500 Songs

266. Long Haired Lover from Liverpool – Jimmy Osmond (1972)

2011-10-07T04:40:00.000-07:00

I remember loving this when I was a four year old and Santa Claus buying me a copy of this single as a Christmas Present!

As a five year old I was impressed by the fact that Santa had managed to get this for me and over the years I played this record so much that I wore it out. Oddly enough I had forgotten about it and it had slipped back into my nostalgic memories of childhood until a DJ played it at the end of the night at a disco I attended a few years ago. That night I was immediately reminded of this song and I rediscovered it, have it on my ipod and have only just stopped playing it to write this note!

I love the happy nature of this song, the contrast between the ‘long haired hippies’ of Liverpool in the 1970s (which probably looked a lot like George Harrison!) and the ‘Sunshine Daisies of L.A’ a city that has a very special place in my heart.

Love it or loathe it – this was a massive hit in 1972 and deserves to be included in my list of 500 songs!

Enjoy….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YriPIujLtsA

265. Dance Away – Roxy Music (1979)

2011-09-30T04:43:00.001-07:00

I remember hearing this song by Roxy Music for the first time when the band were ‘special guests’ on an Abba TV special which was broadcast in 1979 to promote Abba’s latest album ‘Voulez Vous’.

In these times it seems quite odd that a band would have a tv special dedicated to playing the songs from a new album no doubt in the hope of improving sales but the show was much anticipated and as were all great fans of Abba in our house we all sat down to watch it. I remember one of the Abba men (probably Bjorn) introduce this as ‘a new single from the wonderful Roxy Music’ and although I loved Abba after listening to this song I knew I would love Roxy Music just as much.

This is a great song and Bryan Ferry has a wonderful style and voice that allows the group to get away with so much that others would find difficult to emulate.

I don’t really know what else I can say about this song other than it is a masterpiece and I still listen to it on the ipod on the way to work today…

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SuXKgLlsQcw

264. Ashes To Ashes – David Bowie (1980)

2011-09-29T01:15:00.001-07:00

I remember watching the video for this song in 1980 and thinking that it was the weirdest thing that I had ever seen. The striking visual imagery of David Bowie in the clown outfit and purple sky as well as the bizarre use of a JCB and padded cell added up to something quite strange that I found very appealing.

I had long been a fan of David Bowie and had ‘Space Oddity’, ‘John I’m Only Dancing’ and ‘Heroes’ in my singles collection but I remember thinking that this song was really something quite new and I loved it instantly. I remember that it was number one for weeks and weeks as well, and I recall watching it on ‘Top Of The Pops’ each Thursday. At that time there were no video recorders or MTV and so if you liked a song and wanted to watch the video the only place you could do that was on ‘Top Of The Pops’ and so we waited to see if it was still number one and would get another showing each week as we sat down to watch.

This is a great song and a great video…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CMThz7eQ6K0&ob=av2e

263. Ride A White Swan – T Rex (1970)

2011-09-27T01:18:00.001-07:00

This record was a hit when I was two years old but (as I’ve mentioned before) in the 1970s records seemed to ‘hang around’ and have a much longer shelf life than they do now and I remember hearing this as well as other Marc Bolan songs on Marc’s TV show which I remember watching and singing along to in the early seventies. I can’t exactly remember when it was on but it must have been after 1973 because that was when we bough our colour television which was made by Hitachi!

As I now have an iphone and tend to leave my ipod at home I can only carry a limited number of songs around with me personally so these days if I want to listen to something specific and it’s not on my iphone I have to re sync it with my computer and this was a song (along with Metal Guru) which I added to my iphone last week so I could listen to it as I walked to work.

We have recently moved house from Essex to Kent and instead of the tube I now catch the Hitachi High Speed train into St. Pancras. I leave the house, cross the railway bridge at the end of the street, pass the Hitachi train depot and cut through the houses to the station and while I was doing this walk the other day

I suddenly found myself singing this song and wanting to hear it so I added it to my iphone playlist that night.

This song reminds me of the 1970s (which was a great time in my childhood), colour television and glam rock, ’Supersonic’ with Kid Jensen and flares. I love Marc Bolan and I love ‘Ride A White Swan’. Thanks to Hitachi as well for our colour tv and my journey to work.

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDAh19tms4U&feature=related

262. Love’s Unkind – Donna Summer (1977)

2011-09-26T03:44:00.001-07:00

I remember listening to the song one morning on my ipod when I was waiting for the tube train at Theydon Bois station when my friend Frank approached me and asked what I was listening to. I said ‘Donna Summer’ which seemed to make him laugh but I suspect he was thinking I was listening to some of her disco classics (like ‘I Feel Love’ etc) rather than this song!

The thing that I really love about this song is that it is pure ‘pop’ and a true classic. The beat and the rhythm and fantastic and Donna Summer’s amazing voice and delivery make it a true classic.

There’s not much more to say about this one other than…

Enjoy…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oq3VJWg3ClM

261. Pas de Deux – Tchaikovsky – (Nutcracker) (1892)

2011-09-24T01:10:00.001-07:00

One of the good things about the work that I do these days is that sometimes it takes me to other parts of the country and I often get to spend time in Edinburgh and Newcastle.

During the first few months of 2010, I was working away in Newcastle and Edinburgh and while in Newcastle by myself I sometimes took the opportunity to go to the theatre and see whatever was on. During the three months I spent there I managed to see ‘Equus’, ‘Chicago’, ‘Cinderella’ and ‘The Nutcracker’ among other things.

Despite being over 40 I had never been to the Ballet before and as it was a modern production of ‘The Nutcraker’ by the Scottish National Ballet that I went to see just after Christmas. It was a full house that night but I just managed to grab a single seat in the middle of a row at the back and sat down to watch it.

Although I was familiar with the story (Ophelia had got the ‘Barbie and the Nutcracker’ video when she was younger and we had watched that together in our old home) it was still amazing to see the ballet on the stage and listen to the wonderful music played by a live orchestra. The Pas De Deux is my favourite piece from this ballet and I can’t hear it without thinking of the ballet and Tchaikovsky himself who was very much a tortured soul.

Now listen to the music…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kG0jMkoKLJo

260. One Summer’s Day – Joe Hisaishi - Spirited Away (2001)

2011-09-23T01:25:00.001-07:00

It was my children that made me sit down and watch the film ‘Spirited Away’ which is a Japanese animated film by Studio Ghibli written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki and with music by Joe Hisaishi.

This piece forms the main theme of the film and is heard when Chihiro accidentally passes the river into the spirit world and had to undertake a perilous journey to return home to the ‘real’ world and try to be reunited with her parents. I don’t want to say too much about the film as it is a ‘must watch’ and don’t want to spoil it but it is a great film and all of the elements from the animation itself to the story and the music combine to make a truly exceptional piece of film making which is highly recommended (by me!).

My kids originally though when I was playing ‘Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence’ (song 125) by Sakamoto on a disc in the car that that was this song from ‘Spirited Away’ and having listened to it there are some similarities but this is the actual song from the film which is also on my ipod and has become one for my favourites…

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1ni1sVCgEk

259. Summer Nights – Grease (1978)

2011-09-22T00:43:00.001-07:00

After the phenomenal success of ‘You’re The One That I Want’ which was number one for eight weeks in the summer of 1978 we got ‘Summer Nights’…

I remember seeing the video for this (which was a clip from the film) on ‘Top Of The Pops’ one Thursday night before this spent six weeks at number one as well.

Looking back it is hard to imagine that a film like ‘Grease’ could have created such a furore but nearly everything in the summer of 1978 was ‘Grease’ related and everyone waited with eager anticipation to see the whole film. Other songs like ‘Sandy’ and ‘ Hopelessly Devoted to You’ and ‘Greased Lightning’ were also released as singles and almost everyone (including me) had tee shirts with stars on the micro sleeves like John Travolta’s! We were all singing the songs and wanting to relive the excitement of the movie.

I remember that my mother was quite disapproving of the film and its message which is (essentially) ‘You can’t get the bloke by being nice so dress like a cheap tart and call him ‘stud’ and all will be well’ which looking back isn’t really the kind of message you want to be communicating to pre-teens but this went way over our heads at the time and all we knew and enjoyed were the songs and the wonderful colour of the movie. The film version of ‘Grease’ (which is now the West End benchmark version) enhanced by the songs of the BeeGees is by far the best version in history…

Time to relive those summer nights…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FpJUrt0O7uY

258. Wild Child – Enya (2000)

2011-09-21T01:01:00.001-07:00

I must admit to really loving Enya and her music. From the days of Clannad and via ‘Orinoco Flow’ and ‘Caribbean Blue’, I have always admired the fact that her own style of Celtic influenced electronic new age music has always generated new and exciting sounds and this song is my favourite from the album ‘ A Day Without Rain’.

At the time this album was released I was back living in Loughton with Kerry in our little flat, recently married and wondering what the future would bring as Christmas was approaching. At the time I first put the album on (which was a present from Kerry) I had no idea that one year later we would have moved to a new flat (which had central heating) and would be holding our first baby – Miss Ophelia - in our arms and at the same time wondering what kind of world we had brought our daughter into as we had witnessed the mass murder of so many in the New York Trade Centre atrocity.

This song reminds me of that time and these experiences and I remember them whenever I hear it.

Enjoy the song…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5jVwR0YK38

257. The Day Before You Came – Abba (1982)

2011-09-20T05:01:00.001-07:00

If you haven’t noticed yet I am a massive fan of Abba and have loved their music ever since my Dad bought me ‘Take A Chance On Me’ in 1976 (Song 76) but it is their later music that I love the most. Songs like ‘The Winner Takes It All’ and ‘Slipping Through My Fingers’ (Song 162) are works of true genius as is this song.

I first came across this one when I heard a version by Blancmange, which was a ‘B’ side of one of their singles back in 1982 and having loved Blancmange’s version (which was very similar) I sought out the original which I love even more.

The last Abba song to be recorded (though not the last to be released) this song is a homage to how ‘mundane and ordinary’ can be changed by ‘an event’ or ‘someone coming into your life’ into something new and exciting and in this song Abba reflect on the tedious nature of things ‘the day before you came’ and changed my life. I love the train rhythm beat, the wonderful use of modern synthesiser sounds and the fantastic voice of Agnetha singing (once again) a truly amazing lyric. This song is a masterpiece and even though it was never released as a single in the UK it was in the ‘Top Ten’ favourite Abba songs in a recent UK poll.

Now listen to the song…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1HnOFwqpLRQ&ob=av2e

256. London Pride – Noel Coward (1941)

2011-09-19T04:43:00.001-07:00

I have to admit to being a great fan of Noel Coward and love his comic songs especially ‘Mrs Worthington’ and ‘Imagine The Duchess’ Feelings’ but I am also a great admirer of the work that Coward produced during the war, which includes his film ‘In Which We Serve’ and this song ‘London Pride’.

The first time I heard the song was when I was a teenager and Mick Lowe who ran the Western Park Youth Theatre of which I was a member included it as a song in one of the ‘Old Time Musical Hall’ shows that we did around the Working Men’s Clubs and Care Homes in the early 80s. In these shows the kids (like myself and the other younger members of the troupe) worked alongside the adults form the ‘Knighton Park Players’ to produce some truly great evenings of variety. I remember Jean Burdett singing this song (as it was her ‘party piece’) with us joining in for the chorus.

I particularly love the melody and the sentiment in this song as it reminds us that sometimes (especially in war or when we are all ‘up against it’) we must ALL stand together and carry on as best we can and even though I have never personally experienced the effects of a war when nightly bombing raids destroyed the East End and Coventry and killed so many of our people it is easy to understand how songs like this might have helped some people think about what we were all fighting against.

Having lived in London for many years I can also appreciate the pride that we do take in our great city…

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aTsIMVIWjlQ

255. Souvenir – Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark (1981)

2011-09-02T01:04:00.001-07:00

This song reminds me of so many things! My friends Melanie and Mark, listening to the charts in my bedroom on a combined radio cassette deck that was given to me by my Aunty Sheila and making my first ‘radio programme’.

My friend Melanie (who lived five houses down the road from me) was the proud owner of a monophonic synthesiser the Roland SH-09, which was the same synth, used to create the guitar sound and hence the tune on this single. In those days synthesisers were not pre-programmed and in order to create a ‘sound’ the user had to follow the diagrams and move the dials and switches to the correct ‘wave’ patterns and oscillator frequencies to make that sound required and I remember working with Mel to set up the guitar sound so we could have a play and see how they had done it. Having done it we were very proud of ourselves. Every time I hear this single it reminds me of the Roland SH-09 and the fun we had programming the synthesisers when these instruments were new and you could only play one key at a time on them!!

Round about the time this tune was in the charts I made a tape of some of my favourite songs and (in the same spirit of this blog) I explained between them (having recorded the ‘links’ on my new cassette deck and radio!) why I liked them and what I liked about them. In this instance it was the tape loops of the choir singing at the start of the song as well as the use of the SH-09! I gave copies to my school friends to listen to!

