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A carpet of cherry blossom
Fleeting but spectacular, their mutable beauty is annually inspirational, and with ideas budding from last week’s theme, guest of the week ParaMhor picks a splendid spread of musical colour
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A revolutionary show: Les Misérables (with revolving stage)
The curtain rises and and it’s time fabulous show! Picking from the many nominations from last week’s topic, Marco den Ouden directs a set of playlists of transcedant numbers from over a century of song and dance landmarks
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Are you watching? The musical and visual chemistry of Breaking Bad
Sometimes the visual and audible become inextricable. From nostalgia to drama, guest of the week Loud Atlas channels nominations from last week’s TV topic into playlists that are must-sees and required listening
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Underdog under dog
From the financially underprivileged to the militarily outnumbered, sporting longshots to those barred by the race, from last week’s topic suggestions, guest Loud Atlas’ powerful picks show how the apparent minnows can become mighty
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Reflection on Omaha beach in the aftermath of D-Day battles on 6 June 1944
Following the 80th anniversary of one of the most significant events of the 20th century, guest playlister Maki picks poignant and powerful selections abuot that event as well as other do-or-die metaphors inspired by last week’s D-Day topic
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Mic King: Nat King Cole
How do you demonstrate the craft of crooning? It brings a broader range than you imagine. After the many nominations springing from last week’s topic, defining as all about style and using the microphone, guest playlister ParaMhor brings some perfect performance picks …
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Tony Bennett and Amy Winehouse. But how many crooners are there in this photo?
This week it’s time to to get close to the microphone explore the evolution of crooning in the full range, the style, the technique, the good, bad and ugly, emotive, intimate and excellent, the creative, the cosy, and the cringeworthy, the sensitive and sentimental
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Slowdive back in the day … but now reaching a new audience
Jazz, classical, acoustic rock to neo-folk, gentle pop and soul to ambient electronica, there’s a whole texture of sounds audible when the bang of drums and other struck percussion are absent. Inspired by last week’s topic, guest Nilpferd brilliantly guides us through a more delicate, nuanced musical experience
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What letters might form into songs?
From catchy hooks to deeper meanings revealed, a combination of letters can be a clever way to compose lyrics or a song title. Guest playlister ajostu unscrambles hundreds of suggestions from last week’s topic to superbly spell it all out
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“Recognise your age, it’s a teenage rampage.” Sweet!
Life’s SO unfair! NOBODY understands! After a huge outpouring of song suggestions on this angst-ridden subject, guest of the week Olive Butler picks out two wonderfully entertaining playlists that really reach for the inner child
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There’s something inside … Labi Siffre
Love and marriage, fighting alcoholism, fearless drag queens, 400 years of black resilience, to being able to bend rather than be brittle and break – there’s something very strong going on here, thanks for playlists picked by guest magicman inspired by last week’s topic
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Beautiful hybrid: the speckled nightingale thrush (Catharus maculatus)
They must sing on, and will not stop. From the national bird of Ukraine to a whole variety of vocally dextrous thrushes, this enduring topic, coming from a huge flock of nominations last week, is given full and beautiful playlist flight by guest Severin
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British and German troops buck tradition, but also honour it, during the Christmas Day truce of 1914, to play football instead of war
Ancient religions to strange festivals, drinking rituals to counting sheep to chasing cheeses, small slices of history to long formed social behaviour, enjoy wonderful stories and playlists picked by guest Marco den Ouden from last week’s topic
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There’s only one direction to go in 2021, and Derrick shows the way …
From party bangers to soulful sensitivity, guest playlister DJ Bear aka PopOff! kicks off the new year with poignancy and positivity inspired by a tonne of nominations. After all what other way is there to go but up?
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What orange-ments are playing out this week?
Fresh, funky, bright and effervescent, spreading from Jamaica to India, France and America and all the way to Japan, this week’s guest playlister Hoshino Sakura captures the essence of this colour in all forms, sky to fruit to street
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King of swing: Django Rehinhardt
Jacques Dutronc to Jacqueline Taieb to Joni Mitchell, all the sights and sound of the great French city are captured in deux listes belles by our guru du semaine fantastique, swawilg. Take a stroll, stop at a café and enjoy …
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Linda Ronstadt, Dolly Parton and Emmylou Harris
Intricate jazz to country three-part harmony, postpunk, pop, indie, hip-hop, Cuban traditional to perfect Persian drumming, playlister Nilpferd picks a perfect ‘triumph-virate’ of holy trinities across genres
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The Boswell Sisters
Armstrong and Astaire to the Boswell Sisters and Al Bowlly, Whispering Jack Smith to Sarah Vaughan, this week's guest playlist writer DiscoMonster digs out many a treasure in a golden age of discovery
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A different sort of lap dance
This week's topic will not only bend your minds, but also your knees. From standing up to authority or reaching other heights, to staging a sit-in, suggest songs that refer to any associations in titles or lyrics
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Dinner at Jack Rabbit Slims. Care to dance?
Breakfast, lunch, dinner, elevenses, afternoon tea or midnight snacks? This week it's time to serve up a musical smorgasbord that's as much about the social setting and time of day as the food
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