Watched norman playing with wilko johnson a few years ago in southern spain. They could be the answer to covid 19. Rarely see that energy from a teenager.
I couldn’t agree with you more! Norman love’s near me in Fulham. He’s a good friend of a mate of mine. I’ve spoken to him on numerous occasions. One of the nicest men you could ever meet. A real gentleman! He walk’s around and the young kids do no not realise they are in the presence of musical royalty. I am your friend. I’m in total awe of this guy! Thanks for your posting mate... You are right. He’s a fucking genius!!!
everybody going off about the bass line (and don't get me wrong the bass line is great) but are we just gonna ignore this guy DUAL WIELDING SAXOPHONES!!
The stamina you need to keep that pace up on your right hand for the bassline is phenomenal. I'm almost sure Ian was prolonging sections of it a little live sometimes to tease Norman. You can hear where Norman moves to the octave up either for a break ( frets are smaller there and it's less of a stretch), or to try trigger Ian to sing a verse. Brilliant stuff. What an absolute machine! |There's as lovely bit at the start where he trips over himself but he gets his mojo back rapidly and is unflappable til the end Long Live Norman Watt-Roy!
When I was an apprentice mechanic in 77, I turned the radio up to full volume in the garage workshop when this came on. My miserable foreman would go ballistic.
The backing band ( Blockheads) Truly Loved Ian and none more so than Norman Watt Roy, I met him briefly last year only 2 weeks after he suffered a heart attack, he said he was back working again, I said to him " you will never stop will you" he looked at me and said No, NWR is a true legend of the music industry and a bloody humble and nice fellow, respect to you Sir!
Ian dury`s son came home from school and said they needed to say what "class" their family was, middle class,upper class or working class. Ian said there are "arts and crafts"
One of the greatest monster bass lines ever, and right up front in the mix like it should be (unlike the recorded version, where I have to strain to hear it)
I would love to hear their recording with Frankie Goes to Hollywood as they did a version of Relax before Trevor Horn, producing the band, decided to record the song differently and the version people would know was what they did.
As a teenage bass player here in the u.s.I remember hearing this for the first time and being totally blown away by the lyrics tight band and the extraordinary bassist after that Itried to get my hands on every recording I could
HaHa! Did the same for me when it first released. Awesome music stands the test of time. Excellent taste in funky ass bass you have there Joe. I hope you go far.
Geezer literally playing two saxophones at the same time live on stage and it's still not as impressive as that bassline. Norman Watt-Roy is a fucking savage.
Surely the greatest ever "backing band" which of course they are . Backing band ...........? No way , Ian and the band fed off each other in such a way that it was all just perfect .
Everything about this performance is perfect. God I wish had a chance to seen this live. The saxaphone player is fucking amazing. Bless you blockheads x
Ian,, if you can hear me in the heavens above .... that bit of Harry Billafonte line. midtune, did you no favors. No matter,,, still luv u. Greetings from Ireland 😍😍
*_The Funky Bassist here, Norman Watt Roy is really underrated, plus he's very skilled_* *_and you can tell it by watchin' him playin' this funky bassline so easily._* *_One of the BEST basslines EVER written
I was 16 years old when I first heard Ian Dury and Blockheads in 2004. I was going to London for couple of weeks from Scotland and wanted some music. I never left and this music became my sound track. It continues to be my music for the best city on earth.
What a sax man ian dury and blockheads what a blend of extremely talented musicians never to be repeated blessed we had them the bass player is in a whole Fantastic go bass a master of the strings kippers smelly knickers to reading this ha ha you know now go
I can honestly say I first heard this on the radio in my old man's car when I was 8. I loved it then and I love it all the more now. What an incredible band. Absolutely stellar musicians the lot of them and with with Ian Dury at the helm it's hard to think of a better British band.
You are a class act for recognizing that we don't all need to post the same comment. With that maturity and control, you should be a very serene & happy person; I hope that you are, and wish you the very best.
