Orange Juice follow the arc of many of my favourite bands. Energised by punk but stuck in the provinces, they burst out (in this case in Glasgow, Scotland) full of verve, attitude and quirks. They grow out of punk into the 80s with an eye on the wider musical possibilities offered either by funk, hip-hop or reggae. Then things get overly complicated and they implode or fall on their arse with a drug problem and no record deal.
For Orange Juice, things got a little more tragic for lead singer Edwyn Collins. After a reasonably successful solo career (full of interesting sub-Dylan blues and then one massive, rather overrated hit 'A Girl Like You'), he suffered a stroke in 2005 at the age of 44 which led to a massive brain haemorrhage and aphasia. For a time, he was only able to say four phrases - 'Yes', 'No', 'Grace Maxwell' (his wife's name) and 'The possibilities are endless.'
Gradually, with speech and physiotherapy, he fought his way back, re-learnt his songs (the stroke meant he had forgotten them) and now performs live. He is still deeply affected by his incapacity, but his singing remains as strong as ever. You can watch the inspiring (and, at times, frustrating) story of his recovery here.
Two vids of Orange Juice for ya. I love the infectious homegrown funk of this classic in 1983. Orange Juice always made things sound unsophisticated, yet managed to be thoroughly post-modern at the same time. Artless artiness. That could describe the official video too - amateurish, yet somehow fitting. People never use tinfoil any more to simulate the future - shame that . .
Rip It Up
Back in the beginning, though, Collins and his mates were a bunch of fresh-faced college kids full of raw Undertones-like energy. This is their 1980 classic with a video made years later which somehow captures their fey indie spirit.
Blue Boy
Enjoy and I hope you will be "listening to the words being sung . . by little Blue Boy."
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