Maude

Being in a Mod/Northern Soul/Ska band with bandmates and a soundman that like the bass prominent and up front I really am in bass heaven. It's hard to just pick three but let's go with The Jam (Bruce Foxton), The Who (John Entwistle) and The Specials (Horace Panter), but with the likes of The Small Faces, Secret Affair, The Lambrettas, Spencer Davies Group etc thrown in the mix, not to mention all the Northern Soul stuff, which much like Motown and Stax, generally has epic basslines it's hard to pick just three.

Memphis Soul Stew - King Curtis

Funtime - Iggy Pop

Where's Me Jumper - Sultans Of Ping FC

Drain You - Nirvana

Our very own @Twigmanwith Sad Lovers & Giants. I don't think he was with them when this was recorded, but has been with them for a long time. I really like this.

Skinhead Moonstomp - Symarip

He had one bourbon, one scotch and one beer, but was accused of plagiarism.

Stop soiling your wet fjords?

What a Waste - Ian Dury & The Blockheads I had resist the obvious, Too Much Too Young. 😁

I found Gang Of Four after being lent a mixtape with To Hell With Poverty on it, along with loads of obscure (to me then) post punk bands. This is so ahead of its time. 1979.

Now I'm Feeling Zombified - Alien Sex Fiend

Clam(p)down - The Clash

White Coats - New Model Army

Likewise with Hurt. I'm a fan of NIN but I still have to remind myself that Cash didn't write that song for himself.

Duran Durans Rio is always a workout on doublebass. Sometimes it flows quite nicely, but sometimes I start to tense up as fatigue sets in, which only makes things worse. I'm always thankful when that less busy middle section starts, but it's soon back to the relentlessness again. Great fun but tiring on the hands/arms.

The Snake - Al Wilson

Green and Grey - New Model Army

Dave Ball was a big fan of Northern Soul, hence the Gloria Jones cover. Their songs are littered with hints to this. The B side of Tainted Love was a cover of Where Did Our Love Go by The Supremes, the 12" was the two blended together. Another Soft Cell single, What?, was a Melinda Marx cover.

The smell of creosote, and I'm back to the seventies helping my Grandad do his fence in Kingsbury.

Sheriff Fatman - Carter USM

It's hard to put a price on a sense, but let's say someone had entirely lost their hearing due to illness/accident and was told an operation that would completely restore it would cost £50,000. That price would probably be seen as a very good alternative to being completely deaf for the rest of their life. But how many people would fork out/raise money to pay for ear plugs costing £50,000? Not many I'd expect, especially if a cheaper alternative was available. So the blanket, "How much is your hearing worth?" statement seems a bit rediculous to me.

'Diane' by Therapy. It was a long time before I heard the original by Husker Du.

Who's In The House - Beatmasters

Wade In The Water - Marlena Shaw (and lots of other not quite so good versions)