Band
Set List
The Mangledwurzels normally play two 45-minute sets, each
with about 15 songs in it. As they can chop and change the set according
to the audience, there isn't a definitive set list as such, but
it wouldn't look too unlike the one showed below.
Adge
Cutler was a prolific songwriter, and since his death The Wurzels
have continued to record and release songs. The Wurzelmania!
website lists 131 Wurzels songs, and that doesn't include the 10
from Never Mind The Bullocks. The Mangledwurzels
will normally play 20 or so Wurzels songs in an evening's performance;
split half-and-half between old Adge songs and 'newer' Wurzels songs.
 In
addition The Mangledwurzels
have a repertoire of their own material: self-penned titles and
pop standards 'Mangled' in true Wurzels tradition. Although there
is now twenty in the list below, there is never more than nine or
ten played in one evening. In saying that, if someone wants to book
the band to play a totaly original set - it should now be possible!
The
Mangledwurzels
are constantly looking at trying new songs. Kevin, the landlord
of the Red Lion in Bath asked us to do Somerset Crumpet Horn
next time we played there. This was one we had originally listened
to and discarded - but we had another go, played it at his pub (with
him on the mic with Hedge), and is went down a storm, so we will
be adding that to our reportiore. Others will undoubtedly follow...
Below
is a list of the songs we do, have done, and - in a few cases -
are working on adding to the repertoire. Songs marking with a *
are either self-penned or 'Mangled' by the band:
-
Beta Beta Vulgaris (The Mangoldwurzel) *
- short and sweet, and as subtle as a hurled mangloldwuzel. The
finale of the band's live set.
- Blackbird,
The - An old West Country folk song with lyrics written
by The Wurzels. A perennial favourite with the crowds which always
goes down well; so well in fact that it is often demanded again
as one of the encores.
- Blanket
On The Ground * - Seth's new lyrics for this Billie Jo
Spears country classic just reeks of rustic charm.
-
Champion Dung Spreader - An old Adge Cutler song,
one of the original songs from the breakthrough 1966 Royal Oak
Nailsea set.
- Chitterling
- Another of Adge's song extolling the virtues of the food of
the Gods (or should that be the food of the dogs...). The Mangledwurzels
do a particularly theatrical rendition of this song.
- Cider
Is Good For ‘Ee * - Freely adapted from a traditional
Devon drinking song, this ditty expounds the beneficial results
of drinking cider.
- Combine
Harvester - The Wurzels number 1 hit! And that was in
1976 when a number 1 hit singles meant something. The Mangledwurzels
always open their set with this one - and it often ends up in
the encores as well.
-
Countryside Code, The *
- Another of Seth's 'manglings'. This time Steve's Harley's classic
'Come Up And See Me' get the re-works.
- Don’t
Tell I, Tell ‘Ee
- Hedge has asked me not to say anything about his missus here,
suffice to say that this is a song about never being in the wrong!
Not one of Adge's compositions, but perhaps a song that summed
up his character in one.
- Drink
Drink Yer Cider Up - Yes, another song about the merits
of drinking up cider. Not to be confused with...
-
Drink Up Thee Zider - Adge claimed that this
was "the National Anthem of North Zummerzet", and who
can deny that? This was Adge's first and, I suspect, biggest hit
- reaching number 45 in the charts in 1967. Always goes down well,
especially when played at the end of the set when everyone's had
a few! For a child-friendly or teetotal audience, the band can
play Drink Up Thee Tizer instead!
- Farmer
Bill’s Cowman - Wurzels' lyrics over the 1967 Whistling
Jack Smith's instrumental Kaiser Bill's Batman, gave
us another of the band's classics. One of the closing numbers
of the set, The Mangledwurzels often have a surprise guest for
this song (if he remembers to put his false beard on!)
- Farrington
Gurney * - Seth's heart-warming tribute to his home town.
-
Friday Night *
- One of the first ever Mangledwurzels song. This is what The
Darkness would have sounded like if they had come from Locking
instead of Lowestoft.
-
Get Lost * - Classic Lennon
& McCartney given the Somerset make-over by Hedge's missus
Daisy Cutter; whose lyrics are brilliant (much better than the
original).
-
Get Off O’ My Land * - The finale of every
Mangledwurzels gig, a Jagger/Richards/Pitt composition guaranteed
to get the whole crowd joining in. Title track of the band's first
album, but Jagger & Richards declined to give permission for
its inclusion on the album! It is available
to hear in its entirety on
The Mangledwurzels MySpace page.
-
Hark At 'Ee Jacko - One of Adge Cutler's best-loved
ditties. A new song for the band though, first included in the
live set at Westbury in February 2008.
- I
Am A Cider Drinker - The Wurzels follow up to Combine
Harvester which 'only' managed to get to number 3 in the charts,
but remains a classic Scrumpy & Western anthem.
