Back To The Nineties: Cherry Red Expands Suggs, Betty Boo To 2 CDs

July 5, 2016 By Joe Marchese — 1 Comment
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A recent pair of offerings from Cherry Red Records turns the clock back to the 1990s!

Suggs (real name: Graham McPherson) came to fame as the lead singer of ska band Madness before striking out on his own with the 1995 release The Lone Ranger.  The album, a No. 14 U.K. hit, has recently been reissued as a 2-CD set with a whopping 23 bonus tracks.

The original 11-track album (included in full on Disc One of this release) was largely composed by Suggs with writer/Madness co-founder Mike Barson, with the exception of two well-chosen covers.  Perhaps ironically, these familiar songs yielded The Lone Ranger‘s only Top 10 singles: The Beatles’ “I’m Only Sleeping” and Simon and Garfunkel’s “Cecilia.”  (The latter gained a reggae-rap section that Paul Simon surely couldn’t have imagined!)  The spare soundscape, crafted by producers Suggs, Barson, Robbie Shakespeare and Sly Dunbar (a.k.a. Sly and Robbie), is dominated by synthesizers and drum machines; in fact, no musician credits are included.

The key attraction to this reissue will be the presentation on CD of numerous rare bonus B-sides and remixes, all taken from various singles released in conjunction with the original album.  “Cecilia” is reprised in eight different remixes; McPherson and Barson’s “Tequila”-quoting “No More Alcohol” isn’t far behind with five bonus versions and “Camden Town” with three.  Other bonuses include the holiday staple “Sleigh Ride,” Supergrass’ “Alright” and “The Tune (Instrumental)” from Suggs’ The Christmas EP.  Cherry Red’s edition has no remastering credits or liner notes but does include a 16-page full-color booklet with Suggs’ U.K. discography to date as well as lyrics.

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Cherry Red’s Cherry Pop imprint takes a similar approach for its reissue of the 1992 album GRRR! It’s Betty Boo by the stylish pop/dance/hip-hop singer-songwriter.  The world first got to know Alison Clarkson as Betty Boo (so named for her resemblance to cartoon waif Betty Boop) via her appearance as a featured artist on The Beatmasters’ 1989 U.K. hit “(Hey DJ) I Can’t Dance to That Music You’re Playing.”  Betty Boo used the appearance as a springboard for her own career.  It was proved that “Hey DJ” was clearly no fluke when Boo’s debut solo single “Doin’ the Do” reached No. 7 in the U.K. and topped the U.S. Billboard Dance survey.  Her first LP, Boomania, included the Beatmasters track as well as her first singles.  The U.K. No. 4 album (released on Rhythm King Records) earned Boo a contract with major label WEA, setting the stage for GRRR!

GRRR! had the same playful blend of pop, rap and dance as its predecessor, and like that set, incorporated quotes or samples of existing tracks like The Beatles’ “Lady Madonna,” The Four Tops’ rendition of “It’s All in the Game,” and The Beach Boys’ “Summer Means New Love.”  The album stalled at No. 62 despite yielding a No. 12 hit in the U.K. with “Let Me Take You There.”  In the U.S., Sire Records released “Thing Goin’ On” as a single, and it reached the Top 10 of the Dance chart.  “Catch Me” performed well, too, making a No. 12 berth stateside.

Although GRRR! didn’t match the success of its predecessor, it’s still beloved by Boo’s fans, including a certain Material Girl!  Clarkson retired from the music industry not long after its release, watching artists such as The Spice Girls continue in the style she had pioneered.  In recent years, she’s re-emerged as a successful songwriter and even occasionally has revived the Betty Boo persona.  Cherry Pop’s deluxe edition adds 20 bonus tracks culled from period singles.  The 16-page full-color booklet has Michael Silvester’s new liner notes as well as a discography.  (Remastering credits are absent.)

The deluxe editions of both Suggs’ The Lone Ranger and GRRR! It’s Betty Boo can be ordered at the links below!

Suggs, The Lone Ranger: Deluxe Edition (WEA 0630 12478-2, 1995 – reissued Cherry Red WCDBRED 684, 2016) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

CD 1 (Tracks 1-11: Original Album)

  1. I’m Only Sleeping
  2. Camden Town
  3. Alcohol
  4. 4 A.M.
  5. The Tune
  6. Cecilia
  7. Haunted
  8. Off on Holiday
  9. Green Eyes
  10. Fortune Fish
  11. She’s Gone
  12. Bedazzled (Bonus Track)
  13. Animal (Bonus Track)
  14. When You Came (Bonus Track)
  15. Sleigh Ride (Bonus Track)
  16. Alright (Bonus Track)
  17. I Feel Good (Bonus Track)
  18. Cecilia (7-Inch Mix) (Bonus Track)
  19. No More Alcohol (7-Inch Mix) (Bonus Track)

