"Greetings to the New Brunette" | |
---|---|
Single by Billy Bragg | |
from the album Talking with the Taxman about Poetry | |
Released | 1986 |
Genre | Rock |
Label | Go! Discs |
Songwriter(s) | Billy Bragg |
Producer(s) | John Porter |
"Greetings to the New Brunette" is a song by Billy Bragg from the 1986 album Talking with the Taxman About Poetry . [1] It was the second single from the album, following "Levi Stubbs' Tears", and reached No. 58 on the UK Singles Chart in October 1986. [2]
The song features Johnny Marr on electric guitar, [3] and vocals by Kirsty MacColl. [4] The song was selected by actor David Tennant as one of his Desert Island Discs in 2010. [5]
Chart (1986–87) | Peak position |
---|---|
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ) [6] | 6 |
UK Singles (OCC) [7] | 58 |
Stephen William Bragg is an English singer, songwriter, musician, author and political activist. His music blends elements of folk music, punk rock and protest songs, with lyrics that mostly span political or romantic themes. His activism is centred on social change and left-wing political causes.
Talking with the Taxman About Poetry is the third album by Billy Bragg, released in September 1986. With production by John Porter and Kenny Jones, Talking with the Taxman About Poetry featured more musicians than Bragg's previous works, which were generally little more than Bragg himself and a guitar.
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The UK Singles Chart is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-selling singles in the United Kingdom, based upon physical sales, paid-for downloads and streaming. The Official Chart, broadcast on BBC Radio 1 and MTV, is the UK music industry's recognised official measure of singles and albums popularity because it is the most comprehensive research panel of its kind, today surveying over 15,000 retailers and digital services daily, capturing 99.9% of all singles consumed in Britain across the week, and over 98% of albums. To be eligible for the chart, a single is currently defined by the Official Charts Company (OCC) as either a 'single bundle' having no more than four tracks and not lasting longer than 25 minutes or one digital audio track not longer than 15 minutes with a minimum sale price of 40 pence. The rules have changed many times as technology has developed, the most notable being the inclusion of digital downloads in 2005 and streaming in July 2014.
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Kirsty Anna MacColl was an English singer and songwriter, daughter of folk singer Ewan MacColl. She recorded several pop hits in the 1980s and 1990s, including "There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears He's Elvis" and cover versions of Billy Bragg's "A New England" and the Kinks' "Days". Her first single, "They Don't Know", had chart success a few years later when covered by Tracey Ullman. MacColl also sang on a number of recordings produced by her then-husband Steve Lillywhite, most notably "Fairytale of New York" by the Pogues. Her death in 2000 led to the "Justice for Kirsty" campaign.
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