Plan B - 'She Said'
I love it when a Plan B comes together.*
Once upon a time, Plan B was a startling proposition, a sweary UK rapper with a penetrating stare, dragging an acoustic guitar behind him. That's right, an acoustic guitar. Here's this tough kid with tough rhymes and street-hardened scowl standing on stage with an instrument more commonly associated with weedy singer-songwriters and their endless tales of slightly-disappointing love.
No matter how many photoshoots he did with fake blood running down his hands, no matter how much brutal reality he hammered into his songs, there was always a faint air of suspicion, as if everyone was too afraid to admit that a rapper with a guitar is just a grumpy Jack Johnson.
(. It's judgemental.)
That's clearly not the case, but the Plan B of old was like a shot of very strong medicine when you really only needed a cough sweet. Now, he's a reborn soul man: still as tough as old boots - he put the willies up James Corden when he appeared on Jonathan Ross recently - still telling what the Kinks would call "tales of drunkenness and cruelty", only he's started dressing sharp, in a suit, he's singing falsetto, and he's brought what looks and sounds like Amy Winehouse's backing band along for the ride.
That's right, Amy Winehouse. Amy flipping Winehouse. The sound of 2006. As far as good pop ideas go, the Amy Winehouse card is more creased, battered and tatty than any left in the deck, including 'Let's Hook Up With Akon' and 'Shall We Auto-Tune The Chorus?'. And the trouble with the Amy Winehouse card is that everyone always leaves out the primary ingredient: the soul.
Not the soul MUSIC, you understand, anyone can put on a mohair suit and pretend to be a Temptation, the SOUL. The bit of the song which aches. Plan B, for all that he is late to the party, for all that he can't quite hit all the notes his poor strained throat is aiming at, has remembered to bring the pain.
It was there in 'Stay Too Long', the last single, where you just KNEW his wild night out would end in trouble, and it's here now. She loves him, he's leaving, the law are involved. Once again, you just KNOW this isn't going to end well for either of them, and yet there's nothing anyone can do to change what is about to happen.
There's no shame-faced raking over the hard-won lessons of the past here, that would be a step away from the pain, a frame to put around it. They're caught up in the moment, and as listeners, so are we. Good luck, everyone!
Download: 29th March
³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Music page
(Fraser McAlpine)
* You may not get this right now, but at some point during the forthcoming A Team movie, you'll suddenly go "OH!" and settle back down in your seat, slightly disappointed.
Comment number 1.
At 22nd Mar 2010, OddOne wrote:"Plan B, for all that he is late to the party, for all that he can't quite hit all the notes his poor strained throat is aiming at, has remembered to bring the pain."
And this is why I love him. He really can sing, and he's not afraid of his gobby rap fans from abandoning him because he 'now sings like a puff', one of my friends commented.
But what is best abot this guy, is that he write the lyrics to his songs with outstanding knowledge and depth about what love is really like, he not singing about rubbing himself up against the nearest "shawdy" in "da club", and he delivers the song vocally with so much emotion, it would put Judy Garland to shame.
I'm not a rap fan by any means, but Plan B's conversion has made him my favourite rap/soul artist ever, probably even more-so than Paloma Faith. (you must download her new song ja?)
5 stars from me.
Complain about this comment (Comment number 1)
Comment number 2.
At 22nd Mar 2010, Craig wrote:Completely agree. 5 stars.
I hope he storms the charts with this.
Complain about this comment (Comment number 2)
Comment number 3.
At 22nd Mar 2010, jonesybcfc wrote:Its brilliant! Love the guys new sound, and it shouldn't work but that's what makes it brilliant! And Effy from skims again...brilliant!! Plan B-rilliant!!
Complain about this comment (Comment number 3)
Comment number 4.
At 22nd Mar 2010, jonesybcfc wrote:I of course meant skins.
(which is also pretty brilliant)
Complain about this comment (Comment number 4)
Comment number 5.
