Various Artists – Rough Trade Shops present: HEROES VOL. 1

Rough Trade are releasing a 2CD compilation of 40 tracks, on 2nd September.

Rough Trade Shops celebrates its 40th anniversary this year and this is the second compilation to mark the occasion. Following our recent cover version selection COVERS VOL.1 (RTCOV1), this double CD is a set of our favourite songs about other musicians, all of which were released in the 40 years since we first opened our front door in 1976.

40 Years. 40 Heroes ... Songs about Prince, Debby Harry, David Bowie, Morrissey, Wu Tang Clan, Frank Sinatra, R.E.M., Tammy Wynette, Stevie Nicks, Nick Drake, Will Oldham, Elvis Presley, Joey Ramone, Dennis Brown, G.G. Allin, Wham!, Johnny Cash and more, all performed across musical styles as varied as you would expect from Rough Trade, especially so with the added caveat of a four decade timeline.

Of course there are tracks from the post punk era that Rough Trade is most often associated with, this time in the form of The (ubiquitous) Fall’s gothic eulogy to Can’s Damo Suzuki, the unique creativity of Psychic TV’s offering to Brain Jones and the pioneering Cabaret Voltaire pay indie-electro respect to James Brown. Elsewhere you will hear psychobilly-noise from the incendiary Butthole Surfers, radio-friendly alt-rock from They Might Be Giants and classic indie hits from Rough Trade alumni Cornershop and Le Tigre. There is a slice of lo-fi funk from Sexual Harassment and expansive melancholic rock from Radiohead alongside heartfelt tributes to The Beatles and Jello Biafra from the much–loved Daniel Johnston and Wesley Willisrespectively. There are beautifully written and performed arrangements from Songs Ohia, Joan as Police Woman, Robyn Hitchcock, Mountain Goats, Calexico andSun Kil Moon, tweeness and indiepop from Camera Obscura, Stereo Total and Helen Love and brooding post rock from Mogwai, while Fat White Family apply their signature psychedelic slo-motion baggy treatment to honour Thy Lord Indie God Mark E. Smith. Add in rockers from Pavement and Brakes, electronica jams from Colourboxand Matmos, we even have the iconic Sparks’ honouring Morrissey, and here you have yet another sparkling selection dreamed up by the Rough Trade brain trust.

Each of these songs is a window to a room in the minds of artists, a room reserved for contemplating the art of others, be they influences, obsessions, contemporaries or fantasies, lovers, haters, emetics, madmen, villains or heroes.” Ed Zed, Rough Trade New York.

Various Artists – Rough Trade Shops HEROES VOL. 1 (RTHER1)

Disc 1
1. 1980 FAMILY FODDER Debbie Harry
2. 1980 THE MAGGOTS (Let's Get, Let's Get) Tammy Wynette
3. 1982 PETER AND THE TEST TUBE BABIES Elvis Is Dead
4. 1983 DANIEL JOHNSTON The Beatles
5. 1984 CABARET VOLTAIRE James Brown
6. 1984 SEXUAL HARASSMENT We Want Prince
7. 1985 THE FALL I Am Damo Suzuki
8. 1985 PSYCHIC TV Godstar (Brian Jones)
9. 1986 COLOURBOX Phillip Glass
10. 1988 BUTTHOLE SURFERS Julio Iglesias
11. 1991 HALF MAN HALF BISCUIT Prag Vec at The Melkweg
12. 1991 THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS We're The Replacements
13. 1992 RADIOHEAD Anyone Can Play Guitar (Jim Morrison)
14. 1994 NOISE ADDICT I Wish I Was Him (Evan Dando)
15. 1996 WESLEY WILLIS Jello Biafra
16. 1996 THE BRIAN JONESTOWN MASSACRE (David Bowie I Love You)Since I Was Six
17. 1997 CORNERSHOP Brimful of Asha (Asha Bhosle)
18. 1998 NEIL HAMBURGER Snoop Doggy Dogg
19. 1998 LE TIGRE Hot Topic (The Slits, Joan Jett and more)
20. 1999 THE DRIVE-BY TRUCKERS The Night G.G. Allin Came To Town
21. 1999 STEREO TOTAL Ringo, I Love You
22. 2000 ROBYN HITCHCOCK I Saw Nick Drake
23. 2001 MISS KITTIN AND THE HACKER Frank Sinatra

Disc 2
1. 2002 SONGS OHIA Steve Albini’s Blues
2. 2003 CALEXICO Not Even Stevie Nicks…
3. 2004 SONS AND DAUGHTERS Johnny Cash
4. 2004 PAVEMENT Unseen Power of The Picket Fence (R.E.M.)
5. 2005 BRAKES Heard About Your Band
6. 2005 THE MOUNTAIN GOATS Song for Dennis Brown
7. 2005 JEFFREY AND JACK LEWIS Williamsburg Will Oldham Horror
8. 2006 MATMOS Solo Buttons for Joe Meek
9. 2006 CAMERA OBSCURA Dory Previn
10. 2007 JOAN AS POLICE WOMAN We Don't Own It (Elliott Smith)
11. 2007 HELEN LOVE Debbie Loves Joey (Debbie Harry and Joey Ramone)
12. 2008 SPARKS Lighten Up, Morrissey
13. 2008 MOGWAI I’m Jim Morrison, I'm Dead
14. 2010 THE BOY LEAST LIKELY TO George and Andrew (Wham!)
15. 2011 ALLO, DARLIN’ Wu Tang Clan
16. 2014 SUN KIL MOON Ben’s My Friend (Ben Gibbard)
17. 2014 FAT WHITE FAMILY I Am Mark E. Smith

Preorder here! http://www.roughtrade.com/albums/105673