Radiohead 1988 Demos - Sinking Ship

[antisadism]

I listen to their demo songs more than their released work. Something must be wrong with me.

[willzer808]

...anyone else think it sounds a lot like belle and sebastian?

[Unnamed0909]

This is Radiohead? Wow, they've changed a lot more than I thought.

[BlowBackBenny]

i like the way the sound rocks around like a boat

[tapetedepadaria]

This is so REM from those years!

[fushia24]

So glad they moved on from this!

[nbluth08]

that baby with the crazy eyes is freaking me out i don't like that picture much...i like this early demo stuff reminds me of really old REM and also makes me appreciate phil he just kicks ass no matter what kind of music he's doing...awesome awesome phil

[phenomenator]

This is the same drum part as Jigsaw Falling Into Place at some points

[Unnamed0909]

@phenomenator Radiohead tends to reuse parts of really old songs. The bassline to the National Anthem was written by Thom when he was 15.

[payinattention225]

HAHAHAHAHA i love the way thom is like "im da captain of da boat"

[qpwo6]

why did thom have to go into that voice he has now?

[hcd199]

I'm the captain of the boat... wow, that's catchy. Really good until the "I'm a sinking man! I'm a sinking man!" at the end.

[Prisoner7777]

The Las.

[braddersthemod]

this sounds like the housmartins!!!

i like it though. as much as i like the depressing morose and mournful radiohead, i think it would realy shock people if they suddenly came back with an album that sounds like this!

[MRMATRONIC]

@braddersthemod that would be the worse thing that could ever happen. I think i'd have to re-evaluate life...

[mrmintyjones]

Sounds very much like a Greenock band known as The Commercials (a.k.a Trousersnake!).

[BearWindAppleyard]

This is a lot more positive and "party-like" than everything they made since, specially after the bends. I kind of like that, would be funny to see them play this kind of music today.

[kassad84]

Rock and Roll

[maddhattertime]

Hilarious... and not exactly in a good way. It's amazing how far they've come

[coruptgovt]

Lol sounds like the shins!

[langers37]

@coruptgovt haha yeah it really does

[oogie11]

I hear The Smiths, REM, Haircut 100 in this song, ....that saxophone is good

[Supaduck0]

sounds like some early cure songs

[tuvalwolf]

Pathetic. :D

[technologic21]

They sound like the Housemartins.

[evanader]

for anyone who want these great early radiohead demos on an mp3, just type in youtube to mp3 on google. then copy and paste the url of the desired video and click convert and there you go.

[Panthersfan2]

whoa...The tempo jumps a but more than a few clicks at the beginning. I did not see that one coming.

[Froidfeld]

Hi, do you kwon where I can download this 3song demo?

[Deoxysdog]

But Thom is 41 years old?

[davestheman83]

Radiohead, back in the day! This is amazing.

[renzudoku]

WHAT THE HELL XD

[boosh90]

Cool. Shows what thy sounded like before they heard the Pixies and got all grungified, very REM/ '80's guitar pop altogether, class all the same

[reCupcake]

LOL! this doesn't make me laugh as much as Happy Song but it made me laugh to say the least.

Hoooolyyy... shiiit. xD

[nitter123]

i like this song. GO RADIOHEAD!!! uhh... i mean ON A FRIDAY!!!

[aaronleclair]

R.E.M. meets Belle and Sebastian. All three of these '88 demos are way ahead of the Pablo Honey period and their flirtation with the Pixies, at least.

[technologic21]

flamboyant.

[THESonicMMM]

Indeed.  ;)

[zerochance01]

incredible to hear how On A Friday grew into Radiohead...Radiohead Rules

[bornslippyboy]

sounds like the housemartins.

[Koriander2k]

Very R.E.M-esq.

[21rush12]

My friend was commenting on how "gloomy and makes me want to cut myself" Radiohead was. So I sent him some OaF and well... he still doesn't like Radiohead. But we had fun with these songs.

[cottoncandyaddict]

ohmanholy crap that sux lmao. good thing radiohead has been ABSOLUTELY AMAZING for the past...how many years? since 94 right? 16?!? naw...less than that. no way. i was 7 at the time, now im 20. my math sux. yay radiohead.

[Kyonkyonpanda]

ah, doesn't the description say '86?

that would make him 18...

[Adam0209M]

The description says that another demo was discovered from 1986, but this demo here was recorded in 1988 making yorke 20 or something. It's called Woodworm Demo, I dunno where you can get the full thing, maybe ebay or something lol

[Adam0209M]

@markus310 how did i fuck up the maths there mate? Thom Yorke was born in 1968, THIS demo is from 1988, do the math, 88 - 68 = 20, it makes him 20 when it was released!!! LMAO

Basically all i said was yorke was 20 in 1988 XD

[mets6891]

i wouldn't believe it's radiohead if i couldn't make out thom's voice. and what's up with the horns?

[fatuglymaori]

ok...it does remind me a little bit of the beatles...i think it is kinda of the drums....i cant figure it out...but it does sound a tiny bit like beatles from hard days night...etc, but one band it doesnt sound like at all....RADIOHEAD

[fuckinlayne]

funny song. i like it.

but new radiohead stuff is much better. love this band

[fotosyntes]

1337

[MLAshadow]

hahahaha, listen to this right before "like spinning plates". Its utter raving madness! It doesn't seem possible! How lucky things happend like they did...to think, pehaps if just one thing in history was different, radiohead might not have evolved and stayed like this....how lucky that everyone who influnced radiohead, influenced them in the exact way that they did. Oh, radiohead are awsome.

[ANDROMEDA737]

who knows where to get words for this song?

