http://mediumcool.blog.co.uk/

In response to:Tony Kostrzewa

2009-10-15T17:20:06+02:00

Tony K, A legend who's star will rise again.

Andrew, I'm starting the research process for writing a book on Red Rhino Records, the shop (where I used to work) and the distribution.
I've just started a facebook page about Red Rhino and dedicated to the memory of Tony.
I'd love to interview you sometime about your time and experiences with Tony and RRR.
I'm gona look for you on FB but feel free to e-mail me here:
mossey@gmail.com

Thanks and here's to one of the nicest people in the music business, may his star shine forever!
Mr Tony K!
*raises glass*

Mossey

In response to:Rebellious Jukebox

2009-06-17T17:37:11+02:00

Nice blogging. I bookmarked your site

In response to:The Punk Rock Itch

2008-08-08T07:48:41+02:00

Mr Driscoll,

Lovely to hear from you! I still treasure both those cassette compilations you put out and remember the radio interview well. I did it with Clive from The Rain and I think we got to play some records too.

I'll give it a listen and drop you a line over the weekend,

Andy

PS Here's a gratuitous plug for my new label V-Sign - http://v-sign.blog.co.uk/

In response to:The Punk Rock Itch

2008-08-07T23:35:32+02:00

Mr Wake

I hope you are well
I remember you once told me that drunken youths used to come back drunk from clubs find a phone book & through their guffaws used to ring you up & ask "are you AWake" when you kindly agreed to help with UAPP
http://www.flickr.com/photos/fruitier_than_thou/624822718/

I found an old cassette of a you flogging MC to local (to me) radio in Reading.. I reckon it was around the start of 1988
I have loaded ... Its about 67Mb but maybe of interest

http://rapidshare.com/files/135665372/Andy_Wake_Radio_210_1988.mp3

Moscow

Dave
END OF MESSAGE

In response to:Tony Kostrzewa

2008-06-21T09:29:48+02:00

Tony K was the man who made everything happen for so many people. He won't be forgotten.

There's a comment on the jukebox post about why The Punk Rock Itch won't see the light of day although I'm tempted to put it out on my new label V-Sign - http://v-sign.blog.co.uk/

Personally I haven't given up on getting The Waltones back together for a one off in Mcr so anyone interested should watch this space...

In response to:Tony Kostrzewa

2008-06-21T08:25:50+02:00

RIP Tony - sad news!

There would be many a band, label, or song which I would have missed on the pleasure of enjoying if it had not been for Mr Red Rhino.

BTW - I'm still getting a '£1 lucky dip' every Saturday night to raise funds for getting The Punk Rock Itch a deserved release!!!

I take it the Summer 07 Waltones reunion gig never got off the ground???

In response to:Tony Kostrzewa

2008-05-18T16:22:17+02:00

Yes, he was a great guy - always ready to help - alwaya enjoyable to be around! He'll be sadly missed!

In response to:The Punk Rock Itch

2008-02-10T08:41:59+01:00

Hi Philippe,

Thanks for taking the time to post such a great comment. Without knowing it your message has just saved the Medium Cool website! The URL is up for renewal and I really was about to let it slide until I read what you'd written.

I'm always amazed at how far and wide such a small label travelled and how many people's lives it touched and even influenced. I checked out your myspace site and it's really good that you're still doing stuff. Even better was finding the Hurrah link. I may have said this before but it was Kitchenware that inspired Medium Cool all those years ago.

So thanks to you the MC website (www.mediumcool.info) will be renewed for another two years and you never know, I just might get the story of the label finished and posted!

Andy

In response to:The Punk Rock Itch

2008-02-10T02:09:31+01:00

Medium Cool was such a good label!
1986 was one of those great years (like 1977) and it gave me some direction for the kind of music I wanted to play. I saw the light then...
I can't think of a "bad" band on Medium Cool. That can't be said of Creation or Rough Trade for instance.
It's great to be able to read about this label.
Cheers,
Ph.

