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Keep looking: songs about the lost and found

June 20, 2019 Peter Kimpton
Any leads?

Any leads?

Possessions, pets, family members, or even personal identity, this week the musical mission is all about the missing, but also hopefully, with a story arc that also leads to rediscovery, finding more than what you were searching for

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In avant-garde, blues, comedy, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, gospel, hip hop, indie, jazz, instrumentals, metal, music, musicals, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, rock, reggae, ska, songs, soul, traditional Tags songs, playlists, losing, finding, lost, found, family, pets, possessions, Irving Berlin, animals, The Fiery Furnaces, Sonny James, Harry S. Miller
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Playlists: songs about compromise

June 19, 2019 Peter Kimpton
Dennis Brown … halfway up, halfway down

Dennis Brown … halfway up, halfway down

Love, relationships, work, politics. There are all sorts of compromises in life, but this this week everyone’s a winner, at least those who suggested or performed this brilliantly balanced set of songs chosen by our guest playlister severin

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In blues, country, dance, disco, electronica, dub, experimental, folk, gospel, indie, jazz, metal, music, playlists, pop, prog, rock, songs, soul Tags songs, playlists, compromise, politics, relationships, Bjork, Bugge Wesseltoft, Sidsel Endresen, Jackson Browne, Michael Franti, Spearhead, Joni Mitchell, Marvin Gaye, Dennis Brown, Swarathma, Shubha Mudgal, Alabama Shakes, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Tracy Chapman, The Beatles, Lily Bryant, The Pioneers, Wilson Pickett, Richard Thompson, Hodges James and Smith, Rosalia, United Bottles, The Isley Brothers, Ben L’Oncle Soul, Frank Sinatra, Echo and the Bunnymen, Adrian Borland, Severin, severin
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Meet me in the middle? Songs about compromise

June 13, 2019 Peter Kimpton
John, Yoko and Paul. Compromise is a divisive but potent issue …

John, Yoko and Paul. Compromise is a divisive but potent issue …

It’s all about the C-word in song, but does it strengthen or weaken us? Does it hold society together or kill artistic integrity? You can’t always get what you want, but can you give a little, take it a little? Can we work it out, or just do it my way?

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In avant-garde, blues, classical, comedy, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, gospel, hip hop, indie, jazz, metal, music, musicals, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, reggae, rock, rocksteady, songs, soul, soundtracks Tags songs, playlists, compromise, politics, US politics, Brexit, Donald Trump, climate change, climate change denial, music, Film, books, football, sport, George Herbert, Henrik Ibsen, Edmund Burke, Janis Joplin, Bay City Rollers, Marc Bolan, punk, new romantics, goths, heavy metal, rockers, mods, Alain Prost, Scott Walker, PJ Harvey, Captain Beefheart, Tom Waits, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Carole King, Gerry Goffin, Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, Led Zeppelin, The Beatles, Abba, Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller, Burt Bacharach, Hal David, Nile Rodgers, Bernard Edwards, Norman Whitfield, Barrett Strong, Holland-Dozier-Holland, Talib Kweli, T Bone Burnett, David Bowie, Brian Eno, Bat For Lashes, Peter Hook, New Order, Viv Albertine, Matt Dillon, Louis MacNiece, Irvine Welsh, Mike Leigh, Andrei Tarkovsky, Barack Obama, Mahatma Gandhi, Alan Greenspan, George Clooney, Angela Merkel
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Playlists: songs about spiders

June 12, 2019 Peter Kimpton
Fiddling for arachnophobes

Fiddling for arachnophobes

How do songwriters face their arachnophobia? Spotting behavioural trends expressed through musical and lyrics, and weaving a beautiful and witty web, this week’s guest swawilg creates playlists from last week’s thread of song suggestions

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In avant-garde, blues, comedy, country, dance, disco, electronica, dub, experimental, folk, gospel, indie, instrumentals, jazz, metal, music, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, reggae, rock, songs, ska, soul, traditional Tags songs, playlists, spiders, wildlife, biology, psychology, Slim Newton, Flanders and Swann, The Who, John Entwistle, Toy Dolls, Captain Beefheart, Dr John, The Handsome Family, Hoagy Carmichael, Tidal Waves, Ludovico Einaudi, Wilco, Joanna Newsom, Black Box Recorder, TISM, Herbie Hancock, Barenaked Ladies, Memphis Jug Band, Jean Luc Ponty, Ten Years After, Buckshot Lefonque, Fats Waller, Ike and Tina Turner, Jim Stafford, Robyn Hitchcock, Jef Neve, Pascal Schumacher, swawilg
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Search the web: spin your songs about spiders

