It’s Proms season in England at the moment and, for all my interest in Classical music, the thing that has been a delight over the past few years is how major talent outside of the conventional Prom-like fields have been included. The pick this year has been a mesmerising set by the Jazz saxophonist Nubya Garcia, whose recognition as a vessel for musical progression not to mention her mature ear for melodic structure is wholly deserved. The much talked about ‘London Jazz Scene’ is certainly the most exciting collection of artists and sonic explorers to be found in 2021, to say they give you hope for the future is putting it modestly, this perpetually mixing and collaborating collective are tapping into the very source of everything that is magical about music. Right there at the centre of it all is Nubya Garcia, grace and poise personified, lost in music, never over playing and yet definitively bottling that ‘source’ whenever she breathes life into her instrument. 2020’s ‘Source’ album is a great place to start although Fruit Tree Records will return in the future to many more essential releases from this movement. If you want to go in for some ultra fresh juice however, why not check out the 2021 Record Store Day limited 12″ release on the Concord Jazz label here:
Aaron Lee Tasjan is not a new name to Fruit Tree Records, he registered on the radar at least three years ago with his own ear catching brand of cosmic Americana. Now though, he is really showing the roots of his musical excellence, to such a degree that with latest album ‘Tasjan! Tasjan! Tasjan!’ even high profile pop pickers like Elton John are singing his praises. That he has gone on record to state The Beatles as a primary influence will be no surprise when you listen to this, the album is bursting at the seams with Fab sounds! From the liquid George Harrison guitar solos, to the sweet sounding production that echoes so much that was good in a post-Beatle pop world; you’ll hear waves of Jeff Lynne, Tom Petty, The Pretenders and the Travelling Wilburys splash into your mind. But the key thing that Aaron has taken from the pop masters is that, before the sonic delights of the production were applied, he made sure he wrote an albums worth of hook filled, ear worm worthy pop songs. It’s rather an undervalued artform you know, especially when someone like Aaron Lee Tasjan makes it sound so natural and easy. Be sure to pick up a vinyl copy of this LP:
Here’s a new artist who absolutely has to be heard by record buyers who love that vintage Soul and R&B sound harvested by the likes of Nick Waterhouse, Eli Paperboy Reed or as heard on the funky Daptone label. PM Warson is very much cut from that same cloth and he has paid his dues on the independent scene self releasing raw and classic sounding 45s. His debut album released on Legere Recordings is sure to be one of the most enduring albums put out in 2021, get it on vinyl now while it’s still affordable:
This months cover star is Marizanne Kapp, a South African cricketer who really impressed during the first ever final of the women’s Hundred tournament this month. I thought it was a top drawer sporting spectacle really, no matter what all the Cricket purists might have to say. Kapp drove the Oval Invicibles to victory with a devastating opening bowling display, an especially notable achievement in a Cricket format that tends to be driven by the aggressive power hitting of the batters. The thing that kept me glued to the action was the intensity of Kapp, she was just so fired up and in the zone, so much in fact that even when she gained the upper hand by taking wickets she could not let a smile emerge, the only emotions cracking the surface were determination and a burning desire for victory. Even when the game was won it was clear she’d pushed herself so far into the cause that she could not wind down and celebrate like her team mates, she seemed wholly drained. A magnetically gripping effort in top flight sport and exactly what the Hundred needed in it’s debut year, personally I hope it sticks around.
Musically the big news this month has been the death of Charlie Watts. His passing followed shortly after he’d announced his non-participation in forthcoming Rolling Stones shows due to a medical issue, stating typically drolly that “for one my timing was off”. I kind of hope the Stones don’t continue without him, if ever there was a band that just wouldn’t be the same without the original drummer it is surely them? I listened to a lot of the bands big hits when the news of his passing broke and what strikes you is what an incredible back bone he really was. The beating heart of Rock ‘n’ Roll indeed. And if that news wasn’t bad enough, the beating heart of Dub has left the stage in the past few days, with news of the death of Lee Scratch Perry also being announced.
Still, let’s be glad that incredible new music talent continues to arrive and there’s plenty of fresh juice to enjoy in this months playlist too. By the time I write the notes for Octobers playlist I may have even been to my first gigs in 18 months. I intend to step up the content on the Fruit Tree Records blob from here on in. I launched it not exactly sure what I was going to focus on beyond my journey in music discovery and enjoyment, looking both forward and back and joining a few dots along the way. But the ideas are all starting to come together now and I am ready to take this thing forward. OK well it’s all over now for this month but I’m free for more of this very soon but for now, just get your rocks off to the September 2021 playlist.
As the country has effectively removed all Covid restrictions, the past month has seen some large crowds return to sporting events some of which have been particularly memorable. The England football team reached the final of a major tournament for the first time in 55 years, they lost on penalties inevitably but for a brief moment the country seemed united in support of the beautiful game which always makes happy inside. Arsenal’s 19 year old Bukayo Saka missed the crucial penalty and we all felt mortified for him. The only positive that emerged after some vile racist trolling in his and two other players directions after the game was the way players, fans and the general public united in support of this wonderful sportsman and infectiously likeable character. Then within a few days cricket launched it’s new Hundred competition with again, some large crowds in attendance. Seeing as the aim of the fresh, shorter format is to attract a new audience then it’s good to see this working. It has to be said though, every other cricket fan I know is actively against The Hundred but I am not ashamed to say I’ve enjoyed it so far. I think I am a London Spirit man, captained as they are by my favourite Eoin Morgan alongside the ever entertaining, always unpredictable Ravi Bopara, but the ladies Oval Invincibles side also caught my eye. I’ll have to work that one out, you can’t support two London sides, it breaks every rule in the sports fans handbook!
