playlist

Playlist of the month: Electro Swing

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A screenshot of my electro swing playlist on Spotify

We’re getting to the end of the January, so it’s time for another playlist of the month. This month I’m focussing on one specific niche genre: electro swing. Imagine swing and jazz music, but overlaid with a modern dance beat. It’s fun music and easy to dance to. Here’s a 10 track sampler playlist – as usual, you can listen along on Spotify.

  • “Inspector Gadget” by Madam Misfit. I had to get a Madam Misfit track in somewhere, as she’s one of my favourite artists. Alas, she’s not at this year’s Sci-Fi Weekender as it clashes with a Steampunk festival in America. This song covers the theme tune to the Inspector Gadget TV series, with additional verses written by Ms Misfit.
  • “Horny” by Pisk. This is a cover of the late 1990s song by Mousse T vs Hot ‘n’ Juicy (“I sent a message through the internet but it rejected).
  • “Still In Love With You” by Electro Velvet. Probably the most commercially successful electro swing song, on account of it being the 2015 UK Eurovision entry. Alas, the rest of Europe weren’t so keen, and it scored 5 points overall and we came 24th out of 27 countries.
  • “Take A Chance” by Odd Chap featuring Sarah Myers. Odd Chap is one of the most well-known artists in the electro swing subculture, and this song features songs by Sarah Myers who is actually Madam Misfit in another guise.
  • “Headless Horseman” by Kid Kasino. Halloween themed songs seem to be a big thing in electro swing, so whilst it may be January and October, it would be remiss for me not to include this.
  • “Black Betty” by Caravan Palace. Yes, it’s an electro swing cover of the Ram Jam classic.
  • “Hit and Run” by The Electric Swing Circus
  • “Dizzy” by Balduin
  • “Midnight” by Swingrowers
  • “Chaos Parade” by Riff Kitchen

Playlist of the month: New Year

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A screenshot of the New Year's Day playlist on Spotify

So it’s time for a playlist of the month for December. I did my best Christmas songs last year, and whilst I considered doing a ‘worst Christmas songs’ playlist this time, I decided that no-one really wants that. Anyway, as it’s a new year in a few days’ time, here’s a New Year’s Day playlist. I cannot confirm or deny that these are the first 10 songs that I liked when searching for ‘new year’ on Spotify.

  • New Year’s Day by U2. I know this better as the 2003 remix, New Year’s Dub, but here’s the 1983 original. Yes, you’re old.
  • Happy New Year by Abba. I’m not a big Abba fan, and this was released before I was born. It’s a typical Abba song.
  • No Tears for New Years by Katy Perry. After a couple of older songs, here’s a brand new one from Perry’s latest album.
  • New Year’s Day by Taylor Swift. This is actually the first time I’ve included a Taylor Swift song in my playlists of the month. It’s from her sixth album Reputation, so, at the time of writing, there’s no (Taylor’s version).
  • New Year by Sugababes. The second single from their first album, and was released before any of their numerous line-up changes. I suppose you can consider it both a Christmas and New Year song.
  • New Year’s Revolution by NOFX. Start the new year with a bit of pop punk. Although “Next year is gonna be bad, The next one even worse” maybe isn’t the most upbeat way.
  • Is It New Year’s Yet? by Sabrina Carpenter. Another relatively new song, having been released last year.
  • New Year’s Resolution by Otis Redding and Carla Thomas. And now for a much, much older song; this one is from 1967. A bit of a slow jam this one.
  • What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve? by Ella Fitzgerald. Staying in the 1960s, Ella Fitzgerald is well known for her classic versions of Frosty the Snowman and Sleigh Ride, but she also did this New Year’s song too.
  • New Year’s Day by Rob Thomas. You may know Rob Thomas as the lead singer of Matchbox Twenty, or the guest vocalist on Carlos Santana’s song ‘Smooth’. This is another slow piano track.

Playlist of the month: Musicals

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Screenshot of the musicals playlist

Now I’m not saying that it’s mandatory for queer men like myself to like musical theatre – but, let’s face it, lots of us do, and I’m no exception. Both my wife and previous girlfriend were involved in a musical theatre society at university (same university but not at the same time), and I’ve seen a number of shows, both locally and in the West End in London. And, seeing as Wicked is now a film, it’s a good theme with which to base a playlist on. So, here are my favourite songs from musicals. As ever, you can listen to it on Spotify.

