Music

Is my first love, and it will be my last. And so sang John Miles in the 70s. It was around this time I fell in love with music.

For Christmas 1977 I got what must have been my first Boots voucher. Imagine rather than giving someone money where they could spend anywhere, a voucher that could only be spent in one shop? Genius, and we fell for it.

Still, I had a Boots voucher and wanted to buy a record; my choice was Abba's Take a Chance on Me. I remember it came in a plain white sleeve, or mine did, anyway. I didn't have a record player of my own, so I had to play it on Dad's radiogram when they were out.

A radiogram was a sideboard sized piece of furniture that had a record player and a radio inside. Ours was used mainly for listening to the radio, and that was a multi-band thing with all those fabulous European cities listed on them. I used to love Wednesday evenings when Dad and I would wait for the music to finish on Radio 2 and the commentary from somewhere in Europe would fade in and out on medium wave. All those strange names and places. It also meant I could stay up to half nine, maybe later if it been a good match and stay up for Sportsnight where the highlights might be shown.

Anyway, back to music: I remember the time when I heard a song I actually loved, and remarked that my heavy metal loving friend, Mark, that my new favourite song was Since You've been Gone by Rainbow. More of a pop-metal thing I guess. That summer, we had taken part in an exchange thing where we had a German student stay with us, we were to go to Germany in October. On a trip to Norwich my friends went into a long gone record shop and bough singles by UK Subs all on coloured vinyl; I didn't get it.

Later that year I did. Armed with more Boots vouchers I bought an album this time; Queen's Live Killers, as I loved the song Don't Stop me Now; but that wasn't on it, and I didn't get the live recordings of songs I knew and those, most of them, that I didn't know. I sold that on quite quickly.

Having started a paper round just before Christmas, I soon had twenty pounds of tips to spend money on; it was Pink Floyd's The Wall and both of Blondie's records, Parallel Line and Eat to the Beat. This was more like it, or at least the Blondie ones. Pink Floyd was spread over two records and was hard work for my 14 year old ears.

I think the first single I bought with my own money was also by Blondie; Atomic, which was not on a album, I think. But that was quickly followed by The Vapors Turning Japanese. Now I was an earner, i could buy whatever I wanted, just as long as it was one single a week. I earned it, Mum and and Dad I think were quietly pleased as they loved music too, although they played records very little.

Anyway, I had my own record player, or music centre as they were called. It had a deck, a tape player and a radio. And Dad hung the plastic speakers on the wall just perfect so they could vibrate and make the house echo to dodgy bass sounds. I recorded music from the radio, even though it was killing music, apparently.

A few years ago, my selection was on 6 Music's Gideon Coe's show feature, Hit the Dec's, where one listener would choose a favourite record from the 60s, 70s, 80s, etc. Here is my selection, and the reasons.

1960s:

Excerpt from a Teenage Opera by Keith West.

This was always on Junior Choice on Radio 1 when I was a kid. I hated it, and then a friend with whom I worked loved it, and I listened to it and realised how sad the words were. Grocer Jack did indeed die. But I guess the most amazing thing is that Radio 1 had a show just for kids, real kids, not indie Kids, but children, and they played The Laughing Policeman, Puff the Magic Dragon and all that kind of stuff. And David Bowie's The Laughing Gnome. Oh how we laughed. And we did.

1970s

Denis by Blondie.

Musically, the first thing I think Dad and I agreed on; although to be fair I think he had an altogether different interest to me. As a Sun reader (the shame) he said in hused tones as she danced across the screen, 'She don't like to wear anything on her legs, apparently' he drooled. I just loved the music and indeed she did look stunning. But, it was the music.

1980s

Song to the Siren by This Mortal Coil.

Not a hit, but a wonderful song. A cover of the Tim Buckley classic as done by an indie supergroup made from bands on the 4AD label and voiced by Elizabeth Frazier of the Cocteau Twins. To me, it sounded like nothing else, and now being a self-confessed indie kid who listened to John Peel every night, this was just perfect. At the end of 1984, two of my friends were killed in a road crash on Christmas Day; this was played as Chris' funeral. Has been known to reduce me to tears when played late at night.

1990s

Common People by Pulp

During the early years of 'Britpop' I lived in Germany where I was serving my country by drinking as much beer as I could. The queen was happy with that, she gave me a medal. And this, in the summer of 1995, after I split from my first wife, was the song I heard everywhere, and I think has stood time as the best thing to come out of the whole scene. Another Peel favourite, no need to add.


2000s


Tiny Spark by Brendan Benson

Brendan Benson found fame, of a kind, by being in the same band as The White Stripe's Jack White for a while. I got to love his music when I picked up his first album whilst in the US. This track was the first thing I heard of the second one, via his website. Nothing can ever come close to the goosebump inducing moment when I stood outside the Louisiana pub in Bristol and hear this being played as part of the soundtrack. Brendan's music is a mix of pop and catchy tunes with self-deprecating lyrics.


The first band I ever saw live was Iron Maiden at the beginning of 1981. I say Iron Maiden, in truth it was their support band, a French heavy metal band called Trust who were quite bad. Even still I went out and bought their record as soon as I could. I didn't keep it. Living in the wilds of East Anglia, getting to see bands was very difficult, impossible if you didn't have a car. Our nearest venue was at the University in Norwich, and they only had bands on during term time, and so six months of the year there were no gigs at all.
Someone at school arranged a bus from school, and some of my friends and I got tickets and went. I do remember my ears ringing for days afterwards, and having a very stiff neck from two hours of serious headbanging. That and the mildly comical sight of dwarfish lead singer Paul Di'Anno gurning as he roared the songs out.

I guess the best show I ever saw was me and my friend, Douggie went to London to see Prince play Wembley on the Lovesexy tour. We had seats a handful of rows from the front, and had a great time, and marvelled at the show as well as the music. I went in only quite liking his music and walked out a converted fan. Sadly, he put out ever decreasing quality records, and I fell out of love with his music. Bt we'll always have that night.