This is a great song.

Listen….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Swzp1eeOMj4

254. September – David Sylvian (1987)

2011-08-31T23:53:00.001-07:00

This song is the opening song on ‘The Secrets Of The Beehive’ by David Sylvian, which is (without question) my favourite album of all time. As mentioned before on ‘The Boy With The Gun’ – Song 135, the whole album is a complete work of various songs that make a truly amazing whole and ‘September’ starts us off.

I often find myself playing the song on the 1^st September (like today) and it reminds me of starting ‘September’ in so many different places. I remember September coming along when we lived in Hackney in 1993, in Loughton for a number of years, in Debden and Theydon Bois and soon in Kent as we move there next week.

The song captures the spirit of September, when the summer draws to a close and the sun hides away and the days become a little colder on their way to winter. The lyrics which talk of the ‘sun shining high above’, ‘the sounds of laughter’ and the ‘the birds swooping down upon the crosses of old grey churches’ sum up this time of year beautifully and though the song is only short it makes a wonderful start to the album which is a ‘must listen’ if you like David Sylvian or Japan.

September is here again….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8RxNeHKgNU

253. Beat Dis – Bomb The Bass (1988)

2011-08-30T23:21:00.001-07:00

From the opening seconds of this record, which includes a sample of the opening credits from ‘Thunderbirds’ I was hooked on this track. At the time this was released this type of dance music with a heavy drumbeat and samples from all manner of unusual sources (such as an alarm clock going off and the famous ‘This is a journey into sound’’ segment from the 1958 Decca special effects album, as well as a segment from ‘The Good, The Bad and The Ugly’) was ground breaking and sat well in the charts beside ‘Pump Up The Volume’ and ‘S Express!’

The idea of using so many different sources for samples within a song and such diversity (as more than one ‘special effects’ album was used) was a real draw for me as I love unusual things and unusual sounds in my music. I love it when artists record unusual things and use them as loops or sounds in their records!

It is odd that this song cannot be downloaded on itunes at the present time but the version on You Tube reminds me of what a great dance track this is…

Enjoy…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdHLn_iHTSs

252. Feels Like Heaven – Fiction Factory (1983)

2011-08-30T04:29:00.001-07:00

I remember this song being in the charts for ‘Fiction Factory’ back in 1983. I saw them perform on ‘Top Of The Pops’ and immediately thought that this was a great song.

It is such a shame that this band had been going for years and this was their ‘first’ and last hit and that they were more or less relegated to the list of ‘one hit wonders’ immediately following its success but I think that this is a great song and deserves to be in my top 500 list. I remember finding it on a compilation album that had the hits of 1983 on it and having been reminded of it I downloaded my copy onto my iphone.

As the song was released at the end of 1983 it also reminds me of Christmas as it was in the charts over the period.

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6m_8yOprGc

251. Beasts – Slow Moving Millie (2009)

2011-08-29T05:54:00.001-07:00

This song reminds me of the Church Nativity Play that Kerry produced at

St. Mary’s in Theydon Bois back in 2009. The church had always had a very traditional nativity play up until that time and when Kerry was given the job she wanted to do something new and different. In Kerry’s Nativity we looked at the story from the perspective of the angels looking forward to the big day and how the shepherds and wise men reacted to it.

Kerry wrote a great script, the rehearsals were well run and organised and we used my apple computer and the garage band software to record and edit the music and sounds which when played through the church PA system gave the show an extra dimension.

This song was in the charts at the time having been played on television on a sky tv ad and we used a little bit of it, along with ‘The Arrival Of the Queen Of Sheba’, Pachelbel’s ‘Canon’ and ‘Sheep May Safely Graze’ to enhance the story. Whenever I hear it now it reminds me of Christmas, my daughter Ophelia playing the lead role, Ollie as a shepherd, Stanley as the king in that nativity play and what a wonderful Christmas that was.

Now listen to the song…..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojkzyfjuL0s

250. Last Chance – Soft Cell (2002)

2011-08-27T23:39:00.000-07:00

When Soft Cell released their album ‘Cruelty Without Beauty’ and did a series of concerts in 2002 I was lucky enough to go and see them in a lovely new venue in Hackney in London.

For those of us who remembered ‘Soft Cell’ from the first time around and were devastated when we had missed the final concert at the Hammersmith Odeon back in 1984 this was a chance to come back and have a second bite of the cherry as a 34 year old.

I have to admit that I was feeling a little too old to be at such a concert but when I realised that the whole place was pretty much full of 30 year old men (some were dressed as ladies as well which was a trifle ‘strange’ when using the loos!) and similarly aged women we all settled down to a fantastic show.

It was amazing to see and hear Marc Almond and as Marc’s voice and style have become stronger and more polished over the years we were not disappointed by the set which was accompanied by some wonderful original and new music by Dave Ball too. For me it was the first time to hear ‘Bedsitter’, ‘Say Hello, Wave Goodbye’ and ‘Youth’ live as well as listen to their new songs which included this one.

I had to admit that before the concert and the release of the new album I had already heard this song as one of my friend’s brothers worked for their record label and we were lucky enough to have heard a demo, so I liked this song already and when Marc announced it was a follow up to ‘Say Hello, Wave Goodbye’ I stood in the crowd excited to hear it. Although there had been some slight changes from the demo the song was still a great one and one that I have on my ipod today along with all the original Soft Cell numbers in my collection.

Enjoy….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2v-BHClOSo8

249. Stayin’ Alive – Beegees (1977)

2011-08-27T00:43:00.000-07:00

The buzz of excitement that surrounded Saturday Night Fever was started when I saw the video for ‘How Deep Is Your Love’ by the Beegees shown on ‘Swap Shop’ and when ‘Stayin’ Alive’ and ‘Night Fever’ followed shortly afterwards disco was here and if you didn’t have flashing lights on your dance floor or a white suit you were out of the equation!

You can (therefore) imagine my horror when ‘Saturday Night Fever’ was given an ‘X’ certificate which meant you couldn’t go to see it until you were over 18!

I remember my Auntie Anne going to see it and such was its popularity that an ‘abridged’ version was produced editing out the parts that made it an ‘X’ certificate and a rerated ‘A’ version (equivalent to today’s ‘PG’ certificate) was released and I went to the cinema to see it and hear the music in glorious stereo in the cinema.

I remember the opening shot of the film which is of John Travolta’s legs walking down a New York Street carrying a can of paint, admiring some shoes in a shop window etc all to the sound of this great song. The Beegees have written and produced some of the greatest songs of all time but ‘Stayin’ Alive’ is most certainly the best one they produced during the ‘disco’ era and is a true classic.

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A3b9gOtQoq4

248. I am King – Buxton – Dougal And The Blue Cat (1972)

2011-08-26T01:10:00.001-07:00

My Uncle Pete was a huge fan of the ‘Magic Roundabout’ and my mother managed to track down a copy of the soundtrack from the film ‘Dougal And The Blue Cat’ which was a ‘Magic Roundabout’ feature film voiced by Eric Thompson and released in 1972. She bought a copy for Pete and one for us at the same time and we played it over and over again on our stereo as children.

At the time there was no video and no video cassettes and so the only thing we had was an LP of the songs and no idea of what the actual film was like, but we loved the songs and this one was my favourite song from the film.

Buxton the evil blue cat, who has taken over the magic garden, imprisoned Florence and Dougal as well as Zebedee and Mr. Rusty sings this song as he finally becomes king! With such classic lines about being ruler of all the world including Bognor and Crewe as well as thumping and clouting anyone who gets in his way he ‘crowns’ his glory with a truly awesome piano solo which just goes to show that sometimes even evil villains have talent!

This is a great song and a great clip…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K4yStSP6B7I

247. Hard To Say I’m Sorry – Chicago (1982)

2011-08-25T01:30:00.000-07:00

Although the 1980s was a time of great change in the English Music scene (as well as in the country) there was still plenty of room for more traditional types of music and this song (and others like it by American Rock Bands) were very popular.

I remember hearing this song on Radio 1 as I travelled to school in the morning sandwiched between the likes of ‘Yazoo’,’OMD’ and ‘The Human League’ and thinking that it was a great song. I have this song on my ipod at the moment and I listen to it often.

There is a simplicity and simple message to this song, which makes it stand out, and the melody and delivery are exceptional. If there is one thing that the Americans do really well it is produce big power ballads like this one and this is one of the best examples…

Listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RB_AzQG0Mjs

246. The Smurf Song – Father Abraham (1978)

2011-08-24T01:10:00.000-07:00

At the moment ‘The Smurfs’ are enjoying a bit of a revival and my kids are taking an interest in them and asking me if I had heard of them. They are (of course) surprised to hear about ‘The Smurf Song’ and my original introduction to the blue trolls back in 1978!

I remember the video for this song being shown on ‘Swap Shop’ and Noel Edmunds introducing the Smurfs as the next big thing, which they certainly were. At the same time as ‘The Smurf Song’ was released ‘You’re The One That I Want (Song 244) was number one and as mentioned before was pretty much number one for the whole of the summer and beyond which kept the poor little smurfs off the number one but did give them the record for the most consecutive weeks at number two.

I was 10 at the time this song was in the charts and I bought a copy on Decca Records and we played it often! It’s not one that I have on my ipod as I can’t sem to get it as a download but it is great to see Papa Smurf playing the flute and the other smurfs smurfing out of key! This song brings back memories of a more innocent time when such things could be number 1 (or No.2) in the charts and when we all sat and watched them together as a family on ‘Top Of The Pops’.

Long live the smurfs….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWbMikrZ91U

245. Heart Of Glass – Blondie (1979)

2011-08-23T01:38:00.001-07:00

As a young lad I loved ‘Blondie’ and this song is my all time favourite song of theirs. I bought my copy from Ainley’s record shop by the clock tower in Leicester but was really disappointed when the record jumped and wouldn’t play properly on my Fidelity stereo at home. I distinctly remember taking the record back to the shop and waiting while the man went into a back room and played it coming back saying that it was fine and I should go home. Back at home I had to weight the stereo pick up arm with a couple of two pence pieces secured with blu tack to get it to work but work it did.

A couple of months later my parents bought me ‘Parallel Lines’ from ‘Revolver’ (another record shop in Leicester) and as the song was on that album the single hit the shelves and I played the album version instead.

I also remember this song being ‘Number One’ and watching the video on ‘Top Of The Pops’. The sophistication of New York, Jimmi Destri ‘twanging’ the output lead of his keyboard, Chris Stein’s dead pan expression and Debbie looking as gorgeous as ever in that dress. A great song and a great video that I still love to play and watch today. The video is one of the very few music videos I have on my ipod.

Now listen to the song…..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGU_4-5RaxU

244. You’re The One That I Want – John Travolta and Olivia Newton John (1978)

2011-08-22T01:15:00.001-07:00

This record reminds me of the summer of 1978 when this single was at Number One for eight weeks, which at the time was unprecedented. The success of ‘Saturday Night Fever’ the year before had catapulted John Travolta into superstar status and a suitable vehicle for him was found in ‘Grease’, which was released later in the year.

I remember buying my copy of this number one classic while on holiday in Mablethorpe during the summer and watching the video (which was taken from the film and acted as trailer for it) on ‘Top Of The Pops’ week after week.

By the time this song, ‘Summer Nights’, ‘Greased Lightening’ and ‘Sandy’ had been released as singles we were all desperate to get to the cinema to see the film and I remember going to see it with my brother and was not disappointed.

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHFbhhi_XVc

243. Silence Is Golden – The Tremeloes (1967)

2011-08-21T01:00:00.000-07:00

This record reminds me of playing our 45rpm singles on the record player as a child at 78rpm!

I remember my parents had a ‘stereogram’ which was a big box designed to look like a piece of furniture which had the speakers to the left and right and a turntable in the centre, space to store singles and LP records, and a lid which closed hiding the working parts from view. I seem to recall this device was given to us by someone else who was getting a new ‘Fidelity’ record player and it moved into our house in the dining room in the early 1970s. I also remember that we were also given a few records as well with it one of which was this single.

As a child we had enormous fun playing the records that we had at basically double the normal speed which made normal records sound like ‘Pinky and Perky’ were singing and ‘Pinky and Perky’ records something else completelty!!!

As an adult I heard this song (played at the proper speed) and was not only reminded of this but what a great song this was as well. I remember the single was on CBS records and had a yellow sleeve!

Now listen to this classic….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pyj2qL-bQ4E

242. Blue Dress – Depeche Mode (1990)

2011-08-20T03:24:00.001-07:00

This has got to be one of my favourite songs from Depeche Mode’s ‘Violator’ album and I was listening to it for the first time in a long while as I rode home on the tube last night.

As I have mentioned in the past I am a great fan of Depeche Mode and I love the way that Martin Gore expresses himself through his music often in new and unconventional ways. This song is about the effect that having a wife or lover put on a favourite ‘Blue Dress’ has on a man and how something that might mean nothing to you can mean so much to someone else. The concept that ‘Clothes don’t maketh the man’ is an old one but sometimes ‘Clothes do maketh a woman’ and I can understand the concept of this song so well.

