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Tag Archives: BBC

When Amy Came To Dingle

by on 17. Mar, 2012 in Documentaries, Film, TV

Saw a wonderful documentary on the flight back to the UK the other week called ‘When Amy Came To Dingle’, which captures her appearance in this enchanting Irish outpost. Filmed in 2006 as part of RTÉ TV’s ‘Other Voices’ series, the programme combined an intimate live performance, before an audience of just 70 people at St. James Church, with a fascinating interview that highlights the singers’ influences, including Mahalia Jackson, Ray Charles, Thelonious Monk, Sarah Vaughan, Carleen Anderson, Soweto Kinch and The Shangri-la’s.

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Living To Music – Paul Simon ‘Graceland’

by on 31. Jan, 2012 in CD’s / Digital, Documentaries, Hear, Living To Music, Records, The Eighties, Video

Since scaling the dizzy heights between 1965-1970, with partner in harmony Art Garfunkel, Paul Simon’s solo career, despite a strong start, had gradually stalled from the mid-70’s onward and, by the 80’s he was pretty much regarded as a name from the past who, like other names from the past, continued to release LP’s that no longer caught the public’s interest. His album prior to ‘Graceland’, 1983’s ‘Hearts And Bones’, was considered a commercial flop (although it would receive retrospective critical acclaim) and, with the weight of failure on his shoulders, it looked like his best work was well behind him.

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Eve Arnold

by on 10. Jan, 2012 in Black Culture, Fashion, Photography, RIP, The Fifties, The Sixties

The acclaimed American photographer, Eve Arnold, died last week at the grand old age of 99. Best known for her photographs of Marilyn Monroe (taken over a 10 year period), especially those on the set of her final film, ‘The Misfits’ (1961), she had unrivalled access to the movie icon with her shots, often candid, capturing the human side of the Hollywood legend.

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Trip Clips

by on 11. Feb, 2011 in Psychedelia, See, The Fifties, The Sixties, TV

This recently discovered footage of an American housewife being filmed in 1956 during an experimental LSD session got me thinking about a couple of other classic trip clips.

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Essential Mix Revisited

by on 18. Jan, 2011 in CD’s / Digital, Hear, Magazines, Mixes, Remixes / Edits

It was two years this week since my Essential Mix was first aired on Radio 1. This has proven to be one of the landmark moments of my DJ career, bringing my name to the attention of a whole new group of people, mainly younger, who weren’t previously aware of me. There was a fresh wave of interest last year when it was selected, as part of the Essential Mix 500 celebrations, as one of 10 classics spanning the show’s entire history, which stretches all the way back to 1993.

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Celebrity Paradox

by on 10. Nov, 2010 in Interviews, Misc, See, TV

If you’ve not yet seen Jeremy Paxman’s interview with Russell Brand for the BBC’s Newsnight last month it’s well worth checking out. A compelling perspective on celebrity culture by someone both embroiled in it, yet fully aware of its ludicrousness.

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To Kill A Mockingbird

by on 08. Jul, 2010 in Books, Documentaries, Film, Read, The Sixties

The classic, ‘To Kill A Mockingbird’, the only book written by Harper Lee (also made into a famous movie in 1962 starring Gregory Peck), is a half-century old

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