Shakin' That Ass

The third and final compilation of my nominations for the #90sRumpShaker BlueSky challenge, hosted by @stevenh1974.bsky.social throughout August. If you liked the first two, then you will not be disappointed. If you didn't then, er, you will.

Today's selection opens and closes with my first and last picks, namely Back To Front by Adamski featuring Ricky Lyte (RIP) and remixed by Leftfield, and Tinseltown To The Boogiedown by Scritti Politti featuring Mos Def and Lee Majors (no, not that one), remixed by Psycho Les aka Lester Fernandez from The Beatnuts.

None of the other eight songs fall below the high bar set by these two, whether it's the dancehall grooves of Dawn Penn and Apache Indian to the trance-formative techno of David Holmes and Ashley Beedle's epic remix of Sugar Daddy by Secret Knowledge.

I've even managed to squeeze in Eurovision 1995 hopefuls Love City Groove, whose self-titled song managed a respectable 10th place in the final. The bigger draw for me is that, inexplicably, the commercial single release included an 11-minute remix by none other than Jah Wobble that is worth the sticker price alone.

I'm taking a break from BlueSky challenges in September, but will no doubt dive back in the near future. A few of the artists featured in the past three days should also be due their own moment in the Dubhed selection spotlight, hopefully before the end of 2026.

1) Back To Front (The Rub It Radio Edit By Leftfield): Adamski ft. Ricky Lyte (1992)

2) You Don't Love Me (No, No, No) (Extended Mix By Steely & Clevie): Dawn Penn (1994)

3) Magic (Sasha's Black Magic Mix): Sasha ft. Sam Mollison (1994)

4) Love City Groove (Seek Understanding Beyond Immediate Perception Mix Long Version By Jah Wobble): Love City Groove (1995)

5) Fever Called Love (Hardfloor Radio Edit): Rising High Collective (1994)

6) Toxygene (Album Version): The Orb (1997)

7) Starlovers (Album Version): GusGus (1999)

8) Sugar Daddy (Out Of Our Brains On The 5.15 Mix By Disco Evangelists aka David Holmes & Ashley Beedle) (Single Edit): Secret Knowledge (1993)

9) Real People (Gaudi Remix By Daniele Gaudi): Apache Indian (1997)

10) Tinseltown To The Boogiedown (Psycho Les Variation): Scritti Politti ft. Mos Def & Lee Majors (1999)

#90sRumpShakersVolumeThree (59:37) (GD) (M)

What Do You Mean, This Music Has Needs?

An hour of music created or remixed by Kris Needs, topped and tailed with his collaboration with Wonder Schneider as Secret Knowledge and Delta Lady.

[Apology: I'm currently experiencing technical issues, more sleeve notes to follow!]

1) Sugar Daddy (Original Full Length Version By Kris Needs, Jagz Kooner & Gary Burns): Secret Knowledge (1993)

2) Anything You Want (Volume Vocal Mix By Kris Needs & Leftfield): Delta Lady (1993)

3) Rockers Dub (Remix od 'Rocks' By Kris Needs): Primal Scream (1994)

4) Toxygene (Kris Needs Up For A Fortnight Mix) (Full Length): The Orb (1997)

5) King Of My Castle (Beef Injection Mix By Kris Needs & Matt Schwartz): Wamdue Project ft. Gaelle Adisson (1998)

6) Now Is The Time (Secret Knowledge Overkill Mix By Kris Needs): The Crystal Method (1996)

7) Swamp Fever (Delta Scream Mix By Primal Scream): Delta Lady (1993)

8) Ooh Baby (Vocals Mix By Kris Needs & Ben Watkins): Secret Knowledge (1993)

This Music Has Needs (59:27) (GD) (M)

And if this doesn't quite fulfil your needs, then dive into Side 1 and Side 2 of my 1996 Secret Knowledge mixtape.

Bag It Up, I'll Take It

Bandcamp Friday beckons and my shopping bag demands to be fed yet again.

Here are a dozen hors d'oeuvres to whet your appetite. What else will I bring home?