I also love the wonderful pulsating synthesiser sounds that accompany Martin’s voice and the whole ‘feel’ of this song.

Enjoy….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Mh6hK8mEIw

241. Rupert The Bear – Jackie Lee (1970)

2011-08-19T01:03:00.001-07:00

The ‘Rupert Song’ is a classic example of how ‘Nostalgia burns in the hearts of the strongest’ (borrowing a line from the ‘Ink In The Well’ by David Sylvian (song 235)) and I can’t hear it without being reminded of coming home from school for lunch as a child in the 1970s.

In those far off days of youth and innocence when children went home over the lunch hour to see their mothers and have their lunch at home the television stations of the time ran a couple of kids’ shows like ‘Rupert’ or ‘A Handful of Songs’ along with ‘Rainbow’ or ‘Pipkins’ before the ‘News at One’ and ‘Crown Court’ and it was during these lunchtimes that those lucky enough to be at home would see these shows. Later on ‘Rupert’ got an after school slot and as such was therefore very much a feature of my childhood.

I loved the opening theme song performed by Jackie Lee (who also sang the song to ‘White Horses’ another children’s favourite of the time) and remember all the words to this very day. Having just had a third son who we have called ‘Rupert’ (though not as a tribute to this fine bear I hasten to add) I sometimes find myself singing the song to him as he sits on my knee while Mrs G is busy making supper. He loves the song and always smiles as I sing it.

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rY1aJ35sw98

240. Willow’s Song – Paul Giovanni (1973)

2011-08-18T08:13:00.001-07:00

I remember the ‘Wicker Man’ being on the television when I was a child and my mother not letting me watch it saying it was too scary. It was only when I bought a copy in an airport departure lounge within the last few years that I watched the film for the first time (whilst I was working away from home) and read about its extraordinary history.

Personally the idea of being burned alive as a human sacrifice within a giant Wicker Man is too horrible to imagine and Edward Woodward puts in a truly magnificent performance as the Scottish Policeman from the mainland enticed into the trap like a small lamb to the slaughter. I also love the music of the film and this song in particular which despite being ‘performed’ in this clip by Britt Eckland was actually written by Paul Giovanni and allegedly sang by Scottish Folk singer Annie Ross.

If you’ve never seen the ‘Wicker Man’ it is definitely worth a watch if only for the wonderfully colourful texture and rich pagan symbolism as well as the wonderful music.

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrviUetDs_4&NR=1

239. Weird – Hanson (1997)

2011-08-18T00:56:00.001-07:00

Back in 1997 Kerry and I were living in our little flat in Loughton still trying hard to get work as actors. I had done a couple of episodes of ‘Bugs’ and had a part as a doctor in ‘The Bill’ in 1996 and Kerry had appeared in ‘The Knock’ for LWT but by the summer of 1997 we were having to consider other things. It was at that time I got a temporary job at Lloyds Bank Stockbrokers which sent me back into London on the tube daily and led to a whole host of other things…

Looking back the music of 1997 was uneventful as far as I was concerned but times were changing as we all looked forward to the new start that Teflon Tony had promised with the election of ‘New Labour’ that same year. There were a couple of songs that I liked at that time (and I loved ‘The Spice Girls’) but I liked this song by Hanson. I had heard ‘MMMMBop’ and knew they were a bunch of kids but there is a maturity and style to this song that makes it stand out and on a recent revisit to it I was reminded of what a good song this actually is. I have it on my ipod (along with ‘MMMMBop’) and I play it often.

Now listen to the song……

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32nlxQOe3tw

238. Push It – Salt ‘N’ Pepa (1987)

2011-08-16T01:24:00.001-07:00

This song reminds me of roller-skating on a Saturday afternoon at the Grandby Halls in Leicester.

When I was a boy roller-skating involved wearing boots which had four wheels, one on each corner of the foot, rather than along the middle in the style of ice skates. I bought my first pair of skates from Zodiac Toys in the town when I was fourteen and used to go on a Saturday with my friends Mark Vickers and Stuart Monteith! Over the years I became quite good at it and moved up to some lovely leather boots with superfast wheels and when the technology developed some stiff plastic boots with amazing high speed wheels by Bauer which were the ‘dog’s bollocks’ of skating equipment.

Roller-skating (and I could go backwards and do jumps and so on) was something that I continued to do well into my twenties until I went to drama school and sometimes when I was home from there I went along to see what was happening. The Grandby Halls was a former drill hall and very large and an ideal venue for skating and they always played the latest music very loud! Sometimes when I would hear a song we would all jump up from our seats and skate as fast as we could to it and this was one of the songs. I can remember loving skating to this and smoothly gliding along impressing the ladies with my skills…

Every time I hear this song I am reminded of the fun I had roller-skating and wish I still had my boots…

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCadcBR95oU

237. Since You’ve Been Gone – Rainbow (1979)

2011-08-14T22:45:00.001-07:00

This song reminds me of going to Loughborough Grammar School in 1979 when it was a massive hit. As I lived in Leicester and Loughborough was some 15miles away I started my commuting life early (aged 11) and before the start of a dedicated school bus I had to walk round the corner and get a lift with Michael Walker (a bank manager who worked in Nottingham) and his son and two 0f his friends.

I can’t say that I enjoyed my time at Loughborough Grammar School and luckily for me it was my outside interests (namely the local youth theatre group of which I was a member) and the quality of my local friends with whom I did not share my schooldays that kept me from going mad there.

I did, however have a number of friends at Loughborough, and bound together by a common desire to survive the experience as best as we could we loved and shared our music. A number of the boys were heavy metal fans and had I not gone to LGS (as it was known) I would never have discovered Rainbow, Deep Purple, Free, Cream and Motorhead so it did me some good at least.

This is a classic rock number that will always remind me of LGS!

Rock on Mr. Bonnet and the lads….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mSkZU8IkjE

236. True Faith – New Order (1987)

2011-08-14T05:27:00.001-07:00

Although ‘True Faith’ by New Order was recorded in 1987 I somehow managed to miss it and didn’t discover it until much later when I heard it on a tape that a friend made for me of some of his favourite songs. Although we shared similar tastes and I already knew many of the songs on the tape I loved this one even though I didn’t know it was by New Order.

Bizarrely I seem to remember seeing the video at the cinema when it was shown as a short alongside a main feature, which seemed bizarre as the Film Censor’s classification for the video was shown before it was run. The video for this song is a very odd one indeed but it is very much part of the whole thing and so on this entry I commend you this song and this pop video.

Enjoy it…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=og1HAkjOuL0

235. The Ink In The Well – David Sylvian (1984)

2011-08-13T00:38:00.000-07:00

I remember buying David Sylvian’s first solo album (after Japan had split up and gone their separate ways) with a great anticipation of what he would do next and I was not disappointed.

Along with ‘Red Guitar’ which was released as a single and ‘Nostalgia’ the album had some great songs and music of which ‘The Ink In The Well’ is my favourite track. I love the double bass and the twanging of the string instruments as well as the images that are conjured up including ‘Picasso painting the ships in the harbour’ and that ‘Nostalgia burns (even) in the hearts of the strongest.’

Looking back on this album some 25 years after I first heard it it still seems as fresh and exciting as it was the day I bought it and pointed the way to what would be coming which was ‘The Secrets Of The Beehive’ which is my all time favourite album.

When CDs were introduced some time later I rushed out to buy this album on CD so I could hear it in greater clarity. In the early days the difference between the vinyl record and the CD played on the same stereo system seemed enormous and these days we no longer hear the differences but at that time it was bizarre to hear a singer take a breath before starting to sing or play a wind instrument on a CD which couldn’t usually be heard when playing the same track on a record.

‘The Ink In the Well’ also reminds me of being in the sixth form at Leicester Grammar School. This was one of the happiest times of my life as we had so much time off between lessons we could regularly be found having a coffee in Asquith’s, or tea at Blossoms or having lunch in Quentin Wong’s Chinese restaurant ‘Cathay Cantonese’ all against a backdrop of David Sylvian and ‘Brilliant Trees’….

Now listen to the song…..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-QnCtcL-Pe8

234. Silver Lady – David Soul (1978)

2011-08-12T01:09:00.001-07:00

‘Silver Lady’ by David Soul reminds me of 1970s, living on Glenfield Road in Leicester and the wonderful ‘Disco Fever’ LP, which was advertised on television and available on K-Tel records!

It’s hard to imagine the impact that one compilation album has had on me but it was a truly great album and featured some truly amazing songs of the day including ‘Magic Fly’ by Space (song 12), ‘Yes Sir I Can Boogie’ by Bacarra ‘Telephone Man’ by Meri Wilson, ‘You Win Again’ by Hot Chocolate, songs by The Dooleys and The Boomtown Rats as well as this song which was the first song on side 2 of the album sung by David Soul from ‘Starksy and Hutch’. I pretty much wore the record out playing it!!

Back in the 1970s the concept of actors making pop records was a bit of a joke but David Soul (helped by some great writing and production) managed to have quite a few hits of which this was perhaps his biggest. Although not a truly great singer he has a good voice and had a kind of charm which made him popular with the ladies and which came over so well in ‘Starsky and Hutch’ which really was a massive hit in the 1970s and compulsory Saturday night viewing for us as well as millions of others.

Whenever I hear this song I am reminded of the show, the 1970s and the number of spins ‘Disco Fever’ got!

Enjoy….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uVgjZCIRf4I

233. Go West – Pet Shop Boys (1993)

2011-08-11T01:14:00.003-07:00

‘Go West’ by the Pet Shop Boys has the privilege of being the only song that I ever purchased as a ‘cassette single’ and I did that because I had no access to my CD player when I was working away from home back in 1993.

This song is a cover of a song originally by ‘The Village People’ who were perhaps more famous for giving us ‘Y.M.C.A’ and ‘In The Navy’ but as someone who quite enjoyed ‘Y.M.C.A’ in the innocent and less enlightened times of the late 70s I love the songs of ‘The Village People’ and like this one very much. I remember the group made a film called ‘You Can’t Stop The Music’ in 1980, which I went to the cinema to see and all of the hits ended up in it! I can’t say I’ve ever seen it on TV but it is a great film.

I have always enjoyed the music of the Pet Shop Boys too as I love the way that they manage to produce so many wonderful sounds from their totally electronic music. Neil Tennant has a strange and bizarre voice as well, which adds to the style and in this song the use of a male voice choir as well as a collection of wonderful synthesized patches creates a truly wonderful version of an already great song.

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNBjMRvOB5M&ob=av2e

232. At The River – Groove Armada (1997)

2011-08-10T00:44:00.001-07:00

This song reminds me of the summer of 1999 a few short months before the ‘Millennium’ when we listened to the radio and heard this playing as we got up for work in the city on those lovely summer mornings. At that time Kerry and I were both working in London for different firms of stockbrokers so we got up at the same time, had our breakfast and listened to the radio before heading out to stand at the bus stop for ages waiting for the No.20 or 167 to take us to Loughton station.

At that time we were yet to start a family and we were starting to plan our wedding, which was to be in Manchester. My mother had only recently died (back in February of that year) and so we needed cheering up and something to look forward to. This song reminds me of that time. It conjures up images of the seaside (and there’s something wrong with you if you aren’t excited by the seaside!) and lazy afternoons spent eating ice creams and strolling along the beach at sunset.

Although it was originally released in 1997 it wasn’t until 1999 that it became a hit just in case you’re wondering why it was recorded in 1997 and I’m reminiscing about 1999!

Now listen to the song…..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-uztVX6QFQ&ob=av3n

231. Where Do You Go To My Lovely – Peter Sarstedt (1969)

2011-08-09T01:35:00.001-07:00

I remember hearing this song on the radio sometime in the 1970s and asking my Dad if he knew who it was by. He seemed to think that it was Bob Dylan and as my Dad wasn’t keen on Bob Dylan he then went on to tell me that he thought he was over rated and his music was cobblers. It is funny how one’s parents influence you however isn’t it? As a result of this I have never been much of a Dylan fan and on coming to his work later in life I find myself thinking that whilst some of his work is good that perhaps he is not the genius some people believe him to be.

As a further result of this mis-information I didn’t manage to find out that ‘Where Do You Go To My Lovely’ was written and performed by Peter Sarstedt until well into the late 1980s when I found it on a CD collection entitled ‘No. 1s of the 1960s’ issued by EMI records! Having discovered it, it then became one of my favourite songs from that era.

For me the song has an enormous appeal in that it refers to ‘a secret kept for a number of years’ as well as the almost universal desire to improve one’s life and overcome adversity and that essentially no one ever really knows precisely what is going on in the mind or thoughts of any of us, which makes for a fascinating composition. At the time when this was written the idea of skiing in St.Moritz and sunbathing in foreign climes as well as fancy apartments in Paris were alien to the majority of us and so the added glamour of such things also helps to underpin the concept of the song and just how far Marie- Claire has travelled on her journey.

I love this song and it was nice to find some footage of Peter S performing it in colour too.

