Old Skool - Crokodile Tears

Old Skool - Crokodile Tears

By Pete Clemons

Regardless of whether you enjoyed it or not, schools tend to hold many memories. They are the places where many of your childhood secrets happened. You may have met a best friend at school, got into that first scrape or you may even have had your first crush there. Then there are the pranks you played and the silly stories and jokes.

These are lifelong memories. And as we grow older, perhaps in those quieter moments, we often look back on them with wonder. Something may spark an ‘I wonder whatever happened to so and so’ moment. What are they doing now? A song or a situation may trigger a memory, or someone may say something that has you thinking back many decades to a funny situation, and you suddenly get a daft grin on your face which you have to explain away. I am sure we have all done it.

Well Crokodile Tears, namely Alf Hardy, Jerry Richards and Christopher Sidwell, are back with an album called ‘Old Skool’ that explores this very subject. Even the sleeve show primary song writer, Christopher Sidwell, looking back and reminiscing on a previous life over the landscape where Binley Park School once stood.

Right from the albums opening tune ‘Kids‘, you really do find yourself in a reflective mood. Admittedly it is childlike at times but this album is not all about childhood whimsy. Christopher has attempted to inject some seriousness throughout it all. Tunes like ‘End of an Error’ attempts to remind us of the values we once held. Even the homage paid to one of England’s greatest footballers – Bobby Charlton – contains a strong message. We once smiled about it but if you ever feel the need for a comb over, then you have one. It’s absolutely your right to. And as with all ‘Croks’ songs, humour is not far away either.

There is a great mix of songs on here too. Some of the songs start with the chorus, so effectively back to front, as far as traditional song writing goes. ‘Kosmic Popadom’ was born out of a spontaneous jam. Jerry Richards contributes with an instrumental called ‘Doctor Dee’ and the listener is also treated to a Beatles cover. The one common denominator being that all the songs are deliberately kept on the short side. Most of the tunes are running in at between 2-3 minutes each.

Many of our local luminaires are credited for the albums creation including Keith Fabrique for pre-production and engineering and Paul Sampson, who oversaw the production of the project. In fact this that Paul and the ‘Croks’ have worked together since the band’s debut album around 35 years ago. And the team work certainly pays dividends in producing a consistency of sound across the entire album.

Overall this album is a delight. It’s all a joy and, above all, it is pure escapism. And it is guaranteed to have you recalling long forgotten memories. Also, stick with the album to the very end, and you will even find an additional hidden bonus track.

Old Skool - Crokodile Tears on Deezer

https://www.deezer.com/us/album/71088282