Exploring Ian Dury, The Blockheads & HIT ME WITH YOUR RHYTHM STICK | New British Canon

Even amongst the ragamuffins and likely lads of the UK Punk scene, Ian Dury stood out. In his late 30s, with his left arm and leg withered from Polio, and in love with Stax, Motown and free jazz - But that is also what made him transcend. Aided by the funk-punk backing of the Blockheads, his acerbic Estuary wit was on full display on the band's only UK number one, an around the world jaunt that takes in Bingo Lingo, James Brown and the universal appeal of copulation. This is New British Canon and this is the story of “Hit Me with Your Rhythm Stick.”
#IanDury #Punk #MusicDocumentary
Fact-checking by Serenity Autumn.
Soundtrack
Luar - Citrine ( / luarbeats )
Jesse Gallagher - The Golden Present
Luar - Anchor ( / luarbeats )
00:00 Introduction
00:45 Before The Blockheads: Kilburn & The High Roads
05:38 Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll & New Boots & Panties!!
13:24 Creating "Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick"
17:59 The Legacy of Ian Dury & The Blockheads
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[@TrashTheory]

So what's your favourite Ian Dury song? Comment down below! Trash Theory playlist - Spotify: tinyurl.com/yxp32pjf Apple Music: tinyurl.com/2p83px9m Deezer: tinyurl.com/y2mdp8h2 Also if you want to help support the channel, here's my patreon link: patreon.com/trashtheory

[@electrolinks]

Reasons to Be Cheerful, Part 3 is a standout. Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll, My old man... I always learn something new from your well researched videos. Thanks and Cor Blimey.

[@GrahamMilkdrop]

It has to be 'Reasons to Be Cheerful, Part 3. '.... where else would you get lyrics like: 'Dominica camels... All other mammals and equal votes...'! and a shoutout to Rico Rodriguez in the same song?

[@daemonnice]

too many to name

[@dambrooks7578]

Billericay Dickie, a fascinating story about the Essex Boy mentality, of course being born in Essex and being a male doesn't influence my choice at all 😇

[@dambrooks7578]

I really should have said Plaistow Patricia shouldn't I...?

[@meboppie]

One piece of trivia is that Ian’s funeral was paid for by his label mate at Stiff Records, Kirsty MacColl (who I also adore). Nine months later she was killed in a careless boating accident in Cozumel. She died saving her oldest son.

[@iainjohnson1235]

worth remembering that his song 'Spasticus Autsticus' was banned at the time by the BBC. But used at the opening of the Paralaympics in London 2012. I'm sure he would have enjoyed that!

[@V8AmericanMuscleCar]

Great song! ❤

[@rockymaldonado7758]

Coolest thing ever

[@janinebedfordl]

At the risk of sounding exactly like the old fart that I am, I'm so glad I grew up at a time when the pop singles chart was full of such diverse music / artists. Ian Dury - a huge talent and a fascinating man

[@LividImp]

My wife and I say this to each other all the time. I feel bad for the kids that grew up in the last 30ish years. So much of the music is so bland and lifeless, and that goes a long way to explain why the top song in the world right now is from 1985.

[@frangarcia7774]

I assure you there's a lot of great stuff coming out every year... It's only harder to find

[@janinebedfordl]

@@frangarcia7774 Exactly and as a result my youngest son has little interest in music in general and what he does listen to is mostly old stuff that he's picked up on through his older brother's collection. It used to be all around you

[@LividImp]

@@frangarcia7774 There is still some great stuff, but the shear volume and variety is just not the same. It took me decades to catch up with all the music I wanted in the 80s. The big difference now is that it is super easy to hear music from halfway around the world. In the 80s I would have never guessed that I'd be mostly listening to bands from places like Turkey, Spain, or New Zealand.

[@TheOnlyCathyCat]

the charts is STILL full of diverse music......boomers, man, I swear they get high off their own farts.

[@cogsnbanjo]

Seriously, Ian Dury and the Blockheads was the best live act I ever saw. So much energy and humour. He was exhausted at the end of the gig - he gave it everything.

[@antschiari8000]

The Blockheads are hugely underrated as musicians!!!

[@rickjones4133]

Truth.

