Regular readers among will know that this years 12 Days of Christmas will showcase a collection of songs that communicate hope. This kicked off yesterday with the Bill Withers classic, “Lean On Me”. So many of us have been through the darkest of times this past couple of years and if any of this music can bring you even a sliver of light and hope, then music is doing its job. Today I have chosen the George Harrison penned Beatles classic “Here Comes The Sun” from ‘Abbey Road’. Stay strong people and if you are feeling particularly low talk to someone. I am happy to be here for you if you need me!
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Back in January I discovered a site called Obscurify. It claims to tell you how obscure your listening on Spotify is. Compared to the rest of the UK I am supposedly 91% more obscure than other users, I’ll take that! It also lists my most obscure artists, which are currently
It really shows me that I do have eclectic taste. But the thing I love most about it is that roughly every month it tells you who your top artists are for that period based on your Spotify listening habits. So I simply had to start publishing a monthly With Just A Hint Of Mayhem Top 20. I’ll kick off with June. Scroll down to the bottom and you will see all the rest of this years charts! No surprise that David Bowie has been top three times but five other artists have held the top spot too; The Avalanches, Millie Manders and the ShutUp, Bob Marley and the Wailers, Saint Agnes and this month it is the supremely talented Delilah Bon!
Mayhem’s Top 20 Artists on Spotify (June 15th 2021)
1 Delilah Bon 2 Penfriend 3 David Bowie 4 Beatles 5 Simon & Garfunkel 6 Norah Jones 7 Beck 8 Carole King 9 Wolf Alice 10 Twenty One Pilots 11 Kate Bush 12 Babii 13 Liz Phair 14 Avalanche Party 15 Sam Cooke 16 James Brown 17 The Howl and the Hum 18 Biig Piig 19 Children Of Zeus 20 Lachlan
03 January 2021
27 January 2021
18 February 2021
12 March 2021
04 April 2021
26 April 2021
20 May 2021
1
Avalanches
Millie Manders & The Shut Up
David Bowie
Bob Marley & The Wailers
Saint Agnes
David Bowie
David Bowie
2
Carpenters
Beatles
Radiohead
Pentastone
Estere
Elton John
Apollo Junction
3
London Symphony Orchestra
Yusuf/ Cat Stevens
Mink Deville
Pale Waves
Beatles
Beatles
Amy Winehouse
4
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Pink Floyd
Call Me Malcolm
Architects
Carole King
Billy Joel
Rumer
5
Jones Girls
Eagles
Temptations
Paul Weller
Sheryl Crow
Carole King
Rag N Bone Man
6
Taylor Swift
Evie Sands
Denise Sherwood
David Bowie
Normandie
Snuts
Elivis Presley
7
Jean Carn
Rumer
Celeste
Dusty Springfield
Bobby Womack
MeatLoaf
Stevie Wonder
8
Steely Dan
Jackson Browne
Marvin Gaye
Kate Bush
Captain Ska
Bull
Betty Wright
9
Norman Connors
David Bowie
Weezer
Biffy Clyro
Frank Zappa
Dr Buzzard’s Original Savannah Band
Kristina Train
10
George Michael
Bobbie Gentry
Amy Winehouse
Bunny Wailer
Arctic Monkeys
Showaddywaddy
Billy Joel
11
Sing Sing Rabbit
Harry Styles
Pale Waves
U-Roy
Millie Jackson
Kid Creole & The Coconuts
Paul Weller
12
David Bowie
Joni Mitchell
Isley Brothers
Katy J Pearson
Joni Mitchell
Linda Ronstadt
Four Tops
13
Paul McCartney
Dusty Springfield
Stevie Wonder
Avalanches
Bob Dylan
ShaNaNa
Sam Cooke
14
Wham
KLF
Diana Ross & The Supremes
Bring Me The Horizon
Tender Central
Beach Boys
Enter Shikari
15
New Order
Arctic Monkeys
Martha Reeves & The Vandellas
Sweet
Nick Cave
Dolly Parton
MeatLoaf
16
Elton John
Jim Croce
Denise Johnson
T Rex
Gary Numan
Elvis Presley
Carly Simon
17
Elvis Presley
Eminem
Estere
Stackridge
Dr Buzzard’s Original Savannah Band
Supremes
Ladysmith Black Mambazo
18
Bing Crosby
Paul Simon
GAYLIPS
Nick Cave
Bohannnon
Queen
Lift
19
Stevie Wonder
Jazmine Sullivan
Sweet
Not Now Norman
Kid Creole & The Coconuts
Creedence Clearwater Revival
Holy Fuck
20
Uriah Heep
Wings
T Rex
Thin Lizzy
American West Orchestra
T Rex
Johnny Nash
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Other than the Beatles I really hadn’t thought about how many bands have played exclusive gigs on rooftops. But there are quite a few, here is a top ten, but I am not brave enough to rank them, so they are in chronological order. The list includes 4 British acts, 4 US artists, 1 Brazilian and an Irish band. Five of the rooftops, were in the US, four in the UK and one in Brazil. Sadly I never witnessed any of these rooftop shows firsthand, but I have been lucky enough to see six of these acts play live 🙂
