In Scotland in particular,it seems that Teenage Fanclub-alike bands are ten-a-penny sometimes. So it’s a shame that one act who has some entitlement to the Fannies’ legacy have come, and gone, rather unheralded.
The Primary 5 were (no past tense) the band formed by Paul Quinn, who spent several years as the band’s drummer. And from this collection of demos he picked up some of the Bellshill’s finest’s moves.
This collection of tunes recorded in a variety of studios and bedrooms over the band’s seven-year existence, is, in essence, exactly what you’d expect given that preamble. Sun-drenched melodies which for me work rather well on a Glasgow winter’s day.
The album opens with what’s perhaps the strongest track in the band’s back catalogue, ‘Wishful Thinking’ (a version of which first appeared on 2004’s North Pole album) and sets the scene for ten more tracks featuring some really rather lovely songwriting.
The band’s demise began two years ago when Quinn’s bandmate Ryan Currie left, and in fact this collections has been fleshed out by the guitar work of former Soup Dragon Jim McCulloch, whose stellar work has ensured that these final recordings are saved for posterity, and that he Primary 5 may be gone, but in the greater Glasgow area at the very least, not forgotten.
theprimary5.bandcamp.com
