Wednesday, February 6, 2019

Indecision, Lack of Conviction


The Only Ones : You've Got to Pay


On February 6, 1979, The Only Ones released "You've Got to Pay", a new single from the forthcoming Even Serpents Shine that would fail to sell much. With his trademark laconic delivery Peter Perrett sings about a romance gone wrong, with lyrics far more poetic than anything you'd hear on pop radio today. Can you imagine Ed Sheeran singing "Our flightpath's a gradual descent from the firmament /I can tell by the tone of the letters you sent/ What was once sacred is now filled with hatred/ How come such love can be dissipated?"

The Only Ones would break up in 1981. Perrett would retreat out of public view inside a crumbling gothic house fortified against police raids where he and his wife would spend decades addicted to heroin and then crack. Meanwhile the records inspired new bands like The Replacements, Blur , even Keith Richards was a fan. In 2007, The Only Ones would reform and tour again.







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