What A Shower !

Musically speaking, I was a child of the 60's and early 70's and as my little brain was at its peak then, I can happily sing songs from those years and somehow still know all the words.

From 18 onwards, my memory has gone downhill and I blame my love of all things NASA for this as the facts they churned out totally filled up my cranial hard drive. For example I can still tell you the weight of a fully fueled Saturn V rocket (with Apollo capsule on top.....6.5 million pounds) but I'm hard pushed to remember the name of our prime minister....or is it ministers ?!

So I pride myself as a bit of a geek regarding the music of the 60's and early 70's and would wipe the floor with anyone in a quiz about those years. However now and again a song comes along that, although I know the tune, I'm at a loss to remember the group wot sung it and an example of this came along this morning....while I was in the shower, as it happens.

I only listen to the radio when I'm showering as I'm a tv man the rest of the time. Even in the car I now watch tv (thanks to my wonderful HTC phone app) and I can tell you it really makes the miles fly by when you can watch a good movie as you weave in and out of traffic on the motorway. It's probably not legal but how else am I supposed to keep up with Coronation Street, for goodness sake ?!

Anyway back to this morning and there I was trying to stuff my flowing locks into a shower cap when this song came on that took me back 34 years, seeing as that's when it was released, reaching the dizzy heights of No.14 in the UK charts. Despite having literally thousand of songs from that period on my external hard drive, this one somehow missed my pirating skills and as I lathered my wet, virile six pack (steady ladies....and men !!) without once dropping the bar of soap, I briefly racked my brain for the group name.

It just wouldn't come to me. You know how sometimes an answer is just out of reach or on the tip of your tongue ? Well this was the opposite. I knew I'd never get it as I hadn't a clue and in a way this was a good thing as it meant I could relax and enjoy the song.

Ohhh those lyrics and the fact that a lot of them were spoken in the song and not sung. The expression 'they don't write lyrics like that anymore' was made for this song and if you don't believe me, have a read...........

Little does she know that I know that she knows
That I know she's two-timin' me.
Little does she know that I know that she knows
That I know she's cheatin' on me.

I was outside the one stop
When I saw her in the corner
And I didn't like what I see.

Little does she know that I know that she knows
That I know she's two-timin' me.

She was sharing her spin dryer with a guy in a tie-dye
When she saw my reflection in the chrome.
I knew that she'd seen me 'cause she dropped her bikini
The one that I got her in Rome.

Little does she know that I know that she knows
That I know she's two-timin' me.
Little does she know that I know that she knows
That I know she's cheatin' on me.

When she finished her laundry she was all in a quandary
And made it for the street like a hare.
Her escape was so urgent, she forgot her detergent
And dropped all her clean underwear.

Little does she know that I know that she knows
That I know she's cheatin' on me.


No weed smoking lyrics there then ! Hell no.

This was the 70's and lyrics had moved on from the flower power, love-in, hippy dippy nonsense of the 60's. Now we had hard, biting, satirical lyrics which wanted to distance themselves from the previous decade and make a stand.

Yes I know. Somehow this one slipped through the net. These were certainly lyrics worthy of the 60's but despite that, or maybe because of it, I love this damn song. I love over production and this song was definitely over produced. Think Phil Spector and his wall of sound in the days before they became the walls of a prison cell ! Think of every song by The Ronettes or The Wombles. (sorry US readers you'll need to Google that last one).

Mentioning The Wombles is quite appropriate actually as the song I'm talking about was produced by the very same man who brought us those furry bodied, litter pickers from SW19....Mike Batt. The one and only.

And if the lyrics didn't give you enough clues about the name of the song, it's Little Does She Know but although you may recognise the song and even be able to sing along with it, do you know the group name ?

In the days before t'interclacker I could have set this as a quiz question - although I'd not have been able to write this blog so you'd have got the question by telegram or pigeon post or something. Now there is no point as you'd all just cheat and look it up.

The group name ? The Kursaal Flyers.

Don't anyone DARE say they knew that !! Liars, the lot of you.

Anyway, without further ado, here they are on Top Of The Pops and if you really want more info, there is also a web site. God help us.

So watch the video and try and ignore more classic examples of British orthodontic and tonsorial failures. As well as listening to the lyrics, listen to the over production especially towards the end, when apparently an army marksman with a rifle was used to add a bit of 1812 overture sound to the recording.

I have a few suggestions where the rifle should've been pointing.