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HqC-677R-xU

230. Love Is Strange – Everything But The Girl (1992)

2011-08-08T00:48:00.001-07:00

This song, which is originally a song from the 1950s, was featured on a special CD single issued by ‘Everything But The Girl’ called ‘Covers’ which I bought from ‘Trumps’ record shop in Loughton back in 1992.

The CD also featured acoustic versions of ‘Time After Time’ the Cyndi Lauper song (song 70) and ‘Alison’ originally by Elvis Costello, but it is this wonderful version of ‘Love Is Strange’ is what attracted me to the disc as I had heard it on the radio and loved this version with its simple musical arrangement and close harmony.

There isn’t really too much to say about this song other than it is wonderful and I hope you like it.

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qyBTjgQ-5Y&ob=av2e

229. Thorn In My Side - Eurythmics (1986)

2011-08-07T00:49:00.001-07:00

This song reminds me of a Peugeot 309, a leg of lamb and rehearsals for ‘Grease’

- a show where I appeared as an eighteen year old with my friends Nick Lowe and Ed.

Back in 1986 when Ed and I were appearing in a dancing school production of ‘Grease’ at Countesthopre College in Leicestershire, Ed used to pick me up from my house and we would make the journey in his mother’s car until the time he bought his own car during the run – a blue VW Beetle. One day when his mother’s car was at the garage for a service the garage lent her a Peugeot 309 and Ed came and picked me up in it. Bizarrely someone had left a leg of lamb on the back seat and I can’t recall whether or not the tape in the stereo was already there or one that Ed had brought with him but this song was on the tape and we played it a number of times as we sped along to the rehearsal!

I’ve always enjoyed the Eurythmics since the demise of ‘The Tourists’ and their renaissance as a new musical force as my friend Melanie was a real devotee and had their first album ‘In The Garden’ which was out a while before ‘Sweet Dreams’ brought them to the attention of the masses. I love this song in particular because it reminds me of the fun we had doing ‘Grease’ and listening to it in the car…

Now listen to the song…..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_AmkmqYEarw

228. Mickey – Toni Basil (1982)

2011-08-06T07:53:00.001-07:00

I remember Noel Edmonds introducing the video to this song on a Saturday morning episode of ‘Swap Shop’ in what was to be the last series before we got ‘Saturday Superstore’.

I can’t quite remember what Noel was saying but the idea was that this was going to be a ‘Smash Hit’ and that this was a great video. I remember watching it and thinking how right Noel was and so rushed out to get my copy which had a nice picture of Toni Basis dressed as a cheerleader on the sleeve!

The song is a cover version and the original song (by Racey) called ‘Kitty’ was changed by Toni Basil to ‘Mickey’ and with the addition of Toni’s chant ‘Oh Mickey you’re so fine……you blow my mind’ and was a massive hit for her back in 1982 at a time when the charts were full of new romantic synthesiser music made by the likes of The Human League and Duran Duran.

This a fun song with a fun video and deserved to be as massive as it was. It was kept off the number one spot in the UK by ‘The Lion Sleeps Tonight’ by Tight Fit which while equally fun was not quite as good as this song….

Now listen to the song and watch the video!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvQex1RQ5G4

227. Purple Haze – Jimi Hendrix (1967)

2011-08-05T01:26:00.001-07:00

When I was at Loughborough Grammar school between 1979 and 1984 I had a number of friends who were seriously into Heavy Metal and Rock Music. Friends who bought ‘Kerrang’ magazine and went to Donnington (which was close by) to listen to Motorhead and make their ears bleed!

As a result of this I was exposed to Eric Clapton and Cream, Rainbow and Motorhead and the wonderful James Marshall Hendrix. A man so talented he could play the guitar with his teeth!!!

Unfortunately due to his untimely death Jimi Hendix didn’t leave us with much but songs like ‘Hey Joe’, ‘All Along The Watchtower’ and ‘Purple Haze’ are works of true genius and I am fully behind the opinion that Jimi Hendrix was probably the greatest electric guitar player in the world.

I love ‘Purple Haze’ as a song because it is just so strange and obviously inspired by some serious sixties spliff smoking or acid taking and as such is very much belongs to its era whilst at the same time having the qualities of a timeless classic despite being over 40 years old at this time.

Now listen to the music…..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnFSaqFzSO8

226. Agadoo – Black Lace (1984)

2011-08-04T00:49:00.001-07:00

No list of 500 songs would be complete without one or two super cheesy classics of which this masterpiece is Number One!

I heard 'Agadoo' by Black Lace for the first time in the Tower Ballroom in Blackpool. Phil Kerslake had just finished playing the mighty Wurlitzer organ and as he descended into the vaults two girls came out in grass skirts and wearing flower garlands accompanied by a bloke who told us ‘we were gonna dance to a new song which was gonna be massive!’

I was there with my younger brother who was nine(tries to justify the next bit!!) and before long we were pushing pineapples and shaking the tree. I was sixteen at this time!

I must admit that I do have this song on my iPod and as I write this (on the tube this morning) I am listening to it!!!

Despite it's obvious holiday song quality at the time when it was released back in 1984 the idea of the annual 'interactive holiday song' was relatively new and had yet to be tarnished by some of the truly dreadful ones that followed!

I also love the irony of this song as well! Imagine if you were an actual Hula dancer in Waikiki - Would you really want to meet either of the blokes from 'Black Lace' down in the bay and 'teach them much more than how to dance?'

- I think NOT!

Although this is truly dreadful I love it!

Enjoy.......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=POv-3yIPSWc

225. Time To Say Goodbye – Katherine Jenkins (2004)

2011-08-03T02:11:00.001-07:00

This song by Katherine Jenkins reminds me of my Uncle Dave who died

in 2004.

When I was a boy my Uncle Dave lived up the road on Aikmen Avenue in Leicester and we would often visit him and his wife Pam and daughter Collette.

Dave worked for the Gas Board reading meters (amongst other things) and was one of the nicest men that you could ever have hoped to meet. When we had our first baby Ophelia back in 2001 and again when we had Oliver in 2003 we took them to Leicester to see Dave and Pam who had moved to Coalville by that time.

2004 was a bad year for the family as my Auntie Sheila died quite suddenly and unexpectedly. I remember going round to see Dave on the day of Sheila’s funeral (Dave was too poorly to attend) and as I sat in his living room with my other Uncles John, Paul and Pete and couldn’t help but think that this would probably be the last time that these four brothers would be together as Dave was so ill.

I noticed that Dave had a CD of Katherine Jenkins music on a side table where he was sitting and I remember him telling me that he was a great fan of her singing. Dave died shortly afterwards.

This song was played at his funeral service and knowing that Dave was a great fan of Katherine Jenkins and had a CD of her album ‘La Diva’ (as had I) it seemed very apt. It was ‘Time To Say Goodbye’ that day and whenever I hear this song I am reminded of Dave and what a great man he truly was.

Now listen to the song…..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BR7EaHbPe54

224. Army Dreamers – Kate Bush (1980)

2011-08-02T00:57:00.001-07:00

I don’t think I know anyone who either doesn’t like Kate Bush or can’t appreciate that fact that musically she really is something quite special.

For those who have been following from the beginning of the blog you may recall that Kate’s single ‘Wuthering Heights’ was the first record I ever bought (Song 21) but I have been a lifelong fan of her work and one of my favourite songs from the her ‘Never For Ever’ album is ‘Army Dreamers’. I love the way that she uses the clicking of the rifle and the Russian Balalaika and a waltz tempo to create a truly meaningful song about the futility of war and the misery and pain that it causes for those left behind. The song is particularly brilliant in that it use the concept of a mother’s pain in losing a child at a time when Kate Bush herself was yet to start a family.

I love the way that Kate Bush uses her incredibly powerful imagination in her work and like a method actor almost ‘becomes’ the character singing the song and imparting the message. She is a truly amazing talent and this is a truly amazing song.

The accompanying video (which is one that Kate herself is very proud of allegedly) also manages to capture the essence of the song.

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWdHOm256N4

223. Let The River Run – Carly Simon (1989)

2011-08-01T01:01:00.001-07:00

Back in 1989 I went to see the film ‘Working Girl’ which starred Melanie Griffiths and Harrison Ford. This song was the opening theme song of the film performed by Carly Simon and I was immediately struck by what a great song it was and was reminded of what a wonderful talent Carly Simon really is.

I had first come across Carly Simon when she sang the theme song to the James Bond movie ‘The Spy Who Loved Me’ back in 1977 which has to be my all time favourite James Bond movie. I just loved Roger Moore in the role with Ringo Starr’s wife Barbara Bach as agent ‘triple x’ as well as the Lotus Esprit and the wonderful underwater scenes and the very modern music but Marvin Hamlish.

I had also heard ‘You’re So Vain’ which is another great song but I really loved ‘Let The River Run’ so much that I went out and bought a copy on 3’ CD single which I still have. I really enjoyed ‘Working Girl’ although looking back now it seems a little dated and what was that eighties hair about? If you’ve never seen ‘Working Girl’ or heard ‘Let The River Run’ then now is the time to listen to it and see what you think….

Enjoy the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cv-0mmVnxPA

222. Living On The Ceiling – Blancmange (1982)

2011-07-31T01:07:00.003-07:00

I remember seeing Blancmange play this on ‘Top Of The Pops’ and rushing out to buy a 12’ single of this fine song!

As with some of the other songs in my collection ‘Living On The Ceiling’ was a record that I played numerous times and nearly wore it out however I remember swapping my copy as well as another record that I had for a copy of Marc Almond’s ‘Untitled’ album with a friend who lived next door. Looking back I can’t remember why other than that I wanted Marc’s album and it had been deleted and I suppose the 12’’ of ‘Living On The Ceiling’ was probably deleted too.

As soon as I got my ipod however and discovered that it was possible to download pretty much anything I found this and made it one of the first few songs I added to my playlist.

It’s hard to quantify what it is about this song and why I like it but I suspect it is the fusion of the Indian influence along with what was (at the time) the latest synthesiser and drum sounds which all come together to make a great song.

Enjoy some Blancmange….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L03PJeB38dI

221. Big Big World – Emilia (1998)

2011-07-30T01:08:00.000-07:00

I was recently reminded of this song when I was having dinner in The King Neptune Restaurant in Newcastle. Among the other piped music that was playing in the background, which included some real drivel, this wonderful song captured my attention and I was reminded of how much I loved it. Needless to say I downloaded it to my ipod and played in on the train back to London.

In the course of my work I am often sent to Edinburgh, Newcastle, Glasgow and so on as the company I am working with at the moment has over 40 different locations. Over the last five years I have visited most of them from as far afield as Inverness to Lymington and I have been away from home for a good deal of time.

When I used to read stories about rock stars on tour getting bored with hotels and eating out daily I used to feel shocked and say ‘I would never tire of such a thing’ but the reality is (having done it for long) that I miss my family very much each time I go away and now every city centre and every hotel pretty much looks like each other! I will often turn a corner looking for a shop or a restaurant only to realise it’s in a completely different town.

It is, however, comforting to sometime hear a song being played that reminds me of home or some fun time in that past that only music can remind you of. This is one such song. I hope you enjoy it…..

Now listen to the song…..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUKq7DLo6Ko

220. Bring Him Home – Les Miserables – Alfie Boe (1985)

2011-07-29T04:30:00.001-07:00

I remember when ‘Les Miserables’ was born and the chronic reviews it suffered. Friends in the business called it ‘The Glums’ and there was a general belief that it was a flawed and depressing piece of no real value, but with many things the public loved it and it is still playing to full house some twenty five years later!

When I was at east 15 acting school and ‘Les Miserables’ was relatively new we used to sing some of the songs and I remember this one and ‘Stars’ being performed in the Foyer. East 15 had this practice of asking every student to sing a song (these were to be challenging and designed to test the singer’s range) in the Foyer in front of the whole school at regular intervals. As with most things those who found singing difficult were nervous and apprehensive as were those who were good at singing who were often given songs outside of their range which they acquitted with various degrees of success.

Some years later before we had children of our own we were looking after the children of Kerry’s brother’s then partner and took the kids to see ‘Les Miserables’ when it was on at the Shaftesbury Theatre. We had good seats in the balcony and it was wonderful to see the whole show and hear the songs performed live by the actors in their full context. This song is my favourite one from the show and each time I hear it I am reminded of east 15, the foyer songs and that weekend when we entertained Christopher and Kelsey and gave them their first experience of the West End Theatre.

Now enjoy the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wt5YRexag1o

219. You Only Live Twice – Nancy Sinatra (1967)

2011-07-28T01:25:00.001-07:00

I have always enjoyed John Barry’s music and the wonderful way in which he collaborated with artists as diverse as A-Ha, Duran Duran, Shirley Bassey, Lulu, Louis Armstrong and many others when providing music for various James Bond films. His wonderful music can also be heard in other films most notably ‘Out Of Africa’ where ‘You are Karen’ is one of my all time favourite pieces of cinematic music.

