Next Date. Smugglers, Friday, 12th June

That'll be a Friday then, the day afore Saturday.
See you all then.

Smugglers: May 30th

1 Thinking Of You (Joey Negro Remix)- Sister Sledge
2 Same Old Scene (Glimmers Remix) - Roxy Music
3 One step too far - Faithless
4 Fade - Solu Music
5 You've got love( Crazy P mix)- Shapeshifters
6 Paris (AeroplaneMix)- Friendly Fires
7 Only Love Can Break Your Heart -Saint Etienne
8 If I Were A Boy - Althea Hewitt
9 July - Natty
10 Is This Love- Bob Marley & The Wailers
11 Love Sex Magic - Ciara
12 Controversy (FRESH RMX)- Prince
13 Living in America - James Brown
14 Boom Boom Pow - Black Eyed Peas
15 A Roller skating jam named Saturday - De la soul
16 I can't go for that no can do - Hall + Oates
17 Street Life - The Crusaders
18 Just one kiss - Basement Jaxx
19 Not Fair - Lily Allen
20 Let's Get Excited - Alesha Dixon
21 Never Forget You - Noisettes
22 Cupid - Amy Winhouse
23 Everywhere - Fleetwood Mac
24 Peace Song - Bob Sinclar


25 I Can't Live without Music - The Transatlantins
26 Put em High - Stonebridge
27 Just Can't Get Enough - Nouvelle Vague
28 You Can Call Me Al - Paul Simon
29 Lovely Day - Bill Withers
30 Little Deuce Coupe - The Beach Boys
31 No particular place to go - Chuck Berry
32 There she goes - The La’s
33 Here Comes My Baby - Yo La Tengo
34 The Gambler - Kenny Rogers *
35 Bye Bye Love - Ray Charles
36 (Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear - Elvis Presley
37 Tiny Dancer - Ironik
38 I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)(Ext Mix) - Pitbull
39 Everyman - Double Exposure
40 I want you back - Jackson 5
41 Come On Train - Don Thomas
42 Movin' on up - Primal Scream
43 Its my Life - Bon Jovi *
44 Summer of 69 - Bryan Adams *
45 She's Electric - Oasis
46 Spaceman - The Killers
47 The '59 Sound - The Gaslight Anthem
48 Born to Run - Bruce Springsteen
49 My Delerium - Ladyhawke
50 Hanging On The Telephone - Blondie
51 Don't Upset The Rhythm - Noisettes
52 La la song_(club mix) - Bob Sinclar
53 Because i got it like that - Jungle Brothers
54 Superstition - Stevie Wonder
55 Raindrops (Funkagenda Redux)- Basement Jaxx
56 I'm Not Alone - Calvin Harris
57 Madagascar (Durand 09 mix 45)- Art of Trance
58 R U Sleeping (DONS Mix) - Indo
59 Bonkers - Dizzee Rascal
60 Rebel Rebel (Soulwax Club Mix) - David Bowie
61 Children - Robert Miles
62 Promised Land (Middleton Re-edit) - Joe Smooth
63 Baba o'Riley - The Who*
64 Rock The Casbah (Rhythm Scholar Boogie Remix) - The Clash
65 Move On Up - Curtis Mayfield
66 Bongo Song - Safri Duo



* Request.

Next Date : Saturday 30th May

Smugglers 2100 - 0100






Any suggestions for toons?

Just One Damn Song After Another : Tracklist from Saturday

Saturday, 23rd May.

