HIT ME! THE BEST OF IAN DURY
(BMG)
9/10
The wonderfully diverse and dirty wordsmith Ian Dury gets rightly celebrated on ‘Hit Me! The Best Of Ian Dury’. Three jam-packed discs of timeless, peacock pouting, pub rock kissed by funk basslines and lyrics so glorious you will either cry, smile or shake your head and hips in amazement. Yep, Ian Dury was that f*cking dandy. If you’re a fan this collection will be a welcome addition and for those who’ve never aurally delved any deeper than say ‘Rythm Stick’ or ‘Sex Drugs And Rock ‘N’ Roll’ then this compilation is the perfect starting point. Kicking off with the stupendous trio of ‘Sex Drugs And Rock ‘n’ Roll’, ‘Wake Up And Make Love To Me’ and the jaw-dropping wallop of ‘Sweet Gene Vincent’ should remove any lingering Dury cobwebs that may have gathered in the distant musical memory. A cantering ‘Clever Trevor’ is followed by the fairground filth on the Rum ‘n’ Ribena splashed ‘Billericay Dickie’ before tears flow as ‘My Old Man’ cradles the bruised emotions of both paternal loss and love. The foul-mouthed intro to the vein injecting ‘Plaistow Patrica’ is not one for the school run or maybe ‘PP’ should be…” oh oh”. The bruising cygnet ring punch ‘Blockheads’ remains a bullseye skewering cut of spat out pavement poetry as is the Kilburn And The High Roads ‘Pam’s Moods’. The airy ‘Upminster Kid’, ‘Rough Kids’ and the bizarrely titled ‘The Mumble Rumble And The Cocktail Rock’ keep us on the straight ‘n’ narrow. A wistful ‘Crippled With Nerves’ is drowned in the Camden canal by the cockney lingo lesson on ‘Blackmail Man’.
Disc Two is Blockhead heaven as ‘Reasons To Be Cheerful’ resonates with guile, lounge lizard Funk and a near-perfect mix of new and old factory floor slang. The UK number one ‘Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick’ is somewhat eclipsed by the devilishly subtle ‘What A Waste’ before the ivory tinkled ‘Inbetweenies’ (which includes the salacious “Shake Your Booty” line) and the law-bending band introducing ‘I Want To Be Straight’. 2-Tone legends Madness has always cited Ian Dury as an influence and you can see lyrical curve they continue to chase. The adult nursery rhyme-Esque ‘There Ain’t Half Been Some Clever Bastards’ is followed by the strip club soundtrack ‘Waiting For Your Taxi’ while ‘Razzle In My Pocket’ still brings out a cheeky top-shelf smile. Ian Dury’s seemingly insatiable sexual appetite gets flashed on ‘You’re More Than Fair’ but a strange ‘Quiet’ is a mixed musical bag. With a cane in hand ‘Common As Muck’ tiptoes across the floorboards of London’s music hall past and its left to ‘Lullaby For Franci/es’ to round off disc 2.
The third and final offering is another sixteen tracks, eleven of which are Ian Dury And The Blockheads compositions plus five solo cuts. ‘Mash It Up Harry’ is pure understated Dury dynamite as ‘Dance little Rude Boy’ shuffles into the pub sing-a-long of ‘Superman’s Big Sister’. A live ‘Spasticus Autisictus’ is overtaken by the fish slapping ‘F*cking Ada’ which resonates down fog smothered cobbled streets as gaslights flicker in the capital’s early hours. ‘Hey, Hey Take Me Away’, ‘Dance Of The Crackpots’ and the reflective trippy funk of ‘Bed ‘O’ Roses No.9’ lead us towards the finishing line. A disarming ‘O’Donegal’ shows a delicate touch that brushes even the hardest of hearts with an emerald yearning. The final track is possibly my all-time Dury fav, the knees up Benny Hill, Kinks on speed ‘England’s Glory’. In these mixed-up f*cked times we need Mr Ian Dury’s vision, insight and humour more than ever before. This best-of collection is a must-have, lockdown listening essential.
Guy Shankland
‘Hit Me! The Best Of Ian Dury’ is out on October 16th on BMG.
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