. . . BUT I CAN WRITE SONGS OKEY

YELLOW EYE Compilation celebrating forty years of DUNEDIN popular music. A fascinating and truly historical release from the YELLOW EYE label that features an incredible range of Dunedin music from the late 50's TO 1996.

From the live recordings of Joe Brown at the Dunedin Town hall to top studios recordings from around the world. Highlights The legendary TUMBLEWEEDS rocking out on a cover version of BUDDY HOLLY's RAVE ON and sounding decidedly like THE CRAMPS. The first Dunedin Number One, SMILEY by CRAIG SCOTT. A recording by 70's rock band LUTHA whose albums now fetch colossal money in Europe. Silver scroll winners in the 70's MOTHER GOOSE and LEA MAALFRID, who now writes for the likes of BONNIE RAITT and SHEENA EASTON. The first official release from late 70's punks THE ENEMY, THE SAME and HEAVENLY BODIES. Such groups spawning the likes of CHRIS KNOX, MARTIN PHILLIPS and JEFF BATTS. THE CLEAN and the classic so called Dunedin Sound bands of the 80's including BORED GAMES, DOUBLEHAPPYS, THE RIP, LOOK BLUE GO PURPLE and THE ALPACA BROTHERS to mention but a few.

From the late 80's we showcase the development to international class of such songwriters as GRAEME DOWNES, MARTIN PHILLIPS, BOB SCOTT, DAVID KILGOUR, SHAYNE CARTER and JAN HELLRIEGAL. Thrown in for good measure that pop chart sing a long classic FOR TODAY from the NETHERWORLD DANCING TOYS.

Into the 90's and we see a new breed of creative talent showcasing Dunedin's diversity of musical wealth with MINK, THE PUDDLE, THE 3Ds, FUNHOUSE and SHAFT.

This album is about songwriting more than anything with fifty eight originals out of seventy eight tracks, three and a half hours of music. Some of the songs on this CD can really only be described as legendary in New Zealand Rock history. Fantastic retrospective of a town and its popular music since 1958. A true first for little ol' New Zealand. Enjoy.

. . . BUT I CAN WRITE SONGS OKEY : REVIEWS

THE CHRISTCHURCH PRESS : Sharon McIver

. . . BUT I CAN WRITE SONGS OKEY is a triple CD compilation of forty years of Dunedin music, and its 78 tracks are irrefutable proof that the 'Dunedin Sound' deserves all the national and international plaudits that it has enjoyed. Arranged chronologically, disc one is mainly cover versions by unsung heroes, culled from old talent quests and live recordings. The quality reflects the origins of the recordings, but there are some treasures to be found, including the EMBASSY SIX's TRAVELLIN' LIGHT, THE TUMBLEWEEDS cover of RAVE ON and CULTURE by the KNOBZ. Disc Two is where the real gems are, though, starting with punk band THE ENEMY and ending with STRAITJACKET FITS. In between are tracks from BORED GAMES, SNEAKY FELLINGS and THE IDLES, to name a few. It is difficult to find highlights among so many memorable songs, but the inspiring SOMETHING NEW (THE STONES) ANYONE ELSE WOULD (THE DOUBLEHAPPYS) and WHAT YOU SHOULD BE NOW are all stand out efforts. By the time the tracks on the third disc were recorded Dunedin was well established as New Zealand's premier alternative music city, and although songs like the catchy SCHOOLBOY SONG by MUNKY CRAMP, and MINK's quirky THRILL ME show a move away from the guitar driven Dunedin Sound, some of the best singles of that genre were from this time as well. THE BATS - COURAGE, THE 3Ds - HELLZAPOPPIN and THE CHILLS - SUBMARINE BELLS are all here along with THE VERLAINES, THE PUDDLE and industrialists SNAPPER . . . BUT I CAN WRITE SONGS OKEY is almost four hours of songs that are better than merely OK. This is an essential compilation for fans of Dunedin music.

O.U.S.A. CRITIC : Darryl Baser

Stunning collection, Fantastic Retrospective, Phenomonal Compilation. No superlative is high enough. Buy this three CD package now, and learn from the foundations up to the present. Released in conjunction with the Sound Of Dunedin Exhibition at the Otago Early Settlers Museum. This CD pack has all the major local stars of the Dunedin music scene from the last forty years.