1) Brand New Me (Brand New Me EP): Saint Etienne x Confidence Man

2) Better (All That Is Over): SPRINTS

3) Housin' (Planet Roll): Wagon Christ

4) Greasy Off The Racing Line (Tremor): Daniel Avery ft. Alison Mosshart

5) Weeping Roses (Lomond Campbell Remix) (Subconsciousology): Dot Allison

6) Tales Of Freedom (Cosmikuro Remix) (Tales Of Freedom EP): Jay-Son

7) Thinkin' Bout U (Mercury) (Thinkin' Bout U EP): Psychederek

8) A Moment Longer (Songs For Nina & Johanna): James Yorkston ft. Nina Persson

9) Militants (Atomized Dub) (Imploded Versions EP): The Bug vs Ghost Dubs

10) Under the Bed (Buddhist Hipsters): The Orb

11) Porcupine (Madder! EP): Sparks

12) Everybody Needs (On The Edge Of A Lost And Lonely World (Deluxe Edition)): Humanist ft. Emily Breeze

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

Loveplaydarkminemammothonics

As an ignorant youth, I used to think that summer was a generally quiet period for singles, leaving space for the Ibiza (or Marbella) classics that holidaymakers brought home with them, along with a suitcase full of duty free and third degree sunburn.

Not so, especially in July 2025. The past 48 hours alone have seen a relentless surge of mail to Casa K, extolling the virtues of new music, here there and everywhere.

I've picked half a dozen which particularly grabbed my attention, mostly 'safe bets' I admit, but none the less enjoyable for all that. 

Wanna Play by Georgia is perhaps the closest of all to a banger, and I love it. The Charlatans and Jeff Tweedy have got me interested in their upcoming albums. 

Kim Deal doesn't have a new record out (at least I don't think she does), but this recent performance of Are You Mine is enough. I've never heard of Lydia Luce before now, though I will seek out more on the strength of Mammoth. 

And The Orb team up with rapper Rrome Alone, who has spent most of his adult life in prison and is currently on Death Row. Not one to celebrate, in that case, but I like the song.

1) We Are Love: The Charlatans

2) Wanna Play: Georgia

3) Out In The Dark: Jeff Tweedy

4) Are You Mine (Live @ Electric Lady Studios, Greenwich Village, New York, 5th March 2025): Kim Deal

5) Mammoth: Lydia Luce

6) Arabebonics: The Orb ft. Rrome Alone

 

 

 

 

Staring Into Air

Time for another round up of tunes and beats that have been lodged in my brain this year.

A brisk run through of seven songs in forty-four minutes, some tracks featured previously albeit in different mixes, some more recently purchased, all pressing my buttons.

If you like what you hear, go buy! Links below.

Happy Friday, everyone!

1) Little Fluffy Clouds (Ambience Of Coconut Mix): The Orb (Feed Your Head! The Second Course: 15 Mind Altering Classics (Mojo magazine promo CD))

2) Like Fire (The Machine Soul Morning Chord Mix By Robert Folkesson): Airsine (Like Fire EP)

3) KGLW (GIFT Remix) Pt. 3: King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard (KGLW (GIFT Extended Rave Remix) EP)

4) Field Of Dreams (Rude Audio Remix By Mark Ratcliff): Hugo Nicolson (Field Of Dreams EP)

5) Mystery (Dub Mix): Kapote ft. Guinny (Mystery EP)

6) Love Filter (Strings Of Love): Kito Jempere (New Life EP)

7) Lazy Arc One (Rework By Gaudi): Roedelius, Story, Gaudi (Lazy Arc One EP)

Staring Into Air (44:17) (GD) (M)

Sat In The Passenger Seat, Having An Out Of Body Experience

A selection of long songs for Sunday, designed to transport you...well, take your pick from Mars or Dorset and all points in between, or just head straight out of this galaxy and see what else is out there.

 

The shortest song in this selection clocks in at a few seconds under twelve minutes, the longest contribution edges over fourteen and a half. Too many beats between them all to be considered pure ambient music perhaps, but they all have enough going on to stimulate the senses.

First stop, Japan and a couple of electronic music legends. Magic Dome by Yoshihiro Sawasaki was (I think) his debut release, first appearing on the flip of the Neocrystal 12" single, then the album Perfumed Garden, both in 1994. 

