Previously, we saw how “I Never Loved A Man” became a smash hit for Aretha Franklin. But what about those other LPs on Atlantic? Between 1967 and 1972 Aretha Franklin released eight studio albums, two live albums and a Greatest… Read More ›
Music
The Making of Aretha Franklin’s “I Never Loved A Man (The Way I Love You)”
Wilson Pickett moved towards Percy Sledge, ready to punch him, hard. Sledge had popped in during one of Pickett’s recording sessions at the Muscle Shoals Fame Studios, and as his name would suggest, began to sledge Pickett, telling him first… Read More ›
Aretha Franklin’s Emotional First Performance
…and Why It Took Nine Albums To Score Aretha’s First Hit Aretha Franklin sat at a piano in her father’s church, just days after her mother’s death. She was just ten years old and about to make her first ever… Read More ›
Who Has Had The Longest Unbroken Run Of Great Albums…? (Clue: It’s Not The Beatles)
A friend and I were debating who has had the longest consecutive run of classic albums in order to settle another argument. Which is cheaper? Buying records online or buying in shops? Our scientific method was to each buy the… Read More ›
Is It Cheaper To Buy Vinyl Online Or In Record Fairs And Shops?
I thought the answer to this question was self-evident. “It has to be cheaper buying from used record shops and record fairs.” I somewhat patronisingly advised a friend of mine. “Buying records online is more expensive. “eBay is a global… Read More ›
President Obama’s Playlists. Slightly Better Than The Average Politician…
The news that President Obama has released two summer playlists for us to enjoy – a daytime and nighttime selection of songs – rather cements his reputation as the coolest politician around, albeit this is a pretty thin field. And… Read More ›
Rock Star Names: Lots Of Roger-ing, Not A Lot of Colins
We all know that rock stars have a free pass when it comes to choosing the names of their offspring. From Chris Martin naming his child after a technology company to David Bowie wanting to find a name that rhymed… Read More ›
Who is the Funniest Rock Star? Top Five Rock n Roll Comedy Sketches
So many people are frightened by clowns that there is a name for the phobia. What with their scary white make up, over-size shoes and comedy songs, there should also be a word for a fear of the band Kiss…. Read More ›
Tim Burgess’ Great Vinyl Adventure
Tim Burgess. You may know him as the lead singer of The Charlatans, readily recognisable from his shock of blond pudding-bowl-shaped hair and singer of some of the best songs of the last twenty-odd years. You may also know Burgess… Read More ›
GlastonBowie – Glastonbury honours David Bowie with mass singalong
It’s the festival of festivals. Nauseatingly omnipresent for some, frustratingly always out of reach for others (usually those with slow broadband speeds trying to get tickets). A couple of years ago, I went along and reported on a plethora of… Read More ›
What’s Your Favourite Father’s Day Song?
Here’s one for the dads out there… It’s Father’s Day today, unless you are from somewhere apart from the UK, when Father’s Day is probably in March or something. Sorry if I got your hopes up… It’s a day when… Read More ›
High Street Vinyl Wars! HMV Launches Its Own Record Store Day
You may not have noticed, but as Father’s Day 2016 approaches, we may be reaching peak vinyl. A supermarket war has broken out over vinyl sales in the UK, something unimaginable a few years ago unless the fight was this:… Read More ›
How To Guarantee You Buy The Clear Vinyl Version of ChangesOneBowie
The recent 180g reissue of the David Bowie hits collection ChangesOneBowie came with an unusual feature. Half of the reissues came in black vinyl and the other half in a lovely new clear vinyl. For those of us who already… Read More ›
Welcome To The (Franking) Machine: Pink Floyd’s Postage Stamps
What Could Be More Rock n Roll Than Stamp Collecting? Well, there’s doing your tax return, tidying the garden, and writing a letter to Points of View, for a start. Yet ever since The Marvellettes sang “Please Mr Postman” surely… Read More ›
In The Audience of Later…with Jools Holland: The Iggy Pop Episode
Iggy Pop was a force of nature on Later… with Jools Holland on Tuesday night, and I was fortunate enough to be there in the studio audience to witness Iggy lay waste to the cozy, boogie-woogie-piano-infested waters of Maidstone,… Read More ›
