I work with a guy that's involved in gigs etc in Blackburn. He's had John Power performing so spent some time with him. John spoke about keeping in touch with Lee and his turbulent their relationship was. He described going round to his house, a mess, scribbled bits for songs everywhere and internally begging for Lee to pick up a guitar and play something. One day he did and he said it was unbelievable, better than anything they'd ever done together. That room was full of the best music ever written that no one will ever hear.
Here's a quote from Steve Lillywhite : 'After we finished I got a call from Johnny Marr, who excitedly told me that Lee had asked him to go into the studio as a producer. A few months later I got a desperate call from Johnny: 'Steve he just wants to re-record the old songs!'
Would love to see more of these types of videos. Having seen the lives of the Gallaghers, Morrissey etc documented so frequently, it's quite nice to learn about important figures in that scene that are less widely covered
mavers to this day says he never achieved the sound he set out to immortalize yet somehow 95% of those who've listened to it think it's pure unadulterated magic. those tunes must have been forged in another dimension because of their ethereal quality.
Genius is overused these days....Not where Lee Mavers is concerned....truly one of the best this country ever produced just a crying shame how it all ended.
I fell in love with "There She Goes" after hearing it on the radio, and purchased the album on cassette. Listened to it many times. I'm not sure how they're viewed in the UK, but here in the US they're severely overlooked and rarely mentioned when talking about 90s British groups. They do have a small but passionate group of fans, many of whom are musicians themselves. Despite all that, the song "There She Goes" has become very popular and is still heard on TV, in shops, etc. - but almost always cover versions!
Michael head from shack was exactly the same . I remember him being on the cover of one of the music mags when HMS fable came out and the cover said something like ‘ is this the best songwriter in Britain ‘ Then heroin gave him an atomic wedgie 😭
Never been a huge fan of this band but really enjoyed the video, thanks. Your research is fantastic. I think Lee Mavers has that "Chinese Democracy" syndrome, you spend so long looking for perfection everyone else moves on including some of your bandmates. Pity he couldn't just embrace imperfection. Sometimes the mistakes are part of the charm.
Lee Mavers: drugs and an obsessional personality don’t mix. Why the hell they didn’t record a live album and forget about going into the studio is beyond me. I saw them live as a support act in London in the early 80’s and they were great. I don’t even remember who they were supporting!
Wow, firstly, great vid James, thanks, please continue making bio's on bands we should know the story of. I knew only the one song and not the story, what a cautionary tale, sad. Glad Powers went on to do Cast. Hope Lee is ok. Go discs was immensely kind to keep recording. How do you throw away recording with Lilywhite on purpose, I do not know...but drugs, perfectionism, ocd?? in spite of himself Lee still had made music people love. I wish him healing and to be well. Cheers James!
An old friend turned me onto the La’s when I was a teenager into heavy mental and alternative rock. However the first time I listed to it it’s musical genius was unmistakable and I’ve considered it one of my favourite albums ever since. As a post-script, I was living in Republic of Ireland in the mid-2000’s and went to a music festival while there and to my utter surprise, The La’s were playing. I saw the whole set and it was like spotting a unicorn. Utterly incredible and unbelievable. Yet I did see them, and I honest never though I would, then having split in the early 90’s and only released that one seminal record. The only thing that would have pleased me more would be John Lennon and George Harrison coming back from the dead.
absolute genius album. I bought it when it was released and listened through, easily, hundreds of times. Every single track is brilliant and stands on its own. Another great Scouse group.
A great piece of work, thank you. I would like to have heard about the 2005 reunion - considering the bad blood it would be fascinating to know how they managed to work together.
dont think it was that at all. he genuinely didn't like it at all. that's obvious from the 3 or more full recordings of it and still unhappy. he would have never been satisficed with any recording of it ever. OCD perfectionist personality
Amazing band - definitely in my Top 5 - I was 10/11 when they disbanded but when I discovered them in the mid to late 90s off the back of Cast (first gig I went to) and Oasis recommendations they blew my head off and I became immersed and obsessed! Lee is a stunning talent and it’s a real shame he chooses not to revisit or open up his songs to people but at least we now have those recordings (and lots of bootlegs!)
I have no idea how the engineers and producers recorded the La’s but if it was me, I would’ve set up all the room mics near Lee in the room, so when he heard the play back it would’ve been as close as possible to what he heard in the room. I would say, the best way to record them would’ve been to set up mics and recorded the sound of them in the room, the sound of the room. Similar to how Steve Albini records bands. A blend of close mics and room mics with the emphasis on the room mics. And get whatever era gear that would’ve kept Lee happy, indulging his strange ideas while capturing what needed to be captured.
