Oh iPod I Love You

A slightly different blast from the past today as I take another dip into the dusty archives of my previous blog. This selection was posted on 7th April 2007 as individual MP3s. Originally an iPod Top 20 most played selection, I've re-sequenced and re-created the playlist as two 'sides' which flow more naturally, to these ears at least. As you'll see, I was deep into an obsession with mash-ups at the time, which accounted for half of the Top 20.

Over to my former 30-something self...

I finally got around to upgrading from my much loved Panasonic portable cassette player to an iPod Nano last month. Even though I'm making very slow progress with uploading stuff from my record collection (about 500 songs so far, barely half the 4GB space), I've been giving my iPod a good run for it's money. It's been great to hear songs that I haven't listened to in a while, as well as discovering a whole load of stuff on the internet. The shuffle option has proved to be highly addictive when it comes to unusual playlists. I quit smoking (again) on Tuesday and (honest, guv) the moment I lit up my last fag, Chumbawamba's Give The Anarchist A Cigarette kicked into my headphones. Thankfully, so far my iPod's skipped John Lennon's Cold Turkey, which is also lurking in there somewhere...

To pick up the story, 15 years on, apart from the cliché of a celebratory cigar when Lady K was born, I've not smoked since and I have never been tempted to try vaping.

 

I've been through 5 iPod Nanos since that initial purchase (the green one in the picture, if you're wondering); I worked them very hard. The subsequent iPods were all cheap secondhand purchases from eBay and for varying reasons all eventually gave up. I think my iPods were less forgiving than SWC's over at No Badger Required... 

You'll note that only 4 Nanos are pictured. The fifth - also pink and always the least wanted on eBay, it seems - fell from my pocket as I was racing to platform 12 at Leeds Railway Station to catch a train home. I saw it slide effortlessly across the platform before gliding briefly above the tracks then dropping down into the path of an incoming train. I'd like to say that either Dylan's Blood On The Tracks or Mylo's Destroy Rock & Roll was playing in that fateful moment but, to be honest, I don't remember and I was probably swearing too loudly to notice as I continued running for my train, my suddenly orphaned headphone cable trailing behind me... 

 

I retired my last Nano a couple of years ago and sold the 4 defunct iPods as parts on eBay. These days, my headphone and in-car music listening is all on my phone, with a never-ending variation of playlists.

 

As for mash-ups, I still love them, but my frankly ridiculous habit of downloading and collecting hundreds of them had significantly dropped by the end of the 2000s. The artists that I followed now seem to have mostly retired from mash-ups and are focused on other music-related pursuits.

 

IDC aka David McCarthy has released two albums, Overthrow The Boss Class (2008) and The Sun is Always Shining Above The Clouds (2011) and, according to his website, album #3 is currently in production.

 

McSleazy seems to have been retired around 2010-2011 and Grant J. Robson has since worked as a soundtrack composer and solo artist. His 4th album, Lit By The Dark, was released in 2021 and features The Vaselines' Eugene Kelly on The Burden, which is rather wonderful.

Team9 also ceased some years ago by all accounts and I've struggled to find any current website for Neil Mason. Info suggests that Neil is still based in Perth and working as a soundtrack composer and music producer.

Go Home Productions last released a couple of mash-ups in 2020, but Mark Vidler has more recently been involved with Graham Daniels as Addictive TV, including the incredible Orchestra Of Samples project. Mark was recently pictured with Devo and John Lydon at the Cruel World Fest in Pasadena, California.

 

Loo & Placido aka Laurent Lupidi & Jeremy Johnson are still going strong, celebrating over 20 years of mash-ups, more recent beneficiaries being XXXTentacion, Billie Eilish, Chvrches and Post Malone. 

Suffice to say, my digital music collection has grown exponentially since 2007 and my Top 20 most played list has significantly changed, skewed in part by school runs and Lady K's brief obsessions with Queen and, way out in front, Feel It Still by Portugal. The Man which was curtailed only by the lockdown in 2020. Of today's selection, only Lou Reed comes anywhere close, coming in at #84...