Soft Ballet was formed by Ryoichi Endo, Ken Morioka and Maki Fujii in 1986, though my introduction to them was via their remix albums featuring Western artists such as LFO, Jah Wobble, Orbital, Fluke and Global Communication. The third and final in the series reworked 1995 album Form, by which time Soft Ballet had split, although they reunited for a couple of albums in the early 2000s. 

Speaking of Global Communication, Tom Middleton resurrected the GCOM alias in 2021 for a 20-track magnum opus E2-XO. Most of them are pretty short, several clocking in at a minute or less, until you get to the album closer, Beyond The Milky Way. Just ride the stellar wave and drift into the unknown.

 

The Orb and Youth transformed ambient music in the late 80s/early 90s, whether separately or together. I've plumped for the latter, with a remix of Spanish Castles In Space, one of my favourite songs by The Orb, in any incarnation. Alex Paterson and Martin Glover have continued to work together, not least last year's Orb album, Prism.

 

Back down to Earth now, more specifically Wimborne in Dorset. Al Stewart grew up there and Robert Fripp was born in Wimborne Minster, so you know the vibes are good.  MLO were/are Jon Tye and Peter Smith; Jon continues to push the ambient envelope, as one half of Seahawks.

 

Matt Gunn is the new kid on the block, relatively speaking, with a clutch of great releases on the Paisley Dark and Electric Wardrobe labels. Matt's first album Mostly Fiction is a good jumping on point, though his EPs also come recommended.

 

Youth is back for the finale, with an end of the millennium reworking of psychedelic rockers Gong. I first discovered Steve Hillage as the credited producer on the 12" single of Sweat In Bullet by Simple Minds, later as a founder of System 7, so my journey back to Gong was full of detours and diversions, but I eventually got there. A bit like this compilation, if you will.

 

1) Magic Dome (Full Length Version): 澤崎吉広 (Yoshihiro Sawasaki) (1994)

2) No One Lives On Mars (Even Longer) (Remixed By Carl Craig): Soft Ballet (1995)

3) Beyond The Milky Way (Full Length Version): GCOM (2021)

4) Spanish Castles In Space (Extended Youth Mix By Martin Glover): The Orb (1991)

5) Wimborne (Spacetime Continuum Mix By Jonah Sharp): MLO (1994)

6) Space Drohne I & II (Album Version): Matt Gunn (2023)

7) A Sprinkling Of Clouds (Full Length Edit By Youth aka Martin Glover): Gong (1999)

 

1991: Aubrey Mixes: The Ultraworld Excursions: 4

1994: Perfumed Garden: 1

1994: Wimborne Revisited EP: 5

1995: Forms: Remix For Ordinary People: 2

1999: You Remixed: 7

2021: E2-XO: 3 

2023: Mostly Fiction: 6

Sat In The Passenger Seat, Having An Out Of Body Experience (1:30:02) (KF) (Mega)

Infinite Sunrise

The Orb's 1991 song Perpetual Dawn is one of the greatest singles and album tracks of the year, decade, all time, in any genre. I never tire of listening to it and it sounds as 'now' in 2024 as it did over three decades ago.

Clearly in agreement, the full nine-and-a-half minute version from The Orb's Adventures Beyond The Ultraworld has been reissued with a brand new video, visualised by Kavi-Karnapura Robin Buckley.

Alex Paterson pops up here and there, vintage footage woven into the visual fabric. Thomas Fehlmann joins him on the decks at 4:42 and Alex and Youth aka Martin Glover come together for a split-second 'then and now' segment at 4:51. 

The narrative, such as it is, either makes no sense or complete sense, depending on how you approach it but as someone who is ambivalent about AI and/or CGI, this is a compelling watch and if it introduces a new audience to the greatness of The Orb and Perpetual Dawn, all the better.

I Am Damo Suzuki

Celebrating Damo Suzuki, 16th January 1950 to 9th February 2024.

 

This one damn near broke me. And I don't mean on an emotional level, but physically trying to get today's selection and post up here. I like to think that in some other plane of existence, Damo is aware of my amateurish efforts and chain of mishaps this morning and is having a belly laugh at my expense, before turning his attention to things of greater cosmic import.

 

I had another post lined up for today, but I woke this morning to the news of Damo's passing and decided that I wanted to post a tribute to him instead.

