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''Trouble over Bridgwater'' is the eighth album by UK rock band
Half Man Half Biscuit Half Man Half Biscuit are an English rock band, formed in 1984 in Birkenhead, Merseyside. Known for their satirical, sardonic, and sometimes surreal songs, the band comprises lead singer and guitarist Nigel Blackwell, bassist and singer Neil Cr ...
, released in 2000. The title is a play on words, based on the
Simon and Garfunkel Simon & Garfunkel were an American folk rock duo comprising the singer-songwriter Paul Simon and the singer Art Garfunkel. They were one of the best-selling music acts of the 1960s. Their most famous recordings include three US number-one sing ...
classic, "
Bridge over Troubled Water ''Bridge Over Troubled Water'' is the fifth and final studio album by American folk rock duo Simon & Garfunkel, released on January 26, 1970, by Columbia Records. Following the duo's soundtrack for ''The Graduate'', Art Garfunkel took an acting ...
".
Bridgwater Bridgwater is a historic market town and civil parish in Somerset, England. The town had a population of 41,276 at the 2021 census. Bridgwater is at the edge of the Somerset Levels, in level and well-wooded country. The town lies along both sid ...
is a town in
Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...
, England, but the similarly named
Bridgewater Canal The Bridgewater Canal connects Runcorn, Manchester and Leigh, Greater Manchester, Leigh, in North West England. It was commissioned by Francis Egerton, 3rd Duke of Bridgewater, to transport coal from his mines in Worsley to Manchester. It was ...
runs nearby the band's home of
the Wirral The Wirral Peninsula (), known locally as the Wirral, is a peninsula in North West England. The roughly rectangular peninsula is about long and wide, and is bounded by the Dee Estuary to the west, the Mersey Estuary to the east, and Liverpool ...
.


Release

The single "Look Dad No Tunes" released by
Probe Plus Records Probe Plus was a record label based in Liverpool, England. It was founded by Geoff Davies, an enthusiastic promoter of small, unsigned bands, who described the label as "Music to drive you to drink".De Burgh, Simon (1991) 'Probe Plus Records', '' ...
on 3 September 1999.
John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), better known as John Peel, was an English radio presenter and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original disc jockeys on BBC Radio 1, broadcasting regularly from ...
, who admired the band, included "Look Dad No Tunes" at No. 11 in his 1999
Festive Fifty The Festive Fifty was originally an annual list of the year's 50 (though the exact figure varied above and below this number) best songs compiled at the end of the year and voted for by listeners to John Peel's BBC Radio 1 show. It was usually do ...
. "Lock Up Your Mountain Bikes" parodies the traditional song "
She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain "She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain" (sometimes referred to as "Coming 'Round the Mountain") is a traditional folk music, folk song often categorized as children's music. The song is derived from the Christian Spiritual (song), spiritual known ...
".


Track listing

#"Irk the Purists" #"Uffington Wassail" #"Third Track Main Camera Four Minutes" #"Nove on the Sly" #"Ballad of Climie Fisher" #"Gubba Look-a-Likes" #"Mathematically Safe" #"With Goth on Our Side" #"Used to Be in Evil Gazebo" #"Slight Reprise" #"It's Clichéd to Be Cynical at Christmas" #"Visitor for Mr Edmonds" #"Bottleneck at Capel Curig" #"Emerging from Gorse" #"Look Dad No Tunes" #"Twenty Four Hour Garage People"


