Your Desert Island Discs...

1. Pink Floyd, Grantchester Meadows.
For me this is an incredibly relaxing track that evokes picnics by a river. Simple yet utterly beautiful.

2. Kate Bush, The Warm Room.
Spellbinding combination of the sound of female vocal and solo piano.

3. The Showstoppers; Ain't Nothing But A Houseparty.
60s pop, the most incredibly infectious foot-tapper I know.

5. The Fall; Sparta FC
One of the few songs that makes me want to shout out the chorus. Post punk at its fun best.

6. America; Horse With No Name
Whenever I hear this I just have to stop and listen. The lyrics seem near mystical to me, beautiful vocals.

7. Maria Callas; Cavatina Una Voce Poco Fa.
Her second enunciation of "Carma" is simply the most beautiful, perfect sound I've ever heard.

8. Paris, Texas OST; Cancion Mixteca.
Acoustic guitar and male vocal; I don't know what they're saying but the sheer emotion the convey can bring me to tears.

9. Buzzcocks; What Do I Get?
Perfect, perfect pop which sums up a lot of angst. One for my funeral?

10. Marvin Gaye; I Heard It Through The Grapevine.
Beautiful tune sung stunningly well, one of the very first tracks I heard that made me realise it had a real life message. the Slits also do a stunning cover.

Subs bench: Sham 69, Borstal Breakout; Beatles; Hard Days Night. Banshees; Hong Kong Garden. B-52's, 52 Girls. Leonard Cohen; Thats No Way to Say Goodbye. Oh. loads more.

1. Anthems in Eden (A Song Medley) - Shirley and Dolly Collins with David Munrow

Shirley has the most beautiful singer voice I have ever heard and the construction of this song from various traditional folk ditties is beyond reproach - totally timeless

Shirley Collins: vocals
Adam Skeaping: bass viol, violone
Rod Skeaping: rebec, treble and bass viol
Oliver Brookes: bass viol
Michael Laird: cornet
Richard Lee: descant and treble recorder
Alan Lumsden: sackbut
Christopher Hogwood: harpsichord
Dolly Collins: organ
Gillian Ried: bells
David Munrow, soprano and alto crumhorn, bass rackett, tenor sordun, treble recorder
Chorus “The Home Brew” (Michael Clifton, Ray Worman, John Fordham) plus Royston Wood, Steve Ashley, John Morgan

2. A Very Cellular Song - Incredible String Band from the Hangman's Beautiful Daughter is Mike Heron's epic song that simply works

3. Karn Evil 9 - Emerson Lake and Palmer from Brain Salad Surgery is another epic that thrills and amuses in equal quantities; above all Emo could really play (and still can)

4. Everything's AOR - Half Man Half Biscuit's incredible song about the girl who done good, but nobody quite likes her and is happily exposed for what she is when the narrator finds she has a Sade CD and decides to retaliate by explaining with a suitably placed tennis raquet he can look like Kendo Nagasaki . HMHB have written the best collection of songs from any group I've ever heard; they are so real and mostly relate to what we see in every day life - I could have chosen any one from 100 songs by Nigel Blackwell (if he's not the greatest songwriter of my life time then I'd love to hear the one who is)

5. The Pilgriming Vine - Basia Bulat from her debut album or the alternative take. This is a superb song delivered by Canada's finest - the most original and exciting talent of recent times.

6. Jiggery Pokery - Duckworth Lewis Method's song about that ball - the one that Shane Warne bowled to Mike Gatting, but I find myself agreeing with DLM that had it been a cheese roll then Mike would never had let it pass.

7. Who Knows Where The Time Goes - Sandy Denny and I don't care which reading as long as it is Sandy and nobody else singing; this is the best song I've ever heard and it is a tragedy that one of the most, if not the most talented singer songwriter died so young.

8. Hello Goodbye - the Beatles: not everybody's first choice, but a there is something magical and mysterious about this song and it is surely one of Macca's finest.

9. Song from the Bottom of a Well - Kevin Ayers and the Whole World was a song that didn't happen it just occurred - I used to play this song over and over and it still sounds as good today as it did when I first I heard it.

10. Waterloo Sunset - again could have been one of many from Mr D, but this conjures up an image of 60s Britain and of better times.

