The 5.6.7.8’s feat. Miss Ludella Black: Beat Girls
7″ | DL
Out now
The 5.6.7.8’s recruit Miss Ludella Black for a quartet of cracking cover versions. Girls from the garage to inspire the next generation.
There are moments when the jigsaw pieces fall into place and reveal something that maybe always should have been. This, ladies and gentlemen of the garage persuasion, is one such time. After having already joined The 5.6.7.8’s on stage at various times throughout their long friendship, Miss Ludella Black (Thee Headcoatees, The Delmonas) finally joins everyone’s Tarantino-endorsed Japanese garage band in the studio to lay down four cracking cover versions. And we’ll warn you now. If you’re a vinyl junkie, you probably want to hit the Spinout Nuggets link already as these babies have flown out the door. No surprise given this match made in heaven.
They kick things off with The Pretty Things’ 1966 single Come See Me. Maintaining the fervour of the original, it is a pure dancefloor-filler. The backing vocals are total rebel girl-group, while the germanium fuzz to the floor riff pumps the song along. Think Detroit Cobras in their Life, Love and Leaving prime and you’ve got it. It clatters along wonderfully before fading out and into What I’d Say. Together, they take the Ray Charles original, that soul-stomping classic, and boil it down to a three-minute garage-soul gem.
Over on the flip side, their version of John Barry’s Beat Girl sees them go full surf, staying faithful to the original while adding their own unique flavour. The guitars really cut through the harmonies on this instrumental before they wind things off with a secret weapon – The Pretenders’ Kid. Here, the newly formed quartet are in their element, sashaying through the crowds, locked in their own world.
After hearing these 4 tracks, 4 great covers perfectly chosen to play to all their strengths, there is only one thing that we can now hope for…more! If it doesn’t happen, we can simply revel in the moment that their stars, and calendars, aligned.
Beat Girls by The 5.6.7.8’s with Miss Ludella Black is available now from Spinout Nuggets.
The 5.6.7.8’s are on tour in Spain and France this month.
12.10 Big Bang Vintage Festival, Gran Canaria
17.10 The BLACK LAB, Lille
18.10 Le 106, Rouen
19.10 La Rayonne, Lyon
21.10 Sala Apolo, Barcelona
23.10 16 Toneladas, Valencia
24.10 El Sol, Madrid
25.10 Hell Dorado, Vitoria Gasteiz
26.10 Dabadaba, Donostia
29.10 La Gespe, Tarbes
30.10 Le Bateau Ivre, Tours
31.10 Black Shelter, Nantes
01.11 Petit Bain, Paris
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Words by Nathan Whittle. Find his Louder Than War archive here.
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