#a bunch of Elton John albums too

[dead-loch]

now you’ve done it

reblog this and put in the tags what you think an absolutely gold star album is. every song hits, every song links thematically, the order of the songs feels purposeful, and just all round it feels just. so well made

[rhapsodynew]

#classic rock news📌

Pink Floyd

Pink Floyd sold the rights to the music catalog of their songs. The deal with Sony amounted to $400 million.

The deal includes the rights to the band's name and portraits of its members, which allows Sony to sell related products (clothing, souvenirs, etc.), as well as produce films and television programs. And, of course, the rights to publish music in various formats. The copyright remained with the musicians.

This deal became another in the list of high-profile purchases of Sony Music that have already taken place, in the summer of 2024, it managed to acquire the rights to the Queen group's music catalog for $ 1.27 billion.

James Blunt

British pop-rock artist James Blunt promised on his social networks that he would change his name if the anniversary reissue of his first album Back to Bedlam (2004) again took first place in the British charts. According to the musician, fans will be able to choose a new name for him.

In 2005, 2.4 million copies of Blunt's debut album were sold. In 2009, their number reached 3 million, which made the longplay the best-selling in Britain in the 2000s. The release includes hits such as You're Beautiful and Goodbye My Lover.

Back to Bedlam will be re-released on October 11.

Tom Hamilton

Life after Aerosmith continues.

Aerosmith bassist Tom Hamilton said on social media that his new band Close Enemies will give their first concert on October 11 in Nashville. The band also includes drummer Tony Brock, vocalist Chasen Hampton, guitarists Peter Stroud and Trace Foster.

In his post, Hamilton wrote:

"Hi, I need to tell you something about a band called Close Enemies that I play in. We have a bunch of good songs recorded. We are going to release one of them very soon. Meanwhile, on October 11, we are performing in Nashville at an institution called the Eastside Bowl. Please come!"

Later, the bassist also added that the band rehearses a lot: "The songs sound amazing."

A book about Bon Jovi will be released for the band's 40th anniversary.

Genesis Publications and Bon Jovi have announced the book "Bon Jovi Forever". BON JOVI gave Genesis unprecedented access to their entire archive to create an exciting journey through 40 years of the band's history, during which she created 16 albums.

Jon Bon Jovi says: "I never planned what I want people to feel when listening to our songs. But when you compose, it's often the songs that are closest to you that pass the test of time and turn out to be closest to others. If the song is written from the heart, and not just 'worked out', there is a high probability that the listener will find something important in your story."

John himself and his colleagues actively participated in the work on "Bon Jovi Forever", so the publication will have the status of an official one. The exact date has not yet been announced, but it is already known that the book will be available both separately and as part of a box set, which will also include an exclusive seven-inch vinyl record.

The trailer for the documentary "Elton John: Never Too Late" has been released.

"The film follows Elton John as he looks back on his life and the amazing early days of his 50-year career on this emotionally charged, personal and inspiring journey," the synopsis says. - As he prepares for his last concert in North America, at Dodger Stadium, Elton takes us back in time to talk about the extraordinary highs and heartbreaking lows of his early years and how he overcame adversity, violence and addiction to become the icon he is today.

The documentary, directed by R. J. Cutler and David Furnish, premiered on September 6 at the Toronto Film Festival. The world premiere will take place on December 13 on Disney+.

Legendary Yes and King Crimson drummer Bill Bruford, who worked as a liaison with music for 15 years, returned to the stage as a special guest of the British jazz band Pete Roth Trio.

The band's website uses the phrase "jazz without borders". The musician is comforted that "they are creating jazz for a new worship of music that is free from the usual jazz stereotypes."

Bruford announced that he would start recording and releasing soon, on January 1, 2009. His last public concert with Earthworks took place on July 31, 2008. After retiring, Bruford earned a doctorate in music from the University of Surrey and wrote an autobiography, "Bill Bruford: The Autobiography. Yes, King Crimson, Earthworks and More”, which received many positive reviews.

With the exception of a brief participation in the Ann Bailey's Soul House cover band, Bruford's single foundation for the drum kit took place in 2023 at a concert in memory of John Wetton, who participated in the song "Let's Stick Together".

The British band The Cure

She confirmed rumors that their album "Songs Of A Lost World" will be released on November 1. The longplay will be the first for the artists since 2008.

The band also presented the first track from the release of "Alone". According to The Cure's frontman Robert Smith, the nearly seven-minute song helped him understand the focus of the entire album.

The full-length album was recorded at Rockfield Studios in Wales. The gloomy, minimalistic cover was created by a long-time colleague of the team, designer and photographer Andy Vella. The work depicts the 1975 sculpture Bagatelle by Slovenian Janez Pirnat.

Ozzy Osbourne named the most favorite song from his repertoire.

"I have a real weakness for the ballad Mama, I'm Coming Home. The lyrics were written by Lemmy — but I described to him exactly what I wanted to say in it, that is, I set the content," says Ozzy in an interview with Classic Rock. "But I'll tell you what, I don't really have a personal favorite. People always ask me which is my favorite album that I've made — and I don't have one! All my recordings reflect either the fun and chaos or the terrible circumstances that happened to me. Each of them is a reflection of me at that time."

The song "Mama, I'm Coming Home" was released as the second single from the album "No More Tears" in late November 1991. It was one of two collaborations with Lemmy on the album, the other being "Hellraiser".

In an interview with Classic Rock in 2013, Lemmy recalled how he came up with the lyrics of the song.

"I came up with this song," said the late Motörhead leader. "He sent me a text about what he would like to sing, and I think he gave me the title, but that's it. I'm good at it because that's how I write our songs — I come up with a title, and then I write a song based on it. Later, Ozzy and I were doing an interview in the same tent at this festival, and one guy asked: "The song Mama I'm Coming Home is the most personal thing you've written. Was she a big jerk to you?" And Ozzy just said, "He wrote it!"

The frontman of the British band Coldplay, Chris Martin, sang one of the new songs of the band in a karaoke bar in Las Vegas under the guise of another person.

Chris Martin took to the stage in a baggy suit, wig, glasses and with an inflatable balloon in his hand. In a local bar, the musician performed the song "All My Love". This track will be part of the band's upcoming album "Moon Music", which is scheduled for release on October 4. There will be a total of ten tracks in the longplay.

In August, Coldplay's "Music of the Spheres" tour became the highest-grossing rock tour of all time. Before that, the record belonged to Elton John.

Ringo Starr announced the cancellation of concerts in Philadelphia and New York due to his illness.

According to the artist's representative on social networks, Ringo caught a cold and the doctor advised him to rest. Starr played a total of 10 concerts before falling ill. His All-Starr Band now includes Steve Lukather, Colin Hay, Warren Ham, Hamish Stewart, Gregg Bissonnette and Buck Johnson.

We wish Ringo to get well and hit the drum again 🥁

[therecordchanger62279]

TAKE TWO (4TH EDITION)

Not a single banana here - just a bunch of pairs.

Allman Brothers Band:

1. At Fillmore East 2. Brothers & Sisters. With this band, I wanted two different versions of the band, and I wanted both a live and studio record. The first is still the best example of what the band was, and what made them special. The second was the first full-length record after the death of Duane Allman, and it leans in a more Country, and Country Blues direction. The addition of keyboardist Chuck Leavell tipped the instrumental balance to keyboards. They would make a couple more great studio albums late in their career, but they were never this good again.

