Streetpunk legends Cock Sparrer have been saluted for reaching their 50th anniversary with a great new tribute album.
Pirates Press Records, which now has the rights to Sparrer’s back catalogue, has just released a special one-off tribute album called What’s It Like To Be Fifty?
It features an all-star line-up from the label’s roster covering select songs from the East End legends’ past.
All-star line-up
The bands are The Drowns, Suzi Moon, Plizzken, Grade 2, The Ratchets, The Interrupters, The Aggrolites and The Bar Stool Preachers (whose singer TJ is Sparrer’s frontman Colin McFaull’s son!).
The’gold nugget’ vinyl record is housed in a special outer envelope sleeve and a gold foil inner sleeve (which matches Pirates Press’s 50th anniversary Cock Sparrer pressings.
The full tracklist is:
1) The Drowns – Riot Squad
2) Suzi Moon – Platinum Blonde
3) Plizzken – What’s It Like To Be Old?
4) Grade 2 – Roads To Freedom
5) The Ratchets – Where Are They Now?
6) The Interrupters – We’re Coming Back
7) The Aggrolites – Take ‘Em All
8) The Bar Stool Preachers – Suicide Girls
The album is a one-time only pressing of 1,500 copies and at the moment can only be ordered from Pirates Press from their website HERE. A special set of seven 50th anniversary LPs is also available.
Become family
Pirates Press Records founder Eric ‘Skippy’ Mueller said of Cock Sparrer: “Beginning as a soundtrack to our communal adolescence, you have become family to me (and us) in the craziest of ways.
“From that very first TKO cross-country USA weekender in 2000 to an aircraft carrier 20 years later; from chaos in Brazil to chaos in Eastern Europe, from Blackpool to Berlin to Vegas, it’s been an incredibly wild ride!
“Helping you tick off bucket list boxes one after another, the Pirates and I could not be more proud of a band for doing things the right way, YOUR way – and doing things truly for the love of it. You inspire all of us.
“In that same spirit of doing things our own way, and showing how much you mean to all of us, here’s a little surprise for you. We hope you enjoy!
Amazing gift
Cock Sparrer responded: “What can we say? Those good people at Pirates Press have surprised us with the most amazing gift to wrap up our 50th anniversary year.
“Eight bands that are part of the Pirates family have recorded a Cock Sparrer song and they’ve put together the most amazing release to celebrate.
“Each band has written a bit about what Sparrer means to them, but the real tribute should be from us thanking each and every one of them for going the extra mile and doing this for us. We are humbled and we thank you.”
“We’ve been playing this on rotation since we got our copies, and the quality of these versions are among the very best covers we’ve ever heard of our songs.”