1955 Elvis Presley – Porky’s Rooftop, Newport, Arkansas, USA – did the King kick it all off?
1967 Roberto Carlos РCopam Building, Ṣo Paulo, Brazil Рnot the footballer with the same name, this fella was known as the King of Latin Music
1968 Jefferson Airplane – The Schuyler Hotel, Manhattan, NYC, USA – way before they converted to a Starship, they laid the foundations for the city they built on rock ‘n’ roll
1969 – Beatles – Apple Building, Saville Row, London, UK – the last live show the Fab Four ever played. The title of this post is a John Lennon quote from that gig.
1987 U2 – Apple Studios, Los Angeles, USA – part of the ‘Rattle And Hum’ shenanigans I think
2010 Bon Jovi – O2 Arena, London, UK – Jon, Richie and the boys stepped onto the roof of the venue they were playing a residency at
2011 Kasabian – Skylight West, NYC, USA – the Leicester lads play a set to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, or maybe the 40th anniversary of Mulberry, or maybe both!
2012 Madness – Buckingham Palace, London, UK – the Nutty Boys played for Her Maj on the occasion of her Diamond Jubilee – Brian May also played the rooftop. Hardly the Pistols riverboat trip back in ’77, but I suppose it’ll do.
2013 Macklemore & Ryan Lewis – Dick’s Drive In, Seattle, USA – I so wish they had played on the roof of a “Thrift Shop”. This wasn’t their only rooftop gig that year, check out the video below.
2021 Bull – EMI Head Office, Kings Cross, London, UK – one of York’s finest showcased their debut album ‘Discover Effortless Living’ with a fab show which was streamed earlier tonight. A small roof for a band, a giant leap for bandkind! Terrible pun I know, but trust me, Bull really are destined for great things!
Given that it was 1955 and there was no social media there appears to be no footage of Elvis’ roof top gig. Bull’s marvellous set is not on YouTube yet, but click here and it might still be available on their Facebook page 🙂
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I am so very proud of my very talented wife Catherine, her book ‘How To Be A Thousandaire’ was published on 20th September this year and she is leading a book launch event for it tomorrow in York. It is the perfect book for you if you are a micro-business owner, are planning to become a micro-business owner or if you know a micro-business owner. The book details Catherine’s business journey and how she overcame adversity to build an incredibly resilient business. The book is available now from Amazon across the world. At only £14.99 in the UK, it is a great investment. Click here and order your copy now, and feel free to share this!
Yes this is a music blog so please enjoy a few book-related tunes while you place your order for ‘How To Be A Thousandaire’
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I was lucky enough to spend time in a flotation tank a few years ago and it was an incredible experience. For the uninitiated you float, for an hour in my case, in very salty warm water inside a pod with no light or sound. It is claimed that the relaxation you experience is better than hours of sleep. It sure felt like it and I will definitely do it again. But in the meantime, there was Float Tank #4 an experimental music session brought to us as a part of the Great Yorkshire Fringe 2019. The series started three years ago in the Railway Institute in York, this year Float Tank #4 (the following evening it would be #5) was held on the Arts Barge on the River Ouse at Tower Gardens near Skeldergate Bridge. It was a short show, just one hour, a similar length to the usual flotation tank experience. It began at 10 p.m. and ended at 11. So what exactly was it?
Well it was a very strange gig experience. Imagine, if you will, being at a gig in total darkness and only being able to hear the performers but not see them. Are you imagining that? Trust me the sensory experience goes way beyond what our little minds can imagine. The set began with Sam Griffiths of The Howl And The Hum playing a lounge-style piano take on Springsteen’s “Dancing In The Dark”, appropriately. Sam was visible for this as it was just background while we took our seats and the last vestiges of light were blocked out. Once we were truly plunged into darkness the fun began with a poem recited, presumably by the poet (apologies, I didn’t get her name). She was backed with some eerie sounds which were mostly keyboard-driven. After that, it was instrumental music which was guitar-based and might have included a number of tape loops. I believe that Kai West of Bull was responsible for much of this. It was a stunning psychedelic ambient drone and at times I was reminded of the sound bite and tape loop psych-out that was “Revolution No. 9” from the Beatles White Album. But however it was composed and performed it was a great sound that fitted the experience perfectly. Like many of us in the audience I completely lost track of time and a few times I tried to get my eyes accustomed to the dark, but it really was Eldritch black. If Float Tank returns next year then I will be first in line!