  • “Defying Gravity” from Wicked, by Kerry Ellis. This isn’t the version on either the stage or film soundtrack, but a belting cover version by Kerry Ellis. Although, to be fair, Ellis played Elphaba for a time during its West End run. This is one of my morale boosting songs.
  • “The Greatest Show” from The Greatest Showman. Friends fear that he’s been listening to the Greatest Showman soundtrack and has just found another excuse to include this in a playlist. Yes, I included it in July’s ‘duets’ playlist too.
  • “You Can’t Stop The Beat” from Hairspray. It’s not quite the finale but it’s the big number where the audience is usually encouraged to join in. Back before Netflix was available in the UK, I rented the DVD of Hairspray, not realising it was the (non-musical) 1980s original with Ricki Lake, and not the then new (musical) film version.
  • “I Wanna Be A Producer” from The Producers. This is one of those songs that I randomly break out into. I enjoyed the film adaptation and have also seen a good amateur production in Bradford.
  • “Just Around The Corner” from The Addams Family. I don’t think enough people know that there’s an Addams Family musical, especially after Wednesday came out a couple of years ago. It’s about Wednesday coming of age, and this song is a solo by Morticia.
  • “Unfortunate” from Unfortunate. We went to see this very camp Little Mermaid spin-off earlier this year, and I would strongly recommend it. It’s refreshing to hear new music on stage, and a break from the seemingly endless jukebox musicals.
  • “When I Grow Up” from Matilda. We managed to see the Matilda musical in the West End shortly before it won loads of awards, and it was excellent. This song manages to be both fun and heartbreaking at the same time. Also, it’s the only one of these that I’ve performed in a show before.
  • “Let It Go” from Frozen. Oh come on, just because this song has been massively over-played, doesn’t mean it’s not good. How many kids songs manage to include words like ‘fractals’?
  • “How Far I’ll Go” from Moana. I haven’t actually watched Moana all the way through in one go, but I’ve probably seen all of it collectively as our eight-year-old has watched it multiple times on Disney+. Whilst it’s not made it to the stage yet, this is a good song. I imagine we’ll be watching the sequel at some point soon.
  • “Ex-Wives” from Six. Six is a musical that I really want to see, but haven’t managed to yet. I’ve listened to and enjoyed the soundtrack a few times though.

Playlist of the month: Halloween Party

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Screenshot of the Halloween Party playlist on Spotify

When it comes to choosing a playlist of the month for October, it has to be Halloween-themed, doesn’t it? In the hope that I’ll have chance to do one again next year, I’m specifically focussing on party tunes for Halloween this time. Here’s the Spotify playlist.

  • Ghostbusters by Ray Parker Jr. As well as being the theme tune to a cult-classic film, this is a great catchy party song.
  • Everybody (Backstreet’s Back) by Backstreet Boys. Whilst the lyrics are not especially Halloween-themed, the music video and accompanying dance moves are. Also, any song which unironically opens with ‘Oh my god, we’re back again!’ is good to me.
  • She Wolf by Shakira. Not one of her most-played songs on Spotify (that honour goes to Hips Don’t Lie, with nearly 2 billion streams) but it fits the theme.
  • Time Warp by the Cast of the Rocky Horror Picture Show. Can you have a Halloween party without people doing a jump to the left, and a little step to the right, while being driven insane by pelvic thrusts?
  • Things That Go Bump In The Night by allStars. I mentioned this song back in March, as it was one that was recently brought back onto digital platforms by Pop Music Activism. It’s now up to 5 million streams as I write this.
  • Witch Doctor by The Cartoons. The Cartoons were a late 90s novelty Danish pop band, and this cover version is much better than the original 1950s song by Ross Bagdasarian.
  • Scared of the Dark by Steps. Again, we can’t have a pop party without Steps. This is one of their more recent songs after a long hiatus, and, like many of their newer singles, is also one of their best.
  • Super Freak by Rick James. Possibly not the sort of song to play at a kid’s birthday party if you listen closely to the lyrics. It’s the song that was famously sampled by MC Hammer for Can’t Touch This.
  • Monster Mash by Bobby “Boris” Pickett and the Crypt-Kickers. Oh go on, let’s throw a classic in here. I think most people know the lyrics by now.
  • Disturbia by Rihanna. And finally another one with a catchy ‘bum-bum-be-dum-bum-bum-be-dim-bum’ in the lyrics.

