Frank Beard was the beating heart of the berardy Texan trio who rose to unlikely superstardom in the Eighties. And the onl one without a beard.
 

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Lee Perry’s song Dreadlocks In Moonlight was originally intended for Bob Marley & The Wailers – until a chance meeting at his studio in Jamaica.

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I bloody loved The Cramps the moment I heard them. They had all the energy, lo-fi spirit and antisocial appeal of punk – channelled into rockabilly.

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Derry Brownson was the co-founder and keyboard player of EMF, who had a huge hit all over the world with indie-dance anthem Unbelievable in 1991.

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Roxy Music first recorded Grey Lagoons in 1971 but left it off their debut album a year later, only to re-record it for their second.

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Mary Gauthier keeps it real in a way few others have ever dared to do in her autobiographical coming-of-age song Drag Queens In Limousines. (more…)

Babybird, aka Stephen Jones, had been making home demos for five years without a record deal when You’re Gorgeous shot into the chart.

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John Douglas was a founder member of The Trashcan Sinatras, playing guitar and singing harmonies with the Glasgow band since 1986.

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Hey Joe is not just a classic, but a genuine rock standard, with at least a hundred versions. This is one of my favourites, by blues guitarist Roy Buchanan.

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British DJ Dave Clarke teamed up with German electroclash ensemble Chicks On Speed on this banger, with a Bauhaus sample to boot.

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