Playlist 29.08.11

'Springboard' by The Arlenes is a cute song about this guy at the Gospel Oak Lido, trying to impress the girl, but not getting too far. She doesn't notice the action on the diving board, his London skin is getting fried but still he persists with the optimism and the bad acrobatics. The song is carried by Big Steve and supported by his wife Stephanie, and it's reason enough to look out their 2002 album, 'Stuck On Love'.

I first met Steve around 1990 when a bunch of chancers called Fabulous were trying to pull revolutionary stunts around the capital. They are worth a dozen blogs in their own right, mostly about their repeated slide from anarchy to slapstick. And I recall meeting Steve around this time, coolly driving the band to the next ridiculous moment. He was also party to those Camden nights that charted the rise of The Rockingbirds, a chance for English boys to play country soul with distinction. The Arlenes took that idea and are still active with it.

Now it seems Steve and Stephanie are based in Nashville, raising kids and planning a new record, which they aim to fund via the Kickstarter website. Check it out here

BBC Radio Ulster, 92-95 FM

Online: www.bbc.co.uk/radioulster

Blog: https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/stuartbailie/

Mondays, ten - midnight

Smashing Pumpkins - Tonight, Tonight (Hut)

Alexander - Let's Win (Rough Trade)

General Fiasco - The Age That You Start Losing Friends (Dirty Hit)

Glen Campbell - Ghost On The Canvas (Surfdog)

Mariachi El Bronx - Revolution Girls (Wichita)

Dawes - How Far We've Come (Loose)

Cashier No 9 - Lost At Sea (Bella Union)

JT Nero - Roll Tide (Dishrag)

Jayhawks - She Walks In So Many Ways (Decca)

John Cale - Whaddya Mean By That (Double Six)

Howler - 14 Days (Rough Trade)

Bessie Smith - Careless Love (Sanctuary)

Tom Waits - Bad As Me (Anti)

Tinariwen - Tenere Taqhim Tossam (V2)

Glen Campbell -In My Arms (Surfdog)

The Arlenes - Springboard (Vinyl Junkie)

James Burton - I Know You Don't Want Me No More (A&M)

JT Nero - Mountains / Forests (Dishrag)

Glen Campbell - Any Trouble (Surfdog)

The 19th Street Band - Holywood Sea Park (white)

Lil' Band O' Gold - Faster And Faster (Room 609)

Glen Campbell - There's No Me... Without You (Surfdog)

Tom McShane - A Personal Narrative (Third Bar)

Sarah MacDougal - It's a Storm (Rabbit Heart)

St Vincent - Cruel (4ad)

M83 - Midnight City (Naïve