Whit Week Malarkey is one of those songs which has a few rather disjointed amusing references, doesn’t seem to go anywhere, and yet sometimes you can’t get it out of your head. One of several songs which combine two favourite HMHB subjects: being in a band, and pretentiousness.
Moo
Hi Chris. Might I just say: what a bloody fantastic website.
And I’ve just got a possible change for Whit Week Malarkey…
“Mixed a storming set by Vow Wow
Vow Wowowow”, I think, should be “Midst a storming set by Bow wow. Bowwowwowow”, or something like that. I’m guessing it’s refering to Bow Wow Wow, the Malcolm McLaren ‘project’.
Anyway, keep it up. I’ll be checking in frequently now I’ve found you.
Cheers,
Moo.
30 November 2007
chris
I have to say I’d have agreed with you had I not checked on the HMHB site here. Turns out they’re a Japanese rock band. You could well be right about “midst” though. Anyone?
30 November 2007
lee
Didn’t see no Vicky Leandros…
This line makes me think back to an album my mum had with a Vicky Leandros song called “Come what may” … I think…
PS hi moo im sober now..
30 November 2007
moo
I always said that one of the great things about HMHB is their educational value. My knowledge of Japanese rock bands is now greatly increased.
The ‘vowwowwowwow’ bit makes more sense in light of the name-change metioned in the Wiki article too. Ta!
Hi Lee.
28 December 2007
Exapno Mapcase
A small one : I’m sure it’s “My turn soon on karaoke”.
Excellent site, very well done.
23 May 2008
Exapno Mapcase
Oh, hang on, I’ve just realised I’ve got the “HMHB – The Words” booklet, as purchased from Probe Records. It goes up to “Voyage…”.
Assuming it’s official and correct, that line is “my turn soon”.
23 May 2008
Bill Stow
Small correction to final verse
After ‘ My turn soon on Karaoke’
the next line is
‘Girl nearby asks who I might be’
Best Wishes from the man who put Ant and Dec in Pedantic but would have liked to put them off our screens.
14 January 2009
Tom
Love this site.
I tend to agree about “midst” and “Bow Wow Wow…”
30 June 2009
Paul F
Will have to listen to this again – I’d always heard “Missed a storming set by Bow Wow” although how he would know it was a storming set if he’d missed it I’m not sure.
1 July 2009
John Anderson
I must admit I always thought it was “mixed” but having listened to it again just now I’m convinced it’s “midst”.
1 July 2009
S.G.D A SHROPSHIRE LAD
Vow Wow used to be called Bow Wow and they were hotly tipped in the late 80′s. I saw them at Rock City,Notts,never did the phrase “don’t believe the hype” appear more apt.
18 September 2011
MIKE IN COV
Another reason to avoid Southampton. Don’t overlook the “Just Played” information.
9 July 2012
ACIDIC REGULATOR
The last line should be “Just up and leave (x8)”. I am a pedant you know.
Here’s part of a storming set by <Vow Wow. Good of Captain Sensible to sit in on bass, could the drummer reach all his kit, wonder if there was a match at Prenton Park that Friday. Rolling Stone Japan rated one of their releases the 23rd greatest Japanese rock album of all time.
And here’s Boz Scaggs singing Lido Shuffle. Help get the number of hits through that critical one million barrier, don’t omit scanning the comments.
4 August 2012
Mark
Shouldn’t the first to lines have commas in, to whit:
Up in the trees, down on the ground
High in the hills, under the sea
Otherwise it would infer that the hills were under the sea (not impossible, I’ll admit, but I suspect he’s not referring to under sea mountain ranges) and that the trees were down on the ground (even less likely).
22 August 2012
Charles Exford
Top, top punditry there Mark. And while we’re on the punctuation of this one, “buy-on” should be hyphenated if it were a noun, but not here as a verb.
As a contemporary coinage it won’t be in your dictionary but c.f. all other phrasal verbs like “to add on / an add-on”, “to carry on / what a carry-on”, to f*** up / what a f***-up” etc.
22 August 2012
ACIDIC REGULATOR
Agree with your hyphenage @Charles. And would add that adjectives should also be hyphenated IMO, e.g. when expanding FUBAR. But the unhyphenated-verb rule doesn’t necessarily apply to verbs with direct objects; I think one’s sometimes desirable for clarity:
Jock Smith the locksmith
Came down from Aviemore
He tried to f*** the keyhole
But just b*****ed-up the door
The Ball Of Kirriemuir, a trad. arr. tune of course. I’ve just looked the place up in Wikipedia; and although (unaccountably) there’s no mention of the song, I was delighted to discover that it is a busy little market town (or “wee red toonie”) described as an attractive centre for hill-walking and with a reputation for witches.
22 August 2012
Charles Exford
Can’t agree with you on the need for any verb-particle hyphenation in phrasal verbs on any occasion ever, I’m afraid Mike.
Have you spent any time in rugby clubs perchance? I haven’t, but have had plenty of experience of their wayward ways with volatile vocab.
22 August 2012
John Burscough
The first line’s reminiscent of The Ramones’ ‘Rockaway Beach’:
“Up on the roof, out on the street
Down in the playground, the hot concrete”.
(Any takers for ‘gaffa’ rather than ‘gaffer’?)
22 August 2012
ACIDIC REGULATOR
And possibly earlier references @John, though I’ll go along with The Ramones until someone comes up with a better idea.
Nope, “gaffer” for me.
@Charles umnnh I think you got me … though if I can come up with a genuine ambiguity, I pledge that you’ll be the first to know. (As Harold Wilson is reputed to have said: This is not an empty promise, it is a pledge.)
22 August 2012
ACIDIC REGULATOR
I get a distinct Chuck Berry vibe from the first verse. But I’m thinking more and more than JohnB made a good spot with Rockaway Beach.
25 August 2012
Damon Marriner
I always thought it was ‘luck in’ rather than ‘look in’. I’d certainly think that my luck was in if I won a beige headboard.
3 November 2012
ACIDIC REGULATOR
@Exxo, I think we need your pronunciation expertise. “Luck in” makes good sense to me.
3 November 2012
vendor of quack nostrums
Pronunciation expertise not really needed. ‘Eyes down, look in’ is the traditional bingo lingo for ‘game on’.
http://www.bingowinnings.co.uk/bingo-glossary.shtml
Although I have to say that that’s not how I would spell dabber.
4 November 2012
Charles Exford
The two words are pronounced identically by the majority on Merseyside.
But that’s irrelevant here ‘cos it’s like Vendor says.
4 November 2012