NZ HERALD : R. Bailie

A three CD compilation tracing forty years of Dunedin popular music and tied to the Sound Of Dunedin Exhibition currently rockin' the Otago Early Settlers museum. The limited edition 78 tracker includes just about a little bit of everybody that was anybody, or anybody who knew somebody with a tape recorder in Dunedin's music scene from the late 50's to recent times. The first disc is a bit heavy on precocious kids at talent quests before it swings into mixed southern efforts at 60's beat groups and 70's pop from the likes of CRAIG SCOTT, MOTHER GOOSE and THE KNOBZ. Disc two is a 22 track FLYING NUN primer complete with the odd live or rare track for those avid followers of The Dunedin Sound, while the third part shows the mixture of consolidation, diversification and emigration of Otago's current musical climate. Perhaps you can't quite detect a geographic context throughout it's three and a half hour running time. But there is enough there to consider getting some Speights in, knitting yourself a scarf and throwing a theme party - just hoping Wellington or Hamilton don't get the same idea.

METRO MAGAZINE : Colin Hogg

The title comes from I CAN'T SING VERY WELL, a silver scroll award winner from 1981 by MOTHER GOOSE, a band with an image so unhinged they made SPLIT ENZ look . . . well, hinged. MOTHER GOOSE, as it happened, hailed from Dunedin, a dark and soulful city that has accidently nurtured an inordinate level of musical enterprise over the years. Many years, as it happens - years that stretch way back before all those moody mute boys in the FLYING NUN bands came along at the start of the 80's. And if that sounds like a wild claim, then run an ear over . . . BUT I CAN WRITE SONGS OKEY, the sonic love child of the Sound Of Dunedin Music exhibition which is running in that city's Early Settlers Museum. Covering 40 years and three jam packed CDs, the 78 songs run a wild gamut from boy soprano TREVOR WHEELER's rendition of CLIFF RICHARDS's - A VOICE IN THE WILDERNESS through 60's rough boys like THE THIRD CHAPTER's - MAMA KEEP YOUR BIG MOUTH SHUT, CRAIG SCOTT's sugary anthem SMILEY, the great LUTHA, the mad melodic MOTHER GOOSE, the awful KNOBZ, with their 1980 hit CULTURE, LEA MAALFRID (who writes for BONNIE RAITT these days) and on into the whole alternative rock explosion (with all the usual suspects present and correct) and beyond. There may not be any such thing as a 'Dunedin Sound', but there's certainly been a lot of interesting noise down there over the years.

REAL GROOVE MAG : Chris Knox : aka Real Pits cartoon with Stu and Ces

Ooooooo, look! We got a double panel spread . . . Just as well cos . . . BUT I CAN WRITE SONGS OKEY (YELLOW EYE) is a 3 CD collection of 78 songs from 40 years of Dunedin music, built to go with the Sound Of Dunedin exhibit thing. But it ain't dry and scholarly . . . thorough? yup . . . dull? sometimes . . . especially on CD 1 which is mostly covers of varying quality (performance and recording). There are pockets of pure gold but this is basically yer historic interest deal . . . and what's with the boy sopranos? Anyway, things perk up remarkably with CD 2 which is roughly the first 5 years of FLYING NUN . . . during which time the 'Dunedin Sound' was invented by lazy journalists. These 22 songs are a great resource for those on both sides of that particular argument. It's illuminating to hear some of these songs out of their natural context and makes for a good intriguing listen. While CD 3 shows that the last decade is less consistent . . . But the good bits are every bit as good (better because of their relative obscurity) and rely least on nostalga. Try FUNHOUSE, SHAFT or CLOUDBOY . . . Don't be put off by the enormous amounts of stuff herein, this thing is mostly fun and permeated throughout by the nuggety stench of TROY BLERCO.

RIP IT UP MAG : Donald Reid

You listen to that Dunedin stuff, eh? All sounds the same to me . . . That's the sort of comment fans of music from the South have been putting up with for years. Hopefully this 78 song, triple CD will silence critics (if they cared to listen), as the range of artists covers a huge musical spectrum, both historically and stylistically. Disc one represents music from the 50's to 1979. Much of the material is mainly of historic value, with plenty of covers of hits of the day and low-fi live recordings, but there are some gems. TYPHOON ROCK by THE TYPHOONS, KEEP WALKIN' by NEVILLE BARRIE and LUTHA's STOP THE MUSIC IS OVER, all demonstrate excellent original song writing long before it was normal practice in NZ pop. It is on disc two (roughly 1979 to 1987) that music from Dunedin became 'Dunedin Music'. A collection like this has long been awaited by fans who can finally preserve their precious vinyl (it's amazing to hear WHEATFIELDS without hearing the evidence of 11 years worth of a bad deejaying technique). Listening to the anthemic ANYONE ELSE WOULD from THE DOUBLEHAPPYS or HEY MAN from THE ALPACA BROTHERS, can seriously brighten up a melancholy day.

