Graham Parker: Live on the Test (1977-1978)

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Graham Parker (more HERE) showed Britain's punks you could be angry without being ignorant. However, as the punks got angrier Parker felt the need to match them hate for hate, while continuing to school them on how to focus that anger. Dave Thompson's London's Burning provides the money quote:

"Our attitude to punk was, we were kind of jolted." We were in a field of one, doing things like : "You Can't Hurry Love" really aggrressively, doing reggae with this angry attitude; we had it all together and suddenly we were not the only ballgame. There was this thing called [Punk Rock]....and it was a bit scary for us. So we thought we'd better crank it up another level and came back really nasty."

And Parker's records did grow ever-more belligerent throughout the seventies, as you can witness on Parker and The Rumour's Live on the Test. This set is made up of performances done for the BBC TV show The Old Grey Whistle Test between  March 17th 1977 and March 20th 1978 . It's further proof of Parker and The Rumour's live fire-power. If, like Parker himself, you believe Mutt Lange's production of his second album, Heat Treatment, is sterile, then you'll find these versions raw and bloody enough to be a bio-hazard.





        1          Heat Treatment     Parker     4:08
        2          Silly Thing     Parker     3:09
        3          Fool's Gold     Parker     4:26
        4          Pourin' It All Out     Parker     3:40
        5          Gypsy Blood     Parker     5:32
        6          Don't Ask Me Questions     Parker     5:22
        7          Hold Back the Night     Parker     3:16
        8          Not If It Pleases Me     Parker     3:01
        9          Soul Shoes     Parker     3:23
        10         Kansas City     Parker     3:13
        11         Stick to Me     Parker     3:32
        12         Problem Child     Parker     3:42
        13         Back Door Love     Parker     3:09
        14         Thunder and Rain     Parker     3:19
        15         Turned up Too Late     Parker     3:34
        16         Saturday Nite Is Dead     Parker     3:23
        17         Tear Your Playhouse Down     Parker     3:58

GP fans - Where do you think Parker and The Rumour excelled most, in the studio or on the stage?
Let us know in the COMMENTS section!

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