The Band:

1. Music from Big Pink 2. Northern Lights-Southern Cross. The obvious choice for most people would be the group’s self-titled second LP, but I’m still partial to their debut. My second choice was difficult because I love Stage Fright, and the all covers Moondog Matinee. But Northern Lights is their last great work, so I went with that.

Bruce Springsteen:

1. The Wild, The Innocent, & The E Street Shuffle 2. Born To Run. For an artist like Springsteen, a hits collection just doesn’t cut it. But as many great studio records as he made throughout his career, his second and third albums are still his best, in my opinion. I never seriously considered any others.

Chicago:

1. Chicago Transit Authority 2. Chicago II. I was more a fan of the adventurous Chicago than I was the hit machine they became. They were able to sustain a lucrative career for a couple of decades, and as much as I loved most of the hits (at least in that first decade), they peaked very early with their first two studio records. Both were double albums, and there is a lot of very exciting long-form music with some big hits scattered throughout.

The Clash:

1. Super Black Market Clash 2. The Essential Clash. This is another case where I think most would choose their self-titled debut, and their third album, London Calling. But the band made its name and reputation on singles, so I went with a best of, and another that collects EP’s, B sides, extended mixes, and some rare stuff. Between the two you get every important single, and most of the best album tracks as well.

David Bowie:

1. ChangesOneBowie 2. ChangesTwoBowie. How do you choose between at least a half-dozen classic LPs? I couldn’t. And my Bowie collections are three discs long which disqualifies them here. So, I simplified the process, and picked two single LPs of hits that cherry pick a lot of the best from a wide variety of albums. It’s not everything I wanted, but it is everything I need. And that’s the whole idea here.

Eagles:

1. The Very Best of Eagles 2. Desperado. The two CD Very Best of is the perfect one-stop if you only need one. But I like the concept album Desperado, and it needs to be heard in its entirety to be appreciated.

Elton John:

1. Madman Across the Water 2. Tumbleweed Connection. Elton will likely be best remembered for the hits, and there were plenty of those. But these two records are both masterpieces. The only other title I considered was Goodbye Yellow Brick Road which I’m sure would be most people’s first choice. But as great as it is, there is some filler on it, and that can’t be said for either of my choices.

Elvis Presley:

1. From Elvis in Memphis (The Legacy Edition) 2. The Sun Sessions. Easy choice on this one. I probably don’t need to hear “Heartbreak Hotel”, or “Hound Dog”, or “Teddy Bear” or any of his other early hits ever again, and after his comeback, the records just got weaker and weaker. Elvis’s Sun period is essential, but all of those lengthy CD packages that give you 30 alternate takes of every track is too much of a good thing. But the 16 track The Sun Sessions distills the finished master takes into one very listenable LP. The 2CD Legacy edition of From Elvis in Memphis belongs in every collection of 20th century popular music. It’s just wall-to-wall brilliant. His entire reputation rests on these two releases alone. If he’d never made these, I would argue he was just another 50s rock ‘n’ roller. But these records establish his genius, and secure his legend.

Eric Clapton:

1. 461 Ocean Boulevard 2. There’s One in Every Crowd. I think ‘461’ would make a lot of lists, but I doubt ‘Crowd’ would turn up anywhere – except here. The first was his comeback record. It signaled a sea change in his approach to music making, and to the electric guitar. The follow-up is an extension of his new sound, and was vilified in the press at the time. But I’ve always loved it for its low-key soulfulness, and the rapport he and his band-mates had with one another. If you want guitar shredding, look elsewhere. But if you want white Soul with a bit of Blues, it’s all you need. I don’t think he ever made studio records this good again.

[girlreviews]

Review #112: Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, Elton John

There are a bunch of songs on this album that we probably all know and love. If you don’t, you’ve been living under a rock or something and there’s not a lot of hope for you. They’re great. But have you ever listened to Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding? The double opener of this record. Half instrumental before leading into its vocal second half. It’s intense. Gotta wonder whose funeral this was and what their wishes were in being remembered. They weren’t messing around.

Bennie and the Jets, a damn classic, recorded in the studio but sort of made to sound as if was recorded live by adding in crowd sounds from different live shows – including that of a 1970 Jimi Hendrix show on the Isle of Wight (???). This song slaps. It’s so ridiculous. The delivery of the vocals is absurd, and it’s just really made for drunk people at a bar to shriek it over and over. I’ve lost my voice a couple of times this way.

A hit, but an underrated one (since there are so many to choose from in Elton John’s repertoire), is the album’s title track, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. I’ve always been enamored with this song and how it tells a bleak tale of someone with big dreams being faced with a harsh reality. People are all too willing to take advantage of naïve, eager, people like them. You can have everything you want – at a price. It has such stark imagery in it:

“What do you think you’ll do then?

I bet they shoot down the plane

It’ll take you a couple of vodka and tonics

To set you on your feet again

Maybe you’ll get a replacement

There’s plenty like me to be found

Mongrels, who ain’t got a penny

Sniffin’ for tidbits like you

On the ground”

It’s too short and I’m always disappointed when it’s over because I think, man, I could hear that chorus a few more times. The harmonies and production of it are just really striking and really deliver feeling like, “this life isn’t for me”. It’s not sad exactly. It’s maybe like a disappointment and acceptance. A moving on. A hard lesson learned.

What I love about this record is that it’s the original material for a 2011 album that made its way into my all-time favorites, and I felt got massively overlooked by just about everyone and that’s really just to their detriment. In 2011, Elton John and Pnau released Good Morning to the Night, which was essentially Pnau (one half of Empire of the Sun) remixing Elton’s lesser-known B-sides or album tracks into new material. A lot of them came from the album tracks of Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. It. Was. Out. Standing. Pure joy to listen to. I have met approximately one other human being who gives a fuck about it. Anyway, shit was good. For example, in the title track Good Morning to the Night, they take the organ from Funeral for a Friend, and fuckin’ turn that shit into a heavenly ascent that you do not come down from. It’s no funeral. You’re alive.

