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Softly, softly, it's still here: distinctively quiet songs

April 30, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Pocomoke Sound, eastern shores of Maryland and Virginia

Pocomoke Sound, eastern shores of Maryland and Virginia

Pianissimo, sotto voce to whispering vocals, or acoustic lo-fi to minimalistic electro tones, gentle intimacy to slow menace, this week we move from songs about quietness, turning instead to those performed and recorded at a perceptively low level

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In African, avant-garde, blues, calypso, classical, country, dance, electronica, experimental, folk, indie, instrumentals, jazz, music, playlists, pop, rock, rocksteady, songs, soul, soundtracks, traditional Tags songs, playlists, quiet, Miguel de Cervantes, Catherine The Great, Roy Orbison, acoustic, Gillian Welch, Aidan Moffat, RM Hubbert, Bill Callahan, Smog, Joni Mitchell, Lambchop, Kurt Wagner, Nina Simone, Billie Eilish, Jamie xx, Oh Wonder, Camille Saint-Saëns, Einojuhani Rautavaara, Arvo Pärt, documentary, Pieter-Rim de Kroon
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Playlists: songs about quiet

April 29, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Shhh! It’s Björk

Shhh! It’s Björk

What does it mean to have quiet in your life? Inspired by hundreds of song nominations from last week’s topic, guest playlister DiscoMonster, puts together music through the prism of a story about truths, conflict and stillness

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In blues, country, dance, disco, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, gospel, hip hop, indie, instrumentals, jazz, metal, music, musicals, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, reggae, rock, ska, soul, traditional, songs Tags songs, playlists, quiet, The Zombies, Bjork, Fleet Foxes, Jorge Drexler, The Go-Betweens, Jamie xx, Bahama Soul Club, Nina Simone, Prince, Massive Attack, 'Til Tuesday, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Julian Cope, Depeche Mode, Japan, Parliament, Ibrahim Ferrer, Imara Portuondo, Miles Davis, Yona & Orkesteri Liikkuvat Pilvet, Kuusumun Profeetta, RiLF
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The undercurrent world: songs about quiet

April 23, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Spring bluebells quietly getting on with it

Spring bluebells quietly getting on with it

Tranquillity, calm and serenity, or concentration, slow stirring, unrest, plotting and revolution? There are all kinds of quiet out there, and this week it’s time to explore these as described or captured in song lyrics

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In African, avant-garde, blues, calypso, classical, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, gospel, funk, hip hop, indie, instrumentals, metal, music, musicals, playlists, pop, prog, postpunk, punk, reggae, rock, ska, songs, soul, soundtracks, traditional Tags songs, playlists, quiet, silence, Jane Austen, Charles Bukowski, Napoleon Bonaparte, Billy Joel, Robert Louis Stevenson, coronavirus, lockdown, environment, John Lydon, Sex Pistols, James Hetfield, Metallica, Pete Burns, Dead or Alive, will.i.am, Black Eyed Peas, Jodie Whittaker, Doctor Who, Kate Bush, Kurt Vile, Stevie Wonder, Ray Charles, Grace Jones, Kesha, Euripides, Adlai Stevenson I, William Wordsworth, Thomas De Quincey, Jonathan Swift, Laurence Sterne, Robert Greene, Mel Brooks, Henry David Thoreau, Noam Chomsky, Atanarjuat: The Fast Runner, Silence of the Lambs, Jonathan Demme, Stanley Kubrick, Barry Lyndon, 2001 A Space Odyssey, New York, London
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Playlists: songs about Hollywood

April 22, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Who will the musical spotlight hover over tonight?

Who will the musical spotlight hover over tonight?

It’s time to break out the popcorn, sit back and soak up the soundtrack of multiple movies and stories, hopes and dreams below those famous hills, perfectly projected from many nominations by guest director, philipphilip99

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In classical, blues, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, gospel, indie, instrumentals, jazz, music, musicals, playlists, pop, prog, rock, songs, soul, traditional, soundtracks, postpunk, ska Tags songs, playlists, Hollywood, Film, film soundtrack, Eryka Badu, Guy Clark, Loudon Wainwright III, The Everly Brothers, Lana Del Rey, Brigitte Fontaine, Bob Seger, Screen 3, Terry Callier, Jenny Lewis, Codeine Velvet Club, Billy Joel, Frank Zappa, Father's Children, Don Henley, Puppini Sisters, The Puppini Sisters, Jon English, Thin Lizzy, Dory Previn, Jackie De Shannon, The Miracles, Ariel Pink, Father John Misty, Sleater-Kinney, Felix Figueroa and his Orchestra, philipphilip99
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A whole heap of dreams: songs about Hollywood

April 16, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Hollywood Sign.jpg
Hollywood sign in reverse.jpg