Playlist of the Month: Ikea

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Screenshot of the Ikea playlist on Spotify.

‘Good grief’, you may be thinking, ‘how can there be enough songs about Ikea to make a playlist?’. Well, I was aware of four, and found several more while creating this playlist. Seeing as it’s September, which is a time when many 18-year-olds are dragged around Ikea to get furniture, bedding and utensils before setting out on their own for the first time, I thought it would make a good theme.

Also, for some reason our eight-year-old has developed a hatred of Ikea. Which is a shame because we do need to go sometime soon.

As usual, you can follow the playlist on Spotify.

  • “Ikea” by Grace Petrie. “It’s Wednesday evening in Ikea; There’s just two kinds of people here; And in my life, I have been both”. I can relate this, as I too have been both. It’s a sad little song from the phenomenal Grace Petrie, who I’ve blogged about before. Also available on Bandcamp.
  • “I Fear Ikea” by The Lancashire Hotpots. Sung to the tune of ‘The Wild Rover’, this laments the labyrinthine layout and that you have to pick the boxes out of the warehouse yourself, which then don’t fit in the car. The Hotpots are well worth listening to if you like musical comedy and have a northern English sense of humour, like I do.
  • “Ikea” by Jonathan Coulton. JoCo is probably best known for the song ‘Still Alive’ which plays during the credits of the game Portal. This is from his 2003 debut album, Smoking Monkey.
  • “Ikea” by Mitch Been and the Distractions. Mitch originally recorded this for BBC Radio 4’s The Now Show, and I seem to remember him playing it dressed as a Viking in an Ikea car park for the one-off BBC Two show ‘Ikea Drives Me Crazy’. Also available on Bandcamp.
  • “Ikea” by Urban Cone. This is the first of the songs that I found whilst researching this playlist.
  • “Ikea Date” by SWMRS. This was the second, where the singer is recalling a dream set in an Ikea.
  • “Ikea Strikes Back” by CLIFFDIVER. This was the third. I actually quite like this song despite not having heard of the band before.
  • “Ikea” by Suman Biswas. I actually own this CD and never realised this track was on it. Suman is a consultant anaesthetist who used to be part of a double act called the Amateur Transplants with Adam Kay. Also available on Bandcamp.

Playlist of the month: 90s Summer

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A screenshot of the 90s Summer Songs playlist on Spotify

We’re getting to the end of another month, and so with just a few hours remaining in August, here’s this month’s playlist. I appreciate that the weather hasn’t been particularly summery this week (stormy more like) but this month’s theme is songs that remind me of the summer holidays of the 1990s. You can listen along on Spotify if you want.

  • ‘Steal my Sunshine’ by Len. This Canadian band ended up being something of a one-hit wonder with this upbeat song 25 years ago.
  • ‘Waiting for Tonight’ by Jennifer Lopez. Oooh, a JLo song for the second month running. I listened to a lot of Galaxy 105 (now known as Capital) during the school holidays and this was in regular rotation.
  • ‘Save Tonight’ by Eagle Eye Cherry. This was everywhere in the summer of 1998, from the half-brother of Neneh Cherry. Whilst a second single and an album did well, you may be surprised to know that a further five albums followed – I certainly was.
  • ‘Lovefeel (Tee’s Club Radio)’ by The Cardigans. The dance remix of that song from Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet, courtesy of American DJ Todd Terry. It was some time later before I heard the slower original.
  • ‘Staying Out For The Summer’ by Dodgy. Dodgy had been around since the early 90s, and this song was originally released in 1994. Their 1996 single ‘Good Enough’ was what brought them fame, however.
  • ‘Cecilia’ by Suggs, Louchie Lou & Michie One. The original was by Simon & Garfunkel, but Suggs from the band Madness released this speeded up version with some additional reggae vocals in 1996.
  • ‘In The Summertime’ by Shaggy & Rayvon. We’re in 1995 now and another cover, this time of the Mungo Jerry classic with additional rapping from Shaggy.
  • ‘Twist and Shout’ by Chaka Demus & Pliers. Another cover! Reggae music was big in the mid-90s and I prefer this to the original.
  • ‘Wake Up Boo’ by The Boo Radleys. A mainstay of the student club nights that I went to in the early 2000s, but originally from 1995. They’re regarded very much as a ‘one hit wonder’ despite having released eight (!) studio albums, the most recent of which came out last year.
  • ‘Macarena (Bayside Boys Remix)’ by Los Del Rio. And we’re back in remix territory. The original came out in 1993, but it was the 1995 remix by the Bayside Boys, and subsequent dance moves, that made this song so popular. Sorry, but I actually like this song.