My favorite track, however, is Phoenix, which lifts its lyrics exclusively from the 1973 record's Grey Seal. While the music in Phoenix is beautiful, uplifting, inspiring, and has encouraged me to run more miles than I can count – it’s the words. When I first moved to the US I spent the first few months of my time here in a very particular way. I slept a lot. A LOT. I got up every day. Made tea, in the microwave (if you know me, you know this pains me to admit), and then I ran three miles on a treadmill to get my feelings out. Then I cried. Then I watched as much Breaking Bad as one human can reasonably consume without crawling up the walls with anxiety. Rinse. Repeat. Eventually, I got a job. But this was my job for a bit while I worked out some shit in my nugget and got some rest. I had a playlist. I still have it, and I still use it when I run. It’s batshit to be honest, if anyone ever listened in on me at the gym, they’d be like what weird shit makes this girl run? Anyway. Phoenix is on there as an up-tempo feet mover, but really, as I maintain, it’s the message, which is really the verses from Grey Seal, that made me go-go-go:

“Why's it never light on my lawn

Why does it rain

And never say good-day to the new-born

On the big screen they showed us the sun

But not as bright in life as the real one

It's never quite the same as the real one

I never learned why meteors were formed

I only farmed in schools

That were so warn and torn

If anyone can cry then so can I

I read books and draw life from the eye

All my life is drawings from the eye

Your mission bells were wrought by ancient men

The roots were formed by twisted roots

Your roots were twisted then

I was re-born before all life could die

The Phoenix bird will leave this world to fly

If the Phoenix bird can fly then so can I”

This song has always made me dig deep and keep going. Whether on a stupid treadmill or in a really hard time. He asks the grey seal “How does it feel to be so wise? To see through eyes that only see what’s real?”. It makes me think of the story of The White Seal, by Rudyard Kipling. A young blue-eyed seal went against his elder's advice to seek a safe place for them all and found it, gaining a lot of wisdom on the way. Striking out on one’s own to avoid a fate that seems completely inevitable, against all the naysayers, and fucking making it happen. Anyway. One version of the song has a seal (and a phoenix) and one version of the song has a phoenix only, both versions are remarkable. Only one is on the Rolling Stones's Top 500 Albums of All Time, and that is Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.

[krispyweiss]

Album Review: The Rolling Stones - Hackney Diamonds

Hackney Diamonds ends with the Rolling Stones covering the Muddy Waters song from whence they took their name -“Rolling Stone Blues,” bka “Rollin’ Stone.”

This gritty, acoustic ramble with Mick Jagger on harp is a fitting cap on the Stones’ recording career. And though there’re already rumblings about another Stones studio album, it’s not necessary. And neither, really, is Hackney Diamonds.

Forget the best-album-since-Tattoo-You business that’s trotted out every time the Stones make a record. Hackney Diamonds is not that. What it is, is the band’s best - and first - LP since 2016’s all-covers Blue & Lonesome, which was a minor masterpiece, the best thing they’d done since the other Mick - a bloke called Taylor - was in the band.

Despite the excitement that surrounds it for including Charlie Watts’ final recordings (“Mess it Up,” “Live by the Sword,” which also features the temporary return of Bill Wyman); the presence of old rival/friend Paul McCartney on “Bite My Head Off;” and guest slots from Elton John, Stevie Wonder and Lady Gaga, Hackney Diamonds is typical of Stones albums over the past 40 years. Namely, it scatters a few good tracks among subpar rock ’n’ roll songs based on clichés (“Sword”), rewrites (“Driving Me too Hard” is “Tumblin’ Dice” lite and “Angry” is a half-speed “Undercover of the Night”) or that find Jagger singing such lines as: You say you really, really, really, really wanna hear the truth, which sounds like a fifth-grader’s book report.

More positively, Gaga kills on the smoldering, slow build of “Sweet Sounds of Heaven;” Jagger and Ronnie Wood shine under the acoustic country blues of “Dreamy Skies;” and it’s nice to hear Keith Richards singing on the balladic “Tell Me Straight,” even though it’s another bit of lazy lyric writing. These numbers, and the aforementioned “Rolling Stone Blues,” are the only diamonds in the bunch; everything else is hackneyed rock.

Grade card: The Rolling Stones - Hackney Diamonds - C+

10/24/23

[ambrwolf]

you sent me a bunch so i will send u a bunch hehe 💖 3, 9, 17, 23, 30

I'll put mine under a cut too <3

3:A song that reminds you of summertime

First thing that cane to mind was Livin it Up on Top from Hadestown! But also Love Shack and most of the Save Rock and Roll album (represented by Young Volcanoes)

I have an entire "ego boost" playlist but ill pick this one as the representative <3

9:A song that makes you happy

I dont do karaoke but i love to imagine i would lmao, these are my favorite duets

17:A song that would sing a duet with on karaoke

23:A song that you think everybody should listen to

I have nooo idea uhhhh im just gonna drop this obscure (?) favorite lol

I also have an entire playlist for this! But the title of this song and the conceot of it is just sooo gender, "and none of them would know that i was secretly myself" mwah 🤌

30:A song that reminds you of yourself

[practically-an-x-man]

Ooh! What's some music you like? Either specific songs or albums or artists or w/e, as specific or as vague as you wanna be

Ooh thank you! I listen to a TON of stuff so here we go!

First off, my all-time favorite band is Queen (I'm actually going to see them in October, and I am UNBELIEVABLY excited!!)

I listed to a lot of metal and punk rock: Ice Nine Kills, As Everything Unfolds, Senses Fail, Against Me!, Green Day, Counterfeit., Halestorm, Bad Wolves, Linkin Park, Disturbed, Soundgarden, Trivium

Also some slightly older metal: Metallica, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, System of a Down, Black Sabbath, Dio, AC/DC, Guns N' Roses, Quiet Riot, Twisted Sister, Tesla, Mötley Crüe, Megadeth

(and just a lot of 70's and 80's music, not all metal - I like Foreigner, Electric Light Orchestra, Elton John, Billy Joel, Aerosmith, U2, David Bowie, all of that sort of thing too)

I really like alt rock and pop rock (I guess that's what you'd call these? idk): Fall Out Boy, My Chemical Romance, Twenty One Pilots, Fun., Imagine Dragons, AJR, Weezer, Muse, Paramore, Mother Mother, Crashing Atlas, Tigress, As December Falls, Foo Fighters, The Smashing Pumpkins

(side note everyone just calls them "Smashing Pumpkins" but that's not right. it's THE Smashing Pumpkins. Smashing is an adjective)

I also LOVE The Amazing Devil but I have no idea where they fall in terms of genre. They're just fucking awesome.

I grew up on country music and live in the American South, so that's got to make an appearance too: Brad Paisley, Garth Brooks, Carrie Underwood, Johnny Cash, Tim McGraw. Recently I've been getting into Brothers Osborne too, thanks to hearing Skeletons in the Sandman series

I'm also big on showtunes: Wicked, The Book of Mormon, Chicago, Kinky Boots, Tick Tick Boom!, Hamilton (don't @ me I just like the music), and just theatre in general. And opera too! My favorites are Die Zauberflöte, Fidelio, and Carmen - I'm particularly fond of Clémentine Margaine's performance as Carmen

Believe it or not, I'm sure I'm still missing a bunch. Like I said, I listen to a TON of music and even this is just what pops to mind off the top of my head. I could go into my favorite songs and albums too, but... I think I've been on this soapbox long enough, lol.

[only-a-heartbeat-away]

Hi again!

I listen to so many obscure bands that I am in this bubble where I think they are well known. Even bands I think are fairly popular because.. for example their shows sell out or something and so few know them. It is so strange.

I wish I could wear my chain more but work doesn't want me to, and to be fair, they are probably right that it might not be safe. Nose piercings are not that bad though I hear everyone cries a bit when it is done. I did too but it is reflex of the body more than the pain, I think.

I was so excited when I saw some of the newest Bach solo stuff has Rob on it and even in the videos. He seemed to share the excitement about having one of his old bandmates join him which, imho, is very sweet.

I live in an apartment too so moving can be shitty since it is hard to find a place that allows pets that aren't cats. I have been lucky enough to find a place where the landlord is a science teacher with classroom pets and totally gets the non-fluffy pets that I have. it isn't that common, at least here.

