My Desert Island Discs

I recently promised that I would share my eight picks for Desert Island Discs just as Stephen is doing over on his blog. For once, it's a promise I'm keeping. 

I've said this before but I make no apologies for repeating myself (hey, this blog needs to be filled up somehow) in saying that I love Desert Island Discs and the stories it can throw up. For those guests that you know - or think you know - you often get additional info and tit-bits of background that you wouldn't otherwise here. For those guests that are lesser known, the whole interview can be an eye-opener.

Likewise, the musical choices - and reasons for them - can be revealing. Is the person emotional, sentimental, analytical? Have they opted to tell the story of their life and loves or just to take tracks they like? Have they thought about the context of the island - "I'm going to need something to dance to, or to cheer me up" or have they literally picked their favourite eight discs?

So, having opened up in your mind the idea that this post could be somewhat psychologically revealing - make of this what you will:

1. Handel's Sarabande: I've loved this ever since I first heard it - it's beautiful slow cadence and sombre mood just stir something in me; it's tranquil and serene whilst still building to a climax. I used to have it on my list of tracks to be played at my funeral - and it still would be if I thought about it long enough to commit my wishes to paper.

2. Rachmaninoff's 2nd Piano Concerto: You would have to go a long way to top this, I reckon. A melodic triumph of Russian Romanticism and a piece of music I can truly lose myself in.

3. A recording of H-H-Hancock's Half Hour. The obvious choice would be The Blood Donor but, so as to be so obvious I shall ask for The Poetry Society which is the one I normally cite as my favourite.

4. I would absolutely have to have something by Texas and I think I Want To Go To Heaven would be my choice. It's from their second, less commercial album Mother's Heaven when their sound was more guitar-laden than later albums. Of course, I would take ANY of their tracks, even from their less popular albums!

5. Annie Lennox, Cold. Another Scottish female singer to keep me company with one of the tracks from her first solo album:- Diva. If you don't have a copy, why not?

6. Howard Shore's score for The Lord of the Rings. If I can't have the three individual albums, then the Symphonic Version would be appreciated. I could listen to it and imagine the I was watching the films...

7. Dusty Springfield, Son of a Preacher Man. I'm not sure a comment is required on this choice - Dusty Springfield is, quite simply, one of the best singers to have ever committed their voice to vinyl or any other medium.

8. Pete Murray, Opportunity. This choice is a bit leftfield, but my sister brought the album this is on (See The Sun) back from Oz for me. He's an Australian Singer-Songwriter and the album appears to only be available as import-only - so it makes it a sort of secret pleasure of my own, as few others in the UK have heard of him. This is my favourite track from that album.

My book would have to be, with no question, The Lord of the Rings. I could read it with the film soundtrack on in the background. That, my friends, is called joined up thinking.

My Luxury? Soap - an endless supply of either Cusson's Imperial Leather, Pears or Wright's Coal Tar.

Finally, if (as Kirsty Young would say) the waves to crash to shore and sweep away all the discs, the one I would save would have to be the Rachmaninoff - it could transport me away on waves on emotion and wash over me in waves of melodic joy.

Of course, this is my list as of today... ask me to do it again and some of the above would no doubt change. Anyway, analyse my choices if you wish - and have a stab at it yourself!

Andrew

Desert Island Discs - What Would You Choose?

I've previously blogged about my love of Desert Island Discs, Radio 4's long running interview programme in which guests choose eight tracks they would choose to have with them if they were stranded on a desert island.

Guests are normally people who have achieved greatness or recognition in their field and are not always public figures or celebrities. As such, it can be a fascinating window on the lives of others - and what drives and motivates our top scientists, academics, artists, politicians and authors (for example).

Music choices are most often chosen to remind guests of people in their lives, or particular times and/or places. Occasionally someone will do something different, like James Ellroy who chose five tracks by Beethoven! Some guests have even chosen their own works, which is rather narcissistic! 

Stephen over at the state of the nation UK is currently in the process of revealing his choices, decided to represent different periods of his life and presented chronologically. His first choice was Don McLean's American Pie, which he shares with four previous guests on the show. His second, by Slade, has not previously been chosen!

Whatever you think of his first two choices, he's encouraging others to join him in sharing - and I've started on my list for publication soon!

Andrew

Desert Island Discs

One of my favourite wireless programmes is Desert Island Discs which, like most of my radio listening, is now done via podcasts... My iPod Shuffle being a vehicle for producing my own personalised and remixed Radio 4 (with the odd programme from Radios 1, 3, 4 extra, 5 live and Scotland thrown in for a bit of variety).

But back to DID... in the days before my Shuffle it was a programme that I only caught now and again but now I listen every week - and have also downloaded many of the archived episodes which are now available. It is one of those great Radio 4 institutions which has the ability to surprise and delight on a regular basis whether you know of the guest or not. 

(If you're not aware of it, the format of the programme is simple; the guest picks eight records which mean something to them and which they would like to have if abandoned on a Desert Island. These are shared throughout the programme during which the guest is interviewed and tells us something of their life story. Castaways on the island are given the Bible (or Qu'ran, Torah or other scripture as appropriate) and the complete works of Shakespeare, a book and a luxury of their choice.)

Sometimes you learn new things about the Castaway you thought you knew a lot about and sometimes you're introduced to a unknown person whose life is of particular interest. This week it was the latter, the guest was Lord Victor Adebowale, whom I must confess I knew nothing of. He's a former chief executive of Centrepoint and now heads up Turning Point, a Social Care enterprise in London.

One of the records he picked was The Tourists' version of I Only Want To Be With You. Although a big fan of Annie Lennox and the Eurythmics, I hadn't come across this version of one of my favourite songs of all time. Whilst I'm not convinced this is a great version (how can anyone, even the fabulous La Lennox, beat Dusty?), I do love the video:

DID is repeated tomorrow morning at 9am on Radio 4 and is also available as a podcast here.

Andrew