Anyway, enough of my yakking, without further ado here's today's selection for your listening pleasure.

Side One

1) Pain Killer (Album Version): Turin Brakes (2003)

2) Toop Toop Groove (Cassius vs. Madonna): Loo & Placido (2006)

3) In The Morning (Album Version By Geoff Barrow & Adrian Utley): The Coral (2005)

4) 7 Nation Rocker (Alter Ego vs. The White Stripes): IDC (2004)

5) Don't Call Me Song 2 (Madison Avenue vs. Blur): McSleazy (2000)

6) Satellite Of Love (Album Version By David Bowie & Mick Ronson): Lou Reed (1972)

7) Get I.D. (Kelis vs. Kasabian): McSleazy (2004)

8) Sheltered Life (Radio Edit): Erlend Øye (2003)

9) Since You Love Me (Kelly Clarkson vs. David Guetta vs. The Egg): Loo & Placido (2006)

10) Uptight Maggie (Re-Vision) (Stevie Wonder vs. Rod Stewart): Go Home Productions (2004) 

 

Side Two

1) Oblivious (Remix By Felix Chamberlain & Ted Templeman) (7" Version): Aztec Camera (1983)

2) Oops I'm Loaded (Original Version) (Tweet vs. Primal Scream): Team9 (2006) 

3) The Doorbell Encore (Jay-Z vs. The White Stripes): Team9 (2005)

4) Lost In Music (Album Version) (Cover of Sister Sledge): The Fall (1993)

5) Naive Hustler (Mirwais vs. Simian Mobile Disco): IDC (2006)

6) I'm Losing More Than I'll Ever Have (Cover of Primal Scream): Idha (1994)

7) Give The Anarchist A Cigarette (Edit): Chumbawamba (1994)

8) Insatiable Love (Darilyn Mansun) (Darren Hayes vs. Marilyn Manson): McSleazy (2002)

9) Sometimes Always (Album Version): The Jesus & Mary Chain ft. Hope Sandoval (1994)

10) Tulsa Telephone Book (Live @ Roskilde Festival, Denmark) (Cover of Tom T. Hall): Calexico (2000) 

 

Side One (35:30)

Side Two (37:35)

In My Dreams I Wrote The Best Song I've Ever Written

Another random, eclectic selection for your listening pleasure.  

 

Fujiya & Miyagi start proceedings with a bold attempt at a New Order classic from Power Corruption & Lies, swiftly followed by a track from the sole EP from The Badgers, one of many (I've lost count now) bands that I've discovered thanks to the ever-wonderful music blog The Vinyl Villain. We then jump from Norfolk to the Netherlands, and 90s indie pop to 80s electro disco, with the Modern Danceable Music Company, who thankfully also used the acronym M.D.M.C. Ben Liebrand on the mix here, luckily a few years before he incorporated the break from Think (About It) by Lyn Collins in every bloody remix he produced.

 

Fast forward to a contemporary favourite - and the source of today's post title - the wonderful Courtney Barnett, remixed by the equally wonderful 10:40 aka Jesse Fahnestock. As the mix title suggests, most of the vocals have been excised but this is definitely a case of less is more, with a lovely dreamy vibe leading into Psychic TV's foray into vocal house music with 1990's Towards Thee Infinite Beat and remix companion Beyond Thee Infinite Beat.

 

A sharp swerve Psychic TV to Micah Blue Smaldone, who was brought to my attention earlier this month by The Swede, firstly via an excellent Imaginary Compilation Album at The Vinyl Villain then a follow up post on his own blog, Unthought Of, Though, Somehow. The Swede perfectly describes Micah Blue Smaldone as "an old-timey acoustic folk-blues troubadour [...] delivering a series of lyrically dense, folk-noir songs" and Time, the track featured here, was the stirring closer to his ICA. 

