Classy Sixties pop, soul, r&b, folk rock, psychedelia, freakbeat, garage.
Visually influenced by Brian Jones, Michael Caine, Keith Richards, Beatles 65-7, The Small Faces, Ray and Dave, Bob Dylan, Syd Barrett, Smokey Robinson, The Birds, 1966 Carnaby Street fashion.
To read the interview for Blitz magazine click Blitz Magazine
"Such tiny little hands, I wouldn't have thought it possible". Yes,Laura "Just Like Nan" Lemon, my mother, has been excelling herself again, enunciating these words perfectly in an uncrowded, silent bar. The fellow with tiny mits was 3 feet away, behind the bar. The room was silent. At least it diverted me from reading about Princess Anne's 60th birthday. The Daily Telegraph is bordering on the trashy side these days. Here was me expecting resonances of the corridors of power, echoes of traditionalism perhaps. Instead we get Princess Anne, wearing a baseball cap! They say people come to resemble their dogs. It seems to me that Princess Anne's horses come to resemble her, with their long elegant manes and elongated features. I saw her thrown off a horse, straight into a lake once at the Badminton horse trials. What the hell am I playing at discussing these things,
Mark Lemon In session
I have to shift gear into Village Green Machine mode, before I tell you what happened to Catherine The Great. I was a pupil at, bar none, the very worst school in Britain, and I am afraid I am not sure who CTG was. Nor am I possessed by a burning desire to find out. But I was told, probably by a scallywag, that the good lady was crushed by a horse which lol had been, suspended above her on some kind of winch lol, for purposes other than jumping the five bar gate :-) and apparently the contraption collapsed with her underneath, and she was no more lol. Which leads me naturally, to the subject of....
the latest Village Green Machine recordings..this week a new song recorded....read all about it....here goes..........
I've got this one called Chainstore, its 60s bubblegum, Danelectro guitar like a surf record, handclaps, ~Andy Warhol might have liked it. It's pop art baby! The session was a nightmare till I hit the bottle, then 2 hours later we had a complete track, with production nearly finished. I am pleased it sounds a lot like I Fought The Law in terms of guitar sound. I'd smashed up more of the drums, I threw them....I was tired, hadn't been sleeping, also on a diet which wasn't helping. Had a beer, and I thought, right, lets just go with what I've got to give on this take. So I did, and the drum track was sorted maybe on take 8 or thereabouts. Then, guitar take 2, bass first take, vocals maybe second take, lead guitar first take. I like the thing, I mean its just a pop record. Look its a classic. We sat there and I listened back to it, I was a kid when I wrote most of it, and its really good. Sorry to be a bighead, but its true it really is good, and I think by the time you read this it will be available as a free download x ps Ramones meet the early Beach boys in a song about having a rubbish job with an officious manager, half your brains and twice your age, does this resonate??
I am still recording regularly, LP no 2 is in hand, I'm thinking up artwork and title. Maybe a 60s kitchen sink vibe for these aspects. We can get the artwork cool, maybe black and white this time, with some great lettering.
Dick Emery
I just bought some great DVDs, with birthday money. Its not everyday you're 26, so I thought I'd have a bit of fun with some high quality entertainment lol, befitting someone of my intellectual level. So I purchased a film starring Dick Emery in which he has to find the answer to a riddle by inspecting lady's bottoms, and also- watch out for this- managed to purchase another Dick Emery film which was a terrible quality copy with rubbish amateur artwork, which wouldn't play. Beware e bay. Indeed, my personal assistant was most put out that someone should try to bootleg Mr Emery's film, as he has always been a great admirer of him. He says he has always loved a bit of Dick, and felt cruelly let down.
Now, where were we, I don't know, but I am pleased to have been invited by John Hellier to his, celebration of maximum coolness, the Small Faces convention, for years an important date on the mod calendar. John says he thinks the Village Green Machine album is incredible and right up his street, which is gratifying. He will be well known to many of you, as the man who carries the torch for one of our very greatest bands. I love the grit and soul of the Small Faces who attract young new fans to this day, a near as damn it perfect band in my opinion. And such a British institution. Fantastic, amazing, and other crass complimentary expletives....they laid it down for us, I don't suppose SM had the conceit to think it would last, he was a modest bloke, anyway I'll get off the subject but yeah, it should be a blast down London and I'm looking forward to it.
Village Green Machine is multi instrumentalist, singer, songwriter and producer Mark Lemon. He is influenced by mid 1960s music. His records sound like sixties recordings, the songs having modern lyrics relevant to life now. Its pop, English style.
To get to know Mark, and what is happening with Village Green Machine, come back to read the blog called Village Green Machine's Letter From England. Mark talks about what he is recording, what music he is listening to, and his favourite artists. It's more a magazine article than a blog, with links to Mark's favourite 45s on YouTube, great photos of his heroes, general pop history, and Mark's musings on life in general.
Just thought you might like to know that 5 original members of Ronnie Lane's Slim Chance have reformed the band to play his songs...first gigs coming up in November!! Best wishes, Bertie!
Just thought you might like to know that 5 original members of Ronnie Lane's Slim Chance have reformed the band to play his songs...first gigs coming up in November!! Best wishes, Bertie!
Heja Village Green Machine:) H A P P Y W E E K E N D ! ! ! thank you for support & bye bye and a big cheers! max 4 Track Vinyl EP MAX & THE TATRAPLAN *** Out Now *** http://www.butterfly-records.com
Hi Village Green Machine, thanks for the add, glad you like our sounds. Please do tell your friends about us, and don't forget to add us on Facebook too, the link's on our page, thanks.
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