Twitter:
Eric Odioso ecodios @thirdmanrecords BP Fallon just killed it on stage at Terminal 5. Amazing.
Barbara S peelslowlysee
BP Fallon making T5 a whole lot less shitty.
Makar MakarMusic @bpfallon you were amazing last night at The Kills show, great poem! brought tears to our eyes!
The next night at The Kills show, BP Fallon was joined on stage at New York’s Terminal 5 by Aaron Lee Tasjan – ace guitarist in BP Fallon & His Bandits.
Reports sentimentalistmag.com:
“A bowler-topped BP Fallon, founder of the internationally renowned Death Disco parties and a punk cause célèbre in his own right, provided the perfect introduction to his friends The Kills’ set with his ‘one and a half songs’, performed with one of his Bandits on angsty guitar. ‘I Believe in Elvis Presley’, part spoken word, part litany in barren blues, is a song for which Fallon was recently flown to Nashville to record in Jack White’s studio. In tonight’s rendition, Fallon listed a few of his favorite things, from hallucinogens to LSD to Oscar Wilde and Elvis Presley, topping it off with, yes, The Kills”. More sentimentalistmag.com review of The Kills show Tuesday August 9th 2011 plus cool pix
Angle #3: BP Fallon before The Kills by Gregg Greenwood
Bob Geldof and BP Fallon truckin’ in Texas by Jennifer Andrada
Bob Geldof and BP Fallon speak on a panel together at MindField at Ireland’s prestigious arts and music festival Electric Picnic. The subject is the future of the future – and the music therein. Moderator is David McWilliams. Scheduled time is Sunday afternoon Sept 4th at 3.30pm in EP’s MindField area.
Geldof and Fallon go back together seemingly forever. BP was publicist to The Boomtown Rats when the Irish group were launched in Britain in 1977 and he and the band’s singer have remained firm friends ever since.
BP Fallon & Jeff Dexter & Marc Bolan & Boomtown Rats Johnnie Fingers & Bob Geldof 1977 outside the ‘Marc’ tv studios in Manchester. The Rats were guesting on Marc’s show – their first-ever British tv appearance. Photography by Kevin Cummins
Bob Geldof London 2011 by BP Fallon
Bob Geldof photographs BP Fallon Texas 2011
photographed by Cameron Jordan
“Mind your mind and your mind will mind you” – BPF x
Writes Bill Kates:
“Sssh. A track from that rarest of U2 discs, ‘Zoo Radio’, their official radio show released only to radio stations by Island Records and the Album Network in 1992, produced by yours truly, hosted by BP Fallon, longtime friend to U2 and the DJ at their live shows at the time. This section features clips from a pre-’South Park’ Primus with the Zoo Radio Theme, Michael Franti and the Disposable Heros of HipHopcracy, Mick Jones and B.A.D, Chuck D and Flavor Flav from Public Enemy… I post this as an historic record of a radio show which I produced, for educational purposes only, and make no profit by doing so. All Rights Reserved for the short music clips by the respective owners of those copyrights. No infringement is intended”.
Fact fans factoid: ‘Zoo Radio’ was produced & written by the esteemed Bill Kates & the less esteemed Zoo TV tour DJ Mr Fallon – who also hosted the show, doing skits with Bono, talking about Elvis and Marilyn and asking about the most famous man in the world. Chuck D here is particularly brilliant – and additionally, most elucidating about Elvis.
Hats Off To Harper: Roy Harper & BP Fallon & Dave Cochran, Knebworth Festival England 1975. Memphis-born Dave – who once saw Elvis in a diner – played bass in Roy’s band Trigger with Chris Spedding (guitar) and Bill Bruford (drums). At the festival, Roy also sang ‘Have A Cigar’ with Pink Floyd. Polaroid photographer unknown.
Roy Harper talking to editor Allan Jones in ‘Editor’s Letters’ in the current Uncut magazine:
“At the time, BP Fallon was doing my PR. He knew there hadn’t been a diagnosis, but he’d been with me when the doctors asked what I’d recently been up to that might have made me ill, and I told them I’d tried to bring a still-born lamb back to life by cupping my hands around its mouth and blowing into them. I actually never touched the lamb at all, but in Fallon’s version of events I’d ended up in hospital after giving mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to a sheep.
“This was the story that went out to a ludicrous number of newspapers. Suddenly I’m president of The North-East Lancashire Sheep Shaggers Association. For years, it was the only thing people wanted to talk about, how I nearly died after kissing a sheep. I spent years trying to explain what had happened and in the end just gave up and went along with it. I mean, why not?”
Double Trouble: BP Fallon & Roy Harper in Ålesund, Norway 1975. BP’s snakeskin jacket a present from Steve Marriott, bless him. Photography by Steinar Remme.
