Ah, the quandry of Creation records.
I have only just noticed that Alan McGee had been blogging for the Guardian, and the thought that passed through my mind was something along the lines of "What's the rampant self-publicist on about nowadays?" His blogs are only marginally insightful, and for the most part, rather pointless. I would imagine that this impression I have of him (and I don't think I'm alone) comes from three things: his cocky demeanour, that to be fair seems to be part of the whole svengali role that he inhabits (see Malcolm McClaren, Tony Wilson, Simon Napier Bell, et al), the fact that he discovered of Oasis and him having been the manager of The Libertines (the most overrated British band since Oasis).
For me, it was Oasis that killed Creation Records, not the massive overspend on My Bloody Valentines Loveless. After signing them, he only signed one more decent band (admittedly the fantastic Super Furry Animals). The money from Oasis could have been used to grow the label by enriching it with a diverse roster of signings, as has happened with Domino and the money from the Franz / Monkeys windfall, and to a lesser extent by Rough Trade with Arcade Fire.
Maybe Oasis made him lazy. If you can sit around surrounded pots of cash, then swan off to Downing Street, you are less likely to be found the next night trawling dingy Camden nightspots looking for the next big thing. Maybe too much success made the arrogance that is in part necessary, spiral out of control. Its amazing how he lost his ability to spot a good band (Heavy Stereo?!), especially when you consider the quality of his earlier signings for Creation.
And that's why I don't like to think about McGee as mouthy Britpop entrepreneur (even if it's true), but instead as the man who brought me some of my favourite music of the late 80's and early 90's. The albums released in that era make Creation one of the greatest record labels in the story of popular music, and that's not hyperbole. They released Screamadelica, Bandwagonesque, Loveless, Copper Blue, Fuzzy Logic, and Giant Steps. That's got to put Creation up there in the pantheon, surely?
Primal Scream - Don't Fight It, Feel It (from the album Screamadelica)
Teenage Fanclub - The Concept (from the album Bandwagonesque)
My Bloody Valentine - Soon (from the album Loveless)
Sugar - Hoover Dam (from the album Copper Blue)
Super Furry Animals - If You Don't Want Me To Destroy You (from the album Fuzzy Logic)
Boo Radleys - Lazurus (from the album Giant Steps)
I have only just noticed that Alan McGee had been blogging for the Guardian, and the thought that passed through my mind was something along the lines of "What's the rampant self-publicist on about nowadays?" His blogs are only marginally insightful, and for the most part, rather pointless. I would imagine that this impression I have of him (and I don't think I'm alone) comes from three things: his cocky demeanour, that to be fair seems to be part of the whole svengali role that he inhabits (see Malcolm McClaren, Tony Wilson, Simon Napier Bell, et al), the fact that he discovered of Oasis and him having been the manager of The Libertines (the most overrated British band since Oasis).
For me, it was Oasis that killed Creation Records, not the massive overspend on My Bloody Valentines Loveless. After signing them, he only signed one more decent band (admittedly the fantastic Super Furry Animals). The money from Oasis could have been used to grow the label by enriching it with a diverse roster of signings, as has happened with Domino and the money from the Franz / Monkeys windfall, and to a lesser extent by Rough Trade with Arcade Fire.
Maybe Oasis made him lazy. If you can sit around surrounded pots of cash, then swan off to Downing Street, you are less likely to be found the next night trawling dingy Camden nightspots looking for the next big thing. Maybe too much success made the arrogance that is in part necessary, spiral out of control. Its amazing how he lost his ability to spot a good band (Heavy Stereo?!), especially when you consider the quality of his earlier signings for Creation.
And that's why I don't like to think about McGee as mouthy Britpop entrepreneur (even if it's true), but instead as the man who brought me some of my favourite music of the late 80's and early 90's. The albums released in that era make Creation one of the greatest record labels in the story of popular music, and that's not hyperbole. They released Screamadelica, Bandwagonesque, Loveless, Copper Blue, Fuzzy Logic, and Giant Steps. That's got to put Creation up there in the pantheon, surely?
Primal Scream - Don't Fight It, Feel It (from the album Screamadelica)
Teenage Fanclub - The Concept (from the album Bandwagonesque)
My Bloody Valentine - Soon (from the album Loveless)
Sugar - Hoover Dam (from the album Copper Blue)
Super Furry Animals - If You Don't Want Me To Destroy You (from the album Fuzzy Logic)
Boo Radleys - Lazurus (from the album Giant Steps)
Posts
2 comments:
Don't forget Arnold's "The Barn Tapes" and Ride's "Going Blank Again"!
I was never a big fan of Ride, they had a couple of moments, but in general, they never really convinced me. And as for Arnold, well the less said the better...
Post a Comment