Mark E. Smith "Rebellious Jukebox"

MELODY MAKER, July 2, 1994, p. 13 (thanks to Ned Raggett for transcribing)

Check the guy's track record-ah! Mark E Smith of the Fall picks the
discs that he lugs around in his carrier bag.

1.  THE WALKING SEEDS, "Tantric Wipeout"

"It's five years old now, this. The Walking Seeds were great until they
went all f***ing grunge. One of 'em went on to be in the La's, you
know. I don't like that many Liverpool bands, cos...well, it's
Liverpool, innit? I never went for Julian Cope, Ian McCulloch, all that
stuff. Walking Seeds were all right, though. What's that you say --
tantric sex is where you have it off in stages? You kiss the first day,
fondle the second, gradually get more intimate? You're getting very
prurient, you, aren't you? Stick to writing about music!"

2. BONEY M, "Rasputin"

"I like the way they tackled all the big issues, Boney M. The fall of
the Russian tsarist system, and stuff like that. Did you know they even
had a song about Belfast? What was it called? It was called 'Belfast.'
No, they didn't really suggest any new solutions. Somebody told me
Boney M are dead popular in Russia. I've just been to Lithuania and it
was really strange. It's just full of drunken unemployed soldiers. Mind
you, they were all concentration camp guards, weren't they, the
Lithuanians? Anyway, Boney M, I think 2 Unlimited are a lot like them."

3. I LUDICROUS, "Preposterous Tales"

"They're very funny, I Ludicrous, and I like a lot of their stuff. They
rip off the Fall a lot, ripping off riffs and everything, but I don't
mind that because they make me laugh. If it makes me laugh, it's OK.
That's a good basic rule. Pavement don't make me laugh. They don't make
me angry, though. I can't get angry anymore about people copying the
Fall because there's just been so many. We've been ripped off so many
times. I Ludicrous are a good funny Northern band. Like the Macc Lads?
Well, it's not quite the same thing, is it?"

4. VISNADI, "Hunt is Up"

"This is an Italian rave record which is around at the moment. Yeah,
that's right, a rave record. Why shouldn't I like a rave record? I've
been getting into loads of Italian stuff lately. I'm not normally into
rave music, though. I mean, it just sort of plods, doesn't it? I don't
do a lot of clubbing, but I have been doing a bit of DJin lately,
around Manchester. People just keep asking me to do it. F*** knows why.
I just turn up and start playing Italian rave records and rockabilly!
Ha! That does their f***ing heads in!"

5. LEE HAZELWOOD AND NANCY SINATRA, "Sundown"

"I think Lee Hazelwood was really, really good. I love the way this
song's got this big, dead camp cinematic production. Nancy Sinatra was
all right, as well. She'd got a bit of talent. She didn't just sponge
off her dad's name. I couldn't stand that f***ing 'Boots are Made for
Walkin' nonsense, though. Lee Hazelwood always sounds to me like a
really wired, wiped-out Johnny Cash. Yeah, I always liked him as well.
He's back and he's hip now? Is he really? F***ing hell!"

6. THE MOVE, "Night of Fear"

"I like this one because I think it sounds just like Birmingham. What
do you mean, that's no reason to like a record? No, I think
Birmingham's very underrated, me. I liked the Move and early Electric
Light Orchestra as well, before they turned totally rockist and crap. I
even liked Wizzard. Actually, Roy Wood has been playing around my way
lately, with some new band he's just knocked together. I've not seen
them myself, but the rest of the Fall went down the other night and
said they were great, really good. They've got a cello section and
everything. Here, why are you laughing?"

7. LINK WRAY, "Jack the Ripper"

"Yeah, he's one of the real rock grandads, isn't he? I think he's
brilliant. He's a Red Indian, and he makes all his own guitars. He
lives in Denmark now, apparently. No, I don't know why -- why should I?
I've met him. Was he mad? No, not at all, show some respect! He was a
dead nice bloke. He used to make instrumental records that got banned
for being too un-record player friendly, because they were too full of
distortion and shit like that, hahaha! Link Wray is the only man who
can get records banned without even writing f***ing lyrics! He's a
hero, a really great man!"

8. MARVIN RAINWATER, "My Brand of Blues"

"This is an old country and western rockabilly song and it's brilliant.
He just plays one chord all the way through. Yeah, I know a lot of
country and western is totally trite, sentimental slop, but it depends
what kind of country and western you listen to, doesn't it, cock? I
know 90 percent of country music is shit, but 90 percent of any kind of
music is shit, isn't it? I haven't even got that many records. I throw
a lot of stuff away. I mean, you've got to, haven't you?"

9. THE DRIVING STUPID, "The Reality of (Air) Fried Borsk"

"What do you mean, it's a Fall record title? No it's not, it doesn't
mean anything! What's borsk -- some kind of Russian stew, isn't it?
The Driving Stupid are an early seventies psychedelic band, and this
is the most over the top record I've ever heard in my entire life. Did
I ever see them live? No, I think they were probably dead before I ever
left school, you cheeky get. So how did I first hear about them? John
Peel? No, I educate myself, mate. Always have."

10. THE FALL, "Rebellious Jukebox"

"For obvious reasons, really. This is the first song I ever wrote on
guitar. I'd never let the Fall play it live now, mind. And no, I don't
mind you naming your Melody Maker features after a Fall song and
ripping us off week after week? Why not? Everybody else does it..."