A trio of legends follow: John Cale collaborating with Bob Neuwirth and David Byrne almost remixed out of existence by Jack Dangers, the latter dovetailing into an early instrumental of The News About William, preceding the vocal version that appeared on Calexico's 2008 album Carried To Dust.

 

Bringing the selection to a close is Irish singer/songwriter Gemma Hayes who I first heard via her cover of Bob Dylan's Lay Lady Lay in 2004, which I featured with multiple other versions of the song in January this year. Iona features on Gemma's (to date) last album, 2014's Bones + Longing but Gemma's been back on the live circuit this month and is promising new music later in 2022.

 

1) Your Silent Face (Cover of New Order): Fujiya & Miyagi (2011)

2) Ragged Jack: The Badgers (1992)

3) How About It (12" Version By Ben Liebrand & Sander Bos): M.D.M.C. ft. Karin Klare & Margie Davies (1983)

4) History Eraser (10:40's Redacted Dub) (Remix By Jesse Fahnestock): Courtney Barnett (2021)

5) Horror House (Album Version): Psychic TV (1990)

6) Time: Micah Blue Smaldone ft. Colleen Kinsella (2013)

7) Who's In Charge?: John Cale & Bob Neuwirth (1994)

8) Ava (Nu Wage Mix By Jack Dangers): David Byrne (1991)

9) The News About William (Instrumental Version): Calexico (2007)

10) Iona: Gemma Hayes (2014) 

1983: How About It EP: 3

1990: Towards Thee Infinite Beat: 5

1992: Picnic EP: 2

1994: Last Day On Earth: 7

2002: Pro.File 1: Meat Beat Manifesto/Jack Dangers Remix Collection: 8

2007: Tool Box: 9

2011: Power Corruption & Lies Covered (Mojo magazine promo CD): 1

2013: The Ring Of The Rise: 6 

2014: Bones + Longing: 10

2021: Left Behind Blues EP: 4

 

In My Dreams (45:25)

Alien Attack!

Side 2 of a cassette compilation, featuring some indie - and not-so-indie - tunes, recorded 22nd July 1998.

 

Tenuous link(s) time: 

 

1) Today's photo is a TV screen grab of a scene from 1982 film The Soldier, which grabbed my attention in a late-hours/should-have-gone-to-bed moment solely because the credits mentioned the soundtrack music was by Tangerine Dream. I sat through the film (I may have had a couple of micro sleeps in between) and coming to a realisation at the end that at least it was an hour and a half of my life I wouldn't have to repeat. The film's tenuous link to today's mixtape title is that whilst there clearly is an attack (one of many), there are zero aliens from start to finish. Putting aliens in the film may have actually helped.

2) Previous Friday selections have often tried to get the party started, with some upbeat music, daring some times with some actual disco (never a particularly popular choice, it seems). Today's tenuous link to Friday music is that the selection includes a song by Gavin Friday. I'm not expecting any comments that this selection has generated an uncontrollable urge to conga into the streets, banging a saucepan with a wooden spoon, whooping with delight and urging your neighbours to join the line.

For all that, much to enjoy, I hope. A couple of big hitters with Radiohead and The Smashing Pumpkins, a couple of off-shoot projects with The Sea Nymphs (Cardiacs) and Black Box Recorder (Luke Haines/The Auteurs), a couple from the 1980s with My Bloody Valentine and It's Immaterial and one 1970s alternative classic from Big Star.

 

Other than that, it's mid-late 1990s all the way with Stereolab, Leila, the aforementioned Gavin Friday, The High Llamas and The Wolfgang Press.   

 

Now, excuse me whilst I go and find a saucepan and wooden spoon, I've got me some whooping and a-hollering and, er, conga-ing to do...

