Damned - Dodgy Demo
1979 Dodgy Demo Company
The
Damned's "Love Song" has to be one of the best punk rock songs of all time and, in my estimation, qualifies as one of the best "rock" songs of all time as well. It's really a perfect song; great melodies, great guitar parts, attitude to spare, speed, and a perfect arrangement. The fact that they were able to inject some clever humor into the whole mess via Vanian's tongue-in-cheek lyrics is an added bonus as well.
According to the excrutiatingly detailed
Damned Discography, this 7" "was given away free at the bands gigs at the Croydon Greyhound, London on 7 January 1979 and the Electric Ballrom, London on 23 January 1979" several months ahead of the official release of the "Love Song" single on the Chiswick label. Both tracks are demo versions. The b-side, "Burglar", is pure novelty and features drummer Rat Scabies on vocals.
I remember reading somewhere that a certain
Damned performance in D.C. had had a profound impact on that city's then fledgling scene. Makes sense to me. You can really hear the echos of "Love Song" and some other Damned tunes, such as "Melody Lee", in material from bands like
Scream,
Minor Threat, and
Black Market Baby.
Damned -
Dodgy Demo
Love Song (demo)
Burglar (demo)
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