I would love that nature room but as it is I have a bunch of house plants in my apartment to try and get some of the benefits. That is another thing that sometimes makes finding a new place for me difficult.... I HAVE to have natural light and lots of windows. I will not live somewhere that doesn't have at least one window in every room.

Your kitties are so cute. I can't have cats, despite liking them, because I am allergic. I do love going to other people's houses and hanging with their kitties though.

I am not sure if it works with anon but in the blog settings there is a place to allow media in asks. If you want to give that a try we can see if it works. If not, happy to share once we are off Anon.

I have a few CDs but I mostly have Vinyl. I think I have around 100 Lps and probably a similar amount of singles (7 inch). My dad got me into vinyl early on. He had a huge collection and when I was about 10 or 11, can't remember exactly now, he bought me a record player for my room and gave me his copy of Strikes by Blackfoot. (If you haven't listened to Blackfoot yet I definitely suggest checking them out. I know Warrant commonly covers their song "Train, Train" live, have for years.. it is on the Cherry Pie Album.) I still have that vinyl and a couple of his other vinyls, not all of them unfortunately. I do still have his original Jimi Hendrix, Alice Cooper, Elton John, Rod Stewart and a few others.

My dad knew a guy who worked at a record store and was a local Dj. I have some really cool single LPs that were for release plays on radio. The Bowie and Vandenberg I have are among my favorites. I also have a few signed Lps and 7 inches. Mostly glam and metal.

Do you have any vinyl? If not, are you interested in vinyl collecting at some point?

-Jake

Same with me. I surround myself with people who have the same music taste as me, both in real life and on the Internet, so it’s kind of a mindfuck to me when I encounter someone who’s never heard of even one of my favorite bands.

Sucks you can’t do that, but like you said, it’s probably not safe. I imagine that kind of chain can get stuck in a lot of things, and really hurt too. The pain that goes with a nose piercing wasn’t what turned me away from it, I already knew it was gonna hurt and didn’t care. What made me back out was hearing about the aftercare, that I had to clean the piercing wound twice a day for weeks and even then it could still get infected. I just found that to be too much. I still do want a nose piercing though, maybe one day I’ll finally go through with it.

I think that’s very sweet too. They seem to still be friends and get along even after all the shit that went down, and I find that so endearing.

I’m happy that you managed to find a place that understood and let you have non fluffy pets. It is pretty hard to find a place that lets you have pets, even “acceptable” ones like cats, which I think is ridiculous.

I would love to have houseplants myself but again, I have cats that love to chew on new things and I know some plants can be poisonous for cats. I considered getting some small cacti plants, but that’s just asking for disaster when you have cats.

Thank you! Honestly, I have a feeling I might be allergic to cats too. One day a few years ago I suddenly started sneezing and getting a sore throat anytime I was around my cats, but I’ve been taking over the counter allergy meds since then and I’ve been fine. Even if I am allergic, I don’t want to get rid of them. I consider them a part of my family and they really help me emotionally and mentally.

Even if you have that setting enabled, you still can’t send any pictures on anon. I get why that’s a thing, but it’s still a bummer. Oh well, we’ll just have to wait.

I have a lot of albums on physical media. Over 300 cds and about 60 vinyl records. My dad gave me his original pressings of Abbey Road and The White Album by The Beatles, and even though I don’t like The Beatles, I still really appreciate it. I also have an original pressing of Boston’s Don’t Look Back, courtesy of my uncle. And upon hearing I like older rock music and collect vinyl, one of my mom’s coworkers gave me his old collection of original vinyl pressings for my birthday this year, including the Queensrÿche EP, Def Leppard’s Pyromania and Vixen’s self titled. Might just be the best birthday present I ever got.

I’ve never heard of Blackfoot, but I HAVE heard that Warrant song (and didn’t even know it was a cover lol). I’ll have to check them out at some point. It’s really awesome that you managed to get some of yours signed! I’m so jealous lol.

Do you own any band shirts? If so, do you like it when people comment on them when you wear them?

[jamieroxxartist]

👉 * One of my All-Time Favorite Concept Videos. A Brilliant Video and overall concept! I LOVE IT!

You know a couple of years ago this group show I was in, the theme they told me was ‘Celebrity’ which of course I loved. So I painted a bunch of celebrities and my paparazzi cameras (I mean that was the mission and all.) And all the Painting did very well. Everyone seemed to like them a lot and they sold, so mission accomplished and all.

👉 Now I really wanted to Paint a big like giant ‘Stan’ Painting, but my better half, my Wife Dani reeled me back in. She’s smart and usually right about these things.

And she had pointed out a very good question… 'Yes It makes a super-cool statement, but do you think anyone really would dig a big 4 foot x 4 foot Painting of this Crazy, Whack Job guy on their wall? Like enough to write a check for how much you know it’ll have to sell for at that size.’

And then I remembered, even though this was an inclusive event, it was primarily an LGBTQ+ event and that's the crowd that would be at this show, and I remembered the controversy around this track and Sir Elton John digging it or not, I knew that there probably would still be a raw nerve or two in the crowd.

And besides how do you capture the whole messed-up deal in this video into a single canvas image? I mean it could be done, even now I have some ideas … but it would be pretty involved in the time I had.

So I didn’t Paint it (but I wanted too lol), but man this Video really illustrates the whole 'Celebrity dealio / obsession thing’ perfectly to me.

Today in Pop Culture History: May 30, 2000 #Eminem’s second major-label album, #TheMarshallMathersLP, becomes the fastest-selling rap album ever when it sells 1.76 million copies in its debut week.

( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Marshall_Mathers_LP )

[listieshadows]

Listie babbles about her CD haul (2024/01/14)

Yesterday I walked into my local Sunrise Records with the intention of purchasing The Beatles' Yellow Submarine Songtrack to complete my collection of Beatles albums featured on a picture I've had of their discography that's been hanging on my wall for years. However, unfortunately, it wasn't there, and in a fit of "Well, since I'm here," I impulse purchased a bunch of other albums. And since I wanna talk about music more, hey, I'm gonna take a sec to talk about them! I hope nobody who sees this on their timeline minds the self-indulgence.

Green Day – Warning (2000)

One of my top five favorite Green Day albums. Probably even top three. I really liked this brief folk punk turn for the band, and tunes like "Misery", "Macy's Day Parade", "Waiting", "Church On Sunday", "Minority"... Aw, it's just great stuff.

I've been meaning to get more Green Day stuff, anyway. For years the only albums of theirs I've had are American Idiot and Revolution Radio, and I'd like to have an unbroken line of their discography from Kerplunk to 21st Century Breakdown. After that, with stuff like the "Trilogy" and Father Of All... Eh, I'll pass. And we'll see about their new album when that comes out. For now, I'll say that I did also consider picking up Dookie while I was there, but all they had was the anniversary box, and I didn't wanna add an additional $92 onto my purchase. But speaking of anniversary editions being my only option...

