Chinn and Chapman - interviewed in 1974 by Nigel Thomas Nowadays there's a small group of people who seem to have been handed
a season ticket for that Golden Three enclosure. The Sweet. Slade, Suzi
Quatro. Gary Glitter, Mud and even the unutterable Alvin Stardust sail
gently into the money-spinning places with little competition except from
among themselves and from the occasional freakish refugee from the musical
deserts of Opportunity Knocks and the Eurovision Song Contest. For all
their differences, what they have in common is a style which is aimed directly
at the target. flighted with professional care and thrown with glittering
accuracy. The people who make and buy albums look with unconcealed scorn
on the efforts of these bands, a scorn which is often tinged with jealousy
as 'serious' musicians see the 'nouveau rockers grow richer' worthy colleagues
grow poorer. Of course there is no comparison between the success of' these
chantbound popsters and that attained by the supergroups. Bands like Led
Zeppelin, ELP, Deep Purple. Pink Floyd and The Who stand head and shoulders
above the Sweet. in earning power as well as musically. However it would be silly to ignore the skill required to dominate the
Radio playlists. Whereas there may be only two country-rock albums released
in any one week to compete against each other. there are literally hordes
of singles uncaged every day. and they're all intended to smash their way
to the top of the Fifty and thereby earn their begetters money. fame and
a higher asking price for the next round of the Pap-race. Even ignoring those tracks which are taken off albums and slapped onto
the smaller disc in the hope of a bit of broadcasting publicity for the
LP, there are still sackfuls which have been made with the single intention
of hitting the top, spots. Some people are much much better at it than
the others and their skill is to be respected and admired. It is very rare
indeed. But is it Art?. The two people who do it best in Britain are called Nicky Chinn and
Mike Chapman and they never appear on Top Of The Pops. are rarely seen
in sequined trousers and glitter make-up and never sing their own material.
Yet only one of their efforts has failed to make the grade. They're songwriters
whose speciality is the hit single, presented with the razzamatazz and
showmanship which ensures that they get the first hearing. After that the
production tricks and their heavy derived hooks will grasp the attention
and work a way into your brain. Smartly dressed. with neatly coiffed hair, they look like a couple of
whizz-kid businessmen who're 'likely to strip your assets. all the while
smiling charmingly. They even sound like it sometimes. complaining about
the insupportable burden of taxes from the sanctuary of a smart Mayfair
flat. "We're virtually employed by the Government. We're the only
civil servants who write songs. They're killing incentive. We're thinking
of moving." But the mood doesn't last long. they're soon back with their three abiding
interests, their present success. plans for extending it into the future,
and the unreasonable attitudes of the critics who accuse them of turning
out mechanical music with about as much individuality as a fish-finger.
They're very defensive about the worth of their songs. Alternating between mentioning admirers like Tim Rice and Mott The Hoople.
defending their craft and tacitly admitting the criticisms. "We write
singles - but they're very much harder to sell than an album. Singles you've
gotto sell in three-and-a-half minutes and you've got to sell it quick
and you've got to sell it good. "Although most of ours are four minutes
now." "We're absolutely obsessed with being the best songwriters in the
world. within our field. Our songsare improving - we're having No 1. hits
with what the business will call better class songs". In a normal.
healthy society. success would be respected.'' We're back to respect. a long standing problem for many successful people
at the commercial end of the market. It's certainly been so for Sweet who
are making a heavily publicised bid for the approval of critics and severing
their links with Chinn and Chapman. though not to the extent that they
are risking anyone else's compositions on their singles. However, with
Mud still charting up commercial victory. and Suzi Quatro looking a good
fancy as a bigger star than either Sweet or Mud, the Chinn and Chapman
partnership. in the best traditions of the American songwriting partnerships.
looks set fair to continue under it`sown steam. They've given up the management of the Sweet. saying that it was because
they couldn't do it as well as it should be done. for people who have only
been in business for two or three years. they're very keen on professionalism,
however management does figure in their plans. "Our Empire will manage people in the end. We have every intention
of building the biggest pop empire the world has ever seen. It's an industry
that can really destroy people's lives. One of the main reasons we want
to build an empire is that we see too many people doing it wrong. It's
not a puppet operation. We are honest as it happens. The duo intend to have a record label of their own before the end of
the year. to which they will be signing bands who write their own material.