As with a number of songs in my collection of my favourite 500 songs this one was also in my Auntie Sheila’s record collection and she had it as a single. The single version by Nancy Sinatra was a good deal more dramatic than the actual version used in the opening of the film and it is this version that Sheila had and this version that I remember on ‘Reprise’ records with its pink label and sleeve.

‘You Only Live Twice’ is a great song with great music and great lyrics and a great vocal by the daughter of a living legend.

Now enjoy the song…..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDitUVMMzE0

218. All That You Have Is Your Soul – Tracey Chapman (1989)

2011-07-26T23:16:00.001-07:00

Tracy Chapman’s first album was a masterpiece and I loved it whole-heartedly but her second album ‘Crossroads’ while being less commercially successful is still a very fine album indeed. This is my favourite song from that album.

For some reason this song reminds me of another student at my drama school. His name was Andy (and sometimes Drew) and like me he came from Leicester and started east 15 in 1989. I had seen him around Leicester before we went and we had some mutual friends in common but it was not until we were living in the school’s Jacobean Mansion in York that we got to know each other a little better.

Andy was a very talented actor but unfortunately he had a tendency to be unreliable in so far as he would turn up late for rehearsals or not at all and was sometimes ill prepared but when he was there and applied himself he gave tremendous performances.

One Sunday he cooked us a roast dinner in the basement kitchen. He had somehow managed to get hold of a Joint of Lamb and slow cooked it in the oven whilst the residents of the house sat in the old Jacobean kitchen in front of the real fire drinking wine and discussing changing the world. Andy played the guitar and he was playing the opening bars of this song and because I knew it I recognised it instantly.

The words of the song are very powerful. It is true that in the end all that we have is our soul….

Now listen to this song. Dedicated to Andy R wherever he may be…..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4hbQj8NK1g

217. Hey Jude – The Beatles (1967)

2011-07-25T22:52:00.001-07:00

I remember reading somewhere the Paul McCartney used John’s son Julian as the inspiration for this song and that it was originally called ‘Hey Jules’ changing it to ‘Hey Jude’ later as the song developed.

It is one of my favourite Beatles songs and I can never play it or listen to it without being reminded of my mother who died from a very aggressive cancer some twelve years ago now. I still think about her and wish she were still here so that she might have seen my four children and gotten to know them as she loved babies and was constantly on at me and Kerry to get started with the family but they only started to come along some two years after her death. Sometimes in life however we can’t get what we want and perhaps in this case we can’t get what we need either.

This is a great song and no list of 500 great songs would be complete without something by the fab four and so I give you ‘Hey Jude’

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEKgYKpEJ3o

216. The Legend of Xanadu – Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich (1968)

2011-07-25T02:17:00.001-07:00

This is another record that my Auntie Shelia had in her collection and that we used to play on her Fidelity Record player round at her maisonette on the

St. Matthew’s estate in Leicester back in the early seventies.

It’s odd to look back on this song which is now over 43 years old but when I was five (having been born in 1968 too) it was a fairly recent hit having only been in the charts some five years earlier.

As a child I could appreciate the drama of this song and loved the ‘whipping’ sound as well as the Spanish influence and the spoken section which all add up to a pretty great single! I remember Sheila’s record was on Fontana Records and had a dark blue sleeve and label with silver writing on it and as well as the music when remembering her records I can quite clearly visualise them.

This is a great clip (introduced by Jimmy Savillle) which just has to be enjoyed…

Now listen to this song…..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xuJ4GIXB5Uc

215. In My Room – Marc and The Mambas (1981)

2011-07-24T00:49:00.001-07:00

This has pretty much got to be the most dramatic song ever and that is why I love it so much! I first saw Marc Almond sing this on a show called ‘The Switch’ (the very performance is shown here) back in the 1980s and knew, almost immediately, that I had to go and but the album ‘Torment and Torreros’ – the new album from whence it came.

Although ‘Torment and Toreros’ is a bizarre album with some wonderful songs like ‘Catch A Falling Star’ which I love for its truly amazing orchestral accompaniment and loads of swearing the whole thing is massively dramatic and a true masterpiece.

I was introduced to ‘Soft Cell’ by Melanie’s friend Lucy but another friend Louise (from New Parks) was a Marc Almond devotee who played me the ‘Untitled’ album and introduced me to Marc’s other work which he seemed to do in the summer holidays when he and Dave were separated!

‘In My Room’ is actually a cover of a Walker Brothers song, which I was also listening to the other day and is equally dramatic. Even though Marc Almond does not have the same deep and luscious tones of Scott Walker he makes this song his own and gives a truly great performance here.

For Lucy and Louise wherever you are….

Enjoy Marc again….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSojFr5NULc

214. Baby I Love You – The Ramones (1980)

2011-07-22T23:48:00.000-07:00

The most bizarre thing about this song (apart from the fact that The Ramones were doing a version of it in the first place) is that Phil Spector produced this version as well as the original, which was by the Ronettes!

I remember this version of the song being used on a ‘Yellow Pages’ advert on the tv and having been familiar with the original was reminded of it and so went out to buy my copy. It is intriguing how a tv ad campaign can generate sales of a long forgotten classic reintroducing it to a new audience and bringing it to life once again.

As you know by now (if you’ve been reading my blogette since Day 1) I love this type of song and this type of music and I love this Phil Spector produced version of it massively. Once again The Ramones were a bit of light relief from Gary Numan and The Human League and are a truly great band. Although not their greatest song this is my favourite Ramones number and so I commend it to you…

Enjoy…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4H9yZBjgSI

213. Wonderful Land – The Shadows (1962)

2011-07-21T23:51:00.000-07:00

I first heard a section of ‘Wonderful Land’ by the Shadows when an album of their greatest hits was advertised on TV back in the 1970s. It was the usual thing - a nice LP on EMI records with a gold cover and the picture of some shadows cast by a light against three guitar necks! The voice over said ‘With all the hits including ‘Apache’ and ‘Wonderful Land!’. I made my mother buy me that album.

In 1978 when I was 10 years old I also got my mother to take me to see ‘The Shadows’ when they played the De Monfort Hall in Leicester. As my mother was a very big fan of Cliff Richard and her annual treat was to go and see him (with me and my brother in tow) play the same venue she didn’t mind seeing the band as they were always to be associated with the great Cliff R in her mind.

I remember them playing a song called ‘Love Deluxe’ which was their entry to the Eurovison Song Contest that year and we bought a copy in the foyer but for me the highlight of the night was hearing Hank and Bruce play ‘Wonderful Land’ which is a truly great piece of music.

I also remember Mike Oldfield doing an equally exciting version but this is the original and best and brings back happy memories of seeing ‘The Shadows’ on a summer night in 1978.

Now listen to the boys play guitar….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sF9AS0zte5U

212. Going Underground – The Jam (1980)

2011-07-20T23:35:00.001-07:00

The 1980s was not all ‘New Romantic’ synthesiser pop songs and boys wearing make up we also had ‘The Jam!!’

I remember this song being Number 1 and watching ‘The Jam’ on ‘Top Of The Pops’ when it was and I was immediately taken with the raw energy of the performance and the amazing sound that ‘The Jam’ made between them being only three skinny blokes!

Along with ‘A Town Called Malice’ this has to be one of my favourite ‘Jam’ numbers and it reminds me of ‘Smash Hits’, ‘Top Of The Pops’ and listening to this on the bus to school.

Enjoy the song…..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AE1ct5yEuVY

211. Dreams – Gabrielle (1993)

2011-07-20T12:26:00.001-07:00

I remember hearing ‘Dreams’ by Gabrielle a while before it became a hit and I recall it had a sample of Tracy Chapman’s ‘Fast Car’ woven into it. By the time it had hit the charts however the sample had been removed but whenever I hear it I can still subconsciously hear the opening bars of that song which is another of my personal favourites.

‘Dreams’ reminds me of working at ‘The West Yorkshire Playhouse’ back in 1993 and living in Hyde Park with June a social worker who occasionally put actors up when they were working in Leeds. June was a lovely woman and an absolute pleasure to have as a landlady. I remember that she was out during the day and as an actor appearing at the theatre in the evenings I was out then so we didn’t see too much of each other apart from on Sundays.

During my stay I redecorated her living room for her, stripping the walls, hanging new paper and painting it a lovely magnolia and a deep burgundy matt on the woodwork. Whist I worked I had the stereo on (covered by an old sheet) and this song was one of the ones I played as I decorated. I love decorating, especially wallpapering as it is one of the few things that I can actually ‘do’ in relation to DIY skills and there is nothing I like more than doing the decorating while listening to my music. This song invokes another happy memory as a result of that.

Now listen to the song (as it was originally intended…)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0X4OMFPho0

210. World Without Love – Peter and Gordon (1964)

2011-07-19T00:58:00.001-07:00

I remember seeing the film (which accompanies this blog song) on a documentary about the British Artistes who were massive in America in the sixties. The narrator of the show said that this song was written by Paul McCartney but had been offered to Peter Asher who was Jane Asher’s brother at the time when Paul and Jane were an item. Having seen the clip I went out to Ainley’s Record Shop to buy the single. I remember it was on the ‘Old Gold’ label .

The song itself also reminds me of ‘Ally McBeal’ the US TV series as a new version of the song (recorded by Vonda Shepherd) was featured in the show and Kerry and I were regular viewers. ‘Ally McBeal’ was a great series and really very very funny but poignant at the same time and the choice of music in the show from Dr. Tracey’s Theme Song for Ally ‘Tell Him’ coupled with ‘Crying’ and ‘A World Without Love’ were all good choices that helped to underpin the narrative.

It was very much of its time but I loved it and it is a shame that like most great things it got a little crazy in the end…

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVbLNPwi_r0

209. When All Is Said and Done – Abba (1981)

2011-07-18T00:57:00.000-07:00

I have to admit that I was listening to this song on the tube the other day as I travelled to work. I don’t know what it is about Abba but they have something that draws you to their music and this song is one of my favourite Abba songs.

The combination of Benny and Bjorn’s writing talents as well as the wonderful dynamic range of the girls’ voices have produced some truly great songs over the years some of which have been true pop classics whereas some are works of true

genius like ‘The Winner Takes It All’ and ‘The Day Before You Came’ which were written during the closing period of the groups existence. Another such song is this one, which is a song about moving on, and trying not to attribute any personal blame for what has happened. This is a truly moving song and one that touches so many emotions.

Personally I prefer the Spanish Version which is called ‘No Hay a Quien Culpar’ which seems to have an extra dramatic dimension and both are presented here.

Enjoy Abba! It’s the law….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tUh4u-lYEhM

http://www.youtube.com/user/AbbaVEVO#p/a/u/0/6qmzmD4POMk

208. David Guetta and Rihanna – Who’s That Chick? (2010)

2011-07-17T00:18:00.001-07:00

I must admit to being a bit of a fan of French DJ David Guetta since he was involved in remixing OMD’s ‘Enola Gay’, which is already one of my favourite songs, and I have also come across more of his work in the past and more recently this song.

I am also a fan of Rihanna as well so collaboration between the two is the starting point for a great dance track like this one is. I love the line ‘I just wanna dance, I don’t really care’ and I love Rihanna’s voice coupled with the fantastic machine generated sounds on this song as well as the pounding rhythm and its overall style.

I first heard it on Capital in the car with my daughter, I downloaded it and we both have it on our ipods!

Enjoy…..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAc4zHEDd7o

207. Love Grows Where My Rosemary Goes – Edison Lighthouse (1970)

2011-07-16T01:05:00.001-07:00

I don’t know why I love this song so much only that I do. I first heard it on a ‘Best of the 70s’ album I bought on a CD and because the CD had so many other songs that I loved from the 70s on it in buying it I had this too! Having played it I was conscious that I had heard it sometime before but from the moment it was on my ipod I found myself adding it to my 70s playlist and enjoying it in the tube.

I love the lines ‘She ain’t got no money, her clothes are kinda funny, her hair is kind of wild and free…Love Grows where my Rosemary goes and nobody knows like me’ as well as ‘people say she’s crazy and her life’s a mystery!’

Maybe it’s because all of us know a ‘Rosemary’ (or someone like her) and we can all identify with this song and its message – the idea that some people live in their own world but we can’t help but love them..

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7UMZulD94s

206. Nightporter – Japan (1980)

2011-07-15T01:30:00.000-07:00

‘Nightporter’ by Japan is one of my all time favourite songs and also one that both myself and my friend Tracey Brown can play on the piano!

I was already a Japan fan having been hooked when ‘Tin Drum’ was released at the end of 1981 and ‘Cantonese Boy’ and ‘Ghosts’ finally managed to have some impact on the charts for the band back in 1982. I had been exposed to Japan and Soft Cell and Gary Numan thanks to my friends Melanie, Mark , Adele and Lucy but it was Adele who was the real Japan devotee and through her enthusiasm I was introduced to Japan’s earlier works which included ‘European Son’ and the album ‘Gentlemen Take Polaroids’ from which ‘Nightporter’ is taken.