Playlist of the month: Actors turned artists

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Screenshot of the actors turned artists playlist on Spotify

Last month, I shared with you some appallingly bad cheese. This month, the theme is ‘actors turned artists’ – actors who have gone on to release music. There were quite a lot to choose from, although some are technically from musical films. Here’s the link to the playlist on Spotify.

  • ‘I’m Just Ken’ by Ryan Gosling. Gosling showed his singing talent in La La Land, but his solo in last year’s Barbie movie brought greater awareness. Especially to those who don’t remember him being on the Mickey Mouse Club.
  • ‘What If’ by Kate Winslett. Winslett sang this for a 2001 animated adaptation of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, and it was released as a single to promote the film. She has such an amazing singing voice, so it’s a shame that there aren’t more songs out there that she has recorded and released.
  • ‘Yellow’ by Jodie Whittaker. Whittaker is probably best known as being the 13th Doctor, and released this lovely cover version of Coldplay’s debut single for BBC Children in Need in 2019.
  • ‘On the Floor’ by Jennifer Lopez. JLo is probably as well known for her acting as for her singing. This song is probably my favourite of hers but ‘Waiting for Tonight’ is also top tier.
  • ‘The Greatest Show’ by Hugh Jackman. Oh no, another excuse to have a song from The Greatest Showman soundtrack in a playlist! Jackman was well known as musicals star before taking on the role of Wolverine in the X-Men films.
  • ‘Wild Wild West’ by Will Smith. There was a time when every Will Smith film had a song that accompanied it, although I’ve not seen Wild Wild West myself.
  • ‘Boy You Knock Me Out’ by Tatyana Ali. Ali was Will Smith’s co-star in the Fresh Price of Bel Air, and released a solo album in 1999 featuring a guest rap by Smith on this song.
  • ‘Under the Broadwalk’ by Bruce Willis. A friend at university had this on cassette tape, along with other novelty songs such as ‘Star Trekkin’ by The Firm.
  • ‘Looking for Freedom’ by David Hasselhoff. What can I say other than it’s David Hasselhoff singing?
  • ‘Falling Down’ by Scarlett Johansson. I could have chosen any number of other Marvel Cinematic Universe actors here as it seems that many of them have released albums (either solo or in bands) but I chose this one.

Playlist of the month: Eurovision hits

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Unlike last month, I’m actually publishing this month’s playlist mid-month. And seeing as it’s Eurovision week, these are all my favourite hits from previous Eurovision years. My verdicts on this year’s songs are here.

You can listen along to this playlist on Spotify if you wish.

  • “Dancing Lasha Tumbai” by Verka Serduchka. A memorable performance from Ukraine in 2007. Allegedly ‘Lasha Tumbai’ was changed from ‘Russia goodbye’, as Eurovision tries to be non-political (but invariably is). It came second, losing to Serbia. It’s one of those very silly songs that epitomises Eurovision.
  • “Euphoria” by Loreen. Currently holds the record for most votes for any song performed in a Eurovision final and rightly a winner for Sweden in 2012. Loreen went on to win Eurovision again for Sweden last year, although I’m not so keen on her 2023 song “Tattoo”.
  • “Ooh ahh… Just A Little Bit” by Gina G. The British entry from 1996, and an absolute gay anthem. It didn’t win, although it came seventh which is pretty good compared to recent British Eurovision performances (2022 excepted). Gina G is actually Australian, and now Australia competes in Eurovision. Please don’t think too hard about the geographical implications of this.
  • “Satellite” by Lena. A fun little song which won for Germany in 2010. Lena would represent Germany again in 2011 but wasn’t as successful.
  • “Je Me Casse” by Destiny. The Maltese entry in 2021. A friend described this as Lizzo meets Mr Saxobeat (an Alexandra Stan song) and I agree, but it works. It came seventh. 2021 was an unusual event as it was the first show since 2019 and had a significantly smaller audience. Also, four countries (including the UK) got nul points that year.
  • “Only Teardrops” by Emmelie de Forest. This was the 2013 winner for Denmark.
  • “Thing About Things” by Daði Freyr. The probable winner for the contest that never was. This was Iceland’s entry for the 2020 contest that was cancelled due to you know what. Daði Freyr came back with a new song for 2021 but didn’t win.
  • “Diva” by Dana International. This won in 1998 in Birmingham, following Britain’s most recent win in 1997. Dana International was the first openly transgender Eurovision contestant and won with a great song.
  • “Toy” by Netta. Israel’s win in 1998 was followed by another win 20 years later, with this unusual but catchy song.
  • “Glorious” by Cascada. Whilst Cascada’s lead singer is British, this was the German entry for 2013. It didn’t do so well, coming 21st overall.

