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The Vinyl Guide - Artist Interviews for Record Collectors and Music Nerds

Ep541: TV Smith - 50 Years of The Adverts

The Vinyl Guide - Artist Interviews for Record Collectors and Music Nerds

Nate Goyer

Music, Music History, Music Interviews

4.7 • 579 Ratings

🗓️ 30 March 2026

⏱️ 42 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

TV Smith joins Nate to discuss the 50th anniversary of The Adverts, an Australian tour backed by The Hard-Ons, and a career full of great songs and terrible label luck.

Topics Include:

  • TV Smith is touring Australia in April with The Hard-Ons.
  • The tour celebrates the 50th anniversary of The Adverts.
  • The Hard-Ons are already learning the surprisingly complex Adverts songs.
  • TV finds it odd but joyful to still be performing.
  • He got back into vinyl to quality-check his own releases.
  • Bowie, Roxy Music, and reggae were key early influences for TV.
  • The Sex Pistols made TV believe he could actually do this.
  • The Roxy Club punk scene started with just 30 people.
  • Brian James of The Damned personally recommended The Adverts to Stiff.
  • They recorded One Chord Wonders in a single afternoon at Pathway.
  • Stiff misspelled the title and controversially centred Gaye Advert on the cover.
  • Gary Gilmore's Eyes was TV's satirical response to exploitative media coverage.
  • The BBC was deeply reluctant to air Gary Gilmore's Eyes on TV.
  • Anchor Records collapsed mid-momentum, leaving The Adverts suddenly without a label.
  • Crossing the Red Sea was recorded at Abbey Road with John Leckie.
  • Gary Gilmore's Eyes was left off the album deliberately — vinyl runtime constraints.
  • RCA signed them against their own A&R team's wishes — chaos followed.
  • Cast of Thousands suffered a botched mix, a terrible cover, label indifference.
  • Channel 5 was finally properly remastered after the producer found a safety tape.
  • TV is bringing vinyl to the merch table — especially the Handwriting LP.

High resolution version of this podcast is available at: www.Patreon.com/VinylGuide

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Hi, this is TV Smith.

0:01.7

We're celebrating 50 years of my band The Adverts this year in Australia,

0:06.2

and you're listening to Nate on The Vinyl Guide.

0:12.5

Welcome to the Vinyl Guide, the podcast for record collectors and music nerds.

0:17.3

Here's your host, the biggest record nerd of them all, Nate Goyer.

0:20.6

Hey, everyone, it's Nate. Welcome to episode 541 of the Final Guide, the podcast for record

0:28.4

collectors and music nerds. And dear people, this week, we are welcoming to the show. Punk Pioneer,

0:34.4

an absolute dead set legend, Mr. TV Smith.

0:37.8

And we're going to discuss the history and records and rare recordings of the Adverts as well as his solo career.

0:45.1

Now, if you're not familiar with the Adverts, well, actually, yes, you are.

0:49.5

Because the Adverts' early catalog is truly, is woven into the fabric of the foundations of punk and modern

0:57.3

music i mean you you've heard them songs like gary gilmore's eyes one-cord wonders no time to be

1:03.3

21 great british mistake all those tracks and more the adverts were very short-lived but hugely

1:09.8

pivotal very influential band.

1:12.3

The flame burned hot and bright, but only for a short time.

1:16.4

But the legacy of the music we still have today.

1:19.6

And we have frontman TV Smith who continues to write and record and tour.

1:24.8

Now, TV Smith is in Australia, the first few weeks of April, and is an amazing

1:30.3

bonus. He's being backed by the hard-ons. Ray, Blackie, and Murray are going to be his backing

1:36.2

band, which is going to make this tour. Frigan amazing, certainly one you don't want to miss.

1:41.4

Tvysmith.co.com.uk. That Aussie tour is in April,

1:45.1

then a shitload of gigs in Europe after that.

...

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