The Sound Of The City - London

A few months ago I shared a series of CDs curated by Charlie Gillett exploring the music of the major cities covered in his ‘Sound Of The City’ book (Chicago, Memphis, Los Angeles, New York, New Orleans). Rather rashly I promised to put together a collection covering London so, months later, here it is.

Unlike most of the other cities, London is not generally associated with a particular musical form - unless, perhaps, you count Victorian music hall. Instead, London’s role in musical history is more as a breeding ground for multiple forms of music originated elsewhere. The gravitational pull of London ensured that musicians migrated to the capital and the scene became a true melting pot, encouraging creativity and diversity.

For this collection I have limited myself to songs either about London or by artists born in or closely associated with London. I have tried to mix some well known songs with a London theme with less obvious selections. Hopefully, I have got the mix right. After some deliberation I decided to exclude artists from abroad, for example Jimi Hendrix, although their careers are inextricably linked with London. I suppose you could argue that I’ve broken my own rule in including Jamaican - born artists but the West Indian community is such a central part of the London music scene that it would be perverse to exclude them. In fact, you could easily put together a collection dedicated to just black London music. The collection is roughly chronological, stretching from the 1930s through the 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s to the present day and concluding with a coda from the 40s. Apologies for the length of these notes but I though it was worth the effort (a copy is included in the download). Also, a note of thanks to Guitar Gus for some suggestions and advice. And so to the music….