It’s the most famous town in the world. This week our songs are about the place itself – its famous streets, landmarks, studios as well as the fascias, finery, or fakery of its people – their hopes, dreams, triumphs, failures, feuds and fantasies

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In avant-garde, blues, classical, comedy, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, gospel, hip hop, indie, instrumentals, jazz, metal, music, musical hall, musicals, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, reggae, rock, showtime, rocksteady, ska, songs, soul, soundtracks Tags songs, playlists, Film, film soundtrack, Hollywood, John Huston, Marilyn Monroe, Kevin Bacon, Dorothy Parker, Bernardo Bertolucci, Lionel Barrymore, Groucho Marx, Alistair Cooke, John Schlesinger, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Sunset Boulevard, Santa Monic Boulevard, Paramount Pictures, Capital Records, history, Christopher Ames, Max Lerner, Marlon Brando, Alan Arkin, Kimball King, Raymond Chandler, Angela Carter, La La Land, Erica Jong, Kris Kidd, WC Fields, Johnny Carson, James Baldwin, Billy Wilder, William Holden, Gloria Swanson, Buster Keaton, Cecil B. DeMille, Erich Von Stroheim, The Artist, Robert Altman, The Player, Tim Robbins, L.A. Confidential, James Ellroy, David Lynch, Mulholland Drive, Ethel Barrymore, Lily Amis, Andy Warhol, Fred Allen, Kermit, Kermit The Frog, The Muppets, Hollywood Walk of Fame, Rita Rudner, William Goldman, William Faulkner, Michael Houbrick, Sophie Kinsella, Rachel Weisz, Lana Turner, Ben Hecht, Woody Allen, A.K. Kuykendall, Paul Newman, George A Romero, Sir Cedric Hardwicke, Thomas Pynchon, Eric Cantona, Coen Brothers, Barton Fink, David Mamet, Caroline Kepnes, Bill Cosby, Donald Trump, Julia Phillips, Me Cheeta, John Waters, Terry Gilliam
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Playlists: songs about spring cleaning and household chores

April 15, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Sensational song suction: a huge hoover-up of hope in these week’s big playlists

Sensational song suction: a huge hoover-up of hope in these week’s big playlists

Spring cleaning takes energy, but the results can also generate even more. The same applies to this week’s serenely and clean playlists chosen by guest DJ Bear, who whizzes around the Bar with a hopeful heart and a spring in his step

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In African, avant-garde, blues, calypso, comedy, country, dance, disco, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, gospel, hip hop, indie, instrumentals, jazz, music, playlists, pop, postpunk, punk, reggae, rock, ska, songs, soul, traditional, soundtracks Tags songs, playlists, spring clean, household chores, John Prine, Miranda Lambert, Elvis Presley, Dolly Parton, Dr John, Roche Sisters, John Handy, Snuff, Poison Girls, Suzi Quatro, John Lennon, Yoko Ono, Paul Kelly and the Dots, Paul Kelly, John Cooper Clarke, XTC, The Au Pairs, Shonen Knife, B-52s, Robert Palmer, John McCutcheon, The Skatalites, Prince Buster, Fats Waller, Spike Jones and His City Slickers, Duke Ellington, Sidney Lipton & His Grosvenor House Dance Orchestra, George Formby, Adriana Caselotti, Cock 'n' Bull, The Corrs, Peggy Seeger, Maria Muldaur, Van Morrison, Jayme Kelly Curtis, Bruce Springsteen, Bill Haley and the Comets, The Coasters, The Spaniels, Sammy Jones, Ike and Tina Turner, Tina Turner, Ike Turner, Betty Wright, Laura Lee, Albert Collins, Wailing Souls, Tapper Zukie, The Philadelphia International All Stars, The Average White Band, Marcia Ball, Helen Boulding, DJ Bear, PopOff!
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Lockdown relief: songs about spring cleaning and household chores

April 9, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Gratuitous gif of Freddie and Roger from a song that is nothing to do with this topic

Gratuitous gif of Freddie and Roger from a song that is nothing to do with this topic

It’s time for some lockdown relief. While doing them, let’s also think up and sometimes dance to some numbers about those chores we all must now face, not just cleaning or sorting, but also the psychological cleanse and clear out

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In African, blues, calypso, classical, comedy, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, gospel, hip hop, indie, instrumentals, jazz, music, metal, musicals, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, reggae, rock, rocksteady, showtime, ska, songs, soul, traditional, soundtracks Tags songs, playlists, spring clean, spring, cleaning, household chores, Queen, Freddie Mercury, Phyllis Diller, A.A. Milne, Erma Bombeck, Joan Rivers, Simone De Beauvoir, Quentin Crisp, PJ O'Rourke, Mario Buatta, Shirley Conran, Agatha Christie, Bette Midler, Margaret Atwood, Peggy Lee, Katherine Whitehorn, Japanese chindogu, robots, Bob Dylan, Pablo Picasso, Mary Poppins
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Playlists: songs about the brain

April 8, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Einstein’s brain and music. Always connected.

