Sorry? Can you say that again?

Train HornsAfter all the abuse I’ve dished out to my ears over the past few decades, I have no idea how a 45 year old man should be hearing what only young people should hear.

I would have been certain that the Hoodoo Gurus concerts, especially that one at the Old Melbourne, suffering through a night of U2 live, hearing David Bowie rock the Entertainment Centre and all those other musical treats would have done irreparable damage, but maybe not.

If only my eyes were still the eyes of a young man.

(By the way, I think maybe I need to update this post sometime with the concerts I’ve seen in the last few years. Check it out and tell me how many of those acts you’ve seen live.)

Thanks to Brian Eberly for the link to the audio test.



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Shuffle Music Challenge

Clint from The Wilderness has thrown out the challenge.

He’s picked up a music challenge from Facebook which he ran on his blog. I’ve decided I’ll do something similar here.

The basic idea is that you put your iTunes or equivalent on random then post the first line from the first 25 songs that play, no matter how embarrassing. (Unless it is the title of the song.)

I’ve done that bit, now it’s your turn. You need to guess what the songs are. You need to name the song and the artist without cheating. No Googling.

Guess one or guess them all in the comments section of this post.

1. Suburbia, 1 a.m. you’re walking home again. Shopping bags and broken glass. I hate going through the underpass.

2. She was insatiable, you know the type and she was young, but she was ripe.

3. And on a Monday, I’m gonna love ya, and on a Tuesday, I’m gonna hug ya, and on a Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, gonna love ya.

4. Try to stop the world spinning ’round. My phone bill will tell you she lives outta town.

5. Just hear those sleigh bells jingle-ing, ring ting tingle-ing too.

6. Out to the west there’s a trail that leads somewhere and a call of the wild that takes some people there.

7. Everybody’s asking why he couldn’t adjust.

8. Better take care. Think I better go, better get a room.

9. I ain’t here to hold you when you cry. I ain’t here to hold your shaky hand.

10. Used to be that I could see a reason to be happy cause I was free.

11. The iron hand it ain’t no match for the iron rod. The strongest wall will crumble and fall to a mighty God. When He Returns – Bob Dylan

12. Pedro lives out of the Wilshire hotel. He looks out a window without glass. Dirty Blvd. – Lou Reed.

13. Yeah, I’ve had my share of broken dreams and more than a couple of falls.

14. I met your boyfriend on Martin’s Lane and he said, “Fancy running into you again”.

15. They say everything can be replaced. They say every distance is not near. I Shall Be Released – The Band.

16. If we don’t move the move’s our last. We deprive ourselves of our only chance.

17. I feel the need in me to focus my desire.

18. Isabelle is a belly dancer with a kleptomaniac’s restraint. Take Me to Your Leader – Newsboys

19. There’s no escape on the spell you have placed.

20. Just when the sun shines the brightest and the world looks alright again.

21. I wanted everything for a little while. Why shouldn’t I?

22. My love she speaks like silence, without ideals or violence. She doesn’t have to say she’s faithful, yet she’s true, like ice, like fire. Love Minus Zero/No Limit – Bob Dylan

23. Know I wasn’t good. Maybe I was even bad but I was way too young to know just what I had.

24. Could never walk away from that girl. She’s the only one in the world. She’s the ruler of the table-top. She’s no persnickety, she’s real persimmon. Love Beats Me Up – Australian Crawl

25. Movie stars and fancy cars delight you. Gala balls and opening nights excite you.

Yes, you’re right. I have rather eclectic tastes in music but have a go anyway and see how many you can guess.

I’ll highlight each one in red once it’s been guessed.



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Small, Orange and Wonderful

ipod.jpgIt wasn’t too many years ago that portable music for me meant carrying around a personal CD player.

That CD player sat neatly in the back pocket of my cycling jerseys and each day I’d cycle off to work with a CD in the player and another CD in another pocket for the ride home. That would give me a choice of about 20 songs each day.

How things change.

Pauline gave me an orange 8GB iPod Nano for Christmas, replacing my aging 4GB iPod Mini. It’s so incredibly small and light that it feels as if it weighs nothing.

