My shuffleathon CD and letter to Mark

Hi Mark

Well you’ve had the dubious privilege of drawing my name out of Swiss Toni’s big shuffleathon hat.

I’m probably at the older end of the age scale of participants and my choice of tracks reflects that – age doesn’t make me any less passionate about music however, which has been a huge thing in my life, not quite as long as I can remember, but certainly since I reached adolescence in the 60s. I’ve made no attempt to pick out tracks which I think are the best musically, or even to reflect my taste in music now, I’ve simply come up with a list of artists and tracks that have meant something to me over the years.

The list enclosed gives track name, artist, and the album I’ve extracted the track from (not always the original source album, some of these are from “Best ofs”) and there’s a little bit of context about each track below:

1) Pleasant Valley Sunday The Monkees The Definitive Monkees

The Monkees are the first band I really got into aged about 13 – they were a manufactured boy band and had a show on primetime TV, early Saturday evening. My friends and I used to get together to watch and scream a bit – my fave member somewhat against the general trend was always Micky Dolenz, who went on to marry one of the Pan’s People dance group off TOTP. They were derided at the time by “grown ups” but they’ve achieved some critical acclaim over the intervening 40 years or so, and this is a great track.

2) Getting Better The Beatles Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Again, against the general trend of the time I wasn’t actually a huge Beatles fan, but I did love Sgt Pepper – I was a bit of a hippy chick in those days. This isn’t the best track on Sgt Pepper even but its great positive stuff, and if you look at my blog you’ll see that I went to a gig in Milan recently where Sgt Pepper was recreated and this was a stand out track with Badly Drawn Boy doing vocals.

3) Son of a Preacher Man Dusty Springfield Goin'back - the very best of Dusty Springfield

Dusty is imho the best soul voice by a mile that the UK has ever produced. This takes me back to my teens, listening to a little transistor radio by the side of the cricket pitch at school in Whitley Bay on a long hot summer afternoon, my friend Amanda was going out with the son of the local minister who was a bit of a bad lad.

4) Seven & Seven Is Love Da Capo

I love this band and again if you look at my blog you’ll know why in great detail – nuff said.


5) Click Clack Captain Beefheart & The Magic Band The Spotlight Kid

Another great 60s favourite – the best gig I’ve ever been to bar none in a long career of gig-going was Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band at Newcastle City Hall early 1972 – the tightest band imaginable. Old Don was a bit of a nutter, still is, he had some weird things going on inside his head, but some of the music he created was just out of this world.

6) L.A. Woman The Doors L. A. Woman

Adulation of Jim Morrison was certainly not against the general trend in the late 60s / early 70s – another one who died far too young. The dark side of 60s psychedelia. As with Love, on the periphery of the hippy stuff going on at the time but no flower wearing in hair going on here.

7) The Jean Genie David Bowie Best Of David Bowie 1969-1974

David Bowie to me means starting University in Nottingham in 1972 and leaving the North East pretty much for good, sitting around in student bedrooms raving on about Ziggy Stardust and Aladdin Sane and so on. I could have picked any number of tracks but I really like this one..

8) If The Shoe Fits Leon Russell Carney

This takes me back to meeting my old man Keith in about 1973 – we’re still together. H e had this album and really loved it when we first met.

9) Can We Still Be Friends Todd Rundgren Hermit Of Mink Hollow

Beautiful track, again early 70s stuff. End of a heavy evening stuff.

10) You gotta walk (don't look back) Peter Tosh Bush Doctor

I’ve always had a reggae thing going on even with all the psychedelic hippy trippy stuff around – I find it impossible not to jig around the room when this is on. Brings back memories of some great nights with friends.

11) Sultans Of Swing Dire Straits Money For Nothing

Before they got arenaised and MTVised, Dire Straits were just a little guitar playing band from Newcastle. My Mum’s friend knew Mark Knopfler’s Mum, and she apparently was always berating him for spending all his time in his bedroom picking away at his guitar. Parents eh?? When this first came out it sounded so fresh and original. They also mention Whitley Bay in one of their tracks (Tunnel of Love) so how could I not love them?

12) Train To Rhodesia Big Youth Dreadlocks Dread

More reggae. Big Youth got us together in 1977 with some people who are still great friends today. Keith decided to train to be a teacher after a few years not doing much after leaving University. One evening we had a few folks from his course round to our flat, including a rather sullen youth from Hull called Steve. We put the Big Youth album on and he just came to life completely, he’d come to Nottingham to do his PGCE course and join up with his girlfriend Wendy who was already a student here after doing a degree in London, and the album had been the soundtrack to his student days. They’re still together as well and are our best pals in Nottingham.

13) No More Heroes The Stranglers No More Heroes

Late 70s. Punk. Great song. Keith became a Geography teacher but had to do some English teaching as well, which filled him with trepidation. I suggested he did something about song lyrics and he used this song, went down very well with the 3rd year apparently.


14) Jimmy Jimmy The Undertones The Best Of The Undertones

More punk. Great song. We named our son (now aged 22) after this song. Middle name Leon after the previous one.

Poor unfortunate lad.


15) Tired Of Being Alone Al Green Al

This just sends me. The man’s voice is pure liquid honey. He found religion and became the Reverend Al Green after being seriously injured when he was found by a cuckolded husband in bed with his wife and had boiling water chucked over him. Hey Ho.



That’s it, hope you enjoy at least some of it. I know I did.