Einstein’s brain and music. Always connected.

Albert Einstein to neuroplasticity, this week’s topic mixes the clever, complex cerebellum with music. Taking in last week’s many nominations, guest Marco den Ouden created a trio of mind-blowing playlists to educate and entertain

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In African, blues, avant-garde, classical, comedy, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, gospel, hip hop, indie, metal, music, jazz, instrumentals, musicals, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, rock, reggae, soul, songs, soundtracks, traditional Tags songs, playlists, the brain, psychology, Albert Einstein, René Descartes, Gilbert Ryle, Norman Doidge, Edward Taub, psychiatry, Bessel Van Der Kolk, Weird Al Jankovic, Young MC, African Head Charge, Imogen Heap, Blue Oyster Cult, Ezra Furman, Robyn Hitchcock, Richard Thompson, Joe Diffle, Rihanna, Bill Withers, Madness, Marco den Ouden, The Amboy Dukes, The Waifs, Katie Lee, Willie Nelson, Gabby Young and Other Animals, paul simon, Admiral Freebee, Philip Jeays, Willie Dixon, Enigma, deLillos, Eminem, Laurie Anderson, Matthew Trevino, Elvis Costello, Markley, a Group, Oasis, Tizzy Bac, Banks, Weezer, Starcrawler, Vangelis, Burning Spear, Linton Kwesi Johnson, Sun Ra, Leo Kottke, Mogwai, Stanley Clarke Trio, Shakti, Renegade Soundwave, Henry Cow, Chick Corea, Alphonse Mouzon, George Duke, David Alexrod, Nine Inch Nails
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Here's a thought: songs about the brain

April 2, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Which way are you thinking?

Which way are you thinking?

Let’s celebrate the cerebrum and engage with the encephalon through lyrics and song subject, whether it is the biological makeup of this squidgy Tardis, or mindful thoughts and functions it can control. Worth a thought, anyway …

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In African, avant-garde, blues, calypso, classical, comedy, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, gospel, hip hop, indie, jazz, metal, music, musicals, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, rock, ska, songs, soul, soundtracks, traditional Tags songs, playlists, the brain, psychology, William Shakespeare, Robert Frost, A.A. Milne, Carl Jung, Pink Floyd, Keith Richards, The Rolling Stones, Emily Dickinson, biology, Jeffrey Eugenides, marine biology, animals, Daniel Levitin, Steven Pinker, Carole King, Maryanne Wolf, Carl Sagan, Jonathan Swift, Dr Seuss, Edward de Bono, Ada Lovelace, Nikola Tesla, Thomas Edison, Jeff Bezos, Amazon, Tom Wolfe, Robyn Mundell, Dean Burnett, David Perlmutter, Arthur Conan Doyle, Yuval Noah Harari, Steve Martin, Film, television, Jonathan Coulton, Peter Jackson, Tropical Fuck Storm, The Wizard of Oz
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Playlists: songs about stars

April 1, 2020 Peter Kimpton
David Bowie of course. Star from start to finish.

David Bowie of course. Star from start to finish.

An astronomically huge topic resulting in a galaxy of nominations. This week’s guest playlister Amylee not only listened to them all, but turned them into a stellar set of songs spanning the musical universe

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In blues, classical, avant-garde, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, hip hop, gospel, indie, instrumentals, jazz, metal, music, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, reggae, rock, ska, songs, soul, soundtracks, traditional Tags songs, playlists, stars, astronomy, Oliver, Jimi Hendrix, The Parisians, Prince, REM, Radiohead, Drugstore, Grinderman, Nick Cave, Rose Royce, Dub Syndicate, T Rex, David Bowie, Stan Tracey Quartet, Henry Purcell, Michael Askill, Primal Scream, Opal, Michel Polnareff, Kula Shaker, Van Morrison, The Chieftains, Billy Bragg, Wilco, Robb Johnson, Nina Nastasia, The Zephyrs, Bran Van 3000, The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Freeheat, The Primitives, Superdrag, The New York Dolls, Andre Williams, The Art Attacks, Seagull Screaming Kiss Her Kiss Her, Jean Paul Sartre Experience, Deep Purple, Pink Floyd, The Cranberries, Iggy Pop, Ty Segall, Mushroomhead, Dark Lotus, Pras, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Mya, Counting Crows
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Reach out for: songs about stars of all kinds

March 26, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Bootsy Collins. The bass line being he ticks more than one star box

Bootsy Collins. The bass line being he ticks more than one star box

From astronomy to celebrity, shapes to symbols, this week we escape earthly concerns and reach into the musical firmament for a rich lyrical topic that will cover all aspects and life as well as death. It’ll be stellar production

