Songs of my Life

01 Mar Songs of my Life

So at a pivotal point in my life, I have decided to share 50 songs that are special to me.

They’re a random section – not necessarily the best, the most credible, musically complicated or placed in any order, either as favourites or chronologically. They are just numbered 50 and countdown in a mixed up order. But they are all personal to me – and I guess if that’s the case they may also connect with you.

Like most people, the music of my formative years – the British baby boomer generation (I was born in 1959) – provide special memories and specific connotation.

As a child of the 1960’s there is a wholly understandable emphasis on this transformative decade.

It starts with the open-ended early 1960’s optimism of The Tornados’ Telstar and the space race that was about to hasten and be eagerly embraced by junior school children of my generation that would culminate with the first Moon landing in 1969.

The Beatles, Rolling Stones, The Who, The Kinks even Tamla Motown’s amazing canon of work that I would usually enthusiastically advocate are pretty much squeezed out in favour of specific tracks by lesser-known acts like The Honeycombs, Unit Four Plus Two and the Four Pennies.

There are, of course, shards of light that will later illuminate my fascination with all thing mod such as Georgie Fame’s Yeah, Yeah, that carry more than a whiff of Soho’s famous Flamingo Club and the torch songs of Dusty Springfield.

But as the decade closes and the much style maligned 1970s begins, so the musical gears shift, full throttle down into overdrive with reggae, punk, funk, disco and ska.

‘No time to be 21’? Hmm. It really was the best of times and worst of times.

By 1980, Bowie, Bob Marley, The Jam, The Clash, Sex Pistols, The Specials and others had more than made some grim years socially seem absolutely wonderful.

Thereafter there are snippets of random genius blended with, maybe, a fuller appraisal of older songs that I hope in total amounts to a fairly eclectic mix of the personal preferences and reminiscences.

After all, Every Picture Tells a Story as Rod Stewart’s 1971 LP goes, and  so do our choice of favourite songs. They are always personal, special moments that reflect different times in our lives for a myriad of reasons, be they sad, joyous or otherwise, and we wouldn’t want it any other way.

I hope you enjoy my list – and please feel free to share your thoughts.

Chris