[9KarmaIngram3]

ahahaha poor radiohead! they used to suck so baad (i love radiohead so much)

[ANDROMEDA737]

hahah what's that kid's song)))??? ...Thom 's voice is so young here..i like it..but it reminds me of some USSR kid 's show or movie , I don't know why))

[dogmiagy]

!!WTF??

omg, how they have changed..

[Blackwaterdesigns]

As it turns out, if a band plays for ten or so years, they stop sucking.

[love4tchock]

It makes me laugh to think of how different they are now, compared to this haha. I still love it, though.

[Darthkittyus]

A lot of On A Friday songs are a lot better than some of the stuff on Pablo Honey, but this song definitely deserved missing the cut.

[radioheadthom]

this song is truly awful. and radiohead is my favorite band.

[importedmusic]

fuck off

[benderbrau1156]

They did not just use a fiddle in a surf pop song.

[ddrluver]

Oh wait, is that a violin in the background???o_O

[ddrluver]

Gawd. They sound like the frickin' Shins!!D:

But it's interesting nevertheless...*forever changed my view of Radiohead*

[fvertk]

Ahahah, they DO sound like the Shins! Wow.

[platinumdynamite]

Why weren't more songs like this on Pablo Honey?

[Tecxploration]

Lol, sounds more like Belle and Sebastian than radiohead.

[ryanpoorman]

best demo for sure!

[Alien6100]

does anyone have a mp3 file of the demos? if you do could i please have some demoz?

[girlfacedman]

I think.. no, i am SURE this is NOT radiohead!

Not On a Friday either. This is just not Thom's Voice and the quality of the recording is rather better than the Manic Hedgehog cassette.

So, that's not Radiohead.

[SnowiQ]

I am SURE this is RADIOHEAD!

[dvtrv]

slitheringinterstate;

Seem I have accidently marked you as spam. I don't even know what that means, sorry.

I was gonna say; How dare you mention R.E.M when relating to Radiohead. I am dissapointed. Only coz I really, really do not like REM. LOL!!

[EnigmaSurfacingPA]

Radiohead, and R.E.M. are actually close. If I'm not mistaken, Michael Stipe sang "Lucky" at a concert with Radiohead, and at Glastonbury 2003, Thom said, "We dedicate this next song, with Love, to R.E.M. ..." that night. It was "Lucky", too, haha.

No hard feelings, though.

[dvtrv]

Yeah, maybe as pals but surely not in the music sense!!!??!! Maybe I'm completely blinded by dislike for REM, maybe you're right. I hope not!!! lol!!!

Isn't it nice to have a civilised conversation about music rather than some of the abusive and offensive comments I've seen on this website.

For those reading this; it's ok to have different opinions you know, you don't have to be offended or be offensive because of other peoples views, It does happen you know.

[earman11]

REM are so bads.

i have heard everything they have to offer and they just dont offer me anything emotionally.

Radiohead on the other hand GAWD!

best band.

[gothamfoodie]

Yes, REM and RH are buds. They were often compared to eachother in music press in the 80's and since they were both megastars I guess they met,got along and kept in touch. It's known that Mike Stipe and Thom are friends. Both eccentric, insanely talented.

[LunchMonster]

Eh, dude, I think you got your dates wrong there. Radiohead didn't release anything official till the 90s, so how could they be compared to REM in the 80s? Radiohead was just a high school band back then. Blah, I sound like a huge nerd, but I just wanted to clear things up. You're right about Michael and Thom being friends, though :D

[gothamfoodie]

Oops. I typed 8 instead of 9. yeah- 1990's. Let's all rejoice that Radiohead's sound evolved from the sound in this song though.

btw- I'm a gal, not a dude ;-)

[LunchMonster]

I usually call everyone I meet "dude", so sorry about that. But, yeah, rejoice for early demo tape Radiohead!

[EgoTrippin311]

um..Thom was born in 68, this is a 88 demo, so he's 20..i doubt he was still in highschool. probably at a university.

[slitheringinterstate]

HUGE HUGE HUGE R.E.M. influence on this song...

...this is straight out of the Green/Murmur/Fables of the Reconstruction era.

[y2james]

sounds very beatles-esque too

[importedmusic]

sounds fuck all like the beatles

[danielion999]

I love it...it's 80's alternative. Very poppy.

[2brave2handle]

superb!

[OldiexOldie1134]

i still like it. anything these guys come up with is worth listening to, even if only for historical or comparative purposes.

[colinohyeah17]

this is such a weird song sounds like they tried to make a song that would be featured exclusively on Scooby Doo. I'm glad Thom changed his vocal style, it's not bad but it doesn't suit him....

[pleats]

hahaha holy crap! it does sound like it should be on Scooby Doo.

[Sicklesale]

A corridor chase scene comes to mind XP

[CowieMooCowxo87]

LOL.

[colinohyeah17]

why'd i get voted down?

[Spikew0ng]

I thought their first demo was the Manic Hedgehog tape. I did'nt think they released or recorded anything before that. Is this when they were On A Friday? Whats the story here, please enlighten me :)

[Amnesiac103]

Well basically On A Friday started as Thom, Colin, Ed, Phil, and Jonny on keyboards with a three-piece sax section. This was their very first demo with three others following it. Their next demo was when they renamed their band to Shindig for a short time. The next was recorded at Dungeon studios and the last was just called "On A Friday" but the artwork and popularity where they established earned it the name "Manic Hedgehog" after a music store in town.

[jeremybalfe]

Not bad for 1988.

[yesitsvish]

really ?

radiohead?

no f***ing way

my jaw drops .

thanks for posting .

[WizardOfMagic]

=O

Weird!

[daktyll]

thank you for this man!!!!!

[topsyturvytown]

thank you!