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Towards armistice: some of the First World War determined
On the eve of the First World War Armistice centenary, this week we look at songs about striving through extremely difficult circumstances, whether in conflict or peacetime, extreme or daily situations
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No two walks are the same …
We all walk slightly differently, so this week it’s all about music that expresses various strolls, swings, swaggers, ambles or strides, and whether in politics or personal, marching bands or military, let’s capture the movement of the people
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The Devil does his thing in Tenacious D
Who’s your devil in disguise? Who has all he best tunes? This week, in a fun week leading up to Halloween, let’s explore songs that mention, in whatever form, the Devil, Satan and any other names he takes
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Harpo’s serious moments …
From the serenity and complexity of fingers sweeping strings to the twanging of the Jew’s harp, from the lyricism of the lyre to the zing of the zither, let’s stretch out with suggestions featuring these instruments
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Does this raise or lower the bar …?
Feeling on song? They may be derived from literature, media or historic, regular usage, but this week we’re looking how common phrases can jump out at you in lyrics, and ideally are used creatively or cleverly
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Oh England … Kate Bush
This is England. It began with a journey on the A roads and B roads, but instead of taking a geographical journey, this week’s guest barbryn travelled to the heart of identity, ascending beautiful heights, led by the lark
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England is dreaming? … Who? Keith, Roger, Pete and John
Let’s take a musical trip around this strange, sceptr’d isle, this land of eccentric frontmen, this place of punk and flourishing fashion, to pick up lots of place names and perhaps also define the nature of being English
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Creative halves: Two Kings In A Cipher - DOP (Deric Angelettie) and the Noble Ahmen-Ra (Ron Lawrence)
How do you separate so many great nominated songs into two playlists? This week’s guest, ParaMhor, divided and conquered hundreds of suggestions into two brilliant divisions, from Beatles to Steely Dan
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Which songs will get a cut this week?
The world is divided, but not always in a bad way. This week we look for songs with lyrics that mention halves, thirds, quarters, eighths and smaller, and any words that pertain to fractions that make up the whole or one …
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The divine Joanna Newsom: diluvian shoulders to magnetic embrace, balletic and glacial, of bear’s insatiable shadow
From antirrhinums of Jake Thackray to the pretentious Pet Shop Boys to the hyperbolic hippopotamus of Sparks, this week’s guest EnglishOutlaw articulates wonderfully wordy playlists from last week’s topic
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Let’s dust off, or blow away the ‘oose’ of our vocabulary air some great words
This week let’s delve deep into the musical lexicon for instances where unusual, oddball, inappropriate, funny, pretentious, antiquated or obscure words jump out, sometimes working well, or otherwise
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Bright Sparks. The very real Ron and Russell pose a few questions and have some of the answers
Got a problem? Sex and relationships? Work? Retail choices? All your questions will be answered by this week’s problem-solving guru Uncleben, who turns from agony uncle into ecstasy-inducing music playlister
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Genuine lip syncers Milli Vanilli
Being true to yourself or others to genuine article in objects, this week we’re seeking songs that, in lyrics, are about searching for authenticity, but might sometimes find the opposite from forgery to falsehood, bootleg to bullshit
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Brief Encounter (1945)
Fleeting romance to brief encounters, the transient to the terse, the brusque to burnout, the concise or condensed, our time is limited on Earth, but there’s still enough to suggest songs on this universal subject
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Bunny Wailer
Bunny Wailer, Blind Melon, Beastie Boys, Blur … there all here, you know, and very different. And that’s just a few of the Bs. This week’s guest playlist writer amylee gives you a whole lot more than fantastic playlists inspired by last week’s topic.
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Heading your way .. Julian Cope as Mr Squbbsy in London, 1990.
Eccentric historical figures to those who are currently out there, black sheep to persons offbeat, songs that express the outsider/insider paradox, this week let’s open our doors to songs about difference
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What's cooking in the Song Bar foundry? Silvery and other sounds are in this week's melting pot
Things are hotting up at the Song Bar foundry, as guest alchemist TatankaYotanka, filled with treasures from last week’s nominations, smelts up a priceless recipe of musical riches ready to play to you
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Where do these musical steps lead?
Watch your step! This week’s playlists lead in all directions – into the mysterious, fearful dark, and the upbeat light. Inspired by last week’s topic, playlist guest writer attwilightlarks gets our feet and feelings moving
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Perhaps these steps will lead you to the right key …
Steep, sweeping, stone, wood or metal? This week we're exploring how music give us a certain kind of lift – through lyrics that describe all ways to up or down, on foot or via mechanical means, actual or metaphorical
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Float this idea. Keats revisited …
Bakelite to early Bjork, polystyrene to Pink, plastic Jesus to Barbie, this week’s polycarbonates and vinyls come in all shapes from last week’s topic, wrapped in a clever Keats ode by playlist writer EnglishOutlaw
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