1 Burncop - Crazy P
2 Feel - Sharam Jey
3 Clocks (cuba version) - Coldplay
4 One step too far - Faithless
5 You're the one for me - D Train
6 Real Real Gone - Van Morrison
7 Game of love - Santana
8 Rhiannon - Fleetwood Mac
9 Suddenly I see - k t Tunstall
10 She Moves In Her Own Way - The Kooks
11 Bye Bye Love - Everly Brothers
12 It's still rock n roll to me - Billy Joel
13 Dont u worry bout thing - Incognito
14 Rock with you - Michael Jackson
15 I'll be around - Hall and Oates
16 Hard to handle - Otis Redding
17 July - Natty
18 Bed's too big without you - Inner Circle
19 Love Sex Magic - Ciara
20 Return of the mack (c and j street mix)- Mark Morrison
21 Not Fair - Lily Allen
22 Here Comes My Baby - Yo La Tengo
23 Stuck in the middle with you - Stealer's Wheel
24 Walk of life - Dire Straits
25 Listen to the music - The Doobie Brothers
26 Peaceful easy feeling - The Eagles
27 Dancing in moonlight - Toploader
28 Love is in the air - John Paul Young
29 On my own - Vincent Vincent and the Villians
30 The Impression that I get - Mighty Bosstones
31 Zoot Suit Riot - Cherry Poppin' Daddies
32 (Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear - Elvis vs Spankox
33 Summertime blues - Eddie Cochrane
34 Brown Sugar - The Rolling Stones
35 Sex On Fire - Kings Of Leon
36 Gimmie all your loving - ZZ Top
37 Spaceman - The Killers
38 Hungry like the T. Rex - Duran vs T Rex
39 I don't feel like dancing - Scissor Sisters
40 Funkytown - Lipps Inc.
41 To be in love - M.A.W.
42 Just dance for detroit - Lady Gaga
43 Boom Boom Pow ( Guetta Electro Ext)- Black Eyed Peas
44 I'm Not Alone (Radio Edit)- Calvin Harris
45 Karma Chameleon - Culture Club
46 Always On My Mind - Pet Shop Boys
47 Don't Upset The Rhythm - Noisettes
48 My Delerium - Ladyhawke
49 Call Me - Blondie
50 Untouchable - Girls Aloud
51 Poker Face - Lady Gaga
52 Bonkers - Dizzee Rascal and Armand Van Helden
53 I got you - James Brown
54 Twistin' The Night Away - Sam Cooke
55 The Boy Does Nothing - Alesha Dixon
56 Mercy (Wyn remix) - Duffy
57 Tutti frutti - Little Richard
58 A Hard Day's Night - The Beatles
59 Red morn light - Kings of Leon
60 Bad moon Rising - Creedance C.R.
61 Beautiful Sunday - Daniel Boone
62 December 63 - Four Seasons
63 Take Me Back - Tinchy Stryder
64 Tiny Dancer - Ironik
65 Don't stop - Fleetwood Mac
66 Black horse cherry tree - k t Tunstall
67 Let Your Love Flow - Bellamy Brothers
68 Love generation - Bob Sinclar
69 One more time - Daft Punk
70 Do your thing - Basement Jaxx
71 What I'd say - Ray Charles
72 Walking on sunshine - Katrina and the waves




An more mature crowd than usual, hence the preponderance of oldies.

Playlist for Saturday 23rd May

C'mon the Terrors.

Next Date : Saturday, 23rd May

Smugglers : 2100 - 0100

On being allowed out.

Out to play on Wednesday night. Off to the ABC to see St Etienne. I dragged the missus along early to catch Go-Kart Mozart because any band with Lawrence in cannot be missed. Thus we were among the handful of stalwarts who were standing self-consciously in the nearly empty hall when the support came on. I was even too
embarrassed to take out my camera, in case folk thought I was some kind of crazed b-band stalker. Go-Kart Mozart were, as you'd expect very poppy and fixated on the year 1975. But not in a bad way, always. A short set, nil points for stage-craft but happy tunes to whistle along to from the days when milkmen existed and delivered glass bottles to your very doorstep. I do hope that some Hollywood mogul places a Lawrence song into Ferris Bueller IV or some such and makes the man from Felt and Denim very rich. Certainly my consistent purchasing of his lps has not seemingly had much effect.

Next up St Etienne running through in order all of the lp, 'Fox Base Alpha'.



'Only love can break your heart' opened things proper after the sound effect start of 'This is Radio Etienne'. It is a cover of Neil Young's track from way back in the '70s. St Etienne's version, however, is as fixed in the '90's as Mr Young's is in 1972 California. The languid beat, the absent drummer, the dispassionate female vocals all said welcome to 1991. However, as the concert went on you could hear how the St Etienne sound, combining 1970 songs with 1960 girl group vocals over a 1990 drum rhythm, filters through to the 2009's with Ladyhawke and La Roux. As ever the ghost of Kraftwerk graced the instumentals played and through them you could hear 90's bands like Orbital and the Orb. Also released in 1991 was 'Screamadelica' and 'Blue Lines' by Massive Attack both of which were of their time but have proved more influential.