At 22nd Mar 2010, RandomEnigma wrote:Totally off the point of music here but how terrible was the last episode of Series 4 of Skins. It was such a brilliant show but really went down in quality in Series 3 and especially Series 4. Not because of Effy and the gang (who were all great actors)...but the show was badly written and the plots didn't seem as tight as that of the Generation 1 gang (Tony and all).
Complain about this comment (Comment number 5)
Comment number 6.
At 22nd Mar 2010, jonesybcfc wrote:No I was also completely disappointed with the last episode in particular, it was supposed to be the best one and usually is, but nothing happened until the last five minutes. There were only a couple of eps in the whole series that I thought were any good. Still, I stand by my claim that the show as a whole is pretty brilliant.
Complain about this comment (Comment number 6)
Comment number 7.
At 22nd Mar 2010, RandomEnigma wrote:MINOR SPOILER ALERT!!!
Yeah agree with you Jonesy about it being brilliant as a whole. But the murder of a certain character in Episode 7 just seemed a kind of unnecessary plot twist and only one character found out in the end and there was so little reaction from that actor and then the show just ended and left us hanging.
Not since the finale of The Sopranos have I felt so let down by A good show.
Hopefully a new cast of characters and better writers will make the show better than next time.
Complain about this comment (Comment number 7)
Comment number 8.
At 22nd Mar 2010, jonesybcfc wrote:Precisely. I reckon they'll do a similar thing to what they did with Effy and base the next series around Freddie (God rest his soul) 's sister and her mates, which will be good or bad again dependant on the writing, because the acting is remarkeably always rop notch.
Complain about this comment (Comment number 8)
Comment number 9.
At 22nd Mar 2010, RandomEnigma wrote:Hmmmm Freddie's sister. Is she older or younger or the same age as Freddie? 'Cause the show is focusing on sixth form college students.
Anyways to get off the subject of Skins and onto the subject of Plan B, this song is really great and has more commercial appeal than previous single Stay Too Long.
Any predictions where this will go?
Complain about this comment (Comment number 9)
Comment number 10.
At 22nd Mar 2010, jonesybcfc wrote:I think a year or possibly two younger, which fits.
The song is Top 5 I reckon.
Complain about this comment (Comment number 10)
Comment number 11.
At 22nd Mar 2010, OddOne wrote:I really hope so, it echoes the heartbreak of Winehouse and the intrumentation alongside his mournfully soulful vocals is just fantastic. Makes for a great listen and I can't help smile ast how the rap interlude doesn't detract from the song in any way. :)
Complain about this comment (Comment number 11)
Comment number 12.
At 22nd Mar 2010, BloggingLiam wrote:This PlanB track is an amazing 5 stars. We've (mainy Spirit, with backing vocals from me and a few others) been banging about Plan B for ages now. Bring on the album!! It's accompanying his first movie apparently.
Complain about this comment (Comment number 12)
Comment number 13.
At 22nd Mar 2010, BloggingLiam wrote:Im gonna binge this new series of Skins. I grew up with Skins, I was in 6th form series 1 and went to uni as the second series aired. So I thought it was absolutely brilliant. The second series of Skins has some of the most fantastic coming of age plot lines, acting and execution ever screen on any screen. It turned from a comedy into a dark and clever drama series. Losing many fans of the drug fueled party episodes.
The third series was half good, with the twins plot lines.. but the Effy/Freddie/Cook thing was terrible and I lost all interest by the last episode, I never found out how their plot resolved and I didn't care.
The 4th series can wait!
Complain about this comment (Comment number 13)
Comment number 14.
At 24th Mar 2010, CurtainJerker wrote:Hold on. Did you just say that the second series of Skins had some of the best acting ever seen on screen?
Complain about this comment (Comment number 14)
Comment number 15.
At 24th Mar 2010, spirit wrote:In Liam's opinion it would appear the second series of Skins has the best acting ever seen on screen .