The Sound Of The City - London

CD 1

1.  Underneath The Arches - Flanagan & Allen

2.  London Is The Place For Me - Lord Kitchener

3.  Bad Penny Blues - Humphrey Lyttelton

4.  Fings Ain’t What They Used To Be - Max Bygraves

5.  Singing The Blues - Tommy Steele

6.  Rockin’ At The 2is - Wee Willie Harris

7.  My Old Man’s A Dustman - Lonnie Donegan

8.  Pop Goes The Weasel - Anthony Newley

9.  Walking Back To Happiness - Helen Shapiro

10. Diamonds - Jet Harris & Tony Meehan

11. I’ll Never Get Over You - Johnny Kidd & The Pirates

12. Picture Of You - Joe Brown & The Bruvvers

13. London Is Behind Me - Justin Hayward

14. Glad All Over - Dave Clark Five

15. The Thoughts Of Emerlist Davjack - The Nice

16. From The Underworld - The Herd

17. Waterloo Sunset - The Kinks

18. Lazy Sunday - The Small Faces

19. London Boys - David Bowie

20. My White Bicycle - Tomorrow

21. Notting Hill Gate - Quintessence

22. Painter Man - The Creation

23. Out Of Time - Chris Farlowe

24. Ride A White Swan - T Rex

CD 2

1.  At The Chime Of A City Clock - Nick Drake

2.  Spooky - Dusty Springfield

3.  Gasoline Alley - Rod Stewart

4.  Mayfair - Millie

5.  Streets Of London - Ralph McTell

6.  Baker Street - Gerry Rafferty

7.  Cruel To Be Kind - Nick Lowe

8.  London Calling - The Clash

9.  I Don’t Want To Go To Chelsea - Elvis Costello & The Attractions

10. Reasons To Be Cheerful Part Three - Ian Dury & The Blockheads

11. Gertcha - Chas & Dave

12. Don’t Turn Around - Aswad

13. Street Tuff - Rebel MC & Double Trouble

14. Rush - Big Audio Dynamite

15. West End Girls - Pet Shop Boys

16. Back To Life - Soul II Soul

17. Soho Square - Kirsty MacColl

18. Mario’s Cafe - Saint Etienne

19. London - Noonday Underground

20. NW5 - Madness

21. LDN - Lily Allen

22. A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square - Anne Shelton with Ambrose & His Orchestra

“Underneath The Arches” - Flanagan & Allen. Bud Flanagan and Chesney Allen were a popular singing and comedy act well known on the variety circuit from the 1920s onwards. “Underneath The Arches”, first recorded in 1932,  was one of their most successful songs and refers back to the great depression. It became a hit during World War 2 as Londoners sheltered from the Blitz. “London Is The Place For Me” - Lord Kitchener. Long before ska and reggae, the most popular musical import from the West Indies was calypso. The first post-war West Indian immigrants came to the UK on the SS Windrush in 1948 and Lord Kitchener was filmed singing this optimistic song on the quay after disembarking. He had yet to experience London smog, unemployment and racism. Many West Indians settled in the Notting Hill/Ladbroke Grove area which became a flashpoint for race riots in 1958. (The six-part series of CDs documenting the influence of immigrants on London’s music titled ‘London Is The Place For Me’ on Honest Jon Records is highly recommended). “Bad Penny Blues” - Humphrey Lyttleton. This was a minor hit in 1956, at the beginning of the trad jazz boom. I’ve included it here due to the involvement of Joe Meek who, early in his career, was engineer on this session.  He insisted on maxing out the piano’s recording levels much to the consternation of Humph and the band. This recording, and particularly the piano part,  is said to have influenced The Beatles recording of “Lady Madonna”. Meek went on to be an innovative producer (“Telstar” by The Tornadoes) but was an unstable character and after shooting his landlady at his North London flat (1967) turned the gun on himself. “Fings Ain’t What They Used To Be” - Max Bygraves. Written by Lionel Bart. Lionel Bart was a writer and composer, most famous for the musical “Oliver”. His earlier musical, “Fings Ain’t What They Used To Be”, was also a great success and the title song was a hit for popular entertainer, Max Bygraves. Bart