India
I love the sound of a deadline as it whistles past. Here we are merrily biting into the proverbial sandwich of week 23 and I am still labouring on providing you with four tunes for week 22. I'm not angry. I'm just disappointing.
I was in India last week, which has kept me a little distracted and unable to spend my leisure time satisfying my musical want. My experience of this vast country has been cursory at best. Each visit has left me feeling more intrigued, if slightly shell shocked. The noise, the smells, the food, the broad smiles and wide eyes. The knowledge that it is possible to fit a thousand moving vehicles into an acre of tarmac and gravel with only the deities and the humble car horn to keep them from colliding.Read more
Sailing
I'm touching on a nautical theme this week. A close friend of mine had a birthday last week and I was reminded of distant friends. In general he is a cantankerous old bastard but has a heart of gold and I love him dearly. He has a passion for sailing. More accurately, he has a passion for drinking by rivers and sailing is more of a by product. But he has a talent for it and a calm head in a high wind. (probably numbed by the alcohol). I'm not sure he would approve of everything on this playlist, but what he doesn't know won't bother him.Read more
Party
Ahh I know I'm probably going to alienate a few people this week. Last week we were wading in the depths, earnestly disseminating the vocal credentials which contribute to a good passionate bellowing. Now this week we are way back in the shallow-end, tending to our truculent farm of ear worms.Read more
Shouty Music
I got a bit delayed this week as something called ‘work’ cropped up. It made me think of times when being able to grab a microphone and bellow would be the ultimate cathartic response. In fact this is personified perfectly in our new favourite TV series ‘Aggretsuko’. I’d try to explain but I think you need to watch to really appreciate the mental, metal, Japanese-ness of it all.Read more
Loneliness
I apologise in advance for what is going to happen here. Earlier this week I contracted a little earworm. Niggling in the back of my mind was this sunny little reggae number with chords still warm from the fingers of Bob Marley, overlaid with Sting's repetitive but remorseful lyrics of heartbreak. Round and round it went in my mind piecing itself together from memory until it finally forced itself into physical manifestation through my fingers to the keyboard to the speakers. Now I’m stuck. I cannot un-hear it and I cannot hear anything else.
Covers
This week I've been delving into the world of cover songs. When one musician covers another musicians work, generally the results fall into 3 categories:
a.) They are riding off the back of someone else's success and either fail to honour the original or just manage to make it similar enough that its not offensive to the creator. A bit harsh I guess, I don't mean to belittle cover bands, I've seen some great ones and a live performance of your favourite tune is always welcome if done well. But in a sweeping generalisation (we like those here.. :-)) you are left wishing they sounded more like the original.Read more
London
This week's theme is ‘London’. I felt pretty smug when I'd put these 4 songs together. It seemed to me like a perfect little slice of London spanning nearly 4 decades. I then realised quickly that the slice is from a London cake that was baked in my own oven of experience and decorated with the icing sugar of my circumstance, so is probably completely different to yours. However, I hope you will enjoy these 4 tunes in their sequence.Read more
Audio-Technica ATH-CKR50iS in ear headphones
Audio-Technica is not a brand I knew much about when I lived in the UK. When my trusty Senheiser earphones gave out after I'd first moved to Singapore, I realised they would cost a small fortune to replace like for like, so I thought I would try another brand. That's when I bought my first Audio-Technicas. Read more
Men who sing good
I set myself an unnecessary challenge this week. 4 tunes by great male vocalists. What sets some voices out from the crowd? Power, range, tone? is it feasible to say one voice is 'better' than another? Well.. yes clearly I can name a vast number of people with a better singing voice than mine.. But with this qualitative analysis of vocal talent the bigger question is raised again. Is quality a direct reflection of personal taste? I try to avoid using the labels 'good' or 'bad' when I talk about music. Repeat the mantra after me: 'If I do not like something, it does not mean it is bad' There are many reasons that people don't connect with specific musical styles. I am not fond of Country and Western music. I let it be known.Read more
Bose SoundLink Color Bluetooth Speaker
This is a great little speaker from Bose. Easy to connect to, long battery life and great sound I take it on holiday with me, on picnics, to BBQs. It has surprising power and warmth for its size. there are so many little speakers like this on the market and many for a considerably lower price, but its likely that most will disappoint when you crank them up. Read more