Double Bubble: Roy Harper not with a sheep, Continental Hyatt House West Hollywood June 1973 during a Led Zeppelin tour. Photography by
BP Fallon who took some of the shots below – as did Roy Harper:
Led Zeppelin ‘Physical Graffiti’ inner sleeve (1975). Jimmy Page with bandaged left hand and champagne glass in the right and John Bonham and Robert Plant ascloseasthis in a limo, photography by BP Fallon.
Read the complete Allan Jones’ ‘Editor’s Letters’ plus ‘Roy Harper: a candid interview with the mercurial singer, who’s 70 this month’ in Uncut.
The End? Melody Maker July 12 1975. 12p weekly 60c in USA.
It’s Bob Dylan’s 70th Birthday today. To pay honour to this special occasion, we present this previously-unpublished story.
THE TALE OF BOB DYLAN & JOHNNY THUNDERS & SID & VAN
by BP Fallon Slane Castle, County Meath, Ireland 1984… and beyond
Written NYC July 15/16th 2003
1984 and the Orwellian seer Bob Dylan. Chinwagging with The Big Zee in his trailer before the gig, him asking you ’bout that guitar-toting buzzard Johnny Thunders who you’d introduced him to at a Link Wray show in London some six or seven years before. Dylan had been kinda startled as Johnny reached out for Bob’s wet fish handshake. Said he’d never heard of The New York Dolls, was more interested in where he could get a new coat.
Sid Vicious’ Nancy wobbled up, tits hanging out and eyes closing down. This apparition heaves itself onto Dylan’s skinny bosom, she a sloppy floppy messy deadweight bodybag of mascaraed custard landing heavily onto the poet’s ribcage unprotected by Dylan’s tatty old leather coat that he’s had for ages. Dylan winces.
“Sex!” this clinging eyeshadowed amoeba blurts out to The Voice Of A Generation who twitches like he’s stuck outside of Mobile with the Memphis blues again and as he tries to free himself of this snaily woman he shakes his shoulders, Bob Dylan the frazzle-haired and frazzled creaky old rumba dancer at the YMCA with a junkie on his back.
You explain to Bob that Sex is the clothes shop run by Vivienne Westwood and her partner, the wideboy rock’n'roll manager Malcolm McClaren. “They sell coats and stuff, bondage gear”. Bob perks up perceptively. “Rubber stuff?” he queries. “Malcolm managed the Sex Pistols” you soothe. On cue, The Voice Of Degeneration shrills out like a petulant lost baby seal. “Nance-yyy!” It’s Sid, calling out for his monkey minder and her mind-numbing medicine.
Later that night Sid asks you to be his manager. “Malcolm’s your manager” you point out. Sid had an expedient way to get out of his contract. “I’ll cut his fuckin’ throat”, chortle chortle snivel snot, wipe nose on leather jacket sleeve. At least Sid was polite enough to wipe his dribbling nose on his own leather jacket. You, you’re already managing Johnny Thunders – full-on too much JT junkie bizness, a true-blood Noo Yoik rock’n'roller as magic as Gene Vincent Meets Keef Richards, turning himself to shit with smack.
Johnny and Sid have already played live at The Speakeasy as The Living Dead. Well, Sid climbed up onto Johnny’s stage and stumbled off again. Now they want to call their group The Junkies. Things like that could do your head in. I don’t think Bob Dylan ever got his new coat. The NME had a photo of me’n'Bawb at the Link Wray gig. What can you do?
So now we’re back at Slane watching Paul Brady honoured to show this gnarled lizard how to play The Lakes Of Ponchatrain in this crappy trailer by the banks of the Boyne. Bob does just fine, fumbles and mumbles and shy ‘Aw shucks’ cowpoke grin as his long fingernails scratch at an acoustic guitar.
Now Bob is out in the sunlight by the Boyne’s dancing waters, fondly recalling Liam Clancy and Tommy Makem and Liam’s brothers and the friendship they’d bestowed on him when he first arrived in New York, the huge influence they’d had on him, eulogising The Clancy Brothers as film cameras capture the bashful bard paying tribute to his back pages. The filming, it’s for a Clancy Brothers documentary.
And now you’re standing on the side of the stage with Patsy watching Bob Dylan and his band rockin’ out like electric methedrine with lumps in it and there’s Bono and Ali taking it all in too.
Van Morrison shuffles up to where we’re standing, picks up an acoustic guitar, puts it down, looks grumpy. You look at Bono and he looks at you and the vibe is ‘Aw, fuck, doesn’t look like Van will sing with Dylan now’. But of course Van does, the ornery bastard, goes on and has Dylan singing with him on Van’s own Tupelo Honey, the two voices clashing and meshing and dancing around each other like refreshed lovers probing. The Goat On The Barbed Wire Fence and The Mighty Lion’s Roar are now singing Bob’s It’s All Over Now Baby Blue together and untogether and it’s poetry emotion.
