Though leader Stuart Murdoch considers If You’re Feeling Sinister to be among their best work, he considers the recording of the songs inferior to most albums. As such Belle & Sebastian released a live recording of the album, If You’re Feeling Sinister: Live at the Barbican in iTunes to offer fans a copy of their songs that’s superior to the original.

If You’re Feeling Sinister contains the following songs:

1. “The Stars of Track and Field”
2. “Seeing Other People”
3. “Me and the Major”
4. “Like Dylan in the Movies”
5. “The Fox in the Snow”
6. “Get Me Away from Here, I’m Dying”
7. “If You’re Feeling Sinister”
8. “Mayfly”
9. “The Boy Done Wrong Again”
10. “Judy and the Dream of Horses”

“Dog on Wheels” is also the name of one of the songs on the album, and is the shortest of the four songs (the rest are “The State I Am In”, “String Bean Jean” and “Belle & Sebastian”). The song is a touching ballad of a boy and his dog on wheels. Here are the lyrics, courtesy of LyricsDownload.com:

When I was a boy I was confounded by you
Now I’m still a boy I am indebted to you
Every song I ever wrote was written for you
Written for you

Now I’m feeling flat you seem mile away
I’m so tired that down on the pavement I’ll lay
Till the blossom on the tree comes falling on me
Fall on me

From my window I can see the mountains in snow
From my window I will shut my eyes and let go
Promise me you’ll always be around when I fall
And when I call

On the river bridge up on the wall, looking down
On the river bridge, to me a vision was shown
If I could hold on to things till I was full grown
Peace would I know

To my dog on wheels I’ll tell my pleasures and woes
To my dog on wheels I’ll tell my secrets and more
Then one day in spring I’ll take him down to the road
Anything goes

And here, to cap it off, is the video:

The name is actually based off of another band called Arab Strap, though the context in which the name is used in the title proved a little insulting: an ‘Arab Strap’ is a device used to maintain erections. Arab Strap did not find the reference as amusing as Belle and Sebastian but no legal action has ever been taken over the issue.

The title song, “The Boy with the Arab Strap”, has since been used as the theme song for British television comedy Teachers, and “Seymour Stein” in the film High Fidelity.

The Boy with the Arab Strap contains the following songs:

“It Could Have Been a Brilliant Career”

“Sleep the Clock Around”

“Is It Wicked Not to Care?”

“Ease Your Feet in the Sea”

“A Summer Wasting”

“Seymour Stein”

“A Space Boy Dream”

“Dirty Dream Number Two”

“The Boy with the Arab Strap”

“Chickfactor”

“Simple Things”

“The Rollercoaster Ride”

Yet neither of these answers is correct. In fact the name comes from an old French novel called Belle et Sebastien, a story upon which the later cartoon was also based. It’s the tale of a young boy, Sebastien, traveling around the countryside in the French Alps with his dog Belle and getting into all sorts of adventures. The book was written by Cecile Aubry, a now-retired actress and filmmaker who used her son as the original Sebastien in the black-and-white television series.

So at some point one of the band members from Belle and Sebastian read the book (probably during their childhood), and the name stuck into their head until, in 1996, the band was born.

Just listen to Belle & Sebastian Expectations. Released in 1996 in the band’s Tigermilk album (which was, in fact, their debut album), Expectations is a slightly frantic sounding-song – the lyrics whiz by seemingly at the speed of light – yet at the time seems mellow and peaceful. Expectations nevertheless does not feature a mellow theme: rather it’s all about the life of a school girl and how she has pressures and expectations flying at her from every corner of her life.

Despite these pressures, however, there’s a saving grace at the end of the song, coming in the form of “a boy who’s playing guitar” (namely the lead singer) who says that he’ll support her no matter what.

Lyrics to Belle & Sebastian’s Expectations:

Monday morning wake up knowing that you’ve got to go to school
Tell your mum what to expect, she said it’s right out of the blue
You went to work in Debenhams, because that’s what they expect
Start in lingerie, and Doris is your supervisor

And the head said that you always were a queer one from the start
For careers you say you want to be remembered for your art
Your obsessions get you known throughout the school for being strange
Making life-size models of The Velvet Underground in clay

In the queue for lunch they take the piss, you’ve got no appetite
And the rumor is you never go with boys and you are tight
So they jab you with a fork, you drop the tray and go berserk
While your cleaning up the mess the teacher is looking up your skirt

Hey, you’re been used
Are you calm? settle down
Write a song, Ill sing along
Soon you will know that you are sane
You’re on top of the world again

Monday morning wake up knowing that you’ve got to go to school
Tell your mum what to expect, she said it’s right out of the blue
Do you went to work in C&A, cause that’s what they expect
Move to lingerie and take a feel off Joe the store man

Tell Veronica the secrets of the boy you never kissed
She’s got everything to gain cause she’s a fat girl with a lisp
She sticks up for you when you get aggravation from the snobs
cause you cant afford a blazer, girl you’re always wearing clogs

At the interval you lock yourself away inside a room
Head of English gets you, asks you, what the hell do you think you’re doing?
Do you think you’re better then the other kids? well get outside.
You’ve got permission, but you’ve got to make the bastard think he’s right

He, you’re been used
Write a song, Ill sing along
Are you calm? settle down
Soon you will know that you are sane
You’re on top of the world again

Are you cool, and you know
You’re a star and you’ll go far
Think of me as a friend
Not just a boy who’s playing guitar
You’re on top of the world again

Belle and Sebastian have worked under three labels, two different ones in the UK and a seperate one in the US:

Matador (US)
Rough Trade (UK, 2002–present)
Jeepster (UK, 1996–2002)

The current members of Belle and Sebastian are:

Stuart Murdoch
Stevie Jackson
Chris Geddes
Sarah Martin
Mick Cooke
Bobby Kildea
Richard Colburn

Former members are :

Isobel Campbell
Stuart David

The situation comedy style of Dear Catastrophe Waitress is brought forth by the addition of many unorthodox instruments, some sounding like triangles, slide whistles or maybe even a kazoo or two.

Although the new album has been described as “sunny and catchy,” and maybe a little “campy,” the songwriting for Dear Catastrophe Waitress follows more closely what the band has done before, probably from working with Frankie Goes to Hollywood producer Toby Horn.

Playlist for Dear Catastrophe Waitress:

1. Step Into My Office, Baby
2. Dear Catastrophe Waitress
3. If She Wants Me
4. Piazza, New York Catcher
5. Asleep On A Sunbeam
6. I’m A Cuckoo
7. You Don’t Send Me
8. Wrapped Up In Books
9. Lord Anthony
10. If You Find Yourself Caught In Love
11. Roy Walker
12. Stay Loose