CD 2: The Mixes

  1. Camden Town (Camden Chili Pepper Dub)
  2. Camden Town (Ragga in London Dub Instrumental)
  3. Off on Holiday (Instrumental)
  4. The Tune (Instrumental)
  5. Cecilia (Rapino’s 7-Inch Mix)
  6. Cecilia (Rapino’s 12-Inch Disco Instrumental)
  7. Cecilia (Rapino’s 12-Inch Disco Mix)
  8. Cecilia (Deep Pan Mix)
  9. Cecilia (Drummapella)
  10. Cecilia (Alternative Mix)
  11. No More Alcohol (Rapino’s Dance Mix)
  12. No More Alcohol (Segue Mix)
  13. Cecilia (Segue Mix)
  14. No More Alcohol (100 Proof Mix)
  15. No More Alcohol (Karaoke Mix)

Betty Boo, GRRR! It’s Betty Boo (WEA CD 4509 90908-2, 1992) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

CD 1 (Tracks 1-10: Original Album)

  1. I’m On My Way
  2. Thing Goin’ On
  3. Hangover
  4. Curly and Girly
  5. Wish You Were Here
  6. Let me Take You There
  7. Gave You the Boo
  8. Skin Tight
  9. Catch Me
  10. Close the Door
  11. Jet Sex (7-Inch Version)
  12. Platform Shoe Shuffle (7-Inch Edit)
  13. I’m on My Way (Tumpin’ Dub)
  14. Let Me Take You There (Ubiquity Mix)
  15. Hangover (Sunday Morning Remix)
  16. Thing Goin’ On (MK Radio Remix)
  17. Catch Me (12-Inch Remix)

CD 2

  1. Let Me Take You There (12-Inch Version)
  2. I’m On My Way (The Batman and Robin Mix)
  3. Hangover (12-Inch Mix)
  4. Thing Goin’ On (MK Club Mix)
  5. Catch Me (Original Version)
  6. Jet Sex (12-Inch Version)
  7. Platform Shoe Shuffle (Extended Version)
  8. Let Me Take You There (Away Mix)
  9. I’m On My Way (Boo Choons)
  10. Hangover (Saturday Night Remix)
  11. Catch Me (London Underground Mix)
  12. Thing Goin’ On (MK Underground Mix)
  13. Let Me Take You There (Take U There Mix)
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Joe Marchese
Joe Marchese

JOE MARCHESE (Editor) joined The Second Disc shortly after its launch in early 2010, and has since penned daily news and reviews about classic music of all genres. In 2015, Joe formed the Second Disc Records label. Celebrating the great songwriters, producers and artists who created the sound of American popular song and beyond, Second Disc Records, in conjunction with labels including Real Gone Music and Cherry Red Records, has released newly-curated collections produced and annotated by Joe from iconic artists such as Dionne Warwick, Diana Ross and The Supremes, Smokey Robinson and The Miracles, The Spinners, Johnny Mathis, Bobby Darin, Meat Loaf, Laura Nyro, Melissa Manchester, Liza Minnelli, Darlene Love, Al Stewart, Michael Nesmith, and many others.

Joe has written liner notes, produced, or contributed to over 200 reissues from a diverse array of artists, among them America, JD Souther, Nat "King" Cole, Paul Williams, Lesley Gore, Dusty Springfield, BJ Thomas, The 5th Dimension, Burt Bacharach, The Mamas and the Papas, Carpenters, Perry Como, Rod McKuen, Doris Day, Jackie DeShannon, Petula Clark, Robert Goulet, and Andy Williams.

Over the past two decades, Joe has also worked in a variety of capacities on and off Broadway as well as at some of the premier theatres in the U.S., including Lincoln Center Theater, George Street Playhouse, Paper Mill Playhouse, Long Wharf Theatre, and the York Theatre Company. He has felt privileged to work on productions alongside artists such as the late Jack Klugman, Eli Wallach, Arthur Laurents, Betty Comden and Adolph Green. In 2009, Joe began contributing theatre and music reviews to the print publication The Sondheim Review, and in 2012, he joined the staff of The Digital Bits as a regular contributor writing about film and television on DVD and Blu-ray.

Joe currently resides in the suburbs of New York City.

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1 thought on “Back To The Nineties: Cherry Red Expands Suggs, Betty Boo To 2 CDs”

  1. Spencer Marquart

    This is good to see. Really love that Betty Boo record! “Hangover” was such a standout track. Thanks for the heads up as always, Joe!

    Reply

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