Orange Juice – “Rip It Up”
Edwyn Collins and company fake the funk. What’s so appealing about Orange Juice (and Dexy’s, and ABC) is the “let’s pretend” element – they know they’re not a ‘proper’ disco outfit, but they want to play the disco music anyway…or not any way, their way. And they know it’s ridiculous, but here’s the important thing: they want us to believe it anyway, they don’t want us to ever feel ridiculous for liking it.
(That’s where The Darkness, who aren’t a hundred miles away from ABC when you think about it, falter slightly. Though I don’t believe they mean to. A game of let’s pretend is spoiled by other people standing around saying, you’re pretending: this is one curse of modern pop.)
Amongst the gaucheness and good humour, and so many wonderful lines, there is one outrageous and special moment in “Rip It Up”. It goes like this – “And my favourite song’s entitled ‘Boredom'”, so far so sweet, so clever, so Orange Juice, and then naturally the guitarist plays the two-note solo from “Boredom”, and THEN the solo suddenly turns into an aching, yearning sliver of cocktail sax, punk grub into new pop butterfly if you like.
(Listen to it here.)
ED Dec 2007
No, here:
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Thing about Dexy’s though is that Kevin Rowland never, ever thought he was pretending or that Dexy’s weren’t a proper soul group or that either was ridiculous, even though Adam’s “Goody Two Shoes” was basically an attempt to get Rowland to admit (to) ridicule (and therefore probably also “Prince Charming” in part). Clearly – as everyone who saw and remembered the routine with the policeman/fireman coming on stage looking for a fire will know – he was far from bereft of humour but you had to sort of pass the true faith exam before you were allowed to see it.
Phenomenal single to my ears. 9/10.