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In African, avant-garde, blues, calypso, classical, colours, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, gospel, hip hop, indie, instrumentals, jazz, metal, music, musicals, musical hall, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, reggae, rock, rocksteady, showtime, ska, songs, soul, soundtracks, traditional Tags songs, playlists, stars, astronomy, fame, music, television, Film, sport, Bootsy Collins, Carl Sagan, John Lennon, William Shakespeare, Rutger Hauer, Bladerunner, John Donne, Victor Hugo, Will Self, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Rehan Khan, Annie Proulx, Leonard Cohen, AE Houseman, Edgar Allan Poe, Piet Hein, Kenneth Koch, Neil Gaiman, Marcus Aurelius, Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, Andre Breton, Stephen Hawking, Italo Calvino, MC Escher, Brian May, Queen, Khang Kijarro Nguyen, Dejan Stojanovic, Gary Lineker, Marie Lloyd, Muhammad Ali, Jake Paul, William Shatner
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Staying in? Get things done with songs about decor

March 19, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Turn it up to 11? Some decor is, well, quite loud

Turn it up to 11? Some decor is, well, quite loud

It’s time to take some artistic licence through enforced isolation, and pick from your palette of musical paints to harmonise, fix up, adorn, and help create playlists that decorate the Song Bar, as well as the mind

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In blues, avant-garde, calypso, classical, colours, comedy, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, gospel, hip hop, indie, instrumentals, jazz, metal, music, musical hall, musicals, playlists, pop, rock, ska, songs, soul, soundtracks, traditional, punk, reggae, prog, postpunk Tags songs, playlists, decor, decoration, paint, wallpaper, William Morris, Leonardo Da Vinci, Charles Schulz, Salvador Dali, Francis Bacon, Karl Pilkington, The Sopranos
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Playlists: songs with self-deprecation

March 18, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Bashful kids: Edwyn Collins and Orange Juice back in the day …

Bashful kids: Edwyn Collins and Orange Juice back in the day …

Don’t listen to these playlists. They’re not really that good at all. Then again they might be. What do you reckon? Actually they could actually be brilliant, chosen by guest playlister megadom from a whole set of funny and moving suggestions …

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In avant-garde, blues, comedy, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, indie, music, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, reggae, rock, rocksteady, ska, songs, soul Tags songs, playlists, self-deprecation, Orange Juice, Edwyn Collins, Fujiya & Miyagi, Camera Obscura, Ezra Furman, Loudon Wainwright III, Gregory Isaacs, Courtney Barnett, Sun Kil Moon, The Monochrome Set, John Grant, Neil Innes, Ballboy, The Soft Machine, Skee-Lo, X-Ray Spex, Dan Auerbach, Sebadoh, Edwin Starr, Split Enz, The 6ths, Seasick Steve, The Smiths, The Guv'nors, King Creosote, Dana Bryant, Elvis Costello, Peter Blegvad, megadom
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Try putting this down: songs with self-deprecation

March 12, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Can’t put down. The self-deprecating Keanu Reeves walks the street absorbed in The Government Inspector

Can’t put down. The self-deprecating Keanu Reeves walks the street absorbed in The Government Inspector

Humorous or serious? Self-defence mechanism, attention-seeking, of self-aggrandisement? This week’s lyric topic is richly nuanced, ironic, and covers a range of emotions, often fuelled by love and ambition, tempered by self-belittling

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In African, avant-garde, blues, calypso, classical, comedy, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, folk, experimental, funk, gospel, hip hop, indie, jazz, metal, music, musical hall, musicals, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, reggae, rock, rocksteady, showtime, ska, songs, soul, soundtracks, traditional Tags songs, playlists, irony, self-deprecation, lyrics, psychology, depression, Woody Allen, Oscar Wilde, Joan Rivers, Carrie Fisher, Leonard Cohen, Keanu Reeves, Vincent Van Gogh, Bob Monkhouse, Jarvis Cocker, Jeffrey Lewis, Neil Hannon, The Divine Comedy, Marika Hackman, Lana Del Rey, Alan Bennett, Philip Larkin, Franz Kafka, Richard Pryor, Groucho Marx, Mordecai Richler, Mark Twain, Sylvia Plath, Stephen King, Vladimir Nabokov, Charles Schulz, Peanuts, Mark Hamill, Star Wars, The Muppets, Kermit The Frog, Rudolph Nureyev, Paul Whitehouse, The Fast Show, XTC, Sam Cooke, Paul McCartney, Wings, The Beatles, Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band, Neil Innes
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Playlists: songs that quote Shakespeare

March 11, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Pop art? The playlist is the thing … and Shakespeare comes in many colours

