Gone But Not Forgotten # 6

I just finished the crime novel by Christopher Brookmyre called The Sacred Art of Stealing. It is located in Glasgow and it is about a bank robbery and a very cool plan to get out with the whole money. One of the best places in the book is as the bank robbers went into the bank. Dressed up as clowns. They organised a performance before the bank while they play Madness with One Step Beyond playing and move in the typical Madness walk towards the entrance. When they enter the bank they play on their ghetto blaster The Sensational Alex Harvey Band’s Faith Healer. Don’t want to tell you more about a novel that is worth to be read.

While I’ve read the book I often remembered to one of the greatest Scottish artist of all time: Alex Harvey. So I grabbed out my old records and played them a several times throughout the last weeks. And I have not regretted it at all. It surprised me once again that his music sounds so timeless and also up to date. Torn between what they called glam rock, art rock or maybe hard rock he and his band found a place that is just reserved for them. He also worked for his younger brother Les Harvey and his band Stone The Crows with Maggie Bell on vocals – but this another story to be told sometimes.

I love this band for their winking humor in their songs. Never heard before or later singing someone of gangbang or the overexciting version of the Tom Jones hit Delilah. But not only their arrangements impressed me. It was also the guitar of Zal Cleminson that fits to most of them songs. Alex Harvey died quietly exactly 32 years ago.

RIP Alex

The Sensational Alex Harvey Band – Delilah
The Sensational Alex Harvey Band – Faith Healer
The Sensational Alex Harvey Band – Midnight Moses
The Sensational Alex Harvey Band – Vambo Marble Eye

Advertisement