Come on !!! Don’t try to rationalise his behaviour, please !!! The guy was such a psycho with the head full of snow. No matter what kind of gear and mics and set-up and whatever the ways you’d have tried to use them, the guy was so high that he’b have said : “I’m not happy with that recorded sound”…. Even if the microphones and the mixing console hadn’t started to run yet….
@@millennialanimal If you say so 🤷🏼♂️ I'm not a psychiatrist but his sickly perfectionism in chasing the impossible and his obsession with playing the same songs over and over again for years and years in the same order (while he had new ones in his bag) make me think to people (I met and knew some because, unfortunately, I’m a trouble-minded person) who, unfortunately, suffer from some sort of obsessive compulsive disorder. And these kinds of troubles don’t mix well with drugs. Best regards…
Mavers was happy though; with the Mike Hegdes session. But later decided it was no good, allegedly because some of his band mates had gone on holiday without him.
I met Lee in 92 and he was a wild but driven fella. There were quite a few lineup changes over the years and I knew Mike and Cammy beforehand. Lee was a visionary, madman, shamen, perfectionist, genius songrwiter, recluse. check out 'who knows' b side of there she goes to see the promise of what they could have been. They were a great band and far better than Oasis could ever dream of being...
It’s mad because I never rated the album till the BBC sessions came out and then I fell in love with it. The band I play in (Sura Laynes) found a studio Lee has been using so if it’s good enough for Lee we know it’s got to be right for us.
La's should have been recorded like 1950s Rock n roll, ie just a couple of ribbon mics in the studio and each song done live. The magic evaporates in a moment of overdubbing.
Should have taken psychological care. If you are totally unable to socialize with other people, then you have no one else to blame but yourself if finally everybody rejects you. Wasted an opportunity to live a life as a musician, other people would sacrifice an arm for. Lol! No sympathy whatsoever, if you treat people like shit, eventually you'll be left alone standing in the rain.
This was excellent. By far one of if not my favorite album. I believe I bought it in 1991 and still listen to it. Ive managed to stumble on some La’s bootlegs and I highly recommend The La’s BBC In Session.
It's a magnificent album. One of the best of its era or any other. Mavers' songwriting is sublime with endless hooks and a sound that isn't as derivative as that of their peers.
It sounds like Obsessive Compulsive Disorder/ Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder. Its really REALLY hard to be satisfied with your work as a musician with OCD or OCPD. I have OCD (the actual disorder) myself as a musician. Ive been told ive got some really awesome songs and flowey guitar riffs and vocal melodies, almost reminiscent of the la’s and smashing pumpkins, but in my mind nothing i do can ever quite be enough. Its not that i dont think they are good, its just that i cant capture it or perfect it enough. Like it morphs with the emotional and physical variables. Although i feel for the band i also feel for lee. I know how it feels to be so stuck. Its a hell of a disorder and im still figuring out how i can rid of it before it drives me to quit music. I fucking love music and i dont want to let OCD turn me into a lee. Even now i cant press start on a recording and get out of my head enough to sing without extreme attention to detail and tenseness.
When I met John Power in the 90’s, I asked if he named his band Cast because of the last word on the La’s album. He laughed and said it was a clever idea, but no. Not sure if I believe him.
Great video, very sad isnt it that The La's got stuck on the first album. A wonderful collection of songs, but weve heard enough to know a 2nd album could have been just as good...when you put together all of the difficulties the band members and engineers went through, as this video does well, they were so very patient, its testament to just how good those songs were really that the band kept going as long as it did. Great to see people still talking about them, heres to one day hearing a studio version of fishing net and raindance!
It's such a strange tale , and such a waste . Mavers had an incredible gift but his vision was simply too pure and too bonkers to be sustainable . A pathological approach to recording music is fine if you're making music for yourself in your bedroom , but is not conducive to band harmony or the hard realities of the music industry. I'm amazed Power stayed on board until 1991. Go Discs massively overindulged Mavers . With hindsight they should have released the Hedges album anyway , and said if this does well the next release can be a live album or EP . However , Mavers seems to have been such a perfectionist and mercurial talent that any kind of release that could match his exacting standards was almost impossible to achieve . In the end we are lucky to have what we have from him ,and it's hard not to feel a little cheated but in the end he's cheated himself . But he probably doesn't give a damn . Here's to the La's !