Playlist of the month: Funeral songs

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It’s time for the fifth instalment of my playlist of the month. Whereas last month was a mostly upbeat selection of songs about alcohol, this month is a little different.

Please note that this blog post carries a trigger warning for death and suicide. Please don’t feel that you have to read this if you’re not in the right head space to do so.

Ten years ago, my good friend Dave Jennings passed away. His death, from a heart attack, was completely unexpected and I still miss him even now. Dave was a music journalist, and his review of a record as a ‘daft, punky thrash’ may have inspired Daft Punk’s name.

At his funeral, there were two songs that I remember:

  • Always On My Mind by Pet Shop Boys. This played during the service, and whilst it’s a typical upbeat synth-pop song from the Pet Shop Boys, the lyrics took on a new poignancy that day.
  • Changes by David Bowie. Dave was always a massive Bowie fan. Sadly he wasn’t alive for the release of Bowie’s final album, Blackstar, which I’m sure he would have loved. This played as we entered the chapel at the crematorium.

To this, I’m adding the three songs that I would choose to have played at my funeral, in the hopefully highly unlikely event that this happens any time soon:

  • Good Riddance (Time of Your Life) by Green Day. “It’s somethin’ unpredictable, but in the end is right / I hope you had the time of your life”.
  • One More Light by Linkin’ Park. The title song of their final studio album, about showing that you care about someone even though they’re not here anymore. Hearing this following lead singer Chester Bennington’s suicide makes it all the more heartbreaking.
  • Whole World Is Watching by Within Temptation. Yes, I had to have a song by my favourite band on this list. It’s a duet, and probably their most radio-friendly song to date.

Playlist of the month: Alcohol

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Screenshot of the alcohol playlist on Spotify

Time for the fourth instalment of my Playlist of the Month, and this month, it’s all about alcohol and drinking seeing as Dry January is over. Unlike last month, this was a relatively easy topic to come up with.

Here’s the Spotify playlist if you want to listen along.

  • Drink – Alestorm. As you’d expect from a band called Alestorm, they’ve written a lot of songs about drinking over their seven (soon to be eight) albums. This was the first single from the fourth (and in my view best) album. Indeed it’s about 11 years ago since I saw them in Leeds.
  • Cigarettes and Alcohol – Oasis. I’m not a big Oasis fan but any playlist about alcohol would be remiss without this.
  • Vodka – Korpiklaani. This Finnish folk metal band has several songs about alcohol, with others including ‘Happy Little Boozer’ and ‘Bring Us Pints Of Beer’. ‘Vodka’ is probably their best.
  • Whiskey in the Jar – Metallica. It’s a traditional Irish folk song but this version by Metallica is probably its best known recording. A staple at any ceilidh.
  • Love Drunk – Boys Like Girls. You can be drunk, and indeed hungover, on love as well as alcohol, and this is one of my favourite songs in this genre.
  • Drinking in LA – Bran Van 3000. Quite the one-hit wonder from 1997.
  • Tequila – Terrorvision. A local band coming from just up the road from me in Keighley; this was probably their biggest hit thanks to a remix by Mint Royale.
  • Tubthumping – Chumbawumba. Another big song from the 1990s. Whilst Chumbawumba have released 16 albums to date, this is by far their most well-known song.
  • Drunken Lullabies – Flogging Molly. Another Irish-themed song; again, Flogging Molly have no shortage of songs about drinking but this is their most well-known song.
  • Beer – Reel Big Fish. And finally, a bit of ska to finish off.