DAVE EDMUNDS – "I Hear You Knocking"

Every so often there was a wave of ‘rock and roll revival’ and there was one about here, I think. You could probably tell by examining the rest of the charts for ‘rock ‘n’ roll’ medleys.

Like Sugar Sugar at about the same time a year earlier, this seemed to be number one for ever. Perhaps it’s something to do with the low sales in the weeks leading up to Christmas, but the momentum carried it right through Christmas. I don’t think there was quite the hoo-hah about the Chrtistmas Number One at that time – that was something that came with the decline of the single in the 1970s, which we aren’t really at yet in cultural terms.

If Edmunds comes, can Slade be far behind?

Five is about right – a good, enjoyable, workmanlike single with nothing to get terribly excited about.

Yes, didn’t the Dave Clark Five have a rock’n’roll medley hit circa ’69? Although 50s R&B ploughed a slightly different furrow.

An odd kind of Christmas Number 1, although you’re right, the Christmas No 1 title wasn’t quite the big deal it became a few years later. It must have tapped into something, though, to hold on throughout December. (Number 2 Watch – the song it held off was McGuinness Flint’s “When I’m Dead and Gone”.)

Dave Edmunds had further top ten hits (IIRC) with covers of “Born To Be With You” and “Baby I Love You”, and in neither case did the voice really suit the Spector-type arrangement – I much prefer his Rockpile work with Nick Lowe later on. Mind you, if you want a Dave Edmunds instrumental, try Love Sculpture’s version of “Sabre Dance” for guitar wizardry (or you might call it “showing off”). One of the first singles I ever owned, and an air-guitar favourite.

Re. the Dave Clark Five: “Good Old Rock ‘N’ Roll” (complete with fake crowd noises), top ten over Xmas ’69; “More Good Old Rock ‘N’ Roll” a year later didn’t do nearly as well.

Is everyone aware of this yet? Not a bad selection I think (blurb sez “from the NOW years” so no older stuff), and the 3CD format (1 per decade) is an interesting turn for the NOW series… Fighting back against downloads, ladies & gentlemen – the compilation album!

The rhythm section of Creedence Clearwater probably sounds better as I think Dave Edmunds multi-tracked all of I Hear You Knocking himself. As others have pointd out, 1969/70 saw one of the mini-rock n roll revivals that sporadically appeared -1974 was another time with Bill Haley charting again alongside Wizzard and Alvin Stardust.Mungo Jerry had covered some ‘I Hear you Knocking’-era songs on their first album shortly before this record and a year or so earlier Zappa had brought out his early rock and roll/doo-wop pastiche Cruising with Reuben and the Jets. Maybe it was all a reaction to the more overblown excesses of pyschedelia -or maybe just a marketing of nostalgia that reached its pinnacle of cynicism with Showaddywaddy

Yes – My Ding-A-Ling, Burning Love and Garden Party.

The US #1 at this time was I Think I Love You, followed by Tears of a Clown, with the Christmas #1 being My Sweet Lord. All well and good, but I’m sorry the Jackson 5 didn’t have any transatlantic #1 hits, though I’m sure MJ did…(in Popstrology 1970 is “The Year of the Jackson 5”)…

I have the complete Story Of Pop in binders obtained in FREE BINDER OFFER at home!

Wow MC – I still have the mags but not the binders or the diagram – yes, any chance of scanning the latter?

Remember the TV adverts? Emperor Rosko (I think) intoning lines like “The horrible Who!! Why did they smash their instruments? Check it out in The Story Of Pop”…

I remember the ads but I can’t remember who did them. Rosko (the Westwood of his day) would sound about right though.

There was a lot of this sort of stuff around at the (’73-4) time; Charlie Gillett’s Rock File books (still got those as well), the NME Book of Rock (free pullout, then actual book) and first Top 100 Albums list, obviously all with a view to The Story Has Ended It’s All Over.

I actually liked it–“loved” it would be pushing matters–but I liked it much more than most of what was being played on US radio at the time. By late 1970/early 1971, we were undergoing the infantilization of pop music at the hands of child rock stars and stars of television shows aimed at the barely pubescent. What I liked about “I Hear You Knocking” was its sardonic value. It was a cover of a song I remembered from early childhood (the version I knew was sung, as I recall, by one Gail Storm, later remembered for her slightly grotesque commercials for alcohol addiction treatment). But this cover wasn’t sentimental in the slightest–the electronically pinched voice, the weird evocation of 50s bluesmen, and the oddly cheerful mood of it all struck me as quite sardonic and thus madly subverting the mainstream of pop at the moment.

It retrospect, it’s a mildly oddball thing, not that great, but, from my point of view, something of a bright point amidst the dreck of early 70s commercial pop–and the slide guitar is priceless.

Having never heard of Smiley Lewis (at the time or indeed even now) it always felt like a Dave Edmunds original produced to recreate the sound of 50s recordings (although I’m not sure why he opted to phone in his vocals unless he overdid the EQ trying to replicate early Sun Studios sound). An odd record but extremely catchy and not unattractive. I would go 6/7 for the extra effort of actually playing all the instruments as well. Well done Dave.

Shame you had to spoil your otherwise excellent post with that arsey last sentence, but some fascinating info about the recording nonetheless.

Get on board: http://musicsoundsbetterwithtwo.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/sweet-escape-neil-diamond-cracklin.html Ta for reading, everyone!

I’m surprised that this was a hit so early – I associate Dave Edmunds with the Stiff records crew so assumed this was from the mid to late 70s. I struggle to get excited by it. It’s a bit anonymous and mannered for my tastes.

I don’t much like this and I much prefer ‘When I’m Dead and Gone’ (at #2 when this was at the top). 3/10 for Edmunds.