Monday 1 June 2009

Manfred Mann's protest ...

Continuing the theme of anti-racist protests against Enoch Powell at the end of the '60s, as featured in The Archaeology of an Abandoned Soul Single, the scintillating seventh issue of Your Heart Out, it's worth highlighting Manfred Mann naming a track Konekuf on their fantastic Manfred Mann Chapter Three. Read backwards it spells out what Mann thought of racist politicians, and in the UK with European and local elections only a few days away hopefully enough of us will be making clear what we think.

Anyway the Chapter Three record is a fantastic LP, and features the definitive version of You're A Better Man Than I, as covered by Sham 69 when they were trying to lose their horrendous far right skinhead following ironically. Around the same time, the end of the '60s, Manfred Mann and Mike Hugg would be involved in making the music for Jess Franco's Venus In Furs, including playing with Barbara McNair in some memorable scenes. At Your Heart Out Barbara is a massive favourite, and the Motown recordings she made are often given a spin.

YouTube has clips of Barbara in Venus In Furs (steady!) but I got more excited at finding Barbara with Rock Hudson in an episode of MacMillan and Wife. I loved that show as a kid. Then I found this. Barbara on a Noel Harrison TV special, Where The Girls Are. The Byrds were on the same show, and appear with Barbara and Noel looking uncomfortable doing Good Day Sunshine.

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