-
I Can Drive A Tractor * - With a chorus everyone
knows and verses that Jethro struggles to remember. this song
normally finishes the first set with a bang.
-
I Got Me Beady Little Eye on Thee - Seth's opportunity
in the spotlight as he sings this Pete Budd-penned number.
-
I Wish I Was Back On The Farm - Contrary to any
stage announcements that The Mangledwurzels are making this up
as they go along, this is an Adge-manglation of a 1940 George
Formby song.
-
I’ll Never Get A Scrumpy Here
- Sung at all venues, regardless of what's on sale at the bar!
-
John Deere Tractor *
- Showcased at the Raven gig in November 2005, but yet to be installed
into the set.
-
Keep Your Hand On Your Halfpenny - A warning
to all young maidens not to trust men - especially Hedge Cutter!
-
Knackerer, The * - Hedge's little ditty about
his favourite job!
- Listening
To The Archers * - Seth reveals his love for Radio 4's
timeless soap. Showcased at the Raven gig in November 2005, but
yet to be installed into the set.
-
Lonely This Christmas * - a 'mangled' re-write
of that classic festive Mud song with added oo-ah's! Part of the
Christmas set, and included on the band's 2007 Stuff
The Mangledwurzels! EP.
- Marrow
Song (Oh! What A Beauty), The
- a favourite part of the Wurzels live set, and incorporated into
our set too. First included in the live set at Westbury in February
2008.
- Morning
Glory
- Although this was a flop single for The Wurzels, it has become
somewhat of a local anthem, especially amongst Bristol City fans.
In The Mangledwurzels set, it showcases Hedge's total lack of
understanding of football, along with a rather predatorial instinct
with the radio mic.
-
My Threshing Machine - A purely innocent song
about a farming implement...honest!
-
No Sheep 'Til Ammerdown * -
a Scrumpy & Westernised (and much less rude) version of the
Macc Lad's anthem No Sheep 'Til Buxton. A new song first
included in the live set at Westbury in February 2008.
- Pill
Pill - Another of Adge's compositions, a true Somerset
folk song about the long lost Pill Ferry.
-
Pitchfork And U
* - A rural re-working of the old Joe Brown song.
-
Rat Song: Rattus Somersetti, The
* - In the early days of the band, Seth and Jethro use
to practice in Jethro's back room, and watch gert big rats rampage
though his chicken run. Seth was so enamoured by these scavengers
that he penned this tribute to them. It is available
to hear in its entirety on
The Mangledwurzels MySpace page.
- Santa's
Coming To Somerset * - Seth's reminiscences on Christmas
past. Part of the Christmas set, and included on the band's 2007
Stuff The Mangledwurzels EP. It is available
to hear in its entirety on
The Mangledwurzels MySpace page.
- Scrumpy
Jack * - Take a popular kiddies TV show
theme, add lyrics about a popular fizzy beverage and you get one
of the most requested home-brewed Mangledwurzels song.
-
Shepton Sheep, The * - A Seth
Pitt composition about Shepton's own stone-clad fluffy favourites.
A new song first included in the live set at Westbury in February
2008.
- Somerset
Crumpet Horn - Probably the rudest song The Wurzels ever
sang, The Mangledwurzels played it once at the Red Lion in Bath,
aided and abetted by Kevin the pub's landlord. It went down a
storm, so expect it to be inserted into the set before too long.
- Speedy
Gonzalez - A different introduction for each venue (as
long as Jethro remembers to check the map and find the nearest
river to the venue!) - Speedy Gonzalaz always opens the
second set with a bang.
- Stuck
In The Midden * - Big arguments in the band over whether
a 'midden' really is a big pile of poo. Eventually Jethro gave
in - mainly because this song allows him to say 'poo' a lot at
posh places like Brislington Conservative Club.
- Twelve
Days Of Christmas, The * - A Seth Pitt re-write of the
popular Christmas song. Never played live, but included on the
band's 2007 Stuff The Mangledwurzels! EP
(with an accompanying video!). It is available
to hear in its entirety on
The Mangledwurzels MySpace page.
- Twice
Daily - Banned by the BBC, this is another classic Adge
composition. The Mangledwurzels hone it back to guitar and vocals,
giving the audience a good opportunity to admire Hedge's voice.
- Valleys
Girl * - A traditional old English folk
song written in the old English folk tradition in 2005 (and sung)
by Jethro. Drawing on the ambience of Laurie Lee's Cider With
Rosie, this is a song about unplanned sex and unexpected
pregnancy and inevitable marriage.
- Walking
'Cross The Yard * - The Mangledwurzels do white reggae,
with a re-write of the old Police song.
- Wurple
Diddle I Do - An old German drinking song with Adge's
lyrics in an obscure dialect of gibberish sung with skill and
aplomb by Hedge, Jethro and Seth.
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