Elton John – Honky Châtaeu (50th Anniversary Edition) (2023)

This is currently my second favorite Elton John album, behind Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. I mean, come on, side one is a killer. Aside from having "Honky Cat" and "Rocket Man", it's got "Mellow" and "Susie (Dramas)"... Come on! Of course side two is great as well—"Amy", "Hercules", all that—but "Mona Lisas And Mad Hatters" has just never done it for me, honestly? Plus, sometimes I forget what "Slave" sounds like, so there's that, too.

Now, if I could've avoided it, I wouldn't have paid $32 to own the two disc anniversary edition. But that was the only version they had there, an', y'know, that just sucks a little sometimes, right? Like, you just want the darn album and not all of the extra demos and live recordings they're charging you more for, but that's your only option unless you wanna go trawling around Discogs or eBay for a more standard edition. And if I didn't love physically browsing so much...! Although that's probably what I'm gonna hafta put up with anyway if I wanna get Yellow Submarine Songtrack, so...

Iron Maiden – Powerslave (1984) and No Prayer For The Dying (1990)

I'm pairing these two together for a specific reason, and I'll get to that in a second, but first lemme get my opinions out of the way. Powerslave might be my favorite Iron Maiden album—at the very least it's in solid competition with The Number Of The Beast. I find there's hardly a moment wasted on it, and of course the big hits are all fantastic: "Aces High", "2 Minutes To Midnight", "Powerslave" and the incredible "Rime Of The Ancient Mariner". In terms of Maiden's "epic songs," I like "Empire Of The Clouds" better, but "Rime Of The Ancient Mariner" still holds a very high second place.

No Prayer, meanwhile, is an album I only first heard last year, and I can sort of tell why people don't like it so much. After the innovations of Somewhere In Time and Seventh Son, it's a big step back; and even for fans who preferred the earlier sound to the synths, the songs just aren't as tight as Killers or Number or any of them. Fear Of The Dark later on was an improvement, but only so much because of its bloated track list. Still, I've listened to the From Fear To Eternity compilation enough times that I have a spot for "Tailgunner" and "Holy Smoke", plus I think "Mother Russia" is kind of neat as well.

But why did I get both of them? You might not be wondering that up until I tell you that I've already owned a copy of Powerslave for years. In fact, it was the second or third Iron Maiden album I'd ever bought. So what's, uh, the deal, then? To put it in short, there was a box set released in 1998 called Eddie's Head which had their first twelve live and studio albums, from their eponymous debut all the way up to Live At Donington. At some point they were all released individually, and those were the copies I was collecting. After all, their spines formed a picture of Eddie. I had to have a full collection!

But I had one stipulation in mind: I knew that No Prayer was considered the worst Dickinson album, so I wanted to get that one last. That meant if I wanted to finish my collection, I had to find a copy of Live At Donington. Though no matter how many times I looked at HMV or Sunrise, I could never find it. It was only years later when I finally checked Discogs and saw how much a copy was going for these days that I realized, "Oh, they're not selling this at chain stores anymore." And in fact, they're not selling any album from this release anymore. They've all been replaced by the 2015 remaster, so I couldn't even get an Eddie's Head version of No Prayer even if I wanted to.

So I just gave up! I picked up the 2015 remaster of No Prayer so I could finally have an unbroken studio run from their debut to The X Factor, and I got Powerslave alongside so it wouldn't look stupid sitting all by itself. Will I ever get the rest of them? I mean, if that's the only option for the Iron Maiden albums I'm still missing, sure, I guess. I like their spines, too, so I'm getting that out of this whole ordeal at least.

(And in looking up a picture of the Eddie's Head spines to link to, it seems like I was also missing A Real Live Dead One as well? So... Oops! Guess that's two albums I would've had to get!)

Prince – Come (1994)

The first time I heard this album, it was because of a podcast I'm making my way through: Jukebox Zeroes. The whole concept of the podcast is that it sees the two hosts plus guests reacting to and reviewing what's considered the worst albums from famous artists, like Metallica's St. Anger or Madonna's American Life, for example. Come was the album they'd selected to cover Prince, though by the end of the episode they admitted that they should've picked, like, Rave Un2 The Year 2000, 'cuz Come really isn't Prince's worst, or even a bad album. Frankly, it's rather something that Prince considered this "lesser material" that he threw at Warner Bros. just to get out of his contract with them.

I think they largely singled "Dark" as their favorite song on the album, but for me, it's "Letitgo". I absolutely love that synth melody that Prince sings along to for the chorus. The pre-chorus is really fun, too, I think. For, like, a month or two afterwards it was in my frequent rotation, usually played alongside Angela Aki's cover of "Still Fighting It" for some reason.

Ultimately, I prefer the album he put more attention into and wanted to have released at the same time, The Gold Experience (which I've had for months longer), but I don't think Come should be skipped. I mean, at the end of the day, it's still a Prince album. It's rare he makes bad music, and Come doesn't fall into that. Well, maybe "Solo", but your mileage will vary, of course.

And as a little divergence, can I just say that, before I got Come, it was really funny that I had the Love Symbol album and The Gold Experience sitting right next to each other on my shelf? Jus', one where Prince used the symbol as an album title, and then one where he used it as his name. It's great.

[pretentiouswreckingball]

Día de los Muertos altar para James Potter aka Jaime Potter

MY BOYYYYY YES YES

okay this will be the song in the background:

for my baby James i'll put:

mole con pollo (bc my hc is mexican!james), red soda (jarritos if you know the brand) some flan and pan de muerto (his fave too)

his favorite mug that reads: Deer Boy (sirius gave him that one)

his iPod because yes he has that ancient thing

all his fave albums but especially 1D's Midnight Memories album

red converse ofc

regulus' letters

sunglasses

sour patch kids

a bunch of spicy candies tbh

a picture of him and Sirius doing car wheels

a lion plushie

orange muffins iykyk

día de muertos ask game! marauders edition

[parkerbombshell]

Rules Free Radio Aug 29 2023

Tuesdays 2pm - 5pm  EST Rules Free Radio With Steve  Caplan bombshellradio.com On the next Rules Free Radio with Steve Caplan, we’ll check out new and recent releases by Peter Gabriel from a new album due out later this year, Local Natives, a 20th-anniversary release of Joe Strummer and The Mescaleros Live at Acton Town Hall, Shakti featuring John McLaughlin and Zakir Hussain, one from the new JEM Records new collection of the music of Ray Davies, Osees, and a few others. We'll start with a set inspired by a forthcoming expanded re-release by JEM Records of an album by Bobby Sutliff, a Jangle, Power Pop artist who was a member of The Windbreakers, who passed away last year. Classics by Love, Sandie Shaw, Fleetwood Mac, Elton John, Nick Drake, Simon & Garfunkel, Flamin’ Groovies, Quincy Jones, and a bunch more. The last hour will feature some Pop tunes with Bossa Nova-inspired grooves, and end with some crooner standards featuring new ones by Rickie Lee Jones, Jon Batiste, Father John Misty, Rhiannon Giddens, along with classics by Harry Nilsson, June Christy, and Amy Winehouse. So everything from Psychedelic to Bossas to ballads, a little Garage Rock, Power Pop, and Jangle Rock, on Rules Free Radio! David Minchew - Change the Way The Windbreakers - We Never Understand Bobby Sutliff - Same Way Tomorrow Tim Lee - Something Started Tim Lee - C'mon Let's Go Flamin' Groovies - Shake Some Action Bobby Sutliff - The Color Of Your Eyes Osees - Unusual and Cruel The Fuzztones - Cinderella Love - August Holy Waves - Nothing Is Real The Beginner's Mynd - Nothing Wrong The Grip Weeds - See My Friends Gerry Devine - 5D Simon & Garfunkel - America Elton John - Where To Now St Peter Parliament - The Silent Boatman Peter Gabriel - Olive Tree (Band Session) Joe Strummer & The Mescaleros - Bhindee Bhagee Local Natives - Paradise Fall Out Boy - We Didn't Start The Fire Shakti - Sono Mama Fleetwood Mac - World Turning Hozier - First Light Margaret Glaspy - My Eyes Love - Maybe the People Would Be the Times or Between Clark and Hilldale Nick Drake - Poor Boy Antonio Adolpho - O Barquinho Rosinha de Valença - Praça 11 Sandie Shaw - Girl Don't Come Lou Johnson - Always Something There to Remind Me Sessa - Canção da cura Quincy Jones - Black Orpheus (Manha De Carnaval) Father John Misty - Kiss Me (I Loved You) Harry Nilsson - I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now Rickie Lee Jones - There Will Never Be Another You Rhiannon Giddens - Who Are You Dreaming Of June Christy - I Fall in Love Too Easily Jon Batiste - Life Lesson Amy Winehouse - A Song For YouHi Read the full article

