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Bridgewater Hall
Manchester just before evening concert Sunday 9 March 2003 |
I'VE ONLY SCRATCHED THE SURFACE of my memories of growing up in the Manchester
area in the sixties and seventies, and of the music that had such a profound
effect on me. It's been fascinating researching the records and the timelines,
which have helped to pinpoint when certain events in my childhood took
place. I did all my research on the Internet which has many fantastic
musical resources.
Below you'll find my very personal 'Magic of Manchester' playlist, but
how about you? What type of music reminds you of Manchester? Does music
remind you of particular places? Do you get any mental pictures with local
associations when you listen to particular types of music? What was the
music of your era? 20's Jitterbug? 30's Jazz? 40's Glenn Miller? 50's
Skiffle? 60's soul? 70's Progressive? 80's Electronic? 90's Madchester?
Contemporary R&B, Rare Groove, Salsa, Jazz-Funk Fusion or none of
these?
Do any pieces of Classical music have a Manchester feel? Maybe Pakistani
or Indian music remind you of Manchester, or Irish, or African, or Arabic?
What is the music of Manchester today? Is there a genre of music that
sums of the feel of the city in the current era?
OK, here's the definitive and highly personal EWM Magic of Manchester
Playlist. Why not draw up your own playlist of music with Manchester
/ North West associations?
|
Title |
Artist |
|
Notes |
1
|
Telstar |
The
Tornadoes |
1962 |
Reminds
me of Manchester Airport & the new dawn of the Space Age |
2
|
Ravel's
Bolero |
George
Ravel |
Written
1928 |
Reminds
me of Bowdon & my sister's flat there |
3
|
Theme
of The Avengers |
Laurie
Johnson |
1965 |
Associations
with Bowdon - 60's chic in Victorian setting |
4
|
Walk
On By |
Dionne
Warwick / Bacharach David |
1964 |
A
spirit of California imported via Ringway Airport |
5
|
Anyone
Who Ever Had a Heart |
Cilla
Black |
1964 |
A
feel of the city - American song, Liverpudlian singer |
6
|
Downtown |
Petula
Clark |
1965 |
Reminds
me of downtown Manchester in the mid-60's |
7
|
River
Deep Mountain High |
Ike
& Tina Turner |
1966 |
Reminds
me vividly of coach trip from Manchester to the Lake District |
8
|
Bus
Stop |
The
Hollies |
1966 |
Song
about love found at the bus stop by local group |
9
|
The
Last Waltz |
Englebert
Humperdinck |
No1
Aug 1967 |
Captures
the romance of the Docks in the mid-60's |
10
|
Penny
Lane |
The
Beatles |
1967 |
Not
about Manchester but described the mood of the time |
11
|
Those
Were The Days |
Mary
Hopkin |
1968 |
Melancholy
ballad reminiscing on youth with Didsbury associations |
12
|
Moonlight
Sonata |
Ludwig
van Beethoven |
Writtten
1801 |
One
of many classical pieces which conjures up Manchester's 19th century
German influence |
13
|
All
Motown hits |
Various
artists - Motown Label started by Berry Gordy |
mid-60's
onwards |
Motown
captured the feel of mainstream clubland in the 60's and 70's |
14
|
All
Northern Soul records |
Hundreds
of little-known artists on various labels |
late
60's onwards |
Northern
Soul heartbeat of clubs big and small across northern England |
15
|
Ghost
in My House |
R
Dean Taylor |
1965 |
All
time classic of local Northern Soul nights |
16
|
Move
On Up |
Curtis
Mayfield |
1971 |
Positive
vibe from legendary soul artist with same name as Manchester train
station |
17
|
Walk
In The Night |
Junior
Walker and the All Stars |
1972 |
Vividly
creates images of walking through Manchester at night |
18
|
Why
Can't We Be Lovers? |
Lamont
Dozier |
1972 |
Shades
of summer of 72 in Manchester |
19
|
Here
I Go Again |
Archie
Bell and the Drells |
1972 |
One
of countless hits that brings back the mood of an era in Manchester |
20
|
Love
Train |
The
O'Jays |
1973 |
Not
a song about Freddie Laker's Skytrain flying from Manchester but reminds
me of it |
21
|
Papa
Was A Rolling Stone |
The
Temptations |
1972 |
Big
city sound of rootlessness & heartache - very 70's Manchester |
22
|
I'm
Still Waiting |
Diana
Ross |
No1
Aug Sep71 |
Song
about waiting for the right lover to come along - or maybe the 53
bus |
23
|
The
Fish Aint Bitin' |
Lamont
Dozier |
1974 |
Captures
a feel of the movie 'Shaft' carried over to Manchester |
24
|
Rock
Your Baby |
George
McCrae |
1974 |
Dance
floor classic, emblem of 70's club nights |
25
|
Betcha
By Golly Wow |
The
Stylistics |
1972 |
Sound
of the sugary mid-70's as experienced in Manchester |
26
|
Street
Life |
Roxy
Music |
73/74 |
Reminds
me of mad taxi ride through Manchester |
27
|
Right
(from Young Americans album) |
David
Bowie |
1975 |
Soul-influenced
soundscape conjuring up American city, carried over to Manchester |
28
|
I'm
Not In Love |
10cc |
1975 |
Song
about misty-eyed youth in denial by Manchester group, capturing mid-70's
feel |
29
|
You're
the First the Last My Everything |
Barry
White |
1975 |
Classic
of mid-70's Soul, anthem for a newly amorous generation of Manchester
club-goers |
30
|
You
To Me Are Everything |
The
Real Thing |
1976 |
Liverpool
band, England's answer to the Temptations, discovered on Opportunity
Knocks |
If you'd like to rediscover Soul and Northern Soul as heard in Manchester
during the 60's and 70's, tune into Jazz FM, with regular shows by DJ's
Tony Blackburn, Andy Peebles and Richard Searling. One of the best stations
in the UK for all varieties of soul is the London-based Solar Radio, accessible
via Sky satellite and on the internet. Go to www.solarradio.com.
To find out about the contemporary music scene in Manchester, go to www.manchestermusic.co.uk.
I'm sorry to have to add that my sister Phil (Philomena Dare née
O'Rourke), who introduced me to so many new people and places, and gave
me so much encouragement in all my creative ventures, died in January.
I'd like to thank readers for their kind messages of condolence. I'm grateful
also to our cousin Nuala in Dundalk, Ireland for sending me some long
lost family photos, two of which appear in this feature.
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