 

To be honest, I didn't expect it to be a very big job: I have relatively little by Can to begin with and Damo was with them from 1970 to 1973 which narrowed the selection further. I have absolutely nothing of Damo's post-Can career. 

 

And the news that I could have seen Damo play a gig with Fuzz Against Junk in the intimate surrounds of Fiddlers Club in south Bristol in March 2004 is a non-story as I decided not to get a ticket. In retrospect, I should have gone and taken the following day off work.

I then got it into my head that, in the spirit of Damo's improvisational style, I should actually try and cut-and-paste collage of all of the entire longlist, throwing in cover versions and remixes of Damo-era Can songs to boot. So I suddenly had about 20-odd songs and about 3+ hours of material to work with. Okay, so it was going to take a big longer than usual, but I was game...

I was about 3 songs in and thinking that it had got off to a reasonably good start when the Apple Music app which holds my digital music collection starting acting weirdly, shortly followed by the on-screen announcement that the wireless mouse has 1% charge left. Closing down and re-opening the app completely wiped the working playlist that I'd created. No problem, I said through gritted teeth (okay, I did swear a bit too), I'll start over again.

I do have a 'backup' wireless mouse. Unfortunately, it's the 'original' one whose increasingly impaired performance resulted in the purchase of the 'current' one, which had less than 1% at this point and promptly lost connection. The 'backup' had 20% charge which would be fine. However, one it's quirks is unpredictable cursor action, usually resulting in you getting the complete opposite of what you're trying to achieve. Cue lots of examples in the Audacity app of highlighting, moving, editing and cutting  anything but the bit of the music that I was actually working on. 

I could see the job doubling and trebling in length. Thankfully, after an hour there was sufficient charge on the 'current' mouse to abandon the 'backup' and have some hope of completing and posting this selection before Sunday is over.

Another 'improvised' decision as a result of my tech woes, but which may be a blessing to you dear readers, is that the selection is a mere 14 songs. I decided to cut my losses after Halleluhwah and tacked the intended closing song Turtles Have Short Legs at the end. 

So you are denied/spared (delete as applicable) Future Days, Moonshake, Paperhouse, Sing Swan Song, Mighty Girl*, Vitamin C and Yoo Do Right. What you do get is two hours of music edited down to roughly 66 minutes, all giving a nod to Damo's brilliance.

Mother Sky switches between the Can original and the Pilooski edit. On Mushroom, you'll hear Damo duetting with Jim Reid for the first and last time. Mark E. Smith inevitably gets in on the act with The Fall's own tribute from 1985. 

 

Oh Yeah appears in three increasingly shorter sections, courtesy of Can, Kris Needs and Mute label maestro Daniel Miller. There's the wonderfully titled Tape Kebab from a John Peel session* and three versions of Can's masterwork Halleluhwah.

 

First up is the 1995 version by Spirit Feel, featuring Claudia Brücken and Susanne Freytag formerly of Propaganda. This is followed by Damo fronting the original album version. Both of these push beyond 18 minutes; you get much less here, but the addition of a third, closing section from - who else? - The Orb, released a couple of years after the Spirit Feel cover version.

The closer, Turtles Have Short Leg, is incredibly short by Can standards, but one of many examples of their lighter, poppier moments. Well, relatively speaking.

Neither the words nor the selection really do justice to Damo the man, the musician, the uniquely talented individual and front person, be it Can, Damo Suzuki's Network or the numerous collaborations and improvisations that he's been responsible for. 

 

But in reading about my amateurish efforts and chain of mishaps to get this out here today, I hope you'll join Damo in a chuckle, a laugh or a full-on belly laugh. And then go and play some more of his music, long and loud.

See you, Damo.

