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Saturday, 2 May 2026

Saturday Shuffle 142

 


Welcome to the 142nd Saturday Shuffle and the first for the second quarter of 2026 - How did that happen?

First up are Alabama 3 with U Don't Danse to Tekno Anymore a track from their 1997 debut album Exile on Coldharbour Lane which quite frankly is the only one of their albums worth having.

Next we are going back over 60 years. It's Mannfred Mann making their debut on these pages with If You Gotta Go Go Now taken from Jon Savages 1965 - The Year the Sixties Ignited.

Stay With Me as we conclude in 1972 with today's cover stars and fellow debutants  Blue Mink .

More decade defying Shuffling next Saturday


Alabama 3 - U Don't Danse to Tekno Anymore

Manfred Mann - If You've Gotta Go Go Now

Blue Mink - Stay With Me



Friday, 1 May 2026

May Day

 


It's the 1st of May today - the start of Spring and hopefully of good weather.

If you can take yourself away from the Maypole I have some mainly folky and pastorial songs for you today.

In years past I sometimes featured Imelda May on this day but I thought I would go for something more gentle as you could do yourself a mischief dancing around a maypole to her songs.


Bellowhead -One May Morning Early

Waterson Carthy - May Song

Sharon Shannon - Sally May Melia

Thursday, 30 April 2026

Some Steady Eddies

 


In the last line of last week's Unsteady Eddie post I ventured that there might be enough material for a further Eddie related post. And here it is 

We kick of with Erin Moran. An Erin as opposed to an Eddie? Worry not as professionally she goes by the name A Girl Called Eddy .Here she is with Tears All Over Town.

Eddie Kendricks is most famous for being a member of the great Motown band The Temptations. He has also turned his hand to some solo stuff including Shoe Shine Boy 

Eddie Shaver was the son of the great Billy Jo Shaver. He did some work as a duo with his dad but as a solo artist he graduated more towards heavy rock such as If It Don't Kill You. Sadly, he died from a heroin overdose on 31st December 2000 aged just 38.

After singing with The Delfonics and The Stylistics Eddie Holman found solo fame with the song Hey There Lonely Girl.I'm afraid that you are not getting that but rather Eddie's My Name.

Eddie Spaghetti was in the running to feature on Sunday's Bloodshot Records Sampler 2015 but I held over The Value of Nothing for today.

We conclude with Ed Harcourt and Sleepyhead.

I may, or may not , return with another Edward related post in due course.


A Girl Called Eddie - Tears All Over Town

Eddie Kendricks - Shoeshine Boy

Eddie Shaver - If It Don't Kill You

Eddie Holman -Eddie's My Name

Eddie Spaghetti - The Value of Nothing

Ed Hardcourt - Sleepyhead



Wednesday, 29 April 2026

I-Pod Playlist - Johnny Reggae

 




No!

Comeback!

Jonathan King will NOT be featuring here.. There are 381 songs on the Playlist and he is not on any of them. Deep breath and relax. 


In the order I have written them down we start with Burning Spear fronted by the legendary Winston Rodney who is still going strong at the age of 81. Here they are with Slavery Days.

Next up are another legendary act namely Black Uhuru who have Derrick "Duckie "Simpson as their main man. Their song Youth of Eglington references the Brixton riots. . Not to be confused with Eglington Toll in Glasgow or The Eglington Arms hotel in Eaglesham (great Pakora by the way)

Staying on the subject of riots the Birmingham band Steel Pulse weigh in with Handsworth Revolution commemorating unrest in their local area

The poet Linton Kwesi Johnson was born in Jamaica in 1952 but moved to Brixton in 1963. He is probably best known for his poem Inglan is a Bitch. Ok, so it probably isn't technically reggae  but it's in the playlist.

It would probably be sacrilege not to include Bob Marley so here he is with the Wailers and Punky Reggae Party.

It's the penultimate Playlist next time round with the theme being Lucky Numbers


Burning Spear - Slavery Days

Black Uhuru - Youth of Eglington

Steel Pulse - Handsworth Revolution

Linton Kwesi Johnson - Inglan is a Bitch

Bob Marley & the Wailers - Punky Reggae Party


Monday, 27 April 2026

S.A.H.B.


 

The Space Conundrum continues with space on the shelves scarcer than hen's teeth.

I have two Best Of  compilations by the Sensational Alex Harvey Band, one on CD and the other a burn along with the vinyl of Live at the Hammersmith Odeon.

It therefore made sense to convert the Burn to a Download thus releasing some space.

The band have appeared here on a few occasions and so I thought that I should feature a couple of tracks which have not appeared here before.

Two of their classic tracks for you today namely Framed and Next.

Is your name Alexander?


Sensational Alex Harvey Band - Framed

Sensational Alex Harvey Band - Next

Sunday, 26 April 2026

Bloodshot Records Sampler -2015

 


CCM favourites Chicago's Bloodshoot Records released a number of  Samplers in the mid 2010s. It is a good way to catch up with music from their stable and to pursue further those artists you wish to follow up.

This is the 32nd entry in the Sunday American Series. I think I have enough to get to 50 (although I haven't counted them yet) and don't propose to go any further you will be relieved to hear 

My main concentration on Bloodshot was more in the early years of the Century.I'm aware of the vast majority of the 20 acts on the Sampler but it is interesting to see a few newbies. You may be interested to note that this Sampler is available as a free Download on Bandcamp I think I paid a couple of quid on the name your price option at the time.

Today I've gone for a couple of old favourites namely Mekons & Robbie Fulks and Bobby Bare Jr. I hadn't clicked that the band Deer Tick who I discovered a year or so later had recorded on Bloodshot

Well worth nothing of anybody's money!


Mekons & Robbie Fulks - Beaten and Broken

Bobby Bare Jr - My Baby Took My Baby Away

Deer Tick - If I Should Fall With Grace From God

Saturday, 25 April 2026

Saturday Shuffle 141

 


I hope I'm not tempting fate as it was a gorgeous day here yesterday. Spring may be finally making an appearence 

Recently whenever I head towards the Jayhawks albums more often than not I find myself plumping for Rainy Day Music as opposed to Hollywood Town Hall or Tomorrow The Green Grass  so clearly I'm not about to Save It For a Rainy Day.

I also find myself listening to a fair bit of Whiskeytown even although Ryan Adams is persona non grata these days. It is a bit unfair to persecute his former band members for his shortcomings. Faithless Street remains a perennial favourite.

To conclude lets lighten the mood a little courtesy of Warren McIntyre and Starry Skies with Sweet Honey Blue 

More rambling meandering next Saturday.


The Jayhawks - Save It For a Rainy Day

Whiskeytown - Faithless St

Starry Skies - Sweet Honey Blue