@@smartalek180 Cheers to you smartalek, haha !! Yes I am a happy person even in these times ... ! I can't stop coming back to this , you obviously have good taste as you are here toooo ..... Have a nice evening ...
To repeat that complicated bass line and throw in little subtle accents here and there is beyond genius. That kind of talent is just not around anymore
+mattbod I put this video on every couple of weeks or so just to watch him and realise how good he is. Not that everyone else wasn't too but I am a bass player
HOLD ON TO YOUR STRUCTURE a very apt title cos this lot could rip it apart. What a band and what a frontman. I have seen them live and they blew me away. R.I.P Ian and Charlie and pleased to hear wilko is still with us. Respect to all you Blockheads all you Blockheads
Love Ian Dury here with long hair this song is the best ever gets me every time, great live band and just listen to that voice love it, What a song to leave behind for us to hear immortal, Miss this Man!
Ian had one of the best bands. Poor Norman, his fingers must be bleeding... 😄 What a bass line! And Charley on the drums, one of the best beats ever. Keeps you moving all night!!! 💯
The story is that Norman went to see the bass legend Jaco Pastorius (Perhaps the Jimi Hendrix of bass, definitely a pioneer) one night and he was inspired that night to come up with the bassline...
That bass line ought to be the British national anthem. It's immeasurably epic.
Harold-Sweat-Head
Well said...Norms the man
The whole song should be the British national anthem.
Hear Hear!!! Its Grouse!
beautiful comment
Watched norman playing with wilko johnson a few years ago in southern spain. They could be the answer to covid 19. Rarely see that energy from a teenager.
If we are praising the rhythm section we must not forget the wonderful Charley Charles on drums. RIP.
One of the greatest drummers ever imo.
Totally agree.
Can we all take a moment to bow our heads to Norman Watt-Roy, who is one of the most underrated bassists of all time. Fucking Genius.
nick260682 - Far from underrated 🙄
I couldn’t agree with you more!
Norman love’s near me in Fulham.
He’s a good friend of a mate of mine.
I’ve spoken to him on numerous occasions.
One of the nicest men you could ever meet.
A real gentleman!
He walk’s around and the young kids do no not realise they are in the presence of musical royalty.
I am your friend.
I’m in total awe of this guy!
Thanks for your posting mate... You are right. He’s a fucking genius!!!
Andrew Mair
Maybe, but either way he’s bloody brilliant.
nick260682 - No argument there…😊
Yeah a “funking” genius !
The bass player is insane.
Norman Watt-Roy on creating one of the best bass hooks of all time: "I was relatively new to music, I thought I was getting paid by the note." Legend.
Ha, love that.
Ha! Brilliant.
Norman is the Best !!!
Wow!..! 🤯
Seen him live with Wilko a few times - utterly brilliant.
They were known back in the day for being 1 of the best live bands.
The Blockheads (sans Ian) still are !
Norman Watt-Roy is one of the gods of bass guitar.
That is all.
Hell yea
Hes played on BBC Radio 6 music all the time bbc.co.uk/6music
hifibrony He really is! Even slightly better than me!
Keine Angabe ha ha!
I agree. Is he still alive and kicking?
Back when music was music. Wonderfully creative, edgy and oozing talent. Outstanding by all involved.
Agree with you... I miss music so much ! And too many others, even if they pretend the opposit
His whole band was absolutely FIRST RATE.
Proper time served musicians.
I couldn't agree with the pair of you more. I was young when this was released, but the level of Musicianship was then, and still is, incredible
❤❤❤❤
everybody going off about the bass line (and don't get me wrong the bass line is great) but are we just gonna ignore this guy DUAL WIELDING SAXOPHONES!!
YES!!! Astounding!
Norman still completely owns this song though but yeah impressive!
Double neck saxophone
no?
@@JustK009is that why a separate one was hanging around his neck? Clearly 2 separate horns.
How does Norman keep his bass line going for that long? Ridiculously awesome.