 

1) I'm So Green: Can (1973)

2) Mother Sky (Album Version): Can (1970)

3) Mother Sky (Pilooski Edit By Cédric Marszewski): Can (2007)

4) Mushroom (Album Version): Can (1971)

5) Mushroom (Live In Nuremburg): The Jesus & Mary Chain (1986)

6) I Am Damo Suzuki: The Fall (1985)

7) Oh Yeah (Album Version): Can (1971)

8) Oh Yeah (Secret Knowledge Mix By Kris Needs & Henry Cullen ft. Jah Wobble): Can (1997)

9) Oh Yeah (Sunroof! Mix By Daniel Miller & Gareth Jones): Can (1997)

10) Tape Kebab (John Peel Session): Can (1974) 

11) Halleluhwah: Spirit Feel ft. Claudia Brücken & Susanne Freytag (1995)

12) Halleluhwah (Album Version): (1971)

13) Halleluhwah (Halleluwa Orbus II) (Remix By The Orb aka Alex Paterson & Andy Hughes) (1997)

14) Turtles Have Short Legs: Can (1971)

 

I Am Damo Suzuki (1:06:16) (KF) (Mega)

How Are You Feeling? It's A Beautiful Morning!

Keeping with yesterday's uplifting vibes, today's selection is a clutch of songs (mostly) from the early 1990s, packed into an open top car and taken on a remix road trip. Feel the sunshine.

Any such compilation and Andrew Weatherall is almost certain to be found. Here he, Jagz Kooner and Gary Burns pop up twice as Sabres Of Paradise. First up is their masterful collaboration with One Dove on Transient Truth, seven minutes of sonic sweetness underpinning Dot Allison's voice. 

Secondly, all double bass funk and squelchy synths, is Red Snapper's classic Hot Flush from 1995. The music couldn't be more different from One Dove, yet Andrew, Jagz and Gary lend both an emotional heft that just can't be described in words. Well, not be me, anyway. This track originally featured on the EP of the same name, collected the same year on the Reeled And Skinned compilation which is an essential introduction to Red Snapper.

Either side of these tracks are a couple of groovy numbers. In reverse order, Fortran 5 are rinsed good and proper by Alex Paterson and Kris 'Thrash' Weston of The Orb. I loved the original album version but The Herbal Supper Mix is a feast of heavy bass, SFX and samples ("one spliff a day keeps the evil away") with Shola Phillips' sweet vocals weaving through. 

Fluke serve up Groovy Feeling, the 1993 single offering half a dozen remixes all named after ice cream varieties. The version here retains the vocal licks and bubbling beats that characterise the Fluke sound.

They pop up again later in the selection with a sublime remix of Beautiful Morning by Sensation, one of my favourites of theirs. The original song was a lovely indie-pop number but Fluke transform it into an energising, irresistible uptempo anthem that has me involuntarily shouting "yeah!" along with singer Johnny Male pretty much every time. Which can be embarrassing if I'm wearing headphones in a public space.

Also feeling the groove are Finitribe, who were so impressed with Justin Robertson's remix of their single Ace Love Deuce that it was the definitive version used on 1992 album An Unexpected Groovy Treat. The additional treat is that the album version is a minute or so longer than the one found on the 12" and CD single. If you're a fan of Justin Robertson's work from the early 1990s, you will not be disappointed.

Underworld come in towards the end of this mix and in such style. I can't remember which came first but their remixes of Water From A Vine Leaf (included here) and Human Behaviour by Björk just blew me away when I first heard them. Twelve minutes of beautifully structured electronic music that was built for the dancefloor yet for me has always worked as songs in their own right, away from the club environment. In both cases, the addition of a unique female vocal is that little push over the edge. In this case, it's Beth Orton (though I think I can hear Karl Hyde in there somewhere too, deep in the mix) joining William Orbit on an epic journey.

Sticking with William Orbit and taking a slight step back into the last year of the 1980s with a mix that pointed to the future. Balearic beats before I had a clue what that even was. Les Negresses Vertes were a Parisian band that I'd seen pop up on TV (the last gasps of The Tube, I guess) but I didn't know much about. I got this remix of 1989 single Zobi La Mouche on a secondhand copy of Beat This! a compilation of dance label Rhythm King originally given away as a cover-mounted CD with Sky Magazine in 1990. William Orbit is joined by fellow Torch Song collaborator Rico Conning, all acoustic strums and rousing calls that scream 'party!' I feel like I've glugged a bottle of red wine and jumped up on the table to dance just listening to it...