I love the simple piano accompaniment (inspired by Eric Satie I suspect as David Sylvian was keen on his music as was Gary Numan) the glorious oboe played by the late Mick Kahn and the non intrusive synthesiser sounds which all come together with two piano tracks to make this a truly excellent song. I remember a remixed 12’ version of ‘Nightporter’ being released in the early eighties which was a more simple and marginally less ‘produced’ version which is the one I had but the original (from ‘Gentlemen Take Polaroids’) is still a classic.

This song reminds me of the early eighties, Tracey Brown, wearing my burgundy tank top and ultra slim bowtie, eyeliner and Adele Smith….

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNhO5mX1fPQ&feature=fvst

205. The Fear – Lily Allen (2009)

2011-07-14T00:39:00.000-07:00

I don’t know what it is about Lily Allen but I find myself drawn to her and her music. This song in particular is one that I find myself singing and listening to on the tube on the way to work.

I love the video and the song’s pre-financial crisis analysis of materialism is one of the reasons why I love it so much. There are a number of strong (but worrying) lines and concepts such as ‘Everything’s cool as long as I’m getting thinner’, ‘I want to be rich and have lots of money, I don’t care about clever, I don’t care about funny!’ and the whole songs seems to perfectly capture the way

in which access to readily available funds unchecked by any boundaries leads to ‘massive consumption’ on a massive scale.

I love Lily and I love this song…

Enjoy…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-wGMlSuX_c

204. One Man In My Heart – The Human League (1995)

2011-07-13T01:11:00.001-07:00

I bought this song by The Human League when I heard it on the radio and I remember it being one of the first CD singles that I bought back in 1995.

At the time this was released back in 1995 I was surprised to discover that the Human League were still going and still making music! It seems that rather than split up and fade away like so many of the other bands from the 1980s they had returned to Sheffield where they continued to make music.

I also remember my mother commenting that the line ‘one man in my bed’ in this song was further evidence that everyone was becoming more and more sex obsessed and that it would end horribly some time in the future. Personally I really quite like the sentiment in this song and I think that (as a performer) Susan has come a long way since ‘Don’t You Want Me’ (Song 51) and does a rather fine job of this one.

Now listen to the song…..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L960Cr06iZs

203. We Take Mystery (To Bed) – Gary Numan (1982)

2011-07-12T00:33:00.001-07:00

This song by Gary Numan was a definite move into the world of the dance track and (as with a lot of Gary Numan’s work) shows his constant desire to adopt and change his music as it develops.

I had long been a fan of Gary Numan from his ‘Tubeway Army’ days and had loved ‘Cars’ and ‘Complex’ both of which I had on singles but when I heard this song I ran out and bought the 12’ single and have had it in my collection ever since. I still play this song regularly and I love the overall sound of it as it marries fretless bass, synthesiser sounds, Gary’s very unusual voice and dance rhythm to create a truly amazing song.

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HuzvWHwmoVs

202. Crossroads Theme – Tony Hatch (1964)

2011-07-11T00:54:00.001-07:00

It may seem bizarre but I have the ‘Crossroads Theme’ on my ipod and now and again on the way home I listen to it.

This tune composed by Tony Hatch in the 1960s was one that I heard nearly every weeknight as my mother (like a good deal of the nation) was a devoted ‘Crossroads’ fan and always watched the programme. She loved Noelle Gordon and in those days before the creation of the domestic video recorder if you liked a programme you had to actually sit down and watch it when it was on!

I remember ‘Crossroads’ having an early evening slot and the opening bars of the theme tune are as familiar as a nice cup of tea.

The ‘Crossroads’ theme tune reminds me of living on Glenfield Road, watching the show on our first colour tv in the early 70s, the controversy when Paul MaCartney re-recorded the theme and it was replaced only to revert back to the original after massive viewer complaints and feeling comfortable in the knowledge that as long as Benny and Miss Diane were okay all would be well.

Listening to the ‘Crossroads’ theme on the way home reminds me of all these things….

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2zSWQfEsjY

201. Anarchy In The UK – The Sex Pistols (1976)

2011-07-10T01:27:00.001-07:00

The Sex Pistols were considered ‘shocking’ back in the mid 70s with their use of crude language and anti establishment sentiment as well as radical image but (like with all such things) were a massive hit with ‘the kids on the street’, which included me. I remember hearing about the group when I was a nine year old at school and some of the more switched on kids were talking about them in the playground however it was not until 1979 when I went to Loughborough Grammar School that I actually got to hear their ‘Never Mind The Bollocks’ album

and develop a real taste for punk rock!

This song (as well as ‘The Pistols’ themselves) also remind me of filming in Soho back in 1992 for ‘The Buddha Of Suburbia’. In Hanif’s novel ‘Charlie Hero’ (who reminded me of Billy Idol!) starts a punk band and his friend ‘The Fish’ arranges a concert in Soho club engineering some violent scenes to grab some publicity.

In the TV series I was playing ‘The Fish’ and we filmed those scenes on a Sunday using Soho Square as a base and filming in a club on Dean Street. The BBC had managed to get a large group of real punk rockers to work as extras, some of who actually remembered seeing ‘The Sex Pistols’ in Soho in the 1970s. I had a great time filming that day, however Naveen Andrews borrowed £5 from me that day which has still to return!

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQkActP-isE

200. Mozart – Magic Flute – Papageno’s Song (1791)

2011-07-09T00:55:00.001-07:00

I had always enjoyed listening to Mozart ever since I was little (Did you know he composed the melody for ‘Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star?’) but it was not until

I read the play ‘Amadeus’ and then saw the film version back in the mid 1980s that I was alerted to his true genius.

The product of a bizarre musical upbringing coupled with traveling and performing across Europe, Mozart was indeed a troubled individual and his untimely death was a genuine loss as I am certain his music could only ever have improved with age.

‘The Magic Flute’, which is work containing many mystical symbols and ‘veiled in allegory’ is one of my personal favourites from Mozart’s Operas and I have found myself listening to it again on the tube in recent days on my to work! This song sung by Papageno the Bird Catcher is one of the highlights of the opera and if you are unfamiliar with the work provides a suitable introduction…

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igI_2ekFg4M&feature=related

199. Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now – The Smiths (1984)

2011-07-08T02:01:00.001-07:00

199. Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now – The Smiths (1984)

I remember watching Morrisey on ‘Top Of The Pops’ and watching the very performance which you can see in the video here. I will always remember my mother saying that he looked like a prat with a bush sticking out of the back of his trousers and what a ridiculous song this really was, however for me she was the physical embodiment of someone who didn’t really ‘understand’ The Smiths and what they were trying to say.

This song takes me back to the recessionary times of the 1980s when UB40 were singing songs like ‘1 in 10’ and The Smiths were writing songs about the difficulties of ‘getting a job’ and ‘panic on the streets’ and the generally difficult times people were facing in a similar way to the way we are now and will be soon.

I’m not a massive Smiths fan but I do love this song and it is one of the ones I own and play. Looking back it had an important historical significance and like flares will no doubt be coming back into fashion sometime soon…

Now listen to the song and enjoy the video….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xRi8MYrtKYk

198. I Just Called To Say I Love You – Stevie Wonder (1984)

2011-07-07T01:16:00.001-07:00

This song reminds me of being in the Christmas Pantomime ‘Mother Goose’ back in 1985 at the town hall in Loughborough.

At the time I was still doing amateur productions in Leicester but was invited to play a part in the show for which I would be paid! The show was put on Leicester Dancing Teacher Janet DuPont (a.k.a Janet Wilson) and I had a good comedy role and a few songs to sing!

The girl playing the princess – Rita Proctor (who went on to become a choreographer in later life) and the principal boy had a duet in the show but the actual song chosen wasn’t quite right so Mick Lowe suggested we use this one. Mick was the Musical Director on the show as well as the man that ran the Western Park Youth Theatre, where I was a member, and there wasn’t anything he couldn’t play on the piano. He just sat down and played it straight off! The girls sang it and it fitted into the show brilliantly!

I had a wonderful time doing that show every night for six weeks and matinees on Saturdays. Some of my friends like Cathy Bell and Louise were in the show and I made lots of new friends among the dancers and singers. The sets were marvellous and the costumes supplied by Bermans and Nathans. Whenever I hear this song it reminds me of the show and the happy times I spent on it…

Now listen to the song…..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwOU3bnuU0k

197. Messages – OMD (1980)

2011-07-06T00:24:00.001-07:00

I remember the first time I heard this song, which was on the school bus home back in 1980. Sat on the back seat on the last stretch going to the last stop on Letchworth Road where I lived, I heard this on Radio One and I knew I had to find out what it was and get my copy.

Back in 1980 ‘Messages’ was unlike anything I had ever heard before. I loved Gary Numan and Tubeway Army and had some of their records but this was something new. The same synthesiser sounds but warm and rich and altogether less clinical. Some time later my friend Melanie acquired the 10inch version of the song, which was marginally longer and I also remember the lyrics of the song being published in ‘Smash Hits’ magazine (to which I subscribed back in the early eighties) accompanied by a picture of the band and their tape recorder ‘Winston’.

I still love this song today and play it regularly.

I recently went to see OMD at the Lyric Hammersmith when they revived ‘Architecture and Morality’ and they still sound as wonderful today as they did over thirty years ago….

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXvlzUCB74o

196. Pop Musik – M (Robin Scott) – 1979

2011-07-05T00:51:00.001-07:00

I remember hearing this in 1979 and loving it. The bizarre ‘Pop Music’ chorus coupled with the extremely distinctive rhythm and Robin Scott’s dynamic vocal made this deservedly a massive hit back in 1979 when I bought my copy.

I also particularly loved the video that accompanied the song, which can be seen here, and the concept of boogieing with a suitcase, which is simply absurd.

Although M managed to scrape another hit (which was called something like ‘Moonlight and Music’ I think) they always seemed to be a one hit wonder to me but what a hit! If you’ve never heard it before prepare for a winner and if you have remember it and enjoy again….

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4HaAOCGb3bw

195. The Boxer – Simon and Garfunkel (1968)

2011-07-04T02:05:00.001-07:00

This song reminds me of two periods in my life. Firstly when Kerry and I were students and living in Loughton and also when I was working in Leeds a few years later in 1993.

Sony Records released a ‘definitive’ collection of Simon and Garfunkel hits in the latter part of the 1980s and I had a copy which Kerry and I played regularly in our little flat in Loughton. Kerry’s friend Liz (who lived next door) was also a massive fan and between us we had this disk on the CD player pretty much all of the time. The flat where we lived was mind numbingly cold and during the winter we lived in one room, sleeping on a futon in the lounge and keeping warm using only the duvet and a portable gas fire. This song reminds me of those times when we played this almost daily.

It also reminds me of living in Leeds in 1993 when I was working at the West Yorkshire Playhouse. I remember I was singing this song one day and one of the fellow actors in the company telling me that the chorus of the song was ‘lie, lie, lie’ and that Paul Simon had written it about Bob Dylan. He alleged that Paul Simon (who had had a poor and impoverished background) had written this song which tells a ‘made up’ story of living a hard life where ‘a man hears what he wants to hear’ and the whole thing is a ‘lie’ which he believed Bob Dylan had exploited in his work. I don’t know if this is true but the words of the chorus are certainly ‘lie, lie, lie!’

Listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ky57Jo3-BaU&feature=related

194. Denis – Blondie (1978)

2011-07-03T00:37:00.001-07:00

I remember seeing ‘Blondie’ on ‘Top Of The Pops’ where they played this video and I remember my mother and my auntie Anne commenting that the reason they believed they were so popular was down to Debbie Harry wearing her swimwear in this video!

Personally I disagree and think that their success in the 1970s was down to some truly great pop songs but then I am a man. It is true that Blondie had struggled before ‘Denis’ came along and considering that it is a cover of a pop standard originally called ‘Denise’ and sung by ‘Randy and the Rainbows’ it is an odd choice when compared to other Blondie classics like ‘Hanging On The Telephone’ and ‘Heart Of Glass’ but it did the job and brought them to the public’s attention when the song reached number two in 1978.

This is a great fun pop song and reminds me of being ten, buying my copy , which was on Chrysalis records and came in a blue sleeve from Lewis’ department store and playing it loudly on my record player as well as watching Debbie in her swimwear on tv….

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahGxiSV_LH0

193. Enjoy The Silence – Depeche Mode (1990)

2011-07-02T00:54:00.001-07:00

This song reminds me of my friend Sara and the ballroom of Sheriff Hutton Hall in York back in 1990. At the time I was a student at east 15 acting school and during final term of that year was living in a house in a village called Thornton Le Clay rather than in the Hall itself.

As I may have mentioned I hated dancing but I did very much enjoy spending time in the Victorian Ballroom, which was added as an extension to the already large house (originally a Jacobean Hunting Lodge) in the Victorian era. The Ballroom was enormous, had wonderful and massive sash windows and an elegant wooden floor. We had all of our dancing lessons in there, rehearsals and at Christmas we built a set and used it as an auditorium! There was always a tape deck and amplifier in the room which was used to provide music for the dance classes but when passing time in the evenings or doing our own morning warm ups we brought our own music on cassettes and played them on that stereo.

