Memory Tapes - August 2017

Route 66 Kicks

30th August

Tony Hill is a writer based in Nottinghamshire. His books include If The Kids Are United, an account of a Manchester United fan’s 18-year long quest to get his hands on a FA Cup final ticket which paints a portrait of working-class culture - from punk, the miner's strike, unemployment to Madchester and Britpop.

In autumn 2016, he set off on a 3,000 mile journey along Route 66, making a couple of detours to check out the Grand Canyon and Monument Valley on the way. Tony did it solo, over 18 days, clocking up 200 miles per day, all the while following the US election, reading The Grapes of Wrath, and making a point of stopping to chat to people en route. He’s since written a book about his experiences, Route 66 Kicks.

“Most of the time driving the fabled American highway I was in search of ghosts of the American Dream. I went through big cities, vast and colourful landscapes; met colourful characters, forgotten people and communities; visited ghost towns; saw classic Americana, vintage and classic cars; heard music tales of Elvis and The Beatles. I sought out many a film and TV location set on Route 66 (including the bridge that Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda crossed at the start of Easy Rider, whilst I blasted out Steppenwolf's 'Born to be Wild'), and followed the journey of the Joad family in The Grapes of Wrath and was told a real story concerning it. I indulged in Wild West and Native American folklore; and imagined I was in my own road trip movie, suffered severe sunburn and fever, went a little crazy and thought people were trying to kill me. I got my kicks on, and was kicked by, Route 66.”

Featuring (from a VERY long list!)
1. Woody Guthrie – I Ain’t Got No Home In This World Anymore
2. Screamin’ Jay Hawkins – I Put A Spell On You
3. Mazzy Star – Ghost Highway
4. The Orb – Little Fluffy Clouds
5. Ennio Morricone – Watch Chimes
6. Hayley Bonar – Hometown

My Musical Journey to the Other Side Of The World

23rd August

Today's memory taper, Tom Upstone, shares his tale of uprooting everything and moving to Australia.

" This mix tape charts when I moved from London to Sydney. I've now lived half my life in both countries. I came to Australia chasing a girl but found another who is the mother of our 2 daughters. These are the songs:

I'm Stranded by The Saints - I was 15 in 1977 when punk rock broke. Apart from The Ramones, this was the first release of its kind, was played at all the gigs and was recorded by a band from Brisbane!

Do Anything You Want To - This was played about 6 times when I first saw my first favourite band Eddie and The Hot Rods at The Rainbow in London.

Police and Theives by Junior Murvin - As well as punk, reggae was everywhere. I used to tune into Radio London on Sunday afternoons for the reggae show where I first heard this, at least 6 months before the Clash covered it.

White Man in Hammersmith Palais by Clash - I saw them live 8 times, first on the White Riot tour but also at the Hammersmith Palais just as London Calling was released. It was an incredible gig.

Get Over You by The Undertones - This is another live favourite that I saw at The Marquee, as well as in Hemel Hempstead! A great pop song.

Last Night a DJ Saved My Life by Indeep – I was also clubbing a lot, going to early garage parties and the legendary Tuesday Club with Gary Crowley in Harrow. Wham, Paul Weller and Bananarama used to show up. This reminds me of those times.

Whole Wide World by Wreckless Eric – I was a huge Stiff Records fan and still have my original version of this with its picture sleeve. I didn't know then how true the song's sentiment would be to me.

I Want You by Elvis Costello and the Attractions - I'm also a huge Elvis Costello fan and lookalike (and had the pleasure of meeting him once). This song came out just as I was leaving London for Sydney to meet my then girlfriend who had just told me she'd met someone else. Very apt timing by Elvis; not so by her. I decided to go anyway.

And so to Australia...

The Nips Are Getting Bigger by Mental As Anything - I heard this on John Peel before I left and it was on every Jukebox in Sydney when I arrived. A great Aussie drinking song!

Cattle and Cain by The Go Betweens - I saw them play this live in my first couple of weeks of arriving abroad. The band had just returned from London. Grant and Robert jumped into the audience with their guitars to play this while the rest of the band remained on stage. A great live moment.

