Music

Music

In 2002 I made an amazing  discovery....radio!  Back in the early '80's I used to listen late at night to Radio Luxembourg, tucked under the covers with my radio so my parents wouldn't hear!  My particular favourite DJs on "208" were Rob Jones and the late Stuart Henry...in fact the very name "Rob Jones" brings one of his jingles to mind, even now!  But since then I lived for my CDs.  Then I began listening to Capitalfm via my computer.  Soon I discovered another station in the Capital group - BRMB in Birmingham.  It started off with a few fellow Darren Hayes fans and I all voting like mad for one of Darren's songs on the Hitlist (as it was then) on Matt Wilkins' show.  Then I heard Scott Hughes and liked him too.  Soon I was listening as near to 24/7 as I could - tricky when I can only actually hear it in one room of the house because I have to listen online!  Lol!  However, I am hoping to try out some cordless headphones soon, so maybe I won't be tied to the computer quite so much.....apart from using email...and watching the webcam....oh well, so much for that idea! Unfortunately for me, both Matt and Scott left brmb during 2003, but the good news is both have now secured alternative employment where I can still hear them - Matt on the Galaxy network, and Scott on Radio City 96.7 in Liverpool.

Through a combination of being a Darren Hayes/Matt Wilkins/BRMB fan, I have made some great friends in the Birmingham area (hi guys!), and went there to meet up with some of them recently.  Here are 3 of them outside Starbucks. I had such a great time, I am taking my daughter to do it all over again soon....only we might not take a certain DJ a lukewarm coffee this time!   *blush*

So I've been like a teenager again, staying up all hours to listen to the radio....especially with Mike Russell  on overnight.   Don't read too much into that, I just like listening!  However he's moved on now, so maybe I will be able to get some sleep! 

Update:  So much for sleeping at night, Tim Lichfield is on Capital fm overnight...love his show, but when do I sleep?  Huh Tim??   When???! And if I can resist the temptation of listening to Tim, there is always J over on brmb!

Speaking of Tim....

.....Fame at last, yay!  Hehehe!

Ok, you may be wondering what I do for music when I don't have access to my computer?

Well, sometimes I listen to a local station, Wave105.    They are quite good in my opinion because they play a fair bit of Darren/Savage Garden, hehe!  I have a particular soft spot for Gary Parker (shame he's almost always on overnight) and Nino Firetto! Sadly Nino has moved on, seems soon as I say I like listening to a DJ, he leaves!!!

But otherwise... I love listening to my CDs in the car.

I liked to find excuses to go driving so I can sing along with my CDs at the top of my voice!

ANYWAY, where was I?  Oh yes, my musical tastes.....um, well my main love as I have said before, was the late great Savage Garden. However, although I was disappointed when the split became official, I  eagerly awaited Spin, the debut solo album by former SG frontman Darren Hayes.

Insatiable, the first single, did fairly well in the UK, entering the charts at number 8 - in a week with very fierce competition. Darren describes Insatiable as sexy and romantic, and I have to agree with him! The B-sides on Insatiable are Ride and Falling At Your Feet - both demos, but both excellent. Having heard these songs I was going mad wondering what the album would be like.....

Well at long last Spin arrived in the UK - and it went straight in at number 2 on the album charts the first week, and has since gone Platinum.  Spin is more electronic than Savage Garden were, but to be honest I didn't really notice the general lack of guitars....I am really impressed with this, it has to be my favourite album of 2002.

The Tension And The Spark is Darren's second solo album. It's completely different to Spin, much darker and more electronic. Not the kind of thing I'd usually go for, to be honest - but this just works, somehow! It's an amazing album and I highly recommend it. For tracklisting and reviews see the page on amazon.co.uk.

Darren's third solo outing is an amazing double album, full of really interesting and varied tracks. Much as I loved Spin, and prefered The Tension & The Spark, This Delicate Thing We've Made surpasses them both, IMHO. Despite being released on his own label and thus not having the 'clout' of a major label behind it, the album hit the ground running, charting at number 14 in the UK and 19 in Australia. Way to go, Darren! For full tracklisting, customer reviews and further info, please see amazon.co.uk.

For more information on James and his band, see www.myspace.com/jamesmurraymusic.

Next to Darren and Savage Garden, I also love Barenaked Ladies (thanks Tim! Mwah!), a-ha, and the solo work by a-ha singer Morten Harket.

Speaking of a-ha, I went to my first major pop concert in June 2002. It was at the Royal Albert Hall, and had one of the best nights of my life...so far!  I waited 17 years to see a-ha, and they didn't disappoint.   I also saw them again in October at the Wembley Arena, plus 2 Darren Hayes concerts also in October....and in July my daughter and I went together to London for Party In The Park (featuring a certain Mr Hayes!).  I was lucky enough to see Darren again at Capital Christmas Live in December, along with some other great acts including David Gray and Ms Dynamite.  And I rounded the year off by going back to Wembley Arena to see Blue just before Christmas. 

It's hard to say which are my favourite memories out of all of them - a-ha at Wembley were just an amazing experience, they totally rocked the place.  Darren's gigs were wonderful, and my daughter who came with me to one of them agrees!  He was also really sweet to us when we met him.  Capital Christmas was great - but I'm not sure if that's just because it was my last chance to see Darren for a while!  Incidentally I must take this opportunity to thank Gillian for asking me to go with her to that, because I wasn't going to bother....but I am so very glad I did! 

I dunno - you wait 37 years to get to a pop concert then 7 come along at once, lol!   My experiences at some of the concerts will feature on the review page, and there will be some pictures of gigs/fan meetups in my webshots albums too.

As well as my favourite artists, I also play the following, depending on my mood:

• Semisonic
• Beatles
• Anything Motown from the 60s or 70s
• Spandau Ballet
• Blondie
• Duran Duran
• John Lennon

I have loads more CDs, but those are the ones that spring to mind. I confess that I play Darren Hayes and Savage Garden almost exclusively atm, I just love that music!

When I am not actually listening to the radio or Darren, I am often reading and contributing to various radio-related forums, or on the message board at unofficialdarrenhayes.com (which won the Top Of The Pops best fansite award for 2002, incidentally!)

This is my signature picture from an old Darren Hayes BBS, made for me by a fellow Darren Hayes/Savage Garden/a-ha/Morten Harket nutcase! ;-) "Thanks Ally, hun!"

 

I am also moderator on few music-related "yahoo!" groups - including The Matt Wilkins Fanclub!    Which started off as a bit of a joke really, but for years was one of the busiest lists I belong to! Now things have quietened down but I made some enduring friendships through the group, so "Thanks, Matt!" 

 

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