I enjoyed the video, ace stuff. I think it might have been worth talking about the 2005 tour where John Power rejoined the band, it was ace and they played two new songs. The live footage you use of Lee playing Looking Glass was taken from that tour, the Shepherds bush gig (I was there!).
@@michaelsnow7252 Gimme the Blues (which was played at Glasto) and Sorry (which was played at only one date of the tour, in Cork!) I saw them the next night, in Dublin, where they arrived on stage 3hrs late, played no new songs, said not one word to the crowd all night (apart from John saying "Ta-ra!" right at the end) had Lee's gardener playing drums standing up, and played the whole set through tiny cube amps. And you know what? It was the best gig I've EVER seen/heard in my life.
This album Is unbelievably under rated although I would say Timeless melody was never recorded the way it should have been. Such a well written song. The acoustic version of John and lee on RU-vid is better than the album version
@@m189283 interesting , although I felt that song In writing terms was on a par with the likes of live forever etc, just felt it never got the music or production behind it that it should. Could easily have been bigger than there she goes
@@BigB-qk6zh the scrapped version is on here somewhere (and on various bootlegs) - there were test pressings/promos made for review but it got shelved - a more punchy but vintage sound
The La's are as alive to me as they were in the 90s. I saw John Power play live in 2021/22 and it was both an honour and a pleasure 100%. What a legend. Was an acoustic gig. I love The La's. Love and hate and fears etc all in one album. I still really appreciate it. That amazing album would be nothing without the search for perfection and something new (and traditional at same time) by Mr Lee Mavers. Legend.
Mavers may be a good songwriter, though being a musician is more than that. If you are so disfunctional that you sabotage all you do, you are not a genius, though a mess.
Great video mate, awesome band and album! Be great to see you do a video on Shack and in particular one of the greatest albums to never be massive Waterpistol, there’s hell of a story to that band!
People can romanticise about madness and genius being a thin line etc, etc. The problem with the La's and Lee in particular is drugs. There She Goes. Was about heroin not a girl. Enough said. The record labels themselves are partly to blame, they supply the drugs in the perverted logic that it is creative and helps the recording process. You don't need to provide free drugs to young musicians, they will bring enough themselves to be creative. The record labels then complain and apply pressure because the process is taking too long. (Imagine any factory giving all it's workforce free drugs and alcohol and then being confused because productivity has gone down.) These talented kids are ruined by money grabbing record companies. There is a magical moment in life between the ages of 16 and 24 ish, the creative mind is remarkable, the last think it needs is heroin or cocaine or excess alcohol.
I met The La's many times year's ago, sat in on soundchecks etc... A few of which I recorded.... Anyway, on one occasion I mentioned to Lee about the song All By Myself, I said wow that is such a good song or words to that effect. His reply was It's shite! Such a shame, I reckon he'll have plenty of classics recorded in some shape or form that will sadly never get to see the light of day.
Really good documentary. I met John Power on a train to London from Liverpool, what a smashing bloke Really gave me the time of day. I quizzed him about the La's He mentioned a lot of this stuff in your documentary. I also got to see the La's a good few times they were a cracking band. Such a shame Mavers is so very bonkers.
haha, hes not mad!!! (just very intense and anybody that doesn't 'turn a vibe',gets zero attention) hes actually a lovely,spikey sweet dude who is the most incredible musician) never will I hear a bad word against lee as what ive seen of him is boss la!!,
@@brownson1970 Hi Derran.Met an ex band of Lee Mavers who took me on tour of the pool. Another top bloke and great musician in his own right. He never said a bad word about Lee either...other than basically what you said. Liverpool is rich with talent. Looking forward to going back up there this summer.
@@essexboy5520 mad as replying tsg came on 6 music ad! who was the guy? Barry? top lads all, insane musicians that being in pool is like breathing, simple as
@@essexboy5520 yeh , nice one as they do respect privacy especially around LM and rightly so, I could of had hours of playing and hanging around having the crack on video but any decent human being would leave it
The new 'Smiths'. Hahahaha. No disrespect intended, but The La's were an excellent band with a singer who was fussy beyond the meaning of the word. The Smiths had some success but artistically, to whisper the two bands in the same breath is an injustice tonThe La's.
I think the la’s lack of material was due to them being a victim of Lees controlling, obsessive personality. We are lucky we even got one album. He loved the recording with the abbey road mixer until he found out the others went on holiday together without him coz he was a weirdo haha. So really, he did like the album
Lol. Hes a Gallagher, you can just tell by looking at him, he's part of the huge irish bloodline. Everyone who is Irish in Liverpool and Manchester are highly likely to be related..