The basis of all this activity. though. is their own songwriting. They
always write specifically for a group. and they reckon to have settled
down with a performer's character by the second hit. When they write they begin by thinking of a title. then they write a
song around it. It will confirm many people's suspicions to find that their
early songs were written on a four string guitar. although this has now
given way to a smart Les Paul. In the end the question remains. Is this deliberate commercialism degrading the standard of music? Are the teenyboppers idols merely a con trick pulled off by some slick
and talented operators who are prostituting their skills? Or is it true
that Chinn and Chapman are writing classic rock and roll songs in the way
that those other commercial - singles merchants Chuck Berry (who wrote
his own) and Elvis Presley (who had them written for himby much the same
sort of people as the Chinnichaps) did before them. Will future generations
revive "Little Willie''. which has sold four million copies. or "Blockbuster".
as they now revive the early rockers. Will tomorrow's kids rip-off the
Chinnichap style and ideas as they have borrowed from their predecessors.
A big hype or the authentic spirit of rock and roll? Only time will tell. "The thing about hype is a little bit of an old-fashioned expression.
The biggest hype ever was the Beatles. the only difference is that they
could live up to it."
HEAVY METAL BUBBLEGUM may be construed as a contradiction in terms. The first two words suggest an image of brutal chord weals and pounding
rhythm, whereas the second unfavourably depicts sickly sweet melodies.
Yet the common denominator of both is repetition. The former aims at the
gut, and the second at the feet. With the head rolling away in one instance
because of a high-decibel blast, andin the second because it fails to function. However this particular term acts as an invaluable heading for various
groups and artists in a necessary post script to last month's in-depth
survey of heavy Metal Rock. In fact it is a description of the moulding
of two types of music to produce yet another character in the rock circus.
Admittedly it's something of a bastardised specimen, which could easily
have resulted from the mating of the renowned Bubblegum King Don Kirshner
and HM Masters Grand Funk. Metaphorically it is perhaps just that, although
Chinn and Chapman meets Suzi Quatro is a far more adequate depiction, The
music itself does exist, with that young lady, the Sweet, T. Rex and Gary
Glitter being the most prominent exponents. They are neither suitably guttural
to be described as Metal, but nor are they excessively twee, Somewhere
between the two extremes is a significant, if at first sight blurred, fusion.
They all balance there rather precariously, with what appears to be little
aspiration to commit themselves either way, and so have created their own
genre of rock. But the existence of this musical sphere is in essence similarto other
cross-breeds which have resulted from two or more types of music. The public
has seen jazz-rock, blues-rock, classical rock and so on. Yet the most
distinctive hybrid must surely be the middle 60s emergence and popularity
of Rhythm and Blues. Certain musicians, notably the Animals, came along
with their own style of music which was substantially derived from black
blues and yet. also contained tremendous commercial potential in the singles
market. The Animals string of chart hits, totalling eight between 1964-66,
is indeed evidence enough. In the same way that the financial prospects
were defined then by certain astute business men so they have been recently.
HMB can be seen as an attempt to work out another hit-formula, a basically
watered down, or in this instance highly sugared, version of something
which has already notched up success with the public en masse. Heavy Metal
as it is known today is to a great extent self-indulgent playing, based
on riffs and elaborate solos Bands such as Grand Funk, Sabbath, Purple
and Uriah Heep are unhesitantly lauded by the new generation of audiences.
