🔗 Share this article

The first tune I fell in love with
My most primal recollection is entering a space at nursery school where they were playing Yellow Submarine by the Beatles. I was captivated by the audio textures, and Lennon yelling: “Full speed ahead!” When it got to the chorus, I distinctly thought: “This must be music!”

The first 45 I purchased
When I was eight years old, I won a contest at school to select a brand new vinyl to play at the weekly dance party we had on Friday afternoons. My instructor took me to a local store, and I opted for Come Back My Love by Darts. The first single I purchased with my own savings was Mull of Kintyre by Paul McCartney's Wings from a record shop in Lancashire. It was number one at the time, and I selected it when my dad noted that it was by a former member of the Beatles.

The song I sing at karaoke
I candidly do not enjoy public singing and avoid it at all costs. But if forced, I’d select Summer Wind by Frank Sinatra.

The piece I oddly know each line to
I recently discovered that I know virtually all the lyrics to The Boy in the Bubble, You Can Call Me Al, and every song on Graceland by the legendary songwriter.

The best track to blast at a party
It relies on which phase of the evening you are at. Early doors it would most likely be I Heard It Through the Grapevine by Marvin Gaye. As the night wears on, I’d transition into the Artist, the Stones and Bowie, and when it gets lively, Phat Planet by Leftfield, Born Slippy .NUXX by Underworld, and Ascension by Gorillaz, which is an massive track.

The number I can never bear
I for some reason cannot stand Mr Brightside by the Killers.

The ideal piece to get intimate to
Come Together by John, Paul, George, and Ringo.

The LP that changed my life
When I was 12 and just learning to play the six-string, I’d only listen to 1950s rock ’n’roll, and was fixated on Elvis, Chuck Berry, the killer, the New Orleans legend, the glasses-wearing icon and the rockabilly star. Then my babysitter brought round Let There Be Rock by the Australian rockers. It was still rock’n’roll, but it was electrifying rock ’n’roll. Instantly after he dropped the record on the turntable, I was hooked.

The track that motivates me in the AM
What’d I Say in its full glory by The Genius.

The piece that gets me emotional
Virtually any music leaves me moved. The Queen of Soul, The Chairman of the Board, Presley and the Beatles all bring a tear to my eye because of the tune and utter perfection of the vocals. But The Ocean by Richard Hawley gets me going consistently.

The track I’d like to be played at my funeral
Elvis. If I’m cremated, I’ll have Burning Love. If I’m laid to rest in the ground, I’ll have Way Down.