Bubbling Under - CCR's Born on the Bayou, Amon Duul II's Stintleman's March of the Roaring Seventies, Robert Calvert's Quark, Strangeness and Charm, Martha & the Muffins You Sold The Cottage, Timbuk3 Future's So Bright, They Must Be Giants Minimum Wage,Jefferson Airplane's White Rabbit and Chas n Dave's Sideboard Song and, of course, anything with Annie Haslam singing on it and several 1000 more.

quote:

dont know how i would play it though?

like this?

Aaaargh, bloody forgot my utter, utter favourite:

Dexy's Midnight Runners; Geno OK, KR is a bit of a buttock, but this has raw passion a plenty, great horns, an incredible riff and for sheer emotion I find it hard to match. Such a well-structured song, too.

I forgot The Alice Cooper Group's Lost in a Dream, which is my all time favourite rock n roll song.

One track per artist? Hell, I could fill a dozen of these charts with compositions by John Barry before even thinking of any other artist!

But rules are rules ...

1. Thunderball ... track 7 on the CD (or track B1 on the original vinyl album) of the OST ... simply the best piece of music ever composed and performed, IMHO - John Barry
2. I'm A Fool To Want You - Frank Sinatra with Gordon Jenkins. Sinatra had recorded a superlative version of this song a few years earlier with Axel Stordhal and then in 1957 he topped it with this recording (his first stereo album: Where Are You?)
3. Piano Concerto, No. 3 - 1st movement (if I have to chose) - Rachmaninov ... I know most people opt for his 2nd but I think his 3rd piano concerto is simply wonderful ... preferably the recording by Jorge Bolet with Ivan Fischer, London Symphony Orchestra
4. It's Magic - Doris Day with Percy Faith & his orchestra ... she had made this song famous from one of her early films but this mid-50's recording is just so much better ... simply gorgeous
5. With Pen in Hand - Vikki Carr, live recording from the US album For Once In My Life ... she puts so much heartfelt grief of a marriage break-up in this that you can't help but feel the misery. In another live recording (Live at the Greek Theatre) she breaks up and can't finish the lyric. The studio recording is pale in comparison.
6. Now You Has Jazz - Bing Crosby & Louis Armstrong ... okay there are lots of recordings to choose from by these two 20th Century masters but this is so much fun and it perfectly captures the best musical film ever. I might have chosen Well Did you Evah? but didn't want this ruled out as I'd already picked a Sinatra recording
7. Come Maddalena - Ennio Morricone, conducted by Bruno Nicolai ... with so many recordings to choose from, an impossible task but I just love the choral work on this track
8. The Interlude Triangle - Georges Delerue, re-recording by Robert Lafond. M. Delerue wrote so many gorgeous melodies that choosing one is impossible but this is a particular favourite. The OST is in poor condition but this re-recording from a few years ago is superb. The vocal by Lina Boudreau (replacing Timi Yuro) is excellent but I'll opt for the instrumental suite.
9. Symphony No. 4 - 1st movement (if I have to chose) - Brahms - preferably the recording by Carlos Kleiber, Wiener Philharmoniker ... one of the earliest classical pieces I fell in love with. This just embodies the sound of Brahms for me.
10. The Magnificent Seven - Main Title - Elmer Bernstein ... I'd probably opt for the mid-60s re-recording he did for the album soundtrack (released a few years after the original film and re-recorded for the sequel Return of the [Magnificent] Seven). Not as powerful as the original but a much better recording for hi-fi purposes. Again, so many fabulous compositions to choose from ...

Also rans ... I can't believe I've omitted Matt Monro - the best vocalist the UK has ever produced; scores/themes by James Horner, Jerry Goldsmith, Henry Mancini; works by Tchaikovsky, Vivaldi, Dvorak ... the list is almost endless.

An interesting selection there musicmad - Matt Monro now that is a name from the past.

quote:

Originally posted by munch:
Matt Monro???I would let the bloody sharks eat me on the way to the island,Than have to put up with that.

Bon appetit!

Quite a challenge, but the first three came to mind quite easily:

1. Can - Yoo Do Right
Epic song about a tormented soul ("I'm in love with my girl, she's away!"). Killer rhythm track. 20 minutes isn't long enough

2. Patti Smith- Gloria
For the way it lurches unpredictably from one climax to another. And when she wails, it twists your insides...

3. Rolling Stones - Gimme Shelter
Don't generally buy into the Stones mythology but this is something else, from the other wordly guitar intro to the urgency of the chorus

Then it got a bit harder...

