Just wanted to make you aware of a project my former Invisible Players colleague, Don Letts, has been commissioned to produce, focusing on the clothing brand, Fred Perry, and its cultural relevance in the UK from the Mods in the 60’s to Britpop in the 90’s, and right up to date via their association with Amy Winehouse, whose designs for the brand continue to be released, with the full blessing of her family, following her untimely death last July.
Stayed in a mad hotel last Friday, the Karim Rashid designed Nhow in Berlin. If you like pink, then this is the place for you – it’s literally everywhere. Not really my cup of tea, all a bit garish and, as someone put it ‘Barbie girl in a Barbie world’, but certainly somewhere you’re not going to forget in a hurry. Described as a ‘music and lifestyle hotel’, you can have guitars and keyboards delivered to your room, and the upper section of the building houses two recording studios, which are run by the company that manage Berlin’s legendary Hansa studio (best known for David Bowie and Iggy Pop’s patronage in 1977 - ‘Heroes’ and ‘Lust For Life’, both recorded there, and ‘Low’ and ‘The Idiot’ partly recorded).
The oldest Living To Music inclusion to date, recorded on October 24th 1962, before Martin Luther King made his ‘I Have A Dream’ speech, before JFK was assassinated, before Dylan released ‘Blowin’ In The Wind’, and just as The Beatles had started out on their recording career (their first single, ‘Love Me Do’, released just a few weeks earlier). In a modern context, this is ancient history, yet its influence is still felt today, even if people don’t realise the full gravity of Brown’s legacy.
Two black music greats died this week. To name but some of the songs they co-wrote with their partners: ‘Ain't No Mountain High Enough’, ‘Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing’, ‘California Soul’, ‘Don’t Cost You Nothing’, ‘Hound Dog’, ‘I’m Every Woman’, ‘Is That All There Is?’, ‘It Seems To Hang On’, ‘Jailhouse Rock’, ‘Kansas City’, ‘On Broadway’, ‘Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)’, ‘Spanish Harlem’, ‘Stand By Me’, ‘Surrender’, ‘There Goes My Baby’, ‘Yakety Yak’, ‘You're All I Need To Get By’
Looking deeper into Folk and Country music has been a case of overcoming the final prejudice in many respects. These were always genres I shied away from, even though I’ve happily cherry picked tracks that I’ve liked along the way. I suppose I dismissed Folk as antiquated, and Country as over-sentimental, and although I’ve had a basic understanding of their roles in shaping popular music, I’ve never had the inclination to look beneath the surface. Until more recently that is.
This Sunday (May 1st), at 9pm, you’re invited to share a listening session with some likeminded souls, wherever you might be. This can be experienced either alone or communally, and you don’t need to leave the comfort of your own home to participate. Described as ‘one of the first racially diverse American pop bands’, Love, led by Memphis born ‘black hippie’, Arthur Lee, broke the mould. Hailing from Los Angeles, the band issued their self-titled debut album in 1966, following up with ‘De Capo’ in early ’67, before releasing the LP they’re best remembered for, ‘Forever Changes’ towards the end of the same year.
Scott Walker is a proper artist. Born in the US, but finding fortune and fame in the UK, at the height of his Walker Brothers 60’s celebrity, with pop hits and screaming girls a plenty, he turned his back on it all to follow his own unique path, inspired by the music of Belgian born French recording icon, Jacques Brel, who, in a strange twist of fate, he’d first heard at the flat of a bunny girl he’d picked up at the Playboy Club's opening-night party in London.
Having suffered ill health for some time, screen goddess Elizabeth Taylor died last week, aged 79. Born in London in 1932 (of American parents), Taylor was a true Hollywood icon, a legendary violet-eyed beauty who was also a fine actress. Having become a child star, due to her appearances in ‘Lassie Come Home’ (1943) and the following year’s ‘National Velvet’ (her co-stars being a dog and a horse respectively), her reputation was further enhanced via roles in films including ‘Little Women’ (1949), ‘Father Of The Bride’ (1950), ‘A Place In The Sun’ (1951) and ‘Giant’ (1956), where she appeared alongside James Dean and Rock Hudson.
Dug out my copies of ‘Deep Soul Treasures’, the four volume series compiled by Dave Godin, for a recent road trip. Got me thinking about Godin’s role at the very roots of black music appreciation here in the UK.
“Launched on his 50th birthday, Greg Wilson compiles a celebratory selection of 7” singles from his formative years. Covering the 60’s through to the mid-70’s, when he started out as a fresh-faced 15 year old club DJ, these records embody the soundtrack of his youth. With running times of approximately 2 hours, the 12 individual monthly parts will conclude in a full day’s worth of music. Having only pre-determined the opening and closing tracks, Greg will select the rest as he goes along, moving in whatever direction his mood takes him at that given moment. The title, ‘Random Influences’, reflects this arbitrary approach”.
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