David Bowie Freddi And The Dreamer The Arnold Corns Sessions (A collection of previously (un)released songs and demos recorded from 1971)
Sound Quality Rating
01 – Lady Stardust
Radio Luxemburg Studios, London, UK 10th March 1971 – 3:33 PLAY
02 – Right On Mother
Radio Luxemburg Studios, London, UK 10th March 1971 – 2:04 PLAY
03 – Moonage Daydream
Radio Luxemburg Studios, London, UK 10th March 1971 – 3:49 PLAY
04 – Looking For A Friend
Rough Mono Mix; Trident Studios, London, UK 4th June 1971 – 3:17 PLAY
05 – Man In The Middle
Mono Mix; Trident Studios, London, UK 4th June 1971 – 4:04 PLAY
06 – Looking For A Friend
Mono Mix; Trident Studios, London, UK 4th June 1971 – 3:12 PLAY
07 – Moonage Daydream
Arnold Corns single A-side, UK in April 1971 – 3:48 PLAY
08 – Hang On To Yourself
Arnold Corns single B-side, UK in April 1971 – 2:53 PLAY
09 – Looking For A Friend
Arnold Corns single A-side, Norway in May 1985 – 3:17 PLAY
10 – Man In The Middle
Arnold Corns single B-side, UK in September 1971 – 4:09 PLAY
11 – Looking For A Friend
Alternate Version – 2:09
12 – Hang On To Yourself
Live version with Gene Vincent in February 1971 – 2:12
13 – Looking For A Friend
Alternate Take – 2:12
14 – How Lucky You Are (Miss Peculiar)
Outtake from 1971 – 3:34
15 – Shadow Man
Outtake from 1971 – 3:45 PLAY
16 – Lightning Frightening (I’ve Got Lightning)
Outtake from 1971 – 3:55 PLAY
17 – Rupert The Riley
Outtake from 1971 – 3:01 PLAY
18 – Looking For A Friend
John Peel’s Sunday Show, London, UK 20th June 1971 – 3:25
Label : Switch On! – DEVIL KWSK 99-04
Audio Source :
Lineage : Silver Disc
Total running time : 0:59:43
Sound Quality :very good. Equals record or radio/TV apart from a slight noise and some dullness.
Artwork : Yes
A very nice disc with songs recorded during the short Arnold Corns era in 1971.
The things that are “new” on this CD are three new versions of LOOKING FOR A FRIEND, one of MOONAGE DAYDREAM and one of HANG ON TO YOURSELF (with Gene Vincent!). The rest of the songs have been released on other discs. The sound quality is excellent, except for the Gene Vincent track. That track is only good! Some funny liner notes, and some really good information about the Arnold Corns project! A true must!
Arnold Corns had a strange hobby, Collecting clothes…
I’m sure you’re all more than familiar with the embryonic versions of Moonage Daydream and Hang On To Yourself released on the B&C label by The Arnold Corns in the UK in May 1971.
If you were in Holland at the time, you may even have stumbled upon ‘Moonage Dream’ (pic) on ‘Philips’, in the only picture sleeve issued for the single. (see here)
The project was supposedly created as a vehicle for David’s new friend and future creator of many of the more memorable Bowie outfits over the next few years, Freddie Burretti, aka Rudi Valentino for this project. But, it was really a way of David recording new material anonymously to avoid record company complications.
Backed by Mark Carr-Pritchard on guitar, Peter De Somogyl on bass and Tim Broadbent on drums, (all members of Rungk) the lead vocal is clearly David with no evidence of Freddie on the recordings at all. There is another voice joining David on the chorus, which I suppose is most likely to be Carr-Pritchard, but I could be wrong.
The publicity material for this first single from The Arnold Corns utilised a Brian Ward shot that featured on the front of a ‘sex education’ magazine called Curious. Even the Dutch picture cover was lifted from this same shot which appears in colour above.
Thankfully, the record didn’t race to the top of the singles chart, otherwise, (following the success of Peter Noone’s version of Oh! You Pretty Things) Bowie may have become convinced that his future lay in songwriting for others rather than performing his songs under his own name.
The version of ‘Moonage Daydream’ recorded later in the year for the album ‘Ziggy Stardust‘ is far superior and a more vital recording than the plodding Arnold Corns version, likewise ‘Hang On To Yourself’.
Shortening the name to Arnold Corns didn’t prove any more successful for the next single, released in August 1972, for which Hang On To Yourself was elevated to A-side status. This 45 was seen as an attempt by B&C to cash-in on the success of Ziggy Stardust.
A previously unreleased song, ‘Man In The Middle’, featuring Mark Carr-Pritchard on lead vocals backed by The Spiders became the B-side…but that release isn’t forty until next year, so more of that story then.
See the Arnold Corns section on Lanky Pearson’s Visual Discography of David Bowie 7″ vinyl for label variations and general nerdy excitement.
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