Another great video, thanks! I never knew the full backstory of the La's. Such a shame that he/they(?) aren't happy with the released album but it sounds like he is/was chasing the impossible.
Further evidence that the words 'music' and 'industry' create a very different compound than the variables they are made up of. Part of the genius is somehow marrying the two if longevity is to be achieved
I've always struggled with Mavers problem with how the LP sounds. Saw them live a few times at the end of the 80's and the recorded version of those songs sounded very, very similar to how they sounded live to my ears.
The problem wasn’t the producers and the engineers. The problem was Lee Mavers, himself, and his psychotic troubles worsened by his massive consumption of drugs. Best regards…
I went to audition for the La's in about 2011... went something like this..can you play (drums) standing up? I said nah you're alright 😂...and that was that..hung around while they got stoned playing my generation and roll over Beethoven on repeat... jimmy the pig and Gary bandit were both in attendance...saw them do two gigs at Kendall calling that year as a 2 piece... phenomenal songs
@@modernchampionmusic81 ha ha yeah that's defo Gary...he's a sensible character now tour management is his game..John robbo moved to London I think with his Mrs...great days in the early 2000s in Liverpool at the Zanzibar...Gary had some great bands playing at the bandwagon...Noel G played for a fiver I think...Mick head used to do a turn...not seen Gary for a while
@@Themanchesteranthems I did fill in for their drummer in 2002 3 pretty decent shows..2 supporting Nelly Furtado...then one with Bowie in Denmark.... can't believe it's 20 years ago this summer!
Seen the bandits support the libertines my first libs gig ,and Peter d first rehab ! (I was really looking forward to see pete) won the tickets from a free metro bus paper (carnt imagine anyone else entered as the band wasn't that big as they are now )
First live band I saw was The La's, before they were famous. They were supporting Joe Strummer & The Latino Rockabilly War at Liverpool Royal Court in 1988. They were one of the best bands I've seen live.
Disagree from the outset. The La’s finished off the ‘60s psychedelia / jangle pop revival of the late ‘80s with an absolute banger of an album. Nothing to do with Britpop. They followed the likes of The Wedding Present / Primitives / Primal Scream. Also - your quite about finishing off what The LA’s started has been credited to Ian Brown as well, so it’s unreliable at best.
well done, well said. i couldn't agree more. Lee was searching for an impossibility. a self defeatist. a deadly self destructive attitude towards his music. on the continuous path to the never never ! i think Steve Lillywhite did a superlative job on producing the sound of that album. its a classic. if only silly Lee the genius could see that. alas he cannot. such a shame ! madman or genius or both? indeed !
The BBC Session’s album is incredible and along with the box set and the deluxe edition of the original album I’ve made alternate versions of the album for my own pleasure. The original album is great but I can understand Lee’s point. I saw the band in 2005 in Belfast and they were amazing.
I'll add mine to the chorus of voices here in the comments saying that the album is indeed underrated. Every track is great, and the best tunes are absolute classics. I personally love "I Can't Sleep". The tightness and power reminds me of "Can't Explain" by The Who. If that was The La's intentionally playing below their greatest abilities, I can only imagine what they were capable of.
@@miamitten1123 Good question and a direct answer: because many people think metal fans are of a one track mind and can't listen to anything outside of that narrow segment. I want to dispel that myth and give credit where credit is due. That is why I prefaced my comment with "metal head". I'd also like to add that I got the record when it was new entirely because of "There She Goes", but I fell head over heels in love with the album over the next few months. I consider it one of the greatest unknown albums AND bands of all time. Hope this helps Mia, and thanks for the question. Cheers 🍺🙂
It is a BRILLIANT Album, but when you hear Fishing Net or Timeless Melody etc live then you kind of get what Lee was trying to put down on Vinyl but couldn't because every now and then they NAILED IT. Great Voice, Great Song Writter, and in truth Great Story Too.
I’ve watched millions of RU-vid videos but had to comment on the amount of adverts you put in this one. It’s absolutely scandalous. I know you’ve got to make a few quid and fair play to you, your videos are decent but won’t be watching many more with skipping ads every 3 minutes.