The drums, the piano, and the sax, too!:)
Basically that's what professional musicians do every day...
The fact that this was No 1 hit song seems unbelievable in 21st century.
The stamina you need to keep that pace up on your right hand for the bassline is phenomenal. I'm almost sure Ian was prolonging sections of it a little live sometimes to tease Norman. You can hear where Norman moves to the octave up either for a break ( frets are smaller there and it's less of a stretch), or to try trigger Ian to sing a verse.
Brilliant stuff.
What an absolute machine! |There's as lovely bit at the start where he trips over himself but he gets his mojo back rapidly and is unflappable til the end
Long Live Norman Watt-Roy!
The drummer... steady - ab brill!!
When I was an apprentice mechanic in 77, I turned the radio up to full volume in the garage workshop when this came on. My miserable foreman would go ballistic.
Ha ha Ha....LOL......HaHa....I can envision it! Nice!
did he hit you ?
He would throw a sweeping brush at me 😮
The backing band ( Blockheads) Truly Loved Ian and none more so than Norman Watt Roy, I met him briefly last year only 2 weeks after he suffered a heart attack, he said he was back working again, I said to him " you will never stop will you" he looked at me and said No, NWR is a true legend of the music industry and a bloody humble and nice fellow, respect to you Sir!
ua-cam.com/video/CIQIN7QGbr4/v-deo.html
Played the Bass for 45 years and still this is one of the most challenging bass-lines ever. Bloody epic!
Tightest band around in their day, class, Norman Watt-Roy?, best bass player of them all!
Saw them live, Chaz Jankle too. what a fantastic group of musicians, Gilad Atzmon on sax. Excellent. Truly superb.
When I leave this life I want to go out to that bass line.
John David yeah ... me too ...
John David amen
You made me laugh SIR . May you find the funk heaven.
Ian dury`s son came home from school and said they needed to say what "class" their family was, middle class,upper class or working class. Ian said there are "arts and crafts"
One of the greatest monster bass lines ever, and right up front in the mix like it should be (unlike the recorded version, where I have to strain to hear it)
Norman Watt-Roy is criminally underrated
The blockheads were the best British backing band of the 70s and 80s. An incredible bunch of musicians - highly underrated
agree 100%. I heard Inbetweenies for the first time a few years ago, was floored by the playing/production/songwriting
I would love to hear their recording with Frankie Goes to Hollywood as they did a version of Relax before Trevor Horn, producing the band, decided to record the song differently and the version people would know was what they did.
Still going
I am truly blown away on how good this band is....every single guy is top flite at what they do.
Whats amazing about the Blockheads is they are still going strong, after the sad loss of Ian Dury RIP...
As a teenage bass player here in the u.s.I remember hearing this for the first time and being totally blown away by the lyrics tight band and the extraordinary bassist after that Itried to get my hands on every recording I could
GO JOE❣
HaHa! Did the same for me when it first released. Awesome music stands the test of time. Excellent taste in funky ass bass you have there Joe. I hope you go far.
One of the best of all time live versions of a song
Seamless rendition better than the studio song
I was at this gig. What a band. What a poet.
Where & when? good to see Charley Charles on Drums....
Oh, apparently it was HAMMERSMITH!!!!!
It was indeed, sometime in the '80's!
how lucky !
Really , you jammy sod , never seen them live 👍
Everybody`s talking about the bass. That´s great. What about the leading prick? Mr. Ian Dury. What a voice!
Geezer literally playing two saxophones at the same time live on stage and it's still not as impressive as that bassline. Norman Watt-Roy is a fucking savage.
lol... yes.
Yes but sax hard to play. But two. Mind boggling skill
Even knowing how to play the bass line is little help at this tempo....cramp....the guy is a machine.....amazing
Question: Has there ever been a better and more skilled an joyful band in the history of mankind?
Answer: No there hasn't.
