The Bureau: "Let Him Have It"

28 May 1981

"The lads, and especially Archie Brown's throaty vocals (so much better than Kevin Rowland's strangled whining) prove that a band can be gritty, tuneful and fun."

— Steve Bush

It was far from common practice at this early stage so Steve Bush shouldn't be faulted for failing to pick a Single of the Fortnight in this issue of Smash Hits. He's hardly the first but he stands above his contemporaries in not even managing to hint at having a favourite in the batch. There are a handful that he certainly seems to have enjoyed — Kid Creole sideman Coati Mundi's "Me No Pop I" has "some of this year's finest lyrics", a reissue of Can's sole Top 30 hit "I Want More" is a "refreshing 'instrumental'" with "tinges of the Oriental and some great hammy organ bits" (though the three-and-a-half minute single does "go on too long"), Nautyculture's "Someday Sunday" mixes "reggae influences with Undertones' poppyness" — without really going too far in his praise. Oh, what I am to do?

I considered half-a-dozen singles before settling on the one I initially had in mind way back when I drew up a list of early SOTF. The Bureau's second (and final, as it would turn out) 45 seems to be the one that gave the most pleasure to Bush and I feel confident in stating that he's probably listened to it at least a handful of times in the forty years since. Can't necessarily say the same for the others so that seals it!

Dexys Midnight Runners had been a group whose lineup would not stop changing. Their well-known penchant radically altering their look (from dockside gangsters to boxing sparring partners to grubby urchins in dungarees and, finally, to preppies on the golf course — and so on into Kevin Rowland's solo career) was only matched by the shifting number of Runners that, er, ran with them. They had only just had the faintest glimpse of success with debut single "Dance Stance" (aka "Burn It Down") and two of their original members were gone. Good on them to get into the swing of constant firings and resignations right from the off.

Weathering the changes, Dexys enjoyed a strong 1980. "Geno" was a surprise chart topping single in the UK, "There, There My Dear" was an exceptional hit in its own right and album Searching for the Young Soul Rebels was a solid candidate for album of the year. Did this bring about a period of stability? Not with Kevin Rowland was charge. The only thing that remained the same was their state of flux.

It was at this point that The Bureau emerged — and with it inevitable comparisons to Dexys themselves. Rowland's voice lent character to their best work but he was never the best singer. As Bush suggests, Archie Brown's vocals are much easier on the ear, even if it still may not be to everyone's tastes. (Their first single "Only for Sheep" is musically more interesting than "Let Him Have It" but it struggles behind the singing which sounds better suited to an oddball mix of Rowland, Mark E. Smith and Mick Jagger; Daniela Soave, writing in that week's Record Mirror, prefers their second single much more in part due to giving Brown something that worked well with his vocal chops) With four former members of Dexys spearheading this new group, including sax players Geoff Blythe and Steve Spooner, it was inevitable that the two acts would have their similarities; it's just a pity there isn't much to differentiate them.

Effortlessness could be one difference though. The Bureau were solid. They were all very good at what they did. You'd enjoy seeing them play at a small club. But there's nothing remotely compelling about them. Rowland had that facility as a frontman. He could alienate his bandmates but fans were captivated by him. They were soon to return with the Top 20 hit "Show Me". It borrowed liberally from Motown and Northern Soul yet seemed fresh; "Let Him Have It" sounds too much like a throwback and not simply to sixties' black pop. It also has a little too much of new wave and pub rock about it. And where's the humour? Rowland's Young Soul Rebels/Projected Passion shtick could get tired but at least there's irony hidden away in some of his songs.