June 6, 2019 Peter Kimpton
Let’s build something special …

Let’s build something special …

Let’s take a spin on for what might seem a creepy subject, but the more you look into it, the more fascinating and beautiful it becomes. Deadly? Sometimes, but also intricate, amazing, reflecting fear, attraction and more in human nature

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In avant-garde, blues, classical, country, comedy, dance, disco, dub, experimental, electronica, folk, gospel, hip hop, indie, jazz, metal, music, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, reggae, rock, ska, songs, soul Tags songs, playlists, spiders, wildlife, Emily Dickinson, poetry, Australia, Africa, Brazil, Italy, animal behaviour, Spider-Man, Gustave Doré, Dante, John Keats, Honore de Balzac, Neri Oxman, architecture, Peter Hook, Madonna
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Bright and beautiful: songs about the colour orange

May 30, 2019 Peter Kimpton
Orangutan. Of course

Orangutan. Of course

From animals to objects, plants to birds, and all of its cultural associations, the meeting of red and yellow, symbol of change, joy, entertainment and also warning, this week let’s explore songs are about anything clearly of this colour

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In avant-garde, blues, classical, colours, comedy, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, gospel, hip hop, indie, instrumentals, jazz, metal, music, musical hall, musicals, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, reggae, rock, rocksteady, showtime, ska, songs, soul, soundtracks, traditional Tags songs, colours, orange, animals, art, plants, Frank Sinatra, Wassily Kandinsky, Michel Gondry, Tae Yun Kim, Ram Charan, Vincent Van Gogh, painting, Film, The Netherlands, Greek mythology, Toulouse-Lautrec, Henri Matisse, Confucius, China, Buddhism, Hinduism, food, biochemistry, vegetables, Tango, Orange mobile, Orange guitars, Fender, orange sunburst, Donald Trump, Agent Orange, Vietnam War
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Playlists: songs about urban wildlife and nature

May 29, 2019 Peter Kimpton
Biscuit time? Deer think so, in Nara Park, Japan

Biscuit time? Deer think so, in Nara Park, Japan

Foxes, deer, ducks, ospreys, to blossoms and orchids, leaping up into life from last week’s topic, guest writer barbryn picks a magical musical menagerie and floral fanfare in playlists about the wildlife that inhabit our towns and cities

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In avant-garde, blues, country, experimental, electronica, folk, indie, jazz, music, playlists, pop, postpunk, punk, prog, reggae, rock, rocksteady, ska, songs, soul, traditional Tags songs, playlists, wildlife, animals, plants, biology, Abbey Lincoln, The Rats, The Men That Will Not Be Blamed For Nothing, Shonen Knife, The Handsome Family, The Brunettes, Richard Hawley, The Nightingales, Grasscut, Simpson Cutting Kerr, XTC, CocoRosie, Archie & Lynn, Shakatak, Burial, Four Tet, The Mountain Goats, Grandaddy, Belle & Sebastian, Vera Lynn, Superchunk, Paul Westerberg, Lou Reed, Jeffrey Lewis, Barbryn, Indigo Girls
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Cracks in the concrete: songs about urban wildlife and nature

May 23, 2019 Peter Kimpton
Concrete evidence …

Concrete evidence …

Cats, rats or bats, peregrine falcons to parakeets, foxes and rabbits, bears or boars, and a whole host of other creatures, as well as plants and urban sunsets, this week let’s explore how nature exists in the city as shown in song

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In avant-garde, blues, classical, country, comedy, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, gospel, hip hop, indie, jazz, metal, instrumentals, music, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, reggae, punk, rock, songs, soul, traditional Tags songs, playlists, animals, animal behaviour, plants, cities, ecology, Sir David Attenborough, Talking Heads, David Byrne, Robert Frost, poetry
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Playlists: songs about deceptive appearances

May 22, 2019 Peter Kimpton
They might well appear in a playlist near you … The Stranglers

They might well appear in a playlist near you … The Stranglers

Warnings about false friends, to advice about keeping things secret, one appearance doesn’t deceive - this week’s playlists are skilfully strung together by this week’s guest Suzi, covering everything from love to personal life, politics to parties