Pop art? The playlist is the thing … and Shakespeare comes in many colours

Prithee, come along, the bell doth ring! Hear thy song, the playlist is the thing! Rock, classical, funk, soul, hip hop, the Bard is present in all genres, here played out in three splendid acts by guest magicman from a cast of nominations

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In blues, classical, comedy, country, dance, disco, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, gospel, hip hop, indie, instrumentals, metal, music, musicals, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, rock, songs, soul, traditional Tags Shakespeare, William Shakespeare, theatre, Iron Maiden, Franz Schubert, Lucia Pop, Laurie Anderson, Jeff Buckley, Kevin Johansen, GLM, Peter Cook, Dudley Moore, Gentle Giant, Shelagh McDonald, Stormzy, Rufus, Chaka Kahn, Alec Costandinos, Motorhead, Henry Purcell, Half Man Half Biscuit, The Zombies, Bryan Ferry, Inkubus Sukkubus, Kilburn and the High Roads, Ian Dury, Queen, Meic Stevens, Ken 'Snakehips' Johnson, Prince, Roberta Flack, Donny Hathaway, Noel Coward, The Four Tops, Kate Tempest, Taylor Swift, Frank Ocean, magicman, Al Bowlly, Siouxsie and the Banshees
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The game is afoot: songs that quote Shakespeare

March 5, 2020 Peter Kimpton
We are mere players …

We are mere players …

We fling open the doors of the Bar to the great Bard, and his incalculable influence on our language and thought patterns as shown in song lyrics, key words and phrases, perhaps also characters and narratives, knowingly, wittily, or unconsciously

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In African, blues, avant-garde, classical, comedy, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, folk, funk, gospel, hip hop, indie, jazz, music, musicals, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, reggae, rock, showtime, soul, songs, traditional, soundtracks Tags songs, playlists, music, William Shakespeare, John Dryden, Thomas More, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Cole Porter, Orson Welles, theatre, Film
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Take a chanson me: songs about singing

February 27, 2020 Peter Kimpton
SInging. Part of our evolution …

SInging. Part of our evolution …

It’s time to sing out suggestions on this lyrical, meta-topic – from the perspective of singer or listener, by humans, animals or birds, whether for love, warning, fear, joy or despair, or singing simply to exist, make others aware

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In African, avant-garde, blues, calypso, classical, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, gospel, hip hop, indie, instrumentals, jazz, metal, music, musical hall, musicals, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, reggae, rock, rocksteady, showtime, ska, songs, soul, soundtracks, traditional Tags songs, Ella Fitzgerald, Janis Joplin, Bjork, Leonard Cohen, Shakespeare, William Shakespeare, Edith Piaf, Maria Callas, Christina Aguilera, Kevin Ayers, Cervantes, Marty Rubin, JRR Tolkien, John Milton, Alexander Pope, Cab Calloway, Ray Charles, Andrea Bocelli, David Byrne, Thom Yorke, Neil Young, Michael Stipe, REM, Rebecca Pederson, Usama Rasheed, Donovan, Irish Murdoch, Harper Lee, Percy Shelley
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Playlists: songs about hats and other accessories

February 26, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Which accessory do the B52’s wear big time?

Which accessory do the B52’s wear big time?

Head to foot, wrist to chest, this week’s musical accessorising, picked by guest playlister Mnemosene2 from last week’s highly fashionable topic stylishly covers many parts and genres, including postpunk, calypso and jazz

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In folk, funk, jazz, music, instrumentals, indie, playlists, pop, postpunk, punk, rock, avant-garde, calypso, comedy, dance, disco, electronica, experimental, reggae, soul, traditional Tags songs, playlists, accessories, hats, Judy Collins, The Fiery Furnaces, Symarip, Duke of Iron, Harry Beckett, Laura Marling, The B52's, Procol Harum, Alexander 'Skip' Spence, Black Country New Road, Ezra Furman, Billie Eilish, Blue's Clue, Slapp Happy, Swarathma, Judee Sill, Donovan, Richard Dawson, David Bowie, Carter The Unstoppable Sex Machine, Mnemosene2, Kevin Tihista
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Playlists: songs about gentleness

February 19, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Sensitive on the heart strings …

Sensitive on the heart strings …

From the sensual to the sensitive, benign behaviour to the feel of a soft breeze, this week’s guest playlister Ravi takes a delicate, skilled touch to bring out gentleness all forms, physical and emotional, in beautiful selections

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In classical, avant-garde, comedy, dance, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, gospel, indie, instrumentals, jazz, music, musicals, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, rock, songs, soul, soundtracks, traditional Tags songs, playlists, gentleness, Santana, Frank Turner, Madeleine Peyroux, Bob Lind, Seals & Crofts, Eden Ahbez, Sanford Sylvan, David Breitman, Aaron Copeland, Shonen Knife, Leonard Cohen, Alice Coltrane, Sun Kil Moon, John Prine, JJ Cale, Cano, Chet Baker, Harry Nilsson, The Be Good Tanyas, Herbie Hancock, Astrud Gilberto, Laura Veirs, The Taxpayers, Burl Ives, Sameer Rao, Hariprasad Chaurasia
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Gently does it: songs about gentleness

