‘3 Feet High & Rising’ was released at the beginning of 1989, it was De La Soul’s debut album, and it’s an absolute blinder. Despite a sometimes reedy production, the style and tunes sound as fresh today as they did back then. It’s known as one of the landmark albums of sampling, Prince Paul behind the desk getting away with murder in a time before harsh copyright rules stifled the magpie creativity that would reach breaking point months later with Beastie Boy’s ‘Paul’s Boutique’.
There have been hundreds of good records that are built around a hook pinched from something else, but this album in particular shows you how to do it with daring, skill and deftness. Listening to a select collection of the originals shows how wide they cast their net, and demonstrates that it’s easy to pinch a beat from an old funk record, but maybe you could try a little harder. Johnny Cash, Yacht-rockers Hall & Oates, cerebral pop masters Steely Dan and a kids record teaching multiplication all chucked into the blender to come out with a hip-hop masterpiece. After listening to this compilation, dig out the actual album and enjoy the melting pot.
Grab the Pet Sounds playlist HERE and check the past playlists HERE.
Happy New Year!! Charlie x
01 Five Feet High And Rising – Johnny Cash [The Magic Number]
02 School Boy Crush – Average White Band [D.A.I.S.Y. Age]
03 Funk You Up – The Sequence [This Is a Recording 4 Living in a Fulltime Era (L.I.F.E.]
04 I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do) – Hall & Oates [Say No Go]
05 Best Of My Love – The Emotions [Say No Go]
06 Funky Worm – Ohio Players [Me, Myself & I]
07 (Not Just) Knee Deep – Funkadelic [Me, Myself & I]
08 Girl, I Think The World About You – Commodores [Buddy]
09 Three Is A Magic Number – Bob Dorough [The Magic Number]
10 Sing A Simple Song – Sly & The Family Stone [Eye Know]
11 (Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay – Otis Redding [Eye Know]
12 Make This Young Lady Mine – The Mad Lads [Eye Know]
13 A Little Bit Of Soap – The Jarmels [A Little Bit Of Soap]
14 Peg – Steely Dan [Eye Know]
15 You Showed Me – The Turtles [Transmitting Live From Mars]
Pet Sounds is back on at the One-Eyed Dog this evening from 8pm. Playing the usual eclectic mix from Marvin Gaye to Mantronix. Occasional guests and regular good times, come and get over your new year blues with some ace tunes. Selected 4-pint jugs are just £9
A fantastic 12 months for music is almost up, I really had no idea there’d been so much good stuff until I tried in vain to repeat last year’s top 30. I couldn’t even manage it in 40 and I am ready and expecting complaints about omissions still.
My favourite albums of the year – D by White Denim, Cloud Control, Nicholas Jaar, Elbow are still killing it for me, Hearts, and the Battles album is top. There’s loads more though, some really good stuff.
Grab the Pet Sounds playlist HERE and check the past playlists HERE.
