This Perfect Day (song)

Last updated
"This Perfect Day"
Single by The Saints
from the album Eternally Yours
B-side "L.I.E.S"
ReleasedJuly 1977 (UK, Australia)
RecordedMay 1977
("This Perfect Day")
Sydney, April 1977
("L.I.E.S.")
Studio
Genre
Length2:11
Label Harvest HAR5130 (UK)
EMI 11529 (Australia)
Songwriter(s) Ed Kuepper, Chris Bailey
Producer(s) Ed Kuepper, Chris Bailey
The Saints singles chronology
"Erotic Neurotic"
(1977)
"This Perfect Day"
(1977)
"Know Your Product"
(1977)

"This Perfect Day" is a single by punk band The Saints . It was produced by Chris Bailey and Ed Kuepper and recorded and mixed at Roundhouse and Wessex Studios, London, in 1977.

The single made #34 in the UK charts, the band's only British Top 40 entry. The band appeared on Top of the Pops to promote the song. [1]

Kuepper later mentioned, "I wrote it on my father's classical guitar, on Christmas Day (1976) at my parents' place when everybody had gone to church." [3]

A re-recorded version of the song later appeared on The Saints' 1977 album Eternally Yours .

The Fall covered the song for their 1999 LP The Marshall Suite . Baby Woodrose covered the song on their 2004 album Dropout! . The song has also been covered by Tropical Fuck Storm (with Amy Taylor of Amyl and the Sniffers on lead vocals), appearing as the b-side to their 2020 single "Suburbiopia". [4] [5]

Reception

Critic Jon Savage said that the song, "speeded up the Rolling Stones "Paint It Black" riff into pure extinction. "This Perfect Day" is almost too fast: The group nearly come off the rails before singer Chris Bailey brings everything to a grinding halt in an extraordinary cluster of negatives." [1] He later said the song was, "the most ferocious single to ever grace the UK Top 40." [6]

Steve Taylor said "This Perfect Day" was, "the band's masterpiece. A short statement of resistance – delivered over a chugging beat and inventively deployed guitar." [7] The Guardian considered the song "quite the most startling, wound-up noise recorded under the punk banner to that point. Bailey spat out the opening lines, atop the band's adrenalised clatter." [2] Mojo called it, "an ultimate expression of teenage nihilism." [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sex Pistols</span> English punk rock band

The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band formed in London in 1975. Although their initial career lasted just two and a half years, they became one of the most culturally influential acts in popular music. The band initiated the punk movement in the United Kingdom and inspired many later punk, post-punk and alternative rock musicians, while their clothing and hairstyles were a significant influence on the early punk image.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Saints (Australian band)</span> Australian rock band

The Saints were an Australian rock band formed in Brisbane, Queensland in 1973. Founded by singer-songwriter Chris Bailey, drummer Ivor Hay, and guitarist-songwriter Ed Kuepper, they originally employed fast tempos, raucous vocals and a "buzzsaw" guitar sound that helped initiate punk rock in Australia and identified them with the greater international movement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anarchy in the U.K.</span> 1976 single by Sex Pistols

"Anarchy in the U.K." is a song by English punk rock band the Sex Pistols. It was released as the band's debut single on 26 November 1976 and was later featured on their album Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols. "Anarchy in the U.K." was number 56 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time and is included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ed Kuepper</span> Australian musician

Edmund "Ed" Kuepper is a German-born Australian guitarist, vocalist and songwriter. He co-founded the punk band The Saints in 1973, the experimental post-punk group Laughing Clowns and the grunge-like The Aints!. He has also recorded over a dozen albums as a solo artist using a variety of backing bands. His highest charting solo album, Honey Steel's Gold, appeared in November 1991 and reached No. 28 on the ARIA Albums Chart. His other top 50 albums are Black Ticket Day, Serene Machine and Character Assassination. At the ARIA Music Awards of 1993 he won Best Independent Release for Black Ticket Day and won the same category in 1994 for Serene Machine.