[@sd3457]

Ian couldn't have been Ian, without such a fantastically tight and awesome band behind him. I never got to see the Blockheads, but I've seen Norman Watt-Roy a few times with Wilko and he is for my money the most underrated bassist ever.

[@decairn]

Super tight band, they always amaze me when I sit and listen.

[@geraldfriend256]

They’re unreal

[@bruffie]

Best rhythm section ever. Norman was astonishing.

[@martinmcwilliams]

Meet Ian Dury years ago in Belfast such a delightful guy he was everything you wanted him to be.

[@zyxxy]

Ian was a moody geezer, bit of a sulky but overall a top bloke. He's sorely missed.

[@markofsaltburn]

You were lucky you caught him on a good day 😀

[@kieranmclaughlin8920]

Excellent. 👏🙂

[@kevincross9206]

I think Ian is often overlooked when thinking about the influential people in British music. I saw the Blockheads at a local venue a few years back, and they blew me away, being a would be bassist, Norman is a legend!

[@pcno2832]

1:28 Gene Vincent kept performing not only after his 1955 motorcycle accident, but even after his body was wrecked further in the Wiltshire crash that killed Eddie Cochran. As his career waned, he developed a habit of pointing guns around recklessly and in 1968 he even took a few shots at Gary Glitter. For better or worse, he missed.

[@Vinyladdict95]

Definitely for worse. Gary Glitter is trash

[@kieranmclaughlin8920]

Thankyou. #legend 👊

[@marsh443]

Too bad he missed! Tkx PC

[@philsurtees]

He probably would have been a better shot if not for that plane crash, dammit!

[@benpotaka5893]

That's a shame he didn't ice that nonce

[@chasetower6773]

Ian is still Much loved in the US.

[@plasticsoundwavecult]

My dad was in the USAF and our family were stationed in England. I still remember when “Hit Me…” was in the charts and watching it on TotP. 1978 was a wonderful year to hear all of that new music.

[@Spectrescup]

The difference between chart music in the US and the UK between about 78 and 82 was enormous. You picked a good time to be here.

[@kevinparker461]

Years ago i remember Elton John being on the radio & saying Ian Dury had some of the best musicians of the time in the Block heads, souded right to me!.

[@Frip36]

So he's like an English Captain Beefheart?

[@NewFalconerRecords]

The new wave era was a remarkably open time for artists in their 30s to suddenly be cutting-edge rock artists (which would have been unthinkable in earlier times). People such as Dury himself, Debbie Harry, Lemmy, Andy Summers of the Police and Dave Edmunds all had a new lease on their careers.

[@triffidkiller1234]

You can add Charlie Harper, Hugh Cornwell, Jet Black and Dave Greenfield.

[@NewFalconerRecords]

@@triffidkiller1234 Indeed!

[@dingdongism]

I don’t think Lemmy’s relevance had anything to do with being in the new wave era, other than coincidence. How is his success related in any way to new wave?

[@kieranmclaughlin8920]

@@dingdongism Hey Doug... em... as all musicians are... Lemmy was a total muso. He loved all types of music. Musos do, Doug. Stay cool, bro. 👊

[@blackmore4]

@@dingdongism All the punks I knew loved Motorhead. They were one of the few metal bands that still seemed cool in that era. Probably the only one come to think of it.

[@marsh443]

What an insult, Drury' voice was the best! That deep clear rasp is stellar & can't be duplicated, ever. To this day, i go wild over Ian's music & miss him madly. RIP luv, you left us far too soon, there was so much more for you to create. Rock on!

[@AutPen38]

I used to think Ian Dury's voice was unique, but then I discovered his son Baxter Dury (the kid on the front of "New Boots") sounds almost identical. Baxter delivers his vocals in similar way too, at least on the records of his from about 2010. Well worth checking out on Spotify.

[@marsh443]

@@AutPen38 OMG, tkx 4 the heads up. Rock on & live well Baxter D👍

[@Maldoror200]

@marsh443..Hey marsh.., I Love You, for that Beautiful Comment/ Declaration, to Ian Dury..Truly Beautifully spoken, and Clearly Sincere.., Righteous 🎸!!, Love, K

[@simplesimon5739]

Makes me realise how lucky I was to be a teenager and live with such great musicians.

