IN the imminent stampede for the definitely definitive 20th anniversary reissue of Definitely Maybe, white-label Oasis demos et al, it would be easy to trample over a minor gem from the Midlands that equally shines a light on early recordings.
The Mighty Lemon Drops emerged a decade earlier , initially dismissed as a less mighty Echo & The Bunnymen, on account of their echo of Will Sergeant’s psychedelic guitar flashes.
They made six albums in quick succession, never breaking out of a cult indie status, but maintaining a swagger that attracted the attention of Andy Kershaw and Janice Long for sessions featured here.
Dave Newton’s meat-and-potatoes voice was never a thing of beauty but it was impassioned, typified by debut single Like An Angel, a song that soars.
The ebullient Happy Head is irresistible too in its NME tape version, while Lemon Drops addicts will be thrilled by the exhumation of a 1985 cassette sold only at gigs. All they lacked, ironically, was lemon sharpness.
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