Hope you enjoy it and see you next year x
1. Fleet Foxes – Helplessness Blues
2. Aloe Blacc – I Need A Dollar
3. Sbtrkt – Wildfire (feat. Little Dragon)
4. The Horrors – Changing The Rain
5. PJ Harvey – The Glorious Land
6. Bon Iver – Holocene
7. Jay Z & Kanye West – Welcome To The Jungle
8. Tyler, The Creator – Yonkers
9. Arctic Monkeys – The Hellcat Spangled Shalalala
10. Cass McCombs – County Line
11. Anna Calvi – Blackout
12. White Denim – Back At The Farm
13. Beirut – East Harlem
14. Nick Lowe – I Read A Lot
15. Wilco – Dawned On Me
16. My Morning Jacket – Holdin’ On To Black Metal
17. The Sand Band – The Secret Chord
18. Radiohead – Lotus Flower
19. Josh T. Pearson – Sweetheart I Ain’t Your Christ
20. Death In Vegas – Your Loft My Acid
21. James Blake – Limit To Your Love
22. Danger Mouse & Danielle Luppi – Black (feat. Norah Jones)
23. Real Estate – It’s Real
24. Ghostpoet – Liiines
25. Battles – Ice Cream (Featuring Matias Aguayo)
26. Tune-Yards – Gangsta
27. St. Vincent – Surgeon
28. Cloud Control – There’s Nothing In The Water We Can’t Fight
29. Metronomy – The Look
30. Wild Beasts – Bed Of Nails
31. Gruff Rhys – Shark Ridden Waters
32. Feist – How Come You Never Go There
33. Lykke Li – Get Some
34. Washed Out – Eyes Be Closed
35. Beastie Boys – Make Some Noise
36. Justice – Civilization
37. The Black Lips – Family Tree
38. Yuck – Get Away
39. Girls – Honey Bunny
40. The Low Anthem – Apothecary Love
41. M83 – Midnight City
42. Oneohtrix Point Never – Andro
43. Nicolas Jaar – Space Is Only Noise If You Can See
44. King Creosote & Jon Hopkins – Bats In The Attic
45. Björk – Crystalline
46. The War On Drugs – Come To The City
47. I Break Horses – Hearts
48. Kurt Vile – In My Time
49. WU LYF – Heavy Pop
50. Elbow – Open Arms
Just for a couple of weeks, I’m taking a break from Friends of Pet Sounds. There are some monsters coming in the New Year but I thought I’d touch base myself as it’s been a while…
This is a playlist I’ve had knocking about for ages, and it’s really cool, I just never got round to finishing it and putting it up. All the songs are in a 3/4 time signature, meaning there’s 3 beats to the bar when most popular music is in 4/4 (four to the floor). It’s usually known as a waltz but that’s not a given…
Ok, so the above could be a bit boring, but the point of the playlist was to show how different tunes can be made using the same starting point. I’m pretty chuffed to compile one with Brian Eno, Sly & The Family Stone and Alicia Keys kicking off proceedings.
Grab the Pet Sounds playlist HERE and check the past playlists HERE.
Enjoy.
Charlie x
Pet Sounds 43 – Waltz Songs
01 Back In Judy’s Jungle – Brian Eno
02 Que Sera, Sera – Sly & The Family Stone
03 Fallin’ – Alicia Keys
04 A Sunday Smile – Beirut
05 Waltx #2 (XO) – Elliott Smith
06 Manic Depression – Jimi Hendrix
07 Once Around The Block – Badly Drawn Boy
08 Obscured – Smashing Pumpkins
09 Army Dreamers – Kate Bush
10 Waltzing’s For Dreamers – Richard Thompson
11 Dead Melodies – Beck
12 Pearly-dewdrops’ Drops – Cocteau Twins
13 Juanita – Flying Burrito Bros
14 Red – Elbow
15 Place To Be – Nick Drake
16 The Debt Collector – Blur
This week, I hand the reins over to four of my favourite Albert Road people, the staff of the ace Bored. I asked the guys to come up with four tracks each, and they put together a compilation that is probably pretty representative of what you’ll be treated to if you head into the shop. This is something you should do anyway; today in fact, go buy something… Thanks lads x
“At Bored, all four of us here have different musical tastes. If one of us hears something new that we like, it will get played over the shop stereo to enlighten the others and/or the customers in at that time. If you swing by on a Saturday morning, you’re more than likely to hear jazz or dub-step though. We are always on the lookout for new music, please post any recommendations on our Facebook wall.”
Grab the Pet Sounds playlist HERE and check the past playlists HERE.
‘What Gets Us Through The Day’
Toby Taylor
01 Peanut Butter Oven – Thee Oh Sees
02 Every Night I Die At Miyagis – Ariel Pink
03 I Think I Can – Animal Collective
04 Bad Moods – Geneva Jacuzzi
Tom McCaughan
05 Artist At The Door – The Cloak Ox
06 Check Fraud – Fog
07 21st Century Pop Song – Hymie’s Basement
08 Gone – Heatdeath
Gary Scott
09 Journey In Satchidananda – Alice Coltrane
10 Autumn Leaves – Cannonball Adderley
11 Bemsha Swing – Thelonious Monk
12 Boyfriend – Best Coast
Tom Hussey
13 Sleeper Hold – No Age
14 Marissa Wendolovske – End Of A Year
15 Puddle Splashers – Cap’n Jazz
16 Heavy Water/I’d Rather Be Sleeping – Grouper
A seasonal selection inspired by one of many fine compilations made for me by brother Andrew www.paranoidfoundation.blogspot.com. He’s responsible for rescuing my early MOR musical meanderings when one Christmas when he bought me the albums Dry by PJ Harvey and Copper Blue by Sugar.
