BAIBS Wednesday 22/05/13

In the 80s I had a Walkman. Not a Sony one. A cheap copy bought off the market. It was adept at chewing up my tapes. But occasionally it played music. Sometimes it would keep playing while chewing and I'd get the other side of the tape being played backwards. I distinctly remember once listening to almost all of Lloyd Cole's Easy Pieces backwards. In the 90s I progressed to a CD Walkman. Again a cheap copy which, whilst playing whatever I asked of it in the direction it was recorded, it struggled with the 'Walk' concept in the name and jumped a lot. I now, of course, have an iPod. So for over thirty years I've walked around with a glazed look while someone like Eloc Dyoll sang nair gniruop eht ni gniklaw or N'Vana sang a nile, a nile, de, a nile nile in my ears. Now I get the full song, forwards without jumping. But, and I've mentioned this before, the one thing I've not learned in all these years is that while I'm 'shielded in the walkman, with a halo of distortion'*, oblivious to all around me, people aren't oblivious to me.

*Courtesy of Marillion - Fugazi.

So, as many do, I often sing along, loudly, with my iPod, forgetting that I'm subjecting my fellow pedestrians, or worse bus w***ers, to my tuneless wailing. Worse, and this happened again today, is walking along thinking I'm in the video for whatever song's playing. Admittedly most of these videos take on a similar look to The Verve's Bittersweet Symphony but sometimes I'll add a little dancing flourish. If I'm walking home after a night out I don't mind but nine times out of ten it's just plain embarrassing. Still, if The Tricks want a video for Not Too Young featuring a tall bloke with long grey hair pirouetting down Balby Road while onlookers stare incredulous then I'm their man.

Joined on today's show by the very beautiful Emma Jade Garbutt. Emma, of course, is part of Team Tom on The Voice. The only reality music show I can bare to watch. Though Brian May had a rant about it this week. Something about having to sing to people's backs. I've heard your save the badger song Brian. I'd get used to it if I were you. Emma is a legitimate Country artist. Too often a singer/songwriter with an acoustic guitar is lazily tagged country or folk but Emma is the real deal. Including gigs in Nashville. It doesn't get more country than that. Country is one of those genres that gets sneered at purely through lack of knowledge. It's all Dolly and Kenny. Hmmmm. Listen to any Springsteen album. It'll be awash with country tunes. Like 80s pop? Culture Club's Karma Chameleon is pure country. And EVERYONE loves the man in black. Anyway, at still only 18, Emma has a huge career ahead of her and at least one more weekend of me watching a reality TV show. Good luck Miss G.

I've been promised cheese scones so must dash.

Laters

SS

Playlist Wednesday 22/05/13

Papa's Got A Brand New Pigbag - Pigbag

The Rockafeller Skank - Fatboy Slim

Sound And Vision - David Bowie

Birthday - The Sugarcubes

Spies - Famous Villains

Ziggy Stardust - David Bowie

Kennedy - The Wedding Present

Surrender - Cheap Trick

Molly Gray - The DN Allstars

Happily Ever After - The Talks

Naive - The Kooks

Wishing (If I Had A Photograph Of You) - A Flock Of Seagulls

Here Comes Your Man - Pixies

Hallelujah - Jeff Buckley

Driving In Cars - Sunside

Lost - The Pigeon Detectives

No Rest - New Model Army

It's Alright, It's OK - Primal Scream

A Message To You Rudy - The Specials

Do Nothing - The Specials

Spirit Of '76 - The Alarm

Start To Run - Dexters

Hometown Girls - The Strypes

She's Attracted To - The Young Knives

Blood, Sweat And Tears - The D.O.T.

This Town Ain't Big Enough For Both Of Us - Sparks

Country Girl - Primal Scream

A Ton Of Love - The Editors

Folsom Prison Blues - Johnny Cash

Heavyweight Champion Of The World - Reverend And The Makers

Alice - Sisters Of Mercy

Can I Play With Madness - Iron Maiden

How Soon Is Now? - The Smiths

First Of The Gang To Die - Morrissey

Pyschosis Safari - The Eighties Matchbox B-Line Disaster

Chemical - Bang Bang Romeo

Hello I Love You - The Doors

Egyptian Reggae - Jonathan Richman And The Modern Lovers