Tell Them I'm Somebody Else

24 Jan 2001
The Bottom Line:

Interesting music video interlaced with amusing documentary slices from the Glasgow Walker era.

Plus: Backstage footage, soundchecks, rehearsals, interviews.
Location filming in Dublin, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Musicians: Spencer Cozens (keyboards), Jim Lampi (Chapman stick), John Giblin (bass), Arran Ahmun (drums and percussion), Reggie Hastings is credited for slide guitar on Lookin' On but there's not a slide guitar in sight on that track. Possibly Hastings did a slide show on some So Sweet take, but that is not on the video. 'My friend Reggie' might well be the same person that is complaining about John being stingy.

The sleeve also contains a text credited to Tam O'Shanter/ Robert Burns:

While we sit bousing at the nappy,
and gettin' fou and unco happy,
we think na on the lang Scots miles,
The mosses, waters, slaps, and stiles,
That lie between us and our hame,
Where sits our sulky sullen dame,
Gathering her brows like gathering storm,
Nursing her wrath to keep it warm.

sitenote:
The live recordings were made in Belfast, Elmwood Hall on 29 October 1999 and in Dublin, Vicar Street on 16 November 1999.

Much of the material was re-authored and rereleased February 2012 on a DVD titled One World... One John. A lot of tracks pop up in a different version though and most of the behind the scenes footage was deleted.

Track description:

nr track time comment
  [Introduction] [0:35] "This and that"
01 Jelly Roll Baker [Easy Blues] [2:58] Solo acoustic.
  [Interlude 1] [1:08] "Folk music at it's best": After a broken strap during Johnny Too Bad.
02 She's A Lover/ Solid Air [12:08] (5:02/7:06) About the band: 'I have no idea who these people are. Happens all the time.'
  [Interlude 2] [2:55] About the boys in the band
03 Lookin' On [7:44] Great jazz rendition in black & wite.
  [Interlude 3] [0:25] "The Injunctables": notice Joe Hennessy dancing.
04 Don't Want To Know [/My Creator] [4:33] Solo acoustic with one minute of My Creator after two minutes.
  [Interlude 4] [1:18] "My Damager": John talks with sympathy about his manager Joe Hennessy.
05 Can Can [Yes We Can] [7:50] First decent recording of this song. John is having fun.
  [Interlude 5] [0:41] New Clothes: dressing room scene with probably Spenser.
06 Cocaine Lil [Cocain] [3:37] Solo acoustic with some keyboard notes by Spencer Cozens.
  [Interlude 6] [1:20] The Lost Solo: After church rehearsal of So Sweet.
  [Interlude 7] [2:17] The Play Of Sound, Soundcheck Field Of Play
07 Cry Me A River [5:56] Church band rehearsal.
  [Interlude 8] [1:42] Divine Fishing: John does not like hobbies ('too busy being lazy') but enjoys fishing.
  [Interlude 9] [4:59] Jump, You Fucker, Jump*): Spontaneous birth of blues.
  [Interlude 10] [0:54] Jamie's Business Card: Dressing room autograph scene.
08 Fields Of Play [The Field Of Play] [5:30] Church band rehearsal.
  [Interlude 11] [2:27] Drive Palmer: John remembers a London car trip with Incredible String Band founder Clive Palmer.
09 Cooltide [6:14] Church band rehearsal; best groove on the video. 'Smug drugglin' around the scene.'
  [Interlude 12] [1:05] "Orgasmando": Lawn talk about music business.
10 Glory Box [5:49]  
  [Interlude 13] [0:39] The Godfather: 'My friend Reggie' in the dressing room.
11 Over The Rainbow [3:51] 'We haven't played that in about four years.'
  [Production credits] [4:07] Interlaced with outtakes and a version of Mama T.
Outtake #1 Don't Want To Know/ My Creator [4:30] Recorded in Belfast, The Waterfront, 29 October 1999 for Radio 5 broadcast.
Outtake #2 Affordable Rentals [5:48] 'Drums: Truck von Rental, keyboards: his brother, Herz von Rental.' 'We've got the world by the bolts.' And: 'Zimbabwe, nul points.'

*) sitenote:
John gets inspired by a voice sample from Spencer Cozens' synth.
Jump, You Fucker, Jump was possibly the original title John proposed for the video. Someone could have objected to this bad language. The Tell Them title is simply a line from the unreleased song 'Sergeant, Sergeant', played in Dublin too but not included.
Tony Moylett knows his classics and remembers a Derek and Clive Live record by Peter Cook and Dudley Moore from the late seventies:

"This record was legendary among 6th form students in the late 70's and there were two follow up albums each worse than it's predecessor. Many expressions have since been cleaned up and added to the English language phrase book; for instance 'What's the worse job you've ever had?' and 'This C**t came up to me and said hello'. One song on the lp told the story of the day Dud was walking down the street and saw a burning house. A chap on the top floor, while wishing to be rescued, was anxious that he would not survive the fall. The waiting firemen tried to assuage his fears by telling him that they would catch him in a blanket. After a delay they grow impatient and exhort him to decide what to do. Their cry, 'Jump you f***er, jump,' is clearly still influential as Spencer Cozens had sampled it and plays it to John Martyn, thus letting it become the subject of an impromptu jam."

Credits: 
Production: Pulse AV
Executive producers: John Martyn, Teresa Walsh, Joe Hennessy
Director: Lyn McMullan
Production manager: Eleanor McMullan
Senior engineer: Paul Kenny
Band Technician: Spenser McGeachy
Creative Design: Mhairy McGeachy
Carriers: 
VHS: Pulse PUL001 (104 minutes)