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Celebrating the art of the mixtape. Ten songs, chosen to fit with nine categories (plus one wildcard). Some curated by me, but also featuring lots of guest mixers.
48 Episodes
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My guest mixer this week is Brian Turner
Brian is one of several upcoming guests that Steve Shelley was kind enough to put me in touch with. He is the station manager of East Village Radio, was a regular on WMFU and is a good friend of previous guest Eleni Poulou (with whom he recently put out a show on Cashmere Radio). He's also been in the bands The Mad Scene, Äss, and Jowe Head & The Celestial Choir.
Not only is he a top bloke, he picked a cracking playlist...
My guest mixer this week is Vinny Peculiar
Vinny (aka Alan Wilkes) is a singer-songwriter who has put out fourteen albums of literate autobiographical pop music over a twenty-year career. Uncut described him as ‘an under sung national treasure’ and The Irish Times called him ‘the missing link between Jarvis Cocker and poet Roger McGough’. Tom Robinson of 6Music said that his ‘songs make you laugh and cry and think all at the same time.’
My guest mixer this week is Andy Gillespie
I have known Andy - a fellow Wedding Present fan - for the best part of 20 years, online. But this was the first time we'd ever met face to face (albeit via Zoom).
Originally from Middleton, Manchester, Andy has for many years lived in Simi Valley, California. As well as being on good terms with previous guests David Gedge and Terry de Castro, we also get to hear about the time he played pool with Mark E Smith and Eleni...
My guest mixer this week is Terry de Castro
Terry is a bassist, vocalist and songwriter based in LA who has played in several bands (such as Goya Dress) as well releasing music under her own name. She is also, other than David Gedge, the longest serving member of The Wedding Present, and was the bassist throughout the lifespan of Cinerama.
(Slightly dodgy internet connection in places, apologies!)
My guest mixer this week is Eleni Poulou
Eleni is a musician, composer, radio host and curator of musical events. She has released music as a solo artist and as part of a wide range of groups and collaborations. She is also the 7th ex-member of the Fall to appear on the show - her distinctive keyboard style and vocal sound having been an important feature of the last period of the group.
Eleni likes to do things her own way - an admirable quality - and so this show is different from the norm in several ways. She selected 14 tracks (and wanted add a 15th!), her mix was 2 ¾ hours long (!) and she only sent it to me the morning before our interview (she explains why in our discussion).
My guest mixer this week is Ian McCulloch
No, not that one... Not yet anyway. This Ian (my third Ian in six weeks!) is another fellow Fall enthusiast. And he's been very patient, as we recorded this nearly three months ago - hence the rather dated reference to Donald Trump's golf skills!
My guest mixer this week is Alan Edwards
Alan is both a work colleague and a very good friend, who my wife describes as my 'work husband'. Initially, we talked about him coming on the podcast as a bit of a joke, as musically (and in many other ways) we inhabit very different universes. But when I mentioned in episode #024 his offer to provide a playlist that would 'bring in the girls, gays and theys', the feedback was mostly on the lines of 'bring it on'.
So buckle up and be prepared for a rather different set of songs than you're used to...
Daryl is a music writer whose work has appeared in Mojo, Record Collector, Q, The Guardian and The Independent, and has published several books on subjects as diverse as Chic, Slade, Madonna, Peter Gabriel, Cher and Sparks.
In addition, if you have a few reissue or box set CDs in your collection, it’s fairly likely that at least one of them includes some sleeve notes written by him.
My guest mixer this week is Steve Shelley
Steve occupied the drum stool in Sonic Youth for 26 years and has played with musicians such as Michael Rother, Howe Gelb, Tom Verlaine, Ron Asheton and Mark Kozelek.
He also founded a label called Smells Like Records (now Vampire Blues), and has been instrumental in promoting the careers of artists such as Cat Power, Blonde Redhead and Lee Hazlewood.
Described on a Reddit thread as ‘the best drummer in rock history’, his most recent release is Orcutt Shelley Miller, with Bill Orcutt (Harry Pussy) and Ethan Miller (Comets on Fire/Howlin' Rain).
