THE FOUR KINGS
'Rock 'n' Roll (Is Here To Stay)' (Parole, 1978).

The Four Kings were missed by Cherry Red Records when they compiled their recent pub rock multi-disc set, but they were never really part of that scene anyway. Instead they had their own thing going, one where rock 'n' roll started with Bo Diddley and ended with Chuck Berry, and nothing else mattered. Except maybe disco if you can take the A-side of this single seriously. 'Non-Stop Dancing' could be described as a novelty record if it wasn't a total car crash, which of course makes it totally brilliant. Not as brilliant as the B-side featured here, that's pure rock 'n' roll with an abundance of amateur charm and punk rock attitude.

WHITE HEAT
'Nervous Breakdown' (Valium, 1979).

White Heat were originally known as Hartbreaker playing straight-ahead rock and were quite late in the day converting to the new wave. It seemed to be a change they were never really comfortable with given a lack of image and too many Springsteen-esque moments creeping in to later material. However, there are no such issues on this record with 'Nervous Breakdown' being widely viewed as a punkpop classic. The B-side 'Sammy Sez' is great too if a little more adventurous. Came packaged in a nice fold over sleeve, but using staples to hold the inner die-cut was never a good idea!

SILVER MACHINE
'Take Me In Your Arms' (Hillside, 1978).

Pictures I've seen of Silver Machine reveal a 'hair too long, trousers all wrong' image. If that's not enough to put you off then let me tell you that the A-side of this double A-side features a wimpy pop ballad that's placed firmly in club/cabaret territory. Thankfully 'Take Me In Your Arms' (the AA-side) is a full scale major upgrade. It's as if someone had accidentally turned up the guitars till they hit the red and the kids in the wrong trousers were inspired to knock out some first album Ramones with a healthy dose of Bolan boogie. If you're considering adding this to the wants list, the words 'deep pockets' and 'patience' come to mind.