Episode 106 - Milestone Birthday Episode

I have experienced a milestone birthday this week. I’m not delighted by this turn of events but it very much is what it is. It’s pretty obvious which milestone, but on the off chance I have any Gen Z or Millennials who haven’t cottoned on to how old I am, I’m keeping it a not very closely guarded secret.

To ‘celebrate’, here is an episode in which each track starts with an initial that, when amalgamated, spells out B-I-R-T-H-D-A-Y E-P-I-S-O-D-E.

Cute, huh? I think it’s a good idea and not a gimmick, but if it’s the latter, let me quickly throw my wife under the bus and point out it was her idea.

Tracklist:

Birthday, Junior Boys

The best song called simply ‘Birthday’? Not much to choose between this and The Sugarcubes, in the end.

I love Perth, Pavement

They say you can do any great pop song in two and a half minutes. Well, this little beauty lasts 1:04 and is brilliant. Time to raise your game if you’re fiddling round with a lead guitar solo after the second chorus.

Rano Pano, Mogwai

Basically, the same riff for six-plus minutes. But what a riff. Some people think Mogwai do the same album over and over, but they’re wrong. A must-see live.

The Dean and I, 10cc

Some of you won’t take to this. But I can’t disentangle this song and Rock On by David Essex as the soundtrack to my first days at senior school. Listening to it now it’s obviously some sort of satire, but when you’re 11 you don’t necessarily know what it’s parodying. I liked it for what it is and still do.

Help the Aged, Pulp

Yes, please do.

Disorder, Joy Division

The first track on the first album. And the world was never quite the same again. As Steve Morris, the drummer, pointed out, the studio was the first time any of the rest of the group had heard the lyrics to the songs they were playing live. He also points out that playing this and Transmission back-to-back killed his arms.

Archie, Marry Me, Alvvays

One of the towering contributions to indie rock. Charmingly you can hear their Canadian twang.

Your ace from space, U-Roy

1971 and a wonderful splice of golden era reggae. It’s funny how strange and off-kilter reggae sounded back then – it kind of still does, but has aged significantly better than Noel Edmonds’ glittery jacket and flares he was so proud of.

Eighties fan, Camera Obscura

“I'm gonna tell you something good about yourself / I'll say it now and I'll never say it about no one else”. How uplifting to discover that Camera Obscura are back in the studio recording a new album.

Piazza, New York Catcher, Belle and Sebastian

Odd title, brilliant acoustic song. In fact, I’ve looked it up and it’s not as odd as I’ve previously imagined – the title is in the lyrics. He’s a baseball catcher called Piazza who may or may not have been gay. Which reminds me of classic number ones whose title is not in the lyrics: Bohemian Rhapsody, The Ballad of John and Yoko, A Space Oddity.

Irate, Anorak Patch

Can’t wait for these guys to be massive. Once they’ve taken their GCSEs.

Suburban homeboy, Sparks

I say “yo dog” to my detailing guy – don’t we all?

Outdoor miner, Wire

Ridiculous to think the track on the album doesn’t even have the keyboard solo. It was added by the producer Mike Thorne who plays it himself to pad it out to single length. A tribute album to the song was released in 2004 on the 25th anniversary of the song, A Houseguest's Wish: Translations of Wire's "Outdoor Miner" featuring 19 different interpretations of the song. Sadly the sniffy suits at the BBC suspected EMI of chart rigging and refused to countenance that the song could have got into the Top 40. Donny and Marie Osmond took their place on Top Of The Pops.

Debe, Ali Farka Toure, Toumani Diabate

The sound of young Mali.

Eighties Scheme, The Fall

The sound of young Prestwich.

Tracklist:-

Birthday, Junior Boys

I love Perth, Pavement

Rano pano, Mogwai

The dean and I, 10cc

Help the aged, Pulp