But I am sure , Lord Olivier , Richard Burton , Marlon Brando , Michael Sheen , William H Macy , Russell Crowe , Jodie Foster , Robert De Niro , Al Pacino , Tom Hanks , Ray Liotta ,Meryl Streep , Kevin Spacey ,Dustin Hoffman , Harvey Keitel , James Caan , Denzel Washington , and Morgan Freeman may have a slightly different opinion than our gorgeous blogging friend .
lol
Complain about this comment (Comment number 15)
Comment number 16.
At 24th Mar 2010, jonesybcfc wrote:On the E4 screens, most probably. Unless Tom Hanks or Morgan Freeman made an appearence in The Inbetweeners that i didnt see...
Complain about this comment (Comment number 16)
Comment number 17.
At 24th Mar 2010, OddOne wrote:I personally don't think Skins is all that. (except for the first series)I've seen many interviews with the actors and actresses from post-series one and they're almost exactly the same people in real life. Being who you are on-screen is not acting. Let alone best acting ever.
Complain about this comment (Comment number 17)
Comment number 18.
At 24th Mar 2010, OddOne wrote:Mind you, it was a surprise seeing Will Young in the last series! He was good :L
Complain about this comment (Comment number 18)
Comment number 19.
At 24th Mar 2010, spirit wrote:And what about such acting greats as MacKenzie Crook and David Baddiel , didn't these thespians play a part ?
Complain about this comment (Comment number 19)
Comment number 20.
At 24th Mar 2010, BloggingLiam wrote:Oh c'mon it was poorly worded. Of course I didn't mean ever ever. I meant coming of age drama type young kids stuff. Whatevers!
Also anybody who thinks the first series > second series clearly needs their heads examining and needs to watch them again.
Complain about this comment (Comment number 20)
Comment number 21.
At 25th Mar 2010, OddOne wrote:No thanks, I think I'd rather watch F.R.I.E.N.D.S. :) Gotta love it.
Complain about this comment (Comment number 21)
Comment number 22.
At 25th Mar 2010, spirit wrote:Yeah , and the new series of Dr Who with Matt Smith is starting soon .
Complain about this comment (Comment number 22)
Comment number 23.
At 25th Mar 2010, CurtainJerker wrote:I'd rather watch Ceefax.
Complain about this comment (Comment number 23)
Comment number 24.
At 25th Mar 2010, thranjax wrote:Well I am looking forward to it Curtains.
BTW why F.R.I.E.N.D.S? Does it stand for something?
Complain about this comment (Comment number 24)
Comment number 25.
At 25th Mar 2010, OddOne wrote:Well, if I were to say I'd rather watch Friends, I might get some funny looks... I mean, Freinds as in the 90's sit-com which is currently re-run and has been since God knows how long on E4. (:
Complain about this comment (Comment number 25)
Comment number 26.
At 25th Mar 2010, BloggingLiam wrote:Im glad its off tbh. Hopefully it gets replaced with How I met your mother. Which is brilliant.
Complain about this comment (Comment number 26)
Comment number 27.
At 25th Mar 2010, RandomEnigma wrote:Seeing as we're talking TV shows. Who's watching True Blood? I'm absolutely loving it and have such a crush on Anna Paquin.
Complain about this comment (Comment number 27)
Comment number 28.
At 26th Mar 2010, CurtainJerker wrote:Thranjax, you know I was talking about Skins, right? Although I'm not bothered about Dr Who either (do like Friends though).
I watched the first half of the first season of True Blood, right up to the part where Janis from Mean Girls turned up and got involved with Jason Stackhouse, but by that point it was becoming a bit of a chore, so I gave up on it. I know the second season's on FX at the mo. I read a bit about it on Wiki and it sounds like the plot just descends into idiocy, to be honest. But it definitely started out well overall.
Complain about this comment (Comment number 28)
Comment number 29.
At 26th Mar 2010, spirit wrote:Are vampires becoming more popular lately ?
They are everywhere !
Is it the R-PATZ effect ?
Complain about this comment (Comment number 29)
Comment number 30.
