261) Kane Gang - The Bad and Lowdown World

Obviously I have been asked to review this but I did remember them from their singles and a quick trawl I find that two of them, David Brewis and Paul Woods released an album a couple of years ago as Autoleisureland and along with Martin Brammer have just played some gigs as The Kane Gang and are playing Glasgow in February, so we can say The Kane Gang are back.

This record, their debut, was released way back in 1985, I was fourteen. Where I lived just outside Glasgow, we had a video shop, but they had twenty wooden boxes as shelves, and they would have the top twenty singles on seven inch. If you maybe didn’t have the money for a full album plus the train fare into Glasgow, you could spend £1.99 on three minutes of joy. Now sometimes you may not be able to afford even £1.99  and when the record fell out of the chart, they had a box where they were roughly a quid, and this is where I purchased Closest Thing To Heaven. I did a paper round six mornings a week for the huge total of five pound, I quite often went through that box.

It was, and is, a wonderful slice of soul pop, beautifully sung, 3 men in a band, two of them lead singers, bizarre and I am a sucker for a harmonica. If you are of my age, put it on right now, it will take you back and make you smile, superior pop.

So as usual I have waffled, opener Gun Law suffers from 80’s drums I am afraid and Take This Train opens with a guitar solo dripping in emotion and why the hell did they not release Printer’s Devil as a single, up there with Closest for melody. Respect Yourself people will know, and I love the “na na na” backing and Small Town Creed is a hugely enjoyable groove.

I managed to pick this up for a fiver on record recently, if you can do the same, take the chance as it’s an enjoyable blast from the past.

7/10

GIVE IT A STREAM: Closest Thing To Heaven