After completing Fox Base Alpha the band played a short second set of greatest hits including 'Heart failed (in the back of a taxi), 'Who do you think you are' and , my fave 'Good Thing'



I did really enjoy the gig in a pleasant Wednesday evening kind of a way.

Next week we are off to see The Pains of being Pure at Heart. Now here is a band that wear their influences clearly on their sleeve. We don't know any track names because when we have the album on we refer to each track as ' the one that sounds like the View', 'the one that sounds like the Roses', 'that'll be My Bloody Valentine then' and ' isn't that a Sonic Youth song?'. Still, hopefully, they will be loud and sweaty in a Friday at 2am kind of a gig.

Smuggler's 16th May Tracklisting.

1 Heartbreaker (Faze Action Remix)- Metronomy
2 Feel The Love - Cut Copy
3 You've got love (Crazy P mix) - Shapeshifters/C.Staton
4 We Are The People (Shazam Remix)-Empire Of The Sun
5 Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa - Vampire Weekend
6 French Navy - Camera Obscura
7 Another Sunny Day - Belle & Sebastian
8 This Charming Man - The Smiths
9 Losing Touch - The Killers
10 No You Girls - Franz Ferdinand
11 Molly's chambers - Kings of Leon
12 Sharp dressed man - Z Z Top
13 Suffragette City - Bowie
14 Don't Upset The Rhythm - Noisettes
15 Great DJ - The Ting Tings
16 Back Of The Van - Ladyhawke
17 Call Me - Blondie
18 China grove - The Doobie Brothers
19 Dreaming of you - The Coral
20 Not Fair - Lily Allen
21 Take me back to your house- Basement Jaxx
22 The World Should Revolve Around Me- Little Jackie
23 Twistin' The Night Away - Sam Cooke
24 Get ready Ella Fitzgerald
25 Return of the Mack (c and j street mix) - Mark Morrison
26 Boom Boom Pow- Black Eyed Peas
27 Rockit - Herbie Hancock
28 Because i got it like that - Jungle Brothers
29 Show me love - Robin S
30 R U Sleeping (DONS Mix) - Indo
31 Love Is The Answer (FreemasonsMix) - Funk Fanatics
32 In The Heat Of The Night (Wawa Club Mix) - Star Pilots
33 Right Here Right Now ( Benett Remix) - Fatboy Slim
34 Substitute - The Who
35 Satisfaction (DiscoTech Remix) - The Rolling Stones
36 A Hard Day's Night- The Beatles
37 Gasoline - The Airborne Toxic Event
38 Kids (Skyve Reuters Bunkalifony Edit) - MGMT
39 Time of your life - Green Day
40 Take it easy - The Eagles
41 Suddenly I see - k t Tunstall
42 New Shoes - Paolo Nutini
43 Mr Blue Sky - Lily Allen
44 Tiny Dancer - Ironik
45 Against all odds- Chase and Status
46 Move On Up - Curtis Mayfield
47 Never Forget You - Noisettes
48 Rehab - Amy Winehouse
49 I only want to be with you - Dusty Springfield
50 I'm Not Alone (Radio Edit)- Calvin Harris
51 Temple of dreams( club mix) - Future Dreams
52 For An Angel (PvD e-werk Mix) - Paul Van Dyk
53 Bonkers - Dizzee Rascal and Armand Van Helden
54 Infinity (Klaas Mix) - Guru Josh Project
55 Leave The World Behind (Original Mix)- Laidback Luke,Ingrosso,Axwell,Angello
56 Poker Face - Lady Gaga
57 Untouchable - Girls Aloud
58 New In Town (Fred Falke Vocal) - Little Boots
59 Spacemen ( Bloody Beetroots Remix) - The Killers
60 The Only One I Know - The Charlatans
61 White Winter Hymnal - Fleet Foxes
62 Absolutely Sweet Marie - Dylan
63 Rock And Roll- The Velvet Underground
64 Baba o'Riley - The Who
65 Fool in the rain - Led Zeppelin
66 Call me the breeze - Lynyrd Skynyrd
67 What I’d say - Ray Charles

On being old.

We were chatting on Saturday evening and attempting to name the advantages that befall us when we turn 50. We were struggling. I suggested it was now ok to wear hats but this didn't really swing it for any one else. You also now have Saturday evenings as opposed to Saturday nights.

Later I thought about another dubious honour of being into your 6th decade- you have probably seen bands when they were actually worth seeing. I say this having noted that Morrissey was at Barrowlands on Friday and that Little Feat are in town next week.



