The Three Johns: Volume (3 CD) 2015 + The Death Of Everything 1988

 

The Three Johns were an English post-punk/indie rock band formed in 1981 in Leeds, England,

originally consisting of guitarist Jon Langford (co-founder of the Mekons), vocalist John Hyatt and bassist Phillip "John" Brennan, augmented by a drum machine, specialized in abrasive, politically charged, danceable rock. Sounding almost nothing like Langford's main band, the Johns were a silly-serious bunch of political and cultural provocateurs.  
                 

The band initially formed just before the 1981 wedding of Prince Charles and Diana Spencer, and their

first gig was to be part of a "Funk the Wedding" event, but they were refused permission to play because they were drunk. They signed to CNT Records in 1982, which Langford jointly founded, releasing two singles and an EP for the label. This casual Leeds trio, began by specializing in discordant socio-political guitar punk with trembling falsetto vocals; their career-long use of a rhythm machine rather than a live drummer has lent a unique tension to the group’s sound.
                  

Recording during the height of Margaret Thatcher's ill-conceived Tory rebellion, the Johns were openly antagonistic to this new, conservative vision of Britain's future. And while their elliptical and

epigrammatic lyrics might not offer the sloganeering that would easily identify them as lefties, certainly there were enough hints dropped along the way to remove any doubt. Unlike other rock agit-prop, the Johns played a fairly accessible version of polemical post-punk anti-pop that embraced big, messy arena-rock-sounding guitars and hard, repetitive, quasi-hip-hop dance beats. Perhaps the most subversive thing about the Johns is that, despite Langford's and Hyatt's goofy vocals, they were, in their own weird way, pure pop for now people, especially those who hated Thatcher.
                

A reworking of the Mekons' "English White Boy Engineer", which attacked hypocritical attitudes towards South Africa and apartheid, led to the band being labelled as left-wing rockers. The band

explained: "We're not a socialist band. We're a group of socialists who are in a band. It's a fine distinction but an important one". Their left-wing leanings were further evidenced by the sleeve of their 1984 Atom Drum Bop album, which carried the words "Rock 'n' Roll Versus Thaatchiism", a reference to then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and her marketing by Saatchi & Saatchi. On 7 July 1985, The Three Johns played at the GLC's Jobs for a Change festival in London's Battersea Park.
                      

The band regularly appeared in the UK Indie Chart during the mid-1980s, with singles such as

"A.W.O.L.", "Death of the European" (an NME "Single of the Week"), and "Brainbox (He's a Brainbox)". During the band's career, the members maintained their day jobs: Langford as a graphic designer and Hyatt a teacher of fine art at Leeds Polytechnic. They recorded six sessions for John Peel's BBC Radio 1 show, and reached No. 14 in the 1985 Festive Fifty with "Death of the European".
                 

The band split up in late 1988 after a disastrous US tour, but reformed in 1990, releasing Eat Your Sons,

a concept album about cannibalism, before splitting again. Langford continued with the Mekons, later releasing a solo album, while Hyatt concentrated on his academic career. They reformed again in 2012, playing five shows, and continued to perform intermittently through 2017 in the UK, mostly in the Manchester and Leeds-Bradford areas.

             

Vocalist John Hyatt died after a long battle with neck and head cancer on 4 December 2023.

                        

THE THREE JOHNS - VOLUME 2015

                

The Three Johns – Leeds original Death Rockers! – JOHN HYATT, JON LANGFORD and JOHN

“BRENNY” BRENNAN release their entire back catalog from 1982-1987 on CD for the first time. VOLUME is a 3 CD boxed set of all the singles, B-sides, 12 inch bonus tracks and the ATOM DRUM BOP and WORLD BY STORM albums in their complete original form. Digitally re-mastered by guitarist JON LANGFORD it contains over 50 classics tracks including previously un-released tracks from the mid-80s when the JOHNS ruled the roost on the post-punk indie circuit in the UK, Europe and the USA.

LINE - UP

Brennan, Hyatt, Langford

The Three Johns – Volume
Label: Buried Treasure Records – BTRCD006 – BTR-CD-6
Format:    CD, Box Set, Compilation
Country: UK
Released: Aug 21, 2015
Genre: Rock
Style: Alternative Rock, Post-Punk, New Wave

CD1.  1982 - 87 ALL THE SINGLES AND B - SIDES

                       

CD 1 features the singles English White Boy Engineer, Pink Headed Bug, A.W.O.L, Men Like Monkeys, Do The Square Thing, as well as great tracks like Windolene, The World Of The Workers, Sad House (Razorblades) and The Day Industry Decided To Stop.        
    