 

1) (Nice Dream) (Album Version): Radiohead (1995)

2) Monstre Sacre: Stereolab (1996)

3) No More Sorry: My Bloody Valentine (1988)

4) Eye: The Smashing Pumpkins (1996)

5) Misunderstood (Album Version): Leila ft. Donna Paul (1998)

6) Dolls: Gavin Friday (1995)

7) The Sweet Life: It's Immaterial (1986)

8) Christ Alive: The Sea Nymphs (1995)

9) Showstop Hip Hop (Edit): The High Llamas (1997)

10) Kanga Roo: Big Star (1975)

11) Ideal Home: Black Box Recorder (1998)

12) Chains (Album Version): The Wolfgang Press ft. Claudia Fontaine (1995)

 

1975: 3rd: 10

1986: Life's Hard And Then You Die: 7

1988: Isn't Anything: 3

1995: The Bends: 1

1995: Funky Little Demons: 12

1995: The Sea Nymphs: 8

1995: Shag Tobacco: 6

1996: Emperor Tomato Ketchup: 2 

1996: Lost Highway OST: 4

1998: England Made Me: 11

1998: In-Car Stereo (Melody Maker promo CD): 9

1998: Like Weather: 5

 

Side Two (46:43) (Box) (Mega)

The Stuff That Cured A Nation

I've been listening to Big Audio Dynamite again recently, the full run of albums, including the reboots as Big Audio Dynamite II and Big Audio, before reverting to the original name once more in the mid-1990s.

Of course, the one constant has been Mick Jones and much as I love The Clash, I was a little too young to fully appreciate them at the height of their powers and Big Audio Dynamite landed at just the right time, in my early teens. It's fair to say that Jones' creativity, thirst for mixing up guitars with beats and samples and his lyrical dexterity never faltered.

A Big Audio Dynamite selection is well overdue: I posted the first side of the Bad Attitude cassette compilation of 12" mixes a year ago yesterday; the flip side followed a few months later (links to Side 1 and Side 2). 

 

In the meantime, here's a selection of videos covering each of their albums from debut This Is Big Audio Dynamite in 1985 through to 1997's final album Entering A New Ride, self-released online after then-label Radioactive rejected it. 

I've opted for Medicine Show and C'mon Every Beatbox, not just because they're brilliant songs, but as they also feature the truly magnificent Neneh Cherry. I couldn't find a video for Other 99 so I've used a live performance from BAD's 2011 reunion tour with the original line up, which is great. No official videos from mini-album Kool-Aid by Big Audio Dynamite II as far as I can tell, but I've found what looks to these rheumy eyes like a fan-made clip . Likewise, there were no videos for any of the tracks from Entering A New Ride, but Nice And Easy features Ranking Roger, so it deserves an airing even as an audio-only clip.

I'll try not to leave it a year before the next Big Audio Dynamite post...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Medicine Show: Big Audio Dynamite (from This Is Big Audio Dynamite, 1985)

C'mon Every Beatbox: Big Audio Dynamite (from No. 10, Upping St., 1986)

Other 99 (Live @ The Roxy, Los Angeles, 14th April 2011): Big Audio Dynamite (from Tighten Up Vol. '88, 1988)

James Brown: Big Audio Dynamite (from Megatop Phoenix, 1989)

Kool-Aid: Big Audio Dynamite II (from Kool-Aid, 1990)

Rush: Big Audio Dynamite II (from The Globe, 1991)

Looking For A Song: Big Audio (from Higher Power, 1994)

I Turned Out A Punk: Big Audio Dynamite (from F-Punk, 1995)

Nice & Easy (Remix): Big Audio Dynamite ft. Ranking Roger (from Entering A New Ride, 1997)

That Weren't No DJ, That Was Hazy Cosmic Jive

On another nostalgia trip today, back half a century to the UK singles Top 20 on 27th July 1972. Largely ignoring the first five, that's a pretty great run of singles

