Friday has traditionally been my day off, but now that I have retired – it stil is! And therefore I like to have some fun with my music. So today we travel back to October 1939 to the release of the Marx Brothers movie ‘At The Circus’ and a classic performance of Lydia the Tattooed […]
Fifty Years of Ohio
Just over 50 years ago America was the scene of huge street marches protesting the Vietnam War. During one of these protests a group of unarmed students at Kent State University were fired on by Ohio’s National Guard. 67 rounds were fired in the space of 13 seconds leaving 4 dead and 9 wounded. The […]
Amira Willighagen – O Mio Babbino Caro
I very rarely look at ‘…Got Talent’ shows, but this one always stops me in my tracks. The voice is so unexpected and the songs were learnt listening to them on You Tube without any lessons. This is quite remarkable. Indeed she went on to win the competition. Amira and her family moved to South […]
Daria Kulesh Quartet – Pride Of Petravore
Katy and I first heard Daria when she performed at the Topic Folk Club in Bradford. Her music reflects her Russian and Ingush roots, ‘intertwined with multicultural influences she has experienced on her turbulent and exciting journey through life’. (her words) She is also wonderfully quirky. The songs that she sings tell wonderful stories of […]
The Ditty Bops – Sister Kate
It being Monday morning again, it is necessary to begin the week with something foot-tapping. So I have delved back to New Year Eve 2004 and the appearance of The Ditty Bops on the Conan O’Brien Show (apologies for the extraneous non musical content). The Ditty Bops were a band from LA that were noted […]
Orkestra Obsolete – Blue Monday (using 1930s instruments)
Covering an iconic song is always risky. It is often difficult to bring something new to the mix. Joe Cocker’s version of the Beatles’ ‘With A Little Help From My Friends’ stands out as probably the most successful example of the genre. It is to be noted that after he realeased his version the Beatles […]
Yo-Yo Ma – Bach Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major, Prélude
Today – an all time favourite. I first came across this piece when I heard on it the West Wing (season 2 Episode 10 – Noel 20.12.2000), where it formed a powerful background to Josh Lyman’s unfolding diagnosis of PTSD. It has stayed with me ever since. The six Cello Suites, BVW 1007-1012, are suites […]
Sofi Tukker – Deja Vu Affair
This next piece of music began as a case of mistaken identity. My first thought was this was the legendary variety entertainer Sophie Tucker only to find that it was an American musical duo based in New York consisting of Sophie Hawley-Weld and Tucker Halpern. Their song “Drinkee” from the Soft Animals EP was nominated […]
Symphonie Confinée – La Tendresse
A feature of the present lockdown experience has been the creative ways in which musicians have continued to pursue their art. Whilst we have been having zoom minutes and Facebook Live get togethers, some folk have been arranging performances of great complexity. The Symphonie Confinee are forty-five musicians and singers are brought together in a […]
Ievan’s Polkka
Today I want to take you on a musical journey with one of the catchiest earworms you will ever come across. It is entitled ‘Ievan’s Polkka’. It is a popular Finnish song with lyrics written in the early 1930s by Eino Kettunen to a traditional Finnish polka tune. The song is sung in very heavy […]