“Take what you have gathered from coincidence…” You know a couple of guys in Dylan’s combo. That’s why you and your girl are here at Slane in such an exulted viewpoint. You trip over a wire causing the PA to stab out a sharp metallic crackle and Dylan jumps back from his mic all shook up and you put on your best ‘What, me?’ face and hide behind Patsy.
There’s Mick Taylor from The Stones twanging majestically, his guitar like liquid mercury. And over there, the keyboards swirl from the fingers of another dear chum from the rock’n'roll daze, this lovely grinning diamond Ian MacLagan, he from The Small Faces/Faces/Stones and more. He wrote about this special day and this night-until-dawn in his book All The Rage, Mac did, this very last night of this European tour.
Ah, yes. Maybe it’s odd but you feel proud of these guys as they play behind Bob Dylan. It’s very warming. Many rivers to cross and they’ve burnt a few bridges, come out from the storm to find the blessed chalice now sometimes free from harm. Instant calmer’s gonna get you. And His Master’s Voice, it’s wheezy and raspy and magic and sinewy like a snake from the Book Of Isiah, curling around Van’s magnificent full-chested roar of redemption. “She’s as sweet as Tupelo honey” indeed. Perfect.
Patsy Dennehy & BP Fallon & Bob Dylan at Slane Castle 1984.
Photography by Nutan Photographic
Van Morrison & Bob Dylan at Slane Castle 1984 by Sean Hennessy
BP Fallon & Bob Dylan at Slane Castle 1984 by Larry ‘Ratso’ Sloman
BP Fallon & Johnny Thunders at The New Inn, Dublin April 1990
by Paul Murphy
“Thunder on the mountain and there’s fires on the moon
A ruckus in the alley and the sun will be here soon
Today’s the day where I’m gonna grab my trombone and blow
Well, there’s hot stuff here and it’s everywhere I go…”
-Bob Dylan, Thunder On The Mountain
In loving memory of Johnny Thunders and of Kevin Dunne who loved Bob and of all who sail ahead of us x
The Kills Jamie Hince & Alison Mosshart at Terminal 5 NYC by BP Fallon
BP Fallon cemented his continuing relationship with The Kills when he made a surprise guest appearance at The Kills’ New York show at Terminal 5.
Rock’n'Roll Poet: BP Fallon recites at Terminal 5 NYC by Dana (Distorton) Yavin/Brooklyn Vegan
Walking on stage unannounced just before Jamie Hince and Alison Mosshart played their powerful set, BP stilled the delighted audience to perform a spoken word reading that kicked off with part of ‘Fame #9′ and lead into The Viceroy Of Verbal setting out his rock’n'roll credo in ‘I Believe In Elvis Presley’.
It was the most explosive and interactive solo performance by our sonic poet so far, with the capacity 3,200-people audience enthusiastically cheering lines like “I believe in John Lennon” – altered from the more oblique “I believe in Dr Winston” – and, good Lord, “I believe in marijuana”.
Taken by the spirit, our Mr Fallon ended up crouched across the lip of the stage like a cross between Albert Einstein and Gene Vincent. Magic.
BP Fallon and Alison Mosshart met in 2002 at Death Disco in London when he was DJing there with Courtney Love. Since then BP has DJed on Kills dates in America, England and Ireland – but this was the first time he’d given a spoken word performance at a Kills show.
BP’s previous spoken word show in America was with The Greenhornes at New York’s Bowery Ballroom.
With thanks to Jamie & Alison and their vibey team, with particular thanks to Matt Pollock.
The Kills Alison Mosshart & Jamie Hince at Terminal 5 NYC by BP Fallon
Alison by BP
‘The Last Goodbye’ by BP Fallon
Jamie Hince & fans by BP Fallon
The backdrop to this all: The Kills stage backdrop photographed by BP Fallon
BP Fallon & Gloria Jones photographed in New York April 21st 2011 by Tony Mann.
BP Fallon and Gloria Jones had not seen each other since before the death of Marc Bolan in 1977. Their emotional meeting thirty-three years later at the Flamin’ Groovies show in New York was sensitively captured by drummer/pop culturist Tony Mann. Gloria, mother of Marc’s son Rolan, was Marc Bolan’s girlfriend from 1973 until Marc’s tragic death when the Mini that Gloria was driving skidded into a tree; Gloria nearly died too.