1) Puppy Love: Donny Osmond

2) Sylvia’s Mother: Dr. Hook & The Medicine Show

3) Rock And Roll Parts 1 & 2: Gary Glitter

4) Breaking Up Is Hard To Do: The Partridge Family

5) Sea Side Shuffle: Terry Dactyl & The Dinosaurs

6) School’s Out: Alice Cooper

7) I Can See Clearly Now: Johnny Nash

8) Circles: The New Seekers

9) Mad About You: Bruce Ruffin

10) Starman: David Bowie

11) Little Willy: The Sweet

12) Silver Machine: Hawkwind

13) Join Together: The Who

14) Walkin’ In The Rain With The One I Love: Love Unlimited

15) Betcha By Golly Wow: The Stylistics

16) Take Me Back ‘One: Slade

17) Automatically Sunshine: The Supremes

18) An American Trilogy: Elvis Presley

19) Popcorn: Hot Butter 

20) My Guy: Mary Wells 

 

I'll only give Sea Side Shuffle by Terry Dactyl & The Dinosaurs the briefest of mentions for two reasons, fact fans: 

 

1) The lead singer, songwriter and accordion player would subsequently always be found in the kitchen at parties, trying to come up with a ubiquitous Christmas hit (which wasn't about Christmas and, incredibly, didn't actually make it to #1 in the UK);

 

2) One might assume that Roy Dorset and his legal team were listening with interest, given the resemblance to his summer-themed hit with Mungo Jerry a couple of years previously. Surely he sued? Or did we live in a less litigious society back then?

 

YouTube, as ever, is a treasure trove of clips, especially from Top Of The Pops, so here's a select few. Lady K's just finished for the summer - oh, how I wish I had six weeks off work to do what I like! Sadly, Alice Cooper wasn't blasting from the school PA as the masses ran from the building, whooping and hollering. Surprising, as I thought that this was a legal requirement from 1977 onwards...?

Here's Alice on TOTP in 1972. Health & Safety would never let him wave and throw a sabre around these days.

Johnny Nash next, rocking those studded leathers with what remains my favourite version of this song. The original and never bettered.

You would not believe how hard it is to find a decent clip of Starman that isn't the June 1972 TOTP performance that is used on every David Bowie, 1970s, Glam, classic rock, you-name-it TV show going. I tried, honestly, but I had to admit defeat after a while. So here it is. Bloody great, though.

The next video is dedicated to middle aged man, who reminded me what a truly great band The Sweet are, with an excellent Imaginary Compilation Album over at The Vinyl Villain a couple of months ago. If you haven't heard it, run don't walk over there now, you really need it in your life.

Love Unlimited next. Much is made of Barry White's role but it was nothing without the wonderful vocal performances by the Taylor sisters -Diane, Linda and Glodean. This is music in glorious Technicolour.

How else to finish but with The King? An American Trilogy was a cover version, originally written and recorded by Mickey Newbury in 1971, stitching together Dixie (a folk song), The Battle Hymn Of The Republic (a Civil War marching song used by the Union army) and All My Trials (a popular lullaby from The Bahamas). Elvis Presley recorded it at the start of 1972 and, interestingly, his version was bigger success in the UK (peaking at #8) than the USA (#66). This version is from his Aloho From Hawaii show in January 1973.

As a post-script, at one place below Elvis is Popcorn by Hot Butter, a song that always reminds me of a much-loved TV show which had a similar sounding theme tune. Ah, the days of TV shows presented by wonderfully bonkers professors, nylon and polyester attire, minuscule budgets and little or no special effects, not to mention protracted moments of silence...like this.

Gonna Walk All Over You

Another random shuffle from the overlooked gems in my collection, featuring Barry Adamson and the much-missed Anita Lane, tackling the Nancy Sinatra classic.

 

After several years of composing imaginary film music, These Boots Are Made For Walking appeared along with 16 original pieces of music on Barry Adamson's first official soundtrack for the 1991 movie Delusion. The trailer is available on YouTube and gives away enough of the plot in 2 minutes that you don't have to bother with the full one hour forty minute experience. Unless of course you're a massive Jerry Orbach fan and will watch anything that he's in.

If that's whet your appetite for more Boots, then there have been many, many cover versions over the last half century. I'll spare you Heaven 17 side project B.E.F.'s version featuring Paula Yates as frankly it's not very good (although was probably fun to record). 

