If he had never played another note after 1977, Fred Smith would still have had a place in music history as one quarter of the band who made Marquee Moon – my favourite album of all time.

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Who knew Sinéad O’Connor had covered ABBA?! I mean, probably thousands of people, if not more – but not me. Until now.

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This is exactly the kind of song I hated back when it came out in 1982. I thought I was far too cool for disco; I definitely wasn’t ready for post-disco.

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Richard Anthony’s effortlessly cool song caught my ear over the closing titles of Nouvelle Vague in the cinema – a familiar tune with a new twist.

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The Oklahoma city of Tulsa, sometimes known as the Capital of Route 66, has a fine musical pedigree, including Johnathon Ford’s project Unwed Sailor.

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Melbourne band Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever return with their first music for four years, Sunburned In London.

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There’s a thin line between homage and pastiche and you can make your own mind up about teenage siblings The Molotovs.

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Here’s another anti-ICE anthem, inspired by the murders in Minneaolis, this time from across the pond by our own Billy Bragg.

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Chase away the winter blues with my first playlist of 2026 – two and a half hours of eclectic pleasure to warm the cockles of your ears, kicking off with the S.O.S. Band’s and coming to a melancholy close with Mary Margaret O’Hara. In between there’s a few country numbers, a hefty dose of Krautrock deep cuts, some reggae and soul, a couple of protest songs against ICE and Trump, and tributes to those we lost, including two drummers – Sly Dunbar and Kenny Morris – and actress Catherine O’Hara.

Catherine O’Hara played some of the funniest characters on film and TV – and her sister Mary Margaret O’Hara made one of the best debut albums ever recorded.

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