@dsparks
New Christmas songs work – with a hint of nostalgia
Jamie Cullum | Christmas Don't Let Me Down
21 December 2022
I read somewhere that new Christmas songs don’t work. I didn’t get into the article but I fundamentally disagree, I’ve discovered some great Christmas songs in recent years, yes it’s a time when we rely on old classics that let us soak up that nostalgia for the Christmas of many years ago. But that doesn’t mean we can’t embrace new songs, and not just new versions of the classics like favourites of mine – Barenaked Ladies “God Rest ye Merry Gentlemen” or Sufjan Stevens “Once in Royal David’s City”. Last year’s album from Norah Jones is a great example –
Drifting in and out
Gomez | How we operate
15 November 2022
I think I’ve written this before but Gomez were the first band I ever saw live – or at least that’s what I tell people. I did see Steps or possibly S-Club 7, at least someone of that ilk, at a local kids disco called the Frenzy. In that case though I was only there for chasing girls and the underage drinking, which means it doesn’t count. So Gomez were the first band I went to see with my own money spent on the ticket and the intention of watching the band. It was at the Royal Court in Liverpool
The great small town storybook
Stereophonics | Word Gets Around
8 May 2022
The Stereophonics dropped a new album recently, I hadn’t heard much pre-release, I just noticed it in my Spotify feed and thought “I’ll give that a spin”. It’s not bad, but I was mostly struck by the sweet nostalgia of hearing Kelly Jones’ singing again and it put me in mind of the earlier ‘phonics stuff that I’ve listened to more times that I can possible remember, both on recordings and live. They were a band that were at the sweet spot for me releasing great guitar music as I was a mid to late teen leaning guitar myself. So
Thereโs nothing left
Foo Fighters | There's nothing left to lose
26 March 2022
Iโm at a point in my life where Iโve seen plenty of musical figures pass away, artists Iโve grown up with. In the last few years some colossal figures have died, but for some reason the death of Taylor Hawkins has hung in my thoughts more than any others have recently. I donโt know if itโs because they were such a huge band during my formative teenage years or if itโs because Iโm due to see see them on their upcoming UK tour but something of the tragedy of Hawkins untimely death has stuck with me. The Foo Fighters are
Oh, dig it – It’s not all about the guitar
Jimi Hendrix | Hey Joe
12 June 2021
I recently had a guitar repaired* and when I got it back the first thing I did was blast out the opening to this song. I don’t know why but at some point it became my go to riff. I guess I got comfortable playing it and just settle into easily, but I haven’t picked a guitar up in years. I can”t remember the last time I even thought about how to actually play this song yet it comes out without much thought. It got me to thinking about Jimi Hendrix though, this song as well as others, and what
An interesting vocal reimagining
Ben Folds | Ben Folds Presents: University A Cappella!
25 April 2021
There’s a long historic tradition of purely vocal music, beat boxing, choirs, the recent resurgence of sea shanty’s, babershop –ย after all beside maybe percussion the voice is the one instrument we’ve always had. But who are we kidding, amongst all this, the most recent love of a cappella music is firmly routed in that god awful American TV Show Glee, maybe if you’re stretching it, the Pitch Perfect films. Which gives me a natural instinct to want to dislike it. But come on you can’t can you? There’s a strong hypnosis to well done vocal harmonies and great acoustic
The curse of the successful working class raconteur
Arctic Monkeys | When the sun goes down
25 March 2021
There’s a great relatability in a working class person singing songs about their hometown. Especially one with a way with words who can create a captivating story in a three minute song. Think early Oasis or the fantastic “Word Gets Round” by the Stereophonics. But it’s a relatability that often means their music diminishes or at least suffers as they grow and move away from that initial inspiration. It’s hard to sing about being on the dole and bumming round a city when you’re making money off a huge hit album having left that life in the rear view mirror.
Emotion in the guitar strings
Josรฉ Gonzรกlez | Save Your Day
12 October 2015
I remember over the years many people who have commented about listening to downbeat music, asking why you’d want to. Which I guess I understand, I mean it’s a valid question, why would you want to listen to something that isn’t exactly going to put you in the mood to be a little ray of sunshine. But that’s not the point really, music inhabits so many different areas of the emotional spectrum, it has a place everywhere. It has power to make you feel various things and reflecting from the bad as well as the good can make great music.
I’d like a riff please, big and fat
Reef | Naked
30 October 2014
In the not too distant past Radio 2 compiled a list of the top 100 guitar riffs. It’s a list that’s topped by Led Zepplin’s Whole lotta love and generally full of the tracks you’d expect. The inclusion of the Arctic Monkey’s Do I wanna know? at number 15 feels a little contentious. It’s not that I don’t like the track but I can’t imagine it’ll still be in the top 100 if this was redone in 10 years time, let alone the top 20. Aside from that though it’d be hard to argue against much else in the top
It’s so goddam literal
Ben Folds | Hiroshima (B B B Benny hit his head)
1 August 2014
I have a long love affair with Ben Fold’s music but Way to normal may just have been the album where that started to show strains. Not that it isn’t a good album or that I don’t like it, just that it doesn’t live up to the previous ones quite as well. Maybe it’s a nostalgia for what I’d heard before but Way to normal just never hit the same highs for me. But there may be another reason it never quite hit home and strange as it sounds it’s because this opening track is so good, it’s brilliant, it
Halfway round the world
Matchbox Twenty | How far we've come
30 June 2014
I’m sure I’ve said before on here but the power of music to conjure up thoughts of different times and places is sometimes phenomenal. For this track in particular it’s time I spent living in New Zealand. I can vividly remember hearing this track on the radio travelling around in the minibuses we used to drive around in out there. Matchbox Twenty are much less of a well known band back here, although most people would recognise lead singer Rob Thomas’ vocals on the Santana track “Smooth” which was a big hit in 2000. I was aware of some other
I remember seeing someone dressed in a suit
Gomez | Whippin' Picadilly
6 May 2014
There are many firsts through your life that you can probably remember, first gig is definitely one of them. Mine was the Royal Court in Liverpool in ’99.ย Off the back of their Mercury music prize win the year before I’d picked up the album “Bring it on” and enjoyed Gomez’s unusual blues / folky / rock / indie sound. Me and two friends headed off to watch the band, I remember waiting whilst each of us, just slightly under age, took turns to try and get served at the bar, trying the different bars around the venue and having various
