Better Scream / Make That Move

Recorded 17th August 1981 for the Richard Skinner show, Radio 1. Broadcast August 1981. Later released on "Peel Sessions Plus" (2007) and "Wilder" deluxe edition (2013)

Julian Cope - Vocals

Troy Tate - guitar

Jeff Hammer - Keyboards

Alfie Agius - bass

Gary Dwyer - drums

Ted Emmett, Luke Tunney - brass

Written by Pete Wylie / Kevin Spencer / William Shelby / Ricky Smith

When the Teardrop Explodes were joined by the NME's Adrian Thrills on the Canadian leg of their US tour in May 1981, Julian Cope told Thrills he had all the songs ready to record for the band's second album, once the band returned to the studio in September that year. He added he wanted to include some covers too - a song by The Zombies and - quoting the article - "his pal Pete Wylie's epic 'Better scream', the first Wah! Heat single".

There was always a strange relationship between Cope and Wylie. Sure they were in the Crucial Three with Ian McCulloch but once Mac and Cope's careers started building on Zoo Records, it seemed like Wylie was left behind. But in Liverpool his reputation was huge, enhanced by his close relationship with Pete Fulwell, the co-owner of Eric's and his label boss at Inevitable Records. When Wah! Heat issued "Better scream" - in the same month as the Zoo issue of "Treason" - it received instant single of the week acclaim. Cope helped out when Wah! Heat made their live debut, playing organ in the background and watching Wylie sing his "snotty strung out bitch-ballads ... The gothic Glen Campbell". More singles followed including the classic "Seven minutes to midnight", and Wylie gave good interviews - coining the controversial term "rockist" in a January 1981 NME feature. But all was not well on Planet Wah! Their LP "Nah Poo! The Art Of Bluff" wasn't quite the Stunning Debut Album everyone expected and their lineup became almost as fluid as the Teardrops' own. Cope was obviously still influenced by Wylie though (see five blog posts into the future) and took note of the music he was making. I'm not quite sure why he thought covering "Better Scream" for "The Great Dominions" was a good idea, unless as a hat tip to a friend and colleague on the scene. Certainly he wasn't considering covering "Pictures on the wall".

August 1981 was a time for the gears of promotion to start grinding for the Teardrop Explodes. "Passionate friend" was in the can and ready for release towards the end of the month. On the 16th August the Teardrops were filmed at Nottingham Theatre Royal for a live video (Dexys Midnight Runners were filmed at the same venue that day too on their Projected Passion Tour). The following day they recorded a four song session for the Richard Skinner show on Radio 1 and a most intriguing session it is too.

Possibly Cope had decided by now that he wasn't going to place "Better scream" on the second album but they'd spent time arranging and rehearsing it so they may as well play it for the Beeb one time, the kind of one off speciality that happened at BBC sessions from time to time (Magazine playing "Boredom", Pixies playing "Wild Honey Pie", Age of Chance playing "Kiss", Sonic Youth covering Fall songs, you can make your own list). And while they're at it, why not make it a medley with "Make that move" by Shalamar? I mean, why wouldn't you? It could be one of two things - a disaster or an absolute triumph.

In "Head On" Cope believes the song was about the Illuminati (no Julian, that was Bill Drummond's obsession) but a quick look at the lyrics indicate it's about Cuba and the CIA, but there's definitely a paranoid air to the song. In the Teardrops reworking that paranoia is directed elsewhere. Cope pretty much rewrites the entire lyric for "Better scream", only the opening lines remain intact. By the turn of the first bridge, Cope's moved on - he's fighting like a man possessed - and for the second verse "You'd better pray" becomes "I say my prayers", Cope is inverting the song as it progresses. He's singing with such passion too - hear how he stretches the word "smile" at the end of the second verse. There's a brief brass solo after the second bridge before the song moves into another section and it's almost like Cope is addressing Wylie - "So listen to me cos I've been there too, it's just that I got there earlier than you..." Ouch! 

Then it turns into Shalamar's "Make that move", or least a vague facsimile of the song. The band vamp on a riff and Cope repeats the line over and over until another section, huge church organ chords and Cope is almost shouting some incredible lines, referencing another song from the same BBC session, then one of the most unsettling lines in the entire Teardrops catalogue (I can't even bear to write it, it's about kittens for God's sake!), before Cope repeats "What d'you say?" over and over as the band fade out.

And it's not just Cope's on the edge performance which makes the song so special. The entire band sound like they're playing out of their skins. Dwyer's drums hammer hard, Agius pumps away on bass - subtle on "Better scream", more forward and funky on "Make that move". Tate's guitar playing is extraordinary - unison lines with Agius on the introduction, chiming harmonics on the "Better scream" verses leading to perfect half chords and lead lines in the bridges, followed by some wild soloing unlike anything in the Teardrops discography. His guitar becomes more unhinged as the song progresses, single notes and flurries of dissonance everywhere. Hammer's organ chords are the glue holding to the song together, until the "Make that move" section where his playing becomes more discordant, some wild organ runs, swells and swirls. By the song's fade, Hammer and Tate are battling for noisy supremacy where Dwyer and Agius hold the song together. 

As far as I can tell, the Teardrops never played "Better scream / Make that move" live - the summer 81 shows of that era were tightly setlisted, but as with other songs in this four song session, this gives an idea of what "The Great Dominions" would have sounded like had this lineup remained in place long enough to record it. As it is, this unique medley is one of the best examples of the power of this particular lineup of the Teardrop Explodes, only a month away from dissolving.