In response to:Rebellious Jukebox

2008-01-17T15:33:37+01:00

Hello Andy,

Not sure how to do this as i'm not a big internet user but it's Del from the Raw Herbs. I see there is a lot of activity and interest around MEDIUM COOL after all these years. Wow. Well done. I was surprised and amused to see the video for 'Dont Bury Me Yet'. That was the first time i'd ever seen it. Also the live recording of 'I donT know what to say'. I can remember us listening to that the day after the gig on the way back from Manchester in the van and you having concerns at me going into work as the van dropped us off as my appearance was a bit wild and 'scruffy'... Still is. I also noticed that you'd had dealings with Cherry Red Records. I was signed to them after the Raw herbs and had a pretty negative experience with them. Anyway good to see you are doing well. I'm still singing and writing but live in Sweden now. I truly wish you well Andy and have enjoyed remembering some of the good times we had. Best Wishes. Del

In response to:Rebellious Jukebox

2007-12-18T09:58:25+01:00

Andy,

good to hear from you and I'm pleased you enjoyed seeing the long lost videos. There's definitely some live footage of The Waltones and Popguns and also some Corn Dollies videos out there somewhere too...

As for 'The Punk Rock Itch' label compilation don't hold your breath as I've well and truly burnt my bridges with Cherry Red so I can't ever see it coming out now.

I actually used to love Cherry Red in the early 80's, all that stuff by Felt and The Monochrome Set, The Marine Girl's 'Lazy Ways' and especially Tracey Thorn's 'A Distant Shore'. These days the label's run like a Cash Generator store and it's pretty obvious they don't give a fuck about music.

The final straw was an email attempting to source copies of the MC back catalogue most of which was mis-titled and included records which didn't even come out. You'd have thought they'd at least have checked the discography on the website first...

It was blatantly clear they just wanted to digitise the tracks for their dogs dinner of an online store in a vain attempt to squeeze a few more quid out of their supposed acquisition.

To be honest I don't accept they have the right to any of the Medium Cool stuff anyway as MC had no contracts with any of its groups. We were releasing records simply for the love of it and because we were lucky enough to be able to do so thanks to the faith and funding of our distribution company Red Rhino

I remember reading an interview somewhere with Dave Callaghan of The Wolfhounds who was also really pissed off that Cherry Red were repackaging their back catalogue without even consulting them. They even licensed a Raw Herbs B-Side off their post MC single for that CD86 compilation without any right to do so or checking the facts. Just fucking sloppy really.

Anyway, the upshot is there won’t be a label compilation through Cherry Red with my involvement. It’s a shame that some great tunes will have to remain in obscurity but I’m sure anyone with the will could hunt down the old vinyl copies if they really wanted to.

In response to:Rebellious Jukebox

2007-12-18T01:06:36+01:00

andy - cheers for finding and sticking up those youtube vids.

never realised there were any promo-vids, for any of these at the time!

any news about 'the punk rock itch'?

AT

In response to:Rebellious Jukebox

2007-11-06T08:07:56+01:00

Jim,

thanks for checking out the blog and jukebox - I'm pleased it's rekindled some memories and helped fill in a few gaps.

I'm not sure I'd ever want to relive the late 80's again (late 70's maybe!) but if anyone does have requests I'll do my best to get stuff up there...

Andy

In response to:Rebellious Jukebox

2007-11-05T15:48:21+01:00

Just to say these tracks are wonderful. Thanks so much for sharing them. I have many of the originals on 7/12' but its great to be able to hear some tracks I never managed to pick up and fill in some gaps... and the demos etc... :)

With all this great music now available on the internet, its almost like being able to live the late 80's again...

In response to:Rebellious Jukebox

2007-06-25T18:56:58+02:00

You just don't cease to amaze me. Great stuff! I already knew you were a bit of a music fan (to say the least), but I had no idea about all this... Most (if not all) of the names on the site do not ring a bell, btw, although I cannot help but think The Waltones do. Is it possible they got anything out in B as well?

In response to:Rebellious Jukebox

2007-06-25T18:56:29+02:00

In response to:Rebellious Jukebox

2007-05-06T15:46:55+02:00

Glyn, don't you just hate it when that happens!

To be honest after 20 odd years I think all our brains are a bit addled so thanks for dropping by and checking out the jukebox stuff.

Andy

In response to:Rebellious Jukebox

2007-05-06T15:16:20+02:00

Time has obviously addled my brain more than I'd thought, as just after making the initial post I remembered that the other track with 'Tom Paine' was 'Once'. Serves me right for trying to be a smarty-pants. Anyway the music is still fabulous.

In response to:Rebellious Jukebox

2007-05-06T15:02:59+02:00

Just in case you didn't know 'These Feelings Will Pass' was also on the first (pre-Medium Cool) release by The Rain with 'Tom Paine'.