February 13, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Koko and friend

Koko and friend

Soothing words, a light touch; holding baby, stroking an animal; lifting a fragile glass a measured, restrained response to tense moments, rage or violence; the soft caress of a light breeze across the eyelids, let’s gently let it out in song

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In African, avant-garde, blues, calypso, classical, comedy, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, gospel, hip hop, indie, jazz, instrumentals, metal, music, playlists, musicals, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, reggae, rock, ska, songs, rocksteady, showtime, soul, traditional, soundtracks Tags songs, playlists, human behaviour, animals, animal behaviour, psychology, politics, Koko the gorilla, David Bowie, Dylan Thomas, James Dean, Saint Francis de Sales, William Shakespeare, Mahatma Gandhi, Hermann Hesse, Ian Brown, The Stone Roses, Joe Cocker, John Keats, Morrissey, The Smiths, Graeme Souness, Nick Cave, Aristotle, Coco Chanel, Honore de Balzac, George Herbert, Robert Browning, William Hazlitt, Friedrich Nietzsche, Mark Twain, Martin Farquhar Tupper, Charles Lamb, Charles Dickens, Haruki Murakami, Anne 'Ninon' de L'Enclos, Queen Elizabeth I, Judy Garland, Rene Zellweger, Abraham Lincoln, Charlie Chaplin
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DRINK OF THE WEEK

Galaxy Lemonade


SNACK OF THE WEEK

Orange twiglets from Jupiter


New Albums …

Featured
OUTTANATIONAL by Pigeon.jpeg
May 5, 2026
Pigeon: OUTTANATIONAL
May 5, 2026

New album: Hugely enjoyable, stylish, playfully eclectic debut LP of indie, electronica and Afro-disco and krautrock grooves by the Margate band fronted by the multi-lingual artist Falle Nioke from Guinea Conakry, West Africa, with songs about identity and ancestry, and a sound somewhere between New Order and William Onyeabor

May 5, 2026
KNEECAP - FENIAN.jpeg
May 3, 2026
KNEECAP: FENIAN
May 3, 2026

New album: Still the scourge of the establishment after 2024’s debut LP Fine Art, a hugely entertaining second LP of punchy, slick, defiant Irish Gaelic rap by Belfast’s Mo Chara and Móglaí Bap, and beatmaker DJ Próvaí, with an expanded sound aided by innovative producer Dan Carey and an appearance by Kae Tempest

May 3, 2026
Long Wave Home by Jesca Hoop.jpeg
May 2, 2026
Jesca Hoop: Long Wave Home
May 2, 2026

New album: Brilliantly inventive, eclectic, poetic, experimental folk and art-pop by the acclaimed Manchester-based Californian singer-songwriter and guitarist in her first self-produced album, variously about the end of relationships, life changes, technology’s social effects, Gaza victims and other contemporary issues with perhaps her finest yet

May 2, 2026
Sam Grassie - Where Two Hawks Fly.jpeg
Apr 29, 2026
Sam Grassie: Where Two Hawks Fly
Apr 29, 2026

New album: Beautiful debut LP by the London-based Glaswegian fingerstyle folk guitarist and singer-songwriter, with added saxophone, double bass, flute, clairsach and clarinet in a release of mostly the traditional, covers, sung or instrumental, and supported by the Bert Jansch Foundation

Apr 29, 2026
Irmin Schmidt - Requiem.jpeg
Apr 29, 2026
Irmin Schmidt: Requiem
Apr 29, 2026

New album: A strangely mesmeric, avant-garde and analogue-ambient, field recording-based experimental release by the last surviving founding member of experimental ‘krautrock’ band CAN, who, approaching the age of 89, has also written over 40 TV and film scores

Apr 29, 2026
Gia Margaret - Singing.jpeg
Apr 28, 2026
Gia Margaret: Singing
Apr 28, 2026

New album: Gently profound, and full of wondrous, mesmeric, slow, delicate experimental songs, this simple title has a powerful resonance – it is the Chicago artist’s first vocal album since 2018’s There’s Always Glimmer (there have been two instrumental LPs since), having suffered and recovered from a severe vocal injury, she returns with a delicate, candid, whispery but hauntingly beautiful delivery

Apr 28, 2026
Angel In Plainclothes by Angelo De Augustine.jpeg
Apr 28, 2026
Angelo De Augustine: Angel in Plainclothes
Apr 28, 2026

New album: A beautiful, delicate fifth LP from the Los Angeles singer-songwriter, friend and collaborator with Sufjan Stevens with whom he shares a stylistic resemblance, here with themes on life's fragility, second chances, and picking up the pieces after an undiagnosed illness forced him to re-learn basic abilities

Apr 28, 2026
Carla dal Forno - Confession.jpeg
Apr 28, 2026
Carla dal Forno: Confession
Apr 28, 2026

New album: This lo-fi, darkly minimalist but also oddly candid fourth LP by the Australian, Castlemaine-based singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist centres on the conflicted, obsessive feelings about “a friendship that became emotionally charged in an unexpected way”, and “an album about closeness that arrives late and unexpectedly. About stability rubbing up against desire.”

