RECORD TURNOVER 80s HITS #176
These Direct Hits were from Manchester and are not to be confused with The Direct Hits on Whaam! Records, who were from London. This trio first made it onto vinyl with two tracks on the Manchester compilation Identity Parade (1980). Out of these “Back to the Sixties” is one of my all-time favourite songs and I’d been looking for this LP ever since.
Collisions At Teen Junction was self-financed and released under the makeshift name Bootleg Records, probably named after the Bootleg studio where they recorded the whole thing in one day. While it lacks the fidelity, production and punch (mainly due to the sparse lead guitar) of the recordings of “Back to the Sixties” and “Soul Shoes”, the melodies and bass player Kevin Durkin’s songwriting makes it a very enjoyable listen. Apparently Durkin is not interested in a reissue with the band, but in reaction to copies selling on ebay for large amounts he has put the whole thing on youtube.
If the masters are still around, why not give people a chance to hear the songs in remastered form, which I’m sure a number of labels would be ready to pay up for. A lot more info is posted here, and below is one of the most fully realised songs on the LP, “Jenny Remembers”, which reminds me of the slightly later group The Dentists.