The last time BP Fallon and Gloria Jones saw The Flamin’ Groovies was with Marc Bolan – when the Groovies rolled into London from America on July 4th 1976 to play at The Roundhouse supported by this magnificent new noise out of New York called the Ramones… and the world was never the same again.
The Yanks, those boys from Queens, meet their Godfather Of Punk: Ramones meet Marc Bolan London 1977 by Richard Young. BP Fallon, who’d by then toured twice with the Ramones – first with The Boomtown Rats and Talking Heads and then with Snips – introduced Marc to Johnny, Joey and Tommy Ramone. Dee Dee was in the toilet with Sid.
An exemplary musician and singer and song-writer, Gloria Jones played clavinet and sang backing vocals with T.Rex through five albums and recorded with Marc Bolan under her own name too. And way before meeting Marc, in 1964 in America Gloria had recorded the original of Tainted Love before signing to Motown where she produced and wrote songs for The Jackson 5, The Four Tops, The Surpemes, Marvin Gaye and Diana Ross – plus the classic Grammy-nominated If I Were Your Woman by Gladys Knight & The Pips. Additionally, she recorded with everyone from Ry Cooder to Joe Cocker and even sang on Neil Young’s first solo album. An astounding talent and a wonderful lady, both then and now.
Gloria Jones & Siouxsie And The Banshees manager Nils Stevenson & Marc Bolan & BP Fallon & Sex Pistol Paul Cook choogling to Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers at The Music Machine London 1976. Photography by Ray Stevenson.
Today Gloria Jones lives in West Africa where she runs The Light Of Love Foundation, dedicated to the memory of Marc Bolan. They already have a music school for children in Makeni, Sierra Leone – The Marc Bolan School Of Music & Film – in a community that is just getting electricity. The classrooms have been donated by a local church. They are now opening a second school in a neighbouring community – The Marc Bolan School Of The Arts – which will include fashion and fine art. Here’s a video of some of the students:
Gloria Jones – Tainted Love (1964). The song that launched 10,000 dances and had Gloria crowned The Queen Of Northern Soul…
Gloria Jones – Heartbeat (1965). Young Gloria testifies!
‘MACAULEY CULKIN AND BP FALLON IN MOVIE TOGETHER’ shock!
Pete Doherty stars too in new Adam Green film.
Adam Green and Macauley Culkin and Cory Kennedy on the high seas in The Wrong Ferarri
Adam Green’s film The Wrong Ferarri (sic) premiered in New York at Anthology Film Archives this week. The film stars the irrepressible Mr Green who describes it as ‘A Screwball Tradgedy’ (sic again). Not unsurprisingly, Adam also wrote and directed the movie – and it was shot entirely on his iPhone.
BP Fallon plays Adam as an old man in forty years time in a wheelchair with tubes hanging out of him – as well as speaking the film’s narration.
Also starring in this phantasmagorical ketamine-catalysed opus are Macauley Calkin, Pete Doherty, Devendra Banhart, Har Mar Superstar and Adam’s mother Leah Green.
Watch and/or download the entire feature length movie here for free: The Wrong Ferarri (70 mins)
Must be over 18 (who’s counting?)
BP Fallon as Adam Green during Adam’s seemingly-addled older years, from The Wrong Ferarri
With Twitter hopping with #thewrongferarri and #thewrongferrari tweets, our favourites so far are @counterboud “I think it’s safe to say that #thewrongferarri is the ‘Un Chien Andalou’ of the drug-addled urban youth of 2011″ and @CatrinaBooth “omg the dubbed pete doherty bit of #thewrongferrari just made me piss about 3 river niles”.
“I’d liken it to being on the side of a Grecian urn”.
Broadcast live on The John Murray Show on RTE Radio 1, talking about Top Of The Pops: Sir Jimmy Savile, BP Fallon and Irish showband star Larry Cunningham – plus Joe Elliott from Def Leppard and actor Frank Kelly who played Father Jack Hackett in the hit comedy Father Ted. All appeared on the celebrated BBC TV pop show that ran for 38 years from 1964 to 2002, with excerpts now being rescreened on BBC4.
“Mind your mind and your mind will mind you” – BPF x
Yavin_8048b.jpg "BP Fallon recites at Terminal 5 by Dana (Distortion) Yavin/Brooklyn Vegan")
The Yanks, those boys from Queens, meet their Godfather Of Punk: Ramones meet Marc Bolan London 1977 by Richard Young. BP Fallon, who’d by then toured twice with the Ramones – first with The Boomtown Rats and Talking Heads and then with Snips – introduced Marc to Johnny, Joey and Tommy Ramone. Dee Dee was in the toilet with Sid.
Adam Green and Macauley Culkin and Cory Kennedy on the high seas in The Wrong Ferarri