British blue-eyed soul tended to take itself seriously and it was only those who were able to get around the earnestness who ended up either getting somewhere creatively or making a splash with the public (or, ideally, both). The rest were mostly left behind, no matter the band's competence. To wit. "Let Him Have It" is a perfectly good single that one can enjoy in the moment, even if nothing of it stays with the listener once it has stopped. The finest Dexys records (some had already been released, others would be on their way within the year) managed to stick with people. Bush isn't wrong, The Bureau could be "gritty, tuneful and fun" But affecting, intriguing and memorable? I'll take the guy who wanted to "Burn It Down", thank you so much.

~~~~~

Also Reviewed This Fortnight

Pigbag: "Papa's Got a Brand New Pigbag"

Yet another new release that Bush doesn't like quite enough to gush over but I will. The young lions of UK soul ran in parallel with the brief jazz/samba boom and Pigbag came close to bridging to the two together. That earworm refrain obscures the fact that there were some crazy good soloists in this unit, the sort of players who revered Ornette Coleman and Stan Getz in equal messure. The likes of Blue Rondo à la Turk and Modern Romance could get overly slick but it's avoided here. It took time for "Papa's Got a Brand New Pigbag" to catch on but Paul Weller must've been listening at this stage because he had borrowed the tune for use on the underrated Jam song "Precious" prior to this single's long overdue chart run. Pigbag weren't technically one-hit wonders but this is the only thing they're remembered for. A novelty hit but one that had plenty more to offer.

Madness: "One Step Beyond"

1 November 1979

"Now, let's see...which is the A-side?"

— Steve Bush

Good to be careful, isn't it? Wouldn't want to risk having to once again be dealing with some irate readers, would ya? Steve Bush gave Madness plenty of praise for their debut single but all that seems to be remembered is that fact that he mixed up the A and B sides — which, if you think about it, only tells you how good these Camden lads were, that they were able to put something so good on the flip that it could easily be mistaken for a flagship release (though I suppose the inverse of that is that the intended single was so underwhelming as to be assumed to be just filler for the second side).

As if regretting the decision to relegate "Madness" to the other side of "The Prince", Madness chose a Prince Buster cover for their follow up single. Covering the same artist twice on the bounce straight out of the gate seems risky: for one thing, they were sending out the message that they didn't have a great deal of faith in their own material and, second, and more worryingly, it appeared that they were piggybacking on someone else's work and identity. A good thing, then, that their interpretation of "One Step Beyond" bears only a passing resemblance to the original.

Released in 1964 as the B-side to single "Al Capone" (from which The Specials borrowed liberally for their outstanding hit single "Gangsters"), "One Step Beyond" is a slow moving, methodical number. The sax part is so relaxed that it could have been played by the breathy, swoonsome tenor master Ben Webster. Indeed, the horn solos give it a nice jazzy feel that you won't find on its much more famous cover. (Though I would defend Lee "the guy from Madness" Thompson as a sax player in a pop group, he doesn't come close to what Dennis "Ska" Campbell is able to get out of his woodwind) Wisely figuring that there was no way they'd be able to ape the source material, Madness' version injects plenty of hot ska revival energy which just about makes up for the group's limitations. While there is plenty to like about Prince Buster's recording, there's no question which one gets stuck in my head easier and is "really hard to keep still to".

Producer Alan Winstanley, of the famed Langer and Winstanley production team that worked with The Teardrop Explodes, Dexys Midnight Runners and Elvis Costello & The Attractions in addition to their lengthy association with Madness, has said that "One Step Beyond" was recorded short, with just a minute and ten seconds of running time which they then looped in order to flesh it out to appropriate single length. This is not an unprecedented act of studio trickery. Phil Spector lengthened the George Harrison track "I Me Mine" from its similarly brief original studio take for release on Let It Be (he also added an uncharacteristically subtle string section making it the only Beatles' song he failed to cock up). 12" mixes are all about extending pop songs beyond standard radio play length and the vast majority are bases around stretching out the hooks. Bush listens to "One Step Beyond" and wants more (it "ends about five minutes too soon" he reckons) but it's the sort of wish that was better off not coming true. Yes, there is a desire to keep the party going but the repetitiveness would have become exposed had it gone on for much longer.

"One Step Beyond" gave Madness their first of fourteen Top 10 hits. I suggested in my write up on Bush's review of "Madness" that their debut may have been a tiny disappointment when held up against efforts from The Specials, The Selecter and The Beat from the same year. Their early records weren't there simply to prompt kids into the shops but also to encourage them seek these acts out on tours. You like our single? Just wait till you see our show. (The Specials went so far as to record follow up single "Nite Klub" so as to sound live and then released a live EP at the start of 1980, the chart topping Too Much Too Young) Madness proved up to the challenge with "One Step Beyond" and it quickly became one of their hallmark numbers. Though rocksteady and ska would never quite leave their sound, their days as a full-on 2 Tone act were numbered (they'd already left the label after "The Prince" and were now signed to Stiff, home of spiritual cousins Ian Dury & The Blockheads) and it was time to spread out. Luckily, they already had a track called "My Girl" that just needed some dusting off. They're away.

