As I went out this morning to take Winston for his morning walk I put my I-pod nano on as I do every day as I went round the tracks shuffled through ,as we walked round .Then mid way it clicked on Titus Andronicus clicked on with a track from there debut album the airing of grievances as you imagine with a band named after a Shakespeare play there are some literary titles on the album and it was one of these it clicked on” Albert Camus ” the french Algerian writer has inspired many bands over the years to name a few The Cure use one of his books for a song and the band The Fall .
then after a track by the Manchester band inspiral carpets ,came up Ryan Adams song Sylvia Plath his ode to the late poet and former with of Ted Hughes ,like Ryan I wish I was in Spain or France today not with Sylvia thou ,with my darling Amanda .I ;love Adams and the album this is from touches me every time I hear it .
Late last year I did a desert island disc post but since then the choices have puzzled me and a recent chat with an old friend on Facebook has made me re think the list and also in the time in between I ve really found my personnel voice and find writing posts flows easier for me so want to redo list now and flesh out choice with reasons .I love desert island disc and since the archive has come online spent a lot time looking at choices of past guests have made in the show .so for take two here are my choices and the reasons for them .
1.Better together – Jack Johnson – I choose this last time I know ,it is a mellow tune but is the first song we had at our wedding and is Amanda and I song .Because we are better together I feel like I ve lost an arm when we re apart ,we get on so well together every minute together is precious to me .so it will always be here in a desert island disc list .
2.Blue ridge mountains by Fleet foxes – I fell in love with the voices of the fleet foxes when I first heard them ,it was one of those moments you hear a song and know the band will be in your collection for ever ,this track from the debut album make me think of the wild places I ve been in my life ,a windswept beach in Donegal ,the moor in Northumberland or driving through the highlands on a summer day .
3.When I ‘m dead and gone – fury in the slaughterhouse ,the german rem or u2 they’ve been called this from the bluesy album mono ,a dark album about death mainly this song about how your remembered is my favourite by them .This to me is a secret band not well-known here ,I found out about them in the time I lived in Germany and it reminds me of that year there .
4.Drowners – suede – this was huge when it came out the new smiths was the take ,gritty lyrics and clashing guitars made it a teenage anthem ,I remember buying it in Kirkcaldy in a small indie record shop there and listening to it at my aunties ,it reminds me of summers in Fife with family strange for a dark song but I always make connections between time and places with what I listen to so if this is dark it makes me think of happy times .
5. Fake empire – the national – this was used as part of Obama campaign ,I got into national via a track on a magazine CD .This is an album that is always on my I-pod nano so it makes me thing of Winston for some reason this album boxer and this track in particular is great dog walking music ,especially on a dark night .
6.I wanna go to marz – John Grant – this is a soulful song about a childhood sweet shop but much more than that ,from an album that I ve played to death since I ve got it ,John grant was the lead singer of the czars and I got their album via my best friend Steve so in some ways this albums reminds me of the great night s of my twenties when Steve, Leon ,my brother Duncan and I went out every friday and saturday drinking round town .I remember the characters we meet the bars and route we took week after week .
7.Late night ,Maudlin street by Morrissey – Well anyone that knows me knows I couldn’t go to a desert island without Morrissey or the smiths I have had a love /hate relationship with him and his music I was a smiths fan and love his debut solo album which this is from this is one of his longest songs and I think one he revealed some of his own life on a song set in the seventies about urban life .I m reminded of the day I brought the album at beat route records in Congleton and the fact for a long time after they had an australian copy with a title misprint on of “education in reverse ” the run out groove message on the vinyl album ,not “viva hate” the actual title .
8.Mfwany by Sir John Betjeman – This is one of his poems set to music ,he record these in the seventies but it took twitter to get to me ,although Morrissey had used a different track as a show opener on his tour .I just love his voice the tone of it and this song in particular .
Book – essays by Ben Okri – a change I choose Proust but I feel this would keep my mind alive Okri essays in his two collections the first of which I ve read m\ke you question books myths ,utopias and the Arcadian myth to name some .
Luxury – same as last time a digital photo frame with my wedding the best day of my life and a couple of pictures of Winston so I’ll have all I love and hold dear to look at .
There I feel this is a better post than the first ,my friend on Facebook said I live on memories and I do but also live for today because as some one said you have to see where you’ve been to see where your going ,that is very true I think .
I tend to get money for christmas from parents so spent it buying some new cd’s as the tbr pile is huge my love of music is bigger than my love of books I have well over a thousand cds and another couple of hundred on my i tunes ,I read three music magazines a month and used go to a lot of gigs when in my youth ,so my cd bounty is –
Midlake -The courage of others ,this is the third album from midlake a heavy mix of folk ,soft 70’s rock and Jethro Tull .I like the previous album still bit up in air about this one .If they were a writer they’d be Walt whitman .
The phantom band – the wants ,I loved loved checkmate savage their debut a heady mix of Scottish bands past and present in a way it was like a taster of all the bad loved ,this is like a full pot of The phantom band wonderful ,if they were a writer they be Alasdair Gray as like him there full of ideas and multi talented .
R.E.M -Reckoning ,This was the one R.E.M album I d not got on cd and is wonderful to hear seven chinese brothers and camera in fact all the album I prefer the early more distorted style ,If they were a writer they’d be Jonathan Frantzen ,the biggest on the block and new albums and books always looked over with a fine tooth comb .
MGMT – congratulations ,MGMT like the uk Klaxons and Aussies empire of the sun ,seemed to have bridge dance and rock so well ,dreamy lyrics and wonderful videos ,if they were a writer they’d be Hebert Selby jr groundbreaking and a little on the edge .
Tom waits – Nighthawks at the dinner ,usually every year I add one of toms old albums to my cd collection ,not many left now ,love him or hate him they broke the bourbon soaked mould when they made tom a unique songwriter and musician mixing jazz ,musical ,avant grade and rock ,if he were a writer he’d be Charles Bukowski soak in gin and whiskey and smoked over a burning pack of lucky strike
Bob Dylan -live in 75 the rolling thunder revue ,the last of the bootleg series I needed and my 47 Dylan album only a few left to get ,Nick Hornby said in 31 songs everyone should have some Dylan ,I love him he is the greatest American singer hands down ,if he were a writer well he’d be himself !!! or Philip Roth at a push .
