Thursday 23 March 2017

Stump ‎– "Mud On A Colon EP" (Ron Johnson Records ‎– ZRON 6) 1986

Peculiar London Based Anglo-Irish combo who sounded like Captain Beefheart's Magic Band fronted by Jimmy Cricket. Slightly annoying and 'clever clever'; these show-offs nearly made it as a chart band!?....They signed to a 'proper' record label and consequently were never heard of again.....the same old story. The fact that they were snapped up by one of the shitter 'proper' record labels (Ensign?!) couldn't have helped their prospects for lucrative longevity.
The original singer was none other than that irritating bloke from The Shrubs, Nick Hobbs, who was sacked for being 'too serious'!? Then he got replaced by the slightly less irritating Mick Lynch (who died earlier this year, RIP).
An EP is about all i can take in one sitting, so luckily Ron Johnson didn't inflict a full album on us...leave that to Ensign.
It didn't help that they used a fretless bass! One of thee most awful instruments ever devised, alongside the soprano sax, and the Yamaha DX-7.
Stump, as a whole, were a kind of hip novelty band, who one struggled to take seriously, even though they weren't at all funny(?)....maybe Nick Hobbs should have stayed on? 

Tracklist:

A1 Orgasm Way
A2 Ice The Levant
B1 Grab Hands
B2 55-0-55


3 comments:

badgerstump said...

a really long time ago ... i temporarily fell in love with Stump. i used to fight family members for access to the video recorder to tape The Tube. i seem to remember that they invited unsigned bands to submit videos and the winner won something. probably just getting played on tv. Stump did a video for Buffalo ... obviously the beefheartian-light worked but the clincher was probably the "big bottoms, swing big bottoms" line ...

one of the videos that won on T'Tube was The Dave Howard Singers' "Yon Yonson" which is enjoyably rubbish and features the most pointless use of a wheelchair in a "look at me I'm edgy" way ever.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dwCHi3KbsMQ

... anyway, if anybody gives a toss, Stump did three Peel Sessions. this is the first one from Jan 86 that was released on 12" on Strange Fruit in 87 ....

http://www59.zippyshare.com/v/Cr9HNeY0/file.html

Jonny Zchivago said...

Yes, i seem to remember The Dave Howard Singers....all i remember of T'tube was that Paul young was always on it whenever i rarely tuned in....also i did enjoy a performance by one Edward Barton,singing "I got no chicken(but I have five wooden Chairs)".

By the way, i seem to have four Stump Peel Sessions, wot I have cobbled together in a single file coming very very soon.

Filip said...

Sad to hear that Mick Lynch died
Stump was a great band