 

However, you lucky people can experience Symarip (These Boots Are Made For Stomping!), Beef, Eileen, Prince associate Apollonia and an unexpectedly kick-ass version from Boy George before returning to the Nancy Sinatra original.

 

These Boots Are Made For Walking (7" Version): Barry Adamson ft. Anita Lane & The Thought System Of Love (1991)

These Boots Are Made For Walking: Symarip (1969)  

These Boots Were Made For Walkin': Beef (1990)

These Boots Are Made For Walking: Eileen (1966) 

These Boots Are Made For Walking: Apollonia (1988)

These Boots Are Made For Walking: Boy George (1995)

These Boots Are Made For Walking: Nancy Sinatra (1966)

Can You Hear It?

Between 1976 and 1979, I was between 5 and 8 years old, arguably living my best life. Primary school, hot summers, bags of penny chews and sweets from the newsagents, Look-In ("The Junior TV Times"), Tom Baker as Doctor Who, Star Wars at the cinema, annual holidays near Tenby and day trips to Weston-super-Mare, the open air swimming pool at Chippenham or (if we were lucky) the pebble-or-sand beach at Weymouth. 

I was too busy and too young to pay much attention at the time to punk, post-punk or alternative music. Although the odd snatch on Radio 1 stuck with me, I discovered much of this music a few years later, when I was older, angrier and looking for music that I could turn up loud and annoy my parents with. The rest I sought out even more years later, when I was (considerably) older, wiser (debatable) and still angry (and that's just the government).

I don't have a contemporary emotional connection to these songs though some resonate with particular periods in my teens and twenties and they will always be very special to me. A few come from some of my favourite albums of all time, but I'll leave you to decide which ones they may be.

 

1) So It Goes: Nick Lowe (1976)

2) The Pictures On My Wall (Single Version): Echo & The Bunnymen (1978)

3) I Found That Essence Rare: Gang Of Four (1979)

4) Repetition: The Fall (1978)

5) The Unconventional: Japan (1978)

6) Fade Away And Radiate (Album Version): Blondie (1978)

7) Frederick: Patti Smith (1979)

8) Search & Destroy (Live) (Cover of The Stooges): The Dictators (1977)

9) I Can't Be (Demo): Ramones (1976)

10) Whip In My Valise: Adam & The Ants (1979)

11) Limelight (Album Version): XTC (1979)

12) My Shadow In Vain: Tubeway Army (1978)

13) Mortice Lock: Associates (1979)

14) Cities (Alternate Version): Talking Heads (1979)

15) Sound And Vision (Live @ Earls Court, London): David Bowie (1978)

16) I'm A Lover: David Johansen (1978)

17) The Card Cheat: The Clash (1979)

Can You Hear It? (56:53)

Another Brief Excursion In The Underworld

Side 1 of a mixtape, featuring "13 ambient adventures" and originally assembled 10th January 1998. 

 

When I presented Side 2 on 3rd August 2021, I literally had nothing else to say in the accompanying post, which seems very unfair in retrospect. I'll put it down to the post going out on a Tuesday at the beginning of August and it being relatively early on in my routine of daily posting. I'd either had a very heavy Monday at work and/or very limited time the following morning to finesse a post. 

 

These days, whilst it's still very rare for me to prepare a post days in advance - although I'll often carry an idea or may know what I want to post on a particular day - I usually set aside more time for writing the post, over and above any prep for the musical selection itself.

 

A Brief Excursion In The Underworld's subtitle is a bit misleading. Yes, there are 13 tracks; no, it's not an ambient mixtape; I'll leave you to be the judge of whether it's an "adventure" in any way at all. What it is, is a home for a bunch of off-kilter music that I liked but which didn't fit onto any other of my electronica, dance or ambient compilation tapes at the time.