[narispillstoomuch]

A Memoir on Music

The Beginnings

Rehab by Amy Winehouse. It’s surely one of the first songs I remember listening to. It would play every time we would get in the car. My mom had this compact disk my dad burned for her. You know, back when we used those. It was always the same songs playing repeatedly, and this one always found its way back to my ears. I found out much later who sung this absolute bop, and how much of a queen she had been in her short-lived career in Soul R&B.

But one singer I can’t stand anymore is Sting. He had come from The Police: incredible band, I must recognize. The influence from reggae just lights up the mood. But his solo career… it all sounds the same. I must say, I’m a bit more biased because I have heard those songs one too many times, mainly Fragile. And what an unlucky hardship it was that these songs were on my mom’s CD…

One artist I have grown to love is Phil Collins. My dad had this movie of one of his shows. There were also most of his popular music video. My favourite must have been Take Me Home. I would recognize landmarks being shown through the video. And I would also say my dad had the same haircut as Phil Collins.

My dad grew up with Genesis, it was his musical influence. I can’t blame him, their songs are rarely misses, if you’re just talking about the Phil Collins era. As for the Peter Gabriel era, let’s say it’s different, more directed towards a specific public. Gabriel’s and Collins’ voices both give me chills. They had power and emotion in their voice.  

And there’s La Compagnie créole, a French Creole group, the apogee of French culture from around the world. The rhythmic melodies make us sing and dance against our will. It is a joy booster, yet I would sleep on such songs. This was my sedative whenever we’d leave my grandparents’ house. As the poor emotional child I was and still am, I couldn’t stand leaving the rest of my family living two hours away. I would cry, blubber my sorrows away, much to my mother’s dismay.  And then, she found the trick: blasting Ça fait rire les oiseaux, C’est bon pour le moral and La machine à danser during the whole two hours she was driving so I could shut up. To my dearest mother, my sincerest apology to your sanity.

The Teenage Years

As a teenager, I developed multiple problems related to my mental health. Music partially saved me. Not even exaggerating, I have found so much pleasure in listening to albums and songs by my favourite artists. They made me feel alive, even if I wanted to disappear. If it wasn’t for school, I probably would’ve grown mushrooms in my ears from how much I wore my headphones. Now, I use it to escape, but also concentrate. I use it to be calm, mostly in overwhelming moments, but I use it also to waste accumulated energy. It’s omnipresent. I must listen to six to eight hours of music a day, whatever genre it may be.

I discovered artists like Japanese Breakfast, Lemon Demon, Rex Orange County, Ghost, MGMT, Frank Ocean, Car Seat Headrest, Queen, Prince, Teako Onuki, Childish Gambino, Mitski, Magdalena Bay, David Bowie, Elton John, Rainbow Kitten Surprise, Joji, The Cure, Kendrick Lamar, Siouxsie & the Banshees… and there’s Tyler, The Creator.

Now that I’ve mentioned a bunch of names that probably mean nothing, let’s go over some that resonated the most.

Rex Orange County and Joji are some of those artists I could not get out of my ears. They had such a chokehold on my silly sabotaging brain. With their sentimental voices, their relaxed beats and their unique lyrics, I felt in a way connected to their songs. And the biggest step up happened with Frank Ocean. He may have put out only 2 albums, but they are masterpieces. Oh, and let’s not forget Childish Gambino with “Awaken, My Love!”. This album made me live so many emotions at the same time when I heard it.

- Slow Dancing in the Dark, Joji

- New House, Rex Orange County

- Self Control, Frank Ocean

- Bad Religion, Frank Ocean

- Me and Your Mama, Childish Gambino

- Redbone, Childish Gambino

MGMT and Magdalena Bay are two rare cases of “Electronic music that doesn’t make me have a panic attack”. They have their own style, and each of their albums are unique for the way it sounds. I love them very much for their authenticity, and the creativity behind those songs. And to listen to their albums entirely is a treat!

Me and Micheal, MGMT 

Time to Pretend, MGMT

You Lose!, Magdalena Bay

Mercurial World, Magdalena Bay

And these are some of my top tier artists. 

Mitski is an artist I discovered more on TikTok, and I just love her discography. Her themes are  unique and, whilst the beats are similar, they are comforting.  

Me and My Husband

First Love/Late Spring

I Want You

Japanese Breakfast is an artist I discovered because of the mysterious name. And hidden behind that name there is a indie rock band. From the sentimental slows to the upbeat tracks, there is everything for everyone. I love that band, and I love the singer’s voice.

Boyish

Soft Sounds from Another Planet

Savage Good Boy

And the pinnacle of music to me is Tyler, The Creator. Listen to me when I say that this man alone made me live so many emotions all at the same time. He can change styles from one song to the other in ways I have rarely seen. I think he’s a musical genius.

SORRY NOT SORRY

SWEET / I THOUGHT YOU WANTED TO DANCE

See You Again

NEW MAGIC WAND

PUPPET

GONE, GONE / THANK YOU

ARE WE STILL FRIENDS?

[bluewinnerangel]

Do you see any commonalities between Harry and Louis' post show playlists? Would love to know your view.

Too much? Can I just go for both pre- and post-show playlists, because Harry's post-show ones have mainly been songs from bandmembers and location-specific ones.

The list of songs that have popped up on both their playlists or during shows this year is now 18 tracks long (including Can't Help Falling In Love that a couple sang in the crowd during Harry's which was definitely out of his hands lol but it is one of Harry's favorite songs and his response was amazing I couldn't not include that)

Shout-out to Mr Brightside.

Shout-out to I'm Coming Out, Staying Alive, and I Will Survive jfc.

Shout-out to DMAs - The Glow which was a massive inspiration for FITF, randomly popping up pre-show at the start of Harry's 2022 tour (once? Back in june in Manchester, as far as I know).