The playlist seems to, unintentionally obviously, reflect the other ever present concern from July 2021 which is the climate. News stories of heatwaves, temperature records being broken, flash flooding and wildfires are a daily, depressing reality now. Even the UK weather is noticeably altered. Was there really anything like a conventional spring time this year or just a perpetual period of heavy rain storms finally broken by a mini heatwave? Anyway, if my monthly playlists are any sort of reflection of what’s been occupying my headspace for the previous month, then looking back over the collection of songs I can see a little hint of it in the songs about seasons and fire, more blatantly in that I followed up Villagers song about summer with the Housemartins ‘I Smell Winter’. Like John Peel used to say, “I don’t just throw these things together you know!” I can’t get too pretentious about any concepts though, the monthly playlist is and always will be a bookmark rounding up the Pop, Psych, Blues, Soul, Country, Folk, Rock ‘n’ Roll, Americana, Jazz, Prog and many other styles of musically exciting records floating through the Fruit Tree Records orbit at the present moment. So this is what I have in August 2021…
A Fruit Tree Records curated collection of recent Coral and related live activity around the release of superb new LP ‘Coral Island’
I watched the movie ‘Yesterday’ last night, the one about an aspiring singer-songwriter who discovers that the world has no memory or knowledge of The Beatles after a worldwide 12 second power cut. He uses this freak, unexplained circumstance to raid his memory of the Beatles catalogue and claim their songs as his own originals and realise worldwide fame and acclaim as the worlds greatest songwriter; a status emphasised by his eclipsing even the mighty Ed Sheeran. Much like the Fab Four I am all about spreading the love so I’ll set aside my personal feelings about Ed and give him kudos for being able to laugh at himself and at least acknowledge, on film, that the Beatle catalgue is greater than his own.
I enjoyed the film, after all it was a vehicle for a musical picture largely based around the Beatles catalogue, how could I not? And while there were representations of the John Lennon and George Harrison contributions to the canon, there were undoubtedly prime feature status given to the Paul McCartney numbers which, if you saw my ruminations in this months playlist, you’ll know is something on my musical mind right now. Yes I have been found guilty of undervaluing the work of McCartney but, as the man himself once said, it can take time for things to cut through and I too am a firm believer that the best stuff rises to the top eventually. That is proving true with McCartney but I am certain the sheer volume of great work produced by The Coral will prove ripe for rediscovery eventually too.
To just refer back to the film a moment longer, the scenes that rang most true in terms of the music scene today were those immediately after the lead character had realised the world no longer aware of The Beatles and he began presenting the songs as his own new works. Nothing happened, he continued to fall below the radar and would-be defining moments like the unveiling of his great new piece, in this case ‘Let It Be’, were flattened by short attention spans and untimely mobile phone interruptions. That’s how things are nowadays, great songwriters are not presenting to a world ready to give its appreciation to nuanced compositions of melodic splendour and structural inventiveness. A band like The Coral are a prime example of this. To the casual observer they may well remain filed away as psychedelic scousers from the early noughties who briefly rode the wave of garage rock revivalism that shone a while as the White Stripes blasted into the mainstream. They may not have paid quite such close attention to the fact that for nearly 20 years now, The Coral have carried on making music in a similar vein that has never dropped off in quality. The trouble is all too often, just being very good at the craft of songwriting isn’t news, it doesn’t grab the attention it deserves and can be taken a little for granted.
There is so much to be fascinated by in the two decades of Coral and related music making endeavours. So many incredible songs, I fully intend to go deeper over the time and write a lot more on here in appreciation of one of Liverpool’s greatest ever bands. For now though, I am drawing your attention to this years monstrous concept album ‘Coral Island’. Constructed in the style of an old sixties classic a-la ‘Ogdens Nut Gone Flake’ and complete with spoken word narratives between songs courtesy of James Skelly’s grandad, it is a record that is made to be experienced on vinyl and easily one of the essential albums of 2021. I urge you to get a copy here: https://www.discogs.com/The-Coral-Coral-Island/release/18541153
Cover star Paul McCartney was a Beatle. The Beatles are probably the number one band at Fruit Tree Records and they almost certainly always will be. Their adventure in songwriting and music progression, with particular emphasis on melody and lush major/minor chord progressions are at the very heart of what this blog and my journey in music collecting are all about. And yet, of late, I have come to feel that my appreciation of Paul McCartney has been lacking. Could it be I have taken for granted a touch his contributions to, well pretty much everything that is exciting about music and songwriting. All too easily overshadowed by the more aggresive Lennon or more laconic spirituality of Harrison, yet all the while McCartney has just gone about the business of being amazing at composing music and songs. Of course none of this is news, but I just wanted to make a little note as to why he’s this months cover star and why a couple of his tunes feature at the front end of this playlist. He’s been on my mind this month and I’ve been beginning to make amends by going a little deeper into his solo catalogue, it turns out even something like ‘Red Rose Speedway’, which I’d previously avoided on the grounds that Lennon was dismissive towards it and I thought the cover looked a bit naff, is actually a pretty good album. Don’t be surprised if you hear a bit more about this McCartney chap in the coming months playlists…
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