Label: President
Year of Release: 1970
Simon, Plug & Grimes sounds like the name of an industrial drainage company from an industrial estate in Tottenham, not a band, and indeed in all my years of ploughing dusty boxes for odd singles, this is one of the worst band names I've ever stumbled across. "Presumably the band are a trio and those are their surnames, just look at the writing credits", I hear you reason, but let's face it, it's a poor excuse. If my surname was Simon and I found myself in a group with two men with the surnames Plug and Grimes, I'd surely try a bit harder than falling back on the old "firm of solicitors" moniker.
Still, what's done is done. SP&G emerged on the music scene in 1970 with the single "Is This A Dream" on the highly collectible Deram label, then moved to President for their next three singles, "Way In Way Out", "Pull Together" and "Don't Push Me". The flip side to the latter single, "Is There Anyone Left", has since picked up a bit of appreciation from glam rock collectors for its slightly scuzzy Velvet-Underground-with-a-dash-of-tinsel feel. By that point, though, the goose was cooked (and the goose fat was probably blocking the drains) and Simon Plug & Grimes disappeared off the radar.
"Way In Way Out", on the other hand, is the kind of breezy, smiley pop single many acts were pulling off with aplomb in 1970, slightly too sugary for my tastes but certainly not without its fans on the internet. Indeed, the fact a YouTube user was begging somebody to upload a clear version of this recently, and the fact that I have a pristine copy in my collection, is really what lead to this blog entry being created. If I can make one person happy this week, that's probably one more person than usual.
The B-side "Long Long Summer" is understated, gentler and more contemplative and worth a spin.
As for who SP&G were, search me. I've tried to find out, even consulting the fantastically weighty latest edition of "Tapestry of Delights", and nobody seems to know who they were or what they did next. If you know, or if you are one of the three men in question, do please enlighten us.
Label: President
Year of Release: 1970
Simon, Plug & Grimes sounds like the name of an industrial drainage company from an industrial estate in Tottenham, not a band, and indeed in all my years of ploughing dusty boxes for odd singles, this is one of the worst band names I've ever stumbled across. "Presumably the band are a trio and those are their surnames, just look at the writing credits", I hear you reason, but let's face it, it's a poor excuse. If my surname was Simon and I found myself in a group with two men with the surnames Plug and Grimes, I'd surely try a bit harder than falling back on the old "firm of solicitors" moniker.
Still, what's done is done. SP&G emerged on the music scene in 1970 with the single "Is This A Dream" on the highly collectible Deram label, then moved to President for their next three singles, "Way In Way Out", "Pull Together" and "Don't Push Me". The flip side to the latter single, "Is There Anyone Left", has since picked up a bit of appreciation from glam rock collectors for its slightly scuzzy Velvet-Underground-with-a-dash-of-tinsel feel. By that point, though, the goose was cooked (and the goose fat was probably blocking the drains) and Simon Plug & Grimes disappeared off the radar.
"Way In Way Out", on the other hand, is the kind of breezy, smiley pop single many acts were pulling off with aplomb in 1970, slightly too sugary for my tastes but certainly not without its fans on the internet. Indeed, the fact a YouTube user was begging somebody to upload a clear version of this recently, and the fact that I have a pristine copy in my collection, is really what lead to this blog entry being created. If I can make one person happy this week, that's probably one more person than usual.
The B-side "Long Long Summer" is understated, gentler and more contemplative and worth a spin.
As for who SP&G were, search me. I've tried to find out, even consulting the fantastically weighty latest edition of "Tapestry of Delights", and nobody seems to know who they were or what they did next. If you know, or if you are one of the three men in question, do please enlighten us.
