Good evening all you radio fans! Well, not quite radio but you know what I mean.
This is the last episode for the year, and depending on my whereabouts in Aotearoa over the next little while, we may experience a short break in transmission.
Christmas was interesting. 20 people and 3 dogs in one place. But we had fun. Sydney was Sydney, I'm always glad to leave but it's OK to visit. I'm just not a big city person.
DJ FeeFee gave me a Madness boxset. I've never listened to them apart from the obligatory single here and there on the radio but I'm looking forward to getting into it. Here's something I do remember of them though...
And that leads me to this....
Ah, TV just isn't the same these days! Although for a number of people I guess the Young Ones was close to reality viewing. Thanks Mrs. Thatcher.
My family gave me a double CD entitled 'The Great Australian Songbook' - and it's a great listen. My only gripe is that if they went to the trouble of getting Rolf Harris to paint the cover and do the intro then why not include the full version of his classic song instead of 20 seconds? This is even better...
And if you though that was good, this is stellar...
I was in one of my favourite record shops yesterday - an independent one with an interesting mix of titles and a huge metal section! I picked up a Tom Waits live album recorded in 1975 on the strength of the song titles alone. How could I resist 'Emotional Weather Report', 'Warm Beer & Cold Women' and this one - the clincher...
Of course, I didn't pick up Tom Waits in the metal section. Thought I'd better be clear about that.
But if I was looking for a metal track then Queensryche is a band I always turn to. I had missed the fact that they had a new album out in 2011. Their stuff is always worth a listen - great lyrics and they can really play as well. But, after a quick listen to a few tracks I'm really not sure about it and I don't want to subject you to anything that I wouldn't recommend. The album is called 'Dedicated To Chaos' and I'll have a good listen and get back to you.
Holidays have been good for my training as I work towards a long course triathlon at Huskisson in February. I'm back on the time trial bike and really enjoying the feeling of speed out on the road. There will be some cross training in NZ as my brother has been super-awesome and organised a mountain bike for me. Judging by the weather I have a feeling that I might get a little bit wet into the bargain. Mountain biking can be very Zen compared to most of the training that I do. It is fantastic to disappear into the bush and really raise a sweat without any outside interference. No cars.
There's a newish 4 CD Iggy Pop bootleg collection that I've spotted in the shops. Iggy is cool, especially live, and I'll put this on my must-have list but I've got a bit of other listening to get through before I can immerse myself in that! If you've got any doubt about Iggy being a great performer then give this a good look...(for the squeamish, he says a couple of swear words in the intro - censor yourselves)
But my biggest find this week was one I'd been looking for over the past few months. Glen Campbell (yep, the Rhinestone Cowboy) announced that he has Alzheimer's and has recorded his farewell album. He's on a world tour at the moment doing his best. Man, I very much admire people who can put life into perspective in song. A few are good at it but listening to this album, as beautiful as it is, really makes your heart ache. That's the point I guess, but to be so honest in the public domain and not sound contrived takes talent and guts. The album is superb, Glen's voice just soars. Take a chance on these two tracks, the second one in particular is particularly moving given what we now know about him.
Next time on Song of the Week; a new format, New Year's resolutions, paid advertising and top 40 tracks. Nah, not really. It'll be another year of me rambling about almost anything and playing tunes I think you might like.
And remember...don't put anything on facebook that you don't want the world to see. It's that easy.
Happy New Year,
DJ Rob
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