We both hail from the Isle of Wight where ghost stories have always been rife and we both share a huge passion for Ventnor favourite The Bees, a band who we’ve both seen more than any other! Seeing them perform a rowdy set on South Parade Pier at the time of their Octopus album was a particularly memorable night.
Living close to the Wedgewood Rooms for many years I have been able to enjoy some fantastic local music at the drop of a hat! Some real gems too including Broken Social Scene, Nitzer Ebb, Brian Jonestown Massacre, Les Rhythm Digitales, Paloma Faith, Franz Ferdinand, Stereolab, Yeasayer and Laura Marling…keep it coming Wedgewood Rooms!
Grab the playlist HERE and check the past playlists HERE.
Happy Halloween!
The playlist:
01 These are the Ghosts – The Bees
02 Walking with a Ghost – Tegan and Sara
03 There’s a Ghost in my house – R. Dean Taylor
04 Ghost – Turin Brakes
05 Ghost – Rogue Wave
06 Your Ghost – Kristin Hersh
07 Ghost Highway – Mazzy Star
08 Ghost – Neutral Milk Hotel
09 The Ghost of a small tour boat captain – Artery
10 Drove through Ghosts to get here – 65daysofstatic
11 Ghosts – Ladytron
12 Ghost Song – The Doors with Jim Morrison
13 The Ghost (Marcus Garvey) – Burning Spear
14 Ghost Town – The Specials
15 Ghosts – The Jam
16 Giving up the Ghost – DJ Shadow
17 Ghost Rider – Suicide
18 Ghost – Bombay Bicycle Club
19 Is there a Ghost – Band of Horses
20 Ghost – Antony & the Johnsons
This week, my big sis delivers an eclectic mix which helps to demonstrate how I got a good start to music when I was in short trousers.
“When your baby brother snaps his musical fingers you jump! Especially if you have an end to keep up. I profess to have taught him everything he knows (about music) but of course this isn’t true. He stopped listening to me in about 1987. There are ties that bind though and The Beach Boys is one of them. I don’t think our tastes have ever drifted that far apart but he might have drawn the line at Dolly! I love a lanky, be-quiffed rockabilly (JD) and I love a hand clap (JH). The video to New Rose is one of the best of all time – I am particularly fond of the cigarette dangling daintily from the lips of Rat Scabies throughout. My guilty pleasure is Hall & Oates and as for Bobby Darin…he’s one of my 6 year old son’s favourites. And I wish I WAS Sugar Pie DeSanto. I still pedal my wares to an audience of small children on my website Hip Auntie and online at Radio Nowhere dot Org. Now I just need to get spotified. Thank you Charlie. X”
Grab the Pet Sounds playlist HERE and check the past playlists HERE.
Hip Auntie’s Pet Sounds – www.hipauntie.com
01 I Cannot Find A True Love – Cliff Richard & The Shadows
02 New Rose – The Damned
03 Help Me, Rhonda – The Beach Boys
04 Trams Of Old London – Robyn Hitchcock
05 Soulful Dress – Sugar Pie DeSanto
06 Blues Run The Game – Neville Skelly
07 Don’t Let Go – Jerry Lee Lewis
08 I Ain’t Never – Webb Pierce
09 North Side Gal – JD McPherson
10 Heart – Nick Lowe
11 Number 9 Train – Tarheel Slim
12 Cherokee Boogie – Johnny Horton
13 Marry Me – Dolly Parton
14 Camellia – Hall & Oates
15 The Ballad Of Cat Ballou – Bobby Darin
I found out yesterday that REM had split up. It’s my opinion that they always got a bum deal with the cool kids, lumped in with U2, Simple Minds and other 80s/90s rock bores. I’ve put this together to show that love them or hate them, to deny the sheer volume of memorable songs they contributed to the world is just a bit naïve. There are tons of obvious omissions but this is my pick. It’s chronological save for the first and last track.
