01. SAM COOKE – “THAT’S WHERE IT’S AT”
I always think Sam Cooke was just finding his proper soul stride when he died. Otis Reading just did the ‘home run’ for him. This is a late recording of his and it’s one of those tunes that could make you either smile or cry. Bitter-sweet soul.
02. EELS – “FRESH FEELING”
The production and the mix of styles on Eels stuff is always amazing, and this is so close to a straightforward pop song with but with much more class. The string arrangement doesn’t even begin to make you yawn and it’s such an understated pretty little song, but with a proper funk beat going on.
03. TOM PETTY & THE HEARTBREAKERS – “HERE COMES MY GIRL”
I’ve always had a real thing about Tom Petty. On this one he just talks most of it, really honest and down to earth, no posing, but it sounds fucking cool to me.
04. SONNYBOY WILLIAMSON – “THE KEY TO YOUR DOOR”
Laid back sleazy blues, nothing like it. I love the combination of massively skilful harmonica riffs and his mundane mumbled ramblings about ringing his bird up at 4.15pm.
05. TENACIOUS D – “THE ROAD”
A big favourite for us all when Big Strides are on “the road”. It’s rock’n’roll designed for cruising, and it makes two very valid points: firstly that “the road is fucking hard” and secondly, as an additional point, that “it’s ALSO really fucking tough”. Wise words, great tune.
06. BLUES EXPLOSION – “HIGH GEAR”
This is from when they were still called “The John Spencer Blues Explosion” oh lord. Most of it’s just voice, one guitar and funky drums… then they rock out. I feel like the song invites you to have have a little boogie, then freak out and do some stage dives, then drive home and break your wife’s legs. Great guitar twiddling – “makes my dick hard” as Lars Ulrich from Metallica would say.
07. LOU DONALDSON – “TURTLE WALK”
This is classic soul jazz – kind of early funk where the drummer’s really going for it somewhere at the back of the room and the sax solos don’t wank on for more than a year at time.
08. DESMON DEKKER – “SABOTAGE”
Great backing singers – “shoobedoobedoobedoobedoobidoob-do” and then a big booming bass voice comes in right at the last minute as if he might have got the wrong room. I saw Desmond Dekker at a kind of variety club in Bradford a few years ago, still all in leather and getting down. Strange crowd for him though – a lot of Bacardi Breezers going on. Still, everyone sang along with the margarine advert song… haha
09. I AM KLOOT – “TWIST”
I love the darkness of the lyrics and the punchline “There’s blood on your legs, I love you”. 3 piece bands always cut out a lot of the rubbish and this is just drums, bass and grimy acoustic guitar with a seedy swing to it. And a band from Liverpool that doesn’t sound like the Beatles is always a great thing.
10. THE PIXIES – “VELOURIA”
The Pixies really stand out as being quite timeless. Clearly a 90s guitar band but without any of the clichés. Apart from just loving the tune and the rough rocky guitars, I think the best thing about this song is that none of the lyrics really make any sense to me at all, but that creates a really powerful atmosphere of being surrounded by stuff that is somehow important, but that we can’t possibly ever understand. I think what I’ve always really wanted is for someone to “hold my head” while we “trampoline through the roof”. That’s the ultimate dream.
11. THE METERS – “RIDE YOUR PONY”
Dirty instrumental funk gold. The whole thing could have been recorded in a church using the available organ and including the middle section where they all go “uh…uh”. I’m not completely sure, but I think the title may possibly be connected with sexual matters.
12. THE PROCLAIMERS – “500 MILES”
We had an ‘after show party’ the other day with our mate on the decks off his tiny titties playing a brilliantly unusual mix of tunes. When he put the Proclaimers on in the middle of a load of soul, everyone got up and went nuts. Scottish acoustic geek-punk has a fat place in all our hearts.
