Snapshots #445: Songs About Places Beginning With W

Here's Denzel Washington with the answers to this week's quiz. I almost used his photo yesterday, but you guys are getting a bit too smart when it comes to the top of the page pic, so I went with Warren Beatty instead. Warren is a city in Ohio. There's also a Warren in Michigan. And one in Cheshire. Probably some others too.

Here are 15 more places that begin with W... Washington, Wales and Wuhan were conspicuous by their absence. Maybe in tomorrow's spillover edition... 

15. Slightly longer than a Buzzcock.

Pete Shelley was a Buzzcock. This is almost his Namesake...

Peter Shelley - Wisconsin

14. Useful for campanologists.

That's a handy bell!

Andy Bell - Weston-Super-Mare 

That's a great tune from the Erasure dude.

13. Tastes like Homer's beer.

Duffy - Warwick Avenue

12. Revolutionary War singer, without his comrades.

60s band Paul Revere and the Raiders were named after a famous soldier from the American Revolutionary War. The band were also named after their keyboard player, whose real name was Paul Revere Dick. He dropped the surname on stage. Can't think why. 

The lead singer of Paul Revere and the Raiders was...

Mark Lindsay – Windy Wakefield

I've no idea why he's singing about a town just a few miles down the M1 from me.

11. Lard, Sweet Pea & Ivy.

Lard was, of course, the nickname used by DJ Marc Riley when he worked with Mark Radcliffe in the 90s. He was also in The Fall. But whenever Mark E. Smith kicked him out, he returned to his own band...

Marc Riley With The Creepers - Bard of Woking

10. Found in the back of a taxi and on short British Airways flights.

Back of a cAB... and on BA flights.

Abba - Waterloo

9. Looming over a Norfolk Festival.

Weavers used looms - or wanted to smash them. The Norfolk music festival is held at Houghton Hall... although these guys actually came from Westhoughton in Greater Manchester. Which might explain how they spotted the UFOs below...

The Houghton Weavers - The Martians Have Landed In Wigan

8. Confused, but they still made a rich packet.

"Rich packet" was an anagram.

Cheap Trick – A Long Way To Worcester

I had to listen carefully to make sure Cheap Trick weren't signing "A long was to Wor-chester". Actually it sounds more like they sing "Wister" than "Wuster", but close enough, I guess. 

No idea why though.

7. AU + a short Friar + Spider-Man, initially. 

AU is Gold. The abbreviation for a Friar is Fra. Spider-Man is Peter Parker.

Goldfrapp - Ride A White Horse

Whitehorse is the capital of Canada's Yukon territory.

6. Lapwings dressed as lambs.

The Mutton Birds - Wellington

We needed a native band to sing about the capital of New Zealand.

5. Modern American Music Hall players.

New Vaudeville Band - Winchester Cathedral

4. Globe loathing.

Theatre Of Hate - Do You Believe In The Westworld?

I didn't say they had to be real places.

3. The Pink... Parsons.

Lily The Pink meets Alan Parsons.

Lily Allen - West End Girl

The Pet Shop Boys were disqualified for upsetting George.

2. Curt is always with them.

Ian Curtis, that is.

Joy Division - Warsaw 

1. Regularly received mail from strangers.

He was known for "getting cards and letter from people" he didn't "even know".

Always Number One in my heart...

I had a few of these leftover, so tune in tomorrow.

More of this gubbins next Saturday.

Snapshots #433: Songs About Girls Names Beginning With M

 

Ladies beginning with M was this week’s link? May you all have got it right…

 

15. What a honky prima she was!

“Honky prima” was an anagram.

Mary Hopkin - Martha

14. In Spain, I have it.

Their name means “I have it” in Spanish.

Yo La Tengo - Madeline

13. You cannot be serious!

The Notsensibles - I’m in Love With Margaret Thatcher

12. Bloody…! Howard and Tom!

Bloody Norah! Howard & Tom Jones.

Norah Jones - Miriam

11. What Spike stole from Kenny, Candy and Clarence.

Spike Milligan was a goon. Kenny G, Candy Dulfer and Clarence Clemons all played sax.

The Goon Sax – Maggie

10. Sounds like an evil despot and a moody conman.

Donald & Fagin (played by Ron Moody).

Donald Fagen - Maxine

9. Where Cats initially choose to sit.

C(ats) sit on the Mat.

CMAT – Such A Miranda

8. I am yr barn owl, somehow.

“I am yr barn owl” was an anagram.

Barry Manilow – Mandy

7. Posh fast food rulers!

Kings Of Leon - Molly's Chambers

6. Patrick, in the shower.

Dallas fans will get the clue.

Duffy – Mercy

5. Found in earthenware and blunderbusses.

Found in eARThenware and bLUNDerbusses.

Art Lund – And Mimi

4. Where to buy your Wood and your Port, man.

From the Natalie Merchant, of course.

Natalie Merchant - Maggie And Milly And Molly And May

I should have just run that one photo this week, the song pretty much covers the link for us.

3. We are Fantastic, and we’re from America.

The Fantastic 4, from the US.

The 4 of Us – Mary

2. My indignation is completely justified – they’re not related!

Righteous indignation because they’re not actually brothers.

Righteous Brothers - Unchained Melody

1. Idol Ben was an idle nob.

Two anagrams for the price of one.

Blondie - Maria

Mmmmmore Snapshots next Saturday.

