THE REAL GONE SINGLES BAR #168

This time around at the Singles Bar, we bring you a couple of familiar names, but a whole world of brand new sounds from artists making their first appearance here, and in the case of a punk act, a plug for their very first studio recording! Among the eight picks, you’ll find an inspired cover tune, some great indie pop with a rootsier edge, and even an up and coming Irish act who appear to be in a bad mood… As always, we hope you find something new to enjoy!

If you enjoy this, or have enjoyed anything else at Real Gone recently, please consider buying us a coffee at the following link. The cost of every cuppa goes towards our escalating running costs and will help us stay online for another year, Thanks x

https://ko-fi.com/realgonerocks

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Bad Mary revisit ‘Last Christmas’ with new cover tune

Ever since its original release in 1984, Wham!’s ‘Last Christmas’ has been beloved many. Only reaching #2 on the UK singles chart the first time around, it became the second most celebrated track to fall just shy of the top spot. Ultravox’s ‘Vienna’, arguably, takes the crown there, losing out to a terrible novelty record – ‘Shaddap You Face’ by The Joe Dolce Music Theatre; at least Wham! had the dignity of knowing they were beaten to the top by a charity record, and one that George Michael was also on!

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THE REAL GONE SINGLES BAR #127

Welcome back to the Real Gone Singles Bar, the place where we explore some of the more interesting individual tracks that have landed in our inbox over the previous few weeks. This time out, we bring you a new track from a still new rock band, a fantastic piece of soul, a heartfelt country number, a new take on a Halloween staple, and more besides. As always, we hope you find something new to enjoy!

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Listen: Lions, Love (…and Lies): A Real Gone Sampler 2024

2024 was a great year. Real Gone celebrated its fifteenth anniversary. It was the website’s most successful year to date. We picked up a lot of new supporters and covered a wealth of new music. Our detailed reviews continued to be popular with the readers, and our Singles Bar really caught the attention of those looking for a quicker fix of new music.

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BAD MARY – Better(er) Days EP

A lot can change in ten years. Unlike most DIY punk/alternative bands, though, for Bad Mary, issues with an ever shifting line up hasn’t ever been a factor. Since day one, the unity between vocalist Amanda Mac, her drumming dad Bill, bass playing husband Mike and guitarist David has been unquestionably strong. What has changed in that time, however, is the band’s recording budget and their collective musical skills. The 2024 Bad Mary sound much bigger and much fiercer than their younger selves. With that in mind, they chose not to mark a decades’ worth of work with a career spanning compilation, but to re-record some of the best tunes from their ‘Better Days’ debut disc.

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