On a similar note, Louis had The Strokes - The Adults Are Talking as a post show song (Rio on may 27th - dressed in some bluegreen striped laurel hell sidenote it were the backpack style days idk either), the song besides Take On Me that As It Was has been heavily compared to.

When Harry's preshow had one too many songs from Louis' change over playlist. If you missed it, I believe it's a list of songs considered to be exit songs, and they kept deleting and adding songs as tour went on. Also the playlist went private for a while after the fandom discovered it, but not after adding a few songs and then Louis following jdelf on instagram that same day. The list of songs usd post-show is here - songs that were ever on the change over playlist here, post here, but basically:

Thinking about that time I asked twitter whether they thought a screenshot of Louis' change over playlist was Harry's or Louis', and a lot of people thinking it was Harrys.

Louis wore a shirt with names of songs that include "dancing" (Let's Dance, Dance the night away, Get Up and Dance, Loose yourself to Dance) at the time the preshow playlist of Harry's show did just that, including Everybody Dance, Let's Dance (album), Dancing in the Moonlight, Dancing on the Ceiling, I Wanna Dance With Somebody (they were all played within 1 hr window). here.

They have both played their own X-factor audition songs. Harry also played Rebecca Fergusons audition song - the one that ended up on One Directions youtube and brought along a lot of theories yk that one (Womack & Womack - Teardrops)

They both play songs that are related to the location they're at, most obviously the the Theme From New York, New York in New York, but also songs from artists from that country, songs with a special history in that specific city, etc.

Returning artists with multiple songs across their shows include Amy Winehouse, Bill Withers, Bob Marley, David Bowie, Elton John, Kings Of Leon, Queen, Radiohead, Talking Heads, Two Door Cinema Club, Vampire Weekend.

They've both played a bunch of songs that they sang on stage in 1D days, obviously just One Direction songs but also songs they covered or just messed around with on stage I guess you can call it that (Louis').

This isn't a serious one but I did laugh my larrie ass off when after Harry's Amsterdam show we were met with Louis' Amsterdam post-show song call me a moldy dirtbag baby.

I think they both have used their preshows to in some way ease us into sounds of their new albums

And last but definitely not least: when Harry performed I Will Survive on the 22nd of April 2022, that same day, hours before, Louis' exit song said Disco Medley too with Bee Gees - Stayin' Alive, and after his show (on April 23rd European time - this to say was after his own show but it could've been before or after the Coachella show), I Will Survive was added to the playlist (+Play That Funky Music).

preshow playlists here

[nevertheless-moving]

Not 400 game, but another song(s) for the Obi Wan popstar au

- Mumford & Sons: Broken Crown

- RAIGN: Don't Let Me Go, Knocking on Heaven's Door

- Kesha: Praying

- Ursine Vulpine: Wicked Game

(I had Broken Crown in mind, and then I was looking at my playlist and getting Feels)

Once Obi-Wan really gets into songwriting he just starts absolutely pouring out everything he’s seen/felt/heard and summarily repressed in his whole 2 (two) lives. Which is...a lot. The real angsty stuff gets buried in a datafolder (we’ll come back to that later). The less personal/more vague stuff is what he brings to song writing sessions with teenage Anakin to get turned into Queens Greatest Hits in Space/ Space Elton John Bangers. This, plus various shenanigans in which BK sells the fuck out, fund his early anti-Sidious stuff.

Later people realize that all those advertisement jingles were for sustainable companies with good workplace benefits—nothing associated with the trade federation. ALSO, someone in the Hutt Empire hacked the Former Slave Refugee Resettlement Program servers to figure out where they’re getting their money from. Turns out that having the Hutt Clans explicitly ban one artist’s music has the opposite effect of what was initially intended. Remember when those Keanu Reeves posts were going around and everyone was like ‘wait the guy from Bill and Tedd and the Matrix has just been anonymously donating ALL of his money? like ALL of it?’ 

Yeah a few ill-gotten financial records leak, tracing funding back to one random accountant’s office, whose only high income client is from a random agent’s office, and THEIR only high income client is—you guessed it— THE MAN—THE MYTH—THE LEGEND—BK. Someone does a bunch of math. A little over 8 years into his second life, BK skyrockets from ‘talented money-grabbing artist with weird cult following, most famous for trashy viral hit 8 years ago’, to pHiLaNtHrOpIsT TOO GOOD FOR THIS GALAXY—donates AT LEAST 50% of his proceeds to ONE CHARITY—wait what’s that—ANOTHER 5% is accounted for by this ANTI-CORRUPTION WATCHDOG ORGANIZATION??AGENT SAYS THAT BK HAS A DAY JOB?? also his music is AWESOME and NOT CRINGE! THIS GUY!! WHO EVEN!

*clears throat*

Anyway, BK is really popular. Then Palpatine is defeated in epic duel and now Obi-Wan Kenobi is also famous as ‘savior of the galaxy.’ Ben is just kind-of sweating because he didn’t really want to get revealed before, and now he really, really doesn’t, because it would be such a hassle.

But there are a lot of clones in need of resettlement, and slavery still exists, and the Separatist movement is still happening but needs to be facilitated peacefully, and the big duel with Sidious did a lot of property damage—

money can’t fix everything. but. it can fix a lot of things.

So Knight Kenobi (no do NOT make me a Master for defeating a Sith Consparicy, I would like ONE life event NOT marked by the Sith) and Senior Padawan Skywalker (no you are NOT knighting him. Yes, of course, he’s brilliant and powerful and has brought balance to the force but he is NINETEEN-YEARS OLD I am KEEPING him fuck OFF) sit down in secret and Obi-Wan revisits his angst folder, now that Anakin’s older.

Anakin: “Um, Master? Do you want to...talk about any of this stuff?”

Obi-Wan: “Not really. I wrote a lot of this when I was younger, you know?”

Anakin: “...okay...that...yeah okay, I get that, let’s make an angst album, sure.”

(Obi-Wan is fine! the Sith are defeated, the Jedi live, everything he’s worked obsessively for his whole second life is done! He’s Great! He’s not finally resting enough that his mind is beginning to process trauma from his first go-around! He’s Wonderful!) 

Obi-Wan (internally): maybe this will make my ‘fans’ less obsessed with me? If I show them I’m deeply flawed, in pain, and in need of serious emotional help?

(Gold, Imagine Dragons), (Broken Crown, Mumford and Sons), (Fix You, Coldplay), (Hurt, Nine Inch Nails)

Authors Note: It does not have this affect.

[little-smartass]

THE VAMPIRE LESTAT COVER ALBUM - the legendary Vampire Lestat is back and bigger and badder than ever, this time bringing a whole album of song covers ranging from classic bangers to newer fresh takes on chart hits! get your copy now, complete with a transcript of the artist's commentary on each song!

(songs I think Lestat would cover and release as an album in an attempt to re-kickstart his career and/or make some sort of dramatic statement to Louis. tracklist and "artist commentary" under the cut)

Survival - Muse

“And I’ll reveal my strength, to the whole human race, yes I am prepared, to stay alive, and I won’t forgive, and vengeance is mine, and I won’t give in, because I choose to thrive! Yeah I’m gonna win!”