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In avant-garde, blues, country, folk, gospel, indie, jazz, music, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, rocksteady, reggae, songs, soul, traditional Tags songs, playlists, appearance, deception, Macka B, Phil Ochs, Ruth Brown, Colin Blunstone, The Stranglers, The Southern Death Cult, The Alan Parsons Project, Lyle Lovett, Joe Pug, Gilmore & Roberts, Katriona Gilmore, Jamie Roberts, Pet Shop Boys, REM, Martin Carthy, Bob Dylan, The Who, Peter Sarstedt, Shirley Collins, Dolly Collins, Ella Shields, The Magnetic Fields, Gang of Four, The Bangles, Elvis Costello, Kevin Ayers, Slim Cessna's Auto Club, Bruce Springsteen, Steeleye Span, Suzi
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Game of Tones? Songs about deceptive appearances

May 16, 2019 Peter Kimpton
It’s dragon on a bit. But how will it end? Gratuitous picture that has nothing to do with music

It’s dragon on a bit. But how will it end? Gratuitous picture that has nothing to do with music

Sex, love relationships, work, politics, and war, appearances all play apart in the game of life, and this week with a huge cast of talent coming to visit the Bar, we discuss and explore the art and topic of false or true in song lyrics

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In avant-garde, blues, classical, comedy, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, gospel, hip hop, indie, jazz, metal, music, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, reggae, rock, rocksteady, ska, soul, songs Tags songs, playlists, Game of Thrones, TV, drama, William Shakespeare, Shakespeare, George RR Martin, quantum physics, philosophy, psychology, books, Film, art, Alexandre Dumas, Marvel, Starsky and Hutch, David Soul, Merv Griffin Show, Sia, Frank Sidebottom, George Orwell, Oscar Wilde, Michael Jackson, Chris Sievey, Boy George, Beethoven, Oscar Levant, Jo Brand, comedy, Franz Kafka, Friedrich Nietzsche, Marty Rubin, Samuel Butler, Jean Jacques Rousseau, Abraham Lincoln, Will Durant, history, Machiavelli, Vauvenargues, Christopher Lasch, John F Kennedy, Arthur Schopenhauer, Blaise Pascal, Brexit, Donald Trump, Stanislaw Jerzy Lec, Kurt Vonnegut, Henry David Thoreau, Aesop, Jane Austen, Disney, CJ Carlyon, Will Rogers, Joseph Conrad, Aristotle, Alfred Lord Tennyson, Sun Tzu, Zsa Zsa Gabor, David Icke, Al Wilson
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Playlists: songs from/about Birmingham and The Black Country

May 15, 2019 Peter Kimpton
Skimpy Slade: fans of a beauty spot on Pouk Hill

Skimpy Slade: fans of a beauty spot on Pouk Hill

Bromwichham to Brummagem, Wednesfield, Walsall and Wolverhampton, this week’s guest playlister philipphilip99 blows an entertaining trumpet for the city and area that shaped him, his lists filled with fabulous music and facts

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In blues, comedy, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, folk, experimental, indie, jazz, metal, music, playlists, pop, prog, punk, postpunk, reggae, soul, traditional Tags songs, playlists, Birmingham, The Black Country, The Craig, The Au Pairs, Slade, Noddy Holder, Jon WIlks, The Lilac Time, Stephen Duffy, Fashiøn, Laura Mvula, Dexys Midnight Runners, Denim, Ocean Colour Scene, We’ve Got A Fuzzbox And We’re Gonna Use It, Beverley Knight, Billy Bragg, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Spencer Davis Group, The Beat, The Move, Duran Duran, Electric Light Orchestra, The Mighty Lemon Drops, Victories At Sea, Diamond Head, Mr Hudson and The Library, Spirit Of The West, philipphilip99
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Bostin'! Songs from or about Birmingham and The Black Country

May 9, 2019 Peter Kimpton
Roy would …

Roy would …

This week’s topic takes a particular accent towards music inspired by the great British West Midlands city and its surrounding area, a rich cultural mix of ethnicities and styles, industrial history, upheaval and humour

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In avant-garde, blues, classical, comedy, country, dance, disco, dub, experimental, electronica, folk, gospel, hip hop, indie, instrumentals, jazz, metal, music, musical hall, musicals, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, reggae, rock, rocksteady, showtime, ska, songs, soul, soundtracks, traditional Tags songs, playlists, Birmingham, West Midlands, The Black Country, Roy Wood, slang, The Beat, Black Sabbath, The Move, The Moody Blues, Traffic, Dexys Midnight Runners, ELO, Felt, Spencer Davis Group, Steve Winwood, Joan Armatrading, Roland Gift, Steel Pulse, Laura Mvula, Mike Skinner, The Streets, Ocean Colour Scene, The Nightingales, UB40, industry, Francis Brett Young, Donald Trump, Stewart Lee, Jasper Carrot, Milton Jones, comedy, Jim Capaldi, JRR Tolkien, David Lodge, Jim Crace, WH Auden, Benjamin Zephaniah, Peaky Blinders
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Playlists: songs about electricity

May 8, 2019 Peter Kimpton
Where will lightning strike in this week’s playlists?

