Comments on: I’ll tell you about the Cuban’s eight-foot stride

By: Daryl

Daryl — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 20:14:43 +0000

I always hear it as “dusk after dusk” rather than “just after dusk”. It seems (to me at least) to fit better with the nostalgic theme of the next line, re “the five o’clock tea-time smell of the estate”*: it’s something to be enjoyed over and over again, rather than on only the one occasion.

Not much of a case I admit. I guess the burden of proof always lies with the person arguing for changing a lyric… oh well.

*agree with John Anderson’s comment on 17/12/09. This line is wonderful.

By: Third rate Les

Third rate Les — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 09:02:43 +0000

Sorry, that should read “Juantorena”. First and only man to win both the 400 and 800 metres Olympic golds (in 1976). Interesting because at the time he seemed to herald an era where the 800 would become the domain of big sprinters but in retrospect seems to have been the only one hard enough to manage that extra lap. The 800m went back to the domain of skinny whippets.

By: Third rate Les

Third rate Les — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 08:52:14 +0000

I was reading Sebastian Coe’s book “The Olympians” this morning and the opening chapter included an awed account of a Cuban’s nine-foot stride (Juantoreno). Heh heh.

This one also always reminds me of Viz cartoon “Jurassic Parkie”. T-rex comes terrifyingly into view but is then chased off by irate parkie for walking on the grass.

By: TWO FAT FEET

TWO FAT FEET — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 12:55:34 +0000

I always thought it was “bum, cos”. Created visions of an old bloke in a shirt and tank top who looked like a cross between Dennis the Menace’s dad and the Bash Steet Kids’ teacher, crawling across the floor with four kids on his back.

Love the bass line on this one, too.

By: Swanaldo

Swanaldo — Fri, 25 Dec 2009 22:33:55 +0000

Umm, guilty of the ‘Bunk Bus’ thing I’m afraid. I thought it was in keeping with the imaginative Grandad character who could whip a hankie out of his pocket and immediately it became a pirate’s hat or mouse’s hammock. He’d have no problem making you believe your bunk was a bus, that’s for sure.

I’m never quite sure if this song is supposed to be a pastiche of This Charming Man/TheSmiths in general.

By: Chris The Siteowner

Chris The Siteowner — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 11:09:45 +0000

The various suggestions which people had sent in were:

Get on my phone, because I’ll take you out for a ride
Get on my bum, cos I’ll take you all for a ride
Get on my bumpers, I’ll take you all for a ride
Get on my bunk cos I’ll take you all for a ride
Get on my bunk bus, I’ll take you all for a ride

…I’m sure the people who sent those in will recognise their own unique contributions.

By: Nigel Evans

Nigel Evans — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 17:42:41 +0000

So, if you didn’t think it was ‘funbus’ what were your alternatives???

I would go along with ‘same’ too.

By: Charles Exford

Charles Exford — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 11:21:16 +0000

This track always puts me in mind of the comic strips we used to read in the late 60s and early 70s, as well as the way these childhood characters were related to figures of fun in supposedly more adult from the likes of Carry On films and yer Benny Hills. There were endless variations in comics like Beezer, Wizzer and Chips and all those on characters like the Parkie:
http://www.toonhound.com/parkertheparky.htm
and the old codger:
http://www.toonhound.com/oldboy.htm
And as for the janitor, google reminds me of Big-Head Branny (The Strong-Arm Janny) from Cracker comic, and much later (after my time I think) B. Ware – Caretaker, from Buster…

So ‘funbus’ is a brilliant revelation and doesn’t surprise me at all – thanks, though precisely which character may have had an actual funbus I can’t recall.
It’s definitely ‘same’ to me . Yer plosives and fricatives are the most easily distorted on mic’s precisely because they frick and they explode, hence all that annoying “Two-two”ing at the sound check I supose.
The stock football song is: “ Same old (insert whoever you’re playing), always (insert whatever you don’t like about them – usually cheating – or else same old Shearer, always scoring, etc).”
And if there’s the husk of a footy song there, you can be pretty sure that’s what he’s adapting.
PS – Sheffield review still imminent Chris. But can we give comments about that Roadwater download too, ie firstly THANK YOU SO MUCH, that’s one of the best quality bootlegs I’ve ever had, what a great early Xmas pressie.

By: John Anderson

John Anderson — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 15:04:32 +0000

I think “tame old Northerner” makes perfect sense when put into context with the “always got nothing to say” and “I’m always/never happy” lines.

I agree with Mr L that it refers to punching Nick Straker (presumably for the awful Walk In The Park).

And, by the by, I think “remember the five o’clock tea-time smell of the estate” is one of his most wonderfully evocative images.

By: Mr Larrington

Mr Larrington — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 11:55:40 +0000

I’d always imagined that the putting on the floor of Nick Straker was because the narrator punched Mr Straker very hard in the face, thereby making him fall over.