The Attractions disagree
Surely the greatest ever "backing band" which of course they are . Backing band ...........? No way , Ian and the band fed off each other in such a way that it was all just perfect .
Everything about this performance is perfect. God I wish had a chance to seen this live. The saxaphone player is fucking amazing. Bless you blockheads x
Yes, very jazzy ❤
Ian knew how to to get the best sounds: he chose the best bloody musicians he could find.
What a crackingly good base player Norman is oi oi oi!
One of the greatest basslines of all time
Swordsoffire oh yeah ...
Inexplicably reminded me of The Muppets in a good way.
WOW THIS WAS SPECIAL!
Mind blown by the time we get to the sax.....
xx
Thats what i call a tight band having fun getting low down and funky 👍👍👍 awesome Performance of an awesome piece of music - epic 💜🔥💜🙏🌈👽🖖😘
This incredible, the entire band.
Ian Dury,,,,, We Luv u !!! like a rhythm stick.
That band, especially the bassist, is off the hook!
Ian,, if you can hear me in the heavens above .... that bit of Harry Billafonte line. midtune, did you no favors.
No matter,,, still luv u.
Greetings from Ireland 😍😍
Harry Belafonte
*_The Funky Bassist here, Norman Watt Roy is really underrated, plus he's very skilled_*
*_and you can tell it by watchin' him playin' this funky bassline so easily._*
*_One of the BEST basslines EVER written
Damn that sax is a killer!
One of the greatest bass lines. Take a bow Norman! 👏🎸
This is the best version of this song. I hope, I pray, their music will continue. Norman Watt-Roy you will never be bested. And a humble man to boot.
What a Genius!,, great band, music, time!,, OH what we have lost?. Love 2 all & keep enjoying the music.....
That was Awesome
Amazing double sax
NORMAN WATT-ROY fckn legend 👏
Yes, Watt-Roy is right up there. The bass line for this song is amazing.
I was 16 years old when I first heard Ian Dury and Blockheads in 2004. I was going to London for couple of weeks from Scotland and wanted some music. I never left and this music became my sound track. It continues to be my music for the best city on earth.
Norman Watt Roy, got the least ovation, yet its HIM who makes the song !
Got to be up there for Greatest Basslines Of All Time.
What an absolute classic version of a classic. Wish I could play that bass line.
Forgot how good this band was. Haven't listened to them in years. This is why I love youtube. Great song!
Fk this never gets old, everyone at the top of their game at the perfect venue ---- all bass players go to heaven son, all of 'em......
What talented geezers they were and are
ian the best and the group we need these guys now brillant zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Song just popped into my head for no reason, and I haven't heard it in a long time so I came here. Ian Dury was a great talent. RIP
Charlie Charles & Norman Watt-Roy! One of the BEST rhythm sections ever!
Norman Watt-Roy is a god on bass.......unbelievable!!!
Norman is a solid bass player
In the same way that 1960s Sophia Loren was a fairly attractive woman.
Sophia Loren ancora oggi è una donna bella
Devi usuare une pollo!
Had the pleasure of meeting Norman Watt-Roy at Milton Keynes station of all places recently. Absolute legend. Nuff said......
Gorgeous Charlie, my good friend R.I.P
I often think of you xxx
+Tanya Blakelock Such a cool drummer Charlie Charles RIP
Indeed
Also such a lovely man :)
+Tanya Blakelock completely in his element, blockheads weren't the same without him
Agreed :)
Brilliant ❤
the best live version that i've seen so far amazing.
❤❤❤
Norman Watt Roy, the best bass player ever
right on walter he is the guv and slamming it on bass long live roy the king of bass lines
Everyone is performing at a five star level here, you just want to keep on a repeat loop. Fantastic long live The Blockheads
The best is: there is so much humor and ironic in these music! Can the other people not see this? It is unique!
There is honestly nothing better than this. The funkiest, coolest, groove. I'll never stop loving it.
Legendary band at a legendary venue, this is a national treasure.