I could also mention, as the Specials played a week back, that I was also at the first two tone tour in 1980 with Selector, Madness and the Specials all played at the Pavillion in Ayr. No ticket to show for it though.

We travelled from Gala down to Newcastle to see Little Feat. Me, Gary, Boon and Donald. At that time we all had a great love for Little Feat's first four albums. The jury was still out on 'The Last Record Album' and Lowell George's waning influence on the bands direction was evident on the just released 'Time loves a hero'.

Still to hear Mr George and co run through 'Willin','Oh Atlanta''Dixie Chicken'
'Tripe Face Boogie' and 'Spanish Moon' was a prize worth suffering even Donald's driving for.

A tale of two nights at the dancing.

On Friday we were on the dancefloor at SpitFire. These were the songs that got us shimmying on the floor.

Young Adult Friction by Pains of being Pure at heart.
French Navy - Camera Obscura
Teenage Riot - Sonic Youth
Nag Nag Nag - Caberet Voltaire.
Saturday - De La Soul
Police on my back - Clash
No You Girls - Franz Ferdinand.
Almost Prayed - Weather Prophets
Unbelievable - EMF
Jackson - Nancy Sinatra

There were others , including some of the soul tracks played by Martin, but I can't remember them all now.

Saturday night- Brian's 50th disco.

The dj had come recommended and worked on nights in the city. He had a good sound system and some smashing lights. He also had a laser!
Some of the songs played ; Hi Ho Silver Lining, Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep, Some Girls, Hot Stuff, Build me up buttercup, Staying Alive, My Heart will go on, My Way. Dancing Queen, Reach, Shangalang. . I didn't do much dancing!

SpitFire : Blackfriars Bar, Glasgow

Just a short set of half an hour. Started at 11pm with the place just starting to fill up. The night doesn't finish until 2am so folk were arriving and getting seats and drinks etc when I kicked off.
Tracklisting as follows

1. A sentence of sorts in Kongsvinger - Of Montreal
2. Half Asleep - School of 7 bells
3. Feel the Love - Cut Copy
4. Girls in their summer dresses - Airbourne Toxic Event
5. Life during wartime - Talking Heads
6. Reverend Black Grape - Black Grape
7. Subterranean Homesick Blues - Dylan
8. Alison's starting to happen - Lemonheads
9. The '59 Sound - Gaslight Anthem
10 Kids - MGMT (remix)

I thought the mixing was good and the short set flowed well. It may be questionable to begin with a song about someone having a nervous breakdown in Norway, or indeed any song about Norway, but it does mean the only way is up for the rest of the tunes.
Actually 'Half Asleep', whilst on the surface is very pretty is also a fairly sad song. 'Feel the Love' does what it says on the label though.
I had originally wished to play'Gasoline' by Airborne Toxic Event but settled on 'Summer dresses' instead as it is gentler,more summery and guitar driven so helped move the set from the synth sound into the funkier beat of Talking Heads.
'Reverend Black Grape was edited out at around the 02:30 mark and into Dylan and the Lemonheads which both upped the energy. The Gaslight Anthem and MGMT maintained the
set's velocity.

I felt that the first half of the songs would be relatively unknown and then I would wrap it up with some more easily recognisable ones.


Martin was due to take over from me but he wasn't ready so I followed on by playing 'Gone Daddy Gone' by Violent Femmes. Scott then dropped in 'Don't Get me wrong' by the Pretenders and that was me done.

If asked, or if I was to beg again, I would love to play again and especially a bit later once some brave folk had got the dancing going. In dreams.

Back at The Smugglers

Saturday, 16th May 2100 - 0100

Next Date : Friday 8th May.

Half an Hour guest slot at Spitfire in Glasgow.

30 minutes ain't a lot of time, and it'll be early on so no one will be up for the dancing.

And I'll need to go back to working off cds. Which I'll need to burn on to separate discs so I can mix between them. All this means thought beforehand and a vague plan on what I am going ot play. Whereas, I prefer the tried and tested way of staring at a huge list of tracks on the laptop for far longer than usual before realising that time is running out and then slammin' on the first song that comes to mind. Seems to work in a primative artist kind of a way.

I have some ideas and will take a selection of toons I like and play them - how hard can it be? It'll just be one damn song after another.

