A Head Full of Wishes is a site for Galaxie 500, Luna, Damon & Naomi, Dean & Britta and Dean Wareham. With news, articles and lists of releases and past and future shows.
My record collection
[289] Dean & Britta - A Gift / Homeward Bound (8")
This lovely lathe cut 8” single by Dean & Britta was released as a gift to PIAPTK’s Patreon supporters although a few copies turned up in Dean & Britta’s online store. I was hoping Dean was going to bring some copies to the UK on his recent tour but unfortunately not, so I asked if he could send me a copy… which of course he did! It arrived last week…
The single is a square of white plastic with both tracks cut onto one side, the sleeve is a beautiful picture of Britta and a drum kit, printed onto a transparent piece of plastic - it is lovely, and means that I can make it look like a tiny Britta is standing on my record player while I’m playing it.
A Gift is a cover of the Lou Reed track that was released on his 1975 LP Coney Island Baby, this was later released with a re-recorded vocal, re-mixed (by Britta) and mastered by Kramer, and credited just to Dean Wareham, but this is the Dean & Britta demo version.
Homeward Bound was first performed by Dean & Britta way back in 2010 at a pricey benefit show on the Central Park Summerstage - the event was a star spangled show with all the artists covering songs by Simon & Garfunkel. A short piece in the New Yorker mentions the rehearsals for the show that were at the City Winery in New York…
Dean & Britta were next, doing “Homeward Bound.”
Dean: “We wanted to do ‘The Only Living Boy in New York.’ But Aimee Mann stole that one—and she’s not even a boy!”
Hello, Lamppost (The New Yorker, 5th July 2010)
Some clips from the rehearsal turned up on YouTube but sadly not Dean & Britta’s turn - here’s Shawn Colvin and Paula Cole doing America.
There are a stack of pictures from the show here but, none of Dean and/or Britta - I can’t even spot them in the big Bridge Over Troubled Water finale… maybe you can?
So… come COVID, and come those lockdown live streams and Dean & Britta dust off their cover of Homeward Bound for their shows on the 26th September 2020 and the version that is on this single is from their early show… although… it seems the applause was added later - Roger did add applause a few times during both shows… but my video of Homeward Bound from the early show ends in silence.
I love Simon & Garfunkel, and I love Homeward Bound… but I, like I guess most people, love Only Living Boy in New York a bit more and since Aimee Mann isn’t likely to get first dibs any more, perhaps a cover of that sometime?
- Catalogue Number: AHFOW 11/083
- Artist: Dean & Britta
- Title: A Gift / Homeward Bound
- Format: 8” lathe cut single