Where will lightning strike in this week’s playlists?

Ancient lightning gods and rods to pioneers of current, this week’s bright spark EnglishOutlaw connects nature, history and scientific experiment into musical form with playlists inspired by last week’s electrifying topic

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In avant-garde, comedy, country, dance, electronica, experimental, folk, indie, music, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, rock, reggae, soul Tags songs, playlists, electricity, science, Screeching Wheel, White Noise, The Grateful Dead, MGMT, Buzzcocks, The Decemberists, The Bee Gees, Laurie Anderson, Peter Gabriel, Frank Sidebottom, Photomartyr, Band of Holy Joy, The Cure, They Might Be Giants, The Waterproof Candle, Man or Astro-Man?, The Ramones, Jenny Hval, Joni Mitchell, Barenaked Ladies, Albert Hammond, Captain Beefheart, Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark, The Cravats, Mischief Brew, EnglishOutlaw
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Current topic: songs about electricity

May 2, 2019 Peter Kimpton
Bright sparks ArcAttack make the Tesla connection

Bright sparks ArcAttack make the Tesla connection

Capacitance, or resistance? This week on the circuit it’s time for bright sparks to plug in and make lyrical connections with songs that refer to electricity in all literal or metaphorical forms, from famous inventors to natural forces

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In avant-garde, blues, classical, comedy, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, gospel, hip hop, indie, instrumentals, jazz, metal, music, musical hall, musicals, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, reggae, rock, rocksteady, showtime, ska, songs, soul, soundtracks Tags songs, playlists, electricity, power sources, energy, Nikola Tesla, Ray Charles, George Carlin, George Gobel, Bill Bryson, Spike Milligan, climate change, Bob Dylan, Luigi Galvani, biology, evolution, Pliny The Elder, Scribonius Largus, Otto von Guericke, Robert Boyle, Stephen Gray, C. F. du Fay, Benjamin Franklin (scientist), Pieter van Musschenbroek, Alessandro Volta, Hans Christian Ørsted, André-Marie Ampère, Michael Faraday, Goerg Ohm, Thomas Edison, Charles Steinmetz, Wilhelm Eduard Weber, David Bowie, Bjork, ArcAttack, Joe DiPrima, Black Sabbath, Bram Stoker, James Gleick, James Whale, Film, Frankenstein, Mary Shelley, Boris Karloff, Earl Wilson, Anton Chekhov, Chance The Rapper, Sanober Khan, Lou Reed, Steven Magee, Clio Barnard
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Playlists: songs enhanced by impressive videos

May 1, 2019 Peter Kimpton
Over the moon with Smashing Pumpkins

Over the moon with Smashing Pumpkins

What a production! Cartoons to big-screen movie references, emotional stories, quirky comedies and extraordinary dancing, from a massive choice, this week’s guest Marco den Ouden chooses two perfectly eye-popping playlists

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In avant-garde, blues, classical, comedy, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, gospel, indie, hip hop, instrumentals, jazz, metal, music, musical hall, musicals, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, reggae, rock, showtime, ska, songs, soul, soundtracks, traditional Tags songs, playlists, Film, videos, Georges Méliès, Xavier Cugat, Squirrel Nut Zippers, The Killers, Bob Dylan, Soul Asylum, Miley Cyrus, Smashing Pumpkins, Guns 'n' Roses, Sia, OK Go, Beth Hart, The Hu Band, World Order, Goyte, Kimbra, Leonard Cohen, Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears, Chris Rea, Aerosmith, Silent Movie Susie, Beyonce, Kate Bush, Anderson .Paak, Elton John, Phil Collins, t.A.t.u., Bjork, Two Door Cinema Club, The Beatles, Gene Kelly, Jay-Z, David Bowie, 3 Doors Down, Killing Jokes, Michael Nesmith, Cab Calloway, Marco den Ouden
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The gift of sound and vision: songs enhanced by impressive videos

April 25, 2019 Peter Kimpton
What will be your weapon of choice this week?

What will be your weapon of choice this week?

