It was hard to miss the losses of Tina Turner, Tony Bennett, Sinead O’Connor, Robbie Robertson, Gordon Lightfoot, Shane McGowan, David Crosby and so many other notables this year. But what about Terry Kirkman, Mars Williams, Jane Birkin, Trugoy The Dove, Emahoy Guebrou, Cynthia Weil, Magoo ….?
NPR has a long list HERE
Who will you miss the most and why? Listicals are ok if you prefer.
New feature: feeling equally as slack as some of you and rightly chastised by @mrshoey during ‘Spillmas, I’m going to try my hand at a new irregular feature called ‘CDs I recently sold on ebay’ – I’ve tried new features in the past (The Wheel of our Tune…remember that?) which have ended up dying a death because I run out of steam when I commit to a regular feature.
You guys may not at all be interested in my ramblings on selling a dying format so that others can love them as much as I did, but you’re gonna get it anyway! I will try to avoid the regular features so the content doesn’t get too overcrowded.
So here’s the thing; I’ve had 2 very full boxes of CDs sat in my work room for about 3 years. I have no means of playing this format anymore. All tracks are uploaded onto my iTunes. They are too heavy to take to a second hand store, the contents seemed too precious to sell on Music Magpie (and weighty to post) or give away. They were there so long that we kinda forgot what was in the boxes. Back in November I got them all out and listed on ebay some that were most likely to sell. They are primarily compilations, but not all. A few have sold, and those that haven’t just get auto re-listed, so no great effort needed on my part. Please don’t @ me about lacking commitment to music collection – I need to move them on and am sharing these CDs with others who will make use of them, love them and discover new styles, tracks, and musicians like I did – it’s recycling.
What I will try to do, is talk a bit about the artist/s, the album, any notable tracks or interesting anecdotes about why I came of have the CD in the first place etc etc. I’ll try to post either a Spotify or Youtube link to the album tracks, if I can. If it’s boring and you guys are showing no interest, I will stop. So far I’ve sold 12 CDs with a gazillion to go!
Prompted by tinny’s idea for our future entertainment and amusement, I decided to collect songs with single-word girl’s names. Serendipitously, the GeeDees provide the ABC but I’ve had to include a couple of songs from artists I either detest or have never heard of. And I still can’t find one for Q, U, X, Y or Z.
Can you supply the missing songs (or suggest better alternatives for L or N)? If so, add them to the playlist.
Now, what else can I do with leftover turkey……?
Shoey said we need more content on here so, feeling guilty, I’m going to post a Word of the Week feature on Mondays starting next week. I’ll supply a letter of the (English) alphabet and you’ll supply a cool word that starts with it. Or ppl won’t and it will die an unnoticed death.
Possibly more fun than doing the post Boxing Day washing up!
Answers will be posted below obver the next hour or so. Thanks for taking part.
Art By Saneshane
Apologies for the late posting and change in format. I wasn’t going to post my AOTY this year as I haven’t been around much, but some completely justified gentle remonstrating and nice comments persuaded me to do it anyway, so here we go!
Albums of the Year
No time (I started a new job in April and the meetings are endless!!) for a full multi-post write up this year I’m afraid, so I’ll just post a quick video. I’m a bit nervous about revealing myself, but as I’ve plastered my idiotic mug all over YT this year (see shameless self-promotional plug below), I suppose it doesn’t make much difference – I’m sure that I just look like the “generic indie bloke” (see Senser episode of shameless self-promotional plug below) you always pictured anyway!
Full list in written words so you don’t have to listen to my droning on:
1 MC Yallah – Yallah Biebe
2 Hey Colossus – In Blood
2b All Structures Align – Cut the Engines
2c Big Break – Angel’s Piss
3 V/Z – Suono Assente
4 Nihiloxica – Source of Denial
5 Man on Man – Provincetown
6 M(h)aol – Attachment Styles
7 Qitsch – No Shame
8a Nakibembe Embaire Group – Nakibembe Embaire Group
8b DJ Finale – Mille Morceau
8c Elvin Brandhi & Lord Spikeheart – Drunken Love
9 Jonny Nash – Point of Entry
10 Goat – Joy in Fear
Spotify playlist with added extras:
Shameless self-promotional plug:
At the start of the year, I woke up with an epiphany; “I know what the world needs” I thought in my heroic internal dialogue, “I know what’s missing out there, what the world needs is three middle-aged white men with a podcast talking confidently about subjects they have very limited knowledge about”. And lo, the Stupid and Contagious Podcast was born.
