Bit late with this, but the June Jumpin’ With Stagger Lee was an absolute blinder, one of the very best yet. Thanks to the maestro Ethan McDermott for a couple of sets of stunning tunes and for totally getting the Jumpin’ vibe (even if he pushed his luck with a couple of tunes 😉 ) and thanks for coming if you did.
The next Jumpin’ will be on September 22nd and it’ll be my fiftieth birthday party, so expect some *very* special guest DJs and all sorts of mayhem…
There’s a distinct lack of soul in this new mix. I mean, there’s SOME, but much less than usual. But there is psychobilly, garage, African, LOTS of jazz, country, tropicalia, sixties pop, folk and more. (seriously, LOTS of jazz) – this is another live mix, and that’s just where it took me.
There’s tracks from new (or newish) albums from Sons of Kemet, Shannon Shaw (two, because she’s wonderful) and Angelique Kidjo. And we kick off with a Cramps track by way of a tribute to Nick Knox who passed last week.
Last month I lost my friend Craig / Sheena / Lord Leigh Park to cancer. His loss – far too young, far too soon – is awful for his wife, his family, his friends and for Newcastle: Craig was a dynamo, a catalyst, a do-er and a go-getter, and our cultural life will be diminished as a result. Much of the social life and the cultural life I have in Newcastle I owe to him.
Craig was a staunch supporter, collaborator and fundraiser for the recently reborn Star & Shadow Cinema, so it’s only right that the inevitable, essential celebration of his life takes place there. It’s on June 2nd, and although entry is free, donations to the S&S are encouraged. I’m honoured to be playing records and there’ll be a host of other bands and DJs, including Nathalie Stern, Mush, Lady Annabella, The Mark of Kane and of course, Sheena’s old band Women In Revolt.
You should come.
Details here
So here’s a new Stagger mix to see you through these sunny days – lots of summery tunes and some Record Store Day gems from Bobbie Gentry, Eli Paperboy Reed and Joe Higgs. And new tunes from Steven Adams and The Left Outsides too…
Not only that but I’ve finally updated the gig list (on the right), and there’s more to be announced.
Been a while since my last Jumpin’ With Stagger Lee mix, so here’s #25. It’s mostly just tunes I’ve been into since the last one. There’s a track from the fantastic new Shannon & The Clams album and two from Richmond Fontaine‘s instrumental accompaniment to Willy Vlautin‘s wonderful new novel Don’t Skip Out On Me, plus the usual blend of niceness.
Well, Jumpin’ With Stagger Lee #6 was a whole lotta fun. Thanks to Rob Heron for some fine tunes, thanks for coming if you did.
I’m terrible at keeping any record of what I played, but judging by my singles box, it was probably this lot (in something like this order but I won’t swear to it…). We’ve got latin rock, northern soul, cool jazz, stompin’ R&B, soulful country, testifyin’ gospel, roots rock reggae and sixties mod…
The next Jumpin’ is on June 16th – see you there.
Another fantastic Soul Finger at the Cumberland last week. Here’s a selection of the tunes I played across my two and a bit sets…
1 The Swinging Medallions – Here It Comes Again
2 Bunny Sigler – Let The Good Times Roll / Feels So Good
3 Diana Cole – Pawn Shop
4 Junior Walker & The All-Stars – Shoot Your Shot
5 Little Milton – Ain’t No Big Deal
6 Jimmy Witherspoon – Hey, Mrs Jones
8 Alvin Cash & The Registers – Alvin’s Boo-Ga-Loo
9 Fantastic Johnny C – Hitch It To The Horse
10 Flamingos – Brooklyn Boogaloo
11 Shirley Ellis – The Nitty Gritty
12 Wendy Rene – Bar-B-Q
13 Aretha Franklin – Soulville
14 Candi Staton – I’d Rather Be An Old Man’s Sweetheart
15 Wayne Gibson – Under My Thumb
16 Earl Harrison – Humphrey Stomp
17 Eddie Carlton – It Will Be Done
18 Eddie Ray – Wait a Minute
19 Edith Little – I Couldn’t Take It
20 Five Stairsteps – Playgirl’s Love
21 Madeline Bell – Picture Me Gone
22 The Reflections – You’re My Baby (And Don’t You Forget It)
23 Jamo Thomas – I Spy (For The FBI)
24 Billy Ball & The Upsetters – Popcorn ’69
25 Young Holt Trio – Wack Wack
26 Esther Marrow – Chains of Love
27 Nino Tempo – Sister James
After a really special second instalment of Riddim down at Ernest – thanks for coming if you did – it’s already time to start thinking about the sixth Jumpin’ With Stagger Lee. Rob Heron (Soul Finger) will be our special guest for the evening, a year after his last appearance, and it promises to be a banger.
Well, folks, that was magnificent. One of the most fun New Year’s Eves I’ve ever had, a total roadblock and fantastic tunes all night. Thanks so much for coming if you did, and big love to Rob Heron, Jelly Jells, Giovanni Spatuzzi, Alex Johnson, Neil and Elise Hopper and Kathryn & Mark & the Cobalt Crew. Bloody marvellous. See you next year…
Here’s a little Christmas gift – the best thing about it being there are almost no bloody Christmas songs on it (The Staple Singers got through the filter because IT’S THE BLOODY STAPLE SINGERS AND THEY CAN DO WHAT THEY WANT).
So when the turkey is just a hollowed-out carcass that the dog is eyeing greedily, everyone has fallen out and you’re drunk out of your tiny mind on snowballs and sherry, stick this mix on. Have a dance, have another drink and by the time it slips into the slow, melancholy, quiet section at the end, you’ll be collapsing into a carb-fuelled slumber anyhow.
There’s a couple of tracks from the newish Preservation Hall Jazz Band, which has been blowing my tiny mind, and something from the imminent new Stick In The Wheel album. Otherwise it’s the usual blend of tunes that I’ve been listening to a lot lately.
