Like most people, my musical box contains its own personal mix. You’ll find stuff about discovery, about heroes. There are recollections of those songs which just won’t stop playing on your inner juke box. There are also pieces on Tango, which I discovered in France, and which taught me to dance and to live and listen to music differently. I hope you enjoy the mix!

Songsmith Chrissie Hynde and the Ladies’ Tea Party It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. It was the rumbling rawness of the Punk Years in the UK, starting in 1976 and spilling over into the next decade. The bad could get really bad, with uncaring unmusical bands, violence and self-mutilation. […]

Songsmith Mary Gauthier I don’t normally do Christmas songs, having sung one too many carols as a youngster. I see them as decorative and unifying, but in the background. Yet it is Christmas again, and they’re back . You may have a favourite, or not at all. It depends how closely your musical ear is […]

Songsmith Steve Marriott I only had one Humble Pie record in my collection. It was the single Black Coffee, which I’d seen them perform on The Old Grey Whistle Test. Took it home, listened to the A-side, loved it. The singer, Steve Marriott, was in great voice. Then I did something which happens so rarely […]

Revelation at Reading Festival 1973 I saw John Martyn play live on Sunday 26th August at Reading 73. It felt rather like the morning after the night before. Except that there had been two nights before. We’d arrived from Harlow and pitched our tent on the Friday afternoon, thrilled and slightly daunted by our first […]

Catherine Berbessou et Federico Rodriguez Moreno Une soirée importante dans un festival de tango est celle où les couples de professionnels prennent la piste pour montrer leurs meilleures chorégraphies devant un public payant. Le tango est sorti des bals populaires pour devenir spectacle. L’arène de la piste de danse attend les combattants. Et les ambitions […]

My big sister Angie gave me Bob Dylan by Anthony Scaduto for Christmas in 1972. This would be the beginning of my journey into Bob Dylan’s world.The book was about history in the making. It was also an elaborate tale with no ending. Dylan seemed like the mysterious uncle in a family who people tell tales about. From Scaduto to Blood On The Tracks, these are the facts.