For the last few months, I have been putting out a weekly podcast with two of my childhood friends (Neil and Dave) that is dedicated to 90s guitar music. We interview musicians from the 90s (chatting to Roddy Bottum from Faith No More was one of the greatest moments of my life!) and talk complete bollocks either side of the interviews. It is a surprising amount of hard work to put together every week, but just about the most rewarding thing I’ve probably ever done.
Links here for anyone who is interested:
Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/stupid-contagious/id1705645715
Acast: https://shows.acast.com/where-were-you-in-o/episodes
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@stupidandcontagiouspodcast
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7xXYSVnQ6NVFd3WGs9dspV
Cheers and Merry Christmas Everyone!
Art by Saneshane
At Christmas I love moaning, sighing and breathlessness. But I also love complaining.
My main inducer of indignation this year hasn’t been the starting of the selling season in October, which actually had the effect of inoculating me against seasonal cheer until this week.
Nor has it been the advertising of Xmas films and TV from November,.
No. It’s the music. It’s the same schmaltz blandness in every bloody shopping centre, cafe and public space. I don’t care for Finnish Christmas but they’ve made it it Reindeer turds worse by adopting the worst of the West.
I can’t walk into a shopping centre without the sort of planning that usually accompanied a ruthless diamond heist. People take a look at my headgear and assume I am on special ops but I just don’t want to hear “simply having a wonderful Christmas time”.
But I do like songs that celebrate the season, so if you like a strange-house-in-the-snow eclectic list with one or two popular favourites,here you go.
Wishing Oi! To the World
Art By Saneshane
Here’s the list of this year’s contributors so you can guess who picked what:
Afictionhabit, Albahooky, Alimunday, Barbryn, Bethnoir, Blimpymcflah, Carolebristol, Chris7572, Darceysdad, Debbym, Drawnface, Fintan, Fuel, Garethi, Glasshalfempty, Leaveitallbehind, Loudatlas, Magicman, Mnemonic, Pairubu, Panthersan, Partiallystars, Saneshane/Artshane, Severin, Shoegazer/Shoey, Tincanman, Toffeeboy, Treefrogdemon, Uncleben, Vanwolf, Wyngatecarpenter
Thanks to all & Merry Christmas to ‘Spillers everywhere.
Hi – does anyone know how to get rid of this annoying new “feature” on WordPress, of a pop up notification sidebar that overlays posts so you can’t read them!?
Good evening, and welcome to your splendid selection of songs about hats and headgear.
If you have an Earworm you’d like to share, please send an .mp3, .m4a or a link to adempster73@gmail.com, together with a few words about why you’ve chosen it. I will have a two week break to make way for shoey’s wonderful Festive ‘Spill, and Christmas, and will resume normal service on 2 January 2024.
The theme for the new year is is ‘something you wish for‘ – it could be world peace and understanding, or pickled eggs, a Ferrari, cheese and onion crisps, revenge, snow, sunshine, fairy wings, a functioning laptop, a pineapple… the possibilities are many.
Worms should reach me by close of play on Sunday 1 January 2024. Merry Christmas and a Happy New year to you all! 🎄🎄✨✨🎈🎁
June Tabor and Oysterband – That Was My Veil – Suzi: Cover of a song by P J Harvey and John Parish.
Get Well Soon – If This Hat Is Missing I Have Gone Hunting – shoegazer: Get Well Soon AKA Konstantin Gropper from Germany.
Faithless – Baseball Cap – glassarfemptee: From Faithless’ first album, about inner city violence. ‘Scuffling in the street is no way to die’, but sadly it’s the fate for all too many.
Lyle Lovett – Don’t Touch My Hat – Fintan 28: There are places where trespass takes on odd connotations. As native son Lyle knows, Texas is one such place. Hell, there are just limitations to what a man has to put up with, right?
Randy Newman – Big Hat, No Cattle – severin: One of the many self-deprecating songs from his Bad Love album. Also the second song I got listed for Readers Recommend back in the Lynskey era.
Staff Sgt Barry Sadler – Ballad of the Green Berets – tincanman: Raised in a brothel, teenage troublemaker, nearly lost his life several times, murdered another songwriter, went bankrupt, wrote 20+ airport thrillers, kidnapped from a hospital… his story is better than his famous song!
