Stop, Look, Listen early December edition: clearing out the decks before the garlands, a pre-Christmas round-up

A final monthly playlist, my new podcast, Jane Birkin & Graham Greene plus perfection in two songs, one poem and a bass & drum-only album

I’m back from the sleety/sleepy Dorset/Devon borders, where I spent two-and-a-half days in a little room working on an idea that won’t let me go (thanks to D for encouraging me to do this, and Nana for the support – I’m one of many who can’t do something like this lightly). Whatever I’m writing seems to be turning into a strange, cosy novel. It’s early days and who knows where it’ll go but it’s grabbed me now. Wish me luck.

And firstly, to say hello again, a few pop culture blasts to wake me up from that woozy brainspace and wake up this week proper (and I know it’s Monday evening already but I’ve been busy today interviewing a bona fide acting legend, I tell you- more on that later that week). And it has truly been a dreary December day, but no longer, comrades!

1. “He had an extraordinary face, his eyes were so blue, it was like looking straight through to a blue sky through a skull.” Such an underrated phrase-maker was the late Jane Birkin. Here’s a lovely interview with her that I missed from 2020, which I read while doing some work on people we’ve lost this year. I didn’t know before this week that Graham Greene gave her her big break.

   

2. Martin Carthy, British folk lodestar and, yes, the man who taught Paul Simon Scarborough Fair, is currently on tour with folk musician and interviewer Jon Wilks, telling stories of his wonderful life and playing some music (as I’ve mentioned before). But do go and see him, I urge you. In Abergavenny on Saturday, he talked about building a fire in his flat in the freezing winter of 1962 with the help of an old piano, a samurai sword and the labour of (yes) Bob Dylan, plus he and Jon played and dedicated the 1972 title track of Lal and Mike Waterson’s Bright Phoebus TO ME at the beginning of the second half (it’s one of my favourite albums – I cried messy tears). I never get bored of directing people to my favourite songs off that album: the startling, unsettling The Scarecrow (pay attention to the cycle of the story, and Richard Thompson’s amazing guitar) and Red Wine Promises, about being drunk ('“fell on the street in a drunken heap/there’s bright water all around me”), recorded by Norma and Martin after they’d been locked in a room together by Norma’s sister, Lal. By this point, they’d fancied each other for eleven years, during which time they’d both been married to other people. The experience is what got them together, and they remained together until Norma died last year. Listen below.

3. Those aren’t quick blasts, are they? Here’s one: Henry Normal’s perfect poem.

4. Here’s another: 44 minutes of me (hi) and my old mucker Mat Osman from Suede talking about writing, touring, teenage arguments with his little (very tall) brother, Richard and Brian Eno’s diaries for the first of three Songbook festive specials.

   

5. And finally, here are all 35 minutes of Rubber Soul but only on bass and drums. Of course. Thanks to the lovely Backlisted podcast host, Andy Miller for this. Washing up to it earlier was amazing.

Also…for those of you who enjoy my monthly notebook playlist, here’s my November list of lovely things, with my lengthy recommendations (as usual, only for paid subscribers, to spare the rest of you, etc, haha). A boring note: I’ve had to copy and repaste this list because last month’s included two lots of Paul McCartney’s singles collection and a Lonnie Donegan compilation that I have no recollection of posting, nor desire to tolerate (November’s not a very skiffle kind of month) But I promise these are truly from my scrapbooking November mind. Enjoy.