Tom Robinson's music career enjoyed a brief resurrection in 1983 following the success of the song War Baby a single which reached number 6 in the UK charts and subsequently appeared on his 1984 album Hope and Glory on Castaway Records which reached the dizzy heights of number 21.
I've just given it a listen to for the first time in ages and there are a couple of good songs on it.
I've never particularly been a fan of Steely Dan and indeed I much prefer Tom's version of Rikki Don't Loose that Number to the original (cue much wailing and gnashing of teeth)
Atmospherics: Listen to the Radio is pretty tasty too.
He is now a radio presenter
Tom Robinson - Rikki Don't Loose That Number
Tom Robinson - Atmospherics:Listen to the Radio
'Atmospherics' is very good indeed, but Tom should really have left 'Rikki' well alone!
ReplyDeleteTeeth being gnashed here, CC, because his cover of Rikki Don't Lose That Number is devoid of feeling and has that terrible 80s synth-y sound.
ReplyDeleteJust like Steely Dan then!
DeleteLooks like it is me who might be in the minority on this one
I think it has a certain charm to it CC, although it does sound awfully like Go West. War Baby would be in my top tracks of '83, probably my fave Tom Robinson track...
ReplyDeleteGo West Scott??? FFS!!
DeleteThought about War Baby but figured everyone was familiar with it
Just to clarify, the charm part doesn't come from it sounding like Go West, it was more the terrible 80's production !! Just this second received an email from Ticketmaster and Tom is going to be playing in Glasgow later in the year. Have never seen him live so may have to go along to Oran Mor...
DeleteI saw him years ago as part of a free gig at the old bandstand at Kelvingrove Park. He did a fantastic version of A Day in the Life standing playing keyboards
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