 

1) Transient Truth (Album Version By One Dove & Sabres Of Paradise): One Dove (1993)

2) Groovy Feeling (Nutty Chip Cornet): Fluke (1993)

3) Hot Flush (Sabres Of Paradise Remix): Red Snapper (1995)

4) Groove (The Herbal Supper Mix By The Orb): Fortran 5 ft. Shola Phillips (1991)

5) Ace Love Deuce (Justin Robertson Mix) (Album Version): Finitribe (1992)

6) Beautiful Morning (Fluke's Magimix): Sensation (1993)

7) Water From A Vine Leaf (Underwater Mix Part 1) (Remix By Underworld): William Orbit ft. Beth Orton (1993)

8) Zobi La Mouche (The Fly) (Club Mix By William Orbit & Rico Conning): Les Negresses Vertes (1989)

 

1989: Zobi La Mouche EP: 8

1991: Groove EP: 4

1992: An Unexpected Groovy Treat: 5 

1993: Beautiful Morning EP / Welcome To The Future²: 6

1993: Groovy Feeling EP: 2

1993: Morning Dove White: 1 

1993: Water From A Vine Leaf EP: 7

1995: Hot Flush EP / Reeled And Skinned: 3

How Are You Feeling? It's A Beautiful Morning! (57:27) (KF) (Mega)

Dear Annie

Celebrating Annie Nightingale, 1st April 1940 to 11th January 2024.

When I heard the sad news that Annie had passed at the age of 83 following a short illness, I didn't immediately post about it. To be honest, it was a real shock, I'd admittedly not followed Annie's continuing broadcasts in recent years but she seemed like she was immortal, that husky voice continuing to emanate over the airwaves forever. 

I was floored by Janice Long's death in December 2021 and Annie's has also hit me hard. When reflecting on Janice at the time, I wrote that "I probably listened to [her] more than John Peel on Radio 1 as a teen, mainly because her evening show slot usually coincided with doing homework or otherwise avoiding my family in my bedroom." This was even more applicable to Annie, whose request show followed the Top 40 countdown on Sunday nights.

I continued to listen to Annie as the powers that be moved her time slot further and further back, so that (at least, as far as I recall), her show became essential post-club listening.

I discovered so much music, new and old, via Annie Nightingale and I think my eclectic collection is testament to her own unabated passion for new genres and styles. Annie was also a reason to watch The Old Grey Whistle Test on BBC2. Bands that might otherwise have stuck two fingers up to the show and presenter Whispering Bob Harris were more amenable to appear when she was presenting.

 

As with Janice Long, this is another of those selections that doesn't begin to do justice to the breadth of Annie Nightingale's indefatigable love of music. More so, given that her career spanned six decades. 

I've cheekily lifted some of Annie's OGWT intros to link some of the music on this selection. The opening extract was from the show broadcast on 14th February 1981, featuring The Sound (well, it was them or Camel) and a three-song set including the magnificent Sense Of Purpose, included here.

 

I should say that only one song, by The Selecter, is an actual performance from The Old Grey Whistle Test. The rest are album and single versions, a remix here and there including one by Annie herself and some deep cuts from The Teardrop Explodes, The Crystal Method, Public Image Ltd., T.Power and Primal Scream remixed by Andrew Weatherall.

 

Big In Japan by Alphaville made the cut as it was the first song on a request show from 1985 that TSKC1984 taped off the radio and posted on You Tube. You can listen to the entire show in all it's hissy glory here, with another from Hollowe'en 1984 here.

 

I've also drawn inspiration from the three albums that Annie compiled in 1996, 2007 and 2015: Annie On One, Annie Nightingale Presents Y4K and Masterpiece. My selection ends, as Annie On One does, with Flowered Up's magnum opus and finest moment, Weekender, which I first heard on her show in 1992. 

I'll happily confess that I was in love with Annie: that voice; the effortless cool that set her miles apart from her contemporary (male) DJs on TV; the sheer rock 'n' roll-ness of her being. Actually, scratch 'was' for 'am'. 

 

In the many, many tributes in the past few days, Annie Nightingale has been rightly described as a trailblazer, a pioneer, one-of-a-kind. Annie was all of that to me. She was also a wonderful person and my favourite radio DJ ever.

Thank you, Annie, you were the best.