Alasdair Mackie "Algy" Ward was an English punk rock and heavy metal bass guitarist and singer. He began his career in 1977, as a bassist for the Australian band the Saints. Afterwards, he joined The Damned, before founding Tank in 1980. Tank were part of the new wave of British heavy metal movement.

Laughing Clowns, sometimes written as The Laughing Clowns, were a post-punk band formed in Sydney in 1979. In five years, the band released three LPs, three EPs, and various singles and compilations. Laughing Clowns' sound is free jazz, bluegrass and krautrock influenced. The band formed to accommodate Ed Kuepper's growing interest in expanding brass-driven elements he had brought to The Saints' third album, Prehistoric Sounds, and by adopting flattened fifth notes in a rock and roll setting while using a modern jazz styled band line-up.

<i>Join Hands</i> 1979 studio album by Siouxsie and the Banshees

Join Hands is the second studio album by British rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees. It was released in September 1979 by the record label Polydor. Upon its release, it was praised by the British press, including Melody Maker, Sounds, NME and Record Mirror.

<i>(Im) Stranded</i> 1977 studio album by The Saints

(I'm) Stranded is the debut album by Australian punk rock group The Saints which was released by EMI on 21 February 1977. Their debut single, "(I'm) Stranded", was issued ahead of the album in September 1976, which Sounds magazine's reviewer, Jonh Ingham, declared was the "Single of this and every week". "Erotic Neurotic" was the second single, which was released in May 1977 and the group relocated to the United Kingdom.

<i>Prehistoric Sounds</i> 1978 studio album by The Saints

Prehistoric Sounds is the third album by the Australian punk rock group The Saints, released in 1978 via Harvest. This was the final album to feature founding lead guitarist, Ed Kuepper, who left the band shortly after its release. In October 2010, the album was listed in the top 50 in the book, 100 Best Australian Albums with their debut, (I'm) Stranded, at No. 20.

Australian musicians played and recorded some of the earliest punk rock, led by The Saints who released their first single in 1976. Subgenres or offshoots of punk music, such as local hardcore acts, still have a strong cult following throughout Australia today.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">(I'm) Stranded (song)</span> 1976 song by The Saints

"(I'm) Stranded" is the debut single released by Australian punk rock band the Saints. Issued in September 1976, it has been cited as "one of the iconic singles of the era", and pre-dated vinyl debuts by contemporary punk acts such as the Sex Pistols, Buzzcocks, The Damned and The Clash. In 2001, it was voted among the Top 30 Australian Songs of all time by APRA.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris Bailey (musician, born 1956)</span> Australian musician (1956–2022)

Christopher James Mannix Bailey was an Australian singer, songwriter, musician and producer. He was the co-founder and singer of rock band the Saints.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Know Your Product</span> 1978 single by The Saints

"Know Your Product" is a song written by Ed Kuepper and Chris Bailey of Australian rock band The Saints. Released in February 1978, it was the second single from the group's second album, Eternally Yours. Noted for its unusual mix of prominent brass with a punk rock guitar sound, the track has been described as a "pile-driving surge of raw soul power and one of the greatest singles from the punk rock period."

<i>Spiral Scratch</i> 1977 EP by Buzzcocks

Spiral Scratch is an EP and the first release by the English punk rock band Buzzcocks. It was released on 29 January 1977. It is one of the earliest releases by a British punk band. The EP is the only Buzzcocks studio release with original singer Howard Devoto, who left shortly after its release to form one of the first post-punk bands, Magazine.

