Friday 18 October 2013

Strolling Bones seersucker Sue surprise

In 1965 the Strolling Bones recorded 'Under Assistant West Coast Promo Man', a song written by none other than Nanker Pheldge. Who? Well Nanker was this name they used for songs that were composed as a group effort, when not just one or two members took the credit. Anyway, this song draws to an end with Jagger saying 'Seersucker suit' and 'Here comes the bus'. Years ago a bunch of us in Cape Town would go around and every now and again meaninglessly blurt out: 'Seersucker suit, here comes the bus.' In fact I thought it was 'Seersucker Sue' and it was a mystery as to the origin of this nonsense. One of us knew but he wasn't telling. So it was a huge surprise to find out that this song was the source. I've loved it ever since I first heard it nearly 50 years ago. I remember recording the 7-single onto a reel tape recorder using a microphone placed next to a radiogram, laboriously building a playlist for my big sister's party. The track was on the flipside of the great rock song 'Satisfaction', still at the top of classic rock playlists today. These days you can get your music fix in multiple forms: Spotify, Itunes, on a flash drive off a Brennan JB7, whatever. As the Stones progressed Jagger's pronunciation became more indistinct but in many of these early songs he comes through as clear as a bell and close up. The band's sound was pared down and uncomplicated. They started off just wanting to be the best r&b sound in town and ended up icons. The QSL relates to another satirical Stones song, 'Far Away Eyes', which starts off '...I was driving home early Sunday morning through Bakersfield...' The QSL is a sweet letter from the station manager at Radio KERI, Bakersfield, heard in Santa Monica, CA in 2004 on AM 1180.

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