 

1) Old Grey Whistle Test (BBC2 Continuity Announcement & Introduction): Annie Nightingale (1981) 

2) Sense Of Purpose: The Sound (1981)

3) Liberation (12" Version): T.Power (1995)

4) Old Grey Whistle Test (Introduction: The Teardrop Explodes): Annie Nightingale (1982) 

5) Colours Fly Away (Live @ Club Zoo, Liverpool): The Teardrop Explodes (1981)

6) This Was The Sound (Adam Freeland & Sebi Spanks Remix): K-Swing + Beber (2007)

7) Come Back Clean (Annie Nightingale + Far Too Loud Remix): The Crystal Method ft. Emily Haines (2009)

8) Big In Japan (7" Version): Alphaville (1984)

9) Old Grey Whistle Test (Introduction: Japan): Annie Nightingale (1982) 

10) Ghosts (Single Version): Japan (1982)

11) Old Grey Whistle Test (Introduction: Public Image Ltd.): Annie Nightingale (1980)

12) Poptones (John Peel Session): Public Image Ltd. (1979)

13) Don't Fight It, Feel It (Scat Mix By Andrew Weatherall & Hugo Nicolson): Primal Scream ft. Denise Johnson (1991)

14) Duel (Album Version): Propaganda (1985)

15) Old Grey Whistle Test (Introduction: The Selecter): Annie Nightingale (1980)

16) Murder (Live on Old Grey Whistle Test, BBC2 TV): The Selecter (1980)

17) Cheft El Khof: Orange Blossom (2004)

18) Grey Clouds: The Orb ft. Alan Parker, Urban Warrior (2007)

19) Weekender (Full Length Version): Flowered Up (1992)

Dear Annie (1:15:17) (KF) (Mega)

Can You See The Rockets?

Today's selection turns the spotlight on Nina Walsh, composer, performer, engineer, producer, supreme talent and looong overdue a Dubhed selection. I say that a lot, but I really mean it.

Sundays are often reserved for something a little bit more downtempo, a little bit more relaxed and this is no exception, although being Nina, this is more Cabaret Voltaire than Cafe Del Mar ambience.

That said, things start off with the beautiful and delicate original version of Borderland, featuring Sarah Sarhandi on viola, by Woodleigh Research Facility. Initially a joint project with Andrew Weatherall, since his death in 2020 Nina has continued to release music as WRF. Nina and Andrew's connection goes way back: previously romantically involved, the pair also founded and ran the Sabres Of Paradise and Sabrettes labels in the early 1990s, which is how I first became of Nina's work. Here's a photo the pair by John Barnett circa 2016.

 

Borderland was originally recorded in 2019 and was finally released as volume 4 in the Apparently Solo series of EPs. I had to include the original here as it was such a strikingly obvious opener, but the EP includes a pair of remixes, one of Andrew's last, the other by uber-producer (and former Sabre) Jagz Kooner in 2021.

 

 

The rest of the selection takes in Nina's further collaborations as Slab with Lol Hammond (Drum Club), with Alex Paterson/The Orb and solo as C-Pij, with a rare A-side and couple of remixes for Andrew Weatherall and Keith Tenniswood aka Two Lone Swordsmen.

Bringing things bang up to date is an epic remix earlier this year of In A Wonderland from Steve Queralt and Michael Smith's brilliant companion to the equally excellent Sun Moon Town album. 

 

Nina provides vocals on several songs, not least the closing track, Slab's cover of Mazzy Star's 1993 song Fade Into You. The original may be definitive, but I really love this cover and there's something about Nina's voice here that really gets me. It's a wonderful way to bring things to an end.

Although what is the end? A couple of weeks ago, Nina released a Woodleigh Research Facility album, Phonox Nights. Her final WRF recordings with Andrew Weatherall, it's a stunning collection, tinged with sadness and loss and yet imbued with a positivity and joie de vivre, the latter seemingly typifying their working relationship. Joe Muggs had a superb interview with the pair for Fact magazine in 2016 which captures this wonderfully.

 

Nina continues to make music and I think is receiving (over)due credit for her immense talent. Head over to Nina's website for links to her solo, WRF and other releases and immerse yourself in some incredible music.