also had a part in the early days of British rock n’ roll, writing songs for Tommy Steele, as well as writing the theme song for “From Russia With Love”. “Singing The Blues” - Tommy Steele. Tommy Steele is generally recognised as the first true British rock n’ roll star, although his music was a pale copy of the original American music beginning to be heard on the conservative BBC. Steele was born in the rough South London area of Bermondsey (just a few hundred yards from Max Bygraves - and me!) and, from the beginning like many early stars saw his future in variety and musical theatre. “Rockin’ At The 2is” - Wee Willie Harris. Harris (another one from Bermondsey! ) was, like many from the era, a minimally talented chancer who saw the opportunity for fame in copying American rock n’ roll stars for a moment of stardom. This 1957 song is included here for its reference to the 2is, a coffee bar in Soho where virtually every British rock n’ roll and skiffle star, from Cliff Richard downwards, was discovered. “My Old Man’s A Dustman” - Lonnie Donegan. Lonnie Donegan was arguably the 50s musician who had the most influence on British rock, with artists such as Van Morrison, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Mark Knopfler and Richard Thompson paying tribute to the impact his music had on their early careers. Donegan was born in Glasgow but moved to East London when he was 2. He was instrumental in launching the skiffle craze with ‘Rock Island Line’ and later moved more towards a variety career (a common theme) exemplified by this particular selection. “Pop Goes The Weasel” - Anthony Newley. Another East London boy, Newley had a varied career ranging from acting to singing to composing and had a number of chart hits including this jazzy take on the old children’s rhyme, which includes several references to London such as ‘in and out of the Eagle’ which is believed to refer to a pub in City Road. “Walking Back To Happiness” - Helen Shapiro. Helen Shapiro was a child star whose stardom coincided with the rise of The Beatles. Their first nationwide tour was as her support act. She too came from the East End of London and was only 14 when she had her first hit, featuring her surprisingly deep and mature voice. This song was her third hit, reaching number one in October 1961 when she was 15. “Diamonds” - Jet Harris & Tony Meehan. Jet Harris was the original bass player with The Shadows, backing group to Cliff Richard. Cliff gave Jet the first Fender bass guitar in the UK (as well as giving the first Fender Stratocaster to Shadows’ lead guitarist, Hank Marvin). Jet Harris was one of the original ‘bad boys’ of British rock and his career eventually sank into alcoholism and violent behaviour. This instrumental track was made with former Shadows’ drummer Tony Meehan and was a number one hit in early 1963. Jimmy Page plays rhythm guitar in his first major session. “I’ll Never Get Over You” - Johnny Kidd & The Pirates. ‘Shaking All Over’ (1960) was Johnny Kidd’s biggest hit and very influential. The group’s lineup unusually featured only one guitar and was said to have influenced later groups such as The Who and Led Zeppelin. This 1963 hit was more a response to the rise of Merseybeat, after which the hits tailed away. “Picture Of You” - Joe Brown & The Bruvvers. Although described as a ‘chirpy cockney’, Joe Brown was born in Lincolnshire but moved to London aged 2. He had a number of appealing hits in the early 60s with his band The Bruvvers, of which this is one. He was a close friend of George Harrison (George was Joe’s best man at his second wedding). Brown played a memorable ukelele version of ‘I’ll See You In My Dreams’ at the Concert For George following Harrison’s death in 2001. “London Is Behind Me” - Justin Hayward. An obscure 1965 folky solo single by future Moody Blue, Justin Hayward. ‘London is