[@freddysquirenaranjo4859]

In my late fifties now, probably like you and yes, we were very lucky.... to hear and see these great bands!!!!

[@rudetuesday]

My favorite Ian Dury song is Reasons to Be Cheerful, Pt. 3. The combination of things I knew upon first listen and the incredibly puzzling and intriguing stuff said in a foreign accent fascinated me enough to play the song over and over again. Trying to figure out what all the things were before the internet existed was a big challenge. I think I became a fan through sheer effort.

[@ronfriedman8740]

My reply was Reasons as well ...while I never got to see the Blockheads, it was a dance favorite for sure.

[@ampersand2001]

I don't have enough superlatives for your work. I just fucking love it. All of it. Thank you for spreading music knowledge in an accessible and interesting way. Even as a hardcore music nerd I always learn something from your videos. 🖖🖖🖖

[@bacht4799]

He is one of the reason why KZbin is too tolerant besides the garbage.. it’s such a great work he does and we very thankful for it .. 😎

[@austintrousdale2397]

An upload by TT is appointment viewing 👏💯

[@johnpresnell]

Agreed!

[@SebastianGrantElKiva]

This is pure love.

[@Qlyphy]

After a bloody busy week at work, a trash theory video is a great start to the weekend, much appreciation from a 70's child :-)

[@arthurmcgonnell1179]

i can still remember going to school as a 6 yr old , the day after watching Rhythm stick was performed on TOTP & the whole class was going mad hitting each other with anything stick like! ..Top Magician ! x

[@paulgmarriott]

As an early Costello fan, I went along to the Stiff tour in Birmingham - in my red shoes, as I recall - yet was impressed by the unique, eccentric stage persona and physical stance of Dury, whom I'd never seen nor heard of before. It was only later that I learned of his unfortunate tangle with Polio and how that contributed to that stance. Top geezer, gawd bless 'im.

[@danneumann3274]

I am going to see elvis in august. 2nd row center seats.

[@kieranmclaughlin8920]

Well cool. 👊

[@cattycakes64]

Hugely influential, hugely talented and incredibly funny. Ian and the lads set my small suburban dance and life on fire. I still play their songs and smile everytime I do.

[@kevintyerman1906]

As an Australian I have a number of times been surprised to learn, via Trash Theory, that British bands that I thought were alternative turned out to be mainstream in Britain (eg: Echo and the Bunnymen). This time my surprise was that Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll didn't get radio airplay in Britain, as it got decent airplay here in Australia (although by Wikipedia it didn't chart here - Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick made number 2).

[@kieranmclaughlin8920]

Well cool, bro. 👊 Kieran, from Glasgow.

[@AutPen38]

Britain was going through a bit of a puritanical phase where we didn't like any mention of sex and drugs or swearing. It was quite controversial when people found out that "Hit Me" was basically a euphemism for sex. It was also a bit shocking that the b-side was called something like "There ain't half been some clever bastards". Britain was a country that was terrified of punks and the Sex Pistols were being prosecuted for having the word "Bollocks" on their album sleeve. Daytime radio was very anodyne, but the youngsters were getting some controversial artists in the charts, and sometimes their parents quite liked the tunes when the bands appeared on Top of the Pops. A lot of it was "noise" though, as mums across the nation just wanted to hear Cliff Richard.

[@bobbenson6825]

So happy you did this, Ian Dury was one of my absolute favorites during the 70's punk explosion. So unique and funny, with wonderful songs. I was able to get Melody Maker in my college town and he was one of the best I learned about through it.

[@ruangrant4147]

Brilliant as always. Would love to see you do something about XTC. Never thought they got the credit they deserved for how influential they were and they were effectively new wave's Lennon and McCartney.

[@kieranmclaughlin8920]

Bloody hell. They weren't bad. Not the same as Ian Dury though. Stay cool. 👊

[@KoenraadWeiss]

I first thought you meant the drug

[@Frip36]

i like that xtc song where the singer starts yelling like a madman.

[@DrDooDah]

I was lucky enough to see Ian & the Blockheads in 1999, on their final tour. Fantastic night. Incredible band.

[@lincbond442]

Trash Theory does the best music documentaries on KZbin. The information is very well articulated and I always learn so much after watching these videos. Thanks!!!

