Here is the last playlist of summer (probably), so let’s kick off with a blast of sunshine from The Isley Brothers and fade into autumn with the gentle melancholy of Thelonius Monk. In between there are all sorts of goodies, from Eighties novelty pop (Sigue Sigue Sputnik) to Seventies demos (Roxy Music) and unfamiliar blues takes on a classic (Roy Buchanan’s Hey Joe). And all sorts of other stuff old and new, black and blue.

Summer’s here – as if we didn’t notice! – and here is a soundtrack for those long lazy sunshiney days, preferably with a long cool drink in hand. We’ve got the most memorable horn riff of all time – so good we’ve got it twice! – and artists from Lisbon to Madrid and Mexico, ending in a poignant tribute to the late lamented Glen Hansard.

Summer’s here and what better way to enjoy the sunshine than by pressing play on my latest playlist? We’ve got a fair few Northern Soul stompers, some old classics from The Kinks, Steely Dan and 10cc, a little bit of country and reggae, and a couple of unlikely collabs like Robert Smith and Olivia Rodrigo and (even more unlikely) Jeremaine Jackson and Devo.

My mellow May playlist is perfect for chilling in the garden with a glass of something – a margarita, a mojito, a vermút, perhaps a long cool tinto de verano. We’ve got equally cool sounds: blissful jazz piano, heavenly harmonies, smooth reggae, blues, soul, hip-hop and tributes to the late great Sonny Rollins, Dennis Locorriere, David Allan Coe and Beverley Martyn.

Here’s another playlist for the transitional month of April, when wintry weather began to give way to longer days and occasional bursts of sunshine. There’s vintage reggae and soul, funk and swamp rock, old-skool hip-hop, new post-punk and country-rock, some unfamiliar versions of familiar tunes, and tributes to those we lost, including the last living Ronette.

Here we go again: the usual mix of old and new and black and white and funk and soul and reggae and jazz and country and disco. And tributes to  to the dead in a busy month for the grim reaper: Country Joe, Chip Taylor, Mike Vernon, Terry Cox, Wayne Perkins and Wes McGhee. There’s even some Peruvian punk, which is a first for me (and surely you). 

This month is the usual eclectic mix, including a couple of protest songs, tunes from Taiwan, Canada, Australia and France, some old soul and reggae, a bit of disco, and tributes to the late Fred Smith (Television), Neil Sedaka, salsa giant Willie Colon and a bloke from Cake.

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.

My last playlist of the year spans more than half a century, starting in the early 1960s with Sandra Barry and taking in tributes to those we lost in December, including Brigitte Bardot, Joe Ely, Steve Cropper and Chris Rea. In between there is folk, blues, soul, country, Eurodisco – and even a little Schumann.

November’s playlist finds autumnal songs slowly turning to winter sounds, saying hello with one of the greatest tunes of all time by Squeeze and waving goodbye with Soft Cell. (more…)