Achtung Bono

Achtung Bono is the tenth album by UK rock band Half Man Half Biscuit, released in 2005.

The title is a satirical reference to the title of the 1991 album by Irish rock band U2 – Achtung Baby.

The track "Joy Division Oven Gloves" entered the UK Singles Chart on 10 April 2010 (chart date: week ending 17 April 2010) at number 56 following a Facebook-campaign in aid of saving BBC 6 Music.^[2]

Track listing

1. "Restless Legs"
2. "Corgi Registered Friends"
3. "For What is Chatteris.."
4. "Shit Arm, Bad Tattoo"
5. "Surging Out of Convalescence"
6. "Upon Westminster Bridge"
7. "Joy Division Oven Gloves"
8. "Mate of the Bloke"
9. "Asparagus Next Left"
10. "Depressed Beyond Tablets"
11. "Bogus Official"
12. "Letters Sent"
13. "Twydale's Lament"
14. "We Built This Village on a Trad. Arr. Tune"

Cultural references in song titles

• 1. Restless legs syndrome is a poorly understood neurological disorder.
• 2. Until 1 April 2009, gas fitters in the UK had to be 'Corgi registered' to practise their trade. Corgi stands for the Council for Registered Gas Installers.
• 3. Chatteris is a small picturesque town in Cambridgeshire.
• 4. The title is said to be a reference to the cover of the eponymous second album by the Libertines, although Nigel Blackwell has denied that the song is about the band.
• 6. Upon Westminster Bridge is a poem by William Wordsworth. Westminster Bridge is a major bridge crossing the Thames in central London.
• 7. Joy Division were an influential band from Manchester in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The song satirises band merchandising. Half Man Half Biscuit fans now commonly make their own Joy Division oven gloves, usually using the graph image from their first album, Unknown Pleasures.
• 9. 'Asparagus Next Left' is the sort of sign that can be seen on British country roads advertising farm products for sale at the farm gate.
• 10. The title is from a line in the 'Crime' episode of Chris Morris's controversial TV comedy Brass Eye.
• 11. The government constantly warn people, particularly the elderly, to beware of bogus officials knocking on doors in order to steal. The song is asterisked on the album track listing as a 'Public information tune'.
• 13. The lyrics end with "Gouranga Gouranga, yes I'll be happy, when you've been arrested for defacing the bridge." in reference to an influx of Hare Krishna stickers reading "Gouranga" began appearing on bridges in England.
• 14. This title is a play on words from "We Built This City" by Starship. 'Trad. Arr.' (traditional arrangement) is usually given when a folk song is recorded by a band in their own arrangement.

Video

A fan-made video available on YouTube for Restless Legs is a parody of the David Lynch film Eraserhead.

References