[@billbennett9309]

Love this, thanks for making it. Been re-listening to a lot of Ian Dury recently. My 14YO enby child is very hard to impress with my crappy old Gen X tunes, but even they give props to "Sex & Drugs & Rock'n'Roll" - surely the funkiest, most musically accomplished of punk songs to ever trouble the charts.

[@SyntaxErr19287]

Enby :/

[@ETBrenner]

Billericay Dickie was actually the first of his songs I ever heard - even though I'm in the USA, I happened to be living in Boston at the time, which had some awesome FM radio stations that were on top of the punk rock thing from the gitgo. And I fell in love with the song, despite or even because of all the Britishisms - but most of all because of Drury's wonderful anarchic music-hall delivery, as he takes his working-stiff protagonist from drunken bawdy cheek to drunken weepy pathos and back.

[@NathanWind99]

Reasons To Be Cheerful, Pt 3 is great, it's just Ian name-checking all his favorite things. Years ago I saw a clip from I think a benefit concert for Ian, where Saffron from Republica sang Mash It Up Harry, it seems to have disappeared from the internet but I'd love to see it again.

[@robbiem1961]

I'm an old git now, but was a youngster in the late 70s early 80s, it has to be said that MR DURY is probably my hero, along with John Lydon, my 24 year old son has grown up listening to These artist/LP's/songs and he rates them as well: bloody brilliant

[@robbiem1961]

@kyfaydfsoab whether you like it or not, but old age IS COMING TO YOU, one day at a time

[@camerondodge2070]

Even though a lot of acts like his have been kicked out of the punk pantheon for not being 'truly punk', I will always say that the greatest punk rocker was Ian Dury. Shame that punk had to be nailed down to a specific sound instead of the wide ranging movement it was. And a shame that more people in the States don't know about Dury and the Blockheads.

[@geraldfriend256]

In Austin Texas US A they got quite a bit of airplay on the aor stations mid 70s on

[@camerondodge2070]

@@geraldfriend256 Yeah, they got some decent regional play in some spaces, but the majority of people didn't know them. Heck, a lot of people over here still don't know them to this day. It's to the extent that you'd think the Blockheads, and others, had been written out of history. Of course, the change of punk in the late 70's didn't help any. Went from a wide ranging movement of many sounds to a specific sound and look, and if you didn't conform you were out. Because of that, acts that didn't fit in were forgotten about, and aren't brought up in the conversation.

[@johannbogason1662]

The first punks were probably The Kinks. Rest is history... ;)

[@imogenx9145]

Watching this I was surprised by how many of these songs I know but had never realised were Ian Dury and the Blockheads which is weird because he sounds so unique. I've been in a bubble of Cool for Cats and I Wanna Be Straight my whole life.

[@ThreadBomb]

Cool for Cats isn't by Dury! It's Squeeze copying Dury.

[@imogenx9145]

@@ThreadBomb oh thanks for the info, that makes sense!

[@stepheng8779]

@@ThreadBomb Copying?? 😂

[@stevejohnson1231]

Very interesting. I saw The Who in 1973 at Kings Hall Manchester and always thought later on it must have been Ian Dury backing them up but didn't know at the time because nobody paid any attention to them. You just confirmed it for me, thanks!

[@trentonbaird8956]

I was driving to work this morning, listening to the Stranglers, and thought, “This would be a great subject for ‘New British Canon’.” And then I learned that they supported Ian, and had a nice chuckle. Thanks for sharing.

[@papalazarou6674]

It was the first record I owned, and it still sounds great to this day I've told my children I want this played at my funeral

[@davidhoward3376]

I was very lucky to see Ian and The Blockheads perform at the Old Waldorf in San Francisco.....opening for Lou Reed..2 nights in a row...March 21 & 22 1978!! I still have the ticket stubs...Good Memories!!

[@bingbong7316]

I remember the breath of fresh air that arrived as the antidote to musicians disappearing up their own chuffs in waves of self-indulgent pomp. Great energy, and "New Boots" was breathtaking to my ears. A great time to be young, we were spoiled. Edit: Clever Trevor.

[@fasthracing]

Clever bastard

[@bernardtonge5518]

Saw them play the Olympic Ballroom in Dublin, late 70's. Probably the best gig ever.

