Search - Ian Dury & The Blockheads :: New Boots & Panties

Reasons to be Cheerful

J. GENIO | Earth | 08/10/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Ian's death certainly left a void in the music world. Ian introduced a break-water ripple to the new wave scene. That is, Ian is the master of good fun "pub punk." What Benny Hill is to British comedy; Ian Dury is to music -- cleverly provacative and entertaining. Ian Dury employed a mixture of lyrics and music to generate songs that either increased awareness on a social issue (such as "Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll") or were simple pub tunes to cheer you up -- such as "Reasons to be Cheerful" and "Hit Me With Your Rhythum Stick." This CD features rarities of some of Ian's classis. You will love the way Ian effectively uses his deep voice to create the English "pub singer" atmosphere. True, Ian's voice is "limited." But, he uses it to absolute perfection. I definitely recommend this CD. After one listen, you will be hooked on Ian Dury and the Block Heads.



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Breakout Pub Punk

Pat Lamorgese | New Jersey | 04/20/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This disk was quite a breakthrough for Ian Dury. Ian was a bawdy Brit with a great tone, whose spoken style was very different for the punk era. Dury's body had been crippled by childhood polio, but this did not stop him from fronting the band and occasionally playing drums. His command of lyrics and British slang as well as his intonnation and annunciation made him a very unique artist. The subject of most of the songs are sexual romps, drugs and working class drudgery. The Blockheads were a top notch group of players, whose virtuosity can be heard on other releases of this time period, including those by the Clash, Nick Lowe, and Jona Lewie, who Dury also produced. This re-release has a second disk full of demo versions and previously unavailable tunes that is interesting. The strength of the selection is the initial disk, which has razor sharp playing by the boys, providing the perfect backing for Ian's lyrical commentary. Songs like "Wake Up, Make Love With Me", "My Old Man", "I'm Partial to Your Abracadabra", and "Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll" provided pub rock commentary for the time. "Billericary Dickie" is hysterical tale of sexual escapades, some frustrating. "Razzle in My Pocket" is another commical tune about being caught red handed stealing a nudie magazine. In all, this disk paints a humerous picture of punk pub existance in England at the time. It is a great release for the songwriting and the musicianship. I recommend it highly, Ian will be sorely missed."