Simon RushworthThe Dogs D’Amour — Dynamite China Years: Complete Recordings 1988-1993 (HNE Recordings)
Who let the Dogs out?
It’s 35 years since sleaze-soaked troubadour Tyla moved to within touching distance of true rock and roll greatness.
An accomplished songwriter, foppish man about town and acclaimed artist, the face of 70s throwbacks The Dogs D’Amour boasted the full package.
But Tyla liked a drink and loved to party… often alongside fellow rabble rouser and Faces devotee Spike.
And it was that flamboyant lifestyle, rather than some seriously affecting songwriting, that tended to dominate the conversation around the Dogs during their late 80s heyday.
There’s no doubt a dedication to excess often overshadowed the music back in the day.
But this eight disc deep dive into a prolific five-year period seeks to reshape the narrative and shift the focus… back to great songs, poetic lyrics and sweet reminiscences.
The Dogs… unleashed
Several years of frustrating false starts led to the collection of songs presented here as the (Un)Authorised Bootleg Album — a bold precursor to the back-to-back classics that would cement the reputation of the Dogs as truly brilliant rock and roll bandits.
Tyla had just about navigated a potentially crippling succession of line-up changes and label disasters to emerge with a bunch of songs screaming potential.
Pourin’ Out My Heart, Wait Until I’m Dead and Dynamite Jet Saloon aren’t the sound of some wide-eyed kids taking a punt on instant success.
By now, Tyla had poured half a decade into shaping the Dogs’ identity and the band’s ‘debut’ is self-confident bordering on the cocksure. They were ready.
Dynamite sees Dogs explode
Album number two — In The Dynamite Jet Saloon — upped the ante with outlaw country ballad How Come It Never Rains ultimately nudging the fringes of the UK Top 40.
Neither that standout tune nor the album itself were the commercial hits label bosses had hoped for and yet the Dogs were well and truly off the leash.
An energy-sapping cycle of writing and touring (and partying, of course) maintained the momentum and within a year Errol Flynn had peaked at 22 in the UK album charts.
Its success accelerated by snappy single Satellite Kid (the band’s sole Top 30 entry), The Dogs’ third long player also featured the apt Drunk Like Me and the doleful Trail Of Tears — Tyla managing to put a fresh twist on the band’s now familiar tropes.
Empty Bottles and full throttle
Those looking to identify the point when this classically British quartet peaked may well point to late 1989.
Errol Flynn and acoustic EP A Graveyard Of Empty Bottles Vol. 1 were both released that year and the latter tapped into an increasing demand for stripped back acoustica.
A typically brave — their label argued foolhardy — move by the Dogs introduced the band to a whole new audience and a fresh army of fans lapped up I Think It’s (Love Again), The Bullet Proof Poet and Angel.
Consequently 1990’s Straight??!! — featuring another bona fide earworm in the shape of Victims Of Success — benefitted from a bigger budget, a bigger production and bigger ambition.
Sweeps of classy keys, courtesy of Faces alumnus Ian McLagan, soulful backing vocals and some of Tyla’s finest work to date underpinned a disarmingly mature body of work.
Rockier, more raucous and recognising this was their time, the Dogs were on a roll.
Dog days after crazy nights
Ironically — or perhaps inevitably — with all the pieces finally in place things suddenly took a turn for the worse.
To this day Tyla insists there was no break-up but after a typically chaotic show in Los Angeles, a two-year hiatus ensued.
A comprehensive box set includes 1993’s ‘comeback’ album More Unchartered Heights Of Disgrace but a disjointed record represents the weakest of the material here.
World’s Different Now (Ode To Drug Hill) and Scared Of Dying somehow lack Tyla’s authentic touch — too many of the songs here feel forced, false or both.
Fortunately two discs of B-sides and rarities cap things off in suitably fine fashion: listening to the Dogs perform Trail Of Tears and Medicine Man live is a pure, timeless joy.
More standout acoustic moments, including As The Poppies Fall and What’s Happening Here? close out the most complete collection of Dogs D’Amour music ever compiled.
Thirty-five years since the heady days of A Graveyard Of Empty Bottles and it’s high time we raised a glass to the top Dogs.
Main band image courtesy of tylasdogsdamour.com