01. English White Boy Engineer    3:29
02. Secret Agent    3:21
03. Pink Headed Bug    3:27
04. Lucy In The Rain    4:15
05. Men Like Monkeys    4:19
06. Two Minute Ape    2:17
07. Windolene    2:31
08. Marx's Wife    3:04
09. Paris Forty One    3:32
10. AWOL    4:01
11. Rooster Blue    3:00
12. Image Or An Animal / Kick The Dog Right Out    5:49
13. Do The Square Thing    6:11
14. The World Of The Workers    2:01
15. Zowee    2:59
16. Kinkybeat    3:24
17. Sad House (Razorblades)    2:11
18. The Day Industry Decided To Stop    3:11
19. Fill Me Up    1:23

Flac Size: 444 MB

CD2.  ATOM DRUM BOP 1984    

               

           
CD2 is an expanded version of Atom Drum Bop which includes the b-sides for the Singles Death Of The European & Brainbox. Featuring classics like Teenage Nightingales To Wax (if this doesn’t have you jumping around check your pulse as you must be dead !), Firepits, the epic Sun Of Mud, Death Of The European, Brainbox, and A cover of 20th Century Boy amongst a great tracklist.    

01. Teenage Nightingales To Wax    3:01
02. Do Not Cross The Line    3:34
03. 3 Junk    3:08
04. Firepits    3:19
05. No Place    4:18
06. Dr. Freedom    3:37
07. Missing    4:09
08. Sun Of Mud    3:25
09. The Devil's Music    5:21
10. Class War / Merry At Their Toil    3:02
11. Death Of The European    5:54
12. Heads Like Convicts    3:31
13. Rabies    1:41
14. 20th Century Boy    4:10
15. Brainbox    3:27
16. Watch It Go    2:54
17. Crazytown    3:21
18. Men Without Bones    3:47

Flac Size: 450 MB

CD3.  THE WORD BY STORM 1986

               

CD 3 is an expanded version of The World By Storm which again features hard to find B-Sides of vinyl singles Torches Of Liberty, Industry, Sold Down The River and Nevr & Always. This a great album and has only got better with age. Featuring classic tracks like Sold Down The River, King Car, the epic Demon Drink, Torches Of Liberty, Atom Drum Bop, Death Of the European, The World By Storm, Fruitflies, It also features the exceptional Industry/AWOL live single. Never & Always, and Turn Up Those Downhearted Blues, still sounds great.        
    
01. Sold Down The River    4:10
02. King Car    3:18
03. Demon Drink    3:18
04. Johnny The Perfect Son    3:31
05. Torches Of Liberty    5:23
06. Atom Drum Bop    4:09
07. Death Of The European    4:06
08. Coals To Newcastle    2:13
09. The Ship That Died Of Shame    5:03
10. The World By Storm    4:11
11. Rose Of Yorkshire    2:54
12. Fruitflies    3:19
13. Industry (Live)    3:24
14. AWOL (Live)    4:21
15. Devil's Music (Live)    4:36
16. Engineer (Live)    3:56
17. Never And Always    5:24
18. Turn Up Those Downhearted Blues    5:18
19. Big Whale (Never Live)    2:36

Flac Size: 495 MB

THE THREE JOHNS -  THE DEATH OF EVERYTHING 

                 

The Three Johns – The Death Of Everything
Label: Trance Records – TCCD 9.00671 0
Format: CD, Album
Country: Germany
Released: 1988
Genre: Rock
Style: Alternative Rock, New Wave

TRAXS

                

01. The King Is Dead (Four Words Too Long)    6:35
02. Bullshitiaco    3:01
03. Moonlight On Vermont (By Beefy)    4:36
04. Go Ahead Bikini    5:19
05. Spin Me Round    2:50
06. Nonsense Spews From My Song Machine    4:12
07. Humbug    3:39
08. Fast Fish    3:42
09. Downhearted Blues    7:35
10. Never And Always (Producer – Adrian Sherwood)   4:29

LINE - UP

         

Brennan, Hyatt, Langford

NOTES

Tracks 2, 4, 8, 10 and 11 recorded live at the Astoria, Leeds, Jan. '88, engineer Tony Bonner.
Tracks 1, 3, 5 and 6 recorded at Berry St. Studios, engineer Ian Caple.
Track 5 is called "Spin Me Around" on the cd itself. Track 11 is mentioned as recorded live, but is not on the cd.
Sleeve notes: the credits are (on purpose?) not acurately divided over the tracks.

Flac Size: 292 MB

                          

The Three Johns: Death Of The European EP 1985 HERE