behind me and I'm stuck out on the motor way, Two lifts this morning they were both going my way,  I don't care if the sun never shines,  I've got love and where she is you will find me’. “Glad All Over” - Dave Clark Five. The Dave Clark Five were an early part of The British Invasion and promoted themselves as the ‘Tottenham Sound’ in a failed attempt to compete with Merseybeat. The group’s leader, Dave Clark, still owns the rights to the legendary pop TV show, ‘Ready Steady Go’. “The Thoughts Of Emerlist Davjack” - The Nice. One of those epic 60s singles by psychedelic group, The Nice, led by Keith Emerson (later to form Emerson, Lake & Palmer. The band attained some notoriety through burning the American flag at the Royal Albert Hall during a performance of Leonard Bernstein’s ‘America’ for which they were banned. “From The Underworld” - The Herd. A South London band, The Herd had a 1967 hit with this terrific slice of 60s pop - part of the soundtrack to ‘Swinging London’. The band’s most famous member, Peter Frampton, joined when he was just 16. “Waterloo Sunset” - The Kinks. Named as the ‘Anthem of London’ by Time Out magazine, it was just impossible to leave this song out of this collection. It was claimed to be based on the romance between actors Terence Stamp (the ‘Terry’ in the song) and Julie Christie but Ray Davies later claimed that it was a fantasy about his sister and her boyfriend who were planning to emigrate. “Lazy Sunday” - The Small Faces. This song has a traditional cockney music-hall feel and was inspired by Steve Marriott’s feuds with his neighbours. “London Boys” - David Bowie. Originally released as a B side to “Rubber Band”, a single taken from Bowie’s first, self-titled album, the song is really an observation of the London mod scene at the time. Bowie was heavily influenced by Anthony Newley at the time, as well as Ray Davies and The Beatles’ Edwardian whimsy. “My White Bicycle” - Tomorrow. Often cited as the first British psychedelic single. Tomorrow were a fixture at London’s famous UFO club and producer Joe Boyd described hearing the band there as the apotheosis of the 60s UK underground (he later went on to title his book, ‘My White Bicycle’). “Notting Hill Gate” - Quintessence. Quintessence were the, er, quintessential hippy band, formed in Notting Hill. They were a fixture on John Peel’s radio shows at the time and played a mixture of jazz, psychedelia, rock and Indian music. The song starts with the sounds of someone lighting a spliff. “Painter Man” - Creation. One of many bands to make the transition from mid 60s ‘beat group’ to psychedelic rock band, The Creation came from the northern suburbs of London and were probably most famous for the use of a violin bow on the lead guitar by Eddie Phillips, predating the use of the technique by Jimmy Page. “Out Of Time” - Chris Farlowe. Chris Farlowe, from Islington in North London, recorded five singles written by the Rolling Stones of which this was his biggest hit. He was signed to Andrew Loog Oldham’s Immediate record label. Later in his career he joined jazz rock band Colosseum. “Ride A White Swan” - T.Rex. No collection of London music would be complete without a mention of Marc Bolan. Mark Feld (his real name) was a London mod in the early 60s and demonstrated a knack for frequently recreating his image by forming the acoustic hippy duo, Tyrannosaurus Rex, also changing his name to Bolan (supposedly a contraction of Bob Dylan). The duo made a name for themselves on the scene but had limited chart success until Bolan decided to ‘go electric’, shortening the band’s name to T.Rex. This first hit single still carries echoes of Bolan’s hippy past, however, with several mythological references in the lyrics. T.Rex went on to have a very successful career as a glam-rock band until Bolan’s premature death in a car crash in 1977.