Instead of the daily choice of 20 songs that I used to have on the old CD player, I currently have 1 581 songs loaded to the iPod with room for several more albums. I’m also subscribed to a couple of podcasts. With the extra room now available I’m wondering what other podcasts I might add to the list.

The new iPod also has a colour screen and I spent a bit of time last night loading lots of album covers to iTunes. I can now scroll through the album art on the screen to choose my music. I haven’t yet downloaded any videos or photos to the iPod but that’s something else I can do.

I’m sure it’s not just me who gets blown away at how fast technology changes. What new technology boggles your mind?



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Christmas Morning 2008

christmas_baubles.jpg(Yes, this post is almost word for word for the post I wrote last Christmas but the details remain pretty much the same.)

I’m always amazed that so many people think that I shouldn’t have to work Christmas Day.

Each year when I tell people that I’ll be at work on Christmas morning they seem to think it’s rather sad but of course you can’t just switch off a radio station so that everyone can have the day off.

I’ve got to admit that I don’t really mind working on Christmas morning. It does take me away from my family for a few hours on this very special day but it’s not too bad.

No matter what day the 25th of December falls each year, all the regular weekday announcers at 98.5 Sonshine FM make their way to the studios to spread some Christmas cheer.

One of the things I enjoy about working on Christmas Day is that I get to enjoy one of my favourite activities even before the work day starts. I cycle to work each Christmas morning and enjoy the quiet roads and the smiles and waves from those who are out and about. This year, thanks to our recent studio relocation, I got to ride even further. A good 20 km bike ride is a great way to get ready for the rest of Christmas Day.

Since arriving I’ve been sitting at the broadcast desk with Christmas music playing and I’ve been talking about Christmas stuff all morning. Each year for Christmas Day we play Christmas music for the entire 24 hours. In fact, we started playing only Christmas music at 4 o’clock yesterday afternoon and we’ll keep it going until midnight tonight.

I’ve already had a couple of listeners phone to wish me, my family and the rest of the team here a very happy Christmas. I’m sure there’ll be more calls before the morning’s over.

I’ll still have plenty of time to spend with family but it’s wonderful to be able to join the celebrations of thousands of other families on such a special day.



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Soundtrack of My Life – Come on Home

SoundtrackofMyLife.jpgWhat are the songs that make up the soundtrack of your life?

This is the first of what I hope to be a regular series of posts about some of the music that I love and the part it has played in my life.

I’d encourage you to get involved too. Let me know about some of the songs that are etched in your mind. What are the tunes that bring back a flood of memories every time their opening notes start cranking out on your stereo? Are there songs you love for their music and others that speak deeply through their lyrics?

The song I want to highlight this time around is Come on Home by Everything But The Girl.

Back in the late 80s I was watching a music video show on TV when I saw the video for this song. It was the first time I’d seen or heard anything of Everything But The Girl. While the song itself doesn’t really speak about any situation with which I could really identify, the sound of the orchestra and Tracey Thorn’s vocals had me from hello.

Since then I’ve collected quite a number of EBTG CDs and many of their songs have meant a lot to me at different times. I’ll probably feature some more of their music in coming weeks because they truly are amazing. I very easily get caught up in the lyrics of the music I listen to and Tracey Thorn and Ben Watt, who make up EBTG, have written some great ones over the years.

If you’re not familiar with them you can check out this video.

The album that Come on Home came from, Baby the Stars Shine Bright, also played a significant role in my most significant relationship. I won’t say any more than that but here are the lyrics to the song that caught my heart and well and truly earned its place in the soundtrack of my life.

Come on Home

Baby come home, I miss the sound of the door
Your step on the stair’s not there to wake me no more
And every day’s like Christmas Day without you
It’s cold and there’s nothing to do

And it’s mighty quiet here now that you’re gone
I’ve been behaving myself for too long
‘Cause I don’t like sleeping
or painting the town on my own
So please come on home

Baby, what’s keeping you all this time
You’re wasting your days out there in the sunshine
And who can I turn to if you believe still
That England don’t love you and she never will

For it’s mighty quiet here now that you’re gone
And I’ve been behaving myself for too long
I don’t like sleeping
Or watching TV on my own
So please come on home



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