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With Just A Hint Of Mayhem’s birthday celebrations are nearly over. Today is day 10 and it is February 9th which is the official 10th birthday…. WOO HOO, here’s to ten more years! Today you get two top tens in two separate posts this one is my top ten favourite singles and part 10a features my top 10 albums.
Regular readers will know that so far I have shared with you top ten most viewed posts on the blog since it began back in February 2009, the top ten countries that have given With Just A Hint Of Mayhem the most views, rock/ music related books, biographies and autobiographies, my top 10 Bowie songs, my 10 favourite bands of all time, my top ten favourite male artists, the ten greatest gigs that I have been to, my ten favourite music related films and yesterday my top ten favourite female artists. (Click here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here to view those again). So this is it for the 10th birthday celebrations but there is, I hope, much more to come from With Just A Hint Of Mayhem in the coming months and years, watch this space!
So here are my top ten favourite singles of all time, ask me next week and the list may change, although almost certainly not the number 1. I did deliberately ignore David Bowie for this list otherwise he might have occupied three or four places. If you are interested my favourite Bowie single at the moment is “Where Are We Now?”
1. No Woman No Cry (Live) – Bob Marley and the Wailers – In my opinion the greatest song and the greatest version. This will be my funeral song, unless of course I turn out to be immortal!
2. Strawberry Letter 23 – Brothers Johnson – The great Shuggie Otis wrote this but the Brothers Johnson made it their own.
3. I Want You Back – Jackson 5 – This is possibly one of the finest pop songs ever committed to vinyl. That opening piano flourish is magical.
4. White Man In The Hammersmith Palais – The Clash – For me this was the Clash’s finest hour both musically and lyrically.
5. Don’t Let Me Down – Beatles Amazing to think that this was just a B Side. It is my go to song to sing at volume when I am very drunk.
6. Do Anything You Wanna Do – Eddie And The Hot Rods – A truly inspirational song which still inspires me even in my advanced years!
7. God Save The Queen- Sex Pistols – Fear and conspiracy kept this from the number one spot in the Queens Silver Jubilee week in 1977. For me this should be the true UK national anthem.
8. Theme From A Summer Place – Percy Faith Orchestra – You might say that this is one of my guilty pleasures, well maybe, but it is a beautiful piece of music. It was also used to great effect in the TV adaptation of Stephen King’s ‘Rose Red’.
9. Mack The Knife – Bobby Darin –Â I love story songs and this is easily one of the best. The law says that you have to tap your feet and click your fingers to this, right?
10. Into My Arms – Nick Cave –Â As love songs go this might be quite strange but it is undoubtedly beautiful too. This was also the first dance at my wedding to my wonderful wife Catwoman a.k.a Catherine.
With Just A Hint Of Mayhem’s birthday celebrations are nearly over. Today is day 10 and it is February 9th which is the official 10th birthday…. WOO HOO, here’s to ten more years! Today you get two top tens in two separate posts this one is my top ten favourite albums and part 10b features my top 10 singles.
Regular readers will know that so far I have shared with you top ten most viewed posts on the blog since it began back in February 2009, the top ten countries that have given With Just A Hint Of Mayhem the most views, rock/ music related books, biographies and autobiographies, my top 10 Bowie songs, my 10 favourite bands of all time, my top ten favourite male artists, the ten greatest gigs that I have been to, my ten favourite music related films and yesterday my top ten favourite female artists. (Click here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here to view those again). So this is it for the 10th birthday celebrations but there is, I hope, much more to come from With Just A Hint Of Mayhem in the coming months and years, watch this space!
So here are my top ten favourite albums of all time, ask me next week and the list may change, although almost certainly not the number 1. I did deliberately ignore David Bowie for this list otherwise he might have occupied three or four places. If you are interested my favourite Bowie album is ‘Diamond Dogs’
Well nearly all the candles are blown out on the With Just A Hint Of Mayhem 10th birthday cake. Today is day 8 and I am giving you a list of my ten favourite music related films.