Apr 28, 2026
Friko - Something Worth Waiting For album.jpeg
Apr 26, 2026
Friko: Something Worth Waiting For
Apr 26, 2026

New album: Passionate, powerful, dynamic indie rock in this sophomore LP by the Chicago-based quartet that gallops forwards with a driving momentum, some elements of early PJ Harvey and Radiohead, and is produced by John Congleton

Apr 26, 2026
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Apr 26, 2026
White Denim: 13
Apr 26, 2026

New album: This 13th LP in two decades by the Austin, Texas rock band fronted by James Petralli has a particularly mischievous experimentalism, spreading styles far beyond breathlessly paced prog rock, with wrily humorous, surreal, personal and passionate numbers across heavy funk, dub, soul, psyche, country, dirty blues and more, joined by host of outstanding extra musicians

Apr 26, 2026
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Apr 24, 2026
Hukwe Zawose Foundation: Asili ya Mama
Apr 24, 2026

New album: Wonderfully evocative field recordings release of Wagogo, Waluguru and Wasambaa Tanzanian women singing traditional songs in their villages, rarely heard outside of their own circles, the title is translated as The Origin of Mother, rich in stories and capturing the place where song is first learned, first felt, first shared

Apr 24, 2026
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Apr 23, 2026
They Might Be Giants - The World Is To Dig
Apr 23, 2026

New album: Four decades since their self-titled debut, Brooklyn alternative rockers John Flansburgh and John Linnell return with their 24th LP, packed with of punchy, pacy, wistful, whimsical, clever wordplay and indie rock-pop, buoyantly satirical and also a little world weary at times, they remain oddball, lively commentators on the ongoing absurdity of life

Apr 23, 2026
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Apr 22, 2026
Eaves Wilder: Little Miss Sunshine
Apr 22, 2026

New album: After 2023’s Hookey EP, a strong, passionate indie-dream-pop-shoegaze full debut by the London singer-songwriter, whose breathy voice intertwines with strong, stirring riffs and textured sounds, themed around cycles of nature aiming to explain and celebrate the mercurial nature of human emotional weather

Apr 22, 2026
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Apr 22, 2026
Honey Dijon: The Nightlife
Apr 22, 2026

New album: The irrepressible, prolific and charismatic London-based Chicago DJ, musician, producer and vinyl lover returns with a flamboyantly fun celebration of club and queer culture through the prism of dance music from disco to house, with a wide variety of guest vocalists

Apr 22, 2026

new songs …

Featured
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May 5, 2026
Song of the Day: Sofie Royer - Cowboy Mouth
May 5, 2026

Song of the Day: A catchy, cool, stylish fusion of indie and electro-pop by the classically trained, California-born, Vienna-based Iranian-Austrian artist, inspired by reading Patti Smith and Sam Shepard’s play of the same title, reimagining the play’s characters as Angel and Cowboy, and out now on Stones Throw Records

May 5, 2026
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May 4, 2026
Song of the Day: Hodge - Wiggler
May 4, 2026

Song of the Day: A hugely fun, energising, infectious, effervescent, repetitive electronic dance track by the Bristol-based DJ/producer (aka Jake Martin) featuring a 3D pipe bassline by Memotone, and released alongside another track,Trust, out on Local Action

May 4, 2026
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May 3, 2026
Song of the Day: Ibibio Sound Machine - Return To Sender
May 3, 2026

Song of the Day: Fizzing with vibrant energy and intricate rhythms, a fabulous new single with a personal accidental backstory by the London electronic afro-funk band out of London fronted by vocalist Eno Williams, out Merge Record

May 3, 2026
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May 2, 2026
Song of the Day: The Puppini Sisters - Total Eclipse of the Heart
May 2, 2026

Song of the Day: A fabulous new version of the Jim Steinman-penned 1983 Bonnie Tyler power pop hit, arranged by Marcello Puppini in an entirely different style for her swing-jazz trio and band, part of their 20th anniversary celebrations and album, The Birthday Party, out now on Millionaire Records

May 2, 2026
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May 1, 2026
Song of the Day: Bleachers - I'm Not Joking
May 1, 2026