At present I am definately favouring 'Life during Wartime' by Talking Heads. I was leaning towards 'Poplife' by Blur but played it out on Saturday and it was a bit muffly and underproduced. It is far from the best sound system on Friday and if I remember they guys mix through a Soundlab mixer with all the lights turned to a nice bright red colour, so anything not crystal clear in production, sounds like the veritable herd of elephants falling down the stairs. Which is not the sound I intentionally go for.
How the elephants got up there in the first place is a different question.

I am also going to think about '500(shake baby shake) by Lush, 'Gasoline' by Airborne Toxic Event and 'Revolution' as covered by Stereophonics.
The usual suspects will be Orange Juice, Pixies, Beatles, Lemonheads, Go-Betweens and St Etienne.
There was also an unexplained urge to dig out 'Lucky Number' by Lene Lovich. This I am trying to ignore.

Tune in next week and I'll tell you how it went.

Just One Damn Song After Another - Saturday 2nd May

Tracks played at Smugglers.

1 Always There ( Morales mix) - Incognito
2 You've got the love (Crazy P mix) - Staton/Shapeshifters
3 Same Old Scene (Glimmers Remix) - Roxy Music
4 Township Funk (Crazy P Remix) - Mujava
5 Breathe - Blaze
6 Masterblaster - Stevie Wonder
7 Video - India Irie
8 Your love gets sweeter - Finlay Quaye
9 This Time (I'm Gonna Try It My Way) - DJ Shadow
10 Against all odds - Chase and Status
11 Twisting the night away - Sam Cooke
12 Jai Ho - The Pussycat Dolls
13 Halo (Red Soul Mix) - Beyonce
14 The Boy Does Nothing - Alesha Dixon
15 Takin’ Back My Love (Glam As You Edit)- Enrique Iglesias
16 New In Town (Fred Falke Vocal) - Little Boots
17 Dusk Till Dawn - Ladyhawke
18 One Day - The Juan MacLean
19 Fade to Grey - Visage
20 Just Can't Get Enough - Depeche Mode
21 I'm Not Alone - Calvin Harris
22 Shoes (Green Velvet Remix) - Tiga
23 Controversy (Fresh Remix)- Prince
24 Funkytown - Lipps Inc.
25 Blame it on The Boogie - The Jacksons
26 Love Sex Magic - Ciara
27 Ain’t no love, Ain’t no use - Sub Sub
28 R U Sleeping (DONS Mix) - Indo
29 Dusk Til Dawn (Hanaghan remix) - Howells & Trevor
30 To be in love - M.A.W.
31 French Navy - Camera Obscura
32 Hug My Soul - Saint Etienne
33 In For The Kill (Hostage Remix)- La Roux
34 Heart Of Glass - Blondie
35 Poker Face ( Audé Edit) - Lady GaGa
36 Bonkers - Rascal & Van Helden
37 Spaceman - The Killers
38 The '59 Sound - The Gaslight Anthem
39 Are u gonna be my girl - Jet
40 Swastika eyes - Primal Scream
41 Its my life - Bon Jovi
42 A Town Called Malice - The Jam
43 Don't Upset The Rhythm (Go Baby Go)- Noisettes
44 Great DJ - The Ting Tings
45 Friday on my mind - The Easybeats
46 True Romance (True No. 9 Blues)- Golden Silvers
47 Not Fair - Lily Allen
48 Jackson - Johnny Cash
49 Girlfriend In A Coma - The Smiths
50 Tiny Dancer - Ironik
51 One Day - The Juan MacLean
52 Temptation - Heaven 17
53 Chant No 1 (US Remix)- Spandau Ballet
54 Show me love - Robin S
55 Do your thing - Basement Jaxx
56 Mr Blue Sky - Lily Allen
57 If You Find Yourself Caught In Love - Belle & Sebastian
58 Jet - Helen Love
59 Abc - Pipettes
60 Popscene - Blur
61 500 (Shake Baby Shake)- Lush
62 Rapture Riders - Blondie vs Doors
63 Life during wartime - Talking Heads
64 Manic Monday - The Bangles

More to Life than Music

(But not much more!)

Things to do when not at the wheels of steel.

1. Watch Dundee United struggle to draw with doomed Killie.







2. Watch seals lying on a rock on Rothesay.






Makes dealing with members of the public who ask for Patrick Hernandez's 'Born to be alive' look quite attractive.