My Recommendation: Reverend And The Makers - Heavyweight Champion Of The World

For today’s recommendation I have this anthem for all of us under-achievers out there who got trapped in their repetitive lives, who otherwise could have gone on to do bigger things like “being Bruce Lee” or be the “Heavyweight Champion of the World” had they followed their heart.

Today’s recommendation comes from Sheffield, England by the seven piece band Reverend And The Makers, fronted by Jon McClure, nicknamed “The Reverend”, and he is the brains behind the band. Early in his career Jon developed this reputation of being a good songwriter and a poet, he mentored Alex Turner, who later became an overnight sensation as the leader of Arctic Monkeys, when the buzz around Arctic Monkeys grew larger Jon was offered a six-figure deal to form a similar band to Arctic Monkeys which he turned down and decided to follow his heart and formed the band Reverend And The Makers, that being nearly broke at the time.

The song I’m recommending Heavyweight Champion Of The World comes from their debut album The State Of Things and like I said it’s about losing sight of your childhood ambitions and getting trapped in the monotonies of everyday life. The song title is taken from a line of Barry Hines book A Kestrel For A Knave, the song also references the famous Marlon Brando line from the movie On The Waterfront, “I coulda been a contender. I coulda been somebody”, here’s what Jon had to say about the song

“… It’s about unfulfilled ambition brother. People who resign themselves to the death of ambition. Go to school, get a job, get married get a mortgage and die. There’s gotta be more than that! You can do anything you want. The first woman in space went to our school! I’d like to go to space …”

“There's a slight bit of humor in it, I think. You hear it in a lot of Sheffield music - a bit of cynicism. We've been fucked over for so many years I think people resort to humor. Hearing Jarvis Cocker's lyrics and Richard Hawley's and my own, it's that slightly tongue in cheek, "It's shit up here, innit? But let's have a laugh." My first record was quite regionally specific. It's located in the working class because that's where I come from. I could never make that record twice because that's not where I am anymore, but it's certainly rooted in that. I don't want to be a rock star who talks about leaving Sheffield. There's only me and Richard Hawley who still live in Sheffield of the Sheffield musicians, and I think that keeps you grounded.”

Musically speaking it’s an insanely catchy song, I love the disco beats and hooks peppered over the song with slightly unusual vocals, I guess the conga piece prominent in the verses of the song gives it the disco sound, don’t forget to checkout the Facebook Feed for an awesome Interview with Jon McClure, here’s the song