Thundermug –Clap Your Hands & Stamp Your Feet

Thundermug –Clap Your Hands & Stamp Your Feet/Duckworth Stomp –Axe 33 (1976 Canada)

I’m losing track of the number of versions of CYHASYF that I have amassed up to now. Bonnie St. Claire’s classic certainly knew no borders and although the success of the song was limited in most countries, its appeal was certainly global.

To prove the point here is Canada’s entry by Thundermug no less. The mighty ‘Mug were pretty huge at the time with their heavy goodtime boogie; with Africa and Orbit being their biggest sellers. You should also check out their cover of You Really Got Me that nearly gives The Hammersmith Gorillas a good run for their money. Thundermug toured with Sweet and Slade and the Boot Stomping Glam influence certainly made its mark along with a melodicism which bought them, at times, close to 70s Powerpop.

The non-album Clap Your Hands & Stamp Your Feet neatly bring all these influences together. Whilst not as frenetic as The Wild Angels’ version, Thundermug heavy it up with a plodding bass, which is counter-balanced by the Maui-like backing vocals, which are similar in effect to the chants on South Africa’s entry by Maria. The B side Duckworth Stomp is from the Tadaa album and is a fine up-tempo rocker in its own right, a bit like a lost Canyon single.

Click on title for a soundclip of CYHASYF