Oh, I wish this song had been around back on that opening night at the Cow Palace - how apt that would have been! What a fucking anthem! They would have been rioting all night. I mean, they already were, but, like, because of the music. Not because vampires were being immolated in the middle of the crowd. Different kind of riot.

The Bitch Is Back - Elton John

“I’m a bitch, I’m a bitch, oh the bitch is back, stone cold sober as a matter of fact, I can bitch, I can bitch, ‘cause I’m better than you, it’s the way that I move, the things that I do!”

One day I want to have this play as I walk into Night Island. I’ll time it perfectly so that I throw off my coat - my denim jacket, or- oh, no, a fur! Maximum drama! - just as the chorus starts. Armand will know that I’m coming of course, but I think that’ll just make it even better. And I have good memories to this song... [muffled question] Sorry, gentlemen don’t kiss and tell, bébé. [laughter]

Everybody Loves Me - OneRepublic

"Oh my, feels just like I don’t try, look so good I might die, all I know is everybody loves me, head down, swaying to my own sound, flashes in my face now, all I know is everybody loves me”

Look, do I even need to explain this one? Didn’t think so.

Bad Reputation - Joan Jett

"I don't give a damn ‘bout my reputation, I've never been afraid of any deviation, and I don't really care if you think I'm strange, I ain't gonna change - and I'm never gonna care bout my bad reputation"

This one's fairly self-explanatory again. It could have been my personal anthem when I was mortal quite honestly. And it's an awful lot of fun to jump about and headbang to, don't you think? That's a new thing I've found out about, headbanging. People have been hopping about to music looking like fools for centuries but now there's a name for it. Fantastic.

bad guy - Billie Eilish

"I’m that bad type, make your mama sad time, make your girlfriend mad type, might seduce your dad time… I’m the bad guy. Duh.”

Creepy? Check. Sexy? Check. Tongue-in-cheek? Check check. This song was great and a lot of fun to cover.

Lover to Lover - Florence + the Machine

“I believe there’s no salvation for me now, no space among the clouds, and I feel I’m heading down, but that’s alright, that’s alright, that’s alright”

I don’t know, this one just felt very relevant. Also the piano was great to do. You might have noticed that I’ve picked a lot of songs with piano, and that’s because I bullied the studio into getting me a goooooorgeous grand piano for the recording space and I wanted to use it as much as possible!

Feeling Good - Muse

“Stars when you shine, you know how I feel, scent of the pine, you know how I feel, oh freedom is mine, and I know how I feel”

I just really like this song - I’ve done a cover of an excellent cover! Can- can you put emojis in this? Do people still use emojis? Well imagine I’ve put the shrug one. Wait, isn’t there- Daniel, Daniel, come here, isn’t there a shrug emoji made up of keyboard- [muffled words] yes! The shrug one! Yes, put that in the transcription. [ ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ] I just like this song.

The Man - The Killers

“I got gas in the tank, I got money in the bank, I got news for you baby, you're looking at the man, I got skin in the game, I got a household name, I got news for you baby, you're looking at the man”

I feel like this one speaks for itself too. Can you put that shrug emoji thing in here again? [ ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ] Yes!

J'ai Pas Envie - MIKA

J'ai pas envie, de faire comme si, comme les maris, qui disent oui, j'ai pas envie, j'ai pas envie, j'ai pas envie d'te faire plaisir, j'ai pas envie, j'ai pas envie, si tu m'aimes viens me le dire"

Look, I'm not going to translate the whole song for you, because it has all this clever wordplay you just totally lose in english… but the gist of it is that these two lovers are… at odds a lot. It's… it's maybe a little spiteful [laughter] but in a fun way! It's a fun song! Louis won't even be mad about it, it's MIKA.

Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy - Queen

"When I'm not with you, think of you always (I miss those long hot summer nights), when I'm not with you, think of me always, always"

[Long pause] God, I miss Freddie.

Let 'Em Talk - Kesha

Ah, full disclosure - I put this song in purely because of the expression Louis made when I played it in the car and it got to the line “can suck my dick” and she did that popping noise… it was incredible, and I just knew I had to cover it so I could see his expression when I said that. I can’t wait to play it to him. [laughter]

So What - P!nk

"So so what, I'm still a rockstar, I got my rock moves, and I don't need you, and guess what? I'm having more fun, and now that we're done, I'm gonna show you tonight, I'm alright, I'm just fine, (and you're a tool, so)"

I'm actually a big fan of nineties and noughties female stars - all that grrrrrrrl power, it's great fun, you know? I'd say this one is fairly self-explanatory, because I am still a rockstar! This is my new album! Fuck you EMP and your sniffy little article calling me "washed up"!

Little Lion Man - Mumford & Sons

"But it was not your fault but mine, and it was your heart on the line, I really fucked it up this time, didn't I my dear?"

This one could be self-deprecating, but it's also very vindictively angry at the same time, and that's a combination I definitely get. Like, oh, it's my fault, isn't it? It's my fucking fault again, what a surprise. Perhaps "learn from your mother or you'll spend your days biting your own neck" is a little on the nose… [muffled words] you've read my books, right? [muffled words] Good, good.

Missy - The Airbourne Toxic Event

"But I swear there's still some good in me, I think if you'd stuck around you'd see, all the botched attempts at integrity I once had"

Oh, I was feeling philosophical when I picked this one. No, philosophical isn't the right word… melancholy? Do people still use that word? "I swear I swear I swear I'll never get sad" is both furiously defiant and yet so self-defeatingly ironic. [Exasperated noise] Enough of that. Next!

Please Don't Leave Me - P!nk

"I don't know if I can yell any louder, how many times have I kicked you out of here, or said something insulting? I can be so mean when I wanna be, I am capable of nearly anything, when my heart is broken… (please, please don't leave me)"

Oh, we’re… we’re getting to this section now. [clearing throat] Well, I have to make up for that sucking dick line, don’t I? Get a bit vulnerable. Oh God, why did I decide to do this bit? [muffled words] [bad chicago accent] But why buy the cow? Because you love him, you really do. [sigh, laughter]

Next To Me - Imagine Dragons

"Oh, I always let you down, shattered on the ground, still I find you there, next to me, and oh, the stupid things I do, I'm far from good it's true, still I find you, next to me"

Why did I- I don’t remember putting so many of these ones in.

Run To You - Pentatonix

"I've been settling scores, I've been fighting so long, but I've lost your war, and our kingdom is gone... how shall I win back your heart which was mine? I have broken bones and tattered clothes, I've run out of time"

[Sigh] [clears throat] Yeah. I think we can move onto the next one.

Love of My Life - Queen

“Love of my life, don't leave me, you've stolen my love, you now desert me, love of my life, can't you see? Bring it back, bring it back, don't take it away from me, because you don't know, what it means to me”

I play this one sometimes on my baby grand when we've had a fight, and it's impossible for him to stay angry. He's a sucker for this sort of… formality in romance. God, I wish I'd realised that earlier. If I'd written him a letter in fancy copperplate script with scented paper and enclosed rose petals politely requesting him to bend me over his desk back in the day, it might not have taken two centuries of mutual blue balls for us to figure our shit out. Ah well, live and learn… as it were. [muffled words] Look, I did a whole bunch of vulnerable songs! Now I get to make sex jokes! [laughter] oh fuck off.