Regular readers will know that so far I have shared with you top ten most viewed posts on the blog since it began back in February 2009, the top ten countries that have given With Just A Hint Of Mayhem the most views, rock/ music related books, biographies and autobiographies, my top 10 Bowie songs, my 10 favourite bands of all time, my top ten favourite male artists and yesterday the ten greatest gigs that I have been to. (Click here, here, here, here, here, here and here to view those again). Stay tuned, there are only two top tens to come after this! What will they be? Well sign up, follow or just check out this site regularly to find out! I can tell you that the remaining top tens will be my favourite female artists, my favourite albums and my favourite singles. Yes I know that makes eleven in total, but you’ll get a double whammy on the actually birthday itself 🙂
The list of films is not in any order of preference, simply chronological. What is your favourite music related film?
Let It Be (1970) worth it just for the footage of the last live show on the roof of the Apple building
American Graffiti (1973) maybe not really a music film as such, but it evokes a feeling of the early days of rock ‘n’ roll with a soundtrack to die for
Phantom Of The Paradise (1974) Directed by Brian De Palma and scored by Paul Williams. Very underrated in my opinion, it is a rock take on the Phantom Of The Opera
Tommy (1975) Ken Russell goes full wacko in this fabulous cinematic adaptation of the Who’s great opus
The Last Waltz (1978) An epic documentary showcasing the Band’s last concert
Quadrophenia (1979) One of my favourite Who albums turned into a full on story of mods, rockers, clothes, drugs and life
This Is Spinal Tap (1984) The definitive rock mockumentary and still funny even 35 years down the line……. smell the glove!
Almost Famous (2000) If I lived my life again I would do anything that I could to write for Rolling Stone or even the NME
The Filth And The Fury (2000) Julien Temple’s stunning documentary of the rise and fall of the Sex Pistols
Bohemian Rhapsody (2018) I really did not want to like this, but I bloody love it!
More 10th birthday list shenanigans for With Just A Hint Of Mayhem. Today it is my ten favourite bands of all time, although as with other lists this might be different if I did it again next week! Obviously this is in no particular order. Regular readers will know that so far I have shared with you top ten most viewed posts on the blog since it began back in February 2009, the top ten countries that have given With Just A Hint Of Mayhem the most views, rock/ music related books, biographies and autobiographies and yesterday my top 10 Bowie songs. (Click here, here, here and here to view those again). Stay tuned, there are still five top tens to come after this! What will they be? Well sign up, follow or just check out this site regularly to find out! What are your favourite bands, be they current, ancient or defunct?
It’s time for part 3/ day 3 of the With Just A Hint Of Mayhem 10th birthday celebrations with another top ten. This time rock/ music related books, biographies and autobiographies. Regular readers will know that so far I have shared with you top ten most viewed posts on the blog since it began back in February 2009 and yesterday the top ten countries that have given With Just A Hint Of Mayhem the most views. (Click here and here to view those again). OK but what about your favourite tunes and stuff I hear you say? Don’t worry there will definitely be plenty of music in the coming days including things like my top ten favourite singles, albums, bands and more stuff too! There was also a lot of music on yesterday’s post and with this book post too.
The book list is in no particular order, other than Ian Hunter being number one!
Diary Of A Rock ‘N’ Roll Star – Ian Hunter – an honest and very funny stroll through Ian Hunter’s early 70s diary
My Thoughts Exactly – Lily Allen – Lily opens her soul in this very honest and hard-hitting autobiography
Rod – Rod Stewart – probably the funniest autobiography that I have ever read
Life – Keith Richards – Keef proves how great a raconteur he is and that he remains a fan boy when it comes to the blues greats
Clothes, Clothes, Clothes. Music, Music, Music. Boys, Boys, Boys. : A Memoir – Viv Albertine – Easily among the best music related autobiographies ever written. Viv is sharp open and full of confidence
England’s Dreaming – Jon Savage – a detailed and colourful perspective on how the UK punk scene arose and its wider impact on social norms and social history
Scar Tissue – Anthony Kiedis – Kiedis tackles relationships, drugs and success. His description of an encounter with the Dalai Lama is proper laugh out loud
Last Train To Memphis: The Rise Of Elvis Presley – Peter Guralnick – this shows the human side of a young man from Tupelo who met with unprecedented success at supersonic speed. Almost scary at times
Hammer Of The Gods – Stephen Davis – if even half of these anecdotes are true then Led Zep are still truly legendary
Revolution in the Head: The Beatles’ Records and the Sixties – Ian MacDonald – an in-depth analysis of the Fab Four and their impact on pretty much everything in the 60s and beyond
With Just A Hint Of Mayhem 