For whatever reasons is incidental, because now it is an established fanatic
cult in popular entertainment, But apart from releases such as "Black
Knight'' and "Paranoid'' pure HM has never found regular acceptance
in the singles charts. The fundamentals incorporated in the music excessive
instrumentation and repetitive riffs have not conformed to the three or
four minute 45 And quite often there is rarely any semblance of a melody
to provide the necessary hook. It was inevitable that some whizz kid would eventually combine raunch
with bubblegum pop. lay it all down in an immediate impact single. and
so break into the charts. The thinking behind it is obviously commercially orientated. and on
an artistic level not particularly commendable in the light of what has
been thrust onto the market. But as producer Mickie Most has remarked:
"Music is constantly changing. I think that's part of the excitement
of the whole thing to be able to understand the public's needs or wants
at a particular time... This insight into the public's consciousness by
Most has enabled him to have considerable success with his current artist
Suzi Quatro. And incidentally it was he who produced the early Animals
records. He also signed up the writing' duo of Chinn and Chapman who have
created the material for many acts in the HMB field. Although Most may
now pat himself on the back for pulling off a hit for Suzi Q after she'd
been hanging round London for two years without much luck, we need to go
back a little earlier to find the seeds of HMB. And as Miss Q has often
been described as a female Marc Bolan, it's a good idea to start with that
same gentleman. Just as HM was eating into a substantial slab of the rock market in
1970, Bolan. then with Tyrannosaurus Rex, was making the transistion from
mystical acoustic-folk to electric-rock with some trepidation on the album
"Beard Of Stars." And in the same year, but with the abbreviated
name of T. Rex, he had a success with "Ride A White Swan." In
actual fact the initial hits from Bolan - "Get It On" and "Telegram
Sam" - were quite respectable records. Although the simple boogie
riffs soon became tedious when repeated throughout his subsequent material. Bolan however has always vehemently' denied any such similarity between
his records, claiming: "Everyone else has revamped "Get it On"
and "Telegram Sam'' except T. Rex." But since the middle of 1972.
when Rexmania became a regular occurance throughout the concert halls,
his musical integrity has diminished in comparison with his earlier work.
The results have been rather messy and monotonous records with banal lyrics
and a recurrent riff which demands that some part of the anatomy should
twitch. Any part that is. except for the musical discernment cells in the brain.
And unfortunately his latest set "Zinc Alloy And The Hidden Riders
Of Tomorrow" fails to be convincing on a musical level. Yet this ever
revolving game of musical chairs, Which Most referred to when discussing
popular trends. also incorporates an important ingredient of sexuality.
Frankly Bolan would appear now to be considerably more concerned with promoting
his jam rolly-polly-with-glitter Image, rather than any integrity he may
have. It's quite significant that Gary Glitter', another member of the HMB
troupe. carries around a rather unsightly paunch. Whether this has influenced
Bolan is arguable, and more important ly, not worth considering. Yet he
too bases his act on an uncompromising sexual level, Taunting his audience
like a hooker would the wilting man. Glitter's panache in performance however
takes him more into the realms of a showbiz attraction. rather than a grotesque
figure of HMB. as most of the other artists turn out to be. But with the limited range of material that he has so far managed to
offer, he certainly needs a stage act to elevate him Out of the norm. A
characteristic which is decidedly apparent in T. Rex, Sweet and Quatro.
Even though Mike Leander, a notable pop composer of some years standing,
is Glitter's co-writer, they failed, perhaps deliberately, to mesh the
basics of HM and bubblegum. Instead with "Rock And Roll Parts 1 and 2" in '72 they stripped
the Metal bare of it's rudimentary percussive impetus and surround it with
the primaeval chants and yelps of the title line over and over and over
again What they have virtually achieved was an aural riff with the same
endearing simplicity of one of Funk's bass riffs, and then propelled it
through the short span of a single. The result was a voice motif which
an audience could participate in. And although it is not a musical trait
of any real significance, it was unique. Banal, but new. Glitter's recorded
mating calls, "Do You Wanna Touch Me" and "Leader Of The
Gang", followed the same principal. Few peoples' intelects were taxed,
and as Mr G the fashion boutique refugee has frequently observed, it's
all good fun. It's also interesting aside that his success was later reflected in
the fact that during the same week of October 1973, Barry Blue, Springfield
Revival, and the Goodies all released singles with exactly the same kind
of backing track Glitter used. Of course he's since brought contrast into
his production line of singles with "Remember Me This Way." Quite
frankly I'd rather not. Other people however have been able to muster up
enough conviction in this area of music to justify its existence. Nicky Chinn has expounded the virtues of his work in the following terms:
"Bubblegum turns the kids on," he said, "It's the sort of
music you can use some imagination with. We've gotta write music that rocks,
and when you're into that you've gotta be ultra-commercial if you want
to be successful." And ultra-commercial and successful he and his
partner certainly are, with a string of best sellers for three performers
(Sweet, Quatro, and Mud) and multi-million sales-figures all told. Since
1973 they've contributed greatly to HMB. With Sweet they'd already established
an image for the band two years earlier with the synthetic pap of "Funny
Funny." Which was followed by such records as "Co Co" and
"Little Willy": in otherwords, all basically the same safe pop
formula. Yet Sweet decided a new, more significant aura for themselves
was required. As Brian Connolly explained: "There's nothing worse
than being a frustrated musician," So Chinn and Chapman came up with
"Blockbuster," A riff number based on the Nashville Teens "Tobacco
Road," or equally derivitive of the Yardbirds "l'm A Man."