[@SlackrUk]

Frightens me to think how young I was when I was listening to his music, but it's stuck with me all these years :) The older I get the more I appreciate it :)

[@gethappycyclingcampingoutdoors]

Seen Ian Dury & the Blockheads in Australia round 1978/79, one of the best concerts I've ever seen.

[@gerryedwards9738]

Great film! Possibly one of the best funk bands to have come out of the UK. And the lyrics! Poetry you can dance to.

[@allanrussack2844]

I’m so glad to see this documentary on Ian Dury. I love his words and funky tight bands!

[@corkpop8401]

Ian Dury and the Blockheads toured the SUNY colleges in upstate New York in 1978. He was very gracious and glad to be there. He opened for Lou Reed. It was a hard act to follow. Dury was throwing to the audience little badges each with one word of SDRR. Great performer

[@PelleSpokes]

The geat thing about this channel is that I discover some of the most interesting stories about music history. Stories you'd never have heard of if they weren't still being told.

[@TomMouat]

Great video as always. What a legend Ian was. I never realised how much he changed music

[@roxy_muso]

What a treat to see this drop on my homepage this evening! Huge fan of the Blockheads and the Kilburn & the High Roads album, Dury's work has such wit and a funny endearing - and enDuring - quality, and he's a fascinating character having transcended incredibly difficult circumstances growing up disabled in the '50s. He also studied art under Peter Blake, and in turn taught Clive Langer who went on to form Deaf School (a wonderful band from that era who still remain largely unknown despite having a very unique sound and approach) and produce Elvis Costello (small world) among others. 'Upminster Kid' is one of my all-time favourite songs, thanks for giving the Kilburns and Blockheads their due recognition. Great video that didn't disappoint, look forward to who'll you cover next in this series.

[@FloatyWeirdo]

my grandad introduced me to ian dury he put on New boots and panties (the album) and sang clevor trevor along with the track a few months pass and the song is glued to my mind. As a child my grandad had always been a stubborn man without humour. but i grew the nerve to mention the song was stuck in my head. He invited me to a Madness concert with opening act Squeeze. Stranglers with Ruts DC The Damned Sham 69 and ever since the concerts ive stuck by punk as opposed to whatever crap i was listening to. Ian Dury has been the one artist to stay glued to me and taught me a lot.

[@jean_con]

New Boots and Panties is a transcendent record for me, I adore Ian Dury, thank you for covering him!

[@kadiummusic]

A true genius! By any measure Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick and Reasons To Be Cheerful Pt.3 are two of the greatest pop songs every written, performed and produced, period!

[@johnpresnell]

Because I follow your channel I watched this dutifully, without knowing much about the act. I was so knocked-out that I watched it a couple more times before buying an album and the 2010 biopic. Nothing more fun than discovering great music!

[@jemwand2530]

I thoroughly enjoyed this video, I felt that it was well researched, succinct, yet covered the major aspects of a much loved British icon, who is so sadly overlooked today.

[@benjammin8184]

The man was a rare gem. Technically brilliant and a poet.

[@donaldanderson6604]

I saw the Blockheads at Leeds in 1980. One of the tightest bands I've ever heard with Ian Dury channelling his inner Noel Coward. Amazing.

[@CdEmm50]

I saw them in the Portsmouth Guildhall, it was 1979 I believe. I joined the RAF the next summer, in 1980.

[@--pbrstreetgang--]

I heard "Hit me with your Rhythm Stick" on a NY FM station on the way home from high school the year it came out. It blew me away, and then I didn't hear it again for years. Nobody played it over here - because he had lost his US distribution. A huge million selling hit in the UK, but radio silence across the pond.

[@greyguy.960]

This channel is a music lovers' delight .

[@jxy566]

This is a brilliant vid! Bloody love Ian Dury thanks in no small part to my Dad who was a big fan, still playing his earlier stuff in the 80s when I grew up. Still remember the Christmas he slipped on "New Boots and Panties" when my rather straight-laced Grandparents were over and claimed he had forgot about the sweary intro to "Plaistow Patricia" whilst clearly delighted with the shock and outrage it caused in his in-laws!

