Sleeper: Little Annie

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Sleeper: Little Annie

posted Nov 26, 2012, 9:59 AM by Vu Nguyen

Little Annie

Don't come around, acting so feeble
It's much too late to talk to you people
She knows, she knows what's happening
And like a woman she explodes
She knows what's happening

She cut off her fingers to keep them from itching
She sewed up her eyes to stop them from twitching
She's eating the dirty again like a monkey
She's flat on her back, oh yes
Wasted and glad, oh yes
Lost in a bend, she's gone 'round it

Don't come around, I feel so ugly
I'd like to punch someone and I'm hungry
Little Annie says she knows
She knows what's going on
And like a woman she explodes
She's knows what's going on

She cut off her fingers to keep them from itching
She sewed up her eyes to stop them from twitching
She's eating the dirty again like a monkey
She's flat on her back, oh yes
Wasted and glad, oh yes
Lost in a bend, she's gone 'round it

Sleeper: Little Annie

I'm in the process of moving, so I've been packing things up in boxes. I was working on my magazines, when I took a break and started flipping through them. The memories started flooding back, what good times these were. I fear that in today's word, how are you going to reminisce about an old article?

Believe it or not, but before the internet took over, most of my news and attention to bands were all thanks to magazines. I stopped buying magazines altogether because, let's be honest: they are expensive. Plus, all the cool magazines (Select, Q, Mojo, Uncut) are based in the UK and getting a subscription to it was way, way expensive.

To justify many of my mags purchases, it would have to include a compilation CD or if there was a band I really, really love on its cover. Usually this meant Britpop-related bands, like my most obsessed band in the 90s, Sleeper.

I love everything that Sleeper released, collected all the albums and singles (on various formats, CD, 7", 12", cassingles). I had it bad, and it was worst being in the U.S. Everything came out to us late, and we never got to see all the cool music videos or various television appearances.

I saw Sleeper twice: 1995 and 1996. The first time was the best time. Mel and I got to interview Louise Wener and Andy McClure. We met the rest of the band in the green room of the Whiskey A-Go-Go. The second time was also unforgettable; they opened up for Elvis Costello. All good times.

When their third album came out in 1997, it was pretty much over: Britpop died an early death and indie labels like Indolent Records were swallowed up by bigger companies or just went out of business.

The song I'm using is "Little Annie", a B-Side from their Inbetweener UK single. The song was also collected in a US promo-only EP called B-Sides, which BMG gave to radio stations. At the time, I was volunteering at KFSR 90.7 FM, so I own the rare EP in my massive Sleeper music collection.

Below are, what I I believe these are the only magazine covers that Louise Wener/Sleeper appeared on. I have various other inset covers and one-pager, but these are the magazines that she clearly is featured on the cover. If I am missing any, please email me. I would like to know why I'd missed them, and I'll probably try and spend my time on collecting the final covers to complete my sad, sad Sleeper collection.