“At The Chime Of A City Clock” - Nick Drake. Nick Drake was not a Londoner (born in Burma before moving back to England with his family, aged 2) but most of his professional career was in London before his tragic death aged 26. A number of his songs, like this one, made reference to London (see ‘Mayfair’ later on in this collection). “Spooky” - Dusty Springfield. Dusty Springfield was born in West Hampstead. This great version of the Classics IV hit flipped the gender in the lyrics to fine effect. “Gasoline Alley” - Rod Stewart. Rod Stewart was born in Highgate, North London and dabbled in various musical ventures (folk, skiffle, blues) as well as a succession of dead-end jobs. He eventually became a mod and formed the image that stays with him to the present day. This is from his second solo album and, as with his debut, involves his bandmates from the Faces. “Mayfair” - Millie. Millie Small was born in Jamaica but was brought over to London by Island record boss, Chris Blackwell, who also became her legal guardian. Her big hit was ‘My Boy Lollipop’ but this ska version of Nick Drake’s ‘Mayfair’ comes from her 1970 covers LP, ‘Time Will Tell’. The instrumental arrangements are by Robert Kirby, responsible for the string arrangements on Nick Drake’s ‘Five Leaves Left’ and ‘Bryter Later’ albums. “Streets Of London” - Ralph McTell. This is probably one of the most performed songs by London buskers, for obvious reasons, and comes from the 1971 album ‘You Well Meaning Brought Me Here’. The album involved musicians such as Mike Vickers (Manfred Mann) and Rick Wakeman (Yes). He took his stage name from country blues singer, Blind Willie McTell. “Baker Street” - Gerry Rafferty. Taken from Gerry Rafferty’s second solo album, ‘City To City’, after he left his previous band Stealers Wheel, famous for ‘Stuck In The Middle With You’. The sax line was played by Raphael Ravenscroft, despite an urban myth that it was played by TV quiz show presenter, Bob Holness. In fact, the sax line comes from ‘Half A Heart’ on Steve Marcus’s 1968 album, ‘Tomorrow Never Knows’, credited to Gary Burton. “Cruel To Be Kind” - Nick Lowe. Sometimes known as ‘The Bard of Brentford’, this is a great single from Nick Lowe’s second album, ‘Labour Of Lust’. His musical career started in 1967 with the band Kippington Lodge and he then moved on to Brinsley Schwarz before joining Rockpile with Dave Edmunds. Nick is still making great records in the autumn of his career. “London Calling’ - The Clash. Difficult to leave this one off a London collection. The Clash had their origins in a number of London bands from the pub rock and protopunk scene. “I Don’t Want To Go To Chelsea” - Elvis Costello & The Attractions. Elvis Costello was another Londoner who came to prominence during the punk years. His father was a trumpeter and vocalist with the popular Joe Loss Orchestra. This song is from the ‘This Year’s Model’ album. “Reasons To Be Cheerful, Part Three” - Ian Dury & The Blockheads. Ian Dury was a quintessential Londoner and his songs with his band, The Blockheads, are full of references to London life. This 1979 song is a ‘list’ song and included in the lyrics are references to the Hammersmith Palais, Wee Willie Harris (see track above), Piccadilly Circus, film actor Bonar Colleano (see ‘Pool Of London’), not to mention ‘John Coltrane’s soprano’. “Gertcha” - Chas & Dave. Chas & Dave were a pair of session musicians who performed a sort of pub-based, singalong, music hall style briefly known as ‘Rockney’. Their session background is considerable - working with Joe Meek, backing Jerry Lee Lewis, Cliff Bennett & The Rebel Rousers etc. They backed Labi Siffre on his song ‘I Got The’, the hook of which is used on Eminem’s ‘My Name Is’. I’ll overlook the fact that Chas & Dave are prominent supporters of Tottenham Hotspur F.C. “Don’t Turn Around” - Aswad. Aswad were a London reggae group, first generation descendants of Caribbean immigrants. This version of Diane Warren and Albert Hammond’s original song went to number one in the UK in 1988. “Street Tuff” - Rebel MC & Double Trouble. By 1989, hip hop was starting to influence the black London music scene and Rebel MC (real name Michael West) formed Double Trouble and made this number 3 hit. Rebel MC then completely changed course towards the emerging jungle and ragga scenes and eventually changed his name to Conquering Lion and then Congo Natty. “Rush” - Big Audio Dynamite. Originally formed in 1984 around former Clash member, Mick Jones, Big Audio Dynamite combined hip hop, punk, reggae and dance and had some brief chart success. ‘Rush’ was their biggest hit and was made by the second version of the band with Jones as the only original member. “West End Girls” - Pet Shop Boys. Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe were northern boys but this song (a hit in 1985) is based on London life and the accompanying video shows the duo at various London locations. The lyrics, by music journalist Tennant, were partly based on T.S. Eliot’s ‘The Waste Land’. “Back To Life” - Soul II Soul. Soul II Soul started out as a sound system founded by Jazzie B and featuring their own fashion line, Funki Dred. When they eventually recorded their mix of hip hop and funk influences was very influential, particularly the drum rhythm on this song which hit the charts in 1989. “Soho Square” - Kirsty MacColl. Kirsty MacColl was the daughter of folk singer Ewan MacColl. Probably best known for her collaboration with The Pogues on their Christmas hit, ‘Fairy Tale of New York’, her solo work is very rewarding and particularly this song from her ‘Titanic Days’ album. Kirsty was tragically killed in a power boat accident in December, 2000. A bench in Soho Square is dedicated to her. “Mario’s Cafe” - Saint Etienne. Saint Etienne are a trio originally formed by Bob Stanley and Pete Wiggs, two music journalists, and were formed as part of the indie-dance scene in 1990 with the addition of vocalist, Sarah Cracknell. According to The Times they ‘deftly fused the grooviness of Swinging Sixties London with a post - acid house backbeat’. They have a particular affinity with London life and a number of their songs and albums are based around the less romantic areas of the capital. Like this one, centred around a scruffy cafe in Kentish Town and a love affair. “London” - Noonday Underground. Sort of retro-pop for a London that has never stopped swinging, this band was named after a book on mod culture by Tom Wolfe. This song comes from the 2000 album, ‘Self Assembly’. “NW5” - Madness. This is a 2008 song by long-running North London band, Madness, from their album ‘The Liberty Of Norton Folgate’ (a corner of East London that until 1900 was semi-independent). Madness first came to the fore in the late 70s as part of the 2-Tone ska revival. “LDN” - Lily Allen. And so we come, if not up to date then nearly with this 2006 hit by actress and singer, Lily Allen, which describes a cheerful - on the surface at least - bicycle journey through London. “A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square” - Anne Shelton. Recorded with Ambrose and His Orchestra, this beautiful 1940s version brings this collection to an end.

Links in comments