[@MultiAmbivalent]

I love this series and the concept behind it. I admire how you are almost archiving musicians and songs which warrant further examination. For a lot of artists there is LITERALLY nothing more to be said about them. They have been studied and analysed from every possible angle that any new book or journal article is merely a re-hash. I'm referring to the Beatles, Dylan, Bowie, Springsteen, Pink Floyd as examples. Any new book written about them is merely being done to sell books, not to explore un-chartered territory. Ian Dury is one who deserves more exposure and I applaud you for this. I have found myself writing drafts in my head for similar Australian songs and bands deserving of more discussion. For many outside Australia (as well as in) Australian bands consist of AC/DC, Nick Cave, The Bee Gees (Brit-Australian, I know, but Barry Gibb still identifies as such), INXS. But there are many artists who have done incredible work and don't even get recognised here. So you might see rip-off of this at some point ha ha. But well done! Keep up the great work.

[@TheBobbymcd]

met Ian when i was a roadie at the glasgow apollo...i thought him and the band were the roadies for the blockheads as they looked so unshaven and wearing long coats..kinda cool looking roadies with htese great London geezer accents. I particularly got on really well with the head roadie...so, after speaking to Ian for quite some time ( my fellow mates and roadies were strangely quiet) i asked him, 'so are this mob any good!?' Ian's smile got even bigger as one of my mates said ' bobby ffsake, that IS the band! one of the nicest people i will ever meet in my life....god bless you Ian.

[@laurieharper1526]

Thanks for this. Always had a soft spot for My Old Man and Clever Trever, off New Boots & Panties. I was living in Peckham at the time and had a pal who was an engineer at the Workhouse studio on the Old Kent Road. We were at his flat one evening and he played us rough mixes of some of the songs on NB&P before it came out. We were blown away by them.

[@TimScottSuiGeneris]

I've only recently became familiar with Ian Dury in 2017, what a glorious discovery his group was. The Blockheads were an excellent assembly of musicians, thanks for this video.

[@DUNKIN_DEAN]

I remember hearing some of New Boots…in NYC. I really enjoyed it. I used to pour over the pages of NME or Trouser Press, looking for info on him and his band. I was totally blown away by its followup, Do It Yourself, with the wallpaper cover art. My all-time favorite Dury song was (and still is) “Inbetweenies”. Cockney accent aside, I could never understand why Ian Dury wasn’t bigger here in the U.S. I miss Lord Upminster all the time.

[@simoncoker3180]

Thank you. Always loved IDATB, Thanks for expanding my knowledge.

[@JackJack-sv3ip]

Sadly missed and never replaced, I miss his, on the ball and frank lyrics...."what a jolly bad show If all you ever do is business you don't like" is so true to life... I saw him play a festival at Wollaton hall in Nottingham in summer 1998, he was near the end of his life but his perfomance is still one of my favorites, thank you Ian.

[@MichaelDembinski]

Marvellous. I was fortunate enough to have caught the Stiff Live Stiffs tour in late 1977 - hadn't seen Ian Dury before; he opened the set with Billericay Dickie and I was immediately entranced by this eclectic mixture of fairground Cockney wideboy and rock'n'roll. Incidentally, Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll - nothing more than the phrase 'Wine, Women and Song' in a late 20th century context.

[@Phreestyle1]

I had the pleasure of seeing Ian and the Blockheads when they toured Australia in the late '70s. They were at our concert hall and the place was only half full, but it is still one of the best gigs I have ever seen. Great musos and a great energy.

[@fletchkeilman2205]

This right here is why I subscribe. I absolutely love Ian and all The Blockheads. Norman Watt Roy would jam Wilco quite often. Wilco would join the Blockheads from time to time, and Roy the same with Doc Feel-good. I believe some of The Pirates did the same as well. Mick Green was absolutely amazing and highly underrated. Love how Paul from The Clash gave a shout out to both Ian AND Doc Feel-good. The Clash.....love em or hate em.....knew what was up. Strummer LOVED the band Third World War.....Terry Stamp and crew were definitely a band/people this channel should look into as well. I'd love to see you get info on all of that as well. Perfect fit for this channel, IMHO. Keep up the awesome Work!! Sorry I'm carrying on a bit. I just love this music, and I'm super stoked to have people point them out to the younger generation. Plus......it's an amazing musical rabbit hole once you get started. Again. Thank you so much for doing this.

[@euge1210]

Congrats for this excelent video! Will share with all my friends woho also love ID & The Blockheads!