~~~~~

Also Reviewed This Fortnight

Yellow Magic Orchestra: "La femme chinoise"

Forget (assuming you were ever aware of) all that hooey about them being the original cyber punks, Yellow Magic Orchestra were (and still are) way too much of an original one-off to be so carelessly described. If I was to make a sweeping characterization of them I'd say they were a forerunner to both the fantastic nineties scene of futuristic Japanese retro pop known as Shibuya-kei and a whole generation of French electro-pop boffins like Air, Daft Punk and Etienne de Crecy but even that smacks of the sort of lazy musicology wherein female singers are cited only as an influence on other female singers. Transcending the novelty synth of its day, "La femme chinoise" is masterful with tricks aplenty and something seemingly brand new to discover with every listen. And I figured I'd be sick of it by now.

Madness: "Madness"

6 September 1979

"The A-side is a cover version of the 1964 cult single, and the B-side is the band's own tribute to Prince Buster."

— Steve Bush

This would be an accurate summation of what's on the A and B sides if it wasn't completely wrong. Steve Bush's error may have been because he was sent a botched promo copy, because his Smash Hits mates purposefully gave him false information or because he made a careless mistake. And, while the purported flip is clearly the superior track, I can kind of understand why might have assumed "Madness" to have been their lead single's flagship song. It's an introduction to a new band where "The Prince" is a call back to a name from the past. Ver kids could have got their rocks out to some jolly rocksteady fun and it's easy to see why it could make a popular concert standout. And who kicks their career off by longing for an old ska veteran to make his return: didn't the members of Madness want to show off what they were capable of?

The late seventies ska revival seemed to come out of nowhere and, if you weren't a Coventry scenester, you would have had good reason for assuming so. Unknown acts became stars overnight as everyone came flying out of the gate. The old Coventry Automatics were now The Special A.K.A. and they debuted with the brilliant "Gangsters", catchy as all hell, something everyone would want to dance to but with a dark heart of aching melancholy in Terry Hall's vocals. Flip the single over and you got "The Selecter", an eponymous number which is almost as wonderful as its better-remembered A-side. Pauline Black's singing is an acquired taste and the group was never quite as "special" as their ska associates but it's a great track in its own right and you'd have every reason to believe they had as much of a future as anyone. The Beat chose to get things started with a cover of Smokey Robinson's "Tears of a Clown" (matched with their own "Ranking Full Stop" as a double A), something of a risk if you consider that Motown/Northern soul fans were still an influential presence at the time and their distaste for a tenth rate rendition of a Miracles classic could have torpedoed the chances of Dave Wakeling, Ranking Roger and the rest. Good thing they did it well and their Kingston-Motor City crossover may have only led to a more widespread acceptance of British ska.

Also recording their first single at this time was a group from Camden Town. Midlands groups could very easily have spurned a bunch of wacky Londoners but Specials leader Jerry Dammers saw something in them, even if he himself couldn't quite quantify it. "I went to see them and they were really basic," he observes, "just like a school band". Indeed, with Suggs being just eighteen, they were barely out of that playing-Cockney Rebel-records-on-full-volume-in-the-sixth-form-common-room-much-to-the-dismay-of-the-school-headmaster phase that we all go through. (Or was that just me, even if I went to high school in Canada, played Beautiful South albums in the school drama room and my teachers were the only ones who didn't tell me to turn them off) Their playing was rudimentary but they did have a couple songs including future hit "My Girl". Dammers signed them up for a one off 2 Tone single.