 

1) Borderland (Original Version): Woodleigh Research Facility ft. Sarah Sarhandi (2019)

2) Mental Ground Zero: Slab ft. Younger Youth (1999)

3) Big Clapper (C-Pij Remix By Nina Walsh): Two Lone Swordsmen (1999)

4) Rabbit's Moon (Squelch Mix aka Lateral Lagomorph Mix By Lol Hammond & Nina Walsh): Slab (1997)

5) Primitive.... (Orbtij Mix By The Orb & C-Pij aka Alex Paterson & Nina Walsh): D-Kiku (1999)

6) Nostik: C-Pij (2000)

7) Aeronauts The Next Phase: Woodleigh Research Facility (2015)

8) Taste Of Our Flames: Two Lone Swordsmen ft. Nina Walsh (2004)

9) In A Wonderland (Wonk On The Gnosis Mix By Nina Walsh): Steve Queralt & Michael Smith (2023)

10) Cosmo: Slab (1999)

11) Tiny Reminder No. 1 (C-Pij Remix Vocal) (Remix By Nina Walsh): Two Lone Swordsmen (2001)

12) Plum Island (Flat Mix By Nina Walsh & Andy Sheriff): The Orb (2001)

13) Fade Into You (Single Version) (Cover of Mazzy Star): Slab (1999)

Can You See The Rockets? (1:18:26) (KF) (Mega)

A Series Of Realisations...

...the first of which was that all of the music on today's selection is twenty years old. Gulp.

In 2003, I was married but Lady K had yet to arrive. Mrs. K and I were living in central Bristol. We lived very close to the Hen & Chicken pub, which hosted the fabulous Comedy Box which we went to a lot. It was (and still is) a fantastic place to catch up-and-coming performers as well as well established names who would use the venue for Edinburgh Festival work-in-progress shows. In 2003, we saw Ed Byrne, Tommy Tiernan and Dara Ó Briain, the latter for the second time having first seen him support (and surpass) Emo Phillips.

Musically speaking, 2003 appears to have been a gig-free desert. However, i listened to and discovered a lot in that year as in any other year since the mid-1980s, although there would have been a bit of culling, trading and adjusting my physical vinyl and CD collection. In 2003, there were already boxes in the loft that would involve specific trips to rummage, retrieve and record for mixtapes to support my daily walk to work.

A fair few of the music here can be tracked back to that period, some I acquired much later, but I'm struck by how fresh it all still sounds. Some are sadly no longer with us, some are still actively recording, performing and arguably producing some of the finest music of their career, all gave me a warm, fuzzy feeling inside after listening to them again.

The final realisation (more a reminder, really) came whilst putting this post together. The closing track - and inspiration for today's title - is California Sunshine by Abakus aka Russ Davies, son of Dave Davies and nephew of Ray Davies of The Kinks. This is an earlier/original version of a track that subsequently appeared on his debut album That Much Closer To The Sun in 2004. Beautiful.

 

1) Good Luck (Tim Deluxe Dub) (Remix By Timothy Liken): Basement Jaxx ft. Lisa Kekaula (2003)

2) Sister Saviour (DFA Dub) (Remix By James Murphy & Tim Goldsworthy): The Rapture (2003)

3) Nebulus (Vox): Fluke (2003)

4) Microtronics Five: Broadcast (2003)

5) Blue Room (CocoDaBank Remix By Chris Coco & Rob Da Bank): The Orb ft. Jah Wobble (2003) 

6) The Conductor (Remix By Thin White Duke aka Stuart Price): The Faint (2003)

7) Familiar Feeling (Martin Buttrich Remix Edit): Moloko (2003)

8) Still My World: Andrew Weatherall & Keith Tenniswood (2003)

9) Soul Shakedown Party (Gaudi Dub Remix By Daniele Gaudi): Bob Marley & The Wailers (2003)

10) California Sunshine (Original Version): Abakus ft. Ranajit Sengupta (2003) 

 

2003: Blue Room (promo 12"): 5

2003: Danse Macabre Remixes: 6

2003: Familiar Feeling EP: 7

2003: Good Luck EP: 1

2003: Microtronics Volume 01: 4

2003: Sister Saviour EP: 2

2003: Still My World (Japanese promo CD): 8

2003: Switch EP: 3 

2003: Youth In Dub: Orchestra Mystique: 10

2020: Gaudi: Remixes 1995-2020 (25 Years Special Edition): 9 

 

A Series Of Realisations... (54:48) (Box) (Mega)