Music and film are often intertwined commercially, but where does a video become an artform to the level that the visual elements enhance, complement and become symbiotic with the song? Let the action commence …

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In avant-garde, blues, classical, comedy, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, gospel, hip hop, indie, instrumentals, jazz, metal, music, musicals, playlists, pop, prog, postpunk, punk, reggae, rock, rocksteady, ska, songs, soul, soundtracks, showtime Tags songs, playlists, videos, Film, YouTube, MTV, David Lynch, Bessie Smith, Louis Jordan, Tony Bennett, Serge Gainsbourg, Jacques Dutronc, Jacques Brel, The Moody Blues, Kenneth Anger, The Beatles, Queen, Aretha Franklin, Lady Gaga, Chris Cunningham, Spike Jones, Spike Jonze, Michael Gondry, Daft Punk, Chemical Brothers, Aphex Twin, Bjork, Norman Cook / Fatboy Slim, Bootsy Collins, Christopher Walken, Electric Six, Peter Gabriel, Aardman Animations, Radiohead, Childish Gambino, Cate Le Bon, Fat White Family, Ibeyi, Arctic Monkeys, Philip Glass, Godfrey Reggio
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Playlists: songs that defy genre definition

April 24, 2019 Peter Kimpton
Dare to be different. Mitski

Dare to be different. Mitski

Embarking on adventures into the avant-garde, hip-hop, jazz and more, crossing continents and skimming multiple styles from waves of nominations, this week’s guest Nilpferd creates playlists enduringly indefinable

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In avant-garde, blues, classical, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, gospel, hip hop, indie, jazz, instrumentals, music, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, rock, songs, soul Tags songs, playlists, genres, Katzenjammer, Juana Molina, Mitski, The Durutti Column, The Kaleidoscope, Penguin Cafe Orchestra, Roxy Music, The Last Poets, Kendrick Lamar, Herbie Hancock, Bohren and der Club of Gore, Thundercat, Sly & The Family Stone, James Brown, Ry Cooder, VM Bhatt, Shirley Collins, Davey Graham, The Real Tuesday Weld, Sudan Archives, Peter Blegvad, Andy Partridge, Ken Nordine, Bjork, Moondog, Portishead, Primus, Scritti Politti, My Bloody Valentine, Andrew Weatherall, Matthew Herbert, Miles Davis, Coldcut
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Out of this oeuvre? Songs and music that defy genre definition

April 18, 2019 Peter Kimpton
Genres? What are they?

Genres? What are they?

This week let’s push the envelope and dig out often lesser known artists and works that wriggle away from definition, those who or mix sub-genres and styles with such originality it’s hard to place them. But can you still define them?

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In avant-garde, blues, classical, comedy, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, gospel, hip hop, indie, instrumentals, jazz, metal, music, musical hall, musicals, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, reggae, rock, rocksteady, ska, songs, soul, soundtracks, traditional Tags songs, genres, fusion genres, Tom Waits, Kamasi Washington, Billie Eilish, Arctic Monkeys, Alex Turner, Albert Finney, Alan Sillitoe, David Bowie, Miles Davis, Gazelle Twin, The Residents, FKA Twigs, Avicii, David Byrne, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Damon Albarn, Gorillaz, Public Enemy, Chuck D, Henry Rollins, Herbie Hancock, Jessie J, Taylor Swift, Beck, Danny Boyle, Todd Haynes, Fever Ray, Jeanette Winterson, Italo Calvino, Anthony Newley, J Dilla
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Playlists: songs about witches and witchcraft

April 17, 2019 Peter Kimpton
Spellbinding: Koko Taylor

Spellbinding: Koko Taylor

What’s been brewing in the musical cauldron this week? Making the magic happen from a huge casting of spells and songs from readers is guest playlister George Boyland, who conjures up two miraculous selections

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In avant-garde, blues, classical, country, dance, dub, electronica, folk, experimental, gospel, indie, jazz, music, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, rock, rocksteady, ska, songs, soul Tags songs, playlists, witchcraft, witches, superstition, supernatural, Martin Carthy, Tampa Red, Koko Taylor, Cream, The Temptations, Jimi Hendrix, Sharon Forrester, Redbone, Frank Zappa, The Mothers of Invention, Captain Beefheart, Supergrass, Hen Ogledd, Richard Dawson, Princess Nokia, Royal Trux, The Sonics, Betty Lavette, Thurston Moore, The Lollipop Shoppe, Cowboy Junkies, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Van Der Graaf Generator, The Cramps, The Audience, Jethro Tull, October Country, Return To Forever, George Boyland, Nina Simone
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Put in a spell on this: songs about witches and witchcraft

April 11, 2019 Peter Kimpton
Sorceress Siouxsie Sioux

Sorceress Siouxsie Sioux

Good, bad, beautiful or ugly, purveyors of black or white magic, and the effect they have on others, from witch-finders to fans, this week we explore the culture of witchery, but which way, and what magic will this conjure up in songs?

