1968 Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick And Tich: The Legend Of Xanadu

Xanadu, of course, was the capital of Kubla Khan's China, but on this evidence writers Ken Howard and Alan Blaikley locate it somewhere near the Mexican border. There's a definite Western air about 'The Legend Of Xanadu' that tips its hat to Elmer Bernstein's theme to 'The Magnificent Seven' while adding some mariachi trumpet blasts, flamenco guitar runs and gunshot whipcracks that are all its own. At heart, it's more death song nonsense about some guy killed in a duel over some gal - but whatever, 'The Legend of Xanadu' is three and a half minutes of lightning in a bottle, a thrill ride of tightly wrapped bundle of hooks, riffs and cod drama that gallops along like a horse on the prairie. Or like the finest pop song. Which is what this is. Fantastic.