Tommy – A Matter of Fact – US Fuzzed-up Oddity (1971)

Tommy – A Matter of Fact/Here Comes The Dawn - Phonograph Records SPJ 171-1 (US 1971)

Note: Before reading this review I suggest going straight to the sound clip below…

The first thing that will hit you when you play A Matter of Fact is the compressed Overdriven/fuzz guitar sound that accompanies this bouncy tune, you go along with the groove, but then when you reach the 1: 15 mark – something happens and I mean happens…oddball, nuts lunacy…fill in your own words, the tune then returns and we’re done. Here Comes The Dawn features the same overdriven guitar with a more dry guitar part. It could well be that the guitar(s) were DI/plugged in directly to the board as Dave Edmunds was doing at the time. Lyrically both tunes have a positive message, so yes it’s XIAN, but there are no “J” or “G” words, so it doesn’t grate too much or spoil the enjoyment, so don’t worry about the “man in the sky...”

From Wisconsin, Tommy is in fact Tom Sumner who led Garage band The Jaguars and The Up-Stairs. There is another issue of this single on Kleo as by The Dominos

Hear full version of A Matter of Fact/Here Comes The Dawn