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In avant-garde, blues, classical, country, comedy, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, gospel, hip hop, indie, jazz, metal, music, musicals, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, reggae, rock, ska, songs, soul, traditional Tags songs, playlists, witches, witchcraft, William Shakespeare, Johnny Mercer, Siouxsie Sioux, superstition, Radiohead, Lotte Lenya, Lene Lovich, Kate Bush, religion, pagan rituals, Devil, Heinrich Kramer, The Bible, Salem witch trials, Arthur Miller, The Wizard of Oz, Harry Potter, Reece Shearsmith, Steve Pemberton, League of Gentlemen, Vincent Price, Film, television, Mark Gatiss, Cher, Michelle Pfeiffer, Susan Sarandon, Jack Nicholson, Roald Dahl, Terry Pratchett, Aleister Crowley, Game of Thrones, George RR Martin, André Breton, Peter Grey, Sam Ervin, politics, McCarthy era, Cass McCombs, Anthony Horowitz, Yoko Ono, Florence Welch, Margot Adler, Paulo Coelho
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New Albums …

Featured
Austra - Chin Up Buttercup.jpeg
Nov 19, 2025
Austra: Chin Up Buttercup
Nov 19, 2025

New album: This fifth studio LP as Austra by the Canadian classically trained vocalist and composer Katie Stelmanis brings beautiful electronica-pop and dance music, and has a bittersweet ironic title – a caustically witty reference to societal pressure to keep smiling despite a devastating breakup

Nov 19, 2025
Mavis Staples - Sad and Beautiful World.jpeg
Nov 18, 2025
Mavis Staples: Sad and Beautiful World
Nov 18, 2025

New album: A timelessly classy release by the veteran soul, blues and gospel singer and social activist from the Staples Singers, in a release of wonderfully moving and poignant cover versions, beautifully interpreting works by artists including Tom Waits, Curtis Mayfield, Leonard Cohen, and Gillian Welch

Nov 18, 2025
Stella Donnelly - Love and Fortune 2.jpeg
Nov 18, 2025
Stella Donnelly: Love and Fortune
Nov 18, 2025

New album: Finely crafted, stripped back musical simplicity combined with complex melancholic emotions mark out this beautiful, poetic, and deeply personal third folk-pop LP by the Australian singer-songwriter reflecting on the past and present

Nov 18, 2025
picture-parlour-the-parlour-album.jpeg
Nov 17, 2025
Picture Parlour: The Parlour
Nov 17, 2025

New album: Following last year’s EP Face in the Picture, a fabulously stylish, smart, swaggering glam-rock-pop debut LP by the Manchester-formed, London-based band fronted by the impressively raspy, gritty, vibratro delivery of Liverpudlian vocalist and guitarist Katherine Parlour and distinctive riffs from North Yorkshire-born guitar Ella Risi

Nov 17, 2025
FKA twigs - Eusexua Afterglow.jpeg
Nov 16, 2025
FKA twigs: EUSEXUA Afterglow
Nov 16, 2025

New album: Springing from her much lauded third LP Eusexua, out in January this year, and following a hugely successful and spectacular tour, the innovative British experimental pop artist, dancer and producer extends her palette of ethereal, otherworldly and sensual creations in this new, more carnal, harder, beat-filled parallel release

Nov 16, 2025
Celeste - Woman of Faces.jpg
Nov 15, 2025
Celeste: Woman of Faces
Nov 15, 2025

New album: The outstanding British singer returns, a long four years after her acclaimed debut Not Your Muse, with a classy, passionate set of nine, simmering, smoky, rippling dramatic, timeless numbers in which her vocal prowess is magnificently on show on songs playing on the theme of self and identity

Nov 15, 2025
Clark - Steep Stims.jpeg
Nov 14, 2025
Clark: Steep Stims
Nov 14, 2025

New album: The prolific British experimental electronica artist, Christopher Stephen Clark, who works on film and games music as well as albums, returns with a collection capturing the sprit of making music on old samplers and equipment, whipping up the rising, whooshing wave and piano styles of 90s dance music as well as more intricate sounds

Nov 14, 2025
Danny Brown - Stardust.jpeg
Nov 12, 2025
Danny Brown: Stardust
Nov 12, 2025

New album: The seventh album by the Detroit experimental, eclectic hip-hop and hyper-pop artist pushes the envelope with some extraordinary, dynamic sounds, dance music with warp-speed, slick rapping and multiple guests through an invented “90s-era pop star” persona called Dusty Star