Paul Kelly 'Dumb Things' - I'd moved into a shared house in Sydney in the inner city suburb of Surry Hills, just around the corner from a great live music pub The Hopetoun. "The Australian Bob Dylan" Paul Kelly played a 3 hour "Rock Against Work" gig one Tuesday afternoon/evening in my first couple of weeks. This is one of the songs he played. Little did I know that my future wife was in the 100 strong audience.

Alimony by The Hummingbirds - The Hummingbirds were regular performers at The Hopetoun. Two girls, two blokes, and great tunes and harmonies. Unfortunately they've just lost their frontman, Simon.

Treaty (Filthy Lucre Mix) by Yothu Yindi - This was everywhere in Australia in the early '90s. A great dance track with a strong protest message. The push for a treaty between Aboriginal and White Australia is still happening today.

It's Alright (cause she loves me) by The Cruel Sea - This is another live favourite from a bit of an Aussie supergroup, with the charismatic Tex Perkins upfront. Both of our daughters ended up at school with the bass player's kids.

Everything I've Got Belongs To You by Ed Kuepper - Ed was the guitarist in The Saints and wrote 'I'm Stranded'. Still playing live, this is yet another favourite. I dedicate this to my wife Amanda."

I'm Stranded - The Saints
Do Anything You Want To Do - Eddie and The Hot Rods
Police & Thieves - Junior Murvin
White Man in Hammersmith Palais - Clash
Whole Wide World - Wreckless Eric
I Want You - Elvis Costello and the Attractions
Sweet Love - Anita Baker
Get Over You - The Undertones
The Nips Are Getting Bigger - Mental As Anything
Treaty Filthy Lucre Mix - Yothu Yindi
Cattle and Cain - The Go Betweens
Alimony - The Hummingbirds
To Her Door - Paul Kelly
This is Not The Way Home - The Cruel Sea
The Way I Made You Feel - Ed Kuepper

16th August

Today's Memory Taper, Jackson Cummings, takes us back to happy days as a Saturday staffer in Mike Lloyd Music, in Stoke.

"Stoke, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Wolverhampton and Stafford all had MLM record stores. I was lucky enough to start a career in music and events by a chance work experience opportunity at 15 in the main Stoke store. From there I spent four magical years working the teenager’s dream job. It was the early 1990s and buying music was tangible and in full effect. Working in a record store was just like the stereotypes portrayed in Empire Records, Human Traffic and High Fidelity. I learned so much about life and music in those stores and I treasure the memories I have dearly.

The staff were an eclectic ensemble. There were the Kiss fans that used to mosh on me behind the counter. The angry skinny guy upstairs who looked like Phil Spector and had every Ozric Tentacles album. The ginger moustachioed manager who dressed like David Hasselhoff. The guy who showed me the back window where you could throw things at awkward customers as they left. The Christian Rocker. The guy who got sacked from a Bon Jovi tribute band. The guys who started the massive Northern club Golden. And then there were Machin and Glover, who went on from behind the counter to write and perform as Soulsavers. It was marvellous.

Then the customers. The Sisters of Mercy guys who bought every format of everything they did. The Levellers fans at a record signing, drinking super-strength lager on the stairs. Daniel O'Donnell ladies camping outside for tickets and the sublime older gentleman who, when asked for credentials to write on the back of a cheque, wrote: 'I used to play at Buckingham Palace with Prince Charles'.

These are some of the tracks that stood out for me, bringing back many happy memories of working the best job there was. And here are just some of the musical highlights."

• REM - Drive
• Bjork - Army of Me
• Brad - 20th Century
• Alanis Morrissette - You Oughta Know
• Stone Temple Pilots - Plush
• Esquivel - Mini Skirt
• Nirvana - Heart Shaped Box
• U2 - Zooropa
• The Stone Roses - Love Spreads
• Portishead - Sour Times
• Weezer - Buddy Holly
• Sugar - Changes
• The Lemonheads - Into Your Arms
• Confide in Me - Kylie Minogue
• 7 Seconds - Youssou N'Dour
• Billy Ray Martin - Your Loving Arms
• Sheryl Crow - All I Wanna Do
• Tasmin Archer - Sleeping Satellite
• Kiss - I was made for lovin you
• Ozric Tentacles - Fractal Eternal Wheel
• Soulsavers with Mark Lanegan - Revival
• The Sisters of Mercy - Lucretia My Reflection
• The Levellers - Boat Man

A University Union
9th August

Today’s Memory Tape involves a university meet-cute. It's Christmas, a boy wants to play the drums, and he asks a girl to hold his ring...What could that symbolic gesture possibly foretell? Here's listener Sophy Sylvester to explain more.