Kate Rusby – The White Cockade – Suzi: A cockade was a bunch or rosette of ribbons worn on a soldier’s hat to identify him to his comrades. There are various versions, a Blue Cockade and even a Green Cockade, but this is probably the original. The song begins with the soldier’s story of how he was persuaded to enlist, then his heartbroken sweetheart takes up the narrative.
Eric Bibb – Panama Hat – glassarfemptee: A lovely laid back paean to a Panama hat from Eric Bibb’s 2000 ‘Roadworks’. They are made in Peru, not Panama, but you knew that.
Procol Harum – Homburg – severin: The follow up to Whiter Shade of Pale. John Peel always insisted that he preferred this of the two.
Judith Durham – Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters – severin: Judith D sings an Elton John/Bernie Taupin song and makes a pretty good fist of it too. I actually heard this before the original and think of it as the definitive version.
Jimmy Buffett – They Don’t Dance Like Carmen No More – Fintan 28: An homage to Carmen Miranda & her glorious headdress ” with bananas & mangoes all piled to the sky”. Definitely another time.
Main playlist, blurbs above:
YouTube playlist, blurbs below – and here’s the link if you want to add to it: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLqxz-zGCy09oH9KDCgGq1j1jEKVj94Rx4&si=mfmL-hHRUbyRXjRq
Grateful Dead – Stagger Lee – Chris7572: Hunter’s version of the old story concentrates, uniquely it seems, on an imagined(?) revenge mission by Billy DeLyon’s widow. But the whole story springs from a lethal hat episode…
The Steam Pig – Hats and Flags – wyngatecarpenter: Obscure Irish punk from the ’90s with a fast, furious and quite upbeat song about public executions.
Etta James – You Can Leave Your Hat On – DebbyM: The funk version!
Mona Haydar – Hijabi (Wrap My Hijab) – DebbyM: This was apparently a ‘viral phenomenon’ a couple of years ago.
America – Hat Trick – AliM: From the eponymous album (1973). I was on a nostalgia-fest the other day and started to listen to America, a band I grew up with. Unfairly cast as a poor man’s Crosby, Stills and Nash, they had some excellent songs and beautiful harmonies.
Led Zeppelin – Hats off to (Roy) Harper – AliM: Had to nominate this, as LTS didn’t.
Nick Cope – I’ve Lost My Bobble Hat – DebbyM: Little’un’s contribution. You can’t be expected to wear just any old hat. It has to be The One.
Good evening, and welcome to your selection of songs about telephones and telephone numbers. There are three playlists this week including one from tincanman, and I have included a YouTube link if you want to add to the YouTube list. Confused? You will be.
If you have an Earworm you’d like to share, please send an.mp3, .m4a or a link to: adempster73@gmail.com, together with a few words about why you’ve chosen it. Next week’s theme will be hats and headgear.
Worms should reach me by close of play on Sunday 10 December. Many thanks to all contributors – keep calm, and carry on!
Penguin Cafe Orchestra – Telephone and Rubber Band – Suzi: Based around the repetitive sound of a telephone ringing.
Soprano – Mon Précieux – DebbyM: French pop singer with Gollumesque feelings for his phone.
Souzy Kasseya – Le téléphone sonne – Uncleben: Fabulous soukous song that was a hit in France in the early 1980s. Kasseya was originally from Kinshasa but settled in Paris and, just as he was starting to make it big, promptly stopped releasing records, though I think he carried on for a while as a session musician.
Grateful Dead – Operator – Chris7572: A sweet little ditty from Ron McKernan, aka Pigpen, who is trying to get help contacting his absent lady in a time long before everyone became attached to a mobile from birth. The only track on American Beauty not written by Hunter with a guitarist or two.
Jim Croce – Operator – Fintan28: A time that has faded from our lives, Not only did you have to interact with another human to place a call sometimes they interact with you. Wonderful small story.
Kara Jackson – Dickhead Blues – tincanman: From the former US Poet Laureate’s wonderful debut album this year, Why Does The Earth Give Us People To Love?
Aretha Franklin – Call Me – severin: Call me the minute you get there. From the times before mobile or smart phones, of course.
Blondie – Hanging on the Telephone – Suzi: Debbie’s desperate to talk to him in person, but a phone call will have to do for now ….classic Blondie and a favourite.