My guest mixer this week is Ian Clayton
Ian is an author who came up in conversation several times last week when I talked to Ian Daley, as he has had several books published by Route. They include Bringing It All Back Home (a book about searching for a soundtrack to your own life story), Song For My Father (a reflection on a lifelong search for a father figure), and It’s The Beer Talking (a book about a lifelong love affair with local pubs).
I can particularly recommend Bringing It All Back Home, a book that I found to be both funny and deeply moving.
My guest mixer this week is Ian Daley
Ian set up Route Publishing in 2000, and since 2005 has run the company from his home in Pontefract alongside his wife Isabel Galán.
Route has published several books about The Fall (including those by Steve Hanley, Simon Wolstencroft, Paul Hanley and me!) They've also put out a range of titles about Bob Dylan, as well as books by Helen O'Hara (Dexys Midnight Runners), Tom Hingley (Inspiral Carpets), Mark Hoyle (Dub Sex) and Iain Matthews (Fairport Convention).
My guest mixer this week is David Gedge
David is the sole constant member of indie legends The Wedding Present, the band that I have seen live (by some distance) the most often over their 40 year career. I have also written blogs about TWP and Cinerama.
He remains relentlessly busy with work, so I'm grateful he managed to squeeze this interview in.
N.B. We had a slightly dodgy internet connection, so the sound quality isn't always as good as I'd like it to be - apologies!
My guest mixer this week is Chris McAvoy
Chris has been mentioned quite a few times on this podcast, because over the years he has supplied me with dozens of mix tapes / CDs (some examples in the pic on the website).
We've known each other for the best part of 40 years, and have spent countless weekends in Manchester going to gigs, eating curries and drinking beer. Speaking of which, please bear in mind that this interview was recorded face to face following a long afternoon in the pub...
My guest mixer this week is David Hughes
David is one of those people I know from the Fall Online Forum, and is also a fellow supporter of the excellent Sombrero Fallout podcast.
Although he lives in Australia these days, he is - like me - a native of North East England. He's also addicted to travel, and estimates that he's spent more than 3 years of his life in India alone.
My guest mixer this week is Stephen G. Titley
Steve is, by his own description, a writer, standup, actor, singer and (dad) dancer. He is the man behind the Church Of The Fall, and was recently seen performing in a highly entertaining production of Hey Luciani! at the Prestwich Arts Festival.
My guest mixer this week is Chris Ruth aka 'bzfgt'
Chris is the man behind the remarkable website The Annotated Fall, as well as the Grateful Dead blog Every Dark Star. He was also one of the esteemed judges on the Fall Cup panel.
My guest mixer this week is Terry Christian TV and radio presenter, journalist, comedian and author - he was memorably described in 1994 as ‘the most hated man on television.’ Although, as he points out, this was, ironically, by none other than Piers Morgan. A friend of mine texted me in advance of the interview to say that Terry is 'one of life's good guys and very, very opinionated so it should be a great listen.' Hopefully, you'll find that all that is true!
My guest mixer this week is Kirsty Pringle
In celebration of her birthday, I invited my lovely wife Kirsty to select a set of songs that she loves and - just about - fit the criteria. (There was some bending of the rules that nobody other than her would have got away with!)
She has appeared on one of my podcasts before (episode #29 of the Fall in Fives Radio Show) and we got a lot of positive feedback for that. Hopefully, you'll all enjoy this one just as much...
My guest mixer this week is Thurston Moore
Thurston is, of course, a founder member of the premier noise-rock band of the late 20th / early 21st century, Sonic Youth. Post-SY, he has had a rich and varied career including a multitude of solo projects and collaborations as well as a well-worth-reading memoir, Sonic Life.
This is another longer than usual episode, but hey... it's Thurston Moore ferchrissakes...
My guest mixer this week is Doug Evans
Doug and I crossed paths via a shared love of the Sombrero Fallout podcast. He resides in North Carolina (the 'Tarheel State', apparently), but in a truly random coincidence it turns out that his great-great-grandfather hailed from the same small Welsh village as my wife!
It's great to have musicians, authors, journalists on the show; but it's also a joy to have guests on that are just passionate about the music they listen to...
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