At 26th Mar 2010, RandomEnigma wrote:It has nothing to do with the sparkly fairy that is Edward Cullen. Well not for me anyways.
I really enjoy True Blood because under the trashy sex, drugs and violence exterior, it's a cleverly written show with well developed characters and every episode is highly entertaining with every episode ending on a cliffhanger. It's well acted and contains a number of genres such as fantasy, comedy, horror, drama and a great satire of Southern United States. Also I've read the books which are really poor, but the TV show is miles ahead.
Complain about this comment (Comment number 30)
Comment number 31.
At 27th Mar 2010, BloggingLiam wrote:Vampires have been pretty popular since the Buffy days. I read all the Darren Shan vampire books growing up ... but you do have a point with Twilight having an effect. Ridiculous book that it is.
True Bloods on the 'To watch' list.
Im very, very, very excited about Dr. Who. Remember our Christmas period discussion on the specials?
Complain about this comment (Comment number 31)
Comment number 32.
At 27th Mar 2010, harrythedog10 wrote:The specials were rubbish, they all felt like Russel T Davies had run out of ideas. With Steven Moffat doing most of the writing now we should get some new ideas and hopefully less silly monsters, why can't Doctor Who be scary again!
Complain about this comment (Comment number 32)
Comment number 33.
At 27th Mar 2010, BloggingLiam wrote:Was pretty much our conclusion from what I remember! The Noffat episodes leaned towads the scarier end of the Who episodes, with the Blitz one, Blink and The Library one.
Complain about this comment (Comment number 33)
Comment number 34.
At 29th Mar 2010, spirit wrote:This Plan B single is heading for the top 10 again , and will be his third top 10 single in a row .
Congratulations in order !!!
Complain about this comment (Comment number 34)
Comment number 35.
At 29th Mar 2010, OddOne wrote:Third? I can only count 'Stay Too Long'? Was there a Top 10 single from his last album, because this is only his second single from his sophomore album 'The Defamation of Strickland Banks'.
Complain about this comment (Comment number 35)
Comment number 36.
At 29th Mar 2010, OddOne wrote:But all the same, congratulations Plan B!
Complain about this comment (Comment number 36)
Comment number 37.
At 29th Mar 2010, spirit wrote:End Credits with Chase and Status , from that fantastic Michael Caine film , reached number 9 .
Stay too Long was top ten , as will She Said , in 6 days time .
Complain about this comment (Comment number 37)
Comment number 38.
At 30th Mar 2010, OddOne wrote:Oo right, so it did silly me. BUT that all in THE PAST now!
Midweeks say Plan B is at #2! I really weant him to have his first top 3 single with this release. It is v good, yes?*
*Yes it is.
Complain about this comment (Comment number 38)
Comment number 39.
At 13th Apr 2010, OddOne wrote:WOOO! Looks like Plan B's headed for his first #1 album with 'The Defamation of Strickland Banks', it's topped the charts already! I hope it can stay there for Sunday.
*crosses fingers*
Complain about this comment (Comment number 39)
Comment number 40.
At 13th Apr 2010, spirit wrote:Yeah , but he's got Scouting For Girls seriously breathing down his neck !!!
It's gonna be close !
Don't you just love a good chart battle ?
:)
Complain about this comment (Comment number 40)
Comment number 41.
At 14th Apr 2010, BloggingLiam wrote:My opinion on Rybak.
Imagine if Plan B had first released this, or the amazing 'Stay too Long' and gained popularity with those. Then released the jaw dropping 'End Credits'. Virtually garunteed number 1, mass album buying and critical aclaim I'm sure. 'End Credits' is a serious contender for the best song I've heard in a long time. Seriously.
Although he probably did the right think with regards to single order and has benefited massively from it.. just think!
Complain about this comment (Comment number 41)
Comment number 42.
At 14th Apr 2010, OddOne wrote:I think he should've included 'End Credits' on his new LP. Unfortunately he didn't but 'Stay Too Long' and 'She Said' are more than enough to propel this to #1 for sure.
Complain about this comment (Comment number 42)