The result is not something you'll find on a Rolling Stone 100 Greatest Debut Singles list (notably, they also left off "Gangsters" so they may not have been looking at ska when they put it together) but "The Prince" is a tremendous work and a sign of things to come. In isolation, however, it may have seemed like a slight let down next to their 2 Tone compatriots. The Special A.K.A, The Beat and The Selecter had all been pounding out sweaty ska classics live but Madness didn't come from this same world. More closely connected to Ian Dury, they were entertainers and songsmiths. Politics played a part of their sound but there was so much more waiting to come out. Ska remained though more often in spirit than in practice. They weren't to know it at the time but they were set to be the group we would all want to bring back whenever they'd disappear like Prince Buster.

~~~~~

Also Reviewed This Fortnight

Gary Numan: "Cars"

Taken all the way to the top of the charts then and regarded as a post-punk, synth-pop classic today, it's amazing there aren't more who see through the emptiness of "Cars". "Are 'Friends' Electric?" is still extraordinary and ought to be the one everyone remembers. Sure, Trent Reznor still reckons it's the bees knees (and he's right) but it doesn't get the love of this "disappointing" follow up. Far more purely synthy than its predecessor, "Cars" lacks the ecstatic thrill of the best records of its (or any) time. Gary Numan would admit trying to pen a hit and he certainly succeeded but a musical achievement this ain't.

Buzzcocks: Spiral Scratch

23 August 1979

"Having unleashed the best set of pop singles for years, the Buzzcocks remind us how it all started."

— Steve Bush

Oh dear, Steve. It's Buzzcocks, not the Buzzcocks (but, hey, at least you used a lower case 't': The Buzzcocks would have been unforgivable). Just as it's Eagles and Talking Heads and Eurythmics and Pet Shop Boys, bands and their stans can get awful prickly about that dad blasted definite article being improperly used. (Funnily enough, groups employing a "The" don't seem quite as bothered when they get dropped, as in Beatles, Rolling Stones and Kinks; face it, The The are the only group with an incorruptible band name)

Nomenclature aside, designer Steve Bush kicks his month-long singles review residence off (though he would be back) with a recommendation that we go out buy a reissue of the debut E.P. by Buzzcocks "while stocks last". Apparently there were stocks aplenty as it got one chart placing short of the Top 30. Coming off five Top 40 entries on the bounce over the past year, this is a routine showing for a group that never quite got their flawless run of singles over the chart hump. (The classic "Ever Fallen in Love (With Someone You Shouldn't've)" couldn't get any higher than number twelve) Though Bush wasn't to know it at the time, the group was nearing its end. What got them started was about to finish them off.

Studying the singles reviews from 1979 in detail, it seems clear that there were some trying to move on while others were more resistant. Punk in 1977 had opened up so much for so many. The chords were minimal, the tunes were short and everyone dressed as they pleased. Indie record labels popped up all over the country and, with expenses kept to a bare minimum, groups could make a few bob from just a few thousand sales. Kids flocked to punk venues to see chaotic gigs. Oh, that it could only have kept going. For some, it never stopped.

Bush claims that the sound of these four tracks on Spiral Scratch is "dated" but it seems like those still pressing on with real ale punk here at the very end of the decade were the real relics. Releases from the likes of The Members, Sham 69, Angelic Upstarts, Generation X, even those rubbish post-Lydon Sex Pistol records: all churned out as swiftly and unprofessionally as they were two years earlier but without the same excitement of old. Some of the tunes were still as potent but it was old hat by this time. The fact that The Rolling Stones seemed to have already missed the boat with the punk-influenced "When the Whip Comes Down" and "Shattered" from their Some Girls album and those songs were from a year earlier is all you need to know.

What you get with Spiral Scratch is ten minutes of tightly played punk rock that doesn't try to hide the skills of the foursome. Bassist Steve Diggle and drummer John Maher were even at this early stage a peerless rhythm section and the late Pete Shelley proves himself an underrated guitarist, even going so far as to take a solo on the E.P.'s best track "Boredom". Howard Devoto made his lone shot at Buzzcockdom count with rapid-fire, shrieked vocals and some genuinely funny lyrics. All four cuts demonstrate that they already had a clear understanding of what they were doing but they somehow fail to suggest what might have been — or, rather, provide a blueprint for Buzzcocks that were, not those that could have been. The thought of Devoto remaining is one of those delicious what ifs but not one aided by what's on offer here.

Like The Clash and The Damned, Buzzcocks were a cut above the competition. Punk was never expunged from their sound but they were far too capable as musicians and songwriters to let the genre constrain them. But where some stagnated and others moved on, they were just about done. Sprial Scratch doesn't simply "remind us of how it all started" but puts a cap on how far they came in such a short period of time. They could have done more but why soil such a perfect discography — assuming you're willing to ignore all the stuff they did after they reformed.

~~~~~

Also Reviewed This Fortnight

The Jam: "Where You're Young"

When you're young, you're full of angst, aspiration, passion and verve. When you're young, you're searching for someone to speak to you. When you're young, you cherish those figures who are fighting for something. When you're young, you don't give a toss if you can't make out the words to your favourite songs. When you're young, you're convinced that a line like "the world is your oyster but the future's your clam" is dead good even if deep down you haven't a clue what it means. When you get older, you realise that a number like this is just a filler on the way towards something you really want to listen to. When you're older, you respect those groups who used punk to better themselves.