At the time I had a copy of ‘Violator’, which was Depeche Mode’s latest album at the time. Both Sara and I were Depeche Mode devotees (as were a number of the other students) so I brought my cassette of the album down and we had it on a lot of the time. As a result whenever I hear ‘Halo’, ‘Personal Jesus’ or ‘Enjoy The Silence’ I am transported back to those happy days when I was training to be an actor and reminded of Sara (who like me now) has a big family and lives nearby!

Now listen to the song…

http://www.youtube.com/v/aGSKrC7dGcY

192. The Carnival Is Over – The Seekers (1965)

2011-07-01T01:23:00.000-07:00

My mother had an album by ‘The Seekers’. It was called ‘Come The Day’ and was on Columbia records. There were some great songs on that album including a Seeker’s Version of ‘California Dreaming’ and Peter Andre’s favourite ‘Island Of Dreams’. Needless to say this was my first introduction to popular music as a child and I loved it.

Whatever kind of music you like I think it’s virtually impossible not to appreciate the amazing voice of Judith Durham, which is magnificent as well as crystal clear. The simplicity of the guitars, double bass and close harmonies of the group work so well together that I don’t think I know a bad or even mediocre Seekers number.

“The Carnival Is Over’ however is my favourite one. Ironically this song was not on that album but my auntie Sheila did have it on a single. I remember playing it round at her flat on the St. Matthew’s estate and having played it putting the black Columbia record back into its red sleeve (I distinctly remember it being red because some of the others were green but this one was definitely red!).

There is a rumour that Tom Springsteen (who wrote it) borrowed the tune from a Russian folk song however it has become one of Australia’s most famous songs and is one that I still love to listen to on the tube in between Lady Ga Ga and New Order.

Now listen to the song….

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x3klk6_the-seekers-the-carnival-is-over_music

191. Wishful Thinking – China Crisis (1983)

2011-06-30T00:53:00.000-07:00

I remember ‘China Crisis’ being the support band when I went to see ‘Simple Minds’ at the DeMonfort Hall in Leicester back in the 1980s when their first hit ‘Christian’ was starting to enter the charts, but it was not until much later that this song came along and I watched them perform on ‘Top Of The Pops’.

This is a delightfully wistful song with a nice melody and pleasant demeanour as well as lovely tune so I naturally drawn to it as were many other back in the 1980s.

‘China Crisis’ are yet another band from Liverpool and yet another 80s act that had a huge impact on the direction of popular music at that time. I loved them, I love this song too.

Now listen to the song…..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oj20LKdg8-8

190. Mad World – Gary Jules (2001)

2011-06-29T02:38:00.001-07:00

This item started off when I began searching for the original version of ‘Mad World’ by Tears For Fears, which was released back in 1982. I was going to say how I first heard that version when my friend Melanie played it to me in the music room as soon as it was released and we both agreed it had an amazing sound and was destined to be a big hit. I was going to say that I was a very big fan of ‘Tears For Fears’ and loved Roland’s songs, however whilst searching I found this version by Gary Jules which was a massive hit back in 2003.

This version of the song is so far away from the original that it’s virtually something else, but it has a delicacy and intensity that takes the meaning of the song and its message and makes it all the more relevant and so for that it deserves to be applauded.

I love this song and I love this version of it.

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4N3N1MlvVc4

189. Livin’ Thing – ELO (1976)

2011-06-28T00:44:00.001-07:00

As I’m sure I’ve said before by now I just love this kind of music. Roy Wood,

Phil Spector, The Move and ELO all with their BIG orchestral sound, heavy drum beats and strings and loads and loads of drama so you won’t be surprised to know that I love this particular song for all those reasons.

My introduction to the Electric Light Orchestra was when I saw them perform ‘Mr Blue Sky’ on ‘Top Of The Pops’ in 1978 and it was not until many years later that I found this song (along with some others of their earlier works) on a ‘Best Of ELO’ album but this song remains one of my favourites and even Mrs G likes this one so we often play it in the car…

Now listen to the song…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_SfaVIVSwxE&feature=related

188. Just Dance – Lady Ga Ga (2008)

2011-06-27T01:24:00.001-07:00

I heard this song on Capital FM and at the time had no idea who ‘Lady Ga Ga’ was.

I loved the song however and so I sought it out and downloaded it to my ipod.

I like the way this song is about ‘over indulgence’ and the lyrics tell the story of someone who has had ‘a little bit too much’ and ‘lost her keys and phone’ but when dancing in a drunken stupor everything will be alright, which I suspect is something we can ALL identify with! Of course the reality is a stiff head, the inability to open one’s front door and missing vital calls and texts from friends and family but when you’ve had a good time the night before that is a small price to pay.

As you may know I am the kind of person who never loses control and however much I have had to drink (on those rare occasions when I do indulge) I am always aware of who I am where I am and holding a taxi receipt in my right hand, but the idea of being out of it completely just once is something I aspire to, but in the meantime I have Lady Ga Ga to tell me what it’s like..

Now listen to the song…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Abk1jAONjw

187. Betty Davies Eyes – Kim Carnes (1981)

2011-06-26T07:09:00.001-07:00

I remember Dave Lee Travis playing this on Radio 1 on his ‘Hairy Cornflake’ Breakfast show, which we used to listen to on the way to school, and thinking that it was a really great song.

I have subsequently discovered that it was originally written in the 1970s and this version by Kim Carnes was a cover, but it is this version with its synthesizer sounds and Kim Carnes husky voice that was the massive hit and the one that we all know and love.

I seem to recall that Betty Davies herself was keen on this song, however with a Hollywood ego and there being ‘no such thing as bad publicity’ I can’t say I’m surprised…

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EPOIS5taqA8

186. Miss You – The Rolling Stones (1977)

2011-06-25T01:13:00.001-07:00

I remember seeing this on ‘Top Of The Pops’ in 1977 and my poor mother commenting about what she called the very ‘debauched’ way that Mick Jagger conducted himself! Needless to say I scurried away to the dictionary and having looked up debauchery was introduced to one of my all time favourite words!

Along with ‘dipsomania’ and ‘Sybarite’ this was another truly wonderful concept!

I could, however see what my mother was getting at…

With its wonderful rhythm, aggressive manner and all round ‘rock’ feel to it this was the my first encounter with ‘The Stones’ and I must admit even though my mother seemed very disapproving of them I loved it.

This is a great song…

Now listen to ‘The Stones’……

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZNMxHGheWH0

185. The Logical Song – Supertramp (1979)

2011-06-24T01:15:00.001-07:00

I remember the Supertramp album ‘Breakfast In America’ on which this song was to be found and what a totally wonderful album that was. ‘Breakfast In America’ itself was a great song as was ‘Goodbye Stranger’ but the ‘Logical Song’ stands out as a true classic.

Allegedly written by Roger Hodgson while still at school, I recall seeing this on ‘Top Of The Pops’ back in 1979 and even as an eleven year old realised that the world really does want to mould and shape us and make us conform which is not necessarily a good thing.

I remember when I was at east 15 and Maggie Walker (the principal and founder) telling us that a baby (one of which I have at home now) makes the most phenomenally loud noise when crying even though its tiny and has tiny lungs and yet we could never hope to make such a noise! The reason being that as we grow up we are taught to reign in our natural urge to scream and cry and even though are lungs are much larger we can’t ever seem to get back there… For me ‘The Logical Song’ sums this all up….

Enjoy the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQfjIw3mivc

184. You Might Think – The Cars (1984)

2011-06-23T01:16:00.001-07:00

This is the second song that I ever downloaded when I got my first ipod back at Christmas in 2006!

I had just started a new job after a long (but pleasant spell) of unemployment where I had been lucky enough to be able to take my son Oliver to ‘Messy Play’ and await the arrival of our third son Felix. Having been back at work for a few months I was feeling a little tired and run down and as I was due a staggering twelve days off over Christmas I finished work on 20^th December with a smile on my face. The next day I was feeling quite dreadful and to cut a long story short I then managed to get a nasty chest infection which required me to stay in bed for ten of the twelve days I was having off returning to full health just in time to go back to work.

I missed the whole of Christmas, never had a single glass of champagne and lay in bed the whole time. The only saving feature was that Kerry had bought me my first ipod so I downloaded some songs as I lay in my bed as a test. I started with ‘No Regrets’ by The Walker Brothers (Song No. 24) and downloaded this song second! I have always liked this song but didn’t have a ‘Cars’ album and had no access to it until itunes came along.

Whilst I was mastering itunes, I also made my first CD to pay in the car, which had this song on it. My son ‘Ollie’ loves it too and it is known as ‘The Crazy Song’ whenever he wants me to put it on in the car…

It is a bit crazy…

Enjoy….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4yf2WP6K1gQ

183. Chasing Sheep Is Best Left To Shepherds – Michael Nyman (1982)

2011-06-22T01:28:00.001-07:00

I first came across this piece of music by Michel Nyman when my friends Rachel and Julia used it for a dance at east 15. I am sure that I had heard it before (possibly on the television) but it was not until then that I knew it to be the work of English Composer Michael Nyman. In buying the music, which was used in Peter Greenaway’s film ‘The Draughtsman’s Contract’ I had my first Michael Nyman CD and began a lifelong love of his minimalist and highly repetitive music.

One of things that I like so much about Michael Nyman’s music is that he seems to be constantly updating and changing it. There seem to be so many versions of ‘Chasing Sheep Is Best Left To Shepherds’ some short, some longer; some played by the band, others by the Wingates Brass band, some quick – some even quicker but each one brimming with excitement and enthusiasm which is such a feature of his music.

You may recognise this…

Now listen to the song…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nfP0u_zf3EE

182. Blue Monday – New Order (1983)

2011-06-21T00:52:00.001-07:00

I had loved ‘Love Will Tear Us Apart’ by Joy Division and so was therefore very excited when ‘New Order’ came along following up on Joy Division’s legacy.

I remember ‘Blue Monday’ (which you could only get on a 12’ single due to its length) being packaged to look like a computer floppy disc and paying it on the turntable and letting the needle touch the record from whence that very distinctive machine driven drum rhythm started. It seemed at the time that ‘New Order’ were loathe to promote the single and I can only recall them coming onto ‘Top Of The Pops’ once where they played it live, however it became a massive hit and is one of the songs that truly sums up the early eighties.

At that time the ‘Emulator’, which was a synthesiser that ‘sampled’ real sounds allowing them to be played back on a keyboard at various pitches, was brand new (and extremely expensive) and being used by bands like OMD and Depeche Mode and New Order to create new and exciting music. This is the result…

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V44Pubi2DWs&feature=related

181. Just What I Always Wanted – Mari Wilson (1982)

2011-06-20T01:01:00.001-07:00

Back in 1982 when I was a fourteen year old my friend Melanie played this for me on her stereo. She lived five houses down the street from me but, as she was an only child and lived in a huge house, the front bedroom was a dedicated music room where she had (amongst other things) a Roland SH-09 synthesiser, a Roland RS-09 string synth, a stage organ, Roland Rhythm 77 drum machine, a stereo, microphone and amplifier as well as the guest bed. Needless to say we spent a lot of time in that room with her other friends playing our music and making music too sometimes.

It was during one of these sessions that Melanie introduced me to the ‘Neasden Queen of Soul – Mari Wilson’ and this song in particular. Mari Wilson looked amazing with her retro Beehive hairstyle on the cover and her voice and style coupled with the kettle drums and synth sounds made this a truly awesome song..

The comment attached to this video sums this song and artist up:

‘Strange how just one record has kept her in our consciousness in a way that all today's wannabes & chancers will never be capable of. ...’

Now listen to the song

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWFPqGLbVa0

180. Girls and Boys – Prince (1986)

2011-06-19T03:24:00.000-07:00

I remember seeing this on ‘Top Of The Pops’ and being one of the few people who went to see Prince’s film ‘Under The Cherry Moon’ at the cinema. In these enlightened and modern times this film would have gone ‘straight to video’ but when it was made back in 1986 video was still in its infancy and third rate movies still managed to get a shorter cinema run - however this movie did end up at the budget Canon cinema, but I went with a bunch of pals and had a great time!

Despite the fact the ‘purple one’ is not the greatest actor in the world he is one of the greatest musicians and over the years he has produced some truly great records. I was lucky enough to go and see him at the O2 in London when he did his 21 nights in London shows back in 2007. Rumour has it that he rehearsed some 130 or so of his songs with the band but decided what to do each night giving longer performances when in a good mood and feeling a greater rapport with the audience and less when the rapport was less dynamic. Whether that is true or not I don’t know but it was amazing to go and see and hear him in person and the acoustics of the O2 arena being a modern building are truly amazing.

This is one of my favourite songs however Prince is a spoil sport who won’t let his music be downloaded onto ‘You Tube’ so for today unless you have this in your collection your snookered!!