SOUTHLAND TIMES : Ian Henderson

Forty years of popular Dunedin music, huh? Where do you start? Roy Colbert, who compiled this sprawling three CD set, starts wiyth TREVOR WHEELER singing CLIFF RICHARD's A VOICE IN THE WILDERNESS live at a beauty pageant in 1960 . . . BUT I CAN WRITE SONGS OKEY is an archival collection of Dunedin popular music performers. This is no greatest hits package though. The first CD in particular is largely derived from primitive live recordings or scratchy singles but still throws up treats from HUBB KAPP AND THE WHEELS - ODYSSEY, LUTHA and, of course, THE KNOBZ - CULTURE. If the first CD could be summarised as early Dunedin and the third contemporary Dunedin the second should be classic Dunedin, the period of feverish alternative strummings and black jerseys that put Dunedin on the international music atlas in the 1980's. Unfortunately that period of bounty is the least well represented of the three. In compiling an album to interest collectors of things Dunedin, Colbert has avoided obvious selections from bands like THE CHILLS and THE CLEAN in particular, presumably on the assumption that devotees will already be familiar with them. But in opting for obscurities and live recordings a little of the magic of this period will be lost on anyone unfamiliar with the artists of this era. It's a minor point and there are plenty of rarities to compensate. A fine live version by THE ENEMY of PULL DOWN THE SHADES and HEAVENLY BODIES punchy YOU'RE SO FOOLISH in particular sit well with the strummings of the youngsters they helped inspire. The third disc is the real treasure trove, though. Music in Dunedin is no longer dominated by FLYING NUN bands. The scene has splintered and the music mutated into many different forms. THE PUDDLE's finest pop song SOUTHERN MAN is only matched for cheek by THE BEATLES on a shoestring majesty of DOWNHILL RACER by Robert Cardy's band SHAFT. CLOUDBOY and MINK also contribute atypical Dunedin pop sounds but this disc is a lolly scramble of sounds and ideas that bodes well for the future of Dunedin popular music up on the third CD with tracks from later releases the former with SUBMARINE BELLS, the latter with DIRGE. The third CD displays the diversity of Dunedin bands in the late 80's and 90's. From a solo KILGOUR's piece of DYLANesque whimsy, to MUNKY CRAMP and their Southern reggae, to HELLZAPOPPIN, which, if anyone needs to reaffirm their faith, will find that's the song to do it. Of course everyone will have their individual preferences for songs not included, but that will happen with every compilation. When all is said and done, this album proves for one last time that, no, not all that stuff sounds the same.

OTAGO DAILY TIMES : Ruth Brown

. . . BUT I CAN WRITE SONGS OKEY spans 40 years of Dunedin music, starting with a pop tradition which is light years away from current styles. Squeaking adolescent boys doing chart hits in a talent quest make an interesting forerunner to the type of music Dunedin has become known for. The release demonstrates how little the city's music scene differed from the rest of the country in the 1950's. The phenomenon which set Dunedin apart was, of course the sudden underground explosion more than 15 years ago, a musical sub-culture which sprang up as an offshoot of mainstream rock. The format of this YELLOW EYE release reflects this, with the first disc spanning 25 years, disc two of the 80's and disc three of the 90's. For those tempted to use disc one as a frisbee - have a listen first. Once you get past the eerie but historically significant first tracks (including renditions of ANOTHER SATURDAY NIGHT and RAVE ON) the style takes an interesting turn as bands move out of the 60's. Howling guitar breaks and the gravelly vocals of LUTHA offer heartfelt Rock 'n' Roll and provide an alternative to CRAIG SCOTT's silky tones, but one of the best tracks is the slightly off key, one phrase song CRY TO ME by the MALCHICKS. One of the albums strengths is the sparing use of well known Dunedin Sound classics. As a result the compilers have come up with a collection which still holds a few surprises and yields it's own fresh approach. Disc two, which has everyone on it from THE ENEMY to THE STONES and THE ALPACA BROTHERS, is a good reminder of just how rough around the edges and simplistic these bands were (eg. SUCCESS STORY - live CLEAN). Dunedin music grows up in the 90's and bursts into a range of styles with a strengthening sense of direction and confidence. The brash DOWNHILL RACER delivered BEACH BOYS style by SHAFT is back-to-back with the dreamy CLOUDBOY song, followed by funky and irregular rhythms from MINK. Like all compilations, this is bound to attract niggles and grumpy comments about the choice of bands, even though it is fairly comprehensive with 78 songs and more than three hours of music. For thoses interested in the old and new this release offers further inspiration, amusement and pleasure.