4. Steely Dan - The Boston Rag
My favourite rock/pop band, and this is my favourite song by them; scorching guitar work!

5. Joni Mitchell - Blue
My favourite singer/songwriter documenting the collapse of the hippy dream

6. 23 Skidoo - Kundalini
The awesome, ear-boggling opening track of their classic "7 Songs" album

7. The Fall - Spektor vs Rector
A radically sludgey production, incomprehensible occult lyrics - makes my ears hurt (in a good way)

8. Todd Rundgren - Cliche
Todd at his most beautifully melodic - the finest of three great songs on the "Faithful" album (the other two being "Love of the Common Man" and "The Verb: To Love"

9. Kate Bush - Oh England, My Lionheart
You have an embarassment of riches with Kate, but I love the perfectly elegaic quality of this song

10. Joy Division - Colony
A brutal, bruising journey - the essence of rock & roll (or something very close to it)

Reserves: Television - Marquee Moon; Sandy Denny - Who Knows WHere the Time Goes; Rush - Spirit of Radio; Boston - More than a Feeling; Thin White Rope - Red Sun; New Order - The Perfect Kiss etc...

I kept strictly to rock/pop as broadening out to jazz & classical would make it impossible for me.

Regards
Nigel

Genesis- Follow me Follow you, always been mine and Bilbos record and always reminds me of her.

Depeche mode- Enjoy the Silence, a family sing along favourite for us. Great rythum, vocals,and a classic guitar rift.

In no particular order...

The LA’s - There She Goes
Absolute Bliss for us Gooners as the song plays out as our hero walks away from Highbury; “It’s up for grabs now”, one of the great football commentaries from Fever Pitch.

The Tubes - Attack Of The Fifty Foot Woman
Humour very much alive in music; based on a true story from 3 mile Island Heard on cassette during my first cricket tour, playing 7 games in 7 days – Phew!

Canned Heat – On The Road Again
Memories of big Bob Hite introducing ‘Blind Al Wilson’ in his Orange ‘Pop Star’ pants at the Royal Albert Hall, 1970 I think. Pete Townshend has recorded an excellent version on his ‘live’ Benefit for Maryville Academy album.

Fleetwood Mac – Oh Well
Peter Green excels in his playing and singing in this tempo changing classic. I don’t know what time signature this is in, but it really broke pop convention back in the day. If only Peter…

José Carreras – Maria (from ‘the Making of Westside Story’)
A fantastic documentary made for the BBC, this song is one the few ‘musical’ tunes I will listen too, as I detest musicals. The pain that Carreras was suffering (post operation) and Bernstein's drive to get it ‘right’ is emotional viewing. I might look out Len’s work somewhere, someday!

The Small Faces – All or Nothing
Steve Marriott defied physics by getting a quart out of a pint pot with his incredible voice, especially on this song. A band that knew how to have fun and progressed as all good musicians can.

Pink Floyd – Cymbaline
I remember hearing the BBC radio sessions in ‘69’ whilst studying to fail my GCSE’s. I loved David’s singing and Rick’s beautiful organ playing on this becalming song. A good YT rendition is here.

King Crimson – Starless
The only problem I have with this song from ‘Red’ is that it doesn’t last for 55 minutes. With the maelstrom of sound created by Bobby’s band, this is the ideal soundtrack for your trip to Mars. This is my mellotron heaven.

The Blue Nile – Easter Parade
A perfect balmy evening at Somerset House in 2008 witnessed a rare performance of Blue Nile. When Paul Buchanan sang ‘Easter Parade’, the silence of the crowd showed the love and appreciation of this gifted band bathed in perfect sound on a night to remember. I think Henry Fool are basing their release schedule on Nile’s output!

Richard Thompson – Hard on me
One of the finest live performances I own, from ‘Semi-Detached Mock Tudor’. I admire Richard for his incredible guitar playing and one of the few artists who engage with the crowd in his dry ironic wit.

Just below the surface; Glynis Johns - Send in the Clowns (Parkinson Show); Clayhill – One Nerve; Sunhouse – Lips; Porcupine Tree – The Rest Will Flow; Colin Blunstone – Wonderful; Joni Mitchell – A Case Of You; Ricke Lee Jones – Skeletons; Ry Cooder - The Very Thing That Makes You Rich Makes Me Poor; Todd Rundgren – Lots; Steely Dan – Lots; XTC – Lots; Hall & Oates - Lots; Badfinger - Lots; Blackfield - Lots

Good thread Mike, more to flow

Denis

Just started listen to Desert Island Discs with Nick Clegg, and my partner suggested that he is probably unlikely to cheoose 'I've Got 99 Problems, but the Bitch ain't One'.