Post Modern Jukebox feat. Tess Mohr – Call Me – DebbyM: Love the Blondie version, but this jazzy cover is really worth a listen.
Unknown Mortal Orchestra – Can’t Keep Checking my Phone – glassarfemptee: Originally a kiwi band, Unknown Mortal Orchestra are now based in Portland, Oregon and had a double album out this year.
The Fall – Telephone Thing – Shoegazer: One of their best singles.
The Tuts – I Call You Up – severin: An unsuccessful phone call. “You’d rather do things with him instead.”
Hot Little Mama – Telephone Call From IstanbuI – glassarfemptee: I believe this band is/was Norwegian, with a Tom Waits song.
Téléphone – Hygiaphone – DebbyM: Rock’n’roll français!
Wilson Pickett – 634-5789 – Fintan28: Wilson is a confident man. He can stay to his house and just have her call when she needs him? Who knows? It may have played in 1965.
Macy Gray – Why Didn’t You Call Me? – severin: I thought I’d see you again, the first date went so well. Back in the early seventies I actually received a “no, I don’t think this is going to work” letter via the Royal Mail after a first date. Fortunately I didn’t think so either but it was still a weird experience.
The Beatles – You Know My Name (Look Up The Number) – glassarfemptee: The Beatles released quite a few weird songs, and this is sure one of them. The lyrics are confined to ‘you know my name, look up the number’. In the 1964 song ‘Any time at all’ they sing ‘just call me’. They later said they used the idea from American songs – hardly anyone in Liverpool had a phone indoors!
Lal Waterson – Telephone Raider – Suzi: The phone’s ringing – who’s calling? Before you answer it, there’s always some slight anxiety as to who it might be, though more so in the past, before names and numbers were displayed. From the album Teach Me To Be A Summer’s Morning.
Penguin Cafe Orchestra – Pythagoras on the Line – Suzi: A gentle tune weaves its way around the sound of an old-fashioned telephone.
Main playlist, blurbs above:
Drakeo the Ruler and JoogSzn – Tank You For Using GTL – tincanman: Drakeo rapped out and directed this 2020 album in short phone calls from jail to Joog. He was falsely charged, held for awhile longer because he probably did something else anyway, and within a year of being released was fatally shot by accident backstage at a concert. America innit. (GTL holds the contract to charge prisoners exorbitant rates to use their payphones.) (Click on the link in the title for the playlist).
YouTube Playlist, blurbs below – here’s the link if you want to add your own tracks: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLqxz-zGCy09q6jCA6eS_775viYcfxtUU3&si=jlP7QGjdARJ2CNtg
UK Subs – Telephone Numbers – wyngatecarpenter: Short, but undeniably on topic.
Peter and the Test Tube Babies – 1471 – wyngatecarpenter: A sorry tale of drunken misadventure.
Toots and the Maytals – 54-46 Was My Number – MaggieB: Dancing to this will help to keep you all warm 😎
AC/DC – Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap – LongTallSilly: Pick up the phone, I’m always home / Call me anytime / Just ring, 3-6-2-4-3-6, hey / I lead a life of crime… The inspiration for telephone numbers, as I was trying to head-bang with no hair! BTW AliM picking two female singers last week is amazing enough, but one of them being God is gobsmacking! (See Dogma 😂).
Carley Rae Jepsen – Call Me Maybe – AliM: Another female singer. My son’s tutor had this as her ringtone, which amused me greatly.
Kirsty MacColl – A New England – AliM: And another – Kirsty puts her slant on Billy Bragg’s song: Once upon a time at home / I sat beside the telephone / Waiting for someone to pull me through / When at last it didn’t ring, I knew it wasn’t you…
As you may know, once again, we plan to collect our favourite songs of the year. We don’t have a lot of time, as the plan is to playlist here on The ‘Spill, starting with third choices on Monday, Dec 18, followed by seconds on Weds, Dec 20 & the grand finale of top picks on Fri, Dec 22.
To take part: send mp3s or YouTube links of your 3 choices to this shoemail@cfl.rr.com, along with artist, tune name & ranking (to give me a fighting chance of putting them in the correct list for ‘Spillcast). Picks are first-come first-served. Any duplicates will be thrown out, but you can have another go to come up with something original. Any errors & omissions will be blamed on the elves, as usual.
All are welcome to join in and come to the listening party on The ‘Spill.
The 'Spill 