Cultural references

Half Man Half Biscuit often make sly or direct references to celebrities, TV programmes, sportspeople, and to other tunes, lyrics and even literary classics. On this album, those identified include: * The CD inlay reproduces the title page of ''Old English Songs'' by the
folk song Folk music is a music genre that includes #Traditional folk music, traditional folk music and the Contemporary folk music, contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be ca ...
collector
John Broadwood John Broadwood (6 October 1732 – 17 July 1812) was the Scottish founder of the piano manufacturer Broadwood and Sons. Life Broadwood was born 6 October 1732 and christened 15 Oct 1732 at St Helens, Cockburnspath in Berwickshire, and grew up ...
(17981864) *"Irk the Purists" interpolates the
hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' d ...
Oil in My Lamp "Oil in My Lamp", also known as "Give Me Oil in My Lamp" and "Sing Hosanna", is a Christian hymn based on the Parable of the Ten Virgins. The song has been recorded many times and was a hit in Jamaica in 1964 for Eric "Monty" Morris, as well as a ...
and the Black Lace song
Agadoo "Agadoo" is a novelty song recorded by the British band Black Lace in 1984. "Agadoo" peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart,E ...
, and references many credible bands and pop artists * "Third Track Main Camera Four Minutes" quotes from
Thomas Hardy Thomas Hardy (2 June 1840 – 11 January 1928) was an English novelist and poet. A Literary realism, Victorian realist in the tradition of George Eliot, he was influenced both in his novels and in his poetry by Romanticism, including the poetry ...
's ''
The Return of the Native ''The Return of the Native'' is the sixth published novel by English author Thomas Hardy. It first appeared in the magazine ''Belgravia'', a publication known for its sensationalism, and was presented in twelve monthly instalments from 9 Januar ...
'' * "Gubba Lookalikes" is a reference to
Tony Gubba David Anthony Gubba (23 September 1943 – 11 March 2013) was an English journalist and television sports commentator. Life and career Born in Manchester, Gubba was educated at Blackpool Grammar School. He began work as a local newspaper repor ...
(1943–2013), a British sports commentator, best known for his football commentaries on
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
's
Match of the Day ''Match of the Day'' (abbreviated to ''MOTD'') is a Association football, football highlights programme, typically broadcast on BBC One on Saturday nights during the Premier League season. ''Match of the Day'' is one of the BBC's longest-runn ...
in the 1980s and 1990s. * "With Goth on Our Side" references the
Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...
song " With God on Our Side". * "Used to Be in Evil Gazebo" references
Nick Drake Nicholas Rodney Drake (19 June 1948 – 25 November 1974) was an English singer-songwriter and musician. An accomplished acoustic guitarist, Drake signed to Island Records at the age of twenty while still a student at the University of Cambridg ...
,
Tindersticks Tindersticks are an English alternative rock band formed in Nottingham in 1991. They released six albums before singer Stuart A. Staples embarked on a solo career. The band reunited briefly in 2006 and more permanently the following year. The ...
, the
murder of Tupac Shakur On September 7, 1996, at 11:15 p.m. ( PDT), Tupac Shakur, a 25-year-old American rapper, was shot in a drive-by shooting in Paradise, Nevada. The shooting occurred when the car carrying Shakur was stopped at a red light at East Flamingo ...
, and a non-credible band *"Slight Reprise" is a pun on
The Bluetones The Bluetones are an English indie rock band, formed in Hounslow, Greater London, in 1993. The band's members are Mark Morriss on vocals, Adam Devlin on guitar, Mark's brother Scott Morriss on bass guitar, and Eds Chesters on drums. A fift ...
' "
Slight Return "Slight Return" is a song by English indie rock band the Bluetones, released as their first single in February 1995, in blue vinyl, limited to 2000 copies. The song is named after the subtitle for " Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" by Jimi Hendri ...
" and
Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. Inducted ...
's " Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" * The title "Twenty Four Hour Garage People" is a pun on
Happy Mondays Happy Mondays are an English rock band formed in Salford in 1980. The original line-up consisted of brothers Shaun Ryder (vocals) and Paul Ryder (bass), Gaz Whelan (drums), Paul Davis (keyboard), and Mark Day (guitar). Mark "Bez" Berry la ...
' "
24 Hour Party People ''24 Hour Party People'' is a 2002 British biographical comedy drama film about Manchester's popular music community from 1976 to 1992, and specifically about Factory Records. It was written by Frank Cottrell Boyce and directed by Michael Wint ...
". The middle section of the song parodies "
Rock Island Line "Rock Island Line" ( Roud 15211) was originally sung as a spiritual by slaves on the plantations of the Mississippi River Valley, and was first transcribed as a folk song in 1929. The first recording was made by John Lomax, who was traveling amo ...
"; and the conclusion,
Lead Belly Huddie William Ledbetter ( ; January 1888 or 1889 – December 6, 1949), better known by the stage name Lead Belly, was an American folk music, folk and blues singer notable for his strong vocals, virtuosity on the twelve-string guitar, and the ...
's version of "
In the Pines "In the Pines" (Roud 3421) is a traditional American folk song originating from two songs, "In the Pines" and "The Longest Train", both of whose authorship is unknown and date back to at least the 1870s. The songs originated in the Southern Appal ...
"


References


External links


The longest-established Half Man Half Biscuit fan site

The Half Man Half Biscuit Lyrics Project
{{Authority control 2000 albums Half Man Half Biscuit albums