Robert Wyatt’s plaintive rendition of Elvis Costello’s poignantly political song Shipbuilding gave Rough Trade their first hit single in 1983.

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Beth Orton teams up with Terry Callier to perform a duet of the classic song Dolphins, written by Fred Neil and popularised by Tim Buckley.

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Here is a beautiful melange of interesting jazz-adjacent sounds by Romanian pianist Mischa Blanos, a new name to me.

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Lucinda Williams returns at the age of 72 with another state of the nation critique, The World’s Gone Wrong.

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Run For Cover was one of first minor hits for The Dells, one of the finest and longest-lasting vocal groups in R&B history – and it’s a Northern Soul classic.

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Spencer Wiggins had no success even at the height of his career in the ’60s, but this song has since become a Northern Soul classic.

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Veteran reggae outfit The Twinkle Brothers reached an early peak in their career with this rockers favourite, Rasta Pon Top.

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Last night I celebrated Samhain with an aptly Hallowe’en flavoured night of ghostly gothic dream-folk in a church, performed by Marissa Nadler. (more…)

To celebrate Samhain – or Hallowe’en if you prefer – here is my latest autumnal playlist. We start and finish with radically different versions of Ghost Town, from almost 45 years apart. In between there’s something old-but-new by T.Rex and more Glam from Sparks and Suzi Quatro. Plus a lot of steamy early-’70s funk and jazz-funk, and some Soft Cell in tribute to my old pal Dave. 

Lankum transform The Specials’ Ghost Town into an otherworldly Irish folk-drone-techno banger for a new generation. (more…)