Song of the Day: Featuring harpsichord, Hammond organ, Dobro and more, producer Jack Antonoff and his New Jersey rock band return with a heartfelt love song single heralding the upcoming album, Everyone For Ten Minutes, out on 22 May via Dirty Hit

May 1, 2026
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Apr 30, 2026
Song of the Day: Alewya - Selah
Apr 30, 2026

Song of the Day: Striking, stylishly agile electronica and dance with a rich African and Arabian influence by the London-based British singer-songwriter, producer, multidisciplinary artist and model Alewya Demmisse, heralding her upcoming album, Zero, out on 26 June via LDN Records

Apr 30, 2026
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Apr 29, 2026
Song of the Day: Metric - Crush Forever
Apr 29, 2026

Song of the Day: Uplifting, effervescent electro-disco-pop by the Toronto indie rock band, with a song vocalist/keyboardist Emily Haines describes as “my love letter to strong girls in this world”, taken from their recently released 10th album, Romanticize the Dive, out on Metric Music via Thirty Tigers

Apr 29, 2026
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Apr 28, 2026
Song of the Day: Jim Ghedi - The Hungry Child
Apr 28, 2026

Song of the Day: Dark, gripping, visceral folk by the Sheffield singer-songwriter, with a striking number based on an early 19th-century German poem about the fatal story of a child pleading for food, and, following last year’s acclaimed album, Wasteland, also out on Basin Rock, it heralds his upcoming soundtrack for the Hugh Jackman film, The Death of Robin Hood.

Apr 28, 2026
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Apr 27, 2026
Song of the Day: holybones (with Baxter Dury) - SLUGBOY
Apr 27, 2026

Song of the Day: Dark, unsettling, sleazy and strange, this is arrestingly vivid new collaborative single between the clandestine London electronic collective and the downbeat, deep-voiced poetic Londoner, out on Promised Land Recordings

Apr 27, 2026
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Apr 26, 2026
Song of the Day: Hand Habits - Good Person
Apr 26, 2026

Song of the Day: Gentle, droll, humorously self-deprecatingly, and also delicately beautiful, this new experimental folk single by the moniker of Los Angeles singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Meg Duffy addresses the love-hate relationship with making music, out on Fat Possum

Apr 26, 2026
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Apr 25, 2026
Song of the Day: Pigeon - Miami
Apr 25, 2026

Song of the Day: Catchy, sunny, upbeawt indie synth-pop with an African twist by the Margate band fronted by Falle Nioke, with flavours of William Onyeabor, Hot Chip and New York 70s disco, heralding their upcoming album OUTTANATIONAL, out on 1 May via Memphis Industries

Apr 25, 2026
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Apr 24, 2026
Song of the Day: Tricky - Out of Place (featuring Marta Złakowska)
Apr 24, 2026

Song of the Day: A pulsating fusion of beats, orchestral strings and the Bristol trip-hop pioneer’s distinctive, deep, croaky voice, with an emotional reference to his daughter Mina Topley-Bird (1995–2019), and heralding his first solo album for six years, Different When It’s Silent, out on 17 June via False Idols

Apr 24, 2026

Word of the week

Featured
Song thrush 2.jpeg
Apr 23, 2026
Word of the week: throstle
Apr 23, 2026

Word of the week: An archaic, evocative noun with two connected meanings, originally for the song thrush, then later a textiles industrial frame for spinning, twisting and winding machine for cotton, wool, and other fibres simultaneously

Apr 23, 2026
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Apr 9, 2026
Word of the week: undine
Apr 9, 2026

Word of the week: It might sound like the act of abstaining from food, but this noun from derived from undina (Latin unda) meaning wave, refers to mythical, elemental beings associated with water, such as mermaids, and stemming from the alchemical writings of the 16th-century Swiss physician, alchemist and philosopher Paracelsus

Apr 9, 2026
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Mar 27, 2026
Word of the week: veena
Mar 27, 2026

Word of the week: This ornate, curvaceous, south Indian classical instrument, the saraswati veena, is a special bowl lute with a rich, resonant tone, has 24 copper frets with four playing strings and three drone strings, and is used for Carnatic music

Mar 27, 2026
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Mar 12, 2026
Word of the week: wallfish
Mar 12, 2026

Word of the week: It sounds like the singing finned picture ornament Big Mouth Billy Bass that became popular in the late 1990s, but this is a much older noun, derived in Somerset, England, pertains to the climbing gastropod that can slowly climb up any surface

Mar 12, 2026
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Feb 25, 2026
Word of the week: xiphias
Feb 25, 2026

Word of the week: Get the point? This is the scientific name for the swordfish, in full Xiphias gladius (from the Greek and Latin for sword), that extraordinary sea creature with the long, pointy bill. But what of it in song?

Feb 25, 2026

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