Billy Idol: "Rebel Yell"

11 September 1985

"(well he did more or less invent rock 'n' roll)"

— Steve Bush

Part 2: Billiam Gets Another Chance

"Billiam? Billiam?"

He could sort of make out the gentle voice trying to rouse him but he was conscious enough not to give a toss. Whatever time it was, it was too early to be getting up.

"Billiam," the voice continued. She wasn't about to stop trying so he might as well get up. He knew he could make the task of sending her on her way quick before he could get to more urgent matters.

"Morning," he gurgled, slowly sitting up. Tracey (he just remembered her name!) was getting dressed. She looked lovely in the morning light. He liked waking up to a girl that made him not regret the night before.

"I gotta go baby," she said sweetly, "I gotta be at work in a bit."

"Well, can I get you some breakfast?" Billiam responded feebly. He loved making offers he knew he wouldn't have to fulfill.

"Thanks, sweetie, but I'll get something on the way. Don't get up. I'll let myself out. Call me." She kissed him on the forehead and walked out of the bedroom.

"Right ho," he replied. He wasn't sure if he got her number but it didn't matter since he wasn't going to call her anyway.

~~~~~

Billiam never seemed to make a good first impression, especially with the ladies he was really after. A rock star of some note, he was bound to attract attention but he never seemed to want anyone willing to throw themselves at him. He always preferred the girls who paid him no mind. Girls who seemed above it all. Girls who always seemed to have someplace better to be, meeting far better people. Girls for whom rock 'n' roll glamour meant nothing. (Of course, Billiam also knew that this was just an act: why would they choose to be in the vicinity of fame if they weren't attracted to it?) He respected their supposed aloofness and it made him miss being young in London and having to chase down every opportunity no matter how much of a longshot it was.

Tracey claimed she had been dragged out by co-workers and did the usual "have I seen you someplace before?" routine when she got chatting with Billiam the night before. This was a variation on the same story he always heard: pushy friends or colleagues twisted their arms to go out, they never typically went to nightclubs and they didn't think about trying to meet guys. They never seemed impressed to be in his presence, didn't appear drawn to him in any way and only seemed to be talking to him as if to pass the time in a place they felt uncomfortable.

These girls may not have been taken by him at first but they would slowly come round. Billiam was charming and sweet and always made them feel like they were the only girls that mattered. It just took a little time but they never let him down. They just wanted more, more, more.

~~~~~

He didn't awaken until the early afternoon and only then because the phone was ringing. It  was Glenn, his manager, calling from London.

"It's another flop, mate," Glenn began without a greeting. Billiam didn't reply. "I'm sorry."

"'S aw-right, mate," Billiam responded nonchalantly.

"The record label isn't happy. I'm worried they might drop you."

The conversation continued for a bit with Glenn doing all the talking and Billiam giving token replies. He told his manager that he didn't care and that he'd made America his home and he didn't care what the English thought anymore. He was pretty sure he'd convinced Glenn but hadn't quite been able to convince himself. He knew there was something a bit strange about those British groups who hit big in the States but weren't able to cut it back home. He always chalked it up to Americans taking him seriously while being treated like a joke in his homeland but it still gnawed at him.

