In November 1984, The Jesus And Mary Chain released their debut single, Upside Down, on Creation Records. For the single's B-side, William and Jim Reid decided to cover a song by former Pink Floyd frontman Syd Barrett, which had never actually been released by either Pink Floyd or by Barrett himself. In fact, it would be almost 50 years before the original recording of Vegetable Man would see the light of day.
A love of Syd Barrett's music was actually one of the few things that the always-fractious Reid brothers agreed upon during their teenage years. And, in a roundabout fashion, it was this shared affection for the former Pink Floyd leader's songs which led to The Jesus And Mary Chain getting their first breaks in the music industry.
Back when the band were called The Daisy Chain, they sent a demo of their earliest recordings to a promoter at the Candy Club in Glasgow, hoping to secure a gig at the venue. The promoter wasn't impressed by the demo, which featured Upside Down and Never Understand, a song that would become the first single released from the JAMC's classic debut album Psychocandy, but as the other side of the cassette featured a compilation of Syd Barrett songs, he passed it along to his friend Bobbie Gillespie, who he knew to be a fan of Barrett. Gillespie actually liked the two original songs recorded by the East Kilbride band though, and he passed the cassette along to his mate, Alan McGee, who, in addition to offering The Jesus And Mary Chain their first ever gig at his club in London, also offered the band a record deal with his label, Creation. By the time the Reid brothers' band came to re-record Never Understand for Creation, Bobby Gillespie was their drummer.
