Top of the rank like Pearl and Dean

It seems the well of new music has dried up because everyone is off at Glastonbury (except me, I'm off to the theatre tomorrow because I'm all cultured and shit).

In the meantime, please enjoy this "blast from the past".

Betty Boo - Doin' The Do


That's 20 years old. TWENTY!

If you were born today, Betty Boo would have as much cultural and musical relevance to you as Doris Day and Vera Lyn had to me when I plopped onto the planet in 1974.

Oh, and if you are slumming it in Glastonbury, the current rumours are, in order of aweseomagicality:

1) Thom Yorke & Johnny Greenwood on the Park Stage tonight.
2) Biffy Clyro will be on the Park Stage tomorrow at 6:40pm.
3) Kylie is joining the Scissor Sisters on stage tomorrow.
4) Tinie Tempah will guest with the Gorillaz tonight.

In the past, the perennial Glastonbury rumour was always that Michael Jackson had died. Somehow, these "surprise" guest appearances don't quite live up to that... RIP Mr The King Of Pop.

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One for all the fly mothers

Break out your Adidas, here is the best compilation of the year!



Fly Girls (B-Boys Beware: Revenge Of The Female Rappers) landed on the doormat at Discopop Towers on Tuesday, since when we have all adopted hi-top haircuts and fought in a series of hotly-contested dance offs.

The record collects together the best moments of the 1980s block party rap scene, lady style. Due to hip-hop's innate misogyny, most of the acts remain fairly obscure, but the compilers have unearthed 20 absolute gems from the archives.

Highlights include the Dr Dre produced JJ Fad (Just Jammin' Fresh and Def), whose You're Going Down is a hilarous diss of Roxanne Shanté: "We knew you were wack from the start / Did a hundred twleve inches and never hit the pop charts". Also included is the original Marley Marl version of Dimples D's Sucker DJ - which hit the UK charts in 1990 courtesy of a gimmicky I Dream Of Jeannie remix.

Dimples D - Sucker DJ


The best track is probably MC Lyte's upfront and funky Cha Cha Cha, which features the genius rhyme: "Better than before, as if that was possible / My competition? You'll find them in the hospital".

But the record goes further than recreating the ghettoblaster-fabulous early 80s rap attack, with a few cuts from the Afro-jazz poetry scene of the 70s that fed directly into hip-hop. And, because it was put together by London's Soul Jazz records, The Cookie Crew and Monie Love are present to represent the UK. There's even a track from Betty Boo's former band, She Rockers - although, sadly, The Wee Pappa Girl Rappers have been overlooked.

There's the odd anomaly - Camille Yarbrough's soul classic Take Yo' Praise has no business here, and Lady B's badly recorded To The Beat Y'All is a poor rip-off of Rapper's Delight - but throw this record on the turntables at your next house party, and you're guaranteed three hours of quality body popping.

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Boomania!

I mentioned the Betty Boo / Alex James collaboration, Wigwam, a couple of days ago. Now I hear they'll be playing their first gig at Whitechapel Arts on 31st March.

Unfortunately, they're only doing one song. And before you get to the good part you'll have to sit through something called a "soundscape of transmissions from space".

For a while I hoped this would be some sort of fabulous tinfoil disco-opera from Mars, just like the video for Boo's "Where Are You Baby". Sadly, it appears to be a solo project using 'sounds from everyday objects' by the space-obsessed James. Yawn.

This 'giving with one hand / taking away with the other' tactic seems to be quite typical for the Blur Bassist. Yesterday, he paid Damon Albarn the ultimate backhanded compliment:

"I fucking like Gorillaz," he told contactmusic, "I mean, obviously Damon's a cunt, but they're great. If Gorillaz were an undeserved success, that would be one thing. But it's great. He's worked so f**king hard on it. I mean, he's a genius."

Nice.

Get tickets for the Wigwam / weird space noises gig

Contact Music

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Yo, what's up? We used to shake it up

Betty Boo. She used to do the do. And there was nothing (nothing) you could do.

But one day, she ceased all the doing she was famed for doing, and went off to write songs for Hear'say instead. "For shame", we all cried.

Great news, though, Betty Boo is back, back, BACK!!! from the dumper. She's stopped asking people to call her Alison Clarkson, cut her hair in a bob again, and made an album with Alex from out of Blur.

They're called Wigwam and they doing the whole pop group thing properly, with a logo, a video shot on a rooftop, and everything. Super news.

You can hear the single , also called Wigwam, on their Myspace site. And Top of the Pops (what's that?) is streaming the video.

But amongst all the joy and celebration, I have to relate a cautionary tale. In the past, Betty has been sent home by a bandmate who said he was busy. He had a visit from his Aunt Lizzy. So, what they did was they postponed a dope beat session until she'd gone home. Betty thought she'd practice all by herself, but realised she'd left her lyrics right on the shelf. When she went back, you wouldn't believe what she found... It was the bandmate and Aunt Lizzy getting on down!

Alex James should try, never lie, and not be more interested in a bit on the side. Or Betty Boo will be through. And there really will be nothing (nothing) he can do.

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