WOW ! 7 minutes seemed like 17, I feel exhausted rocking about ( I'm 81) what fantastic stamina and musical skill.
What a sax man ian dury and blockheads what a blend of extremely talented musicians never to be repeated blessed we had them the bass player is in a whole Fantastic go bass a master of the strings kippers smelly knickers to reading this ha ha you know now go
It’s NUTS just how good this is!
OH AYE! Thats when Ian nails it....
The perfect moments? Every member of the bockheads is Ian.
I can honestly say I first heard this on the radio in my old man's car when I was 8. I loved it then and I love it all the more now. What an incredible band. Absolutely stellar musicians the lot of them and with with Ian Dury at the helm it's hard to think of a better British band.
M8 completely agree.
The legendary Ian Dury
Got to be one of the best live performances EVER!!
I was gonna make a comment about how awesome the bass line is but I can see you lot have said it all ......cheers..........
You are a class act for recognizing that we don't all need to post the same comment.
With that maturity and control, you should be a very serene & happy person; I hope that you are, and wish you the very best.
@@smartalek180 Cheers to you smartalek, haha !! Yes I am a happy person even in these times ... ! I can't stop coming back to this , you obviously have good taste as you are here toooo ..... Have a nice evening ...
right wicked sax solo dave very roland kirk great high notes in there man
Great version of the tune. The double-sax and "Scarlet Ribbons" interludes! Thanks for this celebration of British Nihilism!
WHY IS THIS SONG NOT RECCONISED!! THE BASS IS ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!!
My stepfather introduced me to this band when new boots cameo it have loved them since long it ago
Brilliant. I was only 16
In 1979 still gives me a shiver. And Ian wrote it. Underrated band by far.
Great song, amazing tempo by the drummer, and bass. Dbl sax to the max.
Absolutely cannot be equalled. We miss the master of Funk and Lyrics. Perfect.
All the members of the group are excellent!!!
To repeat that complicated bass line and throw in little subtle accents here and there is beyond genius. That kind of talent is just not around anymore
Norman Watt - Roy genius on bass.
+mattbod I put this video on every couple of weeks or so just to watch him and realise how good he is. Not that everyone else wasn't too but I am a bass player
I was thinking the same. Hope he kept hold of it ;-)
+mrguillemot Last time I saw him the Fender bass of his was at a dealer. Was a video on here: Norman was giving a talk on it.
1:30 the top keyboard miss a tooth!! That's PUNK attitude, man!! 😂🤣👍
Love that Band!!
HOLD ON TO YOUR STRUCTURE a very apt title cos this lot could rip it apart. What a band and what a frontman. I have seen them live and they blew me away. R.I.P Ian and Charlie and pleased to hear wilko is still with us. Respect to all you Blockheads all you Blockheads
still a classic after all these years....
Imagine these guys in today’s smaller venues without seating? We would have a blast!!!
Love Ian Dury here with long hair this song is the best ever gets me every time, great live band and just listen to that voice love it, What a song to leave behind for us to hear immortal, Miss this Man!
The drummer kills me. Not all the videos have the same intro on Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll. But that opening drum roll is sexy all in itself.
Ian had one of the best bands. Poor Norman, his fingers must be bleeding... 😄 What a bass line! And Charley on the drums, one of the best beats ever. Keeps you moving all night!!! 💯
The shear joy of the musicians and audience is great! Everyone enjoying themselves. Just great!
What an immense group.
Norman Watt-Roy is quality on the bass 👌👏
how underated was this fantastic band watched them live to many years ago ian was brilliant
Brilliant bassist. I was practising this bassline this morning and it's mindblowing.
norman how do play a bass like that.genius....sax player wow.ian...greatest.what a performance by the band....all magic.thanks.xxxxx
The story is that Norman went to see the bass legend Jaco Pastorius (Perhaps the Jimi Hendrix of bass, definitely a pioneer) one night and he was inspired that night to come up with the bassline...