Nov 12, 2025
Hatchie - Liquorice.jpeg
Nov 12, 2025
Hatchie: Liquorice
Nov 12, 2025

New album: With distinct echoes of Cocteau Twins and The Sundays, the third album from Australian indie pop singer-songwriter Harriette Pilbeam is beautifully awash with dream pop guitar effects and her high, sensual breathy vocals, largely co-written with her partner Joe Agius and produced by Jay Som

Nov 12, 2025
Paul Kelly - Seventy.png
Nov 11, 2025
Paul Kelly: Seventy
Nov 11, 2025

New album: The acclaimed, prolific Australian singer-songwriter (and perennial Song Bar playlist favourite) returns with his distinctive, Dylan-esque folk-rock-country with a landmark of age and his 30th studio album, with profound ballad, poetic detail and reflections on age, regrets, lust, love and death

Nov 11, 2025
Midlake - A Bridge To Far.jpeg
Nov 9, 2025
Midlake: A Bridge To Far
Nov 9, 2025

New album: The Denton, Texas band make a welcome return with their distinctively warm, rich, psychedelic folk-rock, marked by close vocal harmonies, acoustic and pedal steel, keyboards and flute, this sixth studio album themed around hope, humility and perseverance, all as a human necessity

Nov 9, 2025
Sorry - COSPLAY.jpeg
Nov 8, 2025
Sorry: COSPLAY
Nov 8, 2025

New album: Consistently excellent singles before and heralding this brilliantly odd, clever third album by the London indie band all cement their reputation for a truly original sound filled with a variety of styles, captured in the experimental title of their third LP following 2022’s Anywhere But Here

Nov 8, 2025
Juana Molina - Doga 2.jpeg
Nov 8, 2025
Juana Molina: DOGA
Nov 8, 2025

New album: A wondrously mesmeric, clever and quirky eighth album of experimental pop by the Argentinian singer, musician and comedian composed largely of analogue synths, originally from improvisations and recorded over several years in her home studio surrounded by her pets

Nov 8, 2025
Rosalía - Lux.png
Nov 7, 2025
ROSALÍA: LUX
Nov 7, 2025

New album: Grandiose, dramatic, passionate, with extraordinary soaring vocals, melodies and string arrangements, multi-lingual lyrics, the London Symphony Orchestra and with guests including Björk, the Catalan superstar’s fourth LP is a fabulous extravaganza, broadly themed around female saints through history, religion, sex and violence

Nov 7, 2025

new songs …

Featured
Only Girl by Man:Woman:Chainsaw.jpeg
Nov 22, 2025
Song of the Day: Man/Woman/Chainsaw - Only Girl
Nov 22, 2025

Song of the Day: The London experimental violin-infused indie band return with a catchy, playful love song single that’s popular on their live sets, and their first via Fiction Records

Nov 22, 2025
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Nov 21, 2025
Song of the Day: David Byrne - T Shirt
Nov 21, 2025

Song of the Day: In addition to his acclaimed latest album Who Is The Sky?, with which he is now touring to rave reviews, the former Talking Heads frontman releases a new, catchy electro-pop, humorous but pointed political number co-written with old friend and collaborator Brian Eno, and out now on Matador Records

Nov 21, 2025
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Nov 20, 2025
Song of the Day: Hen Ogledd - Scales Will Fall
Nov 20, 2025

Song of the Day: A strikingly different, wonderfully odd, eccentric and alternative folk and protest song by the British quartet of Richard Dawson, Dawn Bothwell, Rhodri Davies and Sally Pilkington, heralding their upcoming third album Discombobulated, out on 20 February 2026 on Weird World / Domino Records

Nov 20, 2025
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Nov 19, 2025
Song of the Day: Lisa O'Neill - The Wind Doesn't Blow This Far Right (EP)
Nov 19, 2025

Song of the Day: This beautiful title track from the new EP by the Irish folk singer-songwriter from Cavan is a powerful original about man-made, greed-motivated unnatural disasters, joining with five other poignant numbers, including a new version of The Bleak Midwinter, out now on Rough Trade

Nov 19, 2025
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Nov 18, 2025
Song of the Day: congratulations - Fought 4 Love
Nov 18, 2025

Song of the Day: Following This Life, another fun-filled single, here with a floor-stomping glam-style riff, by the Brighton quartet who embrace 80s pop and 90s rock plus a dash of Field Music, Electric 6 and Devo with this stylish anti-love song with entertaining video, heralding their debut LP Join Hands, out on 13 February via Bella Union

