Search This Blog

Tuesday, 5 May 2026

I-Pod Playlist - Lucky Numbers

 


I was shocked and quite frankly appalled to find out that I don't have a copy of the song by Lene Lovich which inspired the title of this the penultimate I-Pod Playlist post. The only consolation is that there are many more great songs to choose from the 104 on the list. Oh, and I'm giving you 5 songs instead of four. 

I'll try to give you them in numerical order even though there is a sticky start given there are two starting with the number 2 namely Song 2 by Blur and 2-4-6-8 by the Tom Robinson Band.

We then jump to number 9 with Dave Alvin and Nine Volt Heart..

Next we have Strawberry Letter 23 by Shuggie Otis and finally 54-46  the prison number of Toots Hibbert of Toots and the Maytals fame.

We conclude this series next time round with Mind Yer Language.


Blur - Song 2

Tom Robinson Band - 2-4-6-8 Motorway

Dave Alvin - Nie Volt Heart

Shuggy Otis - Strawberry Letter 23

Toots & the Maytals - 54-46 That's My Number

Monday, 4 May 2026

Down On The Farm

 


It's amazing where inspiration for Post themes come from.

Often they are fairly random. For instance, I was in the shower yesterday and I thought I should post some farm related songs. And no, I wasn't covered in slurry.

It makes sense to start with The Farm and Groovy Train. Alternately I could have started with The Farmer's Boys and In the Country.

Not to be outdone here are The Housemartins with Me and the Farmer or perhaps XTC and Love On a Farmer's Wages .

Bob Dylan's Maggie's Farm took on a whole new meaning in the 80's courtesy of the Evil Witch 

There may be a subsequent  farmyard visit in due course.

Feel free to  don your wellies and pitch in with any thoughts.


The Farm -Groovy Train

The Farmer's Boys - In The Country

The Housemartins - Me and The Farmer

Bob Dylan - Maggies Farm

XTC - Love on a Farm Boy's Wages

Sunday, 3 May 2026

Birthday Boy

 


My baby brother turns 60 today. Hopefully he has recovered from his surprise party last night.

As some of the readers of  this Blog will be aware his music of choice is Rockabilly and Psychobilly. He's just about hanging onto that quiff but not for much longer I suspect!

Here are a few tunes he will hopefully like to help blow away the cobwebs.

Happy birthday Dave!


Stray Cats - Rumble in Brighton

The Shakin' Pyramids - Take A Trip

The Meteors - Out Of Time

King Kurt - Destination Zululand


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