I went to see REM in 1995 at Milton Keynes Bowl and it was brilliant, they commanded an elated and adoring crowd like very few bands I’ve seen since. People are going to be listening to REM for a long time and hopefully these 30 tracks will remind you why.
If they were good enough for KRS-One and Patti Smith, then they’re good enough for me.
Grab the Pet Sounds playlist HERE and check the past playlists HERE.
01 It’s The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
02 Radio Free Europe
03 (Don’t Go Back To) Rockville
04 So, Central Rain
05 Can’t Get There From Here
06 Driver 8
07 Fall On Me
08 The One I Love
09 Orange Crush
10 Stand
11 Get Up
12 Losing My Religion
13 Radio Song
14 Near Wild Heaven
15 Nightswimming
16 Drive
17 Man On The Moon
18 What’s The Frequency, Kenneth
19 Strange Currencies
20 E-Bow The Letter
21 Electrolite
22 Daysleeper
23 At My Most Beautiful
24 All The Way To Reno
25 Imitation Of Life
26 Supernatural Superserious
27 Until The Day Is Done
28 Mine Smell Like Honey
29 UBerlin
30 Find The River
I met Ben just over a year ago at a friend’s party, it was a lovely summers day and we all spent the day in a field, barbeque on the go, beers flowing, conversation flowing and random sports equipment flying through the sky. When evening came round we all gathered under various gazebos and continued to drink, chat and listen to music, I was transfixed by the last one as it sounded like someone had got inside my head and discovered 100 songs that I wish I knew and owned but didn’t, the stuff that Ben had compiled sounded like absolute classics, yet I barely knew any of them, I think I was able to name 2 on the night. Anyway, I was suitably impressed and told Ben as much, a week or so later, I bugged him on Facebook and he sent me a couple of CDs that I promptly lost whilst building my studio in my house. So it is with an appropriate level of satisfaction, I pass you over to Ben.
It’s worth noting that Ben struggled to find a full 15 tracks on Spotify, such is the fickle nature of licencing. Nevertheless, what follows is a class in class.
“I have been collecting records since the early 90s but for about the last 8 years I have been predominantly preoccupied with underground American rock/folk/psychedelic music from the 60s and 70s, partly originating from my discovery of the Lysergia website and the Acid Archives. My original intention was to create a playlist of lesser known artists from the 70s who had clearly taken musical cues from Neil Young but Spotify’s limited archive made such a compilation impossible to share. Therefore I abandoned a more cohesive playlist for a bunch of songs I like from the 70s by some obscure and less obscure artists. Styles range from folk to hard rock to outsider/weird. If you think this might interest you then have a listen.”
Grab the Pet Sounds playlist HERE and check the past playlists HERE.
‘70s mixtape’
01 Waiting For The Rain – Jade Stone & Luv
02 Gypsy Solitaire – Fraser & DeBolt
03 The Unicorn – Peter Grudzien
04 Song Of A Sinner – Top Drawer
05 The Prophet – Azitis
06 Forge Your Own Chains – D.R. Hooker
07 Make A Joyful Noise – MU
08 Sanc-Divided – Fraction
09 Fire Climbs – Dragonwyck
10 Dark Thoughts – New Dawn
11 Crying Shame – Frijid Pink
Scott comes down to listen to me play records at the Dog, he’s given me a handful of (amazing) compilations, and he’s never too proud to ask who a song is by, I was particularly pleased to introduce him to the wonder that is ‘Forever Changes’ by Love. He’s been a reputable DJ round these parts far longer than me (although that makes it sound like I’m reputable so…) and so it was a no-brainer that I wanted a contribution from him. He actually got himself quite wound up when we were talking about ideas he’d had for playlists, a few having already been done, and a few that could’ve been called derivative, mainly due to songs taking import over theme. And so it was, he went away and came back with a finely honed, well thought out and most importantly, banging collection of gems, I felt bad when he left the DJ booth that night, but Christ it was worth winding him up…
Over to Scott.