Putting down the phone, he got himself ready to head out. A tour was coming up and he had to get started on rehearsals. And he was looking to hit the clubs later.

~~~~~

He invited his touring band out after a productive rehearsal and they readily agreed. Jobbing musicians always knew that one of the perks of backing a popular solo artist was the chance of meeting women. Billiam led the fivesome into the club and they began scoping the joint but the singer made a bee line for the bar. Women would come to him, they figured.

It didn't seem like Billiam was looking around but he knew where everyone was. The women he had no interest in were the easiest to spot: they tended to stick closest to him. Beyond them, he had to check out the groups of friends enjoying their drinks and laughing. There was always one he had his eye on.

He first noticed Layla standing with a group who had given up looking for a table. She didn't seem to mind even as others in her pack kept searching for a place to sit down. Billiam tried not to stare, only glancing in her direction in short spurts. He would have to wait a bit to make his move and decided to get a round in for his bandmates. They weren't having too much luck but as soon as Billiam joined them they began attracting attention.

"I thought you were already with a girl," Larry the affable drummer commented.

"Nah," Billiam dismissed, "there's lots of time for that." Few knew how to play the long game as well as he did.

"Got anyone in mind?" inquired Rick the rhythm guitarist.

"Dunno," said Billiam as he looked around the room, trying his best to seem as noncommittal as possible. He wanted to make sure his chums were spoken for before he made his move.

He eventually approached Layla. She didn't appear surprised that he'd chosen her.

"'Ello. I'm Billiam."

"Yeah, I know. It's nice to meet you."

Billiam was impressed. She wasn't pretending not to know him like the girls he typically chatted up — but neither was she fawning all over him like the girls he didn't want. They spoke for a while and she agreed to have a drink with him. Their conversation continued for over an hour: she asked him about living in America compared to England, where he liked to go on holiday, hobbies and keeping his apartment tidy; he asked her about her job, family, books she's been reading and how she handled the pressures of being an independent woman in the eighties. This was going well and it was just about time to ask her if she wanted to get going.

"Listen, it's been great meeting you but I have to get going," Layla said suddenly. Billiam was surprised but he didn't panic. Girls often pulled out the old 'I gotta go' line but it never worked on him.

"You don't 'ave time for one mo' drink?"

"I'm sorry, my friends are waiting for me. But maybe we'll see each other again." Billiam still wasn't completely worried. As she stood up to go, he gave her a smoldering, 'come hither' look, the kind he had perfected over years of magazine shoots, the kind you could only pull off if it was perfectly natural, anyone who tried to hard wound up looking ridiculous.

"Take care," she smiled, not the least bit moved by his sex appeal. Billiam didn't move as she turned away. That night the members of his backing band all went home with women they met at the club but Billiam headed home by himself. Joey, his doorman, was stunned: he couldn't recall a time when he witnessed Billiam returning home all by himself.

~~~~~

The tour went well and Billiam hadn't lost a step, neither as a performer nor with the ladies. There were women available to him every evening in every city they visited and he usually took them up on their hospitality — it would be rude not to.

His records were also doing well. He now had Top 10 hits in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand and he was finally beginning to make inroads back in Britain. Critics who had always been hostile were beginning to warm up to him too. Still, he couldn't shake the feeling that he was a joke back home. It would show them if one of those singles they spurned could make a comeback and prove them all wrong.

Getting back to New York after several months on the road, Billiam was unsure about going to the nightclubs and discotheques. The English pub round the corner suited him for the moment but he was also happy just to lie low at home with mates coming round for small gatherings. There were still plenty of women to choose from and he didn't have to revisit his failure from his previous night out.

"Why aren'cha comin' out anymore, man?" asked his buddy Lance, a restaurateur Billiam had known since first moving to New York four years earlier.

"I been on tour so long and I'm still knackered. It's nice t' be at 'ome, mate," he shrugged his shoulders. "I jus' wanna party 'ere!"

The phone rang. Billiam didn't feel like answering it and didn't want to take the call so he asked his chum Dave to take a message.

"It's your manager," Dave shouted. "He says your single is in the Top 10 in England."

Billiam didn't shoot and scream but everyone could tell he was excited. His mood perked up even though he assured everyone that he didn't care beyond the royalties he'd be getting.

"Come on," commanded Lance, "we gotta go out and celebrate!" Billiam still wasn't in much of a mood but he agreed. He didn't want to spoil everyone's fun.

~~~~~

"Good morning." Billiam awoke to a soft voice. He turned and looked at Layla.

"Morning."

"I had a great time last night."

"Yeah, me too."

"I'm so glad I bumped into you again. I wasn't sure if I would ever see you after our last encounter."

"Oh really?" Billiam asked, pretending not to know what she was on about.

"Yeah, I didn't want you to think of me as a cheesy rock groupie chick."

"Oh, come on love, I'd never think that. You're special."

She offered to make him breakfast but they ended up doing bacon and eggs together. He was going to be sorry to see her go.

Layla kissed him and went to leave.

"Call me."

"Right ho," he replied. He didn't get her number but it didn't matter since he wasn't going to call her anyway.

~~~~~

Also of some cop

Freddie Mercury: "Living on My Own"

Part 6: Billiam in the Shadows

Billiam loves rock 'n' roll but he looks down upon a lot of older stars, especially if they stand in the way of his old school punk values. British stars in New York often form cliques but he won't just hang out with anyone, especially if they're older and are coming out of prog or hippie music or pomp rock. Then he meets Tanya, a vivacious girl who kind of digs him but who also seems to favour those hoary old rock geezers that he doesn't care for. She's hoping Billiam might be able to introduce her to one or two legends but he doesn't want them to steal his thunder. Then he remembers an old Queen who just happens to be in town. Can he get a rock god to lend a hand?