The United Kingdom Of Song #42: Warwick

Julian Cope - Warwick The Kingmaker

Sam and I spent a few days down south last week - not all the way down, just south of Birmingham. On our first full day, we visited Warwick Castle, a spectacular old building, but a place which feels like it's been Disneyfied to milk every last penny out of its visitors. I could just about handle paying almost fifty quid to get in, because there was lots to do, but once inside they try to fleece you for more money at every turn. Seven quid to park (in a field), people offering to take your photo at every turn then hand you a digital download card with a hefty price attached, extra cost for the Dungeon Tour (which was OK, but not a patch on Edinburgh or York Dungeons).

Bill Fay - Warwick Town

I Squared - Warwick Road

At the end of the Dungeon Tour, they hand you a wonderful keepsake full of glossy photos taken along the way, plus a keyring and some other gubbins. "A lovely memento of your day," the teenager in charge says (virtually everyone working at Warwick Castle is a Sixth Former... I'll let you reach your own conclusions as to why), before hitting you with the price tag of £22, putting parents in rather an awkward position. Ironic, given we'd just heard about the highway robbers who spent their last days in Warwick Dungeon. Fortunately, Sam was wise to their game: "Give it back and let's get out of here!"

Shadows Of Knight - Warwick Court Affair

Buddy Williams - Headin' For The Warwick Rodeo

But the final kick in the teeth came later in the afternoon when Sam fancied a go at the kid's jousting event, a pretty basic affair in which another teenager gave two kids a wooden sword and got them to run along an obstacle course bashing a few stripy poles along the way, Despite this, Sam was desperate to have a go - six quid, please. So we bought a ticket and stood waiting in the blistering hot sun for half an hour while the Teenage Knight Mentor mucked about getting two other kids through the course. One of them cut her finger, so the Teenage Knight Mentor let them have another go, after spending ages running around looking for a plaster. And on and on it went. Finally they were done, at which point the Teenage Knight Mentor headed off down the other end of the course to talk to some other parents who were enquiring about the course. I followed, just to make sure she didn't allow them to go before Sam. No worries - "I've got someone waiting down that end," she told them. So I presumed Sam would be next. Only then her (slightly older but only just) supervisor turned up, a conflab occurred, and Teenage Knight Mentor buggered off completely. The supervisor then headed over to us... "this event is closed for half an hour - you can come back then". Sam burst into tears and I demanded my money back. "Sorry, we don't give refunds." 

Duffy - Warwick Avenue

At this point, we left Warwick Castle and headed into the town to scour the local charity shops. A far more cost-effective endeavour. So yeah - Warwick Castle... it's a good job I don't do reviews in Trip Advisor. The town itself is much more welcoming. 

The Lonesome Southern Company - 64 Warwick Way

Dee Dee Warwick - You're No Good

Dionne Warwick - Walk On By

Ricky Warwick - When Patsy Cline Was Crazy (And Guy Mitchell Sang The Blues)

Namesakes #79: Duffy

This week on Namesakes, we pay tribute to a legend of the 80s: Patrick Duffy, aka Bobby Ewing from Dallas. Wait, you say, Patrick Duffy's not a singer! And you'd be right...

Mireille Mathieu & Patrick Duffy - Together We`re Strong

Neither did he ever record and release music using just his surname. These guys, on the other hand, all did...

DUFFY #1

First off, we find ourselves in 1970 with Tennessee country singer / Elvis tribute act, Wade Cummins. This was his only release under the name Duffy...

DUFFY #2

Our next Duffy took to the stage in 1974, inspired by Uriah Heep, Deep Purple and Humble Pie. The London-based band was comprised Stuart Reffold, Barry Coote, Joe Nanson, Patrick Sarjeant and Will Wright... no, none of them were called Duffy, and they were knocking around three years before the Man From Atlantis first set foot in the water, so who knows why they called themselves Duffy?

Their debut album was called Just In Case You're Interested, and it seems nobody was, as they only managed to get it released in Germany, France and Brazil. Soon after they changed their name to Scruffy Duffy, perhaps inspiring the creation of one of Grange Hill's best teachers, Scruffy McDuffy (above) a few years later.

DUFFY #3

Then in 1978, the same year Dallas premiered on TV, John Taylor, Nick Rhodes and Stephen Duffy formed a little band called Duran Duran. Mr. Duffy soon packed it in as a bad job, so the other two recruited some poser called Simon Le Bon instead... and the rest is history.

But what happened to Duffy? Well, to start with, he added the words "Tin Tin" to his name and scored a couple of fine Top 20 hits in 1985, like this and this. He then formed an excellent band called The Lilac Time (who are still in the go today) and released lots of beautiful music like this. 

None of this would qualify him for entry into today's Namesakes. However, in 1995, he briefly jumped on the Britpop bandwagon with the track below (and a subsequent LP), marketed solely on the basis of his surname...

It wasn't a hit, but I reckon it's better than quite a few Britpop records that were.

DUFFY #4

I know some of you aren't particularly Queen fans, and those of you who are may have stopped loving them in the 80s, but even if you're not a fan of their big 1984 hit I Want To Break Free, you can't tell me that turning it into a 1996 dance record improves it in any way, shape or form. I like to think that if Freddie had still been alive, he wouldn't have allowed this travesty.

Worse still, the Duffy featured here isn't even a Duffy - his real name is Daniel Sous!

DUFFY #5

Finally, the most famous of all the Duffys. Aimée Ann Duffy was born in Gwynedd in 1984. When she was 24, she scored her first (and only) Number One single, which garnered her comparisons to 60s hitmakers like Cilla, Petula and Dusty. She didn't quite enjoy the career longevity of her predecessors... but who does these days?

  

Which is your Duffy... and which one is just Duff?