from his bandmates. Tapping Marky Ramone to oversee percussion samples, and even enlisting Debbie Harry (Blondie) to provide backing vocals on 'Mashed Potato Time', and, 'German Kid', with the latter featuring vocals sung in both English and German (nodding to Dee Dee's growing up as an army brat), the album was crafted with every earnest intention of launching Dee Dee's solo career. Conceptually inspired whilst in rehab and used as a project of focus when embracing his newfound sobriety; the sheer enthusiasm and fearlessness of Standing In The Spotlight grants it a pass and a place as a truly absurd offshoot oddity from a vital member of the one of the defining punk bands.