Not sure how I missed the reviews of this! Neil Hannon (of the Divine Comedy) has recently embarked on one of the strangest projects of recent times - a cricket concept album, in tandem with fellow Irish musician Thomas Walsh. Under the name The Duckworth Lewis Method (which will probably mean nothing to non-cricket fans) they've released an eponymously titled album which, amongst much more, features a song called Jiggery Pokery. Here's a recent piece from The Times all about the track:Here is a taste of Jiggery Pokery, a Noël Coward-style song about the famous ball delivered by the great Australian bowler Shane Warne that bamboozled Mike Gatting in 1993: “I took the crease to great applause and focused on me dinner/ I knew that I had little cause to fear their young leg spinner.” Then Gatting is out, after the ball “span obscenely”. And he’s very angry: “It was jiggery pokery trickery jokery how did he open me up?/ Robbery muggery Aussie skulduggery out for a buggering duck.” The song ends in a hysterical crescendo: “I hate Shane Warne!”I think I might just recommend it over on the Mothership!
The Duckworth Lewis Method's Myspace page
Wikipedia
My brother texted me this afternoon from the Latitude Festival (taking place this weekend) to tell me that he'd just seen them performing and was more than impressed. I'm off to download the album - if you want a taster you can hear the whole thing on Spotify.
9 comments:
I will listen, honest, but "jiggery pokery" reminded me of this Rory Mcleod song from aeons ago... forgive the 80s trousers, but respect the harp playing. And the spoons.
Hmm, cricket concept album. Hard one to sell even by your standards. Not sure how this would count as cruel, unless you are forced to actually watch some cricket. Will give it a try - you only live once. Cheers
@ cauli - excellent - a future RR theme perhaps? Songs that mention jiggery pokery!!!
@ shoey - I've never been accused of having standards before - I feel quite honoured! And do I gather from your comments that your not a fan of the beautiful game? That the sound of leather on willow, doesn't move you? That the sight of Freddy Flintoff steaming in from the Nursery End leaves you cold? You have my sympathies ...
... "that you're not a fan" ...
Ho, humm ...
is this a Test album?
Thanks for drawing my attenntion to that! He's awfully talented. I know he did some work with his French counterpart, Vincent Delerme and I'll post that for you too. Have you got the Charlotte Gainsbourg album 5:55 on which he and Jarvis collaborated? Wonderful too...
@ FP - not sure whether cricket's your thing or not but I think that, musically, you'll like some of this. The other singer really reminds me of XTC - which is no bad thing.
I haven't heard the CG album but did you know that Neil Hannon also features on the new Stuart Murdoch (Belle & Sebastian) solo album, God Help The Girl - another one I've missed somehow! Come on you guys - what am I paying you for????
Good piece in the Grauniad yesterday.
Bah, no linky. Will just have to assume that Roy Harper keeps the award for best ever cricket related song. Was a little harsh about cricket earlier. Quite like the idea/atmosphere/Englishness of it. Quite enjoyed playing it, apart from fielding, which was long periods of boredom, interspersed with an opportunity to break a finger.
Perhaps they could do baseball next - it took me 10 years to work out the rules?
@ Shoey - agreed that Roy Harper's When An Old Cricketer is an absolute gem. I also love baseball (Red Sox fan - see RR Social piccies) but despite watching a number of games over the years, haven't quite got all the rules sorted out. I'm hoping to fulfill one of my lifetime's ambitions in 2011 with a trip to Boston and an evening at The Fenway.
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