And commenting on what is basically the predictability of the public's
askew taste, Chapman said: "It's a good thing to revive riffs from
the past because you know kids like it.', But even though a safe bet according to their own ideology, it still
caused the duo some consternation at first. Perhaps made even more acute
by the coincidence of an almost indentical riff appearing in Bowie's "Jean
Genie." But another hit formula series was created, and subsequently
along came "Heliraiser.' and "Ballroom Blitz." While Sweet search for integrity in their music, for this purpose releasing
an album basically of their own material at the end of April, Suzi Q was
looking for a hit after paying her dues first in Detroit rock 'n' roll
bands, and then in England as Mickie Most's protege'. "Can The Can"
materialised, and has since been repeated twice again, but with new sets
of lyrics and slight alterations for "48 Crash" and "Daytona
Demon." "We get a lot of criticism from people saying we're getting money
for old rope,'' Chinn has said, "but it's not easy to write plastic
songs." Not even if they retain the original mould? I would have thought
that was the good business sense behind any form of manutacturing industry. Perhaps Miss Q, in her Wicked Wanda leathers, displays a kind of sexual
raunch to put the music over, rather like Sweet and Glitter do as well.
But at least she's had the HM upbringing of the Motor-City, and no doubt
influences of the MC5 show in her work. And although Mud are utilising
the well-proven Chinnichap formula for "The Cat Crept In," they
don't transmit the same kind of dynamic energy Miss Q does. The future of Heavy Metal Bubblegum though is rather dismal when you
consider what already exists in this area. There seems to be very little
of anything particularly worihwhile, and there are no real indications
that a substantial music will proliferate in the future. Sadly the commercial mindedness of it all severely limits any creative
abilities which may be there because too many of the artists, producers
and composers wish to play it safe. In fact an interesting parallel is
with the heydays of the group boom in the '60s, when the be-all and end-all
of the business was to have a hit single, and then hopefully a triumphant
follow up. The same applies now, with both Sweet and Glitter hanging on to a successful
formula until the ground is firmly established under their feet. Similarly
the Kinks in the '60s followed "You Really Got Me" with an uptempo
change for the same rift on "All Day And All Of The Night." But
isn't "Got Me" credited as being the first Heavy Metal Single?
Surely the coincidence is singularly significant, and as it's where this
adventure started, and it seems a good place to finish. Sleep on it. Tony Stewart. Steve's note: I`d love to hear Mr Stewarts opinion of Glam today.. I bet he defends
it over all manner of crud from the 80's & 90's anyway,
as the man said "Bubblegum turns the kids on" ..I`m glad I was
one of those kids.. and I *was* turned on.. Kids today? pah, they don`t
even admit to being kids..
"We`re absolutely obsessed with being
the best songwriters in the world - within our own field"
According to the
researchers who work out the BBC Top Fifty, the three highest placed records
in any one week account for a total of 22.9% of all the sales of 45s. That's
a lot of money, enough to nurture the ambition to scale the dizzy heights
of the charts in many a breast.
Heavy Metal Bubblegum From "Music Scene" July 1974
This article appeared in the July 1974 edition of "Music
Scene" a not particularly hip monthly mag: