While the basic template of punk rock -- fast, loud, short songs with a strong lyrical point of view -- was established quickly, it didn't take long for new wave to become a catchall term that could encompass any number of things that were to the left of the pop mainstream but didn't owe a sonic debt to the Ramones or the Damned. The Fabulous Poodles had been a pub rock band with a violin and a sly sense of humor when they began playing London clubs in 1975, and by 1977, without making any serious changes to their approach, ...
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While the basic template of punk rock -- fast, loud, short songs with a strong lyrical point of view -- was established quickly, it didn't take long for new wave to become a catchall term that could encompass any number of things that were to the left of the pop mainstream but didn't owe a sonic debt to the Ramones or the Damned. The Fabulous Poodles had been a pub rock band with a violin and a sly sense of humor when they began playing London clubs in 1975, and by 1977, without making any serious changes to their approach, suddenly they were new wave and hip rather than a pub band and yesterday's news. Listening to the Fabulous Poodles' music more than three decades after they called it quits, it's amusing to notice how straightforward their music really was, firmly rooted in rock tradition with a dash of R&B and some country flavors thanks to Bobby Valentino's fiddle and mandolin accents. Mirror Stars: The Complete Pye Recordings 1976-1980 is a three-disc set that collects nearly everything the Fabulous Poodles released during their 1974 to 1980 lifespan, along with some rare and unreleased material, and it's a consistently entertaining and tuneful set that shows they were a group with a viewpoint that may not have been radical but was certainly distinctive. The set includes expanded editions of the band's three British albums, 1977's The Fabulous Poodles, 1978's Unsuitable, and 1979's Think Pink. (Mirror Stars, their 1978 American debut, was a compilation of material from the first two LPs.) While the Fab Poos gained confidence as they went along (and Think Pink has the most sympathetic production), their essential approach was the same throughout, with the songs, very British but not incomprehensible to Yanks, possessing a keen wit and a Ray Davies-esque sense of character as they documented the lives of kids who are rock stars in their minds, lonely cheesecake photographers, androids with anxieties, the chronically non-ambitious, and other engaging oddballs. Vocalist and guitarist Tony de Meur even sounds a bit like Ray Davies on these sides, and his guitar work, matched by Valentino's acoustic instruments and the rhythm section of bassist Richie Robertson and drummer Bryn Burrows, gave their music a sound that solidly connected whether they were relaxed or giving the tunes some gas. And the live tracks at the end of disc three suggest the Fabulous Poodles were a hoot on-stage. Mirror Stars: The Complete Pye Recordings 1976-1980 is the definitive look at the career of an interesting and underrated group, and if they sound less au courant than they did in the late '70s, the songs make it clear they are well worth remembering. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
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