The Coral were 100 times better than any of these rubbish bands from the Britpop madness. Even Noel Gallagher said they were genius. Just listen to The Coral live on Jools Holland and see the difference, they were so stunning but because they're music was a bit retro and also because they didn't use the media to stay relevant, they didn't make it to be huge. Their albums are masterpieces the best english band since The Beatles by far, even Sir Paul McCartney paid compliments to them. Oasis bearly knew three chords and ripped most of their songs from the Beatles playbook. The Coral were so low-key that even this guy hasn't made a video about them which says a lot about their character becaues they were always a band that came out of the fog of mystery and quietly faded back into it. The Coral didn't play the fame game, a bit like Mansun another amazing band that never quiet reached the heights. Oasis basically copied lots of songs from adverts, films and movies and got away with most of it. They were never a great band but the media had turned them into this giant illusion which wasn't as good as what it seemed. Go listen to The Corals albums then compare them with Oasis and you'll see who's far superior very quickly.
Take it you didn’t see what Noel said about Mavers/LA’s. Watch James Skelly and his mannerisms/vocals in the dreaming of you video, he’s trying to copy Mavers. The coral had a couple of good songs but were no where near on the la’s level.
Got to See the La's in 1988 in the picket. I used to go the Gym there and would see them bringing their gear in. My mate knew John power quite well and he would always have a chat. I also got to see them in 2005 in Ritz Manchester.
well chuffed to stumble upon one of your videos James on Oasis, subscribe and then get to watch some really in depth Oasis stuff. I must say the Seahorses one and this one has been my favourites because I always wondered what the hell happened. The Seahorses one I kind of knew it was down to Squires drug addicted mind and the fact that he didnt see the rest of the band as anything other than there to serve him... with The La's though apart from things I read about Mavers striving for perfection I never saw much if any of this footage or heard a lot of the snippets of interviews so well done. Cast became a decent band, one of my favourites in the early 90's and the first ever gig I attended was Cast at the Forum in Livingston in 1996, All Change was a great album and I even bought all 4 of the singles off the album. I then (like so many other bands back then, pre internet) found out that John Power was in this other band the La's, im sure I had heard other people mention them as I hung about with older guys, and im sure Noel had mentioned them. I knew There She Goes but that was it. When I discovered the album I was blown away and unlike All Change, it hasnt aged. Its a masterpiece.... to be such a maverick, such a genius, such a perfectionist to then sabotage your own album and tell fans not to buy it is on the one hand so honest and commendable and on the other hand absolutely barking mad. I can remember being puzzled to why this guy hadnt released anything else but the bass player had managed to go on and form a big band. Im not knocking Cast cos the album is still okay, but other albums havent aged that great but Lee Mavers and this album will always be right up there for me. Kudos James on another great video, with some brilliant footage and interviews.... im an Oasis nerd too, always have been, always will be and I've watched a lot of your videos on them, but I know the majority of it or I remember it when you re tell me. Do more of this stuff man. This is GOLD
My big brother got me the album in 1993 xmas present. It really was an amazing experience. I loved everything about it. Rocknroll with a dark twist also psychedelic and mellow In parts
You should do a video on the band Space, another scouse group. My dad opened for them once and told me that the guitar player couldn’t go to America on tour because he had a dealing charge
How could you do a bio on the La’s and fail to mention the release of BBC In Session-it is the same material as the album, but sounds a million times better: incredible soundstage, 3 dimensional, raw and “rooty” (as Lee and John would say). Absolutely incomprehensible omission. In comparison, the Lilywhite album is slick, lifeless, and flat.
Sadly, IOU is the only finished mix on that album, the rest is all early mixes with many layers missing and playing at the wrong speed. You can find the finished versions of Timeless Melody and Clean Prothet on the Callin All compilation album.
Wow,imagine if they'd gone to Ardent in Memphis.... Yeah I know.... fanboy fantasy..... again.. Maybe they heard Big Star? Still tho',they quite possibly could have benefited from a Chris Bell/Alex Chilton/Jim Dickinson/ John Fry production. I read Ardent used Abbey Road gear as well. A #1 Record,Radio City,or,Sister Lovers vibe would sound pretty wild on La's stuff. Also,I just mentioned 4 separate producers so I wonder if Mavers would wear each one out in succession? My morning coffee is getting inordinately long here.
Lee obviously had some kind of insecurity that caused him to sabotage everything, maybe something happened to him as a kid, shame he couldn’t get some help when he was young
Unpopular opinion but to me they're just decent pop songs, I hear nothing genius, innovative or special. I mean it's a good album. But people love the folklore and the allure of a maverick and then put them on this pedestal. Mavers most definitely is not a genius. I think he was always insecure about his ability and fronted it with bravado.
I’ve tried with this album loads and imo it’s an over rated pile of dog shite. Cast get the piss taken out of them and I can’t for the life of me see why. John power doesn’t get the credit he deserves