179. Dancing In The City – Marshall and Hain (1978)

2011-06-18T00:28:00.000-07:00

When I was a young boy we used to go on holiday to Mablethorpe, which is a seaside town in Lincolnshire. In Leicester (where I was born and lived until I was 21 years old) the city, which at the time was largely industrial and famed for its shoe making and light engineering, had a two week holiday usually called the ‘Leicester Fortnight’ when the factories were closed and pretty much the whole city went on holiday. As Mablethrope and Skegness were the closet seaside towns to Leicester a large number of holidaymakers went there.

Once there, Mablethorpe was awash with Leicestrians and the local paper ‘The Leicester Mercury’ was sold in the Mablethorpe newsagents. Over the years I holidayed there many times and had fun with my Uncles and Cousins and other family members as we were always there at the same time.

This song reminds me of my holidays and the summer of 1978 as I bought my copy of the single from a record shop on Mablethorpe High Street. I had heard the song on the radio and liked it and bought mine with the holiday spending money I had been provided with.

This song was a huge hit and managed to get to number 3 in the charts and remained a best seller for a number of weeks but it will always be a black record with a yellow green label in a yellow and green ‘Harvest’ records sleeve for me and one of my favourite songs in the first year I joined the music buying public.

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Lmfpnv_eLY

178. Wherever I Lay My Hat – Paul Young (1983)

2011-06-16T23:47:00.001-07:00

I was listening to this on the tube on the way in to work yesterday. I remember first hearing this song on the radio back in 1983 when I was fifteen and being amazed by Paul Young’s voice, the fretless bass and the rhythm track which sounded like it had been made using the Roland Rhythm 77 drum machine - a piece of technology that I was very familiar with as my friend Melanie had one!

‘Wherever I Lay My Hat’ was number one for a few weeks that year and it seemed to be everywhere. I recall watching Paul Young sing the song as part of a New Years Eve show on BBC2 in 1983 when he also sang ‘Auld Lang Syne’ against the same rhythm track which I thought was extremely innovatory!

Paul Young has an amazing voice and is an amazing performer. This song is an all time classic and deservedly so…

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ju_a2-Pve4g

177. West End Songs - Kit and The Widow (1991)

2011-06-16T01:04:00.001-07:00

I first heard Kit and The Widow perform this song (along with a number of their others) at the Vaudeville Theatre back in 1993. At that time I was an unemployed actor living in Hackney and was part of a group of actors who met at the Holborn Actors Centre on a Thursday under the direction of casting director Richard Evans.

Richard was (and is) a very enterprising man and full of good ideas, one of which was to offer the group as an audience for shows that were not quite sold out. No performer ever wants to play to a half empty theatre so we agreed to fill any left over seats for free and as a result got to see some top West End Shows of which Kit and The Widow’s was one. The idea that we were getting free seats for West End Shows while ‘doing them a favour’ was a stroke of genius.

You really need to listen to this song to really appreciate it and when you do I am sure you will recognise a lot of the music…

I am often reminded of ‘Lobachevsky’ by Tom Lehrer when I hear this which has the wonderful line ‘Plagiarize, Plagiarize – let no one else’s work evade your eyes…’

Enjoy….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yz1IDmmcetQ&feature=related

176. Don’t Stop Me Now – Queen (1978)

2011-06-15T01:09:00.001-07:00

I remember watching this on ‘Top Of The Pops’ and thinking (as a ten year old) that ‘Queen’ were truly amazing! I loved the ‘Jazz’ album with its bicycle and fat bottomed girls songs and loved ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’ just as much.

It’s odd that I only really got to learn about Freddie Mercury after his death, by which time Queen were truly massive, but I remember seeing him on ‘The Kenny Everett Show’ quite often and watching the videos to various Queen songs on ‘Top Of The Pops’.

I recently bought ‘Queen’s Greatest Hits’ and downloaded the songs to my ipod however in playing them in the kitchen while doing the washing up two of my sons, Oliver and Felix asked for me to play this one again and then find the video on ‘You Tube’. Queen’s Greatest Hits has now been transferred to the car where Ollie has it on whenever his mother will allow.

This is a great song and we all love Queen in our house….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HgzGwKwLmgM

175. Any Other World – Mika (2008)

2011-06-14T02:42:00.001-07:00

This is another example of a song that I first heard in a US TV series and loved instantly. As I am sure I’ve said before the Americans are so much better at utilising mainstream music in their dramas and they usually find songs which are often subconsciously being used in the background without the viewer even noticing. Often I don’t notice background music so much but I did hear the song

‘I Only Have Eyes For You’ being gently played in the background of a scene in the Ridley Brothers ‘The Good Wife’ on Channel 4 where the lead characters (who have been struggling with wanting to rekindle a university relationship many years later) were getting close to making something happen.

This song was in ‘Brothers and Sisters’ this week and is now on my ipod and has been played many times already.

Mika reminds me of Donovan (in some ways) but this song is wonderfully performed and recorded. I particularly like the use of the strings and the lyrics

‘Say Goodbye to the world you thought you lived in….’

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c2By5i3eeUc

174. Teardrops – Womack and Womack (1988)

2011-06-13T02:07:00.001-07:00

This song reminds me of ‘Prime Time’ a play by Nigel Moffatt which was performed at the Haymarket Theatre in 1989 alongside ‘I Put A Spell On You’ in which I had a part.

As I mentioned (Song 17 - I Put A Spell On You) back in 1989, I was a member of the Haymarket Youth Theatre in Leicester. During the course of the year Nigel Moffatt came to work with the group as we tried to devise and write a new play with the ‘Highfields Action Theatre’ who had recently come from presenting their show ‘King’ which was about Martin Luther King and his fight against racism in the US, however as usual thing didn’t go to plan and in the end some of the group presented their devised piece ‘I Put A Spell On You’ and the other half did ‘Prime Time’ by Nigel Moffatt as part of a double bill.

As we were on the same bill I came in after the interval to watch ‘Prime Time’ and see my friends perform. The show opened with this song and I distinctly remember Steve and Ayesha disco dancing in the spotlights as it played. Whenever I hear this song it reminds me of 1989 and this show…

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FC3y9llDXuM

173. Teenage Dirtbag – Wheatus (2000)

2011-06-12T02:22:00.001-07:00

I absolutely love this song.

Everyone loves the concept of the loser who gets the girl because they share a common interest in Iron Maiden and so this song is deservedly a winner! Its tongue-in-cheek delivery accompanied by its use of differing musical styles all add up to a truly great song which you will find yourself humming as you go to work.

This is a song that has been around for 11 years now and yet I still see it in the Top 50 downloads which is a testament to its longevity and appeal. I suppose it taps into the School boy crush concept (and we’ve all been there – right?) but with the appeal of an actual ‘result’ versus the all to familiar story of the crush fancying the most handsome boy in the school or other similar object of your loathing. All in all it is a great song.

Now listen to it….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FC3y9llDXuM

172. Adele – Someone Like You (2011)

2011-06-11T04:35:00.001-07:00

One of my friends calls Adele’s songs ‘Suicide Music’ and ends up feeling depressed and traumatised whenever she hears her music. It does seem to be true that the best songs seem to get written about misery and suffering and longing and loss and that songs about being jolly and happy and contented with life are not usually massive hits but then I suppose that’s what being human is all about…

I must admit that I love a bit of misery and suffering in my music and my own songs (Did I mention I’ve been working on my debut album for 20 years and have now got seven songs so it could be finished by 2018?) all tend to be about similar things too. I remember Eleanor Kate Jackson (La Roux) saying in a recent interview that she only tends to write songs when feeling down or needing to exercise some daemons and I am certain that like many artistes she is not alone in that.

Adele has a great voice and the simplicity of this song (just a standard piano backing) accompanied by her amazing voice and depth of emotion in her performance (which is how a song should be delivered) is truly amazing.

Her success is well deserved, even if listening to her songs makes some people feel suicidal….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZtUjFJvYkA

171. Infected – The The (1986)

2011-06-10T01:49:00.001-07:00

I first came across Matt Johnson (the driving force behind ‘The The’) when he made a meaningful contribution to Marc Almond’s album ‘Untitled’ back in 1982 but it was not until the mid eighties that ‘The The’ began to make a real impact on popular music with the release of the ‘Infected’ album.

This song reminds me of ‘The Fan Club’ (formerly ‘Leah’s Discotheque’) in Leicester, which was behind the bus station and opposite the Cinecentre and Penthouse Cinema club, which showed dirty movies on the big screen in the days before video! Although I wasn’t there all the time (as I was not a big ‘clubber’) it was the only place I went to with any regularity and always had a fun time there dancing to ‘The The’ and ‘Danielle Dax’ while drinking pints of Stella in the dark and dismal surroundings.

There is something quite dark about ‘Infected’ and the notion that one can be utterly entranced and ‘infected’ by love is very appealing. The line ‘When desire becomes an illness instead of a joy’ stands out….

Not to everyone’s taste, but a great song none the less….

Now listen to the song…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ey0eS-Nx6Ks

170. After Hours – The Velvet Underground (1967)

2011-06-09T01:15:00.001-07:00

This song reminds me of my friend and fellow actor Adam. I saw Adam on the telly last week and he doesn’t seem to have changed much but I remember meeting him on my first day at east 15 (some 22 years ago) and thinking that he was one of the funniest people I had ever met. He is still remarkably amusing!

I may be a mediocre actor but one thing that is certainly true is that I most definitely am a truly dreadful dancer. I have no ability for dancing what so ever however (like most drama schools) I had to have endless dancing lessons, which I loathed.

Over the summer holidays one year our dancing teacher Norman asked us to go home and create a ‘dance’ to music of our choice, which would be shown to the group in the first couple of classes of the new term. I did a (very poor) tap dance to ‘Pennies From Heaven’, Rachel and Julia chose music from ‘The Draughtsman’s Contract’ by Michael Nyman and Adam did a dance to a song by the Ink Spots!

I remember discussing music with Adam and we got onto the subject of the Velvet Underground. I had their first album and we both agreed that they were a truly inspirational band. I remember this being one of Adam’s favourite songs and so for that reason it always reminds me of him.

Maureen Tucker (the group’s drummer) takes the microphone…

Now listen to the song…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tE8KBWgUZxw

169. Where The Heart Is – Soft Cell (1982)

2011-06-08T02:26:00.001-07:00

As usual Barry (of Barry’s Coaches) had picked me up at 7.30 am at the top of the street and the bus was making its way to Kirby Muxloe to pick up the next group of passengers when this song came on. I wasn’t concentrating and had missed the introduction but as a Soft Cell devotee I could tell it was definitely Marc Almond singing but wondered if this was a ‘Marc And The Mambas’ single or a solo song as it was much farther away from Soft Cell’s first album and the likes of ‘Say Hello, Wave Goodbye’ and ‘Torch’ which had been the last two singles.

This song was also much darker and the kind of song parents didn’t like. I was 14 so I loved it!

On Saturday I got the bus to town and bought the 12’ version, which was longer and played it again and again very loudly. I remember my Dad complaining!

‘Where The Heart Is’ is one of my favourite songs from the ‘Art Of Falling Apart’ album and one that I still play regularly. It reminds me of the first time I heard it and the fun times that I had on the school bus…

Travelling to school and work for long periods has always been a feature of my life, commuting to school and now on the tube and music has always been there on these journeys. I don’t know what I would do without it…

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCZvwQP9niQ

168. This Town Ain’t Big Enough For Both of Us – Sparks (1974)

2011-06-07T00:47:00.000-07:00

I first came across ‘Sparks’ when they were working with Giorgio Moroder in the late 70s and the song ‘No.1 Song In Heaven’ was in the charts and on ‘Top Of The Pops’ but as with most things, discovering the late 70s Sparks sound led me to seek out their earlier works of which song is my favourite!

Despite the fact that Sparks come from my favourite place (Los Angeles) they have a distinctly European sound and style and the combination of Ron Mael

on keyboards accompanied by the crazy high pitched delivery of Russell Mael made them stand out from the crowd as a musical force to be reckoned with!

I have a number of Sparks records in my collection and particularly enjoyed the 1994 revival and song ‘When Do I Get To Sing ‘My Way’’ but ‘This Town Ain’t Big Enough For Both Of Us’ is Sparks at their best!

My son Oliver is also a fan and loves this song too.

Enjoy….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QAzESJ62irI&feature=related

167. Tell Me On A Sunday – Sarah Brightman (1979)

2011-06-06T01:56:00.001-07:00

‘Tell Me On A Sunday’ is a wonderful song from a wonderful show.

I first heard it when my wife Kerry who had it in a book of actresses audition songs sang it for me (as a practice) before using it as an audition song during various open auditions. The song reminds me of that time when we were young actors and sometimes got asked to do a song and some of the wonderful songs out there which as an actor you can really give your all to. This is one such song.

Although familiar with ‘Take That Look Off Your Face’ which is another song from ‘Tell Me On A Sunday’ which was a huge hit for Marti Webb, this is the song that sums up what the show is all about. If you’re going to leave me – let me down gently……take me somewhere nice and tell me on a Sunday…please….

Now listen to the song….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FvyBSFWqJLE&NR=1