 

I've previously featured Side 1 of "The Best Of Trance Europe Express" and it's no spoiler to say that Pleidean Communication by A Positive Life aka Stefan Pierlejewski doesn't appear on Side 2. However, it's another misleading mixtape title, as TEE was chock full of excellent music, including this track. A slightly longer version of Pleidean Communication appears on the 1994 album Synaesthetic, which was re-sequenced and re-released with lovely new artwork late last year. For those who prefer physical formats, you can pick up the original issue on CD via Waveform Records or the reissue on double vinyl via re:discovery records. Either way, it's well worth a listen.

Polygon Window is one of the many, many aliases of Richard D. James, releasing a clutch of singles and promos and just one album, 1993's Surfing On Sine Waves. Again, you can pick up a digital re-release of the album with a couple of bonus tracks via Warp Records. Whilst you're there, I'd also highly recommend Polygon Window's Quoth EP, which features the brilliantly titled Bike Pump Meets Bucket.

In the mid-1990s, Banco De Gaia seemed to be the ambient/chill out act that my friends liked, even if they otherwise weren't into that kind of music. I particularly got into Banco De Gaia in early 1994, having seen Toby Marks DJ during my first experience of a Megadog night in Derby. I went on to buy the limited 3CD, 13-track album Last Train To Lhasa in 1995 and although I don't listen to it as often as I should these days, it's not lost any of it's impact. No surprise that you can pick up a special edition of Last Train To Lhasa on Bandcamp. The re-release covers CDs 1 & 2 of the original physical release - including the version of China featured here - plus 5 bonus tracks. 

Rising High Records was founded by musical polymath and innovator Caspar Pound, who tragically succumbed to cancer in 2004 at the age of 33. It's fair to say that his list of achievements and influences on electronic music are too great to list here. A couple of personal favourites were the excellent Further Self Evident Truths .. compilations and Rising High Collective, where Pound collaborated with Marc Williams, Peter Williams and singer Plavka, then known for her work with Jam & Spoon and providing vocals on The Shamen's classic Hypereal. Caspar Pound's daughter Sapho has been responsible for the Rising High legacy in recent years, which has seen much of Rising High Collective's singles and remixes available again in digital format. The version of Move Ya featured here, remixed by Bedouin Ascent aka Kingsuk Biswas, doesn't appear to have been reissued as yet and is exclusive to the first Further Self Evident Truths .. compilation.

Two Lone Swordsmen aka Andrew Weatherall and Keith Tenniswood should need no introduction, especially if you've been a regular visitor to these pages. In fact, I love Glide By Shooting - and it's parent album/EP Swimming Not Skimming - so much that I've featured it here previously. I think the music speaks for itself on this occasion. Simply stunning.

I'll admit that I've not had a great deal of interest in Jon Anderson's career, whether with Yes, Jon & Vangelis or as a solo artist. Yet, he manages to constantly enter my consciousness with music that demands my attention. I'll admit that I was equally ignorant of 1994 album Deseo and have remained largely indifferent to it since, but I was drawn to 1995 companion The Deseo Remixes. Aside from the appeal of the lenticular cover (remember those?) which sadly cracked when I moved home a couple of years later, the CD featured remixes by Transglobal Underground, Deep Forest and The Future Sound Of London, as well as a couple of beauties by Mark Pritchard and Tom Middleton as Global Communication. Bless This is one of the few tracks on The Deseo Remixes to retain the track title from the parent album and, in both cases, closes proceedings. The version here is a shimmering, echo effects-laden chorus with a rhythm that evokes the drum machine from Vienna by Ultravox, seven minutes passing by in a flash (or should that be haze?).

If you enjoy what you've heard here, check out Side 2 which features more goodies (not to be confused with The Goodies) by The Shamen, Scanner, The Art Of Noise, The Grid, Moby, David Toop and Cosmic Baby.

