I felt such sadness at the passing of Leonard Cohen last week. He was first and foremost a poet capable of creating such beauty, but also a man who relished in exploring the darker side of human nature. For a long, long time he was unfairly misunderstood as a kind of prophet of gloom, but recently his popularity had grown to unprecedented levels as more and more people came to … [Read more...]
Songs For Swingin’ Lovers! – Frank Sinatra
Sometimes you’ve just got to get a little Frank on. It’s late at night, you dim the lights, pour a couple of whiskies and canoodle up with the one you love while the man in the hat does his thing. In this case his thing is swing and Songs For Swingin’ Lovers! swings like no other Sinatra album. It’s debatable which album is Sinatra’s finest, for most it comes down to a line … [Read more...]
This Year’s Model – Elvis Costello
I was in my 20’s before I really got Elvis Costello. Sure there were the radio hits like Oliver’s Army and Watching The Detectives when I was in my mid teens, but to me at that time they were just cool sounding, catchy radio songs. It wasn’t until I began to explore his lyrics that the light went on and I realised just how clever a wordsmith he was. This Year’s Model was the … [Read more...]
Private Revolution – World Party
It’s 1986 and my career as a radio broadcaster is underway having just landed my second job at a regional station on the south coast of NSW. At the time of joining that station the debut single by a new artist called World Party was released. Ship Of Fools went on to become a Top 5 hit in Australia (bigger here than anywhere else in the world) and the song instantly became a … [Read more...]
Rickie Lee Jones – Rickie Lee Jones
Sometimes records are like a new love - all infatuation and exhilaration until the initial interest begins to wane, at other times an album grabs you from the outset and then becomes something more meaningful over time as you develop a deeper appreciation. Rickie Lee Jones’ debut album is a lot like the latter for me. Initially it was the bright and breezy charm of the hit … [Read more...]