The Merton Parkas: Style over Substance

Being figured as a part of some revival genre isn’t always going to be a good turn for a band’s career (ska?). But of course, the fact that the whole mod thing during the ‘70s was comprised completely of throw back groups should probably have excused anyone from being labeled as something of a Johnny-Come-Lately. The Jam never ran into problems like that – and while Paul Weller and company were easily the most ballsy performers as well as perhaps the best musicians outta that entire crew, they were still as beholden to ‘60s American soul and the Who as any other Brit combo. Fair or not, that’s how it was. The Merton Parkas weren’t quite as lucky as that Weller fronted combo, though.

Combining the part of town that the quartet was from with a piece of clothing (clever, right?) the Merton Parkas were apparently one of the first ‘70s mod bands to get into label negotiations. Discussing the group’s future with Beggars Banquet, though, disallowed the group from being included on the seminal Mod’s May Day ’79 compilation. And while an appearance on that disc probably wouldn’t have meant too much career wise, the Parkas might have been afforded a greater deference from its cohort. As it was, when the band released its first single – “You Need Wheels” – the Parkas were perceived to be a conceptually light group of retreads. Again, that doesn’t seem fair given the market place into which they were moving, but that’s just an example of how the press is kinda fickle.

Comprised of brothers Danny (vox) and Mick Talbot (keyboards) along with Neil Wurrell (bass) and Simon Smith (drums), the Merton Parkas readied the release of its first disc - Face in the Crowd – in ’79 as the Jam were set to begin work on its fourth disc since ’77. The keyboard talent, which was apparently well established by the Parkas’ single was snatched by Weller and company for inclusion on the ’79 album entitled Setting Sons.

Regardless, though, the Parkas’ first album was received as simply some light rock stuff – which isn’t too far from the truth. There aren’t really any barn burners here, the closest being “Plastic Smile” with its quick step tempo. And even if the band harmonizes here a bit, it’s one of the few instances of the Parkas ratcheting up the tempo to almost punky territory. It’s not stunning, but on its own, the track should’ve been able to garner some positive attention in the press and on the dance floor.

Though not a tremendous success, the Merton Parkas have appreciated a post break up renaissance of sorts. They won’t ever reach the level of fandom that the Jam is afforded, but with the release of The Complete Mod Collection one would imagine that there’s at least a bit of a market for a retread of the retreads. Probably, though, if you own two discs from any Weller associated efforts, this is just overkill. The initiated will object, but that’s how it is sometimes.