Fantastic to hear it again along with The Waltones / Corn Dollies / Raw Herbs stuff. Thanks, Glyn

In response to:Sloppy But Poppy

2007-05-04T22:11:01+02:00

Brilliant site for a brilliant label. I fell in love with so many of the bands. Only ever saw the Corn Dollies live. I hope the Waltones do get back together. Shame that Rain single never got released, "First of May" is an all time favorite on my jukebox.

In response to:Sloppy But Poppy

2007-04-30T12:01:11+02:00

what a lovely thing that jukebox is - i've been wildly pressing selections for months so thanks for finally plugging it in.
a waltones thing is due on dustysevens this week too.
see you soon
ally

In response to:Sloppy But Poppy

2007-04-27T09:10:52+02:00

I wouldn't quite call it 'discovering' - it was more a case of their manager's relentless phone calls,unsolicited demo cassettes and turning up at my door mob handed!

In response to:Sloppy But Poppy

2007-04-27T00:32:41+02:00

hey, it's a here at last, and how fine does everything sound 20yrs on.

what a fantastic collection of tracks.

congratulations to medium cool for discovering and being the label to release the waltones stuff back in the day.

you've gotta hand it to them! (that's the original label, the band, and the fine chaps who set about this re-issue thingy!)

looking forward to summer gig(s)!!!

AT

In response to:Sloppy But Poppy

2007-04-24T12:46:05+02:00

James,

nice of you to use my blog as a billboard! Good luck with everything and do keep me informed of any live dates you may be planning.

In response to:Sloppy But Poppy

2007-04-24T12:23:03+02:00

What a fine Groyne

The CD has now hit the shops.
Readers in Manchester can find it in Fopp or HMV.

You can order it from your favourite online retailer- amazon.co.uk HMV.com play.com all have it listed

mp3 version available at Cherry Red's download site:
www.cherryred.co.uk/cherryred/artists/waltones.php

Readers in the US can order a copy through e-bay from Cargo Music.

In response to:It Was A Pleasure Then

2007-03-21T10:44:26+01:00

Wexler-a-matic

In response to:The Punk Rock Itch

2007-03-03T22:29:34+01:00

bleedin ell, i was just thinking about the raw herbs, used to support them a lot in 87 and 88, and this gig above, with the sidds!! i was the singer and guitartist spence from steamtown! Oh the good ol days!

lots of love spence x

In response to:It Was A Pleasure Then

2007-03-01T23:59:26+01:00

Great poster design!!!

Would make a crackin' A00

Don't forget a Manchester, London, and erm.......Walsall CD launch party tour!!!!!

Andy

p.s. keep searching Basingstoke - wheres Magnum PI when you need him???

In response to:It Was A Pleasure Then

2007-02-26T09:13:10+01:00

blimey - it's a beauty.
x

In response to:The Punk Rock Itch

2007-02-09T10:23:58+01:00

Hi Andy,

Great to see Medium Cool in the cyber age at last. I used to put on the Surfin Fantastic night @ Synatras in B'ham, with Andy T (aka Andy Pops!) & Sim. We put on pretty much all of the MC acts over a period of time. I was then lucky enough to move to Brighton, where I started The Apple Orchard with Jem, & repeated the process all over again!

MC was the soundtrack to an amazing 18-24 months of my life, that I feel pretty much shaped what/who I became. ie Taking on life & its many curveballs, with a smile on my face & BIG guitars ringing in my ears!

If I had to choose, I would say the Raw Herbs were my fave act of pretty much all time. Excatly how BIG could they have been with the aid of modern trickery such as MySpace?? I recall seeing them in B'ham, wishing it were a kodak moment that I could tuck into my inside pocket, only to pull it out & climb back into, when life & responsibilty became all too much! Quite simply, life couldn't get any better. However, 6 months later in Brighton IT DID. They launched into 'Holland' & immediately I realised that Derek in those 6 months, had become the finished article. Snarling & posturing all over the stage, throwing Cash-esque shapes all over the show! The hairs on the back of my neck still stand up just thinking about it (the ones on my head would struggle!)

Anyway Andy. I'm glad that Adam @ Cherry Red appears to have pursued my suggestion further (I used to work with him, & badger him every so often re all things MC & Waltones) Heaven knows we all have a Punk Rock itch that needs scratching from time to time!

All the best with comp, site, etc.

Davey