Nov 18, 2025
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Nov 17, 2025
Song of the Day: Avalon Emerson & The Charm - Eden
Nov 17, 2025

Song of the Day: Following a series of tracks collectively titled Perpetual Emotion Machine, this separate new release by the New York artist is a breezy, shimmery indie-pop love song with a funky bassline, and out on Dead Oceans

Nov 17, 2025
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Nov 16, 2025
Song of the Day: Elanor Moss - Again, My Love
Nov 16, 2025

Song of the Day: Exquisite, intimate folk with finger-picked guitar and gentle brass accompaniment by the London-based singer-songwriter in this wintry song about how loss and change are necessary for transformation, her first new music for three years, out on Merge Records

Nov 16, 2025
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Nov 15, 2025
Song of the Day: Night Swimming - Submarine
Nov 15, 2025

Song of the Day: Unfolding with a quiet intensity, layered guitars and restrained urgency, this latest single about loss and shock by the Bath/Bristol indie dream-pop/ shoegaze band is a striking way to announce their recent signing to Venn Records

Nov 15, 2025
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Nov 14, 2025
Song of the Day: The Dears - Doom Pays
Nov 14, 2025

Song of the Day: A pulsating new track with a political message and a sound reminiscent of early Roxy Music by the Montreal indie-rock band from their latest album Life Is Beautiful! Life Is Beautiful! Life Is Beautiful! out on Next Door Records

Nov 14, 2025
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Nov 13, 2025
Song of the Day: Bill Callahan - The Man I’m Supposed to Be
Nov 13, 2025

Song of the Day: Resonant, poetic, moody, profound, the acclaimed American singer-songwriter returns with a song exploring feelings of a life that was lived and one that's meant to be, heralding his latest album, My Days of 58, out on 27 February 2026 via Drag City Records.

Nov 13, 2025
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Nov 12, 2025
Song of the Day: Charli xcx - House (featuring John Cale)
Nov 12, 2025

Song of the Day: A potent, surprise collaboration comes all aswirl in this dark, haunting, gothic, cinematic piece of jagged strings and nightmarish, crashing sounds with a spoken monologue by the Velvet Underground Welsh legend dominating this song by British pop superstar best known for Brat, taken from the soundtrack to director Emerald Fennell’s forthcoming film adaptation of Wuthering Heights

Nov 12, 2025
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Nov 11, 2025
Song of the Day: Pictish Trail - Another Way
Nov 11, 2025

Song of the Day: A mesmeric, slow-build psychedelic-electronica-pop eight-minute number of gradual transformation rising to a krautrock-inspired crescendo by the isle of Eigg-based Scottish musician Johnny Lynch heralding his sixth LP Life Slime, produced by Mike Lindsay of Tunng and LUMP, out on 14 November on Lost Map / Fire Records

Nov 11, 2025

Word of the week

Featured
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Nov 20, 2025
Word of the week: discalceate
Nov 20, 2025

Word of the week: A rarely used, but often practised verb, especially when arriving home, it means to take off your shoes, but is also a slightly more common adjective meaning barefoot or unshod, particularly for certain religious orders that wear sandals instead of shoes. But in what context does this come up in song?

Nov 20, 2025
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Nov 6, 2025
Word of the week: erythrophyll
Nov 6, 2025

Word of the week: A seasonally topical word relating to the the red pigment of tree leaves, fruits and flowers, that appears particularly when changing in autumn, as opposed to the green effect of chlorophyll, from the Greek erythros for red, and phyll for leaves. But what of songs about this?

Nov 6, 2025
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Oct 22, 2025
Word of the week: fennec
Oct 22, 2025

Word of the week: It’s a small pale-fawn nocturnal fox with unusually large, highly sensitive ears, that inhabits from African and Arab deserts areas from Western Sahara and Mauritania to the Sinai Peninsula. But has it ever been seen in a song?

Oct 22, 2025
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Oct 9, 2025
Word of the week: gongoozler
Oct 9, 2025

Word of the week: A fabulous old English slang term for someone who tends to stand or sit for long periods staring at the passing of boats on canals, sometimes with a derogatory or at least ironic use for someone who is useless or lazy. But what of songs about this activity and culture?

Oct 9, 2025
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Sep 17, 2025
Word of the week: hiemate
Sep 17, 2025

Word of the week: Pronounced “Hiya Mate”, this is in fact not a friendly informal greeting, but an Old English word, derived from Latin, meaning to spend the winter elsewhere, sounding a bit like hibernate, but different as it requires moving to another place rather than sleeping in the same

Sep 17, 2025

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