Kirsty Young just suggested 'The First Cut is the Deepest' and 'Puppet on a String'.

Metallica - For whom the bell tolls

I cannot hear this song enough times...the melody, the lyrics...my all-time fave of Metallica...

Slayer - Postmortem/Raining blood

I really cannot sit still after "Do you wanna die?"...Then the riff of Raining blood...aaaargh...

Counting Crows - Round here

Amazing vocals...wonderful arrangements...great warm sound. Touching.

Pink Floyd - Shine on you crazy diamond

The guitar...the atmosphere...love it all.

Long Distance Calling - Aurora

The dynamics...the sheer brutal WALL OF SOUND...

Sophie Zelmani - Dreamer

Haunting vocals...wonderful bass...heart touching.

Heather Nova - Maybe an angel

I love her voice, her feeling of tender music...

Led Zeppelin - Tangerine

Awesome melody...great feeling...guitar is perfect.

Motörhead - Killed by death

What a wonderful uplifting melody...awesome groove, too...Lemmy is trying to sing, hahaha

Iron Maiden - Rime of the ancient mariner

"...and by the light of the moon..." No more words needed...best Maiden-song IMHO.

Feel Flows - The Beach Boys
The Ballad of Nevermore - Led Zeppelin
Nathan Jones - the Supremes
Mandolin Wind - Rod Stewart
Wild Night - Van Morrison
Riders on the Storm - the Doors
Yours Is No Disgrace - Yes
Lovely On the Water - Steeleye Span
Fishes and Scorpions - Stephen Stills
Gimme Some Truth - John Lennon

Whoops - it's my top ten from 1971!

[QUOTE]The Ballad of Nevermore - Led Zeppelin
QUOTE]

Are you pissed?

quote:

Originally posted by bornwina:
[QUOTE]The Ballad of Nevermore - Led Zeppelin
QUOTE]

Are you pissed?

Three and a half pints of Galleybagger...not your usual Sunday lunch for me.

The Battle of Evermore was a good song as well.

quote:

Three and a half pints of Galleybagger...not your usual Sunday lunch for me..

I knew there must be a rational explanation.

I thought it might be time to have a go at this, having always ignored such threads before.

The longer I thought about it the harder it got but I realised I'd want not exactly my favourite music but the music that tells a story or invokes a memory of a specific time or place. I ended up finding it hard to choose anything too recent as a result.

1 Nights In White Satin: Moody Blues. Teenage discos, slow dances and a first snog. I could have picked 'Forever Autumn' too, the first single I ever bought.

2 Aqualung: Jethro Tull or maybe Skating Away... I had to pick one JT track, I played them so often as a teenager I knew not just every word but every note, every inflection.

3 Bonny: Prefab Sprout Easiest pick of all, the one track that I'd take above all the rest. Perfect crafted pop that takes me back to the most exciting time of my life within a split second.

4 What Difference Does It Make: The Smiths Just about pips the other Smiths classics. Still sounds so fresh, still takes me back to student days.

5 Billy Bragg: Moving The Goalposts Picking a favourite Bragg song is hard but this seems to have the right mix of affection, sadness and wit. 'Can this sticky stuff really be love?' Indeed!

6 Kipenda Roho: Remmy Ongala had to have an African track, this still gets me going and has been the one song I always play when trying out new equipment.

7 My Heart, My Life: Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and Michael Brook Stange, mesmeric, ecstatic, unique. Gives me the shivers still.

8 For Your Lover Give Some Time: Richard Hawley When my wife had a big health scare I sat on the floor and listened to this. Big mistake; I can barely listen to it now without choking up!

9 Bryn: Vampire Weekend Joyful and exuberant, an antidote to the gloom. Wilco: Imposible Germany nearly made it into this slot (I cannot believe I could not find space for a Wilco track).

10 Night Falls On Hoboken: Yo La Tengo Nearly eighteen minutes of gentle melody, loping basslines and eventually noodling away into the night. The perfect final track.

Bruce

The Radio4 programme allows only eight tracks, plus the Bible, as book, and a luxury. Nothing practical can be taken. But no worries with ten tracks.

Nearly all of these tracks represent the album they are from, although do stand up for themselves.

