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A Teenage Fanclub Education: “One More Chance” Times 10

TFCIt’s dead easy to list the most obvious influences of Scotland’s Teenage Fanclub. He’s read them so often, founding band member Norman Blake can rattle them off at the drop of a tam: Big Star, Byrds, Beach Boys. Pigeonholing the Fanclub’s melodic-yet-rocking sound becomes a little more dicey. Though most of the cornerstones of power pop—Posies, Flamin’ Groovies, Matthew Sweet, Velvet Crush, Tommy Keene, Alex Chilton—don’t think much of the label, it seems to be the only one that’s stuck. If they keep this up for another five years or so, Teenage Fanclub, which opened for business in the mid-’80s when Blake met fellow Scots Raymond McGinley and Gerard Love, might surpass the Groovies for career longevity, a career award that usually precedes only the obit in a band’s publicity dossier. And yet, the group’s new album, Shadows (Merge), is as vital as anything TFC has ever cut, adding fuel to the proposition that some artists come up with their best work after turning 40. Blake and Love will be guest editing magnetmagazine.com all week. Read our Q&A with Blake.

MargieJoseph

Gerard: Years ago, in Glasgow, there was a monthly soul club called Goodfoot, which was run by a group of streetwise ex-mods from the neighbouring town of Paisley. They would bring little boxes into the city packed with amazing 45s that most of us had never heard and would fill the dance floor with practitioners of both the good and the not-so-good foot. It was a really nice night, attracting all types of people; some would go along just to dance, some would go along to listen and be educated. Now and again, I’d try to pick up the odd record, whenever I became familiar with the songs and artists, the record labels and the dealers. Written by the legendary Willie Tee, “One More Chance” by Margie Joseph was the first record I bought as a direct consequence of attending Goodfoot. Through the years, either by sheer coincidence or due to some conscious/subconscious attraction to the notion of one more chance, I’ve picked up a few soul songs with (roughly) the same title, so I thought I would present them here in the unusual form of a compiled list.

1. Margie Joseph “One More Chance” (Volt) Video
2. The Chances “One More Chance” (Bea & Baby) Video
3. Shirley Lawson “One More Chance” (Revue) Video
4. Wilmer & The Dukes “Give Me One More Chance” (Aphrodisiac) Video
5. Clyde McPhatter “Please Give Me One More Chance” (Decca) Video
6. Four Tees “One More Chance” (Kent) Video
7. The Masqueraders “One More Chance” (La Beat) Video
8. Johnny & The Expressions “Give Me One More Chance” (Josie) Video
9. Charles & Carl “One More Chance” (Red Robin) Video
10. The Jackson 5 “One More Chance” (Motown) Video