Today is the start of a new series which features songs by singers that I’m not a fan of being sung by people I do like. The original artists are often successful and far more well known than those I’ve chosen, though they’re also performers that I wouldn’t usually admit to liking. I had planned to feature Whitney Houston at a later date, but her untimely death over the weekend has pushed her to the front of the queue. Her first appearances on the musical scene in the eighties coincided with my own introduction to music during that decade, first through music videos, then the radio and finally the humble cassette tape. I remember being particularly struck by the 1987 single from her second album, I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me), possibly her finest performance
The second part of my list of favourite albums from last year continues with five acts that were already familiar to me from previous years. I’m a big fan of the debut album by Fleet Foxes and I was always going to like their second record. I don’t like it as much as their first one, however, and I have to admit that it’s taken me a while to get into it. It doesn’t have any standout tracks like White Winter Hymnal on the previous album, but it works well as a consistent collection of original songs and that’s why it makes it onto my list
I’ve been meaning to put up a list of my favourite albums of 2011 for a while now, but I’ve only gotten around to it this week. I didn’t think 2011 was one of the best in recent years for new releases, though I did have a few dozen worthy efforts on my final list. When I narrowed it down to ten I noticed that it was evenly split along gender lines, so I’m going to present it in two parts
It’s the fiftieth anniversary of Ireland’s national television broadcaster this year and amidst all the backslapping I’m sure there’ll be one or two shows worth checking out. One of the highlights so far was a tribite to one of Ireland’s first and finest rock stars. The Phil Lynott Archive was produced and directed by David Heffernan and featured already existing footage of the former Thin Lizzy frontman as well as new interviews and film. The near hour long programme didn’t contribute anything too new to his already well-documented story but it was wonderful to relive some of his finest moments again. We got to see clips of Phil’s early days with Taste, Lizzy’s heyday in the seventies and his solo work in the eighties. It was also interesting to compare the less coherent interview of a stoned Lynott backstage with the more gregarious fella on The Late Late Show with Gay Byrne. The interviews with the great and the good were mostly padding but I quite enjoyed the discussion of Lynott’s songwriting abilities by contemporary musicians. Even though Lizzy were lumped in with the hard rock and heavy metal crowds, Phil was equally at home writing a melodic ballad like Sarah or Dancing in the Moonlight. I had a look through my collection to see what if I had any versions of Phil’s songs by other artists and I was pleasantly surprised to find I had a few
George Harrison: Living in the Material World is a return to form for director Martin Scorsese following the 2008 release of Shine a Light, his rather lacklustre concert film about The Rolling Stones. Fortunately, his depiction of the Beatle known as The Quiet One has more in common with Scorsese’s 2005 film about Bob Dylan. No Direction Home was over 200 minutes long and in two parts, but still managed to only cover Dylan’s career up to 1966. Living in the Material World is also a two-parter and is similar in length to the Dylan one, but manages to cover the whole of Harrison’s life up to his death on November 29th, 2001. A major strength of No Direction Home was its newly-recorded interviews with an extremely open and talkative Dylan. Living in the Material World makes up for the loss of its protagonist by drawing on a range of interviews with Harrison at various points in his career. It opens by chatting to two of his uncles who talk about the younger George growing up in Liverpool and also draws upon letters written by George to his parents. These are voiced by an actor and would have been more effective if he sounded like Harrison or, at least, adopted a Scouse accent. Visually, the lack of film footage from this period is nicely balanced by a simple but effective use of black & white photographs. Many of these appeared to be newly discovered and we also get to see a lot of unseen footage from his days with The Beatles
It’s the final episode of the current season of Later with Jools Holland this week and it features another half dozen artists from around the world. The Red Hot Chili Peppers put out their tenth studio album (and their first in five years) in August. It’s called I’m With You and sees lead guitarist John Frusciante being replaced by Josh Klinghoffer. Frusciante did play on the band’s cover of Stevie Wonder’s Higher Ground on 1989′s Mother’s Milk album. It’s been four years since Bjork released her previous studio album and Biophilia is her eight and most recent one. Ruby Baby was written by Leiber and Stoller, was first a hit for The Drifters in 1956 and again six years later for Dion. It’s been three years since Oasis released their sixth (and possibly final) album. Guitarist and songwriter Noel Gallagher has just released his first solo record and it’s called Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, which is also the name of his band. He draws on his Irish and Mancunian heritage on his live version of the classic from The Smiths. Gillian Welch is an American singer-songwriter who performs within the country and bluegrass genres. She makes music with her partner David Rawlings and they released their first album since 2003 earlier this year. She might not be an obvious choice to sing a Radiohead tune, but her take on Black Star doesn’t seem out of place in her repertoire. Michael Kiwanuka is a British songwriter of Ugandan parentage who grew up in London. You can hear soul and jazz influences in Tell Me a Tale, the title track of one of two EPs he’s released this year. Spector are a five-piece from London and the indie sound of What You Wanted is nothing new, but worth a listen. This season’s final instalment of Later goes out tonight and Friday on BBC Two
Today’s post is brought to you by the number eleven and is just one tune shy of a dozen tracks. Each song contains the fifth prime number in its title, though I don’t know if any of the songs feature an eleventh chord. I had to leave a few songs off the first eleven, but I’ve included a couple of instrumental pieces and also two spoken word selections. You can listen to them in whatever order you like and at whatever volume you find comfortable. Just remember that all these songs go up to eleven
Today is also the day that eleven Irish footballers will line up in the first of two games against Estonia to see who’ll go through to the European Championships next year. I’ll be watching that first leg in my local in Galbally, Co Limerick, and I’ll actually be at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin to watch the second tie. Most people are quite optimistic about Ireland’s chances of getting through, though it may go right down to the eleventh hour. We don’t really mind as long as we don’t go out in similar circumstances to that night in Paris nearly two years ago. Good luck, Ireland
This week’s Later with Jools Holland features performances from the interesting collaboration between Lou Reed and Metallica. This seemingly unusual partnership has just released a concept album called Lulu. It’s not about the life of the Scottish singer, but is based on a couple of plays by a German playwright named Frank Wedekind. Texan musician, Steve Earle, will be playing songs from his most recent release, I’ll Never Get Out of This World Alive. The T-Bone Burnett-produced record takes its name from a Hank Williams song and is also the name of his first novel, which was published this year as well. Earle will be backed by The Dukes, featuring his wife, Allison Moorer. From New Orleans, Aaron Neville will be going back to his roots as he delivers songs from his latest album, I Know I’ve Been Changed. Let’s hope that London-based Various Cruelties sound more interesting than their name. After I had written the post, I learned that Hollie Cook and Keb’ Mo’ have also been added to this week’s bill. Later goes out every Tuesday and Friday on BBC Two