Lemmings (Pawn Hearts, 1972) - Van Der Graaf Generator
So much of Peter Hammill's work either with VDGG, or solo could make my list, but if I had to pick one song it would be this. Beyond the music, the power of the vocals, Hammill's lyrics are truly outstanding:
http://www.sofasound.com/lyrix.html

The band of drums, organ and sax, or flute, plus Hammill on guitar or piano is such a unique sound. Plus Fripp guesting on electric guitar. VDGG are not an easy sound to listen to at first, especially this album, like many acquired tastes this is so much more rewarding.

Close to the Edge (Close to the Edge, 1972) - Yes
My favourite rhythm section, plus incredible guitar and keyboard playing. An album that still reveals news depths after thirty years. Just try and tap the next snare beat in this track, the rhythm moves constantly, and that is only one fifth of the contribution to Yes in 1972.

Sola Sistim (A Hundred Days Off, 2002) - Underworld
Dark Train (Bootleg Babies, 1999) could well be there, but almost any track from their first four albums as a trio, duo, would stand. As an album the compilation 'Bootleg Babies' by the RTSR trade group would be my pick for their best album.

No Quarter (Earls Court 25th May 1975) - Led Zeppelin
Even better live than in the studio, that night might just be the best live recording I have ever heard.

Parabol/Parabola (Lateralus 2001) - Tool
Displacing King Crimson from the position of power rock. Impenetrable of first, second, and many more listenings, like several others on the forum, this album took around eighteen months to click, well worth the effort.

Shh Peaceful (In a Silent Way 1968) - Miles Davis
Close call to oust 'A Kind of Blue', but something by Miles Davis just has to be in there somewhere.

Blue Orchids (April 2008) - Sun Kil Moon (Mark Kozelek)
'River Song' (Old Ramon 1997) by The Red House Painters could also have represented Mark Kozelek, as could many of his songs. Gentle melancholic drifting songs. No one else quite treads the path Mark Kozelek has.

Cherokee Lane (Encore 1977) - Tangerine Dream
Atmospheric, emotional synthesizer music, one of the pioneers from the 70's and early 80's.

If ten songs were allowed:
Song for Sharon (Hejira, 1976) - Joni Mitchell

Know Where to Run (Middle of Nowhere, 1999) - Orbital

Near misses:
Symphony No.1 William Walton, Symphony No.5 Ralph Vaughan Williams, Man Machine (1978) Kraftwerk, Larks Tongues in Aspic (part II)(1973) - King Crimson, 'Well, You Needn't' (Monk's Music, 1958) - Thelonious Monk Septet (inc Art Blakey, Coleman Hawkins, John Coltrane, etc).

The one I would save above all others would be 'Lemmings' VDGG.

Instead of the Bible, I would take 'The Origin of Species' as my 'religious' tome, and my book would be 'Polaroids From the Dead' by Douglas Coupland, or maybe 'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas' by Hunter S Thompson (that is a very hard choice).

My luxury would be a copy of Photoshop to make artworks for the music I had salvaged.

If we are doing the complete 'Desert Island' thing then I'll have 'War and Peace' to read for about the 5th time. As a luxury I'd love a daily newspaper, or failing that just some way of getting the cricket scores. Actually I could chose a Test Match special broadcast for one of my tracks!

In no particular order:

Gimme a ride to heaven - Terry Allen and the Panhandle Mystery Band
Well You Needn't - Thelonious Monk Septet (from Monk's Music)
Galway to Graceland - Richard Thompson
Fantasia on a theme by Thomas Tallis - Ralph Vaughan Williams (ASMF, Marriner)
White Man in the Hammersmith Palais - The Clash
Stepping Razor - Peter Tosh
He was despised - from Händel's Messiah, Kathleen Ferrier
Black Muddy River - Norma Waterston
The Weight - The Band and the Staples (from the last waltz)
Hen Wlad fy Nhadau - crowd of the old Arms Park or just the sound from this, the pictures are embedded forever

quote:

Originally posted by Bruce Woodhouse:
As a luxury I'd love a daily newspaper, or failing that just some way of getting the cricket scores. Actually I could chose a Test Match special broadcast for one of my tracks!

No need you could just use the DAB radio that the BBC recommend as a luxury item and revel in its stunning quality of sound.

quote:

Originally posted by ROTF:
No need you could just use the DAB radio that the BBC recommend as a luxury item and revel in its stunning quality of sound.

A desert island's probably got the best DAB reception too.