[@thevirtualtraveler]

As an American, I am utterly unfamiliar with Ian Dury, and I've heard 'Hit Me with Your Rhythm Stick" 3 times in my 45 year life. BUT, so saying, I remember each of those three times. It's a very unique song that always stands out.

[@kieranmclaughlin8920]

Em... listen to stuff not produced by the USA music industry, then. That's what Punk was. Indie afterwards. Now...X factor and stuff. Total shite ! Stay cool. 👊

[@thevirtualtraveler]

@@kieranmclaughlin8920 Sadly, as a teen in the 90s, one didn't have much opportunity for exposure to stuff not produced by the USA music industry. We listened to what was on the radio and MTv (which was still relevant at the time). But I do my best to correct that now. One reason I love this channel. I've discovered so many new to me favorites. (Side note, Kieran is a really pretty name. Well done your parents!)

[@kieranmclaughlin8920]

@@thevirtualtraveler Aww, hey, thankyou. That's very kind. 🙂 x

[@kieranmclaughlin8920]

@@thevirtualtraveler Em, yeah, well...listen to different stuff. (From other places.) It's better to do so. Stay cool. 😉

[@terrytube5247]

Thanks for these great videos. They fill in the gaps of my middle-aged music knowledge, but they are also great for showing to kids who've heard an old song, like it, but want to consume the music as a meal, not as a snack. I'm in Canada, my kid is 19, and he is all-in for rap and hip hop -- as kids are these days. But, through me, he grew up with BB King, Ray Charles, soul, funk, funk-based disco, and a lot of new wave-era stuff (Gary Numan is a huge fave for my kid -- even the recent industrial stuff that I find harsh). Yet...my kid has asked me to buy him doo-wop, the Ventures, the Shadows...music from before my time, of which I had none on disc. We recently watched an hour-long doc about the Ventures! And we're going to watch a bunch of your videos once baseball season is over. So thanks again for this wonderful education.

[@jamesgrover2005]

Thanks, born 1970 i grew up on this madness 💕

[@jonnyfalimarcos]

The funny thing for me is that although he was the man who put cockney on the world stage his band reflected the whole of London life, Jankel was Jewish, Watt Roy was Asian, Charley Charles was black, a real cockney mix of all the people in the shit together, and as the video explains their musical influences were deep and varied, and completely original in their reworking of jazz, funk, soul and rock riffs. I loved them!

[@briteness]

The only thing I ever knew of Ian Dury when I was a kid was a live version of Hit Me on a charity benefit album. I liked the song, but he was just completely off the radar for most of us in the US. Seems like his music and story have aged well. Thank you for this.

[@OutOfAmmoOutOfTime]

Thanks for this. A wonderful video essay of an under appreciated British artist. Funnily enough i first encountered Dury’s whit on a TOTP compilation record, a single entitled “I wanna be straight”…….as a teenager the irony of this song was totally lost on me….wonderful stuff….

[@seaoftranquility7228]

I got into Dury late. Late eighties or early nineties a friend had a compilation called Jukebox Dury. I couldn’t believe how great ALL the songs were. Still can’t. Excellent vid.

[@jaschul]

Bless you for this one. What a great band. I wish they'd "made it" here in the US. What other band sounded like the Blockheads in the 70s? Not a one.

[@Darrylizer1]

My friends and I loved Ian Dury in the old days of punk rock. Being Americans tho we never got a chance to see him. What a shame he didn't get popular in America, he deserved it.

[@dylano0126]

I'm glad you cover this amazing tight band, I feel as if they've been much forgotten about. They were an amazing band whom revolutionised UK music, and style

[@Stepherner]

being a fourteen year old kid (living in Germany) at the time the song was played on the radio, i bought the single in a record store from my pocket money. three years later i got my first money to buy a record player (until then, i got a cassette player). it was my first single to play and with every play i recognized how complex this masterpiece was. after playing it again & again, even my mum sung the rhyme in the kitchen (she never learned english). I kept the original single until today. Thank you, Ian.

[@taniacummings9207]

I've still got mine. It was one of the few records I brought with me to Australia in '86. Still give it a whirl occasionally.