"When I first met my husband, he made me this mix-tape (on cassette). It was the year after we finished at De Montfort University and, despite having lots of mutual friends, we hadn't really met before. We had a chat at the Afro Cuban All Stars gig at De Montfort Hall, and then got talking properly at a night at Po Na Na.

It took a short while for us to get together properly as Simon was with someone else, but our fates were locked at the infamous 1999 De Montfort Hall Christmas Party when Simon asked me to hold his ring so he could play the timbales with the band.

We've been together ever since (17 years and married for 11) and have two fantastic boys, Rufus and Wilf. Simon is currently working incredibly hard to finish a house we've built for my parents in our garden - he's shattered and truly deserving of a massive mention on 6 Music!"

Here's that track list in full:

Side A:

Dig a Pony - The Beatles
Don't Change Your Plans - Ben Folds Five
Ain't No Sunshine - Bill Withers
Maybe This Love - Jimi Hendrix
Your Love Was Good for Me - James Brown
If You Want Me To Stay - Sly and the Family Stone
Never Found Me A Girl (To Love Me Like You Do) - Eddie Floyd
Cigarettes and Coffee - Otis Redding
Who's That Lady? - The Isley Brothers
Makes Me Wanna Die - Tricky
Remember You're a Womble - The Wombles
For You Blue - The Beatles

Side B:
There She Goes - The Las
Into Your Arms - The Lemonheads
Simply Beautiful - Al Green
Kissing My Love - Bill Withers
Little Wing - Jimmi Hendrix
Jane - Ben Folds Five
You're Nobody Til Somebody Loves You
In My Life - The Beatles
Angel - Jimmi Hendrix
Three is a Magic Number - Bob Dorough
Golden Lady - Stevie Wonder
Title Unknown - Hector Juan Perez
Only You - The Platters
Night and Day - Ella Fitzgerald

Ain't No Mountain High Enough
2nd August

Today’s Memory tape is dedicated to a thing called love, specifically that of Pete Edwards and his co-worker turned other half, Emily. They met at a mountaineering centre in Capel Curig, North Wales, and share a love for music.
Pete explains more:

“In February last year, I finally met the girl I’d been searching for all my life. It was typically fairy-tale in the way that you rarely experience or that some people don't think actually exists: an unidentifiable but undeniable connection with someone else that makes you question whether soulmates and the mythical "one" are really out there.

We clicked and gelled so well that it was obvious to both of us that this was different. Whenever we spoke it felt that we were saying the same things but with different voices and that this was definitely different to anything either of us had ever experienced. One of those connections was music.

We both had and still have a great passion for music. As we began to get together, wanting to take things slowly to begin with, it dawned on me that a playlist would be an ideal way to show that. And so here it is: my playlist to her. The first night we were together, we sat and listened to each track, not only carefully chosen but painstakingly ordered to create the right emotions at the right time, in the right way. It was the most magical night.

A year later, in late February, I had planned a repeat playing but it was cancelled after our first child arrived two weeks before - it just goes to show how right we were back when we were listing our tracks! Little Rosie is now eight weeks old and has her own little playlist growing now of significant songs in the lead up to her birth.

Em and I are still as much in love now. We both knew this was it and, thinking back to that night, seems both such a long time ago and like yesterday at the same time. I hope you enjoy sharing the experience in this little way."

Station Approach by Elbow
This Modern Love by Bloc Party
Put Your Arms Around Me by Texas
Dry The Rain by the Beta Band
Welcome Home by Radical Face
Pain Killer by Turin Brakes
Every Other Freckle by Alt-J
Crystalised by the xx
Fake Plastic Trees by Radiohead
Grace (Live) by Jeff Buckley
Tijuana Lady by Gomez
Dance Me To The End of Love by Civil Wars
Lying In the Sun by Stereophonics
Harder Edges by Guy Garvey
My Silver Lining by First Aid Kit
Jeb Rand by Bedouin Soundclash
I Want You (She's So Heavy) by The Beatles
Hopopono by Gogo Penguin
Wish I Could by Norah Jones

<< Memory Tapes - July 2017