The Plimsouls - "The Plimsouls...Plus" (CD, RCA/Rhino - 1992)

I'm going back and forth for an hour or so, staring at the screen having absolutely no idea what to write... I mean, come on you jerk, that's one of your fave bands ever and you don't know what to tell people about? I guess all this has something to do with their importance of course... 'Cause Peter Case's post-Nerves garage pop outfit still remains the untouchable "people need to know" band in my book. Yeah even better than Paul Collins Beat! The legend says for a moment Plimsouls were the hottest band in L.A. but Knack's success backfired the whole thing... So sad, cause unlike 99% of powerpop bands, Plimsouls seem to had their radars turned on the Stones early rock & soul ferocious dynamics than the Beatles sha-la-las. And that's why I guess I love 'em so much... That's the excellent 1992 Rhino reissue (don't know if there's another newer out-there) which collects their classic synonymous first album, the even more important and quite rare "Zero Hour" EP plus a bunch of B-sides. You don't need more at least for a start...

The Jesus and Mary Chain - "Upside Down/Vegetable Man" (7" Single, Creation - 1984)

Fuck shoegaze this is pure rock & roll! And when I say rock & roll, I mean ROCK &
ROLL! As pure, dirty, sexy and violent as it meant to be originally. I know there's this old cliche about Mary Chain's sound, you know Beach Boys meet Velvets or the Ronettes fronting the Suicide or Neubauten nailing the Shangri-Las, but this is totally true. William Reid's chaotic, manic industrial noises are probably the closest thing ever to Ron Asheton, period. I really don't get all this art-fag nonsense about them... If the Cramps were from the Highlands they will sound and look just like the Reid brothers.
This single kick-started Creation's dignity and re-established Britain's proud on producing genuine rock & roll acts/records. And it's no exaggeration saying this single's one of the most important ever in rock & roll.
Don't know how many re-prints officially came out, the first one was surely dressed in black with red fonts but there's more as you can see in here changing main image's black color with pink, red and yellow. This copy as far as I know though, has to be the formal second UK pressing but I'm quite lost and no expert in this... Who cares anyway?  A guy called Neil Taylor who used to write for the NME said to Primal Scream leader, and Mary Chain's drummer during 'Psychocandy' era Bobby Gillespie, that they were the best band since the Pistols... And still remains I should add... 'Upside Down' stands still as a landmark JAMC song and Syd Barrett's 'Vegetable Man' is incredible as well. Dig!