 

1) Pleidean Communication (Original Version): A Positive Life (from Trance Europe Express², 1994)

2) If It Really Is Me: Polygon Window (from Surfing On Sine Waves, 1993)

3) China (Clouds Not Mountains): Banco De Gaia (from Last Train To Lhasa, 1995)

4) Move Ya (Bedouin Ascent Silicon Grooves Mix): Rising High Collective (from Further Self Evident Truths .., 1995)

5) Glide By Shooting (Remix By Andrew Weatherall & Keith Tenniswood): Two Lone Swordsmen (from Swimming Not Skimming, 1996)

6) Bless This (Remix By Global Communication aka Mark Pritchard & Tom Middleton): Jon Anderson (from The Deseo Remixes, 1995)

Side One (46:09)

Side Two here

Your Love Will Bring Me Home

Back to the 80s disco for some Saturday fun, with an eclectic mix spanning pop, pap, alternative and ambient in 65 minutes.

Erasure start things off with Blue Savannah, which I wasn't that bothered by when it originally came out in 1989, but grew on me over the years. From there, a B-side from Matt Bianco, who unfortunately are more likely to be remembered for their ill-fated live phone-in on kids' TV show Saturday Superstore than any music they recorded.

Terence Trent D'Arby, now known only as Sananda Maitreya, goes all James Brown (that's not a euphemism) on Dance Little Sister, whilst Eartha Kitt purrs her way through Cha Cha Heels with Bronski Beat. Eartha recorded songs in twelve different languages you know, presumably not counting cat.

Bananarama get mostly dubbed out of their own song by PWL's Pete Hammond, with an introductory rhythm track that makes me think I'm going to get The Beloved's Acid Love instead. 

 

A sidestep into the murky world of Siouxsie & The Banshees, with one of their greatest songs, Peek-A-Boo, something of a change of direction for them at the time. The Silver Dollar Mix was edited for the limited edition UK 12" single; this is the full length ten-minute remix which featured in the USA and Canada. Golly Jeepers!

 

Ryuichi Sakamoto teams up with Iggy Pop for Risky, a song Ryuichi co-wrote with Bill Laswell and remixed for this 12" by Julian Mendelsohn. It's an interesting mix of different artists, to which the UK record-buying masses remained largely indifferent.

 

Likewise, White Car In Germany by Associates, one of the best songs that Billy MacKenzie and Alan Rankine ever wrote, and that's saying something. I've labelled this one as an album edit as it came from my copy of the USA version of Sulk, which remixed and re-sequenced the original album. It might well be the UK single version too, but I've never heard it to compare and contrast. Either way, a wonderful song and a stunning vocal performance from MacKenzie.

At this point, there seems no other way to go than with The Art Of Noise and one of their finest moments. This is the super extended, ten-minute remix as quite frankly, nothing else will do right now.

 

I'm finishing this post early on Saturday morning, with the weather outside seemingly unable to decide whether to be overcast or sunny; it's currently the latter. This selection's sequencing and pacing possibly reflects the mercurial nature of what's happening outside. You might not be able to dance to all of this, but I hope it brings a little ray or two of sunshine into your day.

 

1) Blue Savannah (Out Of The Blue Mix By Shep Pettibone & Goh Hotoda): Erasure (1989)

2) Smooth (Extra Smooth) (Remix By Mark Reilly & Phil Harding): Matt Bianco (1985)

3) Dance Little Sister (Part One & Two) (Remix By Shep Pettibone): Terence Trent D'Arby (1987)

4) Cha Cha Heels (12" Version): Eartha Kitt & Bronski Beat (1989)

5) Ecstasy (Wild Style) (Remix By Pete Hammond): Bananarama (1987)

6) Peek-A-Boo (Silver Dollar Mix By Mike Hedges): Siouxsie & The Banshees (1988)

7) Risky (Extended Mix By Julian Mendelsohn): Ryuichi Sakamoto ft. Iggy Pop (1987)

8) White Car In Germany (Album Version) (Edit): Associates (1982)

9) Moments In Love (Remix): The Art Of Noise ft. Camilla Pilkington (1984)

 

Your Love Will Bring Me Home (1:04:52)