[@weehudyy]

Saw them at the old Capitol Theatre in Sydney , the Blockheads were c'est fantastique ... Dury was wonderful , but Charlie Charles and Norman Watt-Roy were a revelation live . A great great live act .

[@TrulyMadlyShallowly]

I never before heard the echoes of Sex and Drugs and Rock 'n Roll before in Blur but my goodness, how could I have misses that

[@bumgrapes]

I love LOVE your videos. Always so well put together. Thanks so much and keep em coming. X

[@davidellis5141]

He had 3 incredible hits on KROQ in Los Angeles - Wake Up & Make Love With Me , Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll & the classic Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick ! - From Bombay to Santa Fe 😎

[@yensid4294]

Those are the 3 I heard on the radio living in the SF Bay Area as well. But not very often & usually late at night

[@mobiditch6848]

@@yensid4294 Richard Gosset on KSAN played Ian Dury.

[@beaksofeagles]

How refreshing to have a rockumentary free from washed-up talking heads! Excellent! Top Notch! Densely packed with material and references. No filler.

[@TimmyTickle]

You should check out the other “New British Canon” videos, as they all follow the same format

[@beaksofeagles]

@@TimmyTickle Yes, thanks. Been checking some out.

[@stephenryan7698]

Well done good job, have to say Ian was the real father of Punk and I was a Punk in 1976 what a great time the best Punk band I saw was Poly Styrene of X Ray Spex.

[@luxford60]

His 1981 single Spasticus Autisticus, written as a counter to he saw as the patronising nature of the International Year of the Disabled, was banned by broadcasters at the time but a version was performed in the opening ceremony of the 2012 Paralympics.

[@jonhelmer8591]

I never knew that tune was banned back in the day.

[@robswystun2766]

Andy Serkis does a great job playing Ian in the biopic that I don't remember the title of.

[@jon-paulfilkins7820]

"Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll" is the title of the film, fittingly.

[@johnmeehan1124]

I loved this video. Got all his albums and saw him back in the day in Finsbury Park. Sadly miss his wonderful sense of humour!!

[@ashleybarker937]

very well put together, thank you

[@petethedutch]

I was literally watching your videos last night and wishing you did an Ian Dury video. Great job!

[@elliottmcpeek7443]

Just recently got into some dury and the blockheads, awesome to see them getting recognized! Rhythm stick has such an infectious groove, probably listened to it about 20 times within the first few days of discovering it 😅

[@taniacummings9207]

Sometimes it gets into my head like a hunger and I have to go and haul out my old 45 single and play it really loud.

[@megarural3000]

I really enjoy your work, especially the New British Canon series. An individual dive into artists I may know but not know so much about. Keep up the good work.

[@davidsoule8401]

From someone who was never a fan, I’m glad you did this. Always happy to have a history lesson and remind myself I’m NOT the last authority on music. Thanks again.

[@kevintyerman1906]

I liked Ian Dury and the Block Heads, but I have certainly enjoyed some Trash Theory doco's on bands that I would otherwise take no interest in. There is no other presenter I would listen to an essay / documentary on The Spice Girls, but I would (and did) when Trash Theory did his on them.

[@davidsoule8401]

@@kevintyerman1906 I watched the Spice Girls one too. And yeah, Trash Theory is just all around awesome. : )

[@Sternodox]

This was quite brilliant. I love Ian Dury's music. Thanks very much for this.

[@danielwalker8989]

I was born in 77!!!!!! 15'years to bastard late to love and appropriate Mr Dury and his brilliant band members music🎤🎹🎺🎸 WHAT A WASTE

[@jessiebrader2926]

'In my yeller jersey, I went out on the nick', one of my favorites. I saw him often, playing in London, loved him.

[@jonathanreich6360]

I've been a big Dury fan from the beginning. Thanks for the refresher.

[@CheGenasim]

Wonderfull work on this video, thank you!

[@HeavyMetalPowerBottom]

Amazing, thanks so much for making this ❤❤❤❤

[@Alanoffer]

Used to see the blockheads at dingwalls in Camden before the became big ,you couldn’t take your eyes off him , he was brilliant

[@VONCEIL1]

Yep

[@215Gallagher]

It was the last concert I left with reduced hearing in 1982. A monstrous live sound and Mr. Dury perhaps the most entertaining performer I've seen.