{"id":2005,"date":"2013-06-26T18:15:55","date_gmt":"2013-06-26T17:15:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.longkeshinsideout.co.uk\/?p=2005"},"modified":"2013-06-26T18:23:25","modified_gmt":"2013-06-26T17:23:25","slug":"who-put-that-on-again-billy-joe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.longkeshinsideout.co.uk\/?p=2005","title":{"rendered":"Who Put That On –Again? Billy Joe"},"content":{"rendered":"

Who Put That On\u2014Again?<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Another great lead from Gaudeamus following on from his recollection of books.\u00a0<\/strong> \"\"<\/a>It is hard to know where to start in regards of forming a list of albums\u2014or LP\u2019s as they were commonly known back in the day.\u00a0 I was an avid album collector before incarceration at the start of 1973 and always tried to develop my collection during the time spent in prison.<\/strong>
\nI had built up quite an anthology by October 1974 but sadly like the rest of my possessions they disappeared in a puff of smoke\u2014and many flames\u2014during the Long Kesh fire.\u00a0 Many of the albums I lost at the time were later replaced and of course added to.\u00a0 As a young man my taste was fairly eclectic.\u00a0 Normally if I liked something I played it or listened to it\u2014often to the dismay of friends\u2014many of whom I found had a certain air of snobbishness around their musical preferences.\u00a0 However, I like to think I stopped short with the bubblegum and saccharin sweet pop that seemed to abound in the early to mid seventies.
\nMy early heroes or heroines were Neil Young\u2014The Faces\u2014Rod Stewart went down in my estimation after the Smiler album of 1974\u2014Joni Mitchell\u2014Van Morrison who was one of the universally liked artists throughout the compounds\u2014and bands like Creedence\u2014Lynyrd Skynyrd –and most of the West Coast stuff that seemed to be the legacy of the sixties cult.\u00a0 I had favourite albums for all of these stars\u2014Harvest\u2014Every Picture Tells a Story\u2014Blue\u2014Astral Weeks\u2014Pendulum and Pronounced.
\n\"\"<\/a>In my time the record player had to be booked.\u00a0 There were notebooks for everything then\u2014Doctor\u2014Welfare\u2014Governor\u2014Visits–Growing a Beard—and the record player.\u00a0 In theory you may have had to wait quite a while before you got your turn.\u00a0 Especially if one of the Big D merchants got on to it before you!!\u00a0 These guys tended to be married\u2014had kids\u2014were prolific letter writers and all round Sad Sacks.\u00a0 They hogged the Dansette big style.\u00a0 If you heard the wail of Charlie Pride asking if Anyone was Going to San Antone\u2014or indeed Patsy Cline telling us all repeatedly that she was Crazy\u2014or Porter Wagoner declaring his undying love for wee Dolly\u2014then sure as shit you were in for a real downer of a night.
\n\"\"<\/a>January 1975 in Compound 18\u2014not long after the Fire and we had been relocated to a decent compound.\u00a0 Our hut OC was Jackie Whitten.\u00a0 A great guy\u2014very popular\u2014smashing sense of humour\u2014but an aficionado of Country and Western music.\u00a0 Then it was possible to book the record player for the full night. \u00a0That covered from tea time to around ten o\u2019clock.\u00a0 Earphones didn\u2019t exist so basically everyone could hear what someone else was playing.\u00a0 The record player held around six LP\u2019s and once one was finished the next one dropped.\u00a0 So this particular evening the rest of the hut were suffering while Jackie wallowed in his country reverie and overdosed on Johnny Cash and Slim Whitman.\u00a0 The yodels were echoing off the timbers.\u00a0 Luckily Jackie needed to go to the toilet.\u00a0 It was the chance we were waiting on.\u00a0 Quick as the proverbial flash I nipped into his cubicle while he was in the toilet.\u00a0 I removed the top three LP\u2019s and slipped in one of my own.\u00a0 Monty Python\u2019s Flying Circus\u2014Live at Drury Lane.\u00a0 Jackie returned and went back to the letter writing and Slim was telling us all about That Silver Haired Daddy.\u00a0 The record ended and we\u2014all ten of us gathered in the next cubicle\u2014listened to the mechanical sounds as the next record dropped…First track on the B side—Spot the Brain Cell\u2014John Cleese..\u201d Hello, Good evening and Welcome….\u201d\u00a0 Cue–Mayhem!!\u00a0\u00a0 There was no muted mutterings from Jackie\u2014just a loud explosion with all conceivable bad words thrown in.\u00a0 Of course I got the blame but he couldn\u2019t prove anything.\u00a0 In the absence of proof Jackie done what all OC\u2019s would have done\u2014he gave the ten of us a half hours fatigues each!!
\n\"\"<\/a>Of course as anyone will tell you it would be extremely difficult to choose one LP over another and rate it as your favourite.\u00a0 I had too many that I liked to have one that I would have played more than another.\u00a0 You had your favourite at a certain time that rapidly changed upon the release of another.\u00a0 Everyone had their own genre that, in general they stuck to.\u00a0 Older guys had easy listening or country music.\u00a0 Punk occurred at a time when there weren\u2019t too many new people coming through the gates so to me that style had a limited following.\u00a0 Some of the bands that emerged out of the Punk era certainly had their followers\u2014The Clash\u2014The Pistols and The Jam being the best examples.\u00a0 I had a fondness for The Jam and latterly Paul Weller.\u00a0 Albums also did the rounds.\u00a0 As Gaudeamus pointed out the up tempo ones were used for the gym and he points to a good example.\u00a0 Records that I remember being passed round the most included Bad Company\u2014Running With The Pack\u2014The Eagles\u2014Band on the Run by Wings.\u00a0 We all had our favourite albums for leaning on when writing letters and mine was Bad Co.\u2014the first album.\u00a0 It had a million little marks on it from thousands of letters over the years.
\nI could write a list of my ten favourite albums right of the reel and come back tomorrow with a completely separate list.\u00a0 Music played a huge part in everyday life within the compound system\u2014if it wasn\u2019t listening to your LP\u2019s it was watching Top of the Pops and for the younger ones the Old Grey with Whisperin\u2019 Bob.\u00a0 I remember a programme that was aired for a short period of time\u2014Revolver\u2014and it was here that we witnessed Dire Straits for the very first time.\u00a0 \"\"<\/a>They played Sultans of Swing and blew everyone away to the extent that we all phoned out on Monday morning–no mobiles mind you–by using the\u00a0Welfare facilities–\u00a0to have the LP sent in with our next parcel!!\u00a0 Writing this short piece has whetted my appetite to go out and listen again to many of the albums that I would eventually replace with CD\u2019s from the early Nineties on.\u00a0 I feel guilty for leaving many great albums out here and will no doubt be reminded by others about that.\u00a0 But over the years the albums that would have given me the most pleasure were\u2014and bear in mind for each artist I could list their full catalogue\u2014briefly as follows…..
\n\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Led Zeppelin\u2014Physical Graffiti<\/strong>
\n Ry Cooder-Borderline<\/strong>
\n Bob Dylan-Dylan\u2014cover versions<\/strong>
\n The Stones-Exile on Main Street<\/strong>
\n Talking Heads-Stop Making Sense<\/strong>
\n Nine Below Zero-Live at the Marquee<\/strong>
\n Paul Simon-Gracelands<\/strong>
\n U2-Rattle and Hum<\/strong>
\n R.E.M-Eponymous<\/strong>
\nThis list goes on and on, and may in fact be revisited soon!!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Billy Joe<\/p>\n

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