Gem of the Day - Henry Badowski

Classic New Wave from London, 1979:

[www.youtube.com]

My fanboy-ism for Henry is well documented in these parts. I suspect I'm one of two people on Earth (the other possibly, but not necessarily, being Badowski himself) to consider his sole album Life is a Grand to be the best album of 1981.

And as a bonus, here's an early (1978) version of "Anti-Pope," recorded by Badowski and Captain Sensible's short-lived band King, a final version of which ended up on Machine Gun Etiquette. Vocals on this version by Badowski:

[www.youtube.com]

And as a further bonus, here's a 1979 cut from the Good Missionaries, for whom Badowski percussed. The Good Missionaries were one of those bands where recording their material was most likely far more interesting than listening to it ever was.

[www.youtube.com]

What have you been doing for the last 33 years, Henry? Whatever it is, knock that shit off and record some more stuff. The only person in the world who has been feverishly anticipating the follow-up to Life Is a Grand more than he was the follow-up to Loveless demands it.

nice one B rad.
i lump henry in the same smelly jock/sqeaky clean post punk laundry basket as captain sensible.

another bravo thread via st lou

All right, already! I finally broke down and found a copy of this album (thank you, music blogs) and am listening now. Lovely stuff indeed, tho I suspect I would have liked it even more in my youth. Why didn't anyone tell me?! There was zero buzz for this. You'd think being on IRS would have counted for something. But you are not alone Brad, you have a number of other fellow cultists out there in internet-land who also wonder why this wasn't huge.

I'm sure I read about it in the TP books, but the review doesn't make it sound too interesting. Should have said something like "imagine Eno producing Syd Barrett" and I'd have bit.

There's also the matter of his name. When I see just a solo name I figure it's one of those dreaded singer/songwriters. "Henry Badowski" is just not a very New Wave name, and since New Wave was mainly a teen/youth phenomenon in the '80s, those Valley Girls were just not going to pick up an album by a Henry Badowski like they would a, say, Thomas Dolby.

I remember reading reviews of the singles ("My Face" and "Baby, Sign Here With Me") in Green Circles in TP, but I don't think the album itself was ever reviewed in the magazine. Harumph!

The video for "My Face" showed up on either Rock World or Hollywood Heartbeat, the two pre-MTV video shows that used to show at 11 & 11:30 PM on Saturday night in St. Louis, right before the Three Stooges came on. That's the first place I saw or heard anything by Henry, sandwiched in between "Only His Name" by Holly Penfield and "Johnny and Mary" by Robert Palmer.

Then about a week or two later my brother picked up an IRS compilation with "Baby, Sign Here With Me" on it.

You nailed it with "Eno producing Syd Barrett." During his brief career, Badowski fit right in with that noble strain of Brit eccentricity. I got into Robyn Hitchcock because Creem's review of Wilder by the Teardrop Explodes said that Julian Cope's closest contemporaries were Badowski and Hitchcock, and since I already liked Cope and Badowski, I tracked down Hitchcock and immediately became a fan.



Post Edited (03-13-14 17:46)

Somehow with what U2, the Plimsouls, Robyn Hitchcock, the Psychedelic Furs and others put out in '81 I would be hard pressed to agree with Brad about the superiority of Life Is a Grand (though I do still own it, despite massive music purging). I would have figured someone like Jon Young would have done a nice review of the album in TP but there were just my 2-3 singles reviews, and it was left to me to do it for the Guide.

Did anyone else see the Plimsouls open for U2 in 1981?

How is it possible that it’s 2025?

jim green Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Somehow with what U2, the Plimsouls, Robyn
> Hitchcock, the Psychedelic Furs and others put out
> in '81 I would be hard pressed to agree with Brad
> about the superiority of Life Is a Grand (though I
> do still own it, despite massive music purging). I
> would have figured someone like Jon Young would
> have done a nice review of the album in TP but
> there were just my 2-3 singles reviews, and it was
> left to me to do it for the Guide.

I can't believe that they finally re-issued "Life's A Grand…" though they left off the ellipsis. I wanted this strongly in 1981 but dallied and then it was gone. The CD is my re-issue of the year so far!

Former TP subscriber [81, 82, 83, 84]

[postpunkmonk.com]
For further rumination on the Fresh New Sound of Yesterday®



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/30/2025 02:45PM by Post-Punk Monk.