<i>Feelin Kinda Free</i> 2016 studio album by The Drones

Feelin Kinda Free is the sixth studio album from Australian band The Drones, and their final one before going on hiatus. Having grown tired with the more rock-oriented sound of the band up until that point, frontman Gareth Liddiard became fascinated with both vintage and modern electronic equipment - ranging from drum machines and samplers to the Teenage Engineering OP-1 synthesizer - in conceiving the album's sound. Its genre-defying musical style has been described as visceral and ominous, featuring a relative absence of guitars and a prominent use of electronic textures. Its sessions also marked the first appearance of drummer Christian Strybosch since 2005's Wait Long by the River and the Bodies of Your Enemies Will Float By.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tropical Fuck Storm</span> Australian band

Tropical Fuck Storm are an Australian rock band from Melbourne, Victoria, formed by Gareth Liddiard and Fiona Kitschin from The Drones. Lauren Hammel, from the band High Tension, plays drums, and Erica Dunn, from the bands Mod Con, Harmony, and Palm Springs, plays guitars, keyboards, and other instruments. Their sound is characterised by elements of art punk, noise rock and experimental rock.

<i>A Laughing Death in Meatspace</i> 2018 studio album by Tropical Fuck Storm

A Laughing Death in Meatspace is the debut album of Melbourne-based supergroup Tropical Fuck Storm, formed by members of The Drones, Palm Springs and High Tension. The band, wishing to step away from the more rock-centric sound that The Drones were known for prior to their final pre-hiatus album Feelin Kinda Free, utilized a range of obscure digital guitar effects, synthesizers, drum machines, and DAW software such as ProTools to create the music. Finished less than eight months after their first few live performances, the speed at which the album was recorded also had a heavy influence on its idiosyncratic sound, which combines genres such as punk blues, art punk, psychedelic rock and noise rock with influences from pop and electronic music. Written by Liddiard with contributions from other members, the lyrics have been described as apocalyptic and darkly humorous; tackling subjects such as technological advancement, political polarization, socioeconomic inequality, xenophobia, culture wars and many others. The album title links a Silicon Valley slang for the physical world with the neurodegenerative disorder of kuru found in the Fore people of Papua New Guinea.

<i>Braindrops</i> 2019 studio album by Tropical Fuck Storm

Braindrops is the second studio album by Australian supergroup Tropical Fuck Storm. It was released on 23 August 2019 through Flightless Records in Australia and Joyful Noise Recordings worldwide.

<i>Deep States</i> 2021 studio album by Tropical Fuck Storm

Deep States is the third studio album by Australian group Tropical Fuck Storm. It was released on 20 August 2021 through Joyful Noise Recordings. Recorded during the COVID-19 pandemic, the recording process for the album was unconventional and involved heavy experimentation. The music features a range of diverse influences and has been variously labelled as art rock, noise rock and psychedelic rock. Lyrically, the album deals with the social and emotional impact of the pandemic, with many songs also diving into subjects such as conspiracy theories, social media polarization, corruption, death and occasionally even feature science fiction themes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">30 Seconds Over Tokyo (song)</span> 1975 single by Pere Ubu

"30 Seconds Over Tokyo" is the debut single by American post-punk band Pere Ubu. It was written by David Thomas, Peter Laughner and Gene O'Connor, during their stint as members of Rocket from the Tombs in 1974. Released on Thomas' independent Hearthan Records in 1975, the song received very little airplay but has earned high praise in the years since.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Savage, Jon (2011). England's Dreaming. Faber & Faber. ISBN   978-0571261192.
  2. 1 2 Keith Cameron (20 July 2007). "Come the revolution". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
  3. 1 2 "100 Punk Scorchers!". Mojo (95): 22. October 2001.
  4. "Tropical Fuck Storm share 'This Perfect Day' cover featuring Amy Taylor". NME . 3 April 2020.
  5. "Tropical Fuck Storm Salute Aussie Punks the Saints with This All-Star Cover". 3 April 2020.
  6. "J FILES: The Saints". Triple J. 30 November 2000. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
  7. Steve Taylor (2006). The A to X of Alternative Music. Bloomsbury Academic. p. 136. ISBN   978-0826482174.