This is the third London mix, which I hope will receive a less muted reception than the Swinging London edition did. The astute readers who know London, or are keen students of the Underground map, will spot a sequence set entirely in North London: Holloway, Kentish Town, Tottenham, Archway, Hampstead and Camden Town.
This volume also answers three essential questions: which Madness and Clash songs will feature in this series, and (having featured The Kinks in Volume 2) which cover of Waterloo Sunset I’ll choose. I think I went for two less expected songs for Madness and The Clash. I think jazz pianist Joe Stilgoe’s cover of The Kinks’ song is an interesting interpretation.
The mix starts with the theme of the early ’90s comedy series Bottom (set in Hammersmith), a Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmondson vehicle which has not, truth be told, aged very well. The theme is a cover of B.B. King’s BB’s Blues, performed by The Bum Notes, a jazz group of which Edmondson is a member (they also played the closing theme, a cover of The Mar-Keys’ Last Night).
As always, the mix is timed to fit in a standard CD-R, and includes covers. PW in comments.
1. The Bum Notes – Theme from ‘Bottom’ (1991)
2. Blossom Dearie – I Like London In The Rain (1970)
3. Procol Harum – Souvenir Of London (1973)
4. Joe Jackson – Down To London (1980)
5. Lloyd Cole and the Commotions – Charlotte Street (1984)
6. The Men They Couldn’t Hang – Blackfriars Bridge (1989)
7. The Popes – Holloway Boulevard (2000)
8. Imelda May – Kentish Town Waltz (2010)
9. Robb Johnson & The Irregulars – When Tottenham Burned (2011)
10. Cath Carroll & Kerry Kelekovich – Moon Over Archway (2010)
11. The Dream Academy – Hampstead Girl (1987)
12. Louis Philippe – Sunday Morning Camden Town (1989)
13. Dan Reed Network – Seven Sisters Road (1989)
14. T.Rex – London Boys (1976)
15. Mott the Hoople – The Saturday Gigs (1974)
16. Dave Edmunds – London’s A Lonely Town (1976)
17. Madness – Victoria Gardens (1984)
18. The Clash – First Night Back In London (1982)
19. Ian Dury and the Blockheads – My Old Man (1977)
20. The Smiths – Half A Person (1986)
21. Belle & Sebastian – Mornington Crescent (2006)
22. Joe Stilgoe – Waterloo Sunset (2012)
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More London
For the second London mix (the first you’ll find HERE) we go back to the 1960s, riffing roughly on the idea of Swingin’ London, with all the Carnaby Street type references. Some are obvious London songs, others refer to London suburbs or landmarks incidentally, and a couple are set in London without making a fuss about it. Since the Swingin’ London vibe was a worldwide phenomenon, three songs here are in foreign language, French (Mireille Mathieu) and German (Sandie Shaw, Peggy March).
As always, the mix is timed to fit on a standard CD-R, and home-brewed covers are included. PW in comments.
1. The Tornados – Swinging Beefeater (1963)
2. Roger Miller – England Swings (1965)
3. The Tremeloes – Negotiations In Soho Square (1967)
4. The Kinks – Dead End Street (1967)
5. Claude François – Bench No. 3 Waterloo Station (1967)
6. Herman’s Hermits – London Look (1968)
7. Cat Stevens – Portobello Road (1967)
8. Donovan – Sunny Goodge Street (1965)
9. Peter Reeves – Loneliness Of London (1969)
10. Anita Harris – London Life (1965)
11. Burt Bacharach – Bond Street (1967)
12. Mireille Mathieu – Les Bicyclettes de Belsize (1965)
13. Sandie Shaw – London (1968)
14. Barbara Ruskin – Euston Station (1967)
15. Jackie Trent – 7.10 From Suburbia (1965)
16. Miserable Guy Who Shall Not Be Named – Slim Slow Slider (1968)
17. The Rolling Stones – Play With Fire (1965)
18. David Bowie – The London Boys (1966)
19. Small Faces – Itchycoo Park (1967)
20. Peggy March – In der Carnaby Street (1969)
21. Booker T and the MG’s – Carnaby St (1967)
22. The Beatles – Being For The Benefit Of Mr. Kite! (1967)
23. The New Vaudeville Band – Finchley Central (1967)
24. Simon & Garfunkel – Blessed (1966)
25. Bert Jansch & John Renbourn – Soho (1966)
26. Julie Driscoll, Brian Auger & The Trinity – Vauxhall To Lambeth Bridge (1969)
27. Davy Jones – Maybe It’s Because I’m A Londoner (1965)
28. Laurie Johnson Orchestra – Theme of The Avengers (1964)
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London
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A couple of years ago I posted a series of CD-R mixes comprising songs set in or about New York. This is the first in a series of mixes of songs set in or about London. I think there are four or five mixes in it — your reaction will guide me. I’ll try not to pick the most obvious songs, and no artist should feature more than once (sorry, The Kinks!).
Here and there, songs will come from surprising sources. Hall & Oates, for example, are not immediate candidates for London songs, nor is Glen Campbell. For Jane Birkin, who made her name as an artist and actress in the French scene, her London song is a sort of homecoming, with lyrics by Rufus Wainwright (whose dad turns up eight songs later) and guitar by Johnny Marr.
As always, the mix is timed to fit on a standard CD-R, and home-stewed covers are included. PW in comments.
1. Thames TV – Start-Up Sound (1968)
2. Glen Campbell – London (I’m Coming To See You) (1974)
3. Elvis Costello – London’s Brilliant Parade (1994)
4. Everything But The Girl – Oxford Street (1988)
5. Aztec Camera – Get Outta London (1990)
6. Josh Rouse – London Bridges (2007)
7. Michelle Featherstone – Camden Town (2009)
8. Jane Birkin – Waterloo Station (2006)
9. The Boo Radleys – Blue Room In Archway (1998)
10. Saint Etienne – London Belongs To Me (1991)
11. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds – Brompton Oratory (1997)
12. Hall & Oates – London Luck And Love (1976)
13. Linda Lewis – Hampstead Way (1971)
14. Ralph McTell – Kew Gardens (1969)
15. Nick Drake – Mayfair (1968)
16. Loudon Wainwright III – Primrose Hill (1997)
17. Jimmy MacCarthy – Missing You (1991)
18. The Pogues – Lullaby Of London (1988)
19. The Jam – Down In The Tube Station At Midnight (1978)
20. XTC – Towers Of London (1980)
21. Nick Heyward – Traffic In Fleet Street (1988)
22. Nouvelle Vague – Guns Of Brixton (2004)
23. David Arnold & Michael Price – Theme of Sherlock (2010)
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