Like most folk, having been asked by Charlie to compile 15 tracks for Pet Sounds, I straight away focused my research on how many songs there were out there that had the word ‘pussy’ in the title… well, it was for kicks if anything else, I got up to 23 tracks and figured I would wean out some of the more, let’s say, sexually titillating numbers, leaving me with various versions of El Pussy Cat by The Skatalites, Mongo Santamaria or Georgie Fame (take your pick) – Iggy Pop’s Pussy Walk was present as was Pussy Stank by Andre Williams, Scarlet Pussy by Prince, Black Sugar’s – Pussy Cat (great track). Heck I even had John Barry’s Pussy Galore’s Flying Circus instrumental from Goldfinger, but enough was enough, “get a grip Scott and concentrate”.
I had been listening to a few David Holmes albums prior to putting this comp together. I always like how he arranges his scores and would sandwich songs from other artists in between them, which in turn delivers a space, as in a space between music, be it a brief interlude or a pause for thought. It can change direction and move the listener on to something quite different. I went with the idea that my theme would be Verbs of Unaided Human Motion, you know, to run, to walk, to strut, to scoot etc… and that I would somehow put together a linear soundscape to it.
Some, if not most of the tracks present here are new to me, I had fifteen pieces of a puzzle and I had to put them all together to make some kind of linear beginning, middle and end. There are also some sleazy numbers thrown in for good measure, but so that it doesn’t sound too Tarantino-esque I’ve stuck a Harry Belafonte track in there for fun, enjoy.
Grab the Pet Sounds playlist HERE and check the past playlists HERE.
‘Verbs of Unaided Human Motion’
01. Young Man, Flee – AK5A
02. Let’s Take A Walk – Raphael Saadiq
03. Wade In The Water – Ramsey Lewis Trio
04. Higher You Climb – JJ Grey & Mofro
05. Running Out – Mable John
06. Stagger Lee – John Holt
07. Swagger – Joe Brown & The Bruvvers
08. The Stroll Part 2 – Binky Griptite & The Mellomatics
09. Swim – Jack Hammer
10. Mo’ Calypso Strut – Calypso King & The Soul Investigators
11. Jump In The Line – Harry Belafonte
12. Louisiana Hop – Pete “Guitar” Lewis
13. Late Night Scurry – Kid Congo & The Pink Monkey Birds
14. Tiptoe On The Highest Hill – Twink
15. The Scoot – Stoned Rock
This week (a bit late. My fault, not Charlies), we have the female face of Strong Island, far prettier than Pete Miles and with an equally impressive array of tattoos. It was always the intention of us here at Pet Sounds to give voice to all tastes and persuasions and I reiterate, if you think you can do better, give me a shout. Cheers Alanna for your efforts, another belting mixtape, guaranteed to brighten everyone’s rainy Thursday.
“I was very lucky to grow up in a house hold full of music. I remember first meeting my Step-Father and being introduced to the likes of Nina Simone, Carole King, Joni Mitchell (the list goes on). Ever since then I have always had a passion for the female vocals and because of this I have decided to infiltrate your ears with a mixture of my current favourites.
I have decided to keep it fairly modern; everyone knows the oldies, right? To introduce you to something you maybe haven’t heard before. There’s break-ups, there’s make-ups and there are just some songs with that extra bit of soul. I hope you enjoy this as much as I did making it.”
Grab the Pet Sounds playlist HERE and check the past playlists HERE.
“One More Time For The Ladies”
01 Mr. Gaunt PT 1000 – Soap&Skin
02 Wasted Daylight – Stars
03 Gray Or Blue – JayMay
04 My Pet Snakes – Jenny And Johnny
05 Chromes On It – Telepathe
06 Tie Me Up With Jackets – Fight Like Apes
07 Handshakes – Metric
08 Hours – Lemuria
09 Don’t Falter – Mint Royale
10 Back And Forth – Operator Please
11 Home – The Suzan
12 The